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Dental disease most common health problem for UK dogs, study finds
Dental disease was diagnosed in 12.5 per cent of the 22,000 dogs monitored across the year-long study.

Findings can help vets and owners to choose best preventative care plan.

One of the largest ever studies to explore anonymised health records from veterinary surgeries has found that the most common health problems in dogs are dental disease, obesity and ear infections.

The study is part of the RVC’s VetCompass programme, which includes anonymised veterinary information from more than eight million UK dogs.

From this pool, a random sample of 22,333 dogs were followed for a year, researchers made note of all health issues diagnosed during this period and also analysed whether the health of dogs varied by age, sex and whether or not the dogs were neutered.

More than 65 per cent of the observed dogs had at least one disorder across the study period, with the most common health problems being dental disease – diagnosed in 12.5 per cent of the dogs – followed by ear infection (7.3 per cent) and obesity (7.1 per cent).

Male dogs had a higher risk than females for disorders including ear infections, coughing, seizures, moist dermatitis and arthritis, while females had higher risk for urinary incontinence, urinary tract infection, mammary lumps and overgrown nails.

The findings also showed that health in dogs generally deteriorates as dogs age, with older dogs generally having more health problems per year than younger dogs.

Hannah James, health research manager at the Kennel Club and co-author of the paper, said: “As dog owners, the key priority is keeping our pets healthy and happy, but it can be difficult to put into context the most common problems that affect our canine counterparts and which areas we need to pay particular attention to in order to maintain this.

“These findings help us establish these key areas, and where we as owners, vets and organisational bodies can work towards to improve the day-to-day life of our beloved companions.”

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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. 

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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."