FRONT Publisher Editorial

You can receive Veterinary Practice Today by registering your details at www.vetcommunity.com. Alternatively you can subscribe for 120 per year (plus postage and packing for overseas subscriptions) by emailing subscriptionsveterinarypracticetoday.com Printed in Great Britain by Swallowtail Print Ltd, Norwich Tel: 01603 868862 www.swallowtailprint.co.uk UP FRONT... Publisher Published six times a year by Vision Media, a department of Central Veterinary Services Ltd. Elmtree Business Park Elmswell Bury St Edmunds Suffolk IP30 9HR Tel: 01359 245310 Fax: 01359 245253 enquiriesveterinarypracticetoday.com www.veterinarypracticetoday.com Editorial Editors Maggie Shilcock maggie.shilcockvisionline.co.uk Tel: 01359 245310 David Watson david.watsonvisionline.co.uk Claire Newton-Ransom claire.newtonransomvisionline.co.uk Associate editor Sarah Kidby sarah.kidbyvisionline.co.uk Tel: 01359 245310 Design Graphic designers Melody-Anne Neville Gemma West Bradley Young designervisionline.co.uk Production Publications manager Clara Ashcroft clara.ashcroftvisionline.co.uk Tel: 01359 245310 Advertising advertisingveterinarypracticetoday.com Tel: 01359 245310 Subscriptions subscriptionsveterinarypracticetoday.com Tel: 01359 245310 2019 Vision Media All rights reserved. Reproduction, in part or in full, is strictly prohibited without the prior consent of the publisher. Veterinary Practice Today is a trade mark of Vision Media. All other trade marks are acknowledged. The content of this magazine is based on the best knowledge and information available at the time of publication. Every effort has been made to ensure that all advertisements and editorial are correct at the time of going to press. The views expressed by the authors are not necessarily those of the publisher, proprietor, or others associated with its production. Images used under licence from Shutterstock, Inc., iStock.com and freepik.com. ISSN: 2053-440X The paper used for the publication is a recyclable and renewable product. It has been produced using wood sourced from sustainably managed forests and elemental or total chlorine free bleached pulp. This magazine can be recycled. It is always wise to do some forward planning not least in the world of publishing, where life is all about copy dates and deadlines. But sometimes, the best laid plans Such was the case when commissioning our Comment article in this issue. Back in January, when the planning began, we fully expected to have left the EU before this edition of Veterinary Practice Today was on your doorstep and we thought it would be an excellent idea to ask BVA past president, Gudrun Ravetz, to sum up what that leaving really meant for the veterinary profession. Yet, the fickleness of politics and politicians means that here we are in May still within the EU. Notwithstanding that, Gudrun has written an excellent article on the current situation for the profession. The effect of leaving the EU on the supply, licensing and prescribing of veterinary medicines has been one of the big issues within the veterinary profession; but just as important is how medicines are used, particularly on farms. Medicine use on farms has changed over the last decade or more and this is discussed in Owen Atkinsons excellent article on medicine stewardship. He highlights the need for better medicine compliance and storage on farms and points to the ever-present threat of antibiotic resistance looking at how medicine stewardship by the veterinary profession can redress many of these issues. Staying with the farming theme, Kaz Strycharczyk writes about the farmers trusty companion, the sheepdog, with particular reference to the health and welfare of these working dogs and the role of the farm vet in their care. As a former owner of a Border collie, whose looks were more impressive than his herding abilities, I read with interest Kazs comments on the scavenging traits of sheep dogs (Yes, I remember this well!) and the additional welfare risks a farming environment presents. The country is going through a painful political process, but this is nothing compared to the real pain that our companion and commercial animals sometimes suffer and this is dealt with by two of our authors, Joanna Potter and Marie Rippingale. Joannas article is the first in a series on chronic pain in dogs and cats that looks to improve our understanding of chronic pain and its management; while Marie takes an interesting look at pain scoring in equines and how the use of facial expressions can be used to assess pain. Our next issue is due to be published in early July. Who knows if we will still be part of the European Union or be that Sceptered Isle floating alone in a silver sea, to slightly misquote Shakespeares Richard II. Whatever the future holds, we still have to plan our journal well ahead but no assumptions this time. Maggie Shilcock Editor 3VPTODAY | WWW.VETERINARYPRACTICETODAY.COMWWW.VETCOMMUNIT Y.COM | ONLINE EDITION