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ISFM celebrates 10 years of cat-friendly clinics
ISFM ran another cat-friendly clinic competition to mark the occasion.

The organisation has accredited 2570 clinics.

International Society of Feline Medicine (ISFM), the veterinary division of International Cat Care, is celebrating 10 years of its Cat Friendly Clinic (CFC) accreditation programme.

The programme, designed to make veterinary clinics less stressful for cats, started as a competition to encourage veterinary professionals to think about the cat experience in their own clinics. A decade on, many of the CFC programme's ideas have become mainstream, and influenced feline veterinary care worldwide.

Over the past decade, ISFM has accredited 2570 CFCs in 44 countries, with an additional 644 cat friendly practices listed in North and South America by the American Association of Feline Practitioners, who licence the programme from iCatCare.

To mark the occasion, ISFM ran another competition to showcase the ways in which cat-friendly clinics have made their veterinary practices more cat-friendly, and at the end of 2021, clinics were asked to submit short videos of their changes.

ISFM has chosen three finalists in each category:

Physical change to the clinic


  • Amitago Clinica Felina for the redevelopment of their whole clinic (Spain)
  • Lumbry Park Veterinary Specialists for their use of bespoke cat beds (UK)
  • Orchid Veterinary Surgery for their cat-only upstairs area (UK)

Procedural change to ways of working with cats


  • Ferndown Family Vets for their kitten visits (UK)
  • DAP De Witte Raaf for their use of a lick mat (Belgium)
  • Tierarztpraxis Jana Wendt for their use of olfactory distraction techniques (Germany)

The winners of each category will be announced on 29 April at iCatCare's 'Being Cat Friendly' event in London, and the winners will receive two tickets to ISFM Congress.

Further information on ISFM's CFC programme can be found here.

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Webinar to explore history of KC breed registers

News Story 1
 A free webinar exploring the development of the Kennel Club's registration system and the evolution of closed breed registers has been announced.

Hosted by Dr Alison Skipper, veterinary and research advisor at the Kennel Club, the webinar will delve into the development of the registry and how the changing landscape of scientific knowledge has shaped breeding practices. It will also look at what this means for the future of pedigree dogs.

The session will culminate with a look at The Kennel Club's ongoing and future engagement in this area, with a chance for attendees to put forward their thoughts and questions for discussion.

This event takes place on Microsoft Teams on Tuesday, 10 June at 7pm. To learn more, visit events.teams.microsoft.com  

Click here for more...
News Shorts
UK's BSE risk status downgraded

The WOAH has downgraded the UK's international risk status for BSE to 'negligible'.

Defra says that the UK's improved risk status recognises the reputation for having the highest standards for biosecurity. It adds that it demonstrates decades of rigorous animal control.

Outbreaks of Bovine Spongiform Encephalopathy, also known as mad cow disease, have previously resulted in bans on Britain's beef exports.

The UK's new status could lead to expanded trade and better confidence in British beef.

Christine Middlemiss, the UK's chief veterinary officer, said: "WOAH's recognition of the UK as negligible risk for BSE is a significant milestone and is a testament to the UK's strong biosecurity measures and the hard work and vigilance of farmers and livestock keepers across the country who have all played their part in managing the spread of this disease.