We are delighted to share the news that our Vet Specialist Adviser, Richard Saunders, has been awarded a Fellowship from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons. This is a really big deal, and we are extremely proud but not at all surprised. We know how hard Richard has worked to champion rabbits, and his herculean efforts to get the new RVHD2 vaccine into the UK saved the lives of thousands of rabbits.
Richard, who in 2018 won the CEVA Vet of the Year award for improving rabbit welfare, has set the standard for ‘rabbit-friendly’ vet practices. He lectures all over the world on rabbit medicine, teaches vet students, advises our vet practice members, and does so much behind the scenes. An awful lot of what the RWAF has achieved would not have been possible without him.
Richard told us:
“A couple of days ago I was informed that I had been awarded the Fellowship of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, and today, after the RCVS have announced the new intake themselves, I’m able to share this news. I was awarded it for “Meritorious Contributions to Clinical Practice”, for my contribution to rabbit health and welfare, and teaching vets, vet students, and veterinary nurses about them.
“And this was only possible because of the opportunities given to me by being first a Resident, and then the Veterinary Adviser, for the RWAF. It’s through the RWAF that I have been able to carry out this work. And it’s not something I have done alone. It’s something I’ve been encouraged and supported in, from the very beginning, by so many people, both within the RWAF and outside.
“I’d particularly like to thank all those at RWAF, especially Rae Walters, Emma Boyd, Claire King, Ros Lamb and Emma Milne. And outside the RWAF, of course, there is Sharon Redrobe, and pretty much everyone who has ever spoken at our conference, from whom I’ve learnt so much. In particular, Paul Flecknell, Frances Harcourt-Brown and John Chitty, and, of course, my wife, Sian, for all her support and patience throughout”
Please join us in congratulating Richard and thanking him for everything he has done and is still doing for our favourite animals.
