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Virtual congress to tackle pet obesity
The event will include sessions delivered by leading UK and international experts.
Event will explore how to approach conversations with owners. 

A free one-day virtual event is being offered to veterinary professionals to help them navigate the challenge of pet obesity.

Hosted by Royal Canin, the Weight Management Virtual Congress will include sessions delivered by leading UK and international experts on a range of topics, including:
  • obesity prevention - tools you can use in practice to help promote a healthy weight and practical advice you can pass to owners. 
  • risk factors – insights from recent studies 
  • how to approach conversations with owners of overweight pets who feed or prefer unconventional diets 
  • why tackling obesity makes business sense 
  • peri-anaesthetic management of obese patients. 
Among the speakers include Alex German, Professor of Small Animal Medicine at the University of Liverpool, who will discuss whether prevention is better than cure for obesity.  

Gwen Covey-Crump, senior clinician in anaesthesia at Langford Vets, will explore the impact of obesity on chronic pain, and award-winning US vet Ernie Ward will explain how to talk about pet food and obesity without sounding like a salesperson.

Delegates can then apply their knowledge to a real-life case in an interactive workshop run by weight-management specialists Georgia-Woods Lee and Lindsay Calcraft. 

Lindsay Calcraft, who is also organising the event, said: “We all know that obesity reduces pets’ life spans and puts them at risk of developing a number of health concerns. Together, we can battle this disease. We’ve organised this congress to help you to manage the weight and health of pets throughout their lives.”

The one-day event is being hosted on Royal Canin's new Virtual event centre, providing games, social networking and access to product displays and information during and after the event. 

A further 10 hours of on-demand sessions will be released during the event, focusing on the science of obesity, feline behaviour, obesity and osteoarthritis, approach to nutrients for obesity and the evolution of weight management diets.

For more details and to register for your place, click here.

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Applications open for MMI research grants

News Story 1
 RCVS' Mind Matters Initiative (MMI) has launched round two of its veterinary mental health research grants.

Researchers have until 11.59pm on Wednesday, 28 May 2025 to apply for a grant for research which reflects MMI's 2025 focus areas.

Only one Impact Grant was awarded last year, and so this year there are two Discovery Grants and one Impact Grants available. Each Discovery Grant is worth £5,000 and the Impact Grant is worth £15,000.

For more information or to apply, email researchgrants@rcvs.org.uk to contact the MMI team.

 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
BBC Radio 4 documentary addresses corporate fees

BBC Radio 4's File on 4 Investigates has released a documentary exploring how corporate-owned veterinary practices may be inflating bills to increase profit.

Released on 15 April, 'What's Happening To Your Vet Bills?' revealed the policies which many corporate groups have in place to increase their profits. This included targets and upgrades which veterinary teams are tasked with meeting on a regular basis.

It also features Anrich Vets, an independently-owned practice based in Wigan. Following the case of Staffordshire terrier Benjy, who is diagnosed with a tumour, the documentary shares how the team were able to offer contextualised care and advice to make the procedure as affordable as possible for his owners.

The documentary can be heard on demand on BBC iPlayer.