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RSPCA clinics in London facing closure
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Last year, the RSPCA saw a staggering £5.7 million drop in legacy donations.
Lack of funds place TV's animal hospital and three clinics at risk

Due to lack of funds, the RSPCA is set to close the Putney Animal Hospital, made famous by the BBC programme Animal Hospital. The charity is also proposing to close three London clinics.

In a statement, the RSPCA said its trustees had made the "very difficult" proposal to close the hospital and clinics as part of an "overall restructure".

The charity says it has faced increased demands for its services in recent years, alongside fluctuating income - which it blames largely on the volatility of legacy donations.

Last year, the RSPCA revealed it had seen a staggering £5.7 million drop in legacy income, forcing it to cut jobs.

The proposal to close Putney hospital and the London clinics aims to streamline the charity's frontline services and target the animals most in need.

"Evidence-based work has been done on redirecting our services to the animals most in need of our help, those picked up and rescued by our inspectors.

"Most of the animals treated at Putney Animal Hospital have owners. The charity proposes to concentrate its work on those areas of London where it can have greater impact on those animals that do not have owners…

"It would be with great sadness that the RSPCA would lose the roles at Putney and the London clinics but we would hope to keep most of our dedicated and much-valued staff through the redeployment opportunities opening up at our other London sites."

The charity said most of the services offered by the hospital and clinics will be relocated to other parts of London.

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Equine Disease Surveillance report released for Q4 2025

News Story 1
 The latest Equine Disease Surveillance report has been released, with details on equine disease from Q4 of 2025.

The report, produced by Equine Infectious Disease Surveillance, includes advice on rule changes for equine influenza vaccination.

Statistics and maps detail recent outbreaks of equine herpes virus, equine influenza, equine strangles and equine grass sickness. A series of laboratory reports provides data on virology, bacteriology, parasitology and toxicosis.

This issue also features a case study of orthoflavivus-associated neurological disease in a horse in the UK. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
NSA webinar explores sheep tailing and castration

The National Sheep Association (NSA) is to host a free webinar on the castration and tail docking of lambs.

The webinar, 'Understanding the tailing and castration consultation: A guide for sheep farmers', will be hosted online on Monday, 2 March 2026 at 7.30pm.

It comes during a government consultation into the methods used for these procedures. Farmers are encouraged to engage before the consultation period closes on Monday, 9 March 2026.

The webinar offers clear and actionable guidance to support farmers to contribute meaningfully to the consultation and prepare for potential changes.

On the panel will be former SVS president Kate Hovers, farmer and vet Ann Van Eetvelt and SRUC professor in Animal Health and Veterinary Sciences Cathy Dwyer. Each panel member will utilise their own specialism and expertise to evaluate risks and outcomes to sheep farming.

Find out more about the webinar on the NSA website.