Medovate, a company which develops medical technologies, has partnered with Vygon Vet to launch Safira, an anaesthetic device which makes regional anaesthesia a one-person procedure. 

In current regional anaesthesia procedures two operators are often needed, with an assistant using 'feel' to inject the anaesthetic solution at the required pressure. This, says the company, means anaesthetic solutions can be injected at unsafe pressures. The new device incorporates a safety system that limits injection pressure, to reduce the risk of nerve injury. 

Dr. Federico Corletto, Consultant Anaesthetist from Dick White Referrals said: “By turning regional anaesthesia into a one-person procedure, the technology also removes the challenges of communicating with an assistant regarding subjective injective pressure feel, thus removing the unpredictability of an untrained hand.” 

Medovate says the use of ultrasound guided regional anaesthesia is becoming more common practice today, with the technique – which can help provide a higher level of visualisation for the practitioner – increasingly seen as a ‘gold standard’.  

However, there are limitations and challenges that are not always present in the practice of adult human medicine. Nerve parathesia, for instance, is harder to ascertain in animals. Small animals such as cats also have increased sensitivity to local anaesthetics when compared with other species, necessitating much lower maximum doses be used.¹

Brett Hughes, Homecare & Veterinary Business Manager at Vygon UK, said: "The device infuses at 0.5ml/second, and to vets the technology offers a valuable tool that can control injection small intervals at a time. This allows the veterinary practitioner to titrate appropriately to see the anaesthesia spread around a nerve bundle.  

"There are a significant number of regional anaesthesia blocks completed in veterinary practice per annum globally, so potentially this NHS developed device could play a major role in the future of veterinary practice."

For more information, visit: https://www.medovate.co.uk/veterinary/safira-for-veterinary-applications and https://www.vygonvet.co.uk/ 

Reference

1. https://www.asra.com/asra-news/article/124/regional-anesthesia-and-pain-management 

The British Veterinary Zoological Society (BVZS) has issued new guidelines for veterinary surgeons working in the field of British native wildlife rescue and rehabilitation.

The guidelines are designed to support veterinary surgeons, veterinary nurses and wildlife rehabilitators, in order to promote and achieve the best possible care and welfare for indigenous British wild animals in accordance with UK law.

The Society says that guidelines are needed because:

• All veterinary surgeons in practice are at some point likely to be presented with injured or orphaned British wildlife.
• Full care to the point of successful release of suitable cases back to the wild requires good collaborative working relationships between veterinary professionals and wildlife rehabilitators.
• Wildlife casualties are covered by the Veterinary Surgeons Act and Veterinary Medicines Regulations. Therefore veterinary surgeons and nurses have legal as well as ethical responsibilities for the care of these animals.
• Wildlife carers and rehabilitators also have responsibilities, and may benefit from clarification of these at the interface between veterinary medicine and general animal care.
• Failure to fulfil these responsibilities may lead to action by the RCVS, as well as prosecution under the Animal Welfare Act, 2006 or other wildlife legislation.

Mark Stidworthy, BVZS President (pictured above right), said: "The rescue and rehabilitation of wildlife by veterinary surgeons and wildlife professionals is highly valued by the British public, making a positive contribution to local communities, the health and welfare of individual animals and to conservation. We hope these guidelines will inform best practice in this area and ensure its continued success."

Theresa Amory, Chair of the British Wildlife Rehabilitation Council (BWRC) said: "BWRC aims to support and promote the professional integrity of wildlife rehabilitators. While we recognise that meeting all of these guidelines may be difficult (particularly for smaller scale rehabilitators) we hope that they will enable rehabilitators to work alongside veterinary partners with increased awareness and confidence in their own working policies and procedures."

Michael Stanford, BVZS Senior Vice President, Veterinary Defence Society Claims Consultant said: "The BVZS Wildlife Guidelines should ensure all stakeholders involved with wildlife rehabilitation are acting in the best interests of animal welfare, with the added reassurance that they are acting in accordance with UK law."

Liz Mullineaux, veterinary surgeon and one of the authors of the guidelines said: "Working with British wildlife has always been challenging, for both vets and rehabilitators, in terms of what is ethical, legal and of an adequate clinical standard. These guidelines clarify many of those things, describing best practice and achievable standards for this area of work."

The guidelines can be downloaded from: http://www.bvzs.org/images/uploads/BVZS_Good_Practice_Guidelines_for_Wildlife_Centres_011016_.pdf 

Willows Veterinary Centre in Solihull now offers keyhole surgery to treat intrahepatic shunts – abnormal connections between veins – inside the livers of dogs.

Instead of conducting major open surgery, Chris Shales, an RCVS and European Specialist in Small Animal Surgery, Andrew Kent, a European Specialist in Internal Medicine, and the cardiology team at Willows are using coil embolization, a minimally invasive technique which they say is far safer and less likely to lead to post-operative complications.

The procedure involves threading tiny coils, via the jugular vein, through the venous system and positioning them in the blood vessel that needs to be closed. The coils encourage the blood to form a clot and so, over time, seal the vein.

Chris said: "This procedure of treating intrahepatic portosystemic shunts is associated with a lower risk of mortality and a lower surgical morbidity rate when comparted to open surgery. The overall outcome of the two approaches is similar in terms of reduction of flow through the shunt vessel.  

"Access is gained via a small incision in the neck to allow the team to operate on the liver via the jugular vein using fluoroscopy to visualise the placement of a stent within the vena cava and embolization coils within the abnormal vessel.

"Intrahepatic shunts can be extremely challenging for the surgical team to access with the result that standard, open surgical treatment of these abnormal vessels can risk life-threatening complications and animals can require a significant time to recover."

For more information about shunt surgery at Willows, contact Chris Shales or Small Animal Internal Medicine Specialist Andrew Kent on 0121 712 7070 or email enquiries@willows.uk.net. 

Photo: Chris Shales, left, with Andrew Kent, centre, and cardiologist Mike Martin ('pass me a gin and tonic, would you').

Nominations for the President of the British Veterinary Association for 2019/20 are now open and will run until 15 January 2018, with all veterinary surgeons invited to self-nominate or nominate a fellow BVA member with their consent.

The BVA officer team consists of BVA President, Senior Vice President (SVP) and Junior Vice President (JVP).

BVA Officers collectively, and working closely with the Chief Executive and his team, provide leadership to BVA to help ensure the Association fulfils its mission to be the leading body representing, supporting and championing BVA members and the whole UK veterinary profession.

The BVA says it's looking for applications for the next JVP (2018/2019), becoming BVA President in 2019/20, from BVA members:

• in or very recently in clinical practice
• with a background in animal welfare science, ethics and law
• with a thorough understanding/awareness of the current veterinary landscape
• with an understanding of workforce issues, including retention and recruitment, and the professional needs and expectations of recent graduates

Nominations for the next JVP are confidential and will be assessed by the BVA Electoral College, which assesses nominations and formally selects members for election to BVA officer status.

Each officer role (JVP, President, SVP) is for one-year term from BVA’s Annual General Meeting (AGM) in September to the AGM the following September.

Candidates for JVP and President must be elected by the membership at the AGM to serve the coming year. The total commitment is therefore three years as a BVA officer, plus a further three years serving as a past president on BVA Council (four meetings per year).

BVA President John Fishwick said: "As a BVA officer, it is a huge honour to represent the UK’s veterinary profession however it is not simply an ‘honorary role’, particularly during this time of professional, social and political upheaval when BVA is supporting and championing the vital role vets play more than ever before.

"I have been a BVA officer for 15 months now and it is a privilege to be so involved in a profession that is pivotal to animal health and welfare, and public health too. Part of the role is representing the views of our profession clearly and concisely to policymakers, politicians and the media and, although this may seem daunting, you have the full support of the BVA team and are given invaluable training. I would encourage anyone with a passion to promote the value of the veterinary profession, and who is seeking a fulfilling role, to apply to help ensure BVA continues to be a strong voice for our profession."

BVA members who are interested in applying for, or nominating a fellow BVA member with their consent to become part of the BVA officer team, can apply before 9am on 15 January 2018 at www.bva.co.uk/elections   

The BSAVA has shared 18 ways veterinary surgeons can manage time more effectively.

The tips, put together by Tessa Plagis (communication advisor at St. Anna Advies), Alan Robinson (director of VetDynamics) and Rebecca Robinson (coach at VetDynamics and senior clinician in veterinary anaesthesia at the AHT), are being shared to set the scene for Congress 2023, where international experts will be exploring how time management at organisational, systems, teams and an individual levels can lead to drastic improvements in performance, job satisfaction and wellbeing.

The Association points to the demands on the profession caused by the fact that veterinary professionals have been saying 'yes' to everything for years: yes to more clients, more patients and more overtime.

This, says BSAVA, is taking its toll: experienced practitioners and recent graduates are leaving the profession, and many more are suffering mental and physical health issues associated with sustained high stress.

Tessa Plagis, communication advisor at St. Anna Advies, said: “We are at a tipping point and can’t keep doing what we’ve always done. If we want sustainable veterinary businesses going forward we need to change the structure of how we work.”

Tessa says the issues are both organisational and individual: “Many veterinary professionals struggle to give boundaries.

"We are people pleasers and tend to say ‘yes’, even if that means compromising other important aspects of lives, such as family.

"This set against a background of too few vets, which means that there’s nobody to help us out when there’s too much to-do.”

To find out more about time management, book your ticket for BSAVA Congress at: https://www.bsavaevents.com/bsavacongress2023/en/page/home, and in the meantime, here are Tessa, Alan and Rebecca's time management tips. 

Tessa's tips

• Measure what’s happening now. Double appointments, vets running over, late closing time; pinpoint the problem and get insight into its scale by analysing the current situation.
• Measure how long it takes to do routine procedures from start to finish. Is everyone sticking to their roles and fulling utilising their expertise?
• Keep to time in consults by prioritising and not always doing those extras. When a client comes in for a vaccine but also wants you clip claws, empty anal glands and look at a lump, assess which is urgent and what needs to be dealt with in a second appointment. This does need to be a team-wide approach, otherwise you tend to hear ‘but the other vet will do it.’
• Cluster appointments.  For example, have a morning of cat spays rather than bouncing from a dental to a castration to a spay.  It’s more efficient and has the advantage of giving you, and the nursing team, comparable outcomes to monitor, making anomalies easier to spot.
• Learn to say ‘no’. Focus on what is possible, rather than what’s not.  Instead of ‘we’re fully booked today, the next appointment is tomorrow,’ try ‘the next available appointment is tomorrow.’ Don’t rearrange your schedule to fit theirs.  It’s doesn’t work in the long term.
• Introduce firebreaks. A good technique that stems from human medicine accounts for emergencies. Another tip, which requires a team-wide approach.
• Make clients aware of the length of appointments. ‘We’ve booked you in for a 15min appointment at 4pm on Thursday,’ for example.  It sets expectations at the start.

Alan's tips

• Simplify the jobs and their outcomes. In consults, outsource non-clinical elements, to other internal teams. Vets are compassionate and will take on the responsibility for the management of emotions when they don’t have too and without due regard for their own needs.  Compliance is another area which doesn’t necessarily need to fall to the vet.  Multi-functional teams can support and assist, offering an ‘ecosystem of care’.  The financial side of consults can be moved outside of the clinical sphere through pet clubs, insurance and full subscription models.
• Develop efficient systems. Draw from other businesses, lean, six sigma and business design reengineering processes are efficient and proven.  Do things you have to do well, delegate, outsource or automate other elements. Simply stop doing those things you don’t need to do.
• Consider reducing the number of active clients per vet.  We’ve found the optimum is between 500-700.  It means more time with fewer people. While it is hard to say no to the ever-increasing demand, there are ways to develop a strong client base. Healthy pet clubs ensures you’ve clients who are engaged in preventative care and are committed to the well-being of their animals, for example.
  “There’s a lot of work happening in the realm of mental health at the moment,” notes Alan. “But we’re treating stress as an individual problem not an organisational or system one.”

Rebecca's tips

• Set long-term goals for you and your business. One important aspect of effective time management is knowing that you’re achieving the right things.
• Invest in your team. By building a team and using it in a constructive way, I’ve found it’s helped my own time management.  I’ve gone from trying to organise me and my time to realising that by helping others, I can improve my own work life.
• Prioritise your own tasks. By prioritising what I need to do, I can help my team feel more valued and motivated to prioritise what they need to do.  It means we end up with a more productive team.
• Try not to get embroiled into the other’s to-dos. While they might be both important and urgent, it doesn’t necessarily mean that you have to action them. Helping them to do it themselves has made a massive difference to them and me.
• Set SMART goals and boundaries for achieving them. Make sure everybody knows the outcome that you are working towards.  It prevents people from going off in a completely different direction to the one you’re expecting.
• Don’t rely on your head to remember everything. It’s too busy, so write it down. Likewise, draft your case notes at the time of the consultation.
• If it takes less than 2 minutes, just do it. Don’t try and remember the to-do all day, it requires a lot of energy and means you’ll be actioning it when you’re already feeling exhausted.  
• Take time for a little self-care. Rather than trying to keep going until you grind to a halt, make a little time for yourself.  You’ll be more productive overall.

The RCVS Disciplinary Committee has dismissed a case against Duncan Davidson MRCVS, a South London veterinary surgeon accused of clinical failings in relation to his treatment of a cat and of keeping poor and misleading clinical records.

The Committee heard the case against Dr Davidson, who was the sole practitioner and owner of Mitcham Veterinary Clinic until his retirement from clinical practice in November 2014, at a hearing which concluded on 22nd January.

The first charge against Dr Davidson alleged that, between 7 November 2013 and 13 December 2013, he had failed to provide adequate care to Ameira, an Egyptian Mau cat. The charge was in four parts: that he had inappropriately administered corticosteroids; had failed to administer adequate fluid therapy; discharged the cat to its owner suggesting a referral when he should have suggested or arranged a same-day referral; and that he failed to communicate the urgency of referral/ further investigation of the cat’s condition to her owner.

The second charge was that, between 7 November 2013 and 17 January 2014, he dishonestly made retrospective alterations to Ameira’s clinical records and failed to keep clear, accurate and detailed clinical records.

From the outset Dr Davidson, who attended the hearing, did not admit the charges against him and denied that his conduct, if found proven, constituted serious professional misconduct.

A summary of the circumstances of the case were that the cat had been admitted to Dr Davidson’s practice on 8 November 2013 with poor appetite and a piece of thread in its mouth. The cat was later admitted, on 21 November, with dehydration and was diagnosed with a linear foreign body (ie the thread) on 25 November 2013. Dr Davidson continued to treat Ameira with corticosteroids and rehydration fluids at the practice but a second opinion was sought by Ameira’s owner from a nearby veterinary practice. This practice referred the cat to the Royal Veterinary College for treatment. Surgery to remove the linear foreign body was undertaken on 13 December 2013, albeit with a poor prognosis, and Ameira subsequently suffered two cardiac arrests and died on 14 December 2013.

In terms of its findings on the first charge, the Committee heard from an expert witness, Mr Hurst, regarding the use of the corticosteroids which were administered to the cat by Dr Davidson on 22, 27 and 30 November 2013 and 5 and 12 December 2013. Although Mr Hurst said that a minority of veterinary surgeons may have provided corticosteroids when the cat was first presented to Dr Davidson on 8 November; when it was determined by Dr Davidson’s colleague Mr Holden that the cat’s condition was due to it having ingested thread, the use of corticosteroids was inappropriate from then on and would be considered contra-indicated. The Committee found this charge proven.

The Committee did not find the charge against Dr Davidson that he failed to provide adequate fluid therapy proven. When the cat was presented to the practice on 21 November 2013 suffering from dehydration, fluid rehydration was given but not administered intravenously. The Committee concluded that intravenous hydration was not necessary because the clinical records from both Dr Davidson and the Royal Veterinary College indicated that Ameira was only moderately dehydrated.

Regarding the referral of Ameira, the Committee could not be sure that the cat was sufficiently unwell on 23 November that it required immediate referral. Dr Davidson had sent Ameira home with her owner on that date on the basis that she was stable and that he would arrange a referral for her on 25 November. There was conflicting evidence from Dr Davidson and Ameira’s owner on the matter of whether, on 23 November, Ameira’s owner was advised that the cat’s condition was critical or that a referral was urgently required. Dr Davidson accepted that he did not seek to make an urgent referral. The charge was not proven.

Regarding the communication of the urgency for further investigation of Ameira’s condition, the Committee found that there was insufficient evidence to suggest that Dr Davidson did not adequately communicate with Ameira’s owner after the diagnosis of a linear foreign body was made on 25 November. According to Dr Davidson, he explained the risk of further damage to the oesophageal and gastrointestinal tract and offered further radiography. This was strongly contested by Ameira’s owner. However, ultimately the Committee were unable to be satisfied as to which version was correct to the necessary standard of proof required.

Regarding the retrospective amendment of clinical records, the Committee found that although there were some “troubling aspects” about the case, particularly evidence of a telephone call with the RCVS Professional Conduct Department in which Dr Davidson said that no retrospective alterations had been made, it was unable to be satisfied so as to be sure of his motivation for changing the records. His contention was that changes had been made as he was concerned he would be subject to civil litigation by Ameira’s owner. However, the Committee found the charge not proven, also taking into account Dr Davidson’s good character and unblemished professional record over 40 years.

However, the Committee did find that Dr Davidson’s clinical records were illegible. Dr Davidson recognised the poor quality of his handwriting, which the veterinary surgeons to whom Ameira was referred were unable to understand. The Committee found this charge proven.

Taking into account the charges it found proven, the Committee then considered whether they constituted serious professional conduct either individually or cumulatively. Judith Webb, who chaired the Committee and spoke on its behalf, said: "It does not consider that on the facts of this case the administration of corticosteroids amounted to disgraceful misconduct."

She added: "The Committee has already emphasised the importance of making legible handwritten records but it does not consider that the failure to do so in this case amounts to disgraceful misconduct.... The Committee has found that Dr Davidson was wrong to make retrospective entries in this case without making it clear when such alterations were made. The Committee does not consider that in this case the making of those alterations was capable of being disgraceful misconduct. The case is dismissed."

The RCVS has the results of research into why veterinary surgeons and nurses leave the profession, finding that a significant number of vets retire early citing health and wellbeing.

The research took the form of a voluntary survey asking those voluntarily leaving their registers to explain why.

643 veterinary surgeons in the survey were leaving the UK-practising category, mostly to be close to family or friends, whilst 306 were leaving the Register altogether.

The next most common reason for veterinary surgeons leaving the UK-practising category was retirement (23%), most of whom were retiring before the state pension age.

Of those retiring before state pension age, one-third cited health and wellbeing reasons.

Vets were asked to explain in greater detail their decision to leave either the UK-practising category or the Register altogether in free text boxes at the end of the survey.

Those leaving the UK-practising category were most likely to mention health and wellbeing issues, closely followed by issues in the profession such as the demands of working in clinical practice.

A third of the comments left by those leaving the Register altogether mentioned issues to do with RCVS regulation, such as cost and continuing professional development (CPD).

Vicki Bolton, RCVS Research Manager, said: “This data is invaluable to us in understanding the reasons why people choose to leave the RCVS Registers.

“The reasons given don’t always make for easy reading, especially when they are to do with dissatisfaction over the direction the professions are taking, physical and mental health and wellbeing, financial pressures and concerns about regulation and its costs.

“However, it is important to remember that, overall, relatively few veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses leave the professions each year.

"There is no mass exodus from the professions and the numbers joining the UK Register annually well exceed those leaving, as demonstrated by consistent year-on-year increases in the number of veterinary surgeon and veterinary nurse registrants.

“That being said, these results will form an invaluable part of our ongoing work on veterinary workforce and gives the RCVS food for thought about how and where we can better support veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses to stay in the professions rather than leave prematurely.”

https://www.rcvs.org.uk/news-and-views/our-consultations/exit-survey-2022-2024/ 

Photo: AI generated. 

Penmellyn Vets in St Columb Major, Cornwall, has been announced as the winner of VetHelpDirect.com and Any-UK-Vet.co.uk's Best UK Vets 2017 Award.

The Best UK Vets Awards are given to the practices that accumulate the largest number of positive reviews from clients on vethelpdirect.com and any-uk-vet.co.uk over the course of the year.

Penmellyn Vets achieved 839 positive ratings; 200 more than their nearest rivals, reflecting the tremendous level of engagement they have with their clients, something which also shone through in the sentiments expressed in their client reviews.

Penmellyn Vets is an independent practice owned by six veterinary surgeons, who are all based in Cornwall. They have been providing veterinary care to the pets and horses of Cornwall for over 130 years. They still cover their own out of hours’ care and their services include preventative healthcare packages for their cat and dog-owning clients, ‘LifeCare’ and ‘LifeCare+’. The latter grants clients access to unlimited vet and nurse consultations 6 days a week – something that is currently only offered by Penmellyn Vets in Cornwall.

Philip Harris, one of the partners at Penmellyn Vets said: "We are absolutely delighted to have won this award and want to say thank you to each and every one of our clients who took the time to leave a review. And my thanks to the Penmellyn staff for their hard work and commitment to providing the outstanding customer service that has been recognised by this award. I couldn’t be more proud of them. We’re an independent practice and very traditional in many ways, so I think as we’ve grown as a group, with a goal of excellence always in patient care, our values have kept us grounded and very client-centric. We look forward to celebrating the award with our team at the awards ceremony in the coming weeks."

Blacks Vets in Dudley were awarded the Silver award after receiving a very commendable 620 qualifying client reviews.

Tracey Jewkes, Managing Director, said: "We are delighted to have been awarded Silver in the Best UK Vet 2017 Award and would like to take this opportunity to send a heartfelt thank you to our wonderful clients for voting for us again this year. Our consistency at the top of this award for the past 3 years is a reflection of both the calibre and heart Team Blacks give to pets, clients and each other year after year. We could not be more proud of each and every team member here, nor could we feel more privileged to take great care of so many much loved pets in our local community."

Inglis Veterinary Hospital in Dunfermline, Scotland received 358 qualifying reviews and received the Bronze award. They also went on to win the Best Scottish Vet Award 2017.

The full list of winners is:

• Penmellyn Vets St Columb Major
• Blacks Vets - Dudley Hospital
• Dunfermline Inglis Veterinary Hospital
• Blacks Vets - Lye Surgery
• St George's Vets - Wolverhampton Hospital
• Blacks Vets - Oldbury Surgery
• Blacks Vets - Sedgley Surgery
• Heathside Veterinary Surgery
• Manor Veterinary Centre - Halesowen Hospital
• Penmellyn Vets Newquay
• Blacks Vets - Quinton Surgery
• Penmellyn Vets St Austell
• Penmellyn Vets Pool
• St Anne's Veterinary Group
• Manor Veterinary Centre - Northfield
• Penmellyn Vets Bodmin
• Bilton Veterinary Centre
• City Road Veterinary Centre
• Penmellyn Equine Vets
• Manor Veterinary Centre - Edgbaston
• St George's Vets - Perton Surgery
• St George's Veterinary Group – Sedgley
• St George's Vets - Bushbury Surgery
• Bridgnorth Veterinary Centre
• St George's Vets - Stourbridge Vets 2 You mobile surgery
• Runnymede Hill Veterinary Hospital & Chobham Road Veterinary Surgery

This year’s winners of the small category awards are:

• Best Scottish Vet 2017 – Inglis Vets, Dunfermline Hospital
• Best Small Practice 2017 – Heathside Vets
• Best Equine Vet 2017 – Penmellyn Equine
• Best Mobile Vet 2017 – Stourbridge Vets 2 You

Ceva Animal Health has launched a national summer TV advertising campaign to raise awareness of its veterinary behaviour products, Feliway Friends and Adaptil Calm On-the-Go Collar.

Ceva says this is the first time it has advertised Feliway Friends - designed to help cats live together in harmony - on television. It will be rotating the Feliway advert with one explaining the benefits of the Adaptil Calm On-the-Go Collar.

Both advertisements are 30 seconds long and the campaign runs until the end of June. It will target 24.5 million pet owners and will air on all Channel 4 and Channel 4 partner channels, including Channel 4, E4, More4, Film4, Drama, Good Food, Really, W and Home.

Abigail King, product manager for Feliway and Adaptil at Ceva, said: "Our summer TV advertising campaign will raise awareness of how Feliway Friends and Adaptil Calm On-the-Go Collar can help pets with behavioural issues and drive customers to veterinary practices for further information and to purchase product." 

For further information, visit www.feliway.com or www.adaptil.com.

Petplan has announced that Richard Williams MRCVS from the Vale Veterinary Centre in Barry has won its Vet of the Year award.

The award is one of a number handed out each year to celebrate exceptional veterinary surgeons, nurses, practices, practice managers and vet support staff who have gone above and beyond the call of duty in keeping pets healthy and giving owners peace of mind.

The independent panel of judges was particularly impressed with Richard’s tireless dedication to veterinary care. They said: "He is considered by both clients and colleagues to be a great communicator, is constantly researching new and improved techniques, is brilliant at motivating staff and proactively encourages the professional development of his team – he truly leads by example."

On receiving the award, Richard said: "I’m completely surprised, overjoyed and humbled that my clients have taken the time out of their busy days to vote. It’s a great feeling."

Other winners included:

• Practice of the Year: Aberdeen Veterinary Referrals in Foveran
• Veterinary Nurse of the Year: Helen Russell of Woking Vets4Pets
• Practice Support Staff of the Year: Hollie Sawyer of Vets4Pets in Braintree
• Practice Manager of the Year: Carol Hudson of Millennium Veterinary Practice in Braintree
• Rising Star of the Year: Coral Blew of Spring Lodge Veterinary Hospital in Essex

Isabella von Mesterhazy, Head of Marketing at Petplan, said: "Through the annual Petplan Veterinary Awards we’re able to pay tribute to the incredible work carried out by members of the veterinary profession across the UK.  Their dedication allows pet owners to rest safe in the knowledge that, whether it’s for a routine check-up, an unexpected illness or injury or a simple procedure, their much-loved pets are in safe hands when they visit their vets. We’re elated to be able to announce the deserving winners, and congratulate them on such a fantastic achievement!"

For more information about the awards and to learn more about the winners, please visit http://www.petplan.co.uk/vetawards/winners.asp.

A veterinary ophthalmologist at Veterinary Vision in Penrith, Cumbria, has stumbled on what may prove to be the veterinary profession's answer to the Turin Shroud: the outline of a face on the retina of a dog.  

The strange phenomenon was spotted by Veterinary Vision's clinical director Chris Dixon when he examined Dachshund called Margo, which had been referred for the treatment of a corneal ulcer and fungal infection.

Chris said: “I was assessing Margo’s eye and was very surprised to see a face smiling back at me.

"It perhaps doesn't bear quite the same resemblance as the Turin Shroud. Still, I've never seen anything like it before. 

"The good news is that it does not appear to have affected her vision at all.”

Apparently the smiling face is still there, even after Chris performed a corneal graft.

Chris added: "I think we can safely say that Margo is a very happy dog, both inside and out!"

Vets Now has launched a new small animal surgical residency programme following a recent £1.5m expansion at its Glasgow hospital.

The expansion, which was completed last year, added a whole floor dedicated to emergency and critical care, a new specialist oncology treatment area and additional theatre space.

Davinia Arnott (pictured right), a European and RCVS Specialist in Small Animal Surgery, is leading the new residency programme. She said: "To be awarded the ability to run a residency, you have to be accredited to the highest possible standard, and there is a range of stringent ECVS criteria that we needed to meet.

"We were able to put ourselves forward following the expansion of our hospital and all the new facilities we have added. We are all really proud to be in a position to offer this new small animal surgical residency.

"We now have four theatres so we can do multiple surgeries at the same time, allowing us to greatly increase our caseload. We can also do fluoroscopy for orthopaedics and soft tissue. We just didn’t have that capability before.

"To achieve specialist status, the standard is exceptionally high so we’ll only have one resident every three years. This is to ensure they’re mentored and guided properly throughout."

Leo Roses is the first small animal surgery resident to join the new Vets Now programme. She began her three-year tenure in January after completing a surgical internship in the hospital. Leo, who is originally from Majorca and has also worked for Vets4Pets, Fitzpatrick and PDSA, is realising a long-held dream by embarking on a surgery residency.

She said: "I realised during my degree that I wanted to specialise in surgery. I did two surgical internships before coming to Glasgow to do a third. I applied for a position here because I was aware of the incredible reputation of the surgeons and had been told they were really keen to teach."

International Cat Care is highlighting a new study by the University of Edinburgh which concluded that flatter-faced cats were more likely to have breathing problems and that the breathing difficulties were also associated with increased tear staining and a more sedentary lifestyle¹.

The charity says it joins mounting evidence that brachycephalic cats, including most modern Persians or Exotic Shorthairs, are suffering from a number of health problems, including breathing problems, eye inflammation, skin infections and difficulty eating. 

In the study, published open access in the journal PLOS ONE, cat owners were asked to complete a detailed health questionnaire and submit photographs of their cats so that researchers could measure the muzzle ratio and nose position ratio. 1000 valid questionnaires and 373 valid photographs were received.

The research confirmed that flatter-faced cats (of breeds such as the Persian or Exotic Shorthair), were more likely to have breathing problems and that the breathing difficulties were also associated with increased tear staining and a more sedentary lifestyle.

A previous paper, published in the Journal of Feline Medicine and Surgery (JFMS)² showed how the skulls of brachycephalic cats are actually deformed, especially the nose and jaw. 

The charity says that unfortunately, breeds of cat and dog with flat faces are becoming more and more popular, and extremes (of an already abnormal anatomy) can become instant internet celebrities. These breeds and individuals often have large or prominent eyes which are considered by some to be 'cute' because they are baby-like, and the flattened face often has an up-turned or down-turned mouth, which gives it a human or cartoon characteristic of smiling or scowling, such as Grumpy Cat. 

Claire Bessant, Chief Executive of International Cat Care said: "It is very depressing to see the life which has been deliberately dealt to some breeds of cats because of a human desire to develop a certain look. I urge cat lovers to speak out and help others to understand that this is not something we should be doing to cats, and not something we should be tolerating.

"One of the best and most beautifully naturally designed animals – the cat – would not normally have any of these problems; we have created them through selective breeding.

"We should not be encouraging people to breed these cats by calling them 'cute', by being amused at their facial characteristics, or by the fact that they snore – rather we need to understand that this is human intervention that is wholly detrimental to the welfare of the cats and is simply cruel.

"International Cat Care takes an ethical view of all cat breeds and our website (http://icatcare.org/advice/cat-breeds) outlines the problems that exist for some breeds, including very flat-faced cats in the Persians and Exotic breeds. Our stance is that we should never deliberately breed cats for any feature or characteristic that impairs their welfare."

References

1. Farnworth MJ, et al. Flat feline faces: is brachycephaly associated with respiratory abnormalities in the domestic cat (Felis catus)? PLoS One 2016; 11: e0161777. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0161777
2. Schlueter C, Budras KD, Ludewig E, et al. Brachycephalic feline noses: CT and anatomical study of the relationship between head conformation and the nasolacrimal drainage system. J Feline Med Surg 2009; 11: 891–900. DOI: 10.1016/j.jfms.2009.09.010.