Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966

Veterinary Surgeons Act 1966

This Act states, subject to a number of exceptions, that only registered members of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons (RCVS) can practice Veterinary surgery... ie.A VET!

Veterinary surgery is defined as -

"....encompasing the art and science of veterinary surgery and medicine which includes the diagnosis of diseases and injuries in animals, tests performed on animals for diagnostic purposes, advice based upon a diagnosis....".

This quote is taken from the RCVS Guide to Professional Conduct 2000 which has been made public for the first time. If you want to read the full text, click on the link in this paragraph to go to the RCVS site. The section to look for is "Treatment of Animals by Non-Veterinary Surgeons".

The exceptions include: -

• Veterinary students and Veterinary nurses - governed by various amendments to the Veterinary Surgeons Act.
• Farriers - whilst farriers have their own Farriers Registration Acts they are also governed by the Veterinary Surgeons Act and are not allowed to perform acts of veterinary surgery.

The other exceptions (including Complementary Therapies) are governed by The Veterinary Surgery (Exemptions) Order 1962.