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News & Reports Veterinary education

Integrating animal welfare into veterinary teaching The third edition of the World Society for the Protection of Animals’ (WSPA’s) Concepts in Animal Welfare teaching tool was released recently. The tool is intended to help with the teaching of animal welfare science. Shortly after the launch, Ruth De Vere, head of education at WSPA, spoke to Veterinary Record about the tool and the efforts the charity is making to promote welfare. Georgina Mills reports. ‘We need to move towards the potential for a generation of people to understand sentience and understand that welfare is part of decision making,’ says Ruth De Vere, discussing the aims of the teaching tool, which was first developed by a partnership between WSPA and Bristol veterinary school in 2003. The tool was updated in 2007, and the latest edition was released in September this year. The new syllabus includes 35 modules covering all aspects of animal welfare and the tools needed to teach them. As welfare is an academic discipline with links to science, ethics and law, it is important to WSPA

‘It’s really important to us that vets are part of the story . . . they are absolutely essential’ that the theory of welfare is taught. Vets, it believes, need to understand their role with regard to welfare and, as much of this subject may be new for students and lecturers alike, the tool aims to be as comprehensive as possible and supportive of the lecturers who teach it. As veterinary courses are already packed with content, the flexible nature of the teaching tool is intended to allow lecturers to pick and choose what they want to teach. It can be used as a stand-alone teaching module, but the most common method is for lecturers to incorporate the topic of welfare into their current teaching, which, Mrs De Vere says, is useful as it allows

welfare to be understood within an everyday setting. With the World Organisation for Animal Health (OIE) recently stating that an understanding of welfare is a day 1 competency for new veterinary graduates, WSPA believes that the Concepts in Animal Welfare syllabus now provides an ‘essential tool’ to allow faculties to meet these competencies. The topic of welfare is continually evolving, and the tool has a four- to five-year shelf-life. The new update includes modules on fish welfare, which Mrs De Vere points out is a topic of growing importance and understanding. Also featured heavily in the latest edition is disaster management. This is important work for WSPA. ‘The impact of disasters on animals is great, and the impact of animals on a country’s ability to recover from a disaster is vast and often underestimated,’ she explains. For developing countries, where natural disasters are common, this new module provides information on the vet’s role on the ground, whereas for developed countries, it provides To celebrate 50 years of work in disaster management, WSPA advice on the vet’s role in will be running a host of global activities throughout 2014. Here, disaster management and how a cow is treated in Haiti, in the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy 490 | Veterinary Record | November 23, 2013

they can help mitigate and prepare for the consequences of disasters. Looking forward, Mrs De Vere has a five-year plan for what she hopes WSPA will gain with its work in welfare. ‘The value of education in general is to tackle the root cause of welfare issues,’ she says. ‘Rather than innate cruelty, or a desire to do damage, it’s to do with traditions, cultures, heritage.’ She believes that creating a new generation of people who understand sentience and the importance of welfare will rely heavily on vets. Not only do vets have a hands-on role, she says; they are also advisers to many of the stakeholders, for example, clients and government. Fundamentally, she says, as far as WSPA is concerned, ‘it’s really important to us that vets are part of the story . . . they are absolutely essential.’

Strengthening links

To further its connections with the veterinary community, WSPA signed a Memorandum of Understanding with the World Veterinary Association during the recent WVA congress in Prague (VR, September 28, 2013, vol 173, p 278). WSPA has been collaborating with the WVA over the past 12 months to promote animal welfare globally, recognising the strong link between animal health, animal welfare and public health. The memorandum lays out WSPA’s plan to involve vets in its work to support veterinary education in this area. ‘It was a proud moment for WSPA to sign this Memorandum of Understanding with the WVA – a leading influencer of global animal welfare policy and practice,’ said Mike Baker, the charity’s chief executive. ‘These talks and this memorandum are key to placing WSPA at the top table discussions that will raise awareness of animal protection issues globally.’ n  The Concepts in Animal Welfare tool can be downloaded free of charge from www.animalmosaic.org/education/ tertiary-education/advanced-concepts-inanimal-welfare/. For educators who wish to integrate this information into their teaching, a hard copy can be requested by e-mailing [email protected]. doi: 10.1136/vr.f6657

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Integrating animal welfare into veterinary teaching Veterinary Record 2013 173: 490

doi: 10.1136/vr.f6657 Updated information and services can be found at: http://veterinaryrecord.bmj.com/content/173/20/490

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Integrating animal welfare into veterinary teaching.

The third edition of the World Society for the Protection of Animals' (WSPA's) Concepts in Animal Welfare teaching tool was released recently. The too...
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