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Animal behaviour and welfare award for professor
Image: Prof Alistair Lawrence
 
Professor Lawrence made honorary fellow of International Society for Applied Ethology

Professor Alistair Lawrence, chair of animal behaviour and welfare at the University of Edinburgh and Scotland's Rural College (SRUC), has been awarded the title of honorary fellow at the annual congress of the International Society for Applied Ethology (ISAE) in Denmark.

This title is awarded by the ISAE to eminent personnel working in fields that fall within the aims of the Society. In this respect, the ISAE provides a forum for the discussion of advances in applied animal behaviour science and education, and covers aspects relevant to human-animal interactions, such as farming, wildlife management, the keeping of companion and laboratory animals, and the control of pests.

The Society has an international federal structure as well as regional representatives around the world.

Professor Lawrence gained a PhD on sheep social behaviour, after which he built a research team focusing on the application of animal behaviour to interpret and improve animal welfare in a range of farm species. He is currently working on understanding the wider effects of positive animal psychology on health and welfare, with a focus on play behaviour and environmental enrichment.

Accepting the award, Professor Lawrence said: “It is a very great honour to be given this award. ISAE is the international society that represents the application of animal behaviour science to better understand how to improve how humans interact with animals.

“This award recognises my contribution to applied animal behaviour science and also that of the many colleagues I have worked with at the Easter Bush Campus. Edinburgh is a fantastic place to study animal behaviour and welfare with so much potential to find cross-disciplinary solutions to complex animal welfare issues.”

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Applications open for MMI research grants

News Story 1
 RCVS' Mind Matters Initiative (MMI) has launched round two of its veterinary mental health research grants.

Researchers have until 11.59pm on Wednesday, 28 May 2025 to apply for a grant for research which reflects MMI's 2025 focus areas.

Only one Impact Grant was awarded last year, and so this year there are two Discovery Grants and one Impact Grants available. Each Discovery Grant is worth £5,000 and the Impact Grant is worth £15,000.

For more information or to apply, email researchgrants@rcvs.org.uk to contact the MMI team.

 

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News Shorts
BBC Radio 4 documentary addresses corporate fees

BBC Radio 4's File on 4 Investigates has released a documentary exploring how corporate-owned veterinary practices may be inflating bills to increase profit.

Released on 15 April, 'What's Happening To Your Vet Bills?' revealed the policies which many corporate groups have in place to increase their profits. This included targets and upgrades which veterinary teams are tasked with meeting on a regular basis.

It also features Anrich Vets, an independently-owned practice based in Wigan. Following the case of Staffordshire terrier Benjy, who is diagnosed with a tumour, the documentary shares how the team were able to offer contextualised care and advice to make the procedure as affordable as possible for his owners.

The documentary can be heard on demand on BBC iPlayer.