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Guinea Pig Welfare Forum to return for third year
John Chitty will chair the third Guinea Pig Welfare Forum.
The one-day event will feature a diverse speaker line-up.

The Guinea Pig Welfare Forum is set to return for its third year, bringing together professionals from across the sector for the one-day event.

This year’s forum, co-hosted by Burgess Excel and Guinea Pig Welfare UK, will take place on Tuesday, 22 September at the Crowne Plaza, Birmingham City Centre.

Its agenda has been developed for various sectors, including the veterinary landscape, to include clinical insight and practical care. The morning programme will address key welfare issues for guinea pigs, as well as topics including reproduction, breeding and research developments.

Meanwhile the afternoon session will target sector-wide challenges and opportunities. This will include discussions into rescue centre operations, and licensing proposals.

Delegates will have the opportunity to take part in policy conversations around animal welfare.

A diverse line-up of speakers will feature at the event, spanning the fields of veterinary medicine, research, education and welfare. Among the confirmed speakers are Mary Coles of the University of Liverpool and Alison Wills of Hartpury College.

The event will also be feature John Chitty, RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Zoological Medicine.

Dr Chitty, who is chair of Guinea Pig Welfare UK, said: “Last year’s Guinea Pig Welfare Forum marked an important milestone with the launch of Guinea Pig Welfare UK, creating a dedicated voice focused on improving standards of care, education and advocacy for guinea pigs nationwide.

“The continued success of the forum plays a vital role in supporting that mission by bringing together expertise from across the industry to encourage collaboration and drive meaningful progress in guinea pig welfare.

“We’re proud that the event not only sparks important conversations, but also directly supports the charity’s ongoing work through fundraising and awareness.”

More information about the event can be found here. Proceeds from ticket sales will support Guinea Pig Welfare UK’s ongoing education, research and advocacy work.

Image © Burgess Pet Care

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Annual submission deadline small pet animal exemptions

News Story 1
 Companies marketing medicines for small pets exempt from authorisation must submit their annual return to the Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) by 30 November 2026.

Submitting this annual return ensures continued compliance with regulatory requirements for products marketed without a full Marketing Authorisation. The exemption specifically applies to products intended for animals, cage birds, terrarium animals, small rodents, ferrets and rabbits.

For further details and submission guidelines, visit the gov.uk website.  

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Bluetongue RZ extended across Scotland

The Scottish Government has announced an extension to a Bluetongue Restricted Zone that is in place in south-west Scotland.

From 3 October, the Restricted Zone will be extended to cover the whole of Scotland. The Animal, Plant and Health Agency (APHA) says this is in response to further disease spread, as well as simplify trading conditions ahead of the autumn.

Since the whole country will share a disease status, it will no longer be necessary to have a movement license to move susceptible livestock around the country. Restrictions on germinal products remain.

As of 1 October 2026, there were 1,979 cases of BTV-3 in England, 389 cases in Wales and 40 cases in Scotland.