Jurox (UK) Limited has announced that its anaesthetic for cats and dogs, Alfaxan (alfaxalone), has now been licensed for the induction of anaesthesia in pet rabbits.

Rabbits are the third most commonly anaesthetised pet in the UK, however they have a seven times greater overall risk of perioperative death than dogs¹. 

Jurox says Alfaxan 10mg/ml solution for injection provides a wide safety margin, an excellent cardio-respiratory profile and is dosed to effect, making it an excellent choice for the anaesthetic induction of rabbits.

The company also says Alfaxan provides smooth and rapid induction and recovery, painless administration and good muscle relaxation with low impact on ventilation and blood pressure.

Richard Beckwith, country manager of Jurox (UK) Ltd said: "Rabbits are a growing pet population and increasingly play a more important part in UK vet practices, which is why Jurox has invested in research in this species.

"We are happy we can now support our vet and nurse clients by providing a new and reliable choice for induction of anaesthesia in pet rabbits that has been extensively trialed and researched.

"Alfaxan is a very versatile product as it is convenient for any type of situation, whether it is surgery on healthy animals or high risk patients such as pet rabbits. With Alfaxan we hope to make a contribution to the future of veterinary anaesthesia in the UK and are confident our clients will be able to deliver the best practice anaesthesia they believe in."

For more information, visit: Alfaxan.co.uk. Alternatively, contact your local Jurox technical sales representative, telephone the customer services team on 0800 500 3171 or e-mail: info@jurox.co.uk. 

References

1. Brodbelt DC, Blissitt KJ, Hammond RA, Neath PJ, Young LE, Pfeiffer DU, et al. The risk of death: the Confidential Enquiry into Perioperative Small Animal Fatalities. Vet Anaesth Analg. 2008 Sep;35(5):365–73.

Warwickshire-based Elizabeth Gatehouse MRCVS has been suspended for two months by the RCVS Disciplinary Committee for falsely confirming the vaccination of a horse to a fellow veterinary surgeon, and for fabricating an entry in the horse’s clinical records.

Ms Gatehouse faced two charges, the first being that she inaccurately assured another veterinary surgeon that she had vaccinated a horse against influenza and tetanus  when she had not, and she subsequently failed to undertake adequate checks to confirm whether she had done so. 

The second charge was that she later made a false entry in the same horse’s clinical records to cover up her previous inaccurate statement. 

Ms Gatehouse admitted the facts alleged in relation to both charges and also admitted that in relation to the second charge she was guilty of disgraceful conduct in a professional respect.

The Committee, having heard submissions from Counsel for the RCVS and Ms Gatehouse found her guilty of disgraceful conduct in relation to the first charge.

Under the first charge the Committee found that she had breached the RCVS Code of Professional Conduct for Veterinary Surgeons by not keeping clear, accurate and detailed clinical and client records, and by acting in a manner that was likely to undermine public trust in the profession.

They also considered that her falsehood was unpremeditated, and that the decision was made in a moment of panic. Ultimately, however, by claiming the horse was vaccinated to another veterinary surgeon and not taking the necessary steps to confirm this, she failed to put the welfare of the animal first, potentially endangering it and any other horses it came into contact with, as well as potentially jeopardising the position of the veterinary surgeon she confirmed it to.

Having found Ms Gatehouse guilty of serious professional misconduct in relation to both parts of the charge the Committee then considered its sanction against her. In mitigation the Committee considered the fact that she had been in practice for 22 years without any untoward conduct, the testimony of three witnesses who attested to her being an honest and trustworthy practitioner, and the fact that Ms Gatehouse was in a troublesome relationship with the complainant until June 2014 which led her to be reluctant to contact him to correct her initial confirmation. 

In summing up Stuart Drummond, Chair of the Committee, said: "The Committee has considers that it is material to have regard to the general emotional state to which the Respondent was reduced by the controlling and debilitating conduct of her then partner when they were living together and the consequential loss of self-esteem and ability to stand up to him and his demands. The deleterious effect of an abusive relationship lingers after such a relationship ends. 

"Taking into account this knowledge, the Committee considers that the period of suspension that would, in other circumstances, be entirely merited, can properly be reduced in this instance to reflect the fact that this veterinary surgeon would not have acted as she did during this period but for the fact that her judgement was adversely affected by her experience at the hands of her then former partner. 

"The decision is that, whilst it is necessary, in order sufficiently to protect animals and the wider public interest, to impose a period of suspension from practice, that period can be reduced to one of two months. In so concluding the Committee wishes to make it clear that this decision reflects the special features of this case."

Ms Gatehouse can choose to appeal the decision after a period of 28 days.

South African Peter Keniry has been given a three year prison sentence at Taunton Crown Court for using the identity of a legitimately registered veterinary surgeon fraudulently to practise as a vet.

The RCVS played a proactive role in Mr Keniry’s arrest and trial after its Chief Investigator, Michael Hepper, was alerted to the fact that he was working at a veterinary practice in Taunton, Somerset.

Within 24 hours Mr Hepper reported this to Avon & Somerset Police and attended the practice with officers to assist in Mr Keniry’s identification and arrest. Mr Hepper continued to assist with police investigations and gave a witness statement. 

Eleanor Ferguson, RCVS Registrar, said: "We are grateful to the veterinary professional who voiced her suspicions to us, to our Chief Investigator who reacted quickly to confirm his identity and report the matter to the police and to Avon & Somerset Police for taking matters forward so quickly.

"Mr Keniry was known to the RCVS as we have assisted in previous police investigations into him for similar offences. As with recent cases Mr Keniry impersonated a legitimate member of the veterinary profession using fraudulent documentation and this is why we have previously published photographs of him to raise awareness with veterinary practices and to try and stop him being employed in the future.

"We believe that Mr Keniry is a threat to animal health and welfare. He is a repeat offender and so we are glad that he has been handed a significant custodial sentence.

"While sophisticated and convincing fraudsters like Mr Keniry can be very difficult to prevent, we would urge veterinary practices to be vigilant. For example, we recommend that potential employers contact our Registration Department to make checks, always interview a potential employee face-to-face, ask to see supporting identity documents, prepare questions which confirm where and when they studied, obtain references and, if they are employed, mentor the new member of staff to oversee their performance.

"For members of the public we recommend that, if they have concerns about the legitimacy of their veterinary surgeon or veterinary nurses, they talk to someone else in the practice about their concerns or contact us so that we can make further enquiries. Members of the public can also check on the status of veterinary professionals using our Find a Vet search tool: www.findavet.org.uk.

"We would like to emphasise that cases such as that of Peter Keniry are, in our experience, extremely rare. There are around 23,000 veterinary surgeons registered to practise in the UK who are fully trained professionals dedicated to upholding and improving the health and welfare of animals under their care. We don’t believe that the unprecedented actions of this one fraudulent individual should in any way undermine the confidence and trust that animal owners place in their veterinary team."

RCVS Council members have unanimously agreed the establishment of an alternative dispute resolution (ADR) service to help resolve lower-level complaints about veterinary services through mediation.

Since 2014 the RCVS has trialled two different ADR services with the aim of helping resolve complaints between animal owners and veterinary practices that do not meet its threshold for serious professional misconduct. 

Since October 2016, this has been in the form of the Veterinary Client Mediation Service (VCMS), administered by Nockolds Solicitors. The VCMS is free for both animal owners and veterinary professionals and cases will only be taken with the consent of both parties.

Eleanor Ferguson, RCVS Registrar, said: "We are very pleased that ADR in the form of mediation has received the unanimous support of RCVS Council members as part of the process for handling veterinary complaints.

"Throughout its trial period the VCMS has very much been complementary to our concerns investigation and disciplinary process. While we are bound by statute to investigate concerns, it has allowed our Professional Conduct Team to 'triage' cases, and to signpost complainants either to the College or the VCMS as appropriate. This has allowed greater time and resources to investigate concerns that could constitute serious professional misconduct.

"We also believe that the VCMS is good for both the public and the profession because it encourages both parties to communicate, find areas of agreement and come to constructive solutions, rather than being an adversarial process that assigns blame and adjudicates remedies."

Jennie Jones, a partner at Nockolds Solicitors which administers the VCMS, said: "The service is here to help veterinary clients and practices find a resolution for complaints that cannot be resolved within the practice. Complaints are referred to the VCMS by clients and practices where the relationship has become strained or communication may be difficult.  Importantly the service does not look at who is right or wrong, but focuses on finding an outcome that both parties can live with and bringing an end to the complaint.

"In our experience this has ranged from reassuring clients and helping them to come to terms with what has happened, refunding fees, further explanations, apologies, small goodwill payments, securing procedural changes at the practice and agreement by the client to settle outstanding fees which have been withheld because of the complaint.

"We understand complaints are highly emotional and stressful for both parties, so the VCMS team will not ask parties to speak to one another directly. It is also not about assigning blame but is about moving forward to allow both parties to bring the complaint to a conclusion. When we hear from practices and clients alike that they can now sleep at night, or their relief that a complaint is resolved, I know ADR and the VCMS does help and make a difference."

The College says that during the trial period, 165 of the 870 enquiries received by the VCMS went to mediation. Of these, 129 were successfully mediated with the other 36 remaining unresolved. Of the other enquiries 297 resulted in the animal owner being referred back to the practice so that internal complaints processes could be exhausted first, 93 did not progress because the animal owner did not pursue the complaint, 73 were dealt with through advice, 66 did not progress as the practice declined to engage, 76 were outside the service’s remit and 100 are currently ongoing.

Taking into account the overall feedback received from both animal owners and veterinary professionals and the positive responses on the independence and fairness of the VCMS, Council agreed that Nockolds continue administering the scheme, with a review starting in 18 months’ time to take into account experience and learning as the scheme continues to evolve. During the Council meeting statements of support for the VCMS were also heard from a representative of the Veterinary Defence Society (VDS) and an independent consultant on consumer affairs.

A spokesperson for the VDS said: "The VDS assisted over 150 practices that agreed to participate in the ADR trial and developed a constructive working relationship with the VCMS staff. In the vast majority of cases mediation has resulted in a satisfactory outcome with little or no financial consequences.

"The Society considers this voluntary scheme particularly suited to the many client care complaints that are directed at the RCVS due to public misunderstanding of the College’s role, but the investigation of which creates disproportionate concern to the professionals involved. The independent nature of the VCMS has been a key feature of the trial, although access to experienced, non-judgemental, veterinary advice has provided the necessary professional expertise when necessary."

More information about the VCMS and its processes can be found on the service’s dedicated website: https://www.vetmediation.co.uk/

To contact the service directly call 0345 040 5834 or enquiries@vetmediation.co.uk

Calder Vets' Dewsbury animal hospital is celebrating being judged 'outstanding' in three Practice Standards Scheme awards, no less.

The practice, which is part of the Linnaeus Group, achieved 'outstanding' status in diagnostic service, in-patient service and emergency and critical care service, after scoring above 80% in each area during the RCVS assessment.

Ian Monteith, managing director of Calder Vets, and also Paragon Veterinary Referrals; a new £5 million plus state-of-the-art referral centre being launched in Wakefield at the end of the year, said: "The team here at Calder take great pride in providing the highest possible level of care for our patients and their owners, often using cutting-edge techniques. We have some hugely experienced and talented professionals who always go the extra mile to ensure our patients and clients have the best possible experience. 

"Our veterinary specialists and caring support teams, are totally committed to ensuring Calder Vets continues to provide outstanding standards and as such we are very proud to have achieved these additional accreditations by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons."

The British Small Animal Veterinary Association President John Chitty is calling on everyone in the profession to take a moment during today's World Mental Health Day to think more deeply about the mental health of their practice teams and the wider veterinary community, and aim to help reduce feelings of isolation and depression.

John said: "This is a great opportunity to raise awareness for what is a very serious problem in our profession - we all know someone within the veterinary community who has had mental health problems - and I am very proud that it is a strong community trying to tackle this issue.

"But it is not just about one day – we can’t forget about it for the rest of the year. We all live extremely busy lives and if we are not functioning as people, we are not going to function as professionals."

John says veterinary professionals must take a balanced and holistic view of their lives and develop strong teams at local, regional, national and even international level, to build resilience in dealing with stress and dispelling the stigma about mental illness that may prevent people seeking help.

Mental ill-health will affect one in four people over the next 12 months[i] and in England, one in six people experience a common mental health problem (such as anxiety and depression) in any given week[ii]. There are particular issues within the veterinary profession, with higher than average rates of suicide, and patterns of distress, anxiety and depression, among other illnesses.

The BSAVA will launch a new ‘Beyond the Clinics’ personal development stream at Congress next April, including a non-clinical series of lectures on physical and mental health, and, with RCVS, it hosts a series of Mind Matters CPD courses across all 12 regions – all of which were sold out in 2016.

John added: "I’m looking forward to inviting colleagues to Beyond The Clinics on the Sunday of Congress, which is a great opportunity for the whole profession to think more deeply about how we look after each other, by increasing knowledge about mental wellbeing, building resilience in dealing with stress and dispelling the stigma about mental illness that may prevent people seeking help.

"I’m also very proud of the BSAVA’s involvement in the Mind Matters initiative, set up by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. All 12 of our regions hosted sold out courses during 2016, which is part of the profession’s response to research showing that the stress of working in modern veterinary practices has taken a heavy toll on the mental wellbeing of many staff."

Limited places are available for the BSAVA’s Mind Matters regional meetings – more information is available at www.bsava.com/Education/CPD/Mind-Matters

The meetings provide training for all members of the practice team to help them recognise any signs of mental problems in their colleagues – and, perhaps, in themselves. The training aims to help individuals know how to communicate with people they are concerned about and offers tips on stress management and staying well.

John, who has suffered mental health difficulties himself, says it is important to reach out and respond as a profession to this serious problem.

"My main advice is to be aware of others, be supportive, understand and appreciate them, notice when someone isn’t acting normally, and also remember that you are in a team together with people to talk to and you should do that. You can’t take stress away completely but you can’t put everything on the practice owner, this is a whole team responsibility – upwards, sidewards and downwards."

References

1. McManus, S., Meltzer, H., Brugha, T. S., Bebbington, P. E., & Jenkins, R. (2009). Adult psychiatric morbidity in England, 2007: results of a household survey. The NHS Information Centre for health and social care.
2. McManus S, Bebbington P, Jenkins R, Brugha T. (eds.) (2016). Mental health and wellbeing in England: Adult psychiatric morbidity survey 2014. Leeds: NHS digital.

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."

Ceva Animal Health has launched its biggest TV advertising campaign to date for its veterinary behaviour products, Feliway and Adaptil.

Running throughout October, it is Ceva's third TV campaign this year to raise awareness of the benefits of Feliway and Adaptil amongst pet owners.

The campaign starts with a Feliway Classic advertisement running from 3^rd October until 16^th October, followed by an Adaptil advertisement until 30^th October, timed for the run up to the firework season.

The new TV advertising campaign will target 18.5 million pet owners and it will air on all the C4 channels, including Channel 4, E4, More4, Film4, Drama, Good Food, Really, W and Home, with two spots during the popular Channel 4 TV show Great British Bake Off, which has 6.7 million viewers.

The TV advertising campaign will be supported by a Sky Adsmart and social media campaign for ADAPTIL.

Claire Russell, product manager for Feliway and Adaptil at Ceva Animal Health, said: "Our autumn Feliway and Adaptil TV advertising campaign is our biggest, most extensive campaign to date. It demonstrates our commitment to raising awareness of how anxiety in pets can affect the relationship with their owners and how Feliway and Adaptil can help." 

For further information, visit www.feliway.com or www.adaptil.com. 

The University of Surrey has announced the launch of ArroGen Veterinary Forensics, the first forensic service dedicated to combating crimes against animals.

The new service, a partnership between the university's School of Veterinary Medicine and Arrogen Forensics, will arm enforcement agencies such as the RSPCA and UK police forces with detailed evidence to help prosecute individuals for crimes against or involving animals.

Arrogen Veterinary Forensics is led by Dr Alex Stoll, Lead Forensic Veterinary Pathologist at the University of Surrey and Operations Director at ArroGen, and Jo Millington, Scientific Director and Lead Forensic Scientist at ArroGen, pictured right. 

Alex said: "A key objective is to help investigators increase the success rate in the prosecution of individuals who commit crimes against animals. We are working closely with the RSPCA and UK police forces to optimise the scientific evidence that could form the missing link in their investigations.

"Another objective of the collaboration is to develop a strong social justice agenda with the aim of disrupting crime patterns. It is becoming increasingly well documented that animal cruelty can be used as a component part of domestic violence and there is a growing body of evidence to indicate that people who harm animals are more likely to abuse humans. We want to work with agencies to address the progression of animal to human criminal behaviour."

Jo said: "This unique collaboration brings together experts in animal diagnostics and research with specialists who have worked within the forensic sphere of the UK human Criminal Justice system for many years.

"Why not apply the same principles to the investigation of animal crime? By harnessing our collective knowledge of forensic and animal science we are simply building on our existing infrastructure and experience as human medico-legal practitioners to offer a novel and focussed integrated animal forensics service."

For more information, visit: http://vetforensics.co.uk

Elisabeth Richardson MRCVS, Senior Clinical Training Scholar in Veterinary Anaesthesia at Queen’s Veterinary School Hospital, University of Cambridge, is conducting a new survey designed to give a deeper insight into the conduct of anaesthetic monitoring in small animal practice in the United Kingdom.

All practising veterinary nurses and student nurses are invited to take part in the survey, the purpose of which is to ascertain the extent of anaesthetic monitoring, attitudes towards it and how confident people monitoring anaesthetics are.

The survey also aims to identify particular strengths and any areas of weakness, with the overall objective being to optimise vet and nurse student education and promote professional development if necessary.

The survey, which is anonymous, can be found at: https://goo.gl/Vwq1CJ. It should take 5-10 minutes to complete.

Elisabeth said: “I’d like to emphasise that all veterinary nurses and student nurses are invited and encouraged to take part. Your opinions and experiences are extremely important to us, and we’re very grateful for your help with the survey.”

Cheshire-based Northwest Veterinary Specialists has announced that it has tripled its neurology team with the appointment of two new specialists, Massimo Mariscoli and Luca Motta.

Massimo (pictured left) qualified from Bologna Vet School in 1990 and spent two decades working as a specialist in veterinary neurology in Italy and Germany, following a three-year residency in neurology and neurosurgery at Bern in Switzerland.He has also spent almost 20 years lecturing at universities in Italy, including ten years as head of neurosurgery and advanced neurology diagnostics.

He said: "During my career I’ve spent short amounts of time in the UK and once I was aware of the opportunity to work with Northwest Veterinary Specialists, I jumped at the chance to move here.

"It has a fantastic reputation in providing the very best care to pets, and the recent investment in state-of-the-art facilities means we can offer the very best service to patients.

"I have a particular interest in continually improving our work around brain and spinal surgery and biopsies, and will be further researching technology and techniques to support treatment of epilepsy in pets."

Luca, who is currently a member of the Examinations Committee of the European College of Veterinary Neurology, also qualified in Italy (in 2007) at the University of Perugia, before moving to England where he completed his internship program in small animal medicine & surgery in 2009. He gained residency at a multi disciplinary referral hospital in the UK and was awarded the European College of Veterinary Neurology (ECVN) in 2012.

Luca has authored scientific papers in peer reviewed international journals and he has also been a reviewer for the Journal of Small Animal Practice and for the BMC Veterinary Research.

He said: "We’ll be focusing on changing the way we do neurosurgery to ensure the pets referred to us receive the very best treatment for their condition.

"We often see patients with intervertebral disc disease and epilepsy, and I’m looking to increase work around my main interests, including surgery of the central nervous system and epilepsy." 

Liz Cousins, hospital manager at Northwest Veterinary Specialists said: "This year we’ve been making significant investment in our facilities and people, so it’s fantastic to be able to attract two experienced neurology specialists in Luca and Massimo,” said Liz Cousins, hospital manager at Northwest Veterinary Specialists.

"Luca and Massimo’s appointments clearly demonstrate our emphasis on creating teams of experienced and extremely knowledgeable specialists across the centre."

The World Small Animal Veterinary Association (WSAVA) has launched the first set of global guidelines for veterinary dentistry, to support veterinary professionals around the world in improving recognition of dental disease and in providing a higher standard of dental care to patients.

In addition to enhancing current standards of veterinary dentistry, the WSAVA says it hopes that the guidelines will help to bridge what it perceives as a significant gap in veterinary education globally and to encourage a greater emphasis on dentistry in the veterinary curriculum.

The WSAVA’s Global Dental Guidelines include information and images of oral anatomy and common pathology, as well as best practice recommendations for oral examinations and an easily implementable dental health scoring system.

Evidence-based guidance on periodontal therapy, radiology and dental extractions is also included, together with details of minimum equipment recommendations. 

A key theme is the WSAVA’s rejection of anesthesia-free dentistry (AFD), which it describes as ineffective and a cause of unnecessary stress and suffering to patients.

The guidelines have been developed by the WSAVA’s Global Dental Guidelines Committee (DGC) whose members include veterinary dentists from five continents, together with representatives from the WSAVA’s Global Pain Council, Global Nutrition and Animal Wellness and Welfare Committees.  They are based on the WSAVA’s three-tier continuing education system to ensure that they are relevant for all veterinary surgeons, whether they are working in an advanced hospital setting or in a clinic in a country in which companion animal practice is still developing.

Dr Brook Niemiec, a Board-Certified Specialist in Veterinary Dentistry of the American and European Veterinary Dental Colleges and a Fellow of the Academy of Veterinary Dentistry, is Co-chair of the WSAVA DGC.

He said: "Dental, oral and maxillofacial diseases are, by far, the most common medical conditions in small animal veterinary medicine. They cause significant pain, as well as localized and potentially systemic infection but, because pets rarely show outward signs of disease, treatment is often delayed or not performed with a corresponding impact on the welfare of the patient. In developing the Global Dental Guidelines, we felt that the lack of perception of patient pain was a key issue.

"Our Committee members were also unanimous in their opposition to AFD.  We believe that anesthesia is essential for the execution of any useful dental procedure and this is a central recommendation of the Guidelines.  To support it, we have provided a detailed analysis of anesthesia and pain management approaches."

He added: "Our patients are not well served by the current variation in standards of care, level of equipment and procedural knowledge of dentistry. Misinformation which clouds the sector is a further hindrance.  As clinicians, we cannot allow a fear of the unknown, the discomfort of client pushback or ignorance of current techniques to keep us from doing our best to relieve pain and suffering in our patients.

“We are delighted to launch the WSAVA’s Global Dental Guidelines, which are free to download at http://www.wsava.org/guidelines/global-dental-guidelines. We are equally delighted to announce that 22 of our member associations have already endorsed them.  It is our firm intent that they will be the first step in changing the way that dental disease is perceived in the veterinary profession and in improving dental treatment in companion animals worldwide. We are grateful to our sponsors, Addison Biological Laboratory, Boehringer Ingelheim, Hill’s Pet Nutrition, KRUUSE and Virbac for supporting this important project."

The School of Veterinary Medicine and Science (SVMS) at the University of Nottingham is launching a new three-year master’s degree in veterinary physiotherapy, starting in September 2018.

Candidates will have the option of receiving a PGDip Veterinary Physiotherapy after two years, and will be able to practice as veterinary physiotherapists with either qualification.

The course will be delivered at the University’s Sutton Bonington campus at weekends, so that it can fit around people's existing work commitments. 

Leading the course at Nottingham will be Dr Richard Payne, Assistant Professor of Veterinary Anatomy. He said: "This is an exciting expansion of our postgraduate provision and will allow us to build on our reputation for delivering first class teaching in our excellent facilities.

"The course will be run on a weekend basis over two academic years, which will allow students to continue to work in their current employment. It is very much hands-on and is designed for musculoskeletal practitioners, veterinary nurses and veterinary surgeons, but also for those who want to expand or change their career opportunities."

The course was developed by Canine and Equine Physiotherapy Training (CEPT) and has been delivered by them since 2008, but is being transferred to Nottingham due to an increasing number of applicants.

The University says much of the practical teaching will be delivered by qualified veterinary physiotherapists, both on campus and at their own practices.

Students will be qualified as veterinary physiotherapists after two years, while the third year for the MSc will revolve around research work for a dissertation based on a topic relevant to veterinary physiotherapy.

Modules will cover a range of topics including the foundations of clinical practice, anatomy and physiology, the foundations of clinical practice, applied clinical skills and clinical reasoning and reporting. Students can expect to come away with a range of practical skills such as physiotherapy, electrotherapy and exercise programming.

The course will be open to applicants with a degree (BSc or above) in a science or animal-related subject and with evidence of at least eight weeks of animal handling experience.

More information about the course, and how to apply, can be found at https://www.nottingham.ac.uk/pgstudy/courses/veterinary-medicine-and-science/veterinary-physiotherapy-msc-pgdip.aspx

Photo courtesy University of Nottingham