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Agony Aunt Digs for Charity
Denise was joined by veterinary staff from the current Sunderland PDSA animal hospital to celebrate the start of this exciting project.
The PDSA have welcomed the nation’s favourite agony aunt, Denise Robertson, to the site of its forthcoming £1.6million Sunderland animal hospital to kick-off building work.

Denise was joined by veterinary staff from the current Sunderland PDSA animal hospital, PDSA Senior Vet, Ian McClive, Head Nurse, Lindsay Atkinson and Manager, Michael Laing, to celebrate the start of this exciting project, which will benefit thousands of pets in the area.
 
Denise said: “PDSA does incredible work and is a vital service for local pet owners, especially in the current climate. I’m delighted to be invited to dig the first hole and I cannot wait to see the new hospital up and running later this year.”
 
The hospital fundraising appeal is now in full swing and PDSA is calling for people to help raise funds.
 
PDSA unveiled plans for the state-of-the-art animal hospital in October 2009 and launched an appeal to raise the £1.6million needed to build and equip it. The new hospital, located on North Hylton Road, Castletown, will replace the current premises on Kings Road, Southwick, and will give PDSA the capacity to treat the ever-increasing number of pets desperately needing its help.
 
The new hospital will be PDSA’s most advanced and eco-friendly facility to date. It will contain six consulting rooms, two operating theatres, a dental theatre, a digital X-ray room, a diagnostic laboratory, canine, feline and small furry pet recovery wards and a critical care unit for infectious cases.
 
Ian continues: “We’re hoping local animal lovers will support us by fundraising or donating whatever they can to help us reach our target.”

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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.