IVC chief calls for parasiticide reform as working group launches

A major care provider has set up a new working group which it hopes will develop sustainable parasiticide prescription protocols for both animals and the wider environment.

The move by IVC Evidensia came as one veterinary sector group dismissed recently launched government plans to review the issue as “too little, too late”.

Meanwhile, the Environment Agency (EA) has urged clinicians and pet owners to be mindful when choosing parasite treatments, having retreated from an earlier suggestion that spot-on product usage should be particularly tightly limited.

IVC bosses said their project is intended to provide educational and practical support for the whole sector, while findings from analysis financed through its research fund are expected to be released before the end of the year.

Group chief medical officer Gudrun Ravetz, who is leading the working group, said: “This is about leading the charge for the greater good.

“We’re proud to be investing in this work and setting an example for the profession. Responsible parasiticide use is not just a clinical issue, it’s a sustainability imperative.”

The company said it has already reduced the number of small animal and equine patients to have been prescribed antibiotics by one-third in the past two years and aims to reduce antibiotic usage in those categories to below five per cent by 2030.

Pave the way

The project was outlined just a few weeks after the cross-government Pharmaceuticals in the Environment (PiE) group published its roadmap for fresh analysis of the issue, which could pave the way for longer-term regulatory changes.

Initially, its proposals were broadly welcomed within the sector, while the body which runs one of England’s national parks, the Broads Authority, also backed them as it called for greater public awareness of the potential ecological risks.

But questions were raised after comments attributed to an EA official within the Broads Authority’s statement suggested spot-on flea and tick treatments should be applied only “as a last resort”.

Both the BVA and BSAVA confirmed that they were not aware of any such guidance being issued.

However, after the issue was raised with the EA, the statement was altered to say it encouraged clinicians and pet owners “to be mindful of these environmental risks when choosing and applying treatments”.

When asked why the change had been made, an EA spokesperson told Vet Times the revised comment more closely reflected its position.

It said spot-on treatments and other products contain “substances that can pose a significant risk to aquatic insects”. But the Progressive Veterinary Association argued the agency should have gone much further, adding: “The toxicity problem is already here and action needs to be taken now.

“It is commendable that the PiE roadmap sets out the severity of its concerns, but its proposed actions would be too little, too late.

“Mere discussion of a plan to make a plan at some point in the future as the roadmap sets out, without taking any action now, would demonstrate complacency as well as complicity.”