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Tennis Balls = Homes for Harvest Mice
Photo courtesy of James Lees
Conservationists hope that the simple tennis ball could be just the thing to give harvest mice an advantage this year.

While only new balls will do for the players about to do battle on Wimbledon’s courts, old ones are making perfect nest houses for the tiny mice at WWT Slimbridge Wetland Centre.
 
Staff at the Centre in Gloucestershire hope it will boost the numbers of mice living in its wetland mammal area.

“I have cut small penny sized holes in the balls and put straw inside and they seem to be taking very well to them.  We have about 30 in our collection here and we are hoping that the tennis balls will make them feel secure so that they breed well this year.” John Crooks, mammal manager, explained.

“A few years ago numbers of the mice in the wild did fall but they are starting make a come back as they many populations have moved to new nesting sites such as hedgerows and wetlands.”

Photo courtesy of James Lees
The mice, which only measure about two inches in length when fully grown, are the smallest rodents in the UK.
 
Their breeding season is from May to September and they tend to have litters of four to six young.  In the wild they weave circular nests out of grasses and attach them to stems high above the ground.

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Defra shares new Sanitary and Phytosanitary guidance

News Story 1
 Defra has published guidance for the vet sector ahead of a proposed UK-EU Sanitary and Phytosanitary agreement.

The agreement, which will change the movement and trade of animals and related products, could see reductions in checks, paperwork and certification. As well as describing regulatory developments, the advice highlights the importance of animal ID, registration and traceability in disease control and other compliance arrangements.

The guidance can be found here. More detail is expected as negotiations progress. 

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News Shorts
New form for online veterinary medicines retailers

The Veterinary Medicines Directorate (VMD) has produced a new online form for retailers wishing to sell veterinary medicines on the internet.

The form replace the previous Word version and is part of the VMD's ongoing commitment to digitise its processes. Anyone retailing prescription medicines online, including POM-V, POM-VPS and NFA-VPS categories, is lawfully required to register with the VMD before trading.

The change only applies to new applicants. Retailers already listed on the VMD's Register of Online Retailers or registered under the Accredited Internet Retailer Scheme (AIRS) do not need to do anything.