A conversation with a Named Veterinary Surgeon

What is a Named Veterinary Surgeon?

My role exists to put someone senior in a facility who is on the side of the animals and who has a level of independence: as a vet, I’m regulated by the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, so that independence is part of what I bring to the role.

What does your role look like day to day?

Day to day, the role covers everything from husbandry, hygiene and disease control, through to the impact of procedures. A lot of what I do is -animal health- focused: stopping disease from entering a facility or spreading within a unit.

There is also the procedural side, where the vets look at what is being done to animals and the impact of that work. You often act as a balancing voice between different interests: people focused on the science and people focused on animal care and welfare. There is also a lot of compliance work around Home Office licensing and ethical review, but the role always comes back to being an independent voice for the animals.

Do researchers or animal care staff come to you for veterinary advice?

Yes. If everything is working well, you should not necessarily need to see the animals beyond routine rounds. A project licence should describe what will be done, why it is being done and what the impact will be, so all necessary welfare actions are in place.

In reality, things do not always go to plan. Someone may notice that something is not quite right, and I will be called in. Sometimes it is straightforward; sometimes it is something that has not been seen before. Then you have to work out what it means, whether the animal is suffering, whether it is covered by the licence permissions, and whether procedures or licences need to change.

Is there always a vet on site?

In general, it depends on the site. In a small zebrafish facility, a vet might only need to visit once a month or once every couple of weeks. In a facility like this in Manchester, with the breadth of species and work, a vet will be on site most days.

How do you know when an animal is unwell or in pain?

A lot of it comes from spending time looking at healthy animals and building up a picture of what normal looks like for that age, animal strain and model. I also rely on technical staff’s observations, because they spend even more time observing the animals.

Some signs are obvious, such as bleeding, reduced movement, paleness or distressed breathing. Subtle signs can be harder to interpret, so we may use scoring systems or behavioural monitoring to help assess welfare.

How do you decide on pain relief?

We try to be as objective as possible. There are tools such as the Mouse Grimace Scale, which looks at facial expression changes linked to pain. We also consider the procedure itself and whether it is likely to cause pain in light of how a human would respond to a similar procedure.

It is a mixture of evidence, scoring systems and judgement. Sometimes you may give pain relief and then assess whether there is a response. If there is, that tells you something may be painful. If there is not, you reassess what else could be happening.

What led you to a career in veterinary medicine?

With respect to joining the veterinary profession, it is the familiar answer: James Herriot and having pets at home. I also started doing unpaid work in a local veterinary practice when I was about 13, and I stayed there for about five years. I liked it from the start and never got bored of it.

I started working with laboratory animals as an undergraduate during a placement in a veterinary pathology department. It happened slightly by accident, but I really enjoyed it. From there, I spent time in research facilities, built clinical experience, completed a PhD and stayed in laboratory animal science. It has been a gradual progression rather than one fixed decision.

What do you enjoy most about the role?

There are always new challenges around welfare. Every new piece of science brings something slightly different, so you are constantly thinking about how to improve things whilst supporting great research. It is the problem-solving side of the role, combined with knowing that the work is aimed at something potentially very positive in the short and long run (improving animal welfare and human health).

What do you think people misunderstand about animal research?

I think the biggest thing is that people do not always know what animal research actually looks like. When visitors have come into facilities, a common reaction is: “Is that it?” People may expect something more extreme or dramatic, but instead they see ordinary animal housing and care. Many misconceptions come from old images that are repeated, rather than from what modern facilities look like.

If people could understand one thing about your role, what would it be?

Probably that the role exists. There is a Named Veterinary Surgeon role in all UK animal facilities, and it is there specifically to provide independent oversight and to be on the side of the animals. It is built into the UK regulatory framework and is very important from a welfare perspective.