Chanakarn Wongsaengchan

Dr Chanakarn Wongsaengchan is a Research Fellow at the School of Psychology and Neuroscience, University of St Andrews. He holds a veterinary background with clinical experience in equine and small animal medicine, complemented by advanced academic training including an MSc in Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law from the University of Glasgow and a PhD focused on non-invasive welfare assessment in rats. Currently, he manages a BBSRC-funded interdisciplinary project investigating social competence in rats and its evolutionary implications for wellbeing.

His research interests center on animal welfare science, applying non-invasive techniques such as infrared thermography and advanced statistical methods. Key areas include stress response measurement, cooperative behavior in rodents, and welfare implications of group housing environments. He has contributed to studies on depression-like syndromes in mice, validation of the Horse Grimace Scale, and cognitive bias testing in shelter dogs.

Recent work examines how group size impacts social relationships and welfare states in rats, with findings published in journals like Physiology & Behavior and Animal Welfare. His publications highlight innovative methods for assessing positive and negative welfare states, emphasizing translational applications to improve animal husbandry practices.

Dr Wongsaengchan collaborates with interdisciplinary teams and has developed educational materials in animal health and welfare. He co-supervises undergraduate and postgraduate students while advancing research methodologies that bridge veterinary science, ethology, and computational biology.