A wild golden eagle, one of only 442 breeding pairs, has died after being confiscated from a falconry expert who was nursing the animal back to health, and placed in the care of the RSPCA instead.

Roy Lupton, a falconer from Kent, saved the eagle in November last year, after it sustained injuries fighting a friend's bird. According to newspaper reports, Mr Lupton was given permission by the Scottish Executive to take the bird back to his premises in Kent to nurse it back to health. He planned to release the bird in the spring and claims he told Defra of his plans. Nevertheless, on May 5th, his premises were raided by Kent police, a Defra official and an official from the RSPB.

Despite his protests, the bird was seized and taken to the  RSPCA's Mallydam wildlife centre in Sussex. Mr Lupton was questioned by police and the case passed to the Crown Prosecution Service. It was later dropped.

Meanwhile, Mr Lupton was allowed to visit the bird at the wildlife centre. He said: "I was horrified by what I saw. The RSPCA was keeping the bird on a concrete floor, which is bad for its talons, and there was leaf mould on the roof of the room, which can cause lung infections in golden eagles."

Mr Lupton was later allowed to take the animal home. However, its condition had deteriorated badly, and on June 17th he took the animal to see avian vet Neil Forbes. Sadly, nothing could be done, and the animal died hours later.

In his autopsy report, Neil said that the bird was kept in inappropriate conditions while in the care of the RSPCA and was "not provided with good practice in terms of husbandry". He added: "Whilst I cannot be certain the bird’s death was a direct result of the Defra seizure and the period of RSPCA care, certainly the stress effect (suppressing the immune system), the persistent systemic infection from the time of leaving the RSPCA care, does indicate a very high likelihood of a causative link between the period of care and the bird’s subsequent death."

The new Aberdeen clinic will be based at Ardene House Veterinary Hospital, Kingswells in Aberdeen and will provide the out-of-hours cover for a number of veterinary practices in the Aberdeen area, treating their clients' pets at nights, weekends and bank holidays.

Vets Now was founded in 2001 when vet Richard Dixon, saw a gap in the market for not only providing an alternative to the 'on call' service which vets are required to provide by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, but to providing a dedicated emergency service for pets, similar to A & E for humans. Vets Now now treats around 100,000 small animal emergencies every year with clinic teams working purely out-of-hours, to ensure that they are always fresh and ready to provide life saving treatment to pets who are injured or critically ill.

Richard said: "Vets Now has a clinic in Edinburgh and we have recently opened the first of our Vets Now Hospitals in Glasgow which combines emergency care with a range of specialist referral options, serving the whole of Scotland so we're looking forward hugely to extending our service in Scotland by bringing the dedicated emergency service to Aberdeen."

Vets Now will be working with Ardene House Veterinary Hospital, Abervet, Ashgrove Veterinary Centre, Bridge Veterinary Group and Swan Veterinary Practice to deliver their Out Of Hours emergency care.

Veterinary practices who would like to find out more about using the new Vets Now service in Aberdeen should contact Vets Now on 01383 620064.

As part of its Pet Factor campaign, the National Office of Animal Health has launched a competition via its consumer website Pet Health Information www.pethealthinfo.org.uk to find a pet with "the Pet Factor".

NOAH is inviting owners, vets, and vet nurses to go on to the website and put forward nominations, in no more than 200 words, of animals that have staged an amazing recovery, shown exceptional bravery or set themselves apart in some other way.

The Pet Factor campaign was launched with a set of three viral videos, focussing on Pet Factor auditions for a dog, cat, and hamster that reminded owners of the importance of basic pet care.

The PHI site encourages owners to go to talk to pet care professionals to seek advice about how to keep their pets healthy and happy.

Phil Sketchley chief executive of NOAH said: "The video campaign was very successful, with over 25,000 people having watched them so far. Now we want to take the campaign further and find pets that have done something special in a way that really embodies the spirit of 'the Pet Factor'."

The winning pet and their owner will receive a full photo shoot worth over £1,000 with renowned animal photographer Sam Lunt.  The final photographs will be presented to them in a beautiful bound book, to remember their special day.

If you think one of your clients deserves to win, submit your 200 word entry at www.pethealthinfo.org.uk, with a photograph if you have one.  The closing date is 28 February 2010.

Nurtured Pets has launched the Anti-Lick Strip Prevent^TM, Pro^TM and Pro C^TM, billed as an alternative to the clumsy and uncomfortable e-collar.

The Anti-Lick Strips deter animals from licking, biting or chewing of hot spots, granulomas and surgical sites. According to the company, they are also an effective deterrent to prevent such behaviours brought on by anxiety, boredom or even insect bites. 

Hayley Booth, product manager at Nutured Pets said: "The UK pet market has been crying out for products like these for years. The unique bandages have medical grade adhesive on one side and all-natural active ingredients on the other. The combination of cayenne pepper, lemon powder, clove oil and oregano delivers a natural deterrent to the animal's nose and tongue to prevent it from interfering with the affected area.

"The Pro and Pro C are made exclusively for vets; the Pro can be used for direct application onto the pet's fur, ideal for securing IVs or catheters, the Pro C has a stronger adhesive and is ideal for over-wrapping gauze and cast materials. 

"The Prevent then provides a profitable over the counter version for take home use. The preventative nature of these pet plasters may help promote healing and lessons the chance of infection, inflammation or re-opened wounds. In clinical trials, pets avoided the Anti-Lick Strip over 90% of the time proving these unique bandage strips really do work.

"The innovative features and benefits of the products themselves combined with extensive retail marketing support and highly visible point of sale display materials mean they're a must have for every vet practice."

For more information or a product sample, visit www.nurturedpets.co.uk or call 02476 302 222.

An international group of scientists has published new results that herald a breakthrough in finding a vaccine against the most commonly diagnosed infectious disease of horses, strangles.

UK experts from the Animal Health Trust collaborated with scientists from the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences (SLU), the Karonlinska Institutet Medical University and Intervacc AB, on the project - the results of which could benefit humans as well as animals.

Professor Andrew Waller, Head of Bacteriology at the AHT, said: "We have been working towards developing a vaccine for 7 years, and finally it seems as if all the hard work is paying off. We've already developed better ways of diagnosing exposure to the infection, and now, with the success of creating a safe and effective vaccine, it looks as if we're finally bringing together the tools necessary to eradicate this terrible disease."

The vaccine consists of seven different Streptococcus proteins and results from early tests published in PLoS Pathogens have been incredibly positive showing a high level of protection and no side effects. It is hoped that the strangles vaccine could be commercially available in the near future.

Streptococcus equi, the bacterium that causes strangles, shares 80 per cent identity with Streptococcus pyogenes - the leading cause of bacterial pharyngitis, tonsillitis and rheumatic fever in humans, which kills thousands of people each year.  Scientists hope that the knowledge gained through developing the strangles vaccine will also help in developing vaccines to combat these human conditions.

Research leader, Professor Bengt Guss of SLU, said: "This is a most exciting project, where research is generating new applications and knowledge that can be used to develop vaccines against these important bacteria. This is particularly important considering the increased number of infectious diseases caused by antibiotic-resistant bacteria."

The vaccine development work was only made possible thanks to information from the Streptococcus equi genome sequencing project funded by The Horse Trust.

The Horse Trust's Chief Executive Brigadier Paul Jepson, said: "We are absolutely delighted that by pulling apart the genome of this plague of the horse world scientists have generated a truly safe and effective strangles vaccine. That this work could also benefit other animal and human health is beyond our wildest hopes."

Full text of the research findings can be found in PLoS Pathogens online at http://www.plospathogens.org/article/info%3Adoi%2F10.1371%2Fjournal.ppat.1000584

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

The RCVS is seeking candidates to run for election to the RCVS and VN Councils.  

There are six seats on the RCVS Council and two on the VN Council due to be filled in the 2010 election. Candidate nominations must be received by 31 January 2010; voting papers will then be distributed to all veterinary surgeons and veterinary nurses eligible to vote, the election held in March and the results announced early in May. Those elected will take their seats at RCVS Day in July to serve four-year terms.  

Jane Hern, RCVS Registrar said: "Like us or loathe us, what the RCVS does impacts directly on the lives of veterinary surgeons and nurses, their clients and patients. Getting regulation right is something that all Members and Listed/Registered VNs have power to influence.  

"We know from the reaction we get when we propose changes or ask for your comments that vets and VNs are not backwards about coming forwards," Jane continued. "There has been a substantial rise in the number of vets voting, since a low point in voter turnout was reached in 2002. So, if you know someone you think is up to the job, why not persuade them to stand?"

All prospective candidates need to provide the signatures and registered/listed addresses of two proposers, and should also submit a short biography, 'manifesto' and photograph for inclusion in the elections booklets. Nobody can nominate more than one candidate, and no current member of the RCVS Council or VN Council may nominate anyone.

Newly elected RCVS Council members should expect to sit on at least one committee which, together with Council attendances, means a time commitment of at least six to eight days a year. Those elected to the VN Council should expect to spend approximately six to eight days attending Council meetings, working parties and subcommittees. Both RCVS Council and VN Council members are permitted to claim certain expenditures arising from Council-related duties and their employers can also claim a standard day-rate for loss of earnings.  

Nomination forms and full details relating to RCVS Council nominations can be downloaded from www.rcvs.org.uk/rcvscouncil10 or obtained by contacting the Executive Office (020 7222 0761 or executiveoffice@rcvs.org.uk). Nomination forms and details relating to the VN Council will be online shortly at www.rcvs.org.uk/vncouncil10 and can also be requested from Annette Amato (020 7202 0788 or a.amato@rcvs.org.uk).

All nominations must be made in writing on the prescribed form and received by the Registrar on or before the closing date of 31 January 2010.

A new equine parasite supplement to the online peer-reviewed publication Parasites and Vectors has been published by Fort Dodge.

Entitled "Equine parasites: diagnosis and control - a current perspective," it contains papers on a range of topics including a major European resistance study into key anthelmintic molecules.  It is authored by equine parasitology experts and opinion leaders from around the world and was first published in September 2009.  It is freely available at http://www.parasitesandvectors.com/

Genitrix has repackaged its Dentagen plaque prevention chews to provide added value and convenience to pet owners. 

Packs of the chews, launched in 2008 as part of Genitrix' Dentagen dental range, will now be available in 'one month' packs in response to customer feedback.  The new, bigger value packs will also be priced more cost-effectively and will offer environmental benefits as the amount of packaging is reduced.

Dentagen dental chews are impregnated with a plant extract called RF2 which enables them to act as an 'anti-biofilm' treatment, modifying the membrane of oral bacteria to prevent them from producing plaque. The chews, which come in two sizes for large and small dogs, are designed to be given on alternate days and form part of the unique Dentagen Dental Care Programme.  Earlier this year, Genitrix also launched Dentagen Aqua, an innovative water additive treatment to control plaque and prevent bad breath in cats and dogs.

The new size packs of Dentagen chews, which will be available exclusively through veterinary channels, cost £6.35 for a pack of 14 small chews (one month's supply) and £8.09 for 14 large chews.

The traditional NVQ 'portfolio' system for student veterinary nurses could be phased out from next summer, under draft proposals from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Awarding Body, which has responsibility for the delivery of VN qualifications.

Proposals include an initial year of full-time college study, during which the student does not need to be employed in a Training Practice (TP), the introduction of compulsory farm animal work experience, the phasing out of the separate Equine Veterinary Nursing qualification and a reduction in practice-based assessment.

The catalyst for reviewing the VN qualification came from Ofqual's plans to introduce the new Qualifications and Credit Framework (QCF) from summer next year, which effectively scraps the NVQ in its current form. This gave the RCVS Awarding Body an excellent opportunity to reconsider work-based training for VNs in order to improve its effectiveness and efficiency.

The Awarding Body's proposals, on which comments are invited, aim to reduce bureaucracy for those involved with VN training, increase the number of practices able to take part and improve accessibility of training, ultimately increasing the number of qualified VNs available to the profession.

Under the new proposals, VN work-based training would be a two-year, 70-credit Level 3 qualification, equivalent to 700 hours' learning. The first year of this qualification could be delivered either as a full-time college course, or as a part-time day-release over two years (extending the complete training to three years). The first year would incorporate 25 days' work placement, including small animal, equine and farm animal environments - the first time a compulsory farm animal component has been introduced. This first year of the course could be directly accessed by school leavers, as there is no requirement for them to be employed in a practice.

Students would be employed in a Training Practice for the second 'clinical' year (or third year for part-time students). An online log of practical experience, similar to the Professional Development Phase for new veterinary graduates, would replace the current portfolio, with a more comprehensive end-of-year practical exam. There would no longer be a requirement for practice-based assessors, although students would still need to be supported by an experienced clinical mentor, a role many current assessors may assume.

The economic feasibility of Equine Veterinary Nurse (EVN) training was also considered, with the conclusion that a broader-based primary qualification, with all students carrying out work experience in a range of practice types, was more sustainable.

The number of training practices has long been recognised as a limiting factor in the UK's capacity to train VNs. In addition to standard TPs, proposals have therefore been made for Auxiliary TPs (ATPs). ATPs would be able to employ and train VN students even if they do not have the facilities to provide all of the work experience required:  a formal agreement to allow students to fill the gaps at another practice would be in place.

Finally, the proposals include a beefed up range of post-registration education options, allowing Registered Veterinary Nurses to develop, and be recognised, in their own areas of interest. This would help to create a career ladder for RVNs and assist in their retention within the profession.

"The proposals have been developed following a period of consultation with those involved with the delivery of VN training, and with employers," says Jacqui Molyneux, RCVS Council Member and Chairman of the VN Awarding Body.

"Feedback suggests that the current syllabus and training provides competent nurses who are highly regarded within the profession, but that training is overly burdensome for the practices involved. This, coupled with a recognised shortage of both Training Practices and qualified VNs, meant it was appropriate to think more creatively about how the qualification could be delivered. We hope that the draft proposals will be welcomed by both the veterinary nursing and veterinary professions, and would urge people involved to let us know what they think."

The proposals are available on RCVSonline (www.rcvs.org.uk/latestnews ) - please email your comments to Miss Jane Dawson, Project Consultant (jkhdawson@aol.com), by 31 October 2009. It is appreciated that this is a short deadline, however, the time-frame of the QCF is driving development, as is the need to allow colleges and training providers the maximum possible time to develop the new training structure for 2010/11 delivery.

To mark its 20^th anniversary, Woodley Equipment Company is holding a prize draw to win one of three bottles of Chateau Pitray 1989 Bordeaux red wine.

Woodley Equipment Company Ltd was established in 1989 by Mike Wickham, a biomedical scientist who specialises in haematology and blood transfusion.

Visit www.woodley20years.com to enter the draw. The winner will be drawn on Friday 30^th October 2009. 

Britain's dairy industry is doomed unless it takes more effective steps to control the spread of endemic diseases like tuberculosis and bovine virus diarrhoea, according to a leading cattle vet.

At a conference on infectious disease at the Royal Veterinary College last week, Devon practitioner Dick Sibley warned that the management and economic trends in the UK dairy industry are increasing the risk of disease transmission - and its potential impact once it does enter a herd.

Figures he obtained from the British Cattle Movements Service show that about four million cattle, or half the total UK cattle herd, are moved from one premises to another each year. Those being sent for slaughter were unlikely to spread infections but moving cattle of unknown disease status to new premises greatly increased the risk of bringing in new diseases. "If you set out to design a system that guarantees that we will continue to have problems with endemic disease then I could not think of a better one than this," he said.

Cattle numbers are increasing in those areas like Devon and Cheshire which already have among the highest population densities for dairy animals in the world - and are also the main hot spots in the current bovine TB epidemic. Farmers feel compelled to buy in heifers from as far afield as Germany and Holland to replace animals culled as TB reactors, as they will lose bonus payments from customers who demand that they maintain constant levels of production.

Several other factors also increase the likely impact of disease in a previously healthy herd - the concentration of cattle numbers into fewer but larger units, the growing emphasis on cattle kept indoors all year round and breeding for high yielding animals that are more vulnerable to disease. Meanwhile, a shortage of skilled manpower means that half the available stockmen are shared between farms and can therefore be responsible for bringing in disease.

But farmers have little or no control over some of the more important risk factors - particularly movements of badgers and the presence of diseased herds on neighbouring premises. "So these farmers with big herds in high density areas and neighbours that have the disease are done for unless we can do something serious to manage the risks."

Dairy farmers can work with their veterinary advisers to reduce risk using the four main pillars of disease control - improved biosecurity, better surveillance, appropriate vaccination and containment of disease transmission within the herd. But diseases also had to be tackled on a national level and if DEFRA is unwilling to take on the task, he proposed the creation of an independent livestock disease agency with sufficient staff and resources to carry out its remit. The costs of running such a body should be shared among all those stakeholders with an interest in preserving an economically viable dairy industry, including, for example the cereal producers who provide the dairy industry with much of its food materials, he suggested.