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'Thousands of wild animals kept in UK homes'
lemur
Over 100 lemurs are being kept in private homes in the UK.
RSPCA says the findings are "deeply concerning"
 
Thousands of wild animals, including venomous snakes, lemurs and tigers, are being kept in homes across the UK, new figures have revealed.

More than 100 councils have issued licences to allow people to keep undomesticated animals in the home, according to a freedom of information (FOI) request by the Press Association.

In order to keep animals that are considered to be wild, dangerous or exotic, a licence must be obtained from the local council.

FOI requests were sent to every UK council, of which 363 replied.

Animals being privately kept in the UK include:
  • Over 300 venomous snakes, including cobras, rattlesnakes and vipers
  • 145 ostriches
  • 115 lemurs
  • 15 wolves
  • 13 tigers
  • 10 alligators
  • Nine pumas
  • Nine crocodiles
  • Eight leopards
  • Seven cheetahs
  • Two lions
There are also more than 2,000 wild boar, 412 bison and a score of zebras being kept in private fields.

A spokesperson for the RSPCA is quoted by the Telegraph as saying: "We are deeply concerned about the number of exotic animals, including dangerous wild animals, now being kept as pets…

"Licences for exotic animals classed as Dangerous Wild Animals - such as cobras, ostriches and caiman crocodiles - are granted by local authorities and the details are also held locally. There is no centrally-held list to determine how many are kept across the country.

"The emphasis of this legislation is on making sure the owner takes reasonable steps to prevent the animal from being a threat to the public, rather than the welfare of the animals concerned."

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RCVS Knowledge appoints Veterinary Evidence editor-in-chief

News Story 1
 RCVS Knowledge has welcomed Professor Peter Cockcroft as editor-in-chief for Veterinary Evidence.

A world-renowned expert in evidence-based veterinary medicine, Prof Cockcroft will lead the strategic development and editorial quality of the open-access journal. He was previously in the role from 2017-2020.

Katie Mantell, CEO of RCVS Knowledge, said: "We are excited about the extensive knowledge of evidence-based veterinary medicine and clinical veterinary research that Peter brings, and we look forward to working with him over this next phase of the journal's development." 

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News Shorts
CVS Group hit by cyber attack

CVS Group, which owns more than 450 veterinary practices in the UK, has been hit by a cyber attack.

In a statement, the group said the incident involved unauthorised external access to a limited number of its IT systems. As soon as the attack was discovered, the group took its IT systems temporarily offline, causing 'considerable operational disruption'.

It has warned that the security steps taken and ongoing plans to move its operational systems and IT infrastructure to the Cloud are likely to have an ongoing impact over a number of weeks.

Due to the risk that personal information was accessed, CVS has informed the Information Commissioner's Office. The company is working with third party consultants to investigate the incident.