From left, Ellie West, Wayne Clarke and Chapel House’s clinical director Emma Rickers at Chapel House.
Surgery For Bailey Becomes Veterinary Sustainability First
1 week ago 
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Routine surgery for a Poodle-Collie cross named Bailey became a pioneering step forward in more sustainable veterinary care, thanks to the new technology used during the procedure.
Bailey is the first pet to benefit from a pilot project that uses greenhouse gas emissions-reducing anaesthetic gas capture technology to reduce the environmental impact of anaesthetic gases during surgeries, given less than five percent of the volatile anaesthetic agent delivered to a patient is absorbed and metabolised during a typical anaesthetic procedure, leaving about 95 per cent of it to be exhaled into the atmosphere.
The industry-leading use of this trusted gas-capture technology – which is currently used in human healthcare – is the result of a new partnership between Mars Veterinary Health, Linnaeus, Waltham Petcare Science Institute and SageTech Veterinary.
The first veterinary practice to install the innovative technology as part of the Linnaeus pilot was in Derbyshire, Chapel House Veterinary Practice, which has surgeries in Chesterfield and Staveley. The device was used for a neutering operation on Bailey.
Volatile waste anaesthetic agents breathed out during an operation are safely adsorbed into a specially developed reusable capture canister.
These waste anaesthetic agents can then be extracted from the filter by SageTech, avoiding current routes for disposal of volatile anaesthetic agents of incineration or release into the atmosphere.
Bailey’s owner Stuart Creswell, from Chesterfield, is a loyal customer of Chapel House and was keen for Bailey to be the first patient to undergo the surgery using the new technology.
He said: “Bailey was in Chapel House for neutering and Wayne Clarke, the clinical nursing manager, explained to me how a good percentage of anaesthetic gases are lost into the atmosphere.
“However, the new technology can capture it and we thought this was a great idea to help protect the atmosphere.
“We were more than happy for Bailey to be a dog pioneer in sustainability. He’s made a full recovery from the operation and is living life to its best thanks to Chapel House.”
The technology is being installed for a year-long pilot at ten Linnaeus practices and Waltham Petcare Science Institute. This industry-first pilot in sustainable veterinary care is consistent with Mars, Incorporated’s Net Zero Roadmap, a detailed action plan for achieving net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050.
Wayne Clarke, clinical nursing manager at Chapel House, said: “We’re thrilled to be the first Linnaeus veterinary practice in the UK to establish this new technology.
“It’s an important step forward in the veterinary sustainability journey and we’re proud, along with Bailey and his owners, to have played our part.”
Ellie West, environmental sustainability lead at Linnaeus, added: “We want to share the practicalities of using the technology in veterinary clinics and understand how we could capture more exhaled gases. I am so pleased that Bailey’s thriving – and that in the process, he has helped us track the success of this groundbreaking initiative.”
For more information about Chapel House, visit www.chapelhousevet.co.uk or search for Chapel House Veterinary Practice on Facebook.
Anyone interested in finding out more about the industry-leading pilot can visit https://marsveterinary.com/mvh-pilots-industry-leading-anaesthetic-gas-capture/.
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