Veterinary surgeons are known to be at a higher risk of suicide compared with the general population. There has been much speculation regarding possible mechanisms underlying the increased suicide risk in the profession, but little empirical research. A computerised search of published literature on the suicide risk and influences on suicide among veterinarians, with comparison to the risk and influences in other occupational groups and in the general population, was used to develop a structured review. Veterinary surgeons have a proportional mortality ratio (PMR) for suicide approximately four times that of the general population and around twice that of other healthcare professions. A complex interaction of possible mechanisms may occur across the course of a veterinary career to increase the risk of suicide. Possible factors include the characteristics of individuals entering the profession, negative effects during undergraduate training, work-related stressors, ready access to and knowledge of means, stigma associated with mental illness, professional and social isolation, and alcohol or drug misuse (mainly prescription drugs to which the profession has ready access). Contextual effects such as attitudes to death and euthanasia, formed through the profession's routine involvement with euthanasia of companion animals and slaughter of farm animals, and suicide 'contagion' due to direct or indirect exposure to suicide of peers within this small profession are other possible influences.

Compared to the general population, the sample reported high levels of anxiety and depressive symptoms; higher 12-month prevalence of suicidal thoughts; less favourable psychosocial work characteristics, especially in regard to demands and managerial support; lower levels of positive mental well-being; and higher levels of negative work-home interaction. The levels of psychological distress reported suggest ready access to and knowledge of lethal means is probably not operating in isolation to increase suicide risk within the profession.

Compared to the general population, the sample reported higher risk of work-related stress for demands and managerial support but lower risk for relationships and change. The results could be used to inform the development of targeted interventions.

Anthelmintic resistance has been increasingly reported in cattle worldwide over the last decade, although reports from Europe are more limited. The objective of the present study was to evaluate the efficacy of injectable formulations of ivermectin and moxidectin at 0.2 mg per kg bodyweight against naturally acquired gastro-intestinal nematodes in cattle. A total of 753 animals on 40 farms were enrolled in Germany (12 farms), the UK (10 farms), Italy (10 farms), and France (8 farms). Animals were selected based on pre-treatment faecal egg counts and were allocated to one of the two treatment groups. Each treatment group consisted of between 7 and 10 animals. A post-treatment faecal egg count was performed 14 days (±2 days) after treatment. The observed percentage reduction was calculated for each treatment group based on the arithmetic mean faecal egg count before and after treatment. The resistance status was evaluated based on the reduction in arithmetic mean faecal egg count and both the lower and upper 95% confidence limits. A decreased efficacy was observed in half or more of the farms in Germany, France and the UK. For moxidectin, resistance was confirmed on 3 farms in France, and on 1 farm in Germany and the UK. For ivermectin, resistance was confirmed on 3 farms in the UK, and on 1 farm in Germany and France. The remaining farms with decreased efficacy were classified as having an inconclusive resistance status based on the available data. After treatment Cooperia spp. larvae were most frequently identified, though Ostertagia ostertagi was also found, in particular within the UK and Germany. The present study reports lower than expected efficacy for ivermectin and moxidectin (based on the reduction in egg excretion after treatment) on European cattle farms, with confirmed anthelmintic resistance on 12.5% of the farms.

Veterinary surgeons are at high risk of suicide, with a proportional mortality ratio approximately four times that of the general population and around twice that of other health care professions. It is uncertain whether this derives from the characteristics of individuals entering the profession, the nature of the work environment, or other factors known to influence suicide. In this article, David Bartram and David Baldwin present a hypothetical model to explain suicide risk in veterinary surgeons, and argue that research is required to validate the model and to inform the development of appropriate interventions.