The BVA has announced that this year's BVA Live (NEC, 6th-7th June) will focus on contextualised care, in other words recognising that appropriate and proportionate care must be tailored to the needs of both the animal and the client, and consider the owner's finances, lifestyle, preferences, and their ability to provide suitable care. The BVNA Nursing stream is returning to BVA Live in 2024. The Nursing Programme for BVA Live this year is: Veterinary Human Support CPR - Basic Life Support saves lives, but what about adrenaline? Accepting we are human - using checklists and cogniti ..read more

Matthew John Makepeace has been struck off by the RCVS Disciplinary Committee after a conviction for assaulting his ex-partner. Mr Makepeace faced five charges. The first charge was that in 2022 Mr Makepeace was convicted at Scarborough Magistrates Court of assaulting by beating his ex-partner. He was sentenced to a community order and a curfew order and was ordered to pay a £95 surcharge and £85 in costs. It was alleged that the conviction rendered him unfit to practise as a veterinary surgeon. The second was that in August 2022, Mr Makepeace submitted a character reference which pu ..read more

Animalcare has launched ProGlan, a tasty soft chew designed to support faecal consistency and help anal glands in dogs empty naturally.  Apparently, anal gland impaction is the fifth most common reason for owners to take their dog to the vets1, and of course manual expression of impacted anal glands is unpleasant for everyone. It also doesn’t address the underlying causes, such as poor stool consistency. ProGlan contains pumpkin seeds and apple pectin, both sources of fibre to bulk out stools and increase faecal mass.  The product also contains Bacillus velez ..read more

Identi has launched a Practice Pet Protection Pack to help vet professionals answer questions about microchipping before cat microchipping becomes compulsory in England from 10th June. The pack contains species-specific microchipping law guides, a practice registration guide, a cat chipping cheat sheet, flyers about registration and flyers about Identi’s silent microchipping scanner. The company has also produced three short videos with more information for vet professionals about Identi, what it does, registering microchips and compulsory cat microchipping ..read more

Mars Veterinary Health has partnered with SageTech Veterinary to pilot an anaesthetic gas capture solution designed to help stop greenhouse gases from entering the atmosphere. Mars says that during a typical anaesthetic procedure, less than five percent of the volatile anaesthetic agent delivered to a patient is absorbed and metabolised and about 95% is exhaled. SageTech’s gas-capture technology – which is currently used in human healthcare – works by capturing the waste anaesthetic agent exhaled during an operation by adsorbing it into a reusable capture canister. The ..read more

Hamilton Specialist Referrals is holding a day of CPD focusing on emergency patients on 23rd May 2024 at the Holiday Inn in High Wycombe.  The session will provide a practical guide to dealing with various emergencies that may present to vets and nurses across multiple disciplines. The full schedule includes:  The ECC Approach to the Haemoabdomen, presented by Lead HDU Vet and RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Small Animal Emergency and Critical care Dr Bec Hyland   Damage Control: Bite Wounds, Severely Infected Wounds and Stick Injuries, presented by Head of Soft Tissue Surge ..read more

The Veterinary Osteoarthritis Congress, which will take place at Holywell Park Conference Centre, Loughborough, on 22nd and 23rd May, is open for registrations. Congress offers two days of lectures and workshops and up to 14 hours CPD delivered by experts on the most cutting-edge OA management, treatment, techniques and technology. There is also a large trade exhibition showcasing many of the latest products and services, not to mention a happy hour and gala dinner. The organisers say veterinary surgeons and nurses, physiotherapists, hydrotherapists, and anyone working to prevent, treat and ma ..read more

Scotish independent veterinary group, Thrums Vets, is launching a two-day course for teenagers to give them an insight into what it takes to be a veterinary nurse and what the job involves. The first course will run in May and is already fully subscribed, with the next one planned for either June or July. Participants will shadow Thrums’ nurses at the group’s Kirriemuir practice and learn about carrying out clinical examinations, suturing and bandaging, fluid therapy, patient care, radiography positioning and laboratory work. Attendees will also find out how to qualify as a registered vet ..read more

Antech, a subsidiary of Mars Science and Diagnostics, has launched a new, rapid canine cancer test for use in practice, in the UK and Europe. The Nu.Q Canine Cancer Test is a new technology that measures circulating nucleosomes in order to enable earlier cancer detection in some of the most common types of canine cancers. According to the company, Nu.Q testing requires only 50µL of EDTA plasma from a patient and provides accurate results in 5 to 10 minutes. One study demonstrated >75% detection rates for common cancers in dogs like lymphoma and hemangiosarcoma when using Nu.Q ..read more

Vetlife is inviting veterinary nurses to come and take part in a sponsored cold water dip at Walpole Bay Tidal Pool, Margate, at 12:30pm on Friday, May 17th. The Walpole Bay Tidal Pool is the biggest in the UK, covering four acres. Everyone taking part is being challenged to raise at least £100 for Vetlife, to go towards its helpline, health support and financial support for the veterinary community. Sea temperature at this time of year is a decidedly brisk 10 degrees Celsius, but Vetlife says the dress code is reasonably relaxed: anything from a swimming costume to a full diving dry suit ..read more