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Illegal veterinary medicines a ‘significant and growing problem’
Illegal veterinary medicines comprise of counterfeit, falsified and unregistered products.
Report identifies risks to animals and humans 

Illegal veterinary medicines are costing the global animal health industry an estimated $1-2 billion per year, according to a report by the global medicines association, HealthforAnimals.

The report, Illegal Veterinary Medicines: Impacts and Effective Control, is the first ever assessment of illegal veterinary medicines. It outlines the size of the illegal veterinary medicines market and identifies some of the major risks to animals, vets, people and business.

“For the Animal Health industry as a whole, illegal veterinary medicines are a significant and growing problem,” the report notes. “The continuing rapid growth in online buying and selling of products (e-commerce) and a parallel growth in international trade especially of small packages, has created new opportunities for trade in illegal veterinary medicines.”

Illegal veterinary medicines comprise of counterfeit, falsified and unregistered products and unapproved parallel imports. They also include compounded pharmaceuticals and illegal autogenous vaccines when these products are not manufactured according to regulation.

Risks identified by the report include damage to business reputation arising from safety issues and the associated loss of confidence in authentic medicines. It also notes a risk to human safety through the consumption of food from animals treated with illegal medicines, less effective control of zoonotic infections and risks of increasing antimicrobial and antiparasitic resistance.

The report makes a number of recommendations to develop an effective strategy for the control of illegal veterinary medicines. They include communicating an effective narrative with an emphasis on safety, collaborating with enforcement agencies, and using data to show trends and case studies.

HealthforAnimals says that it may take up to seven years and appropriate resources for the recommendations to come into effect and to see the full impact on illegal veterinary medicines.

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Vets to run marathon for World Animal Protection

News Story 1
 Two recently graduated veterinary surgeons will be running the London Marathon in April to raise money for the charity World Animal Protection.

Alex Bartlett and Maeve O'Neill plan to run the race together if they are given the same start times.

Dr O'Neill said: "You're always limited in what you can do to help animals, so it is nice to raise money for a charity that helps animals around the world."

Dr Bartlett added: "I have never run a marathon before and am excited to run my first one for such a good cause!"

Both Dr Bartlett and Dr O'Neill have fundraising pages online. 

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News Shorts
BSAVA releases new Guide to Procedures

The British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) has published a new edition of its Guide to Procedures for Small Animal Practice.

It has added four new procedures; cystostomy tube placement, endotracheal intubation, point-of-care ultrasound and wet-to-dry dressings.

BSAVA says that it is an essential step-by-step guide to diagnostic and therapeutic procedures performed in practice. The textbook includes new images and illustrations, as well as high-definition videos for use prior to procedures.

Nick Bexfield and Julia Riggs, editors of the new edition, said: "We have built upon the success of the previous editions by responding to the feedback received from the BSAVA readership, and hope this new guide helps to further increase the confidence and accuracy with which these procedures are performed."

Print copies are available in the BSAVA store, with a digital version in the BSAVA library.