Cathy Dwyer

Professor Cathy Dwyer leads research in Animal Welfare Science at Scotland's Rural College, focusing on mother-offspring interactions, welfare of extensively managed animals, and human behavior change for welfare improvement. She coordinates the EU Horizon 2020 TechCare project implementing precision livestock farming approaches for small ruminant welfare management and directs the Open Philanthropy Project's initiatives in China. Her research examines physiological and neuroendocrine mechanisms underlying maternal behavior across sheep, cattle, and equine species.

Dwyer's extensive research portfolio includes Scottish Government RESAS programs on animal husbandry improvement and disease welfare impacts. She developed welfare assessment protocols for extensively managed sheep adopted in EU Animal Welfare Indicators (AWIN) project. Current work investigates impacts of prenatal stress on offspring development, genetic influences on maternal behavior, and management strategies for lamb survival in large litters.

She has supervised over 20 doctoral researchers investigating topics ranging from epigenetic regulation of stress responses to equine veterinary stress reduction. Dwyer chairs the Scottish Animal Welfare Commission and contributes to DEFRA welfare advisory groups. Her teaching encompasses veterinary epidemiology, international welfare ethics, and clinical animal behavior through collaborative programs with University of Edinburgh.

Dwyer's publications demonstrate consistent focus on practical welfare solutions, with recent work examining poultry producer attitudes in China, carbon footprint implications of welfare conditions, and genetic markers for maternal traits. She leads knowledge exchange initiatives including the EU SheepNet thematic network facilitating best practice sharing among 40,000 stakeholders across Europe.