Northern Ireland

Fish4Dogs boosts sales team

Fish4Dogs has boosted its sales team by bringing on board a business manager from the pet industry and promoting one of its customer service advisors into new positions. Patina Pickard and Jack Sheldon join territory manager Judith Laurie to make-up the team under the direction of Sarah Fowler. Patina has…

Read More »

Retail footfall drops in February

Retail footfall decreased by 0.5 percent in February 2018, and is a major decline compared with the rate of 1.0 percent seen the previous year. According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC) this figure is better than the three-month average of -2.0 percent and the twelve-month average of -0.7 percent.…

Read More »

4,500 calls received in five years linked to airgun attacks

The RSPCA is calling for mandatory licensing of airguns in England and Wales, as it is revealed the charity received 4,500 calls in five years about attacks on animals using such weapons. The charity will be giving the recommendation as part of a submission to the UK Government’s current review…

Read More »

Scottish government confirms electric shock dog collar ban

The use of electric shock dog collars is to be banned in Scotland, the Scottish government has confirmed. The decision comes off the back of a long-running campaign by Scottish Conservative MSP Maurice Golden, the Kennel Club, the Animal Behaviour and Training Council, and the Scottish SPCA. The government initially decided…

Read More »

Pet flea treatment polluting Britain’s freshwaters

A new study by insect and small animal charity Buglife has found that British freshwaters are heavily contaminated with neonicotinoids, which are used in flea treatments and greenhouses. The study took 23 samples from different sites in 2016; 16 from England, four in Scotland, three in Wales and three in…

Read More »

Mackle Pet Foods increases Sainsbury’s presence

Mackle Pet Foods has increased distribution into Sainsbury’s of its range of natural and grain free dog food, with the introduction of two new lines. This follows on from the company’s £3 million investment in its plastic tray manufacturing facility in Moy, Northern Ireland in 2017, which has enabled it…

Read More »

Illegal puppy trader given community service

An illegal puppy trader has been given a 250 hour unpaid community payback order, following an investigation by the Scottish SPCA. Dundee based, Jamie Colquhoun sold puppies online without a licence and within a public car park Colquhoun was found guilty at Forfar Sheriff Court on 23 November. Commenting on the…

Read More »

One in five workplaces allow pets in the office

According to new research, one-fifth of British workplaces now allow employees to bring pets into the office, yet a similar proportion (22 percent) of workers have complained about the furry companions. The survey by online job board, CV-Library, found that when it comes to the personal effect of animals in the…

Read More »

RCVS and BVA join forces to deal with the impact of Brexit

The Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) and the British Veterinary Association (BVA) have joined forces with the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs (Defra) on a project to assess the challenges and opportunities posed by EU exit, with the aim to develop a flexible and skilled workforce which…

Read More »

Do people who commit animal cruelty offences deserve harsher punishment?

In the last few weeks the maximum sentence given to those who commit animal cruelty has been changed from six months with an unlimited fine amount to five years within England. The Scottish Government also recently announced that it is introducing a Bill to increase the maximum prison sentence for…

Read More »