Latest News

March 2008

 

September 2007

Kingsbridge Show. This year we judged the small pet category. We also offered a chance for visitors to the show to win a 7.2 megapixel Digital Camera by correctly identifying where in the South Hams the church seen in our advert in the programme can be found. The advert is shown below. The answer can be found by scrolling to the bottom of the news section.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

August 2007

Exam Results. Both Zoe Tucker and Sarah Mitchell passed their exams at the end of the first year of the Veterinary Nursing course. A pass with credit was achieved by Jake Mullins in his Animal Nursing Assistant exams.

Pet Show. On the 25th Sophie Clayton judged the various categories of special dogs at the Charleton village fete, and presented them with their “South Moor Vets” rosettes!

July 2007

New Flea & Tick Treatment. In July we were very pleased to be able to offer our clients a brand new flea and tick treatment for their dogs. The product is applied to the skin in the same way as other spot-ons, and is still 100% effective against the little beasties after a month, even after shampooing or multiple water immersions. Come in to the surgery for a discussion on your dog’s parasite control, and for an introductory offer.

June 2007

School Visit. On the 26th we had a visit from Thurlestone Primary School. The children were shown all around the surgery, and had some of the equipment demonstrated. They were very enthusiastic, particularly with the animals that were in. My own dog had a tick on her, which generated much interest (and embarrassment!).

Courses Attended. Melanie Balasingham, Donna Harris, Louisa Adams and Kate Hegarty went to an evening on Anaesthesia on the 13th.

A presentation entitled “Blood, Sweat or Tears – Fluid Cytology in Practice” was attended by Michael Day and Louisa Adams on the 14th.

On the 23rd, in Edinburgh, Peter Robson and Geoff Holt were lectured on Sheep worming, Fertility control in Beef Cattle, and treatments that could be utilised in exceptionally valuable farm stock.

Michael Day and Julia Horne attended a meeting on Nurse Training on the 26th.

May 2007

Our activities for National Pet Month raised over £1000, which was distributed to many local charities, the guide dogs, and as far away as India and the Gambia.

Many thanks to everyone who took part and made it such a fun event, and to Lin and Jenny who set the quiz and ran the bring and buy.

The winner of the childrens painting competition was Freya, and her picture is shown below, along with a selection of the others received.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The quiz, which was really difficult (well I thought so!), was won by Mrs Brown of West Charleton.

The photo competition was won by Mrs Moss of Kingsbridge. Her photo of Bridget the chicken is shown on the right.

Below are some photos of the barbeque held at the Modbury surgery, which despite the downpour was attended by about 300 people! Outside John Tucker was valiant behind the grill, and inside were some
wonderful displays of equipment and interesting cases.

 

 

 

 

 

Courses Attended. On the 14th, 15th and 16th Michael Day attended lectures on current issues relating to the vaccination of dogs and cats against infectious disease.

New Vet. We welcome Tshidi Gardiner to our Modbury branch. She had been in equine practice for a few years, and is studying for a certificate in this speciality. She joined us to increase her pet and farm animal caseload.

April 2007 - National Pet Month

This runs nationally from the 7th of April to the 7th of May. It is designed to promote all aspects of pet care, and to raise money for animal charities. We will be organising a few events as detailed below:

Small furry clinic every Wednesday throughout the month. Our vet nurse, Claire Smith, will be giving health checks and advice for any rats, mice, hamsters etc that you may have. These checks are free, but any donations to charity gratefully accepted! This is being held at Kingsbridge only. Please phone for an appointment.

Photo competition – your funniest pet picture. If you have got a really hilarious picture of your pet then let us see it. Bring it in to any of our surgeries during the month (don’t forget to put your name and address on the back). Prizes will be awarded for the funniest, and the results announced on the 1st June.

Quiz available at all the surgeries. Test your general and animal knowledge, and try out some cryptic clues for local place names. A quiz costs £1, with the proceeds going to charity. Complete at your leisure, but return to us by 1st June please. Prize for the biggest smartie-pants!

Childrens painting competition. Paint a picture of your pet and you could win a prize. Please bring your artwork in by the 7th May. Winners will be announced on the 1st of June.

Open afternoon and evening at Kingsbridge, Tuesday 17th April. Come and join us and look around the surgery. Meet the staff , and see how things work. Ask those questions you’ve always wanted to ask! It starts at 4pm so bring the children. There will be face painting(donations to charity), wine and nibbles, squash and sweets.

Wet Nose Day at Kingsbridge and Ivybridge, Tuesday 24th April. Visit us and “wet your whistle”. Tea, coffee, squash, cakes and biscuits available all day (you’ve guessed it – donations to charity!)

Talk on “Diseases associated with the older cat”. This will be held at the Kings Arms, Kingsbridge at 7.30pm on Tuesday 24th April. If you are the owner of a cat of any age you should find this an interesting evening. Clients from all of our branches are most welcome. Please ring Lin or Jenny on 01548 856688 if you would like to attend. A small buffet will be provided.

Bring and buy sale, Saturday 5th May. A chance pass on some unwanted items for a good cause, and buy some you want! The surgery will receive goods from the beginning of April, to be sold on the 5th May. All proceeds go to charity.

New Equipment. We purchased two new pieces of equipment. One was a very thin rigid endoscope, only 2.7mm thick, which is ideal for looking into the noses of pets, and the airways of our smaller patients. Many thanks to Charlesworth Cavaliers and Vicky for their help towards this addition. The other piece was also an endoscope, this time a replacement of the flexible endoscope we use to examine the airway of horses. Both of these can also be used in other body systems to further a diagnosis.

Courses Attended. The British Small Animal Veterinary Association Congress is held over four days in April every year, and is a wonderful opportunity to hear experts from all over the world. This year the congress was attended by Julia Horne and Melanie Balasingham. The BSAVA president presented Sophie Freeth with her award for obtaining the highest mark in the national Veterinary Nursing examinations.

March 2007

Equine Meeting. Following on from our very successful meeting at The White Hart in Modbury in January, we are pleased to invite our equine clients to another one at the same venue on March 21st. The subject will be The Maintenance of a Healthy Equine Joint. Any clients wishing to attend should contact Donna Harris at Modbury.

February 2007

Courses Attended. On the 7th February at the Bristol University site at Langford a course on “Current Issues in Feline Infectious Diseases and Vaccination” was attended by Michael Day. Coincidentally, one of the speakers was Professor Michael Day (no relation!). Stuart Richardson attended a course on “Equine Emergencies”.

On the 28th Feb a talk on all aspects of Anaesthesia was provided by Abbott Animal Health to all the small animal vets and the nurses at Kingsbridge.

January 2007

Top Exam Marks. Congratulation to Sophie Freeth who achieved the highest mark in the whole country in her Veterinary Nursing examination. Sophie is to receive an award at the Small Animal Veterinary Association Congress in Birmingham in April. Well done to Sophie for all her hard work, and to Donna Harris who was responsible for her training.

New Vets. We have recently had two new vets arrive – Kirsten Harman replaces Ruth at Modbury (who is off to Dubai), and Sophie Clayton who replaces Kathryn at Kingsbridge.

Kirsten qualified from Bristol in 2006 and then spent the summer taking tourists around the Canadian Rockies on horseback. Has a very badly trained German Pointer (her description!) called Lily. Her main interests are riding, running and travelling

Sophie also qualified from Bristol in 2006. She then worked in the Farm Animal clinical department for six months before joining us. She has black Labrador called Inca (reasonably trained!) and has similar interests to Kirsten – we should be keeping both of them too busy to indulge in these though!

Equine Meeting. An equine meeting was held at The White Hart in Modbury on two subjects, “Equine Parasite control” and “The Practical Application of Equine Nutrition”. More than a hundred people attended. Another equine meeting is planned for March.

Courses Attended. On the 16th of January, in Taunton, a course entitled “Problem Solving in the Feline Abdomen” was attended by Michael Day, Julia Horne, Steph Maclean-Mactaggart, Mel Balasingham, Kathryn Norman and Anna Wilde. This course covered the investigation, diagnosis and treatment of liver, pancreatic and inflammatory bowel disease.

 

The answer to the church competition (see Sep 07) is Modbury.