糖心原创

You are here:  

• Print

Assessment and Development of Enrichment Approaches to Enhance the Welfare of Housed Dairy Cattle

About the project

We are seeking a dynamic and passionate PhD student to join our team and help drive enhancements to livestock health and welfare through this exciting project to develop novel environmental enrichment for housed dairy cows. Through this PhD, you will have the unique opportunity to gain an exceptional skillset through interdisciplinary collaboration between the UoN School of Veterinary Medicine and Science and commercial partners Vet Vision AI; helping to shape the future of the animal health and welfare.

This PhD aims to develop, deploy and assess novel environmental enrichment approaches to enhance the lives of housed dairy cows. Increased levels of public concern about how dairy cattle are housed and managed, has led to an urgent need to identify strategies to enhance dairy cattle welfare in the housed environment. Aligned with Defra contract aims; this project directly responds to this urgent need. The project will adopt robust scientific approaches, with research being conducted at the Centre for Dairy Science Innovation (CDSI) and commercial herds, to identify novel enrichment options and evaluate strategies for implementation. The successful candidate will gain inter-disciplinary training in qualitative and quantitative research methods that span epidemiology, social sciences and machine vision in the field of dairy cattle welfare.

This PhD will combine world leading veterinary expertise and livestock domain knowledge with epidemiological principles to produce a highly skilled researcher in dairy welfare. The prospective student will receive an enviable mixture of training in both clinical and AI based research methods and it is envisaged that they would be supported to become a leader in the field of welfare monitoring in livestock; a unique and valuable skillset urgently needed for the industry.

Research Environment

Successful applicants will be based in the School of Veterinary Medicine and Science’s Ruminant Population Health research group, a close-knit team environment within which mentoring, collaboration and idea sharing is strongly promoted. Alongside the opportunity for academic research and publication, this PhD provides the opportunity to deploy these algorithms on real commercial farms, providing the chance to see research translated directly into improvements for animal health, welfare, and productivity.

If you are a passionate veterinarian or animal scientist with a drive to use your skills to make a real difference, we encourage you to apply and be a part of our mission to revolutionise animal health and welfare.

Entry requirements

Applicants should have a minimum of a 2.1 undergraduate degree or a minimum of a 2.2 degree and a Master’s degree in Agriculture, Animal Science, Veterinary Science, Nutrition or similar subjects.

Funding notes

This is a fully funded studentship open to UK nationals qualifying for Home fee status.  This will be assessed upon application.

Studentship is funded for 3 years, supporting a UKRI stipend (basic or Vet Graduate rate, as appropriate) and Home tuition fees.

How to apply

Informal enquiries may be addressed to the principal supervisor: jake.thompson2@nottingham.ac.uk

Candidates should  and include a CV. When completing the online application form, please select the School of Veterinary Medicine and Science, then PhD Veterinary Medicine and Science (36m) and, once submitted, send your student ID number to SV-PG-VET@exmail.nottingham.ac.uk. 

Any queries regarding the application process should be addressed to SV-PG-VET@exmail.nottingham.ac.uk. 

Interview Date: To be confirmed.