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Rabbit Awareness Week goes virtual
Rabbit Awareness Week 2020 aims to educate owners about the five key welfare needs.

Organisers have announced a packed programme of digital events.
 
Organisers behind Rabbit Awareness Week (RAW) have announced an exciting line up of digital events to improve the health and welfare of rabbits in the UK.

The annual RAW campaign aims to reach, educate and inform rabbit owners about the five key welfare needs of rabbits and encourage them to join in the conversation.

Normally organisations and individuals host physical events which, due to COVID-19, will not be possible this year. Instead, the RAW team is putting together a packed programme of digital workshops, live Q&As, virtual tours and educational videos – all of which will be shared online.

This year's campaign takes place over two weeks (10 – 23 August), and rabbit owners, animal lovers and anyone else interested in learning more about rabbit welfare is encouraged to get involved in the campaign via the official website and social media pages.

Campaign organiser Holly Ackroyd said: “Vets have always played an active, and absolutely vital, part of Rabbit Awareness Week but the coronavirus pandemic means we’ve had to get a bit more creative to make sure we can drive and facilitate their involvement this year’s campaign. We’re delighted that the RAW partners and our supporting vets will once again be lending their support to the campaign by delivering online content that promises to both entertain and educate UK owners, and ‘would-be’ owners of these amazing animals.
 
“Despite the current challenges, we’re confident this year’s campaign will build on previous years to be our biggest RAW campaign yet. As one of the UK’s most misunderstood pets, it’s so important that we continue to raise awareness about the welfare needs of rabbits. We’ve invested significantly into the creation of new content and collateral on all of these needs and have extended the length of the campaign to ensure that we comprehensively shine a light of them all.”

More details about RAW 2020 are expected in the coming weeks.

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Annual submission deadline small pet animal exemptions

News Story 1
 Companies marketing medicines for small pets exempt from authorisation must submit their annual return to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) by 30 November 2026.

Submitting this annual return ensures continued compliance with regulatory requirements for products marketed without a full Marketing Authorisation. The exemption specifically applies to products intended for animals, cage birds, terrarium animals, small rodents, ferrets and rabbits.

For further details and submission guidelines, visit the gov.uk website.  

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BVA urges 'continued vigilance' over bluetongue

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In a recent statement, the BVA noted that members are reporting more severe clinical signs and higher mortality rates than in previous years.

'We know that farm vets are working hard to support farmers and animals affected by this outbreak, during what is an extremely difficult time for all involved,' they stated. 'Continued vigilance to identify disease early is vital and vaccination remains the best way of protecting animals from this disease.'