Supreme PetFoods has published a series of rabbit lectures for veterinary surgeons and nurses by world-renowned experts.

The lectures, which were held at London Vet Show last year, covered a variety of topics in rabbit medicine and surgery, including dental disease, digestive disorders, calcium metabolism, urinary disease and 'sticky bottom' syndrome. The round table of case-based discussions also provided an opportunity for the audience to have their questions answered by rabbit specialists and discuss the complexities of some example cases.

Claire Hamblion, Marketing Manager at Supreme Petfoods said: "The success of Think Rabbit Month really highlighted that raising awareness and expanding rabbit-related expertise is becoming increasingly important for vets. However, in comparison to cats and dogs, specialist information is less widely available - even though rabbits can often be the trickiest patients! This is why we're so thrilled to able to make contemporary thinking from world-class specialists available at the click of a few buttons."

In addition to the lectures, vets and nurses also have access to an array of free Supreme support materials including a series of professional waiting room videos and a variety of downloadable practice documents, available at http://www.supremepetfoods.com/vet-zone/.

Expert speaker, Molly Varga, BVetMed DZooMed MRCVS,RCVS Specialist in Zoo and Wildlife Medicine, whose lecture was entitled, 'Rabbits and Calcium: how much is too much?'said: "With current concepts in rabbit medicine and surgery rapidly evolving, access to convenient, concise and cutting edge information is crucial for the whole veterinary team. The only way this is possible is through initiatives such as this seminar series, which drives our knowledge and expertise forwards."

Other speakers in the seminar series included, Charly Pignon DVM (pictured right), Head of the Exotics Medicine Service at the Centre Hospitalier Universitaire Vétérinaire d'Alfort in France, Professor Anna Meredith MA VetMB CertLAS DZooMed MRCVS, Livia Benato MRCVS, Lecturer in Rabbit and Exotic animal Husbandry and Nutrition and Wendy Bament RVN BSc (Hons) MSc, Exotic Animal Veterinary Nurse.

Claire added: "Not only are these specialists regarded as academic leaders in their profession but they are also renowned successful speakers, which makes for superb presentations. The watch-again capability of the online seminars makes it easy for vets and nurses to dip in and out at their leisure, gaining maximum value for minimum effort."

New research published in Epidemiology and Infection (Cambridge University Press) reveals that direct contact between badgers and cattle is rare, suggesting that it may be rare for bovine tuberculosis (TB) to be passed on through the two species meeting each other on pasture.

For the research, which was conducted by the Royal Veterinary College and the Food and Environment Research Agency, researchers investigated direct and indirect interactions between badgers and cattle by fitting automated high-tech proximity loggers to animals and placing base stations at badger latrines located on pasture, in an area of south-west England with a high-density badger population, over a period of 12-months.

Direct interactions (within 1.4 metres) between badgers and cows at pasture were very rare, with only four out of over 500,000 animal-to-animal contacts recorded between the two species.

Indirect interactions (visits to badger latrines) were far more frequent than direct contacts, with 400 visits by badgers and 1700 visits by cattle recorded. This suggests that indirect contacts might be more important than direct in terms of disease transmission at pasture.

During the study half of the badgers tested positive for TB, however the infection status of individual badgers did not affect the frequency or duration of their visits to latrines located on pasture grazed by cattle.

Bovine tuberculosis  caused by infection with Mycobacterium bovis is endemic in cattle in parts of England and Wales and its control is hindered by the presence of infection in the European badger. While M. bovis is clearly transmitted between cattle and badgers, it is has not previously been known where, when or how often transmission occurs.

Dr Julian Drewe from the Royal Veterinary College who led the study, said: "Our findings reveal that direct contacts between badgers and cattle at pasture are surprisingly rare, despite ample opportunity for interactions to occur, suggesting that the two species may be ignoring or even actively avoiding one another. The study was conducted in an area with a high badger population, so it is likely that such direct contact will be even less frequent in areas of the country where there are fewer badgers.

"Indirect visits by both species to badger latrines were significantly more common than direct contacts between badgers and cattle, which suggests that these represent the more typical nature of interspecies contact. Future research aiming to quantify TB risk to cattle from badgers might be best to focus on indirect contacts occurring at latrines and on contacts occurring away from pasture, for example in farm buildings.

"This clearly has disease management implications, and more work is now needed in this area to look at how such contact can be limited, to reduce the number of cases of bovine TB in the future."

CarefreeCredit, the vet-run company we reported on back in October, has announced that it is working with its 600th practice in offering its interest-free or low-interest credit to clients that find themselves unable to pay for unforeseen veterinary treatment.

Stewart Halperin MRCVS, Managing Director of CarefreeCredit said: “2014 has been an incredibly busy but successful year for us. We’ve increased the take up of our service by over 500%, we have proudly cemented our partnerships within the corporate and buying groups and most importantly, we have become established enough to make a substantial difference to the pets and pet owners who rely on the help our service provides.”

Stewart added: “We know 2015 is going to be an even bigger year for us, with even more practices joining our system and the introduction of dependable and innovative business support services that will continue to save our practices time and money and help them increase sales and reduce debtors. With this in mind, we are introducing a very small monthly charge to cover our increased costs in software, training and office support services.”

From the New Year, practices that join Carefree Credit will be charged a flat rate of £10 per month for the duration of their membership. The £10 monthly fee covers support for FCA applications, unlimited training in-practice or online, use of the CarefreeCredit unique platform, CarefreeCredit office support, and point of sale materials. Practices that sign up before January 1st, will continue their membership without charge until at least January 2016.

For further information, visit: carefreecredit.co.uk or ring 0203 697 8439.

Training-Progress has produced a free presentation for practices that are Practice Standards Scheme (PSS)-accredited or working towards PSS accreditation, to promote the scheme to the practice team.

The presentation comes in the form of an editable Powerpoint presentation which can be downloaded from www.training-progress.com (visit 'downloads').

Laura Shaw from Training-Progress said: "Most of our clients are PSS accredited practices. Getting the practice accredited is a great achievement and the whole team should be aware of this and ‘singing it from the roof tops’. The resource outlines why PSS is good for the practice, the clients, the patients and the practice team - helping team members to promote it."

Training-Progress is a training management system and communication tool to support a practice through PSS accreditation. It includes features such as ensuring processes are in place; sharing information; implementing change in processes and reporting systems which provide evidence for accreditation and allow concentration of training resources. 

The RSPCA has released the latest figures showing the extent of cruelty to animals in the UK.  

In 2007, they show a:

• 34% increase in convictions for cruelty to dogs (1,197 in 2007)
• 15% increase in convictions for cruelty to cats (277 in 2007)
• 12% increase in RSPCA cruelty investigations (137,245 in 2007) and a
• 26% increase in banning orders1 issued by the courts (861 in 2007).

"These animals are the helpless victims of our affluent, throwaway society," says Tim Wass, Chief Officer of the RSPCA Inspectorate.  "They're bought on a whim and discarded when the novelty wears off.  Today's must-have item quickly turns into tomorrow's cast-off.

"Worse still," added Tim, "some animals are violently abused because they don't meet their owners' unrealistic expectations: like the cat kicked to death for having muddy paws or the dog strangled with its lead for misbehaving."

But the year RSPCA reports that there has been good news too, with the success of the new Animal Welfare Act already starting to take effect.  The new Act - which came into force during 2007 - has made it possible to take action sooner than ever before in situations where there are animal welfare concerns.

The Act is already producing powerful results in its first twelve months.  Where animal welfare concerns have prompted the RSPCA to give advice to an animal owner, that advice was followed and the problems resolved 92% of the time, meaning that no further action was necessary.   Tim said: "Even in these early days, the benefits of the new law are clear. Without the new Act, this year's cruelty figures could have been even more horrific."

He added: "Dogs have always borne the brunt of cruelty - from violent outbursts to extreme neglect.  But that's what makes this year's horrendous 34% increase even more shocking: it's a massive increase on an already high figure."

It was hoped that last year's leap in convictions for cruelty to horses was an anomaly.  But this year's figures show that the higher numbers have been maintained - they increased by 33% between 2005 and 2006 - and then increased by a further 13% to 119 in 2007.

The rise in banning orders is a big improvement on the previous year, which had actually recorded a fall.  The new Animal Welfare Act obliges courts to explain their reasons if they don't impose a ban and this may have contributed to the increase.  The new requirement seems to have focussed attention on preventative action which can prevent suffering and save lives.

Tim said: "The main reason we take people to court is to prevent cruelty being repeated. It's very reassuring to see the courts taking this seriously by issuing more and more banning orders, which prevent those convicted of cruelty from keeping animals in future."

Cat Professional is carrying out a survey to assess the use of Zylkène in cats with idiopathic cystitis (FIC), and is looking for owners whose cats are using the treatment to complete an online survey.

Zylkène is a nutritional supplement which has been reported to have positive effects in managing stress in cats and dogs. Zylkène is commonly used for reduction of stress in cats with FIC.

Veterinary practices that agree to help Cat Professional recruit clients whose FIC cats are receiving Zylkène will receive:

• A print copy of our book 'Caring for a cat with lower urinary tract disease' by Dr Sarah Caney and Professor Danièlle Gunn-Moore  
• A supply of flyers to hand out to owners eligible to participate in the survey. The flyer will explain the purpose of the survey and how owners can access it. In return for completing the survey, owners will receive a complimentary electronic copy of our book on FLUTD.

On completion of the survey, participants will receive a free electronic copy of the book 'Caring for a cat with lower urinary tract disease'.

For more information on the study, please visit our website: http://www.catprofessional.com.

The survey is accessible from the home page or directly at http://www.catprofessional.com/urinary-survey.html

Bob Martin has launched FleaClear (fipronil) for cats and dogs, which will be sold through multiple retailers and leading pet retailers for as little as £4.50 per treatment.

The company says it is backing the launch with 'considerable marketing spend', which will include TV advertising, a press campaign in women's consumer lifestyle titles, PR and social media campaigns.

According to the company's press release:  "Not only is it cheaper than Frontline it can be bought off the shelf saving a costly visit to the vets."

Indeed. Not to mention the savings to be made by not having to hospitalise the permethrined cat.

The National Office of Animal Health (NOAH) and the International Federation for Animal Health Europe (IFAH) have welcomed the European Commission's publication of proposals for revised legislation concerning veterinary medicines and medicated feed earlier today.

The EC says the proposals are designed to increase the availability of veterinary medicines, reduce administrative burden, stimulate competitiveness and innovation, improve the functioning of the internal market and address the issue of antimicrobial resistance.

NOAH says that currently, the manufacturers of veterinary medicines struggle with a regulatory system with some serious flaws, including:

• A highly segmented internal market and regulatory framework characterised by high product development and licence maintenance costs, limiting availability particularly in smaller markets and for minor species,
• Insufficient protection of intellectual property which stifles investment in innovation,
• A disproportionately high administrative burden which diverts funds and expertise away from new product development and risks depriving animals of modern medicines and treatment options.

NOAH chief executive Phil Sketchley said: "NOAH will be looking at the detail of the texts in the coming days and weeks, and reviewing their potential impact. We look forward to working with the VMD, who have called stakeholder workshops to examine the texts. We will also be supporting our European federation IFAH-Europe as they work determinedly with the European institutions over the coming years to support the Commission's vision for a more efficient regulatory system for veterinary medicines in Europe.

"We believe the value our industry brings to society is very high, despite being quite a small sector. For example, veterinary medicines benefit public health by preventing zoonotic disease and supporting food security.

"With synergies with our own UK Government's commitment to reduce unnecessary red tape, which is a key theme for DEFRA, the animal health industry in Europe needs greater efficiency to cut the red tape for our industry. We look forward to a streamlined registration process which delivers a single European marketing authorisation for all veterinary medicines.

"We will also be considering if the text has any particular implications for the UK animal health market and access to medicines for our animals."

NOAH says it also welcomes the revised medicated feed legislation. Phil Sketchley said: "NOAH believes this is an important route for administering prescription medicines to animals. We will work to help ensure the legislation is capable of maintaining and strengthening this route."

Pfizer is giving away a free equine weigh tape with every purchase of Equest & Equest Pramox (while stocks last), to help encourage accurate treatment against encysted small redworms this season.

According to the company, Equest & Equest Pramox are the only wormers in the UK that treat encysted small redworm in a single dose. Using a weigh tape to work out their horse's weight will help your clients avoid under dosing, which increases the risk of resistance development.

Pfizer says small redworms are the most common worms found in horses today. They can pose a very serious health risk to horses and it's important for owners to make sure that they are treated properly during the autumn or early winter.

Small redworms can grow up to 2.5cm in length and are thin and reddish in colour. Small redworm eggs are passed in the faeces and then hatch on pasture and continue to develop into more advanced larval stages before being ingested by the horse as it grazes. The larvae burrow deeply into the wall of the gut where they encyst and may account for up to 90% of the redworm burden in the horse¹. Encysted small redworm will not show up in a Faecal Worm Egg Count - even if the horse has shown a negative or low count it could still be harbouring several million encysted small redworms².

Encysted small redworms can remain dormant inside a horse for up to two years, but they usually 'wake-up' in late winter or early spring, developing and emerging from the gut wall all at the same time. In severe infestations mass emergence can lead to a disease syndrome known as 'larval cyathostominosis', causing diarrhoea and colic with up to a 50% mortality rate³. Young horses of less than six years of age can often be at higher risk of the disease³ but small redworm can cause life-threatening illness at any time of year and in any age of horse.

Ben Gaskell, Pfizer's veterinary adviser said: "Treating encysted small redworms successfully in the late autumn or early winter is important to avoid the risk of larval cyathostominosis. It's important to advise your customers to choose a product that is licensed to treat the worms they are targeting and that they give the correct dose, by weighing their horse beforehand, as this will help preserve the efficacy of the drug used."

Pfizer's Does your wormer measure up campaign is backed with point of sale materials and a media campaign. To receive a free weigh tape, valued at £7 your clients need to buy a tube of Equest or Equest Pramox, fill in an application form and send Pfizer the batch and expiry flap from the pack. Pfizer will then send them a FREE Weigh Tape while stocks last.

For further information contact your Pfizer Account Manager.

References

1. Bairden K. et al (2001) Veterinary Record 148, 138-141
2. Dowdall S.M.J. et al (2002) Veterinary Parasitology 106, 225‑242
3. McWilliam H. et al (2010) International Journal for Parasitology 40, 265-275

Boehringer Ingelheim Vetmedica has launched a new Canikur Pro website - www.canikurpro.co.uk - to provide pet owners with advice on digestive upset and offer a quick reference guide to using Canikur Pro.

The site offers information about the common causes of digestive upset, including dietary indiscretions, stress due to a change in circumstances and underlying gut problems.

The site also contains information about how Canikur Pro works, how to give the product and where to buy it, plus tips for supporting the recovery of a dog's gut health such as providing a constant supply of fresh water, offering a bland diet and providing access to outside areas to reduce accidents.

In addition, the site contains a 'veterinary only' area where veterinary professionals can download client materials.

Britain's leading equestrian organisations are conducting a survey to find out more about the welfare standards in livery yards. 
 
Livery yards are very popular in the UK for those people who are unable to keep their horses and ponies at home. However, there is no record of how many horses are currently at livery or indeed the number of operating yards and the welfare standards under which they operate. 
 
Representatives from the British Equine Veterinary Association (BEVA), World Horse Welfare, The British Horse Society, RSPCA, Association of British Riding Schools, South Essex Insurance Brokers (who currently insure a total of 8,562 DIY and livery stables), and for local government LACORS and CIEH, set up a working party to carry out some research into UK livery yards to become better informed about standards.   The group took the view that asking vets and the public about their local livery yard would help to obtain information about the number of yards and get a general picture of the range and standard of accommodation and services that livery yards offer. 
 
Veterinary surgeons, horse owners, grooms, yard owners, farriers and other equine professionals are invited to complete the online survey at http://www.liveryyardsurvey.co.uk/.   Please complete a survey for each livery yard about which you have first hand knowledge. Your answers will remain confidential, and the results will be reviewed in September 2008 to establish what further action, if any, is necessary.