CVS Group Plc

Congratulations to our wonderful colleague Alison Clark, who has been awarded the VetLife Chair's Award, in recognition of her volunteer work with VetLife 🎉   We are so proud of Alison's dedication to support the veterinary community and champion wellbeing 💚   You can read Alison’s full nomination and find out more about VetLife’s vital work here: https://lnkd.in/epmghNsF

Beautiful 4-month-old German Shepherd Zeus has made a remarkable recovery following a referral to ChesterGates Veterinary Specialists after developing breathing difficulties and a loud heart murmur. On admission, our Specialist Cardiologist and Clinical Director, Liz Bode examined Zeus and diagnosed him with patent ductus arteriosus (PDA), a condition that had progressed to heart failure. PDA is a congenital heart defect that results in abnormal blood flow between the aorta and pulmonary artery and requires urgent action, so the whole team worked hard to stabilised Zeus and prep him for surgery. Thanks to ChesterGates cutting-edge facilities, Zeus underwent a minimally invasive procedure to close the PDA - using an Amplatz Canine Duct Occluder (ACDO). This surgery was a success and Zeus was discharged the next day, much to the relief of his family. This outcome was only made possible through the collaboration of ChesterGates cardiology team, its dedicated team of Specialist anaesthetists and its highly trained Referral nurses. We’re so proud of everyone involved! It really highlights the importance of our multidisciplinary approach in veterinary care. #teamwork #veterinary #veterinarynurse #cardiology #anaesthesia [Visual description: A picture of Zeus in ChesterGates kennels]

Today marks National Stress Awareness Day. It’s a time to think about the physical and mental effects of stress - and how we can manage associated feelings. Our wonderful Chief Veterinary Nursing Officer Tara Ryan practices ‘mindful self-care’ and has these thoughts and advice: 💮 Set aside time for ‘self-care’ - positive, restorative and self-nurturing activities. These reduce stress and anxiety, and improve wellbeing and esteem. 💮 Activities can include meditation, creative hobbies, walking, meeting friends or simply just relaxing. 💮 Apply ‘mindful’ techniques in you can. Being mindful you notice what's happening in the present moment - your body, mind & surroundings - without judgement. 💮 'Mindful' techniques can include; sitting quietly with your eyes closed - focusing on your breathing, or on each part of your body in turn; or walking in nature - focusing on the sights, smells, sounds and sensations in turn. 💮 Mind has listed some benefits of mindfulness as increased self-awareness, feeling calmer, being better able to respond to your feelings, and being kinder to yourself. 💮 Research also shows being with an animal while practising self-care is associated with an improvement in emotions and wellbeing. 💮 So take your dog for a 'mindful' walk or give your cat a 'mindful' cuddle - as your animal could help to draw your mind away from everyday stress and into the moment. To read Tara’s 'Mindful Self-Care' article visit BVNA (The British Veterinary Nursing Association) https://lnkd.in/eMcygQpN (page 12-13). #stressawareness #selfcare #mindfulness [Visual description: A woman lying on a sofa stroking her cat]

CVS Farm has undertaken new bovine dystocia research where UK farmers have been surveyed on the diagnosis, treatment and prevention of the disease. It is hoped the findings will help to reduce dystocia’s significant economic cost for both the dairy and beef sectors, and help to resolve this common farm animal welfare issue. Bovine dystocia is an abnormal or difficult birth at any stage of labour. It has a negative impact on calves (e.g. prolonged hypoxia, significant acidosis & increased stillborn rates) and dams (e.g. trauma, paresis, metritis & endometritis). Its main causes are foetal-maternal size mismatch, foetal malpresentation & dam related causes (e.g. uterine torsion). Overall, the frequency of dystocia required assistance during calving is still high (>%5). The CVS Farm research aims to fully understand UK farming’s point of view about the management, prevention and consequences of dystocia. The project; estimates the prevalence of dystocia in the UK; explores farmers knowledge of the signs of calving and different stages of labour; identifies what preventative measures farmers are taking to reduce dystocia; sees if standard operating procedures about calving and dystocia cows are in farm herd health plans; explores if farmers feel they need more information about the calving cow and dystocia; and reports on any aftercare provided by farmers to the dam and calf following an assisted calving. Read about its findings here https://lnkd.in/eSZKhqHN. #veterinary #farm #research #dystocia [Visual description: A beef cow with her calf in a barn filled with straw]

How times have changed! Here’s a wonderful example of Schedule 3 working well at our @Anchorage Veterinary Practice. Anchorage’s Amie Bush RVN - who is currently working towards her certificate in diagnostic imaging - can first be seen scanning a canine patient for a potential foreign body, whilst Anchorage's vet team consult and discuss a treatment plan for the patient. After an operation on the dog for a suspected foreign body, Anchorage’s Victoria Liddiment RVN can then be seen stitching up the incision site. It’s a wonderfully neat job Victoria.  Great skills! Great Schedule 3 nursing work! Great team work! #veterinary #nursing #RVN #SVN #schedule3 #radiography #stitchups [Visual description: An image of Amie scanning the dog and an image of Victoria stitching up the incision site]

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is a world-wide health threat, as bacteria are becoming resistant to many antibiotics we use. A third of people hold onto unused antibiotics for potential future reuse and pet owners may similarly store them for their pets. But re-using antibiotics in the same or other pets poses a high risk of AMR emerging and spreading. Throughout November 2024, overlapping with World Antibiotic Awareness Week (18-24 November), we are holding an antibiotic amnesty where our practices are reaching out to their clients to encourage the return of any unused or partially used antibiotic medications for safe disposal. Please get involved by visiting https://lnkd.in/eqhf73iH to download your practice toolkit. #veterinary #antimicrobialresistance #antibioticamnesty

We've launched a new Vet Career Progression Framework within our 21 equine and 15 farm practices, which gives formal recognition to our senior and experienced vets. The framework offers a structured career development pathway for all of our equine and farm general practitioners over four levels. It includes the new role of Senior Veterinary Surgeon in General Practice. Find out more here: https://lnkd.in/ebf9HZdJ. #veterinary #equine #farm #careerprogression Bell Equine Veterinary Clinic @AnimedEquineVets @AlnorthumbriaEquineVets @B&WEquineVets VALLEY EQUINE HOSPITAL LAMBOURN LIMITED @PhoenixEquine @OaklandsEquineHospital @EquineVeterinaryCentre @SevernEdgeEquineVets @CinderHillEquineClinic Scott Dunn's Equine Clinic SEADOWN VETERINARY SERVICES LTD WESSEX EQUINE LIMITED WESTERN COUNTIES EQUINE HOSPITAL LIMITED @Equicomms Dyfed Farm Vets Castle Farm Vets @Coast2CoastFarmVets @AlnorthumbriaFarmVets @PutlandsVeterinarySurgery @SevernEdgeFarmVets @BuchanVetsStrichen @BuchanVetsPeterhead @BuchanVetsFraserburgh @BVCFarmVets @EndellFarmVets Cheshire Farm Vets @Campsie&StruleFarmVets @OReilly&Fee THREE VALLEYS VETERINARY LTD @PembrokeshireFarmVets

A decade-long study by our orthopaedic specialist Steve Butterworth Weighbridge Referral Centre has shown using a combination of transcondylar bone screws & Kirschner wires to treat humeral unicondylar fractures in puppies under 7 months results in high healing rates with few complications. The research reviewed cases of puppies 3 to 6 months with unicondylar fractures. The sample included 30 fractures in 29 dogs treated with transcondylar bone screws and K-wires. All fractures healed successfully. The study included 24 male & 26 female puppies, with French Bulldogs representing 50% of cases. Short-term outcomes were excellent in 77% of cases and good in 23%. No catastrophic failures occurred, and 4 complications encountered were resolved with further minor surgery. While recent studies have raised concerns about the stability of using K-wires, rather than bone plates, this study suggests that for puppies, the combination of a transcondylar bone screw and K-wire is effective. The incidence of implant-related complications was lower than in adult dogs & the short-term outcomes were excellent or good in all cases with follow-up data. Thank you for your research Steve. It is very enlightening work! https://lnkd.in/ehSwswNv #veterinary #referrals #orthopaedic #fractures #puppies [Visual description: An image of Steve Butterworth holding a French Bulldog]

Congratulations to the winners of our colleague photography competition in the ‘Landscape with water' category 📷 Throughout August, we invited colleagues to embrace the wellbeing benefits of being outdoors, and to send us their snaps in four categories: • Close up animal • Landscape without water • Close up plant • Landscape with water We received over 300 incredible entries! All of the winners and runners up will receive a John Lewis voucher. Thank you to everyone who took part! #CVSGroup #CareAtOurHeart #Nature #Photography

Check out our CVS Equine Nursing Team at their CPD away day in Banbury today – working hard to stay at the forefront of equine veterinary care. 🐴 Some fascinating sessions were held on; 'Equine nurse career pathways' by Tara Ryan Chief Veterinary Nursing Officer and Kelly Tillet Head RVN at Bell Equine Hospital - where our nurses learned about development opportunities within CVS; 'What it means to be a stud RVN' by Sam Crouch RVN from Bell Equine - where our nurses had insights into equine breeding and how nurses can undertake key procedures such as fresh semen insemination and uterine lavage; and, 'Empowering equine nurses' by Bonny Millar RVN - who has extensive experience in the USA and the UK and who currently works for Equicomms. This knowledge will now be taken back and shared with our equine teams at our 21 equine practices throughout the country. Well done all for investing this time to ensure we can continue to collaborate, develop and offer our clients and their horses the highest standards of care! #veterinary #equine #nursing #CPD #careatourheart @Bell Equine Veterinary Clinic @Animed Equine Vets @Alnorthumbria Equine Vets @B&W Equine Hospital @Valley Equine Associates, PLLC @Oaklands Equine Hospital @Equine Veterinary Centre @Severn Edge Equine Vets @Phoenix Equine @Cinder Hill Equine Clinic @Scott Dunn's Equine Clinic @Seadown Equine @Wessex Equine @Western Counties Equine Hospital @Equicomms [Visual description: Our equine nursing colleagues in a session led by Bonny Millar]