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Veterinary Nurse Awareness Month goes virtual
RVNs are being urged to join in the campaign by recording videos about what they love about being a veterinary nurse.

Practices urged to go online to promote the importance of RVNs

It's almost time for Veterinary Nurse Awareness Month (VNAM) (May), and with many people on lockdown, organisers have had to remove the face-to-face interactions and will be running the campaign 'online and virtual' instead.

VNAM aims to spread the word about the importance of the role of the veterinary nurse in practice and the provision of responsible pet care to the general public. It was first started by the BVNA in 2005 as National VN Day campaign and now takes place throughout May every year.

Each year, more and more veterinary practices and training colleges get involved in promoting the role of the veterinary nurse, running events such as sponsored skydives, practice open days and pet health checks

Owing to the outbreak if COVID-19, this year's campaign will be a little different, with participants being asked to take part in virtual activities that they can complete on their mobile phone, laptop or home PC.

RVNs are being urged to join in the campaign as much as possible by recording videos about why they decided to become a vet nurse and what they love about being a vet nurse. The videos should last no longer than a minute, and then shared to the VNAM Facebook page using the hashtag #whatVNsdo, #VNAM2020 and #vetnurses.

This year's competition details can be found here and consist of three categories:

  • design a digital poster or infographic 'Showing the role of the Veterinary Nurse’
  • record a short educational video of no longer than five minutes that helps pet owners care for their pets
  • take a picture of your pet and complete the sentence “I love my Vet Nurse because…..”

There is also a digital pack that practices can download containing posters, partner logos and leaflets about a career in veterinary nursing.

To find out more about this year's campaign, and to get involved, visit www.bvna.org.uk

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Reporting service for dead wild birds updated

News Story 1
 The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has updated its online reporting service for dead wild birds.

The new version allows those reporting a dead bird to drop a pin on a map when reporting the location. It also includes a wider range of wild bird species groups to select from when describing the bird.

The online service, which helps APHA to monitor the spread of diseases such as avian influenza, can be accessed here. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
NI chief vet urges bluetongue vigilance

Northern Ireland's chief veterinary officer (CVO) has urged farmers to be vigilant for signs of bluetongue, after the Animal and Plant Health Agency warned there was a very high probability of further cases in Great Britain.

There have been 126 confirmed cases of bluetongue virus serotype 3 in England since November 2023, with no cases reported in Northern Ireland. The movement of live ruminants from Great Britain to Northern Ireland is currently suspended.

According to the Department of Agriculture, Environment and Rural Affairs (DAERA), the virus is most likely to enter Northern Ireland through infected animals or germplasm (semen or ova) being imported.

Brian Dooher, Northern Ireland's CVO, said: "Surveillance for this disease within Northern Ireland has been increased to assist with detection at the earliest opportunity which will facilitate more effective control measures."

Farmers should report any suspicions of the disease to their private veterinary practitioner, the DAERA Helpline on 0300 200 7840 or their local DAERA Direct Veterinary Office.