Page 32 - Eclipse - Autumn 2015

Movers and shakers
Dirk Pfeiffer
The Animal and Plant Health Agency (APHA) has announced the appointment of Professor Dirk Pfeiffer as Chair of
the new Animal Disease Surveillance Governance Board.
The Animal Disease Surveillance Governance Board is responsible for providing strategic advice to Defra and the Welsh Government through the Animal Health and Welfare Board for England, and the Wales Animal Health and Welfare Framework Group. The Board will advise on the best use of Defra and Welsh Government funding for animal health surveillance, to retain the con dence of animal keeping sectors and enable the government to meet national and international obligations. It is a
partnership board between government and industry and has been established as part of changes that APHA is making to its veterinary scanning surveillance system.
Dirk is a Professor of Veterinary Epidemiology, Head of Veterinary Epidemiology, Economic and Public Health group in the Department of Production and Population Medicine at the RVC, and Head of the United Nations’ FAO’s Reference Centre
in Veterinary Epidemiology at the RVC. He is a current member of the Exotic Disease Subgroup, Defra’s Science Advisory Council, and has extensive experience in animal disease surveillance.
Commenting on his appointment, Dirk said; “I am delighted to take on this role during a time when animal health surveillance in England and Wales is going through a period
of signi cant change. The aim of this redesign is to increase the utility of surveillance information to stakeholders whilst ensuring value for money”.
Renate Weller
The RVC was pleased to welcome Carl Bettison, Past Master of the Worshipful Company of Farriers, to present Professor Renate Weller with an award on behalf of the International Hoof-Care Summit, for her presentation on quantifying hoof movement.
The award was given for Renate’s talk, “The pros and cons of various systems in quantifying foot movement”, at the 2014 International Hoof-Care Summit. Her presentation was among the top four as voted
for by the conference attendees. With over 2000 international delegates, the summit is the biggest meeting of farriers in the world.
In her talk, Renate pointed out how quantifying hoof movement is essential in clinical as well as research work. She also discussed the pros and cons of different methods of identifying movement, ranging from low-end solutions to high-end research lab systems.
Her talk centred around practical tips for farriers on what to consider recording during horse movement. Renate, who is Professor in Comparative Imaging and Biomechanics at the RVC, said, “I’m delighted that
my presentation was so well-received. My aim was to inform the farriery profession of the pros and cons of various methods of identifying movement. For example, smartphones, whilst they are easy and to-hand –
they are not ideal as they easily fool the human eye. I wanted to convey my research into practical tips for farriers on things to consider in their everyday work.”
On presenting to Renate, Carl Bettison said, “I was lucky enough to attend the 2014 International Hoof
Care Summit and listen to Renate’s presentations. Renate’s
style of lecturing, which I would describe as relaxed, good humoured and informative, allows her to connect with farriers and communicate the important “take home points” which the farriers can bene t from.
“This award con rms my view at the time, that her presentation went down extremely well with all the delegates, I expect that Renate will be invited back very soon.”
Her award was presented at a half-day course on laminitis for farriers and apprentices at the RVC’s Hawkshead Campus. The RVC continues to lead the way in laminitis research and is currently home to the pasture-associated laminitis research programme. The programme aims to identify which individual horses and ponies are at an increased risk of suffering from pasture associated laminitis.