Episode 19: Prof Cathy Dwyer - Using the Evidence to Support Animal Welfare

In this episode we sit down with Professor Cathy Dwyer of SRUC and Edinburgh University.  Prof Dwyer will be known already, to many of our listeners, as an advocate for animal welfare. There were so many take-aways from this episode that it's difficult to highlight a few main points, but here goes - sentience, current challenges in animal welfare, generating and applying evidence to animal welfare, education, and influencing government policy to name a few!  We also reflect on people, rather than animals, as I came away from our conversation thinking about how human behaviour impacts on animal welfare.  Whether you’re a student of animal welfare, someone working with animals or an animal keeper, this episode has something for everyone. We would love you to join the animal welfare conversation.   Further Information: Jeanne Marchig International Centre for Animal Welfare Education International work supporting animal welfare   Biography: Professor Cathy Dwyer, BSc, PhD Cathy is Professor of Animal Behaviour and Animal Welfare at SRUC (Scotland’s Rural College) and has a joint appointment with the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies (RDSVS), University of Edinburgh where she is the Director of the Jeanne Marchig International Centre for Animal Welfare Education (JMICAWE) since 2016. In 2019 she was also appointed by Scottish Government to Chair the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission which provides independent scientific advice on animal welfare to Ministers and parliamentary committees. Cathy has research interests in parturition, mother-offspring interactions and behavioural development in ruminants; human-animal interactions and welfare in horses; welfare assessment in a number of species, and assessment of pain. She teaches animal behaviour and welfare to undergraduate vet students, vet nurses and animal science students, and contributes to the University of Edinburgh MSc Programmes in animal behaviour and welfare on campus and online. Cathy sits on the scientific advisory committees for Dog’s Trust, the Horse Trust, British Veterinary Association Animal Welfare Foundation, the Scientific Advisory Board of the Global Animal Partnership and University of Vienna Veterinary School. She was the 2013 recipient of the BSAS/RSPCA Award for outstanding achievement in animal welfare and led the application that resulted in the RDSVS being awarded the first CEVA Animal Welfare Vet School Award in 2020.