Boehringer Ingelheim has produced an calculator to help veterinary surgeons prescribe the most appropriate dose of Vetmedin for canine congestive heart failure patients.

The company says the calculator is particularly relevant because Vetmedin has a wide dose range of 0.2-0.6mg/kg/day, giving vets the opportunity to tailor and alter the prescribed dose according to clinical signs. Overall, the recommended dose is 0.5mg/kg/day. The daily dose of Vetmedin should be divided into two equal doses and given 12 hours apart, ideally one hour before food.

Boehringer's Vetmedin product manager, Jemima Scott said: "We hope that the calculator will help veterinary surgeons prescribe the most appropriate starting dose for Vetmedin, and provide guidelines on how to continue to tailor the dose as the condition progresses."

The dose dial will be mailed out to vets in October. Additional copies are available from the company directly on +44 (0) 1344 746959.

Janine Susan Parody MRCVS has been reprimanded by the RCVS Disciplinary Committee for dishonesty in relation to her treatment of a cat.

Ms Parody faced two charges, the first of which related to her treatment of a cat named Shadow and had multiple elements: 

1. She failed to euthanise Shadow;
2. She failed to inform Shadow’s owner, who had presented the cat for euthanasia, that the procedure had not been carried out;
3. She undertook a treatment plan for Shadow, including sedation and castration, without informing or obtaining consent from his owner;
4. She was later involved in and/or directed the removal of a microchip from Shadow (i) when this was not clinically justified and (ii) in doing so intended to mislead others in relation to Shadow’s identity;
5. She then took Shadow home without informing or obtaining consent from his owner;
6. She failed to make any or any adequate records regarding Shadow.

The second charge was that her conduct in relation to all parts of the first charge was dishonest.

At the outset of the hearing Ms Parody’s counsel admitted to the majority of the elements of the first charge, although denied she had removed the microchip in order to mislead others about Shadow’s identity.

Ms Parody also admitted that her failures to inform the owner that euthanasia had not been carried out, of the treatment plan, of the removal of the microchip and that she had taken Shadow home was dishonest.

However, she denied dishonesty in relation to failing to make adequate records.

The Committee went on to consider the facts of the remaining, contested charges.

After hearing evidence from a number of witnesses, the Committee concluded that it was not proven that Dr Parody removed the microchip in order to mislead others about his identity, and that, in this respect, she had therefore not acted dishonestly.

In relation to whether Ms Parody was acting dishonestly in relation to failure to make adequate clinical records, the Committee also found this not proven.

Having determined the facts of the case, the Committee went on to consider if the proven charges amounted to serious professional misconduct.

In terms of aggravating factors, it considered that there was actual injury to an animal – albeit small and while the cat was under sedation - and that Ms Parody had engaged in conduct that was in breach of a client’s trust.

In mitigation, the Committee considered the immense pressure that Ms Parody and her colleagues in the practice were under at that time due to the coronavirus pandemic and the fact that she had acted in a way which she thought was best for Shadow’s welfare and which clouded the rest of her decision making.

Furthermore, the Committee considered this was a single isolated incident, that she took the decision without the opportunity for full reflection and the length of time since the original incident.

However, it found Ms Parody guilty of serious professional misconduct in relation to all the proven charges.

Paul Morris, chairing the Committee and speaking on its behalf, said: “However well-intentioned, Dr Parody made some serious errors of judgment with regard to her approach to Shadow and embarked upon a course of dishonest conduct, which started with her failure to inform the owner about her decision not to euthanase Shadow, was followed by her treatment of Shadow, including his castration and microchip removal, all without the consent of the owner, and ended with her taking Shadow home over Christmas, again without the owner’s consent.

"In addition, she failed to make adequate clinical records with regards to Shadow.”

The Committee then went on to consider the most appropriate sanction for Ms Parody.

It heard a large number of positive testimonials as to her character and professionalism from both clients and former and current work colleagues.

The Committee also considered further mitigating factors such as the fact she had no previous disciplinary issues, had a long and unblemished career both before and since this isolated incident, her open and frank admissions regarding some of the charges, the significant impact she displayed regarding her misconduct, and her genuine expressions of remorse and apology.

Paul Morris added: “The Committee recognises that there is a scale of seriousness of dishonesty and therefore gave careful consideration as to where Dr Parody’s dishonest conduct fell to be judged.

"The Committee was concerned with her conduct between 20 December and 31 December 2021, as found proved.

"What led to what she has admitted as dishonest behaviour, was her acting to protect the welfare of the cat.

“The Committee was confident that she most certainly did not set out to act dishonestly.

"She made an initial error of judgement and everything that followed flowed from that.

"What she went on to do was something of a panicky attempt to cover up what she had done initially, so that she could decide on how to rectify it but, the Committee was satisfied, all done with the best of intentions and in the best interests of the cat and its owner.

"She had not acted out of any personal or financial gain or malicious intent.

"She had created a mess and she was trying to sort that mess out.”

After deciding that a reprimand was the most appropriate and proportionate sanction to impose, Paul Morris concluded: “In all the, somewhat exceptional, circumstances of this case, the Committee was satisfied that a reprimand would provide adequate protection to animals, as it was satisfied Dr Parody was most unlikely to ever make such a flawed set of decisions again.

"The Committee was satisfied that Dr Parody does not represent a risk to animals going forward, indeed from the character evidence it is clear that she always puts the welfare of animals first.

"She has also shown, since this episode, that she can work under pressure and not resort to making bad decisions and thus the Committee considered the wider public interest would be served in this case by a reprimand.”

www.rcvs.org.uk/disciplinary

Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health has announced a change to the datasheet for Mamyzin, its antibiotic treatment for bovine mastitis.

The milk withdrawal has been reduced from 108 hours to 96 hours and the dose is now 15 mg/kg for three consecutive days.

Kath Aplin, veterinary adviser for Boehringer Ingelheim Animal Health, said: "The new dosage regimen gives clearer guidance to vets and their clients; a 660kg cow should receive 10g of penethamate hydriodide (one vial) daily for three days.

Mamyzin, a lecithin coated pro-drug of benzyl penicillin, is highly lipophilic and actively concentrates in the udder, where it is capable of entering epithelial cells to achieve intracellular bacterial kill¹. It provides targeted, narrow spectrum treatment for gram positive mastitis in situations where injectable therapy for mastitis is required."

Reference

1. Almeida RA et al (2007) Intracellular killing of mastitis pathogens by penethamate hydriodide following internalization into mammary epithelial cells. J Vet Pharmacol Ther30:151–156.

The RCVS Disciplinary Committee has suspended London-based veterinary surgeon Dr Zahra Tahaneem Rafiq for six months, and found no misconduct against Mr Oscar Perez Maillo in the hearing of a case in which two newborn puppies were taken from their owner.

The hearing concerned an incident which took place at the VetsNow Huyton premises in Liverpool. There were two charges against Dr Rafiq. The first was that in December 2017, shortly after a litter of puppies was delivered by caesarean to a French Bulldog named Lila, she took one of the puppies away from the practice with the intention that it should not be returned to Lila’s owner and that, in doing so, she was dishonest, misleading and had not acted in the best interest of the puppy’s welfare.

Another puppy was taken away by an animal care assistant who was also working at Vets Now Huyton on the night in question.

The second charge against Dr Rafiq was that she had told her employer at VetsNow that the puppy she had taken from the practice had died in the car when she had been driving home when, in fact, the puppy was alive at that stage and, in telling her employer this, she had been dishonest and misleading.

There was one charge against Mr Perez: that he had made an entry in the clinical records for Lila that she had given birth to four live puppies when in fact she had six; that he had only discharged four of the six puppies to the owner; that he knew that his colleagues intended to remove or had removed the puppies; that he had failed to prevent the removal of the puppies and had failed to report to a colleague the removal of the puppies. The charge also stated that, in relation to the incident, Mr Perez had been dishonest, misleading, did not act in the best interests of the puppies’ welfare and failed to keep accurate clinical records.

At the outset of the hearing, Dr Rafiq admitted in full the charges against her and accepted that she had acted dishonestly. Mr Perez admitted some of the charges against him including that he had made the false clinical record, had discharged four rather than six puppies and had failed to keep accurate clinical records, however he denied any knowledge of the intention to remove puppies and denied that his conduct had been misleading or dishonest. 

The Committee was not satisfied that Mr Perez knew at the time of surgery that his colleagues intended to remove the puppies and also considered there was insufficient evidence that he subsequently became aware of their removal.

As a result, the Committee found that he could not have prevented their removal or reported the matter to a colleague. However, the Committee did find that his actions were unintentionally misleading regarding the clinical records and the discharge of the incorrect number of puppies.

The Committee found all the charges against Dr Rafiq proven.

The Committee considered whether the admitted and/or proven charges against Dr Rafiq and Mr Perez amounted to serious professional misconduct.

In respect of Mr Perez, the Committee was critical of his failure to keep accurate clinical records and considered that it was his duty to know how many puppies were born and to record them accurately.

However, while the Committee concluded that Mr Perez’s conduct fell below the expected professional standards of a veterinary surgeon, it did not fall so short as to constitute serious professional misconduct. As a result, no further action was taken against Mr Perez.

In regard to Dr Rafiq, the Committee recognised her admission at the outset that her actions constituted serious professional misconduct and noted her expression of remorse.

The Committee did however have concerns regarding the evidence she gave as to her actions being motivated by animal welfare concerns. The Committee felt that such concerns should have been raised with colleagues and it found that Dr Rafiq had acted recklessly and had been dishonest both with the owner and with her colleagues.

The Committee therefore concluded that her conduct fell so far short of what would be expected of a veterinary surgeon that it constituted serious professional misconduct.

The Committee then considered the sanction against Dr Rafiq, taking into account aggravating and mitigating factors. The aggravating factors included a risk of injury to the puppies, an abuse of the client’s trust, sustained misconduct as the puppy was retained by Dr Rafiq from 2/3 December until its actual death on the night of 5 December, that the dishonesty was sustained until 7 December and that she had only demonstrated limited insight in respect of her wider professional responsibilities.

In mitigation, the Committee considered that her actions involved no financial gain, that it was a single and isolated incident, that she had no previous adverse findings, that she had demonstrated genuine remorse and that she had made admissions at an early stage.

Dr Rafiq, who was unrepresented during the hearing, also submitted evidence in mitigation including testimonials from colleagues and clients, her youth and inexperience at the time, and her remorse, among other things.

In deciding the sanction Ian Arundale, who chaired the Committee and spoke on its behalf, said: "The Committee concluded that Dr Rafiq was a competent veterinary surgeon who was very unlikely to pose a risk to animals in the future.

"However, it considered the reputation of the profession and the need to uphold standards was an important consideration that outweighed the hardship which would be suffered by Dr Rafiq by not being able to practise in her chosen profession. It considered that Dr Rafiq would be fit to return to the profession after a period of suspension.

"It therefore determined that, notwithstanding the nature and extent of the dishonesty in this case, a suspension order was a sufficiently severe sanction to maintain the reputation of the profession and to meet the wider public interest. It took into consideration the overall dishonesty, including that Dr Rafiq had been dishonest when first confronted about these matters, when deciding on the length of any suspension.

"The Committee considered the sanction of suspension was proportionate in the circumstances of this case where there was supporting evidence that Dr Rafiq was a competent and well-regarded veterinary surgeon. It considered the positive testimonial evidence given… and that she was held in high regard by her current employers who were aware of the admitted misconduct, were significant factors in deciding that a suspension order was the proportionate sanction."

The Committee determined that a six-month suspension order would be the most appropriate sanction under the circumstances and directed the Registrar to remove Dr Rafiq from the Register for this period of time.

MSD Animal Health is highlighting a new case of Babesiosis in a non-travelling dog confirmed by Atilla Csaka MRCVS from Walton Lodge Veterinary Group in Ware, Hertfordshire.

Atilla was presented with the concerned owners of an eight year old Staffie at the end of August this year, having found blood in the dog’s urine. He said: "Fortunately the owners were extremely vigilant and noticed the blood. They phoned on a Sunday and arrived in the surgery as an emergency two hours later, bringing with them a urine sample. The urine was dark red and remained so when spun. I then carried out an in-house peripheral blood smear and found the Babesia piroplasms. Treatment started immediately with Imizol injections."

"Having just seen the dog two weeks later for its second injection, the lucky Staffie is thankfully doing very well. This dog was fortunate though as we were not seeing it regularly at the practice so it had not been receiving regular tick treatment. This meant it was exposed to the dangers of tick-borne diseases even though it hadn’t travelled outside the UK."

Hannah Newbury, Technical Manager at MSD Animal Health said: "This case is a reminder of the value of vets remaining vigilant to the possibility of Babesiosis being present in dogs that have not travelled outside the UK or had contact with dogs that have. 

"It also highlights the need for vets to discuss parasite risk with owners to ensure that dogs are given regular tick-treatments throughout the year to reduce the risks to pets and owners.”

"As we learnt from the cases of canine Babesiosis in Essex last year, there are established populations of the tick Dermacentor reticulatus acting as vectors of the introduced pathogen Babesia which is a major concern for animal health. It also demonstrates the potential dangers from the inadvertent introduction of novel disease pathogens if vigilance and surveillance are not maintained."

Dechra Veterinary Products has launched Ophtocycline (chlortetracycline hydrochloride), a broad spectrum ophthalmic antibiotic ointment for the treatment of a number of eye infections in dogs, cats and horses.

Ophtocycline is licensed for the treatment of keratitis, conjunctivitis and blepharitis caused by Staphylococcus spp., Streptococcus spp., Proteus spp., and/or Pseudomonas spp.

Dechra says chlortetracycline hydrochloride works against both aerobic and anaerobic Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacteria.

The recommended dosage is four times a day for five days. The 10 mg/g ophthalmic ointment has a 14-day broached shelf life. There is a one-day withdrawal period for meat and offal.

Dechra Brand Manager Carol Morgan said: "Ophtocycline provides veterinary professionals with a targeted treatment to effectively tackle the growing and reproducing bacteria that causes these eye conditions.

"Chlortetracycline is a bacteriostatic antibiotic which interferes with bacterial protein synthesis in the rapidly growing and reproducing bacterial cell and has both time-dependent and concentration dependent effects.

"We are very pleased to be able to roll out this product to the UK market as part of our ophthalmic range alongside popular products such as Isathal."

For more information visit: www.dechra.co.uk

A small animal practice in Cornwall has found that a clinical audit of its prescribing and dispensing errors resulted in 100% fewer errors and more than 50% fewer near misses.

Rosemullion Veterinary Practice is a three-site small animal practice owned by CVS.

It has 100 members of staff and dispenses 3,584 medications in an average month.

According to an article in Companion Animal, medication errors account for 30% of all reported errors in veterinary practice¹.

Errors can be prescribing errors - where the vet prescribes the incorrect medication or dosage, or dispensing errors where the incorrect medication, strength or volume is dispensed by the pharmacy team.

Some errors can ‘look or sound alike’ – where medications have similar names or packaging – making them easy to mix up.

Rosemullion conducted an initial clinical audit of entries on its VetSafe system between 1st March and 31st May 2023.

Analysis was conducted on the drugs involved, whether they were prescribing or dispensing errors or near misses, and looking for patterns of behaviour or the drugs involved.

During this time there were 29 (0.27%) near misses and 14 (0.13%) errors.

Prescribing near misses most often involved flea and worm products.

Here additional feedback from vets was that it was difficult to remember weight brackets for all products and when weight brackets were included in the drug description this made them easier to prescribe accurately.

As a consequence, the Rosemullion pharmacy team introduced the inclusion of weight brackets on all flea and worm products.

Dispensing errors and near misses were mostly related to ‘look or sound alike’, particularly in worming tablets, flea treatments and Rheumocam cat and dog.

To address this, the Rosemullion pharmacy team added extra labelling to dispensary draws and separated draws for flea and worm treatments into different weight brackets.

Rheumocam – with its similar packaging design and box sizes – was also split into separate cat and dog drawers, and drawers clearly labelled up with the version and volume to make dispensing clearer.

Feedback was also given to the drug manufacturer. 

Rosemullion also held a CPD session to highlight the common errors that were occurring, to explain resulting process and systems improvements, and ask the team to take extra care with these dispensaries.

A new ‘handing out medication’ process was also created – involving checking the medication in the bag matched the on the screen notes, confirming it was for the correct animal and validating it was what the owner was expecting.

A subsequent audit was run from 1st October to 31st November 2023.

The results revealed there were no prescribing or dispensing errors (0%) and only 8 (0.13%) near misses during this time.

Alice Bell, Senior Vet and Quality Improvement Lead at Rosemullion Veterinary Practice, said: “We place patient safety at the forefront of all we do.

"We wanted to conduct this extensive audit to assess our prescribing and dispensing processes and systems.

“The methods we had in place made it easy to do the task correctly and the changes we have now put in place have made the process even safer for our clients.

"Our overall error and near miss is now at a really low number compared to our total number of medication dispenses.

“The teams have been very receptive to the improvements and the project has had a positive impact on various aspects of the practice, including on team wellbeing.”

Rosemullion Veterinary Practice’s initiative has recently been recognised with a RCVS Knowledge Highly Commended status at its 2024 awards.

Reference

1. Mosedale, Pamela & Blackie, Kathrine. (2021). Why do medication errors occur in veterinary practice?. Companion Animal. 26. 1-4.https://doi.org/10.12968/coan.2021.0033 

Vets4Pets has announced that it is piloting a 'revolutionary' new 24/7 service at its practices in Rayleigh in Essex, Rustington in Sussex and Bournemouth in Dorset.

The company says that clients of the new 24/7 clinics will be able to have their pets seen and treated at any time by the same team, with the same level of service and at the same price as daytime treatment.

Research carried out by Vets4Pets showed that pet owners struggle to fit visits into their busy working lives, so the 24 hour practices will offer consultations up to 10:00pm and allow clients to drop pets off early in the morning, before traditional practices open. 

In addition, the 24/7 clinics will see emergency and routine cases around the clock at no extra cost and will provide care for pets that need to be hospitalised overnight. Vets4Pets says that the practices are equipped with in-house surgical facilities, lab, pharmacy, digital x-ray and ultrasound, and will have a veterinary surgeon and nurse on-site at all times, so its clients will get the highest standard of care.

Clients of other practices within the group will also be able to use these facilities if their own vet feels their pet would benefit from overnight care and is within driving distance of a 24/7 practice.

Kirsty Bridger MRCVS, Joint Venture Partner at Rayleigh Vets4Pets said: “We have been telling our clients about 24/7 for the last few weeks and we have only received positive responses. The perceived increase level of service has been so well received and customers are delighted that we will be offering out of hours services with no extra charge. This is about listening to what our clients need and providing them with more convenience and excellent service however and whenever we can.”

Sally Hopson, CEO of the Vet Group said: “All of us at Vets4Pets are focused on leading innovation in the veterinary sector, and as our clients live increasingly busy lives, these 24/7 pilot practices are our way of helping them manage their hectic schedules, while also ensuring that pets in need of urgent treatment can be seen at any time. We are very excited about the potential of our 24/7 practices and our ability to offer customers extended quality, service and convenience of veterinary care.”

VetSurgeon.org asked Vets4Pets some questions about the new 24/7 practices:

VetSurgeon: Is V4P going to offer an OOH referral service to other practices?
V4P: As this is a pilot, initially Rayleigh will only be offering this service to other practices within the VetGroup. However, once we understand more about how the model works, we may open the service to other practices, particularly in areas where there are few or no other options for them to outsource OOH cover.

VetSurgeon: How is V4P able to offer OOH consultations at the same price as daytime consults?
V4P: At Vets4Pets we care about offering our clients the best service we can. We believe that it's important that clients can access veterinary care at all times of the day or night without prohibitive surcharges. The 24/7 business model is built around this concept. This is clearly a significant change from the traditional way of thinking about out of hours care within the industry and we think clients and their pets will benefit.

VetSurgeon: How will it affect the quality of life of the vets & nurses working at the practices?
V4P: We have thought carefully about the rotas that the vets and nurses will be working. We've looked at best practice within the veterinary industry and in other industries which work around the clock and we have developed guidelines based on these benchmarks which will then be flexed depending on the requirements of each individual team.

VetSurgeon: Does V4P think others will follow?
V4P: We hope this is something that will expand across our own group once we've completed the initial pilot phase. We believe it's the right thing to do for our clients and for their pets. This is a new way of thinking about out of hours care and we're lucky to be able to work with forward thinking Joint Venture Partners who are putting their clients at the centre of their thinking. If others follow the model, that can only be a good thing for pet owners and for pets.

VetSurgeon: Does this threaten Vets Now?
V4P: We work with Vets Now in many of our practices and we hope to continue to have a positive working relationship in the future. VetsNow have a different and well established business model. Our objective is simply to offer our clients and their pets the best levels of care that we can by being able to provide them with the same level of service at the same price at any time of day or night.

The Royal Veterinary College has published the results of a study which has found that rottweilers are the breed most predisposed to suffer from osteoarthritis.

For the study the RVC used VetCompass, its pioneering technology which analyses the veterinary records of 10 million animals from 1,000 veterinary practices in the UK and is now the world’s largest research database of anonymised clinical records.

The college says this made the study the largest-ever conducted into osteoarthritis in dogs under veterinary care – covering 455,557 dogs.

The study found that: 

• Rottweilers are the breed most prone to osteoarthritis, with the Old English Sheepdog and Dogue de Bordeaux also being very prone to the condition.  

• The large population of Labrador Retrievers in the UK makes them the most commonly treated breed for osteoarthritis in the UK.

• 2.5% of dogs involved in the study had osteoarthritis (which would equate to a total of around 200,000 dogs in the UK).

• Dogs that were above average weight for their breed were nearly 2.3 times more likely to be diagnosed with the condition.

• Males dogs were 1.2 times more likely to have osteoarthritis than female dogs. 

• For treatments: Weight loss was recommended in 25.5% of cases, exercise restriction was advised in 18.8% of cases and in 4.8% of cases the dogs underwent surgery following the condition.

The RVC says that on average, dogs receive their first diagnosis by the age of 10.5 years. Of the dogs who are diagnosed with osteoarthritis, 75% of cases are recommended to remain on medication as a form of pain relief.

It is hoped that this research will improve diagnosis times, which will enable dogs suffering from osteoarthritis to be treated faster.

Dr Dan O’Neill, RVC Senior Lecturer and co-author said: "Breed predisposition to disease is now recognised as one of the biggest problems facing dogs. Studies of huge populations, such as this one, are giving us vital insights into breed-related health problems in dogs that would have been impossible before VetCompass. This study has enabled us to positively support changes in dog welfare."

Reference

Anderson KL, O'Neill DG, Brodbelt DC, Church DB, Meeson RL, Sargan D, et al.: Prevalence, duration and risk factors for appendicular osteoarthritis in a UK dog population under primary veterinary care. Scientific Reports 2018,8(1):5641.

Photo: Dog hip arthritis. Richard Meeson. 

Dechra Veterinary Products has announced the UK launch of Recicort (triamcinolone acetonide and salicylic acid; POM-V),  indicated for the treatment of otitis externa and for symptomatic treatment of seborrhoeic dermatitis of the auricle.

Dechra says the combination of triamcinolone acetonide and salicylic acid works to provide effective symptomatic treatment, particularly for certain types of otitis externa that are not caused by a bacterial or yeast infection, such as flare ups caused by allergies.

Dechra Brand Manager Carol Morgan said: "Otitis externa is a condition that causes inflammation of the external ear canal and it can have a debilitating effect on cats and dogs.

"Recicort is a moderately potent steroid with an anti-inflammatory and vasoconstrictive action that works by suppressing the inflammatory response and the symptoms of various disorders often associated with itching. It doesn’t contain an antibiotic or antimycotic so it won’t contribute to antimicrobial resistance either.

"This prescription-only treatment is an important addition to our dermatology portfolio for veterinary professionals who are looking for a suite of highly effective and cost effective treatments."

Recicort is available in 20 ml bottles. For more information visit: www.dechra.co.uk 

A German Shepherd bitch is making an impressive recovery from serious burns, after treatment with manuka honey impregnated dressings.

'Lady' sustained her injuries after being trapped in a blazing house in Cornwall, as reported by the BBC. She has since been under the care of Amanda Manley at the Cornwall Animal Hospital, who has been using Activon Tulle Manuka honey impregnated dressings to treat the wounds.

Amanda said: "I'd like to say it was all down to the manuka honey, although it's difficult to make a scientific judgement without a control in place. Nevertheless I am very impressed with the results and will definitely use honey again in a similar situation"

Rachel Fuller, Product Manager for Activon (medical grade manuka honey dressings) at Dechra Veterinary Products said: "In human medicine, manuka honey has become popular as a result of its antibacterial and healing properties. All honey has a degree of effectiveness, but the unique properties of manuka honey make it by far the most effective for use on wounds. It is now gaining recognition among veterinary professionals, which has led to the introduction of honey-based wound management systems for animal care".

According to Dechra, Manuka honey has been shown to be effective against over 70 strains of bacteria commonly found in wounds, including MRSA¹. It also has an osmotic effect which draws fluid from a wound bed and helps to remove slough and debride necrotic tissue that can harbour bacteria and impede wound healing². It protects the wound bed and provides a moist wound healing environment³ and the water soluble antioxidants provide favourable conditions that help to promote granulation and epithelialisation, thus faster healing. There is a rapid reduction in odour when honey is applied to a malodorous wound and it also acts as an anti-inflammatory, which therefore reduces pain.

The Cornwall Animal Hospital is a registered charity which exists to provide affordable pet care to those on a low income. It has provided all Lady's treatment at cost, including the Activon dressings, which have since been replaced by  Dechra as a gesture of support.

Photographs of the case at initial examination, post debridement / pre-treatment and post treatment are in the galleries.

References

• 1. Molan, P.C., The antibacterial activity of honey. Part 1. Its use in modern medicine. Bee World 1992; 80(2): 5-28
• 2. Molan, P.C., EWMA Congress, Glasgow 2007
• 3. Dunford, C., et al. The use of honey in wound management. Nursing Standard, November 2000; 15,11,63-68

Ceva Animal Health has taken on the exclusive distribution of Filavac, the RHDV 1 and 2 (rabbit haemorrhagic disease) vaccine.

Filavac is licensed for use in rabbits within the UK and provides 12 month's duration of immunity, allowing it to fit into annual vaccination and healthcare plans.

Filavac can be administered from 10 weeks of age with a seven-day onset of immunity. It is presented in 5 x 0.5ml single dose packs.

Nicki Glen, marketing project manager for Filavac at Ceva Animal Health said: "Rabbits are increasingly popular as household pets and should therefore become an important focus for veterinary practices. 

"We are delighted to have taken on the exclusive distribution of Filavac to provide veterinary practices with a competitively-priced and convenient vaccination for both RHDV 1 and 2."

For further information, contact your local Ceva Animal Health territory.

Cavalor has announced the launch of ArtiTec, an anti-inflammatory joint supplement for horses and ponies that have suffered a joint trauma, which the company says is proven effective in a good quality controlled trial¹.

In the trial, published in the Equine Veterinary Journal, synovitis was induced in the right intercarpal joint of 24 horses by intra‐articular injection of 0.5 ng lipopolysaccharide (LPS) of Escherichia coli. After intra‐articular challenge, the nutraceuticals resulted in significantly lower synovial fluid TP, TNCC and PGE 2 compared with placebo, leading the authors to conclude that: "The preventive administration of these nutraceuticals showed anti‐inflammatory effects in this validated synovitis model." 

Dr Maarten Oosterlinck DVM, PhD, Dipl. ECVS, one of the authors of the study, said: "Nutraceuticals are often used in the management of osteoarthritis, which is a common cause of chronic lameness in horses but their 'curative' efficacy remains controversial and the quality of the relevant studies is generally low. We set out to evaluate ArtiTec in a well-designed and controlled study. Our research shows that ArtiTec significantly decreased joint inflammation and could be useful in preventing the onset of arthritis."

Cavalor also points to a further field trial of the product by vets in Belgium which showed that it improved lameness in 74% of cases.²

ArtiTec contains glucosamine, MSM, chondroitin, hyaluronic acid, blackcurrant extract, feverfew and pineapple, turmeric root and Boswellia Serrata.

Lieselot Hamerlinck, managing partner at Cavalor said: "Joint supplements account for 34% of the equine supplement market so we know how important these products are to horse owners. Cavalor ArtiTec is the result of an extensive research and development programme and its anti-inflammatory effect has been documented in both scientific studies and a field trial. It can also be used in combination with our other joint supplements, Arti Matrix and Arti Base."

For more information, contact Zebra Products on 01352 763350.

References

1. Van de Water et al. (2017). The preventative effects of two nutraceuticals on experimentally induced acute synovitis, Equine Veterinary Journal 49 (4), 532-538.
2. Field trial of competition horses in Belgium in 2016