How to become a CSAG screening cardiologist. 

How to become a CSAG screening cardiologist.
Cardiac Screening of dogs and cats can provide invaluable information to breeders to help them select healthy breeding animals.
The veterinary Cardiovascular Society in the UK maintains a list of members who have been approved to screen dogs and cats for cardiac disease prior to breeding. Previously members on this list were either automatically approved if they had undertaken a residency in Cardiology in the UK, or were assessed by current members by submission of sets of echocardiography images/ability to auscultate.

CSAG members recognised the need to improve the screening schemes and encourage enrolment of more heart screeners and have been working hard to achieve this. As a result, some changes have been implemented & the assessment process has changed. The processes for application for the auscultation list, the canine echocardiography screening list and feline screeners are outlined below.

CSAG aspire for canine echocardiography screening to be performed by accredited screeners from 5 years’ time, although this is not a fixed commitment.
In the meantime, those attaining a Veterinary Cardiology Diplomat level of qualification may be added to all the screening lists if they wish. There will be no requirement for them to take the echo accreditation examination or attend a feline screening workshop, although we encourage participation in these practical assessments by all heart screening vets. CSAG will merely ask for confirmation that screening echocardiography is performed using the CSAG standardised measurements for dogs and cats.

Screeners are listed in all or only 1 or 2 of the following categories depending on which assessments they have undergone:
1. Auscultation screening
2. Echocardiography screening of dogs
3. Echocardiography screening of cats.

All CSAG (VCS) screeners  should comply with the following :

MRCVS registration (if planning to undertake UK screening work)
•Current VCS membership
• Hold a relevant postgraduate qualification in cardiology

Auscultation Screening :

Prospective Auscultation screeners.

A proposal from the prospective screener is requested detailing qualifications and experience. In addition to this a letter seconding your proposal is required. The seconder should be either someone already on the VCS screening list or a Cardiology Diplomat, who has experience of your auscultation skills. They should not be someone who you work directly with. Please send your proposal and seconders letter to vi************@***il.com.

Seconders.

Any screener already on the CSAG (VCS) cardiac screening list or Diplomat in cardiology can second a prospective new screener, as long as they currently don’t work directly with this person. The seconder must be well enough acquainted with the applicants work to be sure that they auscultate to a consistently good standard.  This knowledge can be gained from spending days working together on cardiology cases or from auscultation at dog shows.

Echocardiography screening of dogs.
The importance of standardising echocardiography measurements is emphasised in the screening process as both dogs and cats may be screened multiple times by different screeners. This has been the main driving force behind the development of a new echo accreditation examination for canine heart screening.
New applicants wishing to perform canine echocardiography screens, will be asked to sit the practical echo examination using live dogs.
The hope of CSAG is that this exam will provide an excellent development opportunity for small animal veterinary cardiologists in the UK, providing a framework to improve echo skills, a chance to be fully assessed in these skills & then become part of a screening group using standardised echocardiography techniques.
Further details about the exam can be found under the post titled ‘Canine Echo Accreditation Examination’ within the members only heart screening section.
Those passing the accreditation will be added to this list of canine echocardiography screeners on the VCS website and can be supplied with the official VCS heart screen certificates (currently paper with carbon copies but we are aiming to change to online certificates via the Kennel Club).
There is no assessment of auscultation in the echo exam and if the candidate is not already on the auscultation list, they will need to provide the sponsors letter as above so that they can be included on the auscultation list.

Echocardiography screening of cats.
A new screening scheme for cats has been developed by a large panel of well-known UK cardiologists. A practical workshop day involving echocardiography of live cats, was run in January 2026. This was the pilot for future assessment of feline screeners and was considered successful. Other similar days will be organised for those wishing to screen cats, ideally after successfully taking the canine echo accreditation examination.

Those interested in becoming a new feline screener & attending a feline screening workshop should contact Vicky Ironside vi************@***il.com