Defra has announced that the law which requires horses born since July 2009 to be microchipped is being extended to include all horses, ponies and donkeys, regardless of their age.

From October 2020 it will be mandatory for all owners to microchip their…

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate has issued a product recall for two batches of the rabbit haemorrhagic disease vaccine, Filavac VHD K C+V (Vm 46470/4000).

Batches 060K80412C1A-UK1-2 and 060K80412A1C-UK1-2 (expiry 12/06/2019) have been recalled due t…

Maidstone-based Daniella Dos Santos MRCVS has become quite possibly the first person to render Nigel Farage utterly speechless whilst at the same time drawing welcome attention to the shortfall in veterinary surgeons caused by Brexit.

Daniella, a small…

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate has suspended ten drugs for food-producing animals which contain the excipient diethanolamine (DEA), after advice from the Committee for Medicinal Products for Veterinary Use (the scientific advisory committee to the…

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) has relaxed its recently imposed restrictions on the sale of the equine pain killer, flunixin by allowing the release of stock from manufacturers, thereby restoring access to this medicine for use in non-food…

The National Office of Animal Health has welcomed the publication of the first of government’s 'no-deal' Brexit planning notices, but highlights the risk of interruption to the supply of vital veterinary medicines.

NOAH Chair Gaynor Hillier…

The Government has announced that remote controlled electric shock collars for pets will be banned in England, following a consultation which attracted over 7000 responses.

Whilst the decision has been welcomed by the BVA and leading animal charities…

In the week that the National Office of Animal Health has revealed significantly greater levels of pessimism in the animal medicines industry over the impact of Brexit on public health and food production, the BVA also reports that the Department for…

Defra has released new data showing that new outbreaks of bovine TB have fallen in the two areas that have now completed their licensed four-year badger culls.

In the Somerset cull area, TB incidence has fallen from 24% before culling started to 12%…

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) has announced that treatments for animals which contain cannabidiol are classed as veterinary medicines and will be regulated as such.

Veterinary medicines are defined in the Veterinary Medicines Regulations…

A group of 16 independent veterinary surgeons and biologists, including some of the world's leading experts on snake science and welfare, has written to Defra to demand it reinstates a rule requiring that snakes kept captive for sale are given at least…

The RCVS reports that its Veterinary Client Mediation Service (VCMS) has passed the one-year mark, dealing with over 2,000 disputes between veterinary practices and clients in that time.

The VCMS, which is administered by Nockolds Solicitors, was formally…

The RCVS Council has approved changes to the supporting guidance that underpins its Code of Professional Conduct to allow for non-veterinarians to support veterinary surgeons in the certification of products of animal origin for export.

The plans developed…

A motion to conduct a trial of remote prescribing without performing a physical examination (ie. via telemedicine), thereby redefining what it means for an animal to be "under the care" of a veterinary surgeon, was put before RCVS Council last week. I…

The RCVS has announced that it is putting its Westminster headquarters on the market and looking for new premises.

RCVS Council agreed, in principle, to the sale of Belgravia House and for the College and its London-based staff to move to different premises…

The BEVA, the BSAVA and The Association of Veterinary Anaesthetists (AVA) say that working with the Veterinary Medicines Directorate, they've found a solution to the isoflurane shortage.

Having investigated alternative sources of isoflurane, and…

The RCVS has issued a statement to reassure veterinary surgeons that problems arising from the shortage of isoflurane are very unlikely to be considered as a professional misconduct issue, provided that clinical decisions are justifiable, that detailed…

Welsh Minister for Environment, Energy and Rural Affairs, Lesley Griffiths, has announced a £5m programme to help eradicate sheep scab.

The disease had been identified as a priority by the Wales Animal Health and Welfare Framework Group.

Further…

The RCVS and the BVA have called on the government to add veterinary surgeons to the Shortage Occupation List as part of the UK’s preparations for leaving the European Union.

The organisations made a joint submission to the Migration Advisory Committee…

The RCVS Council has approved a pathway for veterinary and animal health paraprofessionals to become associates of, or accredited by the College and thereby fall within its regulatory remit.

At the June 2017 meeting of RCVS Council, members decided to…

The BVA has joined forces with the RSPCA in calling on the Government to repeal a legal exemption that permits animals to be slaughtered without pre-stunning, causing unnecessary pain and suffering.

The latest figures from 2017/18 reveal that over 120…

The British Veterinary Association is urging the government to put welfare at the heart of any decision-making with regards to moving livestock inside and out of the UK.

In its updated position statement, the association emphasises its support of current…

The RCVS has announcing the candidates standing in the 2019 RCVS Council elections.

There are nine candidates standing in this year’s RCVS Council election, including five existing Council members eligible for re-election and four candidates not currently…

The RCVS has confirmed that surgical insemination in dogs is prohibited by animal welfare laws and amended Section 27 of the supporting guidance to the Code of Professional Conduct so that it now sits alongside tail docking, dew claw removal, prosthetic…

The National Office of Animal Health and the Veterinary Medicines Directorate have issued a joint statement concerning the supply of veterinary medicines when the UK leaves the EU, deal or no deal.

"The majority of veterinary medicines used in the UK…