CENTRAL VETERINARY SOCIETY Established 1870 A Division of the British Veterinary Association

Minutes of a General Meeting of the Society held on Tuesday 31st May 2005, at the Athenaeum Club, 107 Pall Mall, London, SW1Y 5ER.

Present:  the President Mr. B. Hoskin and 21 Fellows and guests.

Apologies for absence had been received from 14 Fellows.

Minutes of the meeting held on 4th April 2005 had been circulated and were approved.

Matters arising:  none.

Correspondence:  none.

Any Other Business:  Dr. Arbuckle raised the question of producing CVS ties for Fellows to purchase, and this was discussed.

The meeting welcomed two new Fellows, Dr. Morag Dunlop and Mr. Manuel Sanchez.

The President then welcomed the speaker, Dr Tony Mudd, who gave a presentation on the work of the RCVS Trust.

Dr. Mudd explained that he had worked on single-cell proteins at Astra-Zeneca, and was now based in Brussels, involved in global and European operations.  He explained that the RCVS Trust was an animal welfare charity established in 1958 to run the RCVS library and develop an educational programme, under separate management from the RCVS.  The library is accessible to all practitioners, also carrying out literature searches.  Online membership is available, offering a substantial saving on journal charges.

The Trust is a grant-awarding body, involved in educational and animal welfare initiatives, with a £1.3 million programme including "blue sky" research, residencies and small grants.  It works with practices and institutions such as SPANA, VSO and FAB.  There is a wide range of grant-holders, from big names to recent graduates.

Fundraising is always a priority, from collecting tins in waiting rooms to sponsored cycle rides, and legacies are always welcome.  The Trust's Golden Jubilee is in 2008.

There followed an interesting discussion, during which it transpired that Fellows were rather more interested in applying for grants for work they had in mind, than in considering the contents of their Last Will and Testament!

At the end of the meeting Mr. Hoskin passed the President's chain of office on to the newly-elected President Mr. Carl Boyde.

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