Stronger collaborations, more efficient grant application processes and prioritisation will all aid improve canine health and welfare research, according to an RVC study.

A set of recommendations will, it is hoped, provide funders and researchers with a framework to enhance the impact of future research and ensure resources are directed where they can be most effective.

The RVC’s UK Canine Research Funding Analysis Project was structured in three phases, with the first identifying animal-directed funders provided 90% of all canine-specific research funding and the second revealing research gaps on behavioural issues, responsible breeding and impact of canine welfare.

Challenges

Details of the third phase have now been released and explore challenges in research design, processes and sector infrastructure and listed challenges researchers face in getting funding and delivering effective research.

The highlighted challenges and solutions include:

• Grant applications for canine health and welfare research can be burdensome and inconsistent, with a standardised, two-stage application process suggested.
• Lack of feedback on rejected grant applications prevents researchers from improving proposals.
• Greater collaboration between funders and research institutions is needed to support large-scale, high-impact projects, particularly for complex canine health issues such as obesity, arthritis and breed-related diseases.
• Early career researchers said they struggle to secure funding.
• Need for a publicly accessible platform to improve visibility and coordination across funders.
• Need for a structured way to set research priorities to ensure funding addresses most urgent canine welfare concerns.
• Future research should prioritise projects that directly benefit canine welfare.

Improvements

Alison Skipper, researcher in canine health research at the RVC and lead paper author, said: “This extensive project highlights the need for significant improvements in how we fund and conduct research on canine health and welfare.

“While UK funders have made valuable contributions, our findings show that inefficiencies in funding processes, a lack of collaboration and limited support for early-career researchers are preventing research from having its full impact.

“By streamlining applications, increasing transparency and fostering strategic partnerships, we can ensure that future research is both effective and directly beneficial to dogs.”

The full report is online now.