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Breeding success for Palla's cats
Palla's kitten
The litter of six Palla's kittens is vitally important for the conservation of the species.
A litter of rare Palla’s kittens have taken their first steps outside

 The first moment that Highland Wildlife Park’s six rare Palla’s cat kittens stepped outside of their nest box has been caught on camera.
 
A rare species, Palla’s cats are difficult to breed as they are susceptible to toxoplasmosis, a parasitic disease that is often fatal to kittens. The kittens, which are now nearly three months old, are a major success story for the park.
 
A complex breeding strategy was developed by keepers at the park, which mixed together cutting edge technology, medical treatment plans and animal management.
 
Keepers moved the adult male and female cats, Beebop and Alula, to an off-show enclosure fitted with camera traps and a sound activated recorder, so that they knew when mating had occurred and treatment could begin.
 
David Barclay, senior keeper for the Highland Wildlife Park and European breeding programme coordinator for Pallas’s cats, said:
 
“Monitoring the vocalisations of the cats helped us to identify when mating had taken place and this is the key time that a prevention treatment for toxoplasmosis needs to begin, in the early days of a potential pregnancy. 
 
“Unlike other treatment programmes that can be very intensive and stressful to the cats, our work here has allowed us to implement our veterinary protocol in a completely stress free environment.”
 
Following their breeding success, the Highland Wildlife Park has sent video and camera traps to Iran, Mongolia and Nepal to assist researchers in learning more about this elusive species.
 
Little is known about the population of Palla’s cats in Nepal, although it is suspected that these are an individual subspecies.
 
On the significance of this breeding strategy, Mr Barclay said: “I believe our technique of using Pallas’s cat vocalisations to give us a clearer insight into their breeding behaviour is a world first and that over time the results will help to improve our success with this species. It has also given us a unique insight into the behaviour of these cats which will be invaluable for future management.”
 
Image courtesy of Highland Wildlife Park

 

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Practices urged to audit neutering data

News Story 1
 RCVS Knowledge has called on vet practices to audit their post-operative neutering outcomes.

It follows the release of the 2024 NASAN benchmarking report, which collates data from neutering procedures performed on dogs, cats and rabbits.

The benchmarking report enables practices in the UK and Ireland to compare their post-operative outcomes to the national average. This includes the rate of patients lost to follow-up, which in 2024 increased to 23 per cent.

Anyone from the practice can submit the data using a free template. The deadline for next report is February 2026.

Visit the RCVS Knowledge website to complete an audit. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
RCVS pays tribute to well-loved equine vet

The RCVS and the Riding Establishments Subcommittee has paid tribute to well-loved veterinary surgeon and riding establishment inspector, Rebecca Hamilton-Fletcher MRCVS.

Linda Belton MRCVS, RCVS President, said: "I, along with my colleagues on the RESC, RCVS Council, RCVS Standards Committee, as well as RCVS staff, was very saddened to hear of the sudden death of Rebecca, or Becca as we knew her, last week.

"She was a true advocate for equine welfare and in her many years on the RESC worked to continually improve the quality and consistency of riding establishment inspections, all in the interests of enhanced horse welfare and rider safety."