Frances Harcourt-Brown accepting her award, with husband Nigel

Lifetime Achievement Award Recognises Harrogate Vet’s Dedication To Improving The Health And Welfare Of Rabbits

4 months ago
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Posted
18th December, 2023 10h39

Frances Harcourt-Brown, a renowned veterinary expert in rabbit medicine and surgery, has been presented with a Lifetime Achievement award by Burgess Pet Care for her decades of work to improve the health and welfare of rabbits. 

The accolade recognises the instrumental role that Frances’s research played in the launch of the Burgess Excel range, the UK's first single component extruded nugget for rabbits, which this year celebrates its 25^th anniversary.

Retired vet Frances, who lives in Harrogate, was the first veterinary surgeon to raise concerns around the negative impact that selective feeding could have on rabbit health and directly approached several pet food companies, including Yorkshire-based Burgess Pet Care, to highlight these concerns. This led to the launch of Burgess Excel rabbit nuggets, the UK’s first single component extruded rabbit food.

Frances published her first paper on rabbit health in 1996 and since then, has authored The Textbook of Rabbit Medicine in 2001, became the first and only RCVS Recognised Specialist in Rabbit Medicine and Surgery in 2008, and contributed to the BSAVA Manual of Rabbit Surgery, Imaging and Dentistry in 2013. Frances has lectured extensively to help educate others in the veterinary profession and has run courses in her village near Harrogate that have attracted delegates from around the world.

Dr Suzanne Moyes at Burgess Pet Care, said: - 

“For decades Frances has been a vocal advocate for the health and well-being of rabbits and has written extensively on the subject. Her passion for rabbit welfare has helped to significantly increase our knowledge of these wonderful animals and she is recognised around the world as one of the leading experts on rabbit care.

“We are absolutely delighted that Frances has accepted our first ever Lifetime Achievement award, which recognises her enormous contribution to improving rabbits health across the globe,” Dr Moyes added.

In addition to the £200 cash award, which Frances plans to use to help develop her rabbit information website, she also attended a celebratory lunch at Paradise Food run by former Michelin-starred chef, Frances Atkins.

Further details of all the winners in this year’s Burgess Excel Vet Awards, which recognise the rabbit-friendly practices, vets and nurses who work hard to improve the lives of domestic rabbits and guinea pigs in the UK, will be announced in the coming weeks.

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