Professor Barbara M.Q. Weaver
PhD, DVA, DipECVAA, FRCA, FRCVS

With the death of Professor Barbara Weaver on the 4th of April at the age of 98, our speciality has lost one of its early and influential pioneers. She grew up in Worthing on the South Coast and qualified MRCVS at Royal Veterinary College in 1949. On qualifying she joined the staff of the RVC and collaborated with Dr. Leslie Hall, which resulted in the publication of the seminal paper, “Balanced Anaesthesia in the dog and cat”. In 1957, she moved to the University of Bristol, where she spent the rest of her career.

In 1964, she was one of the six who met to form the AVAGBI and served as its first secretary and subsequently, its President. A few years later she was part of the RCVS group that set up the DVA, of which she was a foundation diplomate and first examiner.

Academically she collaborated in research with Professor Mushin of Cardiff on the pharmacokinetics of anaesthetic agents and was awarded a PhD and FRCVS. She was one of the “Grandfathers” of the European College of Veterinary Anaesthesia. Professor Weaver was awarded the Faculty Medal of the College of Anaesthetists and, in 2001, the Honorary Fellowship of the RCoA. Professor Weaver was the recipient of numerous other awards.

Professor Ron Jones

Remembering Liz and Attilio at Liverpool AVA, May 2026 - please register

There will be tributes to Liz and to Attilio during the Opening Session of the Main Liverpool Congress (Thursday May 21st) and an opportunity to get together at the Welcome Reception on the Wednesday evening. We appreciate that friends may want to come to this tribute but not attend the whole meeting. The AVA together with the Congress organisers have facilitated this. If you would like to attend the opening session of the Congress on Thursday morning and the Welcome Reception but are NOT registering for the whole meeting, please email: president@ava.eu.com to be added to the attendee list.

YOU MUST advise us of attendance in advance no later than 30^th April. We very much hope to see you there.

AVA Foundation

We recently reminded members about the AVA Foundation grants. Traditionally, the Foundation has relied on profits from AVA meetings to replenish its capital. However, with the rising costs associated with running these meetings, ongoing support is essential- whether from individuals or commercial partners.

The Foundation remains committed to advancing education in veterinary anaesthesia and analgesia and appreciates all contributions that help sustain this important work.

To learn more about the AVA Foundation, see: (https://ava.eu.com/trusts-and-grants/) and to donate, please use the QR code.

Research in Animal Anaesthesia Network

Our podcast!

 

VAA access

VAA has moved to the ScienceDirect platform. Please use the following link to access VAA:  https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/veterinary-anaesthesia-and-analgesia

You need to activate your account to access VAA on the new platform- you should have received an email with instructions on how to activate. If you are having difficulties, contact Emeasocieties@elselvier.com

NAVAS Spring Symposium

On behalf of the North American Veterinary Anesthesia Society (NAVAS), we are pleased to announce their Annual Virtual Spring Symposium, taking place April 18–19, 2026. This year’s theme is “Risk Mitigation and Crisis Management in Veterinary Anesthesia.

More details to follow shortly at: https://www.mynavas.org/

Liverpool AVA Spring 2026 Meeting

London Vet Show 2026

 

UK Members – Your Voice Matters

Useful contacts and website

With lots of new member requests, it is a good time for us to ensure people know who to contact for any AVA queries they may have. Our goal has always been to support veterinary anaesthesia professionals by providing easy access to the latest resources, event information, and community news. All our information is on our website: https://ava.eu.com/ and it is regularly updated to ensure that you can speak to the right person. If you have any feedback or notice anything we can improve, please don’t hesitate to get in touch- your input helps us grow.

Contacts

President:
Lousie Clark president@ava.eu.com

Senior Vice President:
Mathieu Raillard senior-vice-president@ava.eu.com

Junior Vice President:
Ioannis Savvas junior-vice-president@ava.eu.com

Honorary Treasurer:
Nicole Studer treasurer@ava.eu.com

Honorary Secretary:
Latifa Khenissi secretary@ava.eu.com

Membership Secretary:
Katherine Robson membership@ava.eu.com

Newsletter Contact:
Alison Bennell newsletter@ava.eu.com

Committee Members:
Karine Portier and Fergus Coutts info@ava.eu.com

Nurse and Technician Representative:
Anja Styhm nurse@ava.eu.com

We invite members  to actively participate and contribute to AVA

We invite members  to actively participate and contribute to AVA.

Ways to Get Involved:

• New Junior Vice President

Your involvement is invaluable, and we believe that together, we can achieve remarkable things. Please email a letter of intent and a brief CV outlining your suitability for the positions to: secretary@ava.eu.com.