A 17-year-old collie cross called Barney picked arguably the best place in the world for an old dog to fall into a canal last Saturday, when it was rescued by one of the teams taking part in the kayaking stage of the Vet Charity Challenge, an event where there were at least 150 vets on hand to help.

Barney had wandered off through an unlocked gate and fallen into the canal where he was spotted by a team from Kruuse UK. They managed to haul the struggling animal onto their kayak and take him down the canal towards a waiting group of vets and nurses. From there he was taken to Drove Vets in Swindon to make a full recovery.

Andrew Groom from Kruuse said, "It was sheer luck that we happened to be paddling past at that point. The poor chap was struggling on the steep banks of the canal and kept slipping back in. He was getting very tired and at risk of drowning, and judging by his gums and heart rate, going into shock."

Karien White from Drove Vets said: "Barney was a bit hypothermic when he was brought into us with a lot of bumps and bruises. We managed to warm him up and get him cleaned and after a little while his tail started wagging and he seemed very happy and friendly."

News of Barney was posted onto a Pewsey Facebook page which helped his worried owners trace him to the vets.

The Vet Charity Challenge took place on Saturday 27th September at St Francis School, Pewsey, near Marlborough, Wiltshire. The day consisted of 50 of teams of four orienteering, cycling and kayaking as well as undertaking mental and physical tasks. The charity raised over £70,000 in its first two years, with this year expected to boost the funds even more.

Gavin Mitchell, from founding sponsors, BCF Technology, said: "We never dreamt that while trying to raise money for our partner charities, that we would end up saving the life of a pet in such a direct fashion. Had Team Kruuse not been passing at that point, the dog would almost certainly have drowned. It highlights the real commitment and passion that the vet profession feels towards helping animals. Through our event we hope to reach out to help even more animals. People can donate directly to Vet Charity Challenge by contacting us via www.vetcharitychallenge.co.uk."

Ceva Animal Health has launched a new TV advertising campaign designed to raise awareness of problems owners may face in a multi-cat environment.

The Cat Cabin Fever campaign will run for four weeks.

Ceva says the 20 second TV ads have been designed to strike a chord with viewers who have more than one cat in their household, where 'sometimes sharing just isn't an option'. Highlighted in particular is the Feliway Diffuser which releases natural pheromones into a room to help cats feel at ease, allowing them to cope with stressful situations and prevent unwanted behaviour.  

Malcolm Laurie, head of marketing at Ceva, said: "We know that there are more than 8million cats in the UK and only 2.5million cat households, therefore the majority of households must have more than one cat.

"However, cats are solitary animals, which makes living with other cats difficult at times. This campaign is focused on making the lives of cat owners and their pets as harmonious as possible, including lots of top tips on how to ease any tensions in such an environment."

Ceva has also produced a multi-cat leaflet designed to give owners specific advice on how to provide the correct environment for our feline friends

The advertising campaign will be supported by online competitions, marketing materials for veterinary clinics and retailers, which include a checklist for a cat friendly home, and PR.

For more information, visit: http://www.feliway.co.uk/.

Grove Referrals, an East Anglian referral centre for orthopaedics, spinal surgery and ophthalmology, has announced the completion of £1 million refurbishment.

The project was overseen by ECVS diplomat James Tattersall (above, left next to Simon Gilbert and Gordon Brown), an orthopaedic surgeon at the practice, and the practice now offers the following facilities:

• Two digital radiography / imaging suites
• 16 slice CT scanner
• Three positive pressure sterile theatres
• Two preparation areas
• Upgraded and expanded in-patient facilities
• Practice laboratory

Practice Director Gordon Brown MRCVS said: "As a Referral Centre, it is important that we offer the very best to our patients. The refurbishment has created a fantastic working environment with the latest technology available if needed 24/7.

"Working in the building while such extensive work was underway wasn't easy but it's well worth it now that our vision for the practice has been realised. We're delighted with the new facilities we can offer and are looking forward to showing them to our veterinary colleagues and clients in the months ahead."

Grove Referrals is based at Grove House, Holt Road, Fakenham, Norfolk, NR21 8JG. The practice can be contacted on 01328 862137 or at grove.referrals@cvsvets.com

The RCVS has published the results of its third survey on the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on veterinary businesses, finding a marked improvement in the veterinary business climate since last month. 

The survey was held in mid-June and gathered 196 responses from UK practices. That compared with the 532 responses to the initial survey conducted early in April and 251 responses to the second survey conducted at the start of May.

One of the main findings was a marked increase in the number of practices running a near-normal caseload, from 3% in May to 32% in June. Practice turnover data similarly reflected a shift back towards normality, with 46% now reporting a reduction of less than 25%, compared with 19% last month.

Other findings included: 

• Fewer staff are self-isolating, with around 15% of practices having veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses self-isolating/or with Covid-19, compared with 30% in the first survey and 20% in the second survey.
• Fewer practices have staff on furlough. The most frequent response for the percentage of staff furloughed was 11-25% for both veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses in this survey. This compares with the previous two surveys where the most frequent response was 26-50%.

Lizzie Lockett, RCVS CEO, said: "This latest survey has demonstrated a continuation of the previous survey’s positive trends including an increase in practice turnover with more practices approaching a ‘near normal caseload’ and with a reduction in the number of practices impacted by staff self-isolating or with confirmed cases of Covid-19.

“In this survey we also asked about what difficulties practices may be experiencing with EMS placements for vet students and VN training placements as a result of Covid-19, and this will help us to understand how we can better support students and practices in these areas.

“We will continue to monitor the situation via these regular surveys, with the next one planned for later this summer. I would urge as many practices as possible to continue to complete them, so that we can build up a stronger evidence-base on how veterinary businesses have been affected and how they are recovering.

"This information is not only vital for our own policy decisions but also allows us to present a stronger case to the Government and other public bodies where we wish to influence the decisions they make that will impact the veterinary professions and businesses.”

The survey results can be read in full at www.rcvs.org.uk/coronavirus-resources.

New research from the USA, published in the Equine Veterinary Journal (EVJ), has shown that a toxin from the box elder tree is the likely cause of Seasonal Pasture Myopathy (SPM), the US equivalent of the European disease known as Atypical Myopathy (AM).

According to the British Equine Veterinary Association, preliminary comparisons of these results with cases of AM in Europe suggest that the European condition may be linked to similar trees which could have an important bearing on the future prevention of the disease in Europe.

Seasonal Pasture Myopathy is a highly fatal muscle disease in Midwestern USA and Eastern Canada. A similar disorder called Atypical Myopathy is becoming increasingly frequent in the UK and Northern Europe. Outbreaks of both diseases tend to be seasonal, with most cases occurring in the autumn. Horses that develop SPM and AM are usually kept in sparse pastures with an accumulation of dead leaves dead wood and trees in or around the pasture and are often not fed any supplementary hay or feed.

The research¹ identified that seeds from box elder trees were consistently present in the autumn pastures of all 12 horses enrolled in the study. These horses were from 11 different farms and had all presented with the clinical signs of SPM, which include muscular weakness and stiffness, dark urine, periods of recumbency, colic-like signs and muscle trembling. The toxic amino acid hypoglycin A, which is known to cause acquired multiple acyl CoA dehydrogenase deficiency (MADD) was shown to be present in the box elder seeds and hypoglycin metabolites were identified in the serum or urine of all the horses. All but one of the cases proved fatal.

Professor Valberg DVM PhD of the Department of Veterinary Population Medicine, College of Veterinary Medicine, University of Minnesota, who instigated the study, said: "The fact that another acquired form of MADD in rats and humans is caused by hypoglycin A ingestion strengthens our conclusion that hypoglycin A is the likely toxic cause of SPM in horses. We are intending to conduct further studies to determine the factors that affect the highly variable hypoglycin A concentrations in box elder seeds."

Professor Valberg has established collaborative links with groups in Europe in order to investigate if a similar toxin is involved in European Atypical Myopathy. Working with Professor Vince Gerber and Dr Lucia Unger at the University of Bern, Professor Valberg has obtained seeds from a tree related to the Box Elder found on many pastures where Atypical Myopathy has occurred.

Professor Celia Marr, Editor of Equine Veterinary Journal said: "This is a really important step forwards. We don't yet know for sure that the cause of European disease, Atypical Myopathy, is the same as Seasonal Pasture Myopathy in the US. But the clinical signs and MADD aberrations are identical and both conditions have a high fatality rate. It remains to be seen whether this research will help European horses, but there is no doubt that it will allow American horse owners to prevent this devastating condition affecting their horses with immediate effect."

¹ Seasonal Pasture Myopathy/Atypical Myopathy in North America associated with Ingestion of Hypoglycin A within Seeds of the Box Elder Tree Stephanie J Valberg DVM PhD¹, Beatrice T Sponseller Dr. med. vet², Adrian D Hegeman PhD³, Jennifer Earing PhD, Jeffery B. Bender DVM MS¹, Krishona L Martinson PhD⁴, Steven E Patterson PhD⁵, Lawrence Sweetman PhD¹

The RCVS and the BVA have joined forces with Defra on a project to assess the challenges and opportunities posed by EU exit, with the aim to develop a flexible and skilled veterinary workforce which meets the UK's needs for both the immediate and longer term future.

The Veterinary Capability and Capacity Project (VCCP) is co-chaired by the UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer Nigel Gibbens, RCVS Senior Vice-President Dr Chris Tufnell, and BVA Senior Vice-President Gudrun Ravetz. The project board also comprises the CVOs for Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland, Sheila Voas, Christianne Glossop and Robert Huey, as well as the Animal and Plant Health Agency and the Food Standards Agency.

The project’s objective is to work with the veterinary sector to better understand the UK’s workforce needs and ensure that both the Government and veterinary businesses can continue to protect animal health and welfare, safeguard the food chain and maintain levels of public health and public services, and enable trade in animals and animal products.

The project will include a joint BVA-RCVS submission to the Migration Advisory Committee’s call for evidence on workforce issues post-Brexit. Three working groups have been set up within the project to look specifically at issues of veterinary resources, recruitment and retention.

The UK’s Chief Veterinary Officer, Nigel Gibbens, said: "Leaving the EU provides us with an opportunity to develop gold standard policies on animal welfare. The UK Government is determined to get a good Brexit deal for Britain and Ministers have been absolutely clear we will maintain our world-leading animal welfare standards.

"The VCCP is a great example of collaborative working between government, professional bodies and regulators to prepare for our exit from the European Union.

"I am pleased the Prime Minister has set out the government’s aim to secure the status of the veterinary workforce as a top priority as we leave the EU. The UK’s vets - both Official Veterinarians and those in the private sector - play a key role in protecting our country from endemic and exotic diseases, tackling outbreaks when they occur, safeguarding our animals and tackling global challenges like antibiotic resistance."

Chris Tufnell said: "Since the vote to leave the European Union last year the RCVS has been working in partnership with BVA to highlight to Government and others the potential workforce shortages that could arise from a loss of non-UK EU-qualified vets, particularly in public health work where they tend to predominate. Our position was highlighted in our Brexit Principles published earlier this year and at an event organised by us and the BVA at the Palace of Westminster for MPs and Peers.

"We are very glad that Defra is working proactively with us and BVA to understand  the scale of the issues and map out the risks and opportunities and to help us plan for a number of different scenarios in advance so that we do not find ourselves in a position whereby animal health and welfare or public health might be compromised by workforce shortages."

BVA Senior Vice President Gudrun Ravetz said: "Vets provide the foundation for the UK’s high animal health and welfare, and make an essential contribution to the UK economy and wider society. Veterinary teams up and down the country support the UK’s 11 million pet-owning households; not a penny of the UK’s £12.7 billion livestock industry could be realised without vets; and vets are vital to facilitating UK trade, through health certification and controls, so that consumers have confidence in the food safety and welfare of the products they buy.

"Non-UK EU vets make up around 50% of our new workforce each year yet, since the EU referendum; we are facing increasing problems in recruiting and retaining EU colleagues to the UK. The impact of the loss of even a small percentage of the veterinary workforce could have serious repercussions on the practices, communities and industries that vets serve. This profession-wide project is pivotal to ensuring we have a veterinary workforce that can serve the UK’s needs post-Brexit."

The BVA’s Brexit and the veterinary profession report can be found at www.bva.co.uk/news-campaigns-and-policy/policy/future-of-the-profession/brexit/

To read the College’s Brexit Principles in full visit www.rcvs.org.uk/brexit

The Prime Minister has set out the government’s offer for EU citizens in the UK and UK nationals in the EU on their rights and status after the UK leaves the EU: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/safeguarding-the-position-of-eu-citizens-in-the-uk-and-uk-nationals-in-the-eu

The government’s response to House of Lord’s EU Energy and Environment Sub-Committee’s inquiry into Brexit: Farm Animal Welfare also addresses veterinary capability post-Brexit:https://www.parliament.uk/documents/lords-committees/eu-energy-environment-subcommittee/Brexit-farm-animal-welfare/Gov-Brexit-farm-anim.pdf

Captains Nicola Housby-Skeggs and Claire Budge, the first two members of the Royal Army Veterinary Corps (RAVC) to achieve the RCVS Certificate in Advanced Veterinary Practice (CertAVP), have been presented with their certificates at Belgravia House.

The two Captains were visiting the RCVS as part of a 'Meet the RCVS Day' organised for a group of Officers from the RAVC. The Captains were presented with their Certificates by Vice-President Peter Jinman.

Capt Nicola Housby-Skeggs had completed a mixture of small animal and equine modules in order to achieve her Certificate, and was positive about the modular approach. She said: "It's reassuring to know you can have a break if you need to. The compulsory module on professional key skills was also more useful than I had anticipated, as it focused on aspects that you don't really have time for at vet school, such as management, and health and safety."

Meanwhile, Captain Claire Budge appreciated the fact that many of her modules could be completed via distance learning. She said: "It was great that I could continue with my studies even when serving in Afghanistan. My only regret is that when I started the Certificate back in 2008, there wasn't the range of modules available that there is now. For example, I would like to have done one of the new Animal Welfare, Ethics and Law modules. However, there is no reason why I can't just take this as continuing professional development - that's the benefit of the modular approach."

More information about the CertAVP can be found at www.rcvs.org.uk/modcerts.

'Meet the RCVS Days' give members of the veterinary team the opportunity to visit the College and find out what goes on behind the scenes. If you would like to join a future event, please let Fiona Harcourt know, on f.harcourt@rcvs.org.uk. Reasonable travel expenses are paid.

The University of Liverpool's School of Veterinary Science has released the results of research carried out in collaboration with the Royal Canin Research Centre in France, which shows that cats eat 15% less in the summer than the winter.

Researchers spent four years monitoring how much cats chose to eat. The 38 cats studied had a microchip on their collar which allowed them to take as much food as they wanted from a dispenser which only opened for them.  At the same time, this microchip recorded how much the cat had eaten and when.

Veterinary surgeon and study author, Dr Alex German, said: "Cats, like many humans are more inclined to comfort eat when it's cold outside but, in their case, it's likely to be due to the extra energy they need to keep warm when out and about."

The study found that cats ate approximately 15% less food during summer, and the researchers concluded that the extra effort to keep warm in winter and the temptation to rest during hot summer days contributed to the swing in activity levels during the year.

The cats were all inhabitants of a centre in southern France where they were allowed to play and exercise outside all year round. The cats were of mixed breeds, ages and genders. Data on food was compared to the climate in the area using computer modelling to provide information about how the temperature changed over the year.

Seasonal food intake has also been examined in the past on farm animals, such as dairy cows, to establish new ways of increasing milk production, but this is the largest study that has yet taken place with domestic cats.

Dr German said: "People should consider the amount of food their cats need at different times of year as this can be part of helping them to maintain a healthy weight."

The paper was published in the journal PLOS One. http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0096071

Virbac, manufacturer of Stelfonta, has announced that it will host a series of free webinars on the diagnosis of canine mast cell tumours, in collaboration with BattLab/Laboklin.

The webinars will be presented by specialists in their respective fields; small animal oncologist Sara Verganti and clinical pathologists Francesco Cian and Roberta Rasotto. 

Each 30-minute session will focus on a specific aspect of MCT diagnostics followed by a multidisciplinary Q&A. The sessions, which all start at 7:30pm, are:

• Thursday 7^th October: A GP approach to work up canine mast cell tumours with Sara Verganti, register here: https://bit.ly/SaraMCT
• Thursday 14^th October: What cytology can tell you with Francesco Cian, register here: https://bit.ly/FrancescoMCT
• Thursday 21^st October: The histopathology report and proliferative markers: what they mean for your patients with Roberta Rasotto, register here: https://bit.ly/RobertaMCT

Dr Neil Mottram MRCVS, Technical Product Manager at Virbac said: "Mast cell tumours are the most common form of canine cutaneous neoplasia, although relatively simple to identify, knowing what diagnostic steps to take can be challenging. We believe this truly comprehensive bite size mini-series will provide vets with the confidence to navigate the diagnostic approach for their next MCTs."

For more information, contact your Virbac Territory Manager.

MSD Animal Health has launched a new range of vaccination equipment to help sheep and cattle producers administer its portfolio of farm animal vaccines as effectively, cleanly and safely as possible.

The new vaccinators all incorporate the Sterimatic system, which is designed to take the worry out of administering injections to livestock by delivering an accurate dose of any given product, whilst also cleaning and protecting the needle automatically. MSD says the Sterimatic system also decreases the potential for disease transmission, minimises the risk of infection and abscessing at the vaccination site, and reduces needle-stick injuries.

The new equipment is colour-coded and ergonomically designed for comfort in the hand and comes in clear, sterile bags that list the recommended vaccines for use with each vaccinator.

The new vaccinators are now available from animal health product wholesalers.

The 2020 RCVS Knowledge Awards, designed to recognise examples of continuous quality improvement (QI) in practice, are now open for applications and nominations.

Open to anyone working in a veterinary setting at any stage of their career, the competition rewards teams and individuals (clinical and non-clinical), who have achieved better outcomes through QI initiatives for patients, clients, the business or the working environment.

Individual winners will be crowned 'Knowledge Champions' and one team will become RCVS Knowledge’s 'Champion Practice'.

Each winner will also receive a £250 reward, tickets to the awards ceremony next calendar year and the opportunity to work with RCVS Knowledge to further promote their quality improvement work.

Candidates can nominate themselves or others for an award.

If you want to nominate a colleague, the deadline is 17^thOctober. The deadline to apply on your own behalf or that of your team/practice is 29^th November 2019.

Full details are available online: bit.ly/KnowledgeAwards.

Executive Director of RCVS Knowledge, Chris Gush said: "The 2019 awards shed light on the very good work those in the profession are doing to continually enhance quality, so we are delighted to bring the competition back for 2020.

"It is a great opportunity for individuals and teams to showcase their quality improvement initiatives. Whether it is clinically focused or aiming to improve procurement, we are keen to hear about the work that is underway."

Last year's awards highlighted inspirational QI projects such as a drugs audit that led to a ten-fold improvement in usage discrepancy; a quarterly clinical audit that enhanced nursing expertise and trust from veterinary surgeons; and the introduction of guidelines that coincided with the subsequent treatment of 2,639 additional animals.

The case examples submitted by each winner are available to download for free: 

• 'Champion Practice' Vets Now Macclesfield for its anaesthesia audit. 

• 'Knowledge Champion' Louise Northway RVN, Wendover Heights Veterinary Centre, for her anaesthesia audit.                         

• 'Knowledge Champion' Alison Thomas MRCVS, Blue Cross, for her case study: Creating clinical guidelines.

• 'Knowledge Champion' Angela Rayner MRCVS, CVS Group plc, for her case study: Controlled drugs process audit.

For more case examples and QI resources, visit: bit.ly/QIKnowledge

VisioCare is calling on veterinary surgeons and puppy owners to take part in its Puppy Tooth Census, a dental health initiative that aims to quantify the changing prevalence of dental conditions.

The company says the results of the survey of puppy dental health will be shared with industry experts to help advance understanding and evaluate the future impact on veterinary practices.

Veterinary professionals can also sign up for a free webinar on puppy dental disease led by Head of the Dentistry and Oral Surgery Department at the Royal (Dick) Vet School, Ingrid Tundo on 28th April at 7.30 pm at https://veterinarywebinars.com/register/puppy-dentistry-malocclusion. 

Cat Henstridge MRCVS, who is fronting the campaign said: “I’m very pleased to be helping to raise awareness of the VisioCare Puppy Tooth Census and this important issue.

"It is so important for all of us in the profession to be helping to identify disease patterns and the scale of the problem. It also provides us with a great opportunity to involve our clients and start discussions about the importance of good dental care.” 

VisioCare says the Puppy Tooth Census only takes a few minutes to complete and can be filled in for individual cases or healthy puppy mouths.

Every veterinary respondent will be given a free pack of educational materials to use in the consulting room, including state-of-the art digital animations and dental images that can be used to enhance client communication around the topic, together with explainer videos and puppy owner fact sheets and leaflets.

In addition, each month for the next three months, responses will be entered into a prize draw for the chance to win a £50 John Lewis gift voucher.

For further information or to complete the census for a case, visit: http://www.visiocareservices.co.uk/puppy-tooth-census.