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UK online retailers remove ear cropping kits
"The swift and positive action by the two major retailers is a small but significant animal welfare win for our #CutTheCrop campaign" - Dr Justine Shotton.
eBay has responded after the BVA rose concerns over DIY kits. 

'DIY' dog ear cropping and ear straightening kits have been removed from two major UK online retailers after the British Veterinary Association (BVA) raised concerns earlier this month.

Dr Justine Shotton, BVA President, wrote to eBay UK to flag listings for ear cropping kits sold on their website, and share veterinary and animal welfare concerns about the illegal practice of ear cropping.

Dr Shotton explained: “We took action after being made aware by a few vets about the availability of ear cropping kits on eBay UK. 

“Our research also found a number of listings for ear straightening accessories being sold via several other major online websites.”

Etsy UK and Amazon UK were also contacted to share concerns about the availability of ear straightening or correcting accessories, which have the potential to compromise dogs' welfare. 

Both eBay and Etsy took action to remove the kits after being contacted, and in its response, eBay promised to update its filters and algorithms globally to filter out ear cropping products. Amazon UK has not yet responded to the BVA's letter. 

“The swift and positive action by the two major retailers is a small but significant animal welfare win for our #CutTheCrop campaign,” said Dr Shotton. 

“While the Government has promised action to close the legal loophole that allows cropped dogs to be brought into the country from abroad, the availability of such accessories online remains hard to tackle.

“I’d encourage vets and members of the public to download and use our new template letter to raise concerns with retailers if they come across similar listings online in the future. Where such functionality exists, they may also use the websites’ online reporting mechanism to log a complaint.”

The BVA's template letter is available to download here. 

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Free event for the global unowned cat community

News Story 1
 International Cat Care (ICatCare) has announced a free, virtual event dedicated to caring for unowned cats to explore new ideas and ways of working.

iCatConnect 2025 takes place on Wednesday, 12 November, and is open to everyone working and volunteering with unowned cats. It will include a line-up of 12 international cat welfare experts, who will consider the bigger picture of unowned cats and explore practical, effective, and inclusive solutions.

Following the session, attendees can put their questions to the experts and share their views. They will also hear frontline challenges and real-world case studies shared by contributors working in shelters, TNR, community cat programmes, and veterinary teams from around the world. 

Click here for more...
News Shorts
Bluetongue reaches Wales for first time in 2025

The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has revealed that bluetongue has been confirmed in Wales for the first time in 2025.

In their latest statistics, APHA records a total of 109 cases of BTV-3 or BTV-8 in Great Britain in the 2025-2026 vector season.

The total number of BTV-3 cases in Great Britain this season is 107. This includes 103 cases within the England restricted zone and four cases in Wales.

There has also been two cases of BTV-8, which were both in Cornwall.

As a result of the cases in Wales, a Temporary Control Zone (TCZ) is enforced in Monmouthshire. Animals can move freely under general license within the England Restricted Zone, however animals with suspected bluetongue must stay on their holding.

All premises testing positive for blue tongue can be viewed on this map.