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Wales launch slaughter consultation
Maintaining welfare standards at slaughter

The Welsh Government have launched a six-week consultation on how to maintain animal welfare standards at the time of slaughter.

The consultation comes in preparation of new minimum European standards for the treatment of animals at the time of their killing, set to come into force on 1 January 2013.

The Welsh Government said it wants to ensure the new standards (EU Regulation 1099/2099) do not result in a lowering of welfare standards for animals slaughtered in Wales.

John Griffiths, Wales' Environment Minister who launched the consultation, said: "Wales has a strong record in animal welfare, and while we welcome the EU Regulation, we are keen to ensure the best welfare standards are achieved at the time of slaughter here."

He added: “These are emotive issues for a range of groups so I would urge anyone with an interest to feed into the consultation.”

Click here to access the consultation.

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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.