COVID-19: Firebreak Lockdown in Wales

23 October 2020

All of Wales is subject to a 17-day ‘firebreak’ lockdown from 6pm on Friday 23rd October until midnight Sunday 8th November. Veterinary practices in Wales are not exempt from the these Lockdown measures.

The Office of the CVO (Wales) has provided guidance for veterinary practices in Wales as follows:

  • Veterinary practices can continue to operate during the firebreak period for essential and urgent work only. As much non-urgent veterinary work as possible should be postponed.
  • Veterinary practices can and should play their part in bringing this about and use their professional judgement to determine what cases and procedures are urgent, bearing in mind the purpose of the firebreak, which is to prevent non-essential travel and mixing of people, and the short duration of the firebreak lockdown.
  • As highly regarded health professionals, veterinary surgeons also have an important role to play in setting a good example to the public and being exemplars of best practice of infection control.
  • Advice for owners is that pets may be exercised but dogs should be kept on a lead to avoid the potential of having to mix with other people to restrain them.
  • Further information is available on the Welsh Government website.

BSAVA, RCVS and BVA, have provided resources to support veterinary practices in Wales during this two week period. This is similar to guidance used during the UK-wide lockdown in April this year. To access these resources, visit the BSAVA COVID-19 webpages. In particular, the BSAVA Triage Tool for use during Lockdown measures, is intended to provide support and guidance to vets in practice and can be found here.