Being a Rabbit Welfare Association & Fund (RWAF) vet practice member does not automatically make a practice “rabbit-friendly.” To be listed as a Rabbit Friendly Vet on our website, and to use our rabbit-friendly vet logo and receive the official certificate, practices must apply and undergo a thorough assessment.
What Does the Assessment Involve?
The process is detailed and covers 16 modules:
- Client Communication
- Reception
- Rabbitude
- Waiting Room
- Rabbit Checks & Consultations
- Hospitalisation
- Wards
- Anaesthesia & Fluid Therapy
- Dentistry
- Imaging
- Surgery
- GI Stasis
- End-of-Life Care
- Out-of-Hours Cover
- Vet Knowledge
- RVN Knowledge
Each module is scored Silver, Silver+ or Gold, and the practice then gets an overall score of Silver, Silver+ or Gold.
This is a significant time investment for the practice; they must answer questions and provide supporting evidence, such as photos and policies. Achieving rabbit-friendly status is something practices are rightly very proud of.
Not every practice that applies will be rabbit-friendly, but we will work with them to improve where needed.
Our Commitment
This is also a major undertaking for us. We assess every application and manage the scheme, which is free for vet members but requires considerable time and resources. We’re fortunate to have Elaine Line managing the scheme and Dr John Chitty (who is a hugely experienced and widely respected RCVS Advanced Practitioner in Zoological Medicine) assessing applications. The scheme was recently relaunched after a huge amount of work, and we believe the new format will highlight where practices excel and will allow them to progress. Because each module and area, ie reception, out-of-hours, kennel facilities, vets, and nurses, etc, is scored, owners can see where practices excel and which aspects matter most to them.
Always make sure that you see one of the named rabbit-friendly vets, and also check the date on the certificates and logos to make sure that they are up to date.
These are the certificates and logos to look for so that you can identify an assessed rabbit-friendly vet practice:
The Rabbit Welfare Pledge
We’ve also introduced the Rabbit Welfare Pledge for practices that are members but not yet ready to apply for full rabbit-friendly status. These practices have pledged to maintain high clinical standards for rabbit care, even though they haven’t been formally assessed. There may be many reasons for delaying assessment, such as time constraints, but these practices still want to make a positive difference.
This is what to look for from a vet practice that supports both RWAF by being a member and has made a commitment to high standards of rabbit care.
Helping rabbit owners and caregivers understand the difference
We want rabbit owners and caregivers to know about both schemes and understand the difference:
- Rabbit Friendly Practices – fully assessed and certified.
(Rabbit Friendly Practices may also take and display the Rabbit Welfare Pledge)
- Rabbit Welfare Pledge Practices – committed to high standards but not yet assessed.
