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Snakes need to stretch out fully, study finds
Around 42 per cent of private snake owners house their animals in enclosures that are too small.

Animal welfare campaigners call for new legislation on enclosure size.

The minimum enclosure size for snakes should enable them to stretch out fully in all directions, leading experts say.

A scientific review of snake enclosure recommendations, published in Animals, also found that current information on enclosure size is based on 'decades-old ‘rule of thumb’ practices' that are 'unsupported by scientific evidence'.

“Snakes are sentient, intelligent, and physically delicate wild animals that all too often spend almost their entire lives imprisoned in a glass tank the size of a hat box while being gawped at like living curios,” commented study author Dr Clifford Warwick of the Emergent Disease Foundation.

“Our article exposes the nonsense that has led to decades of snake abuse, and that the UK now lags behind even the American pet trade where snake welfare is concerned.”

According to the Animal Protection Agency (APA), around 42 per cent of private snake owners house their animals in enclosures that are too small. Furthermore, snake breeders often keep their animals in ‘racks’, which are essentially plastic drawers designed to simplify maintenance.
 
‘Such restrictive confinement can lead to serious infections, injuries and disease as well as mental and behavioural problems,’ the APA writes. ‘Small enclosures also make it impossible to regulate temperature, lighting and humidity or to provide enrichment in the form of hides, branches or pools.’

Under current government guidelines, snakes in pet shops must be housed in enclosures sized at two-thirds of the snake’s body length. The study authors found that the original evidence for these recommendations can be traced back to two books based on common practices and personal opinion. 

APA director Elaine Toland said the review puts to bed any argument that snake welfare is not compromised by small enclosures. 

“A legal requirement for enclosure sizes that allow snakes to adopt straight-line postures in all directions, as an absolute minimum, would at least allow snakes to perform some of their normal behaviours,” she said. “This is still far from ideal, but animal welfare legislation needs to be urgently updated in order to reflect the complex needs of reptiles.”

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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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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."