Kennel Club announces inaugural health and welfare conference

The Kennel Club has today (11 July) announced tickets are on sale for its first Health and Welfare Conference, bringing together dog health and welfare experts, breed community representatives, owners and breeders.

Following the increase in dog ownership, the inaugural two-day event, taking place on November 12 and 13 2022 at Chesford Grange, Kenilworth, aims to drive collaboration and discussion on pertinent canine topics to ultimately improve the health, well-being and welfare of dogs now, and in the future.

The Kennel Club is facilitating workshops, seminars and talks from a range of experts renowned in their respective fields of canine research and well-being – including genetic researcher Dr Joanna Ilska, cardiology specialist Dr Hannah Stephenson, Dr Dan O’Neill of the Royal Veterinary College, and veterinary historian Dr Alison Skipper – discussing prevalent topics such as ‘What does DNA tell us and do breeders understand it?’ and ‘How can we breed healthier dogs in the future?’

The outline programme for each day is as follows:

Saturday:
  • Seven talks on topics including: Understanding Estimated Breeding Values and Genetic Breeding Values for healthier breeding and heart health and pre-breeding screening
Sunday:
  • Three workshop sessions on topics including: How to breed healthier dogs, the role of breed standards and what does DNA really tell us?
Open to anyone interested in discussing and collaborating to improve dog health and welfare, tickets for The Kennel Club’s 2022 Health and Welfare Conference are available to purchase on The Kennel Club website. The cost per delegate is £35.00 for both days, including lunch and refreshments, with discounted tickets for Breed Health and Rescue Co-ordinators.

Bill Lambert, Health, Welfare and Breeder Services Executive at The Kennel Club said of the event: “We are so pleased to be introducing the first Kennel Club Health and Welfare Conference. After a turbulent few years, we felt it extremely important to bring together a host of different expertise and perspectives to discuss and align on priorities for improving dog health and welfare.

“These important seminars and workshops really benefit from being in-person where everyone can feel inspired to collaborate in discussion and ask big-picture questions to improve the wellbeing of dogs.”

For further information about the conference, including details about the speakers, talks, accommodation, travel and stands from external organisations, please visit The Kennel Club website or email Health (The Kennel Club)
More information about what The Kennel Club does to improve dog health and welfare can be found on the health section of The Kennel Club website.