Innovative Solutions to Animal Health, Welfare, and Society
We Collaborate, We Challenge, and We Transform.
We are a unique team of internationally-renowned researchers working at the forefront of, and interface between life, environmental, health, computing and social sciences.
Our cross-disciplinary research benefits from strong links with members of the School of Psychology and the School of Computer Science, as well as other research groups within the School of Life & Environmental Sciences, particularly the Evolution and Ecology group and the Lincoln Institute for Agri-food Technology.
We collaborate in our pursuit of excellence, with multidisciplinarity at the heart of much of what we do. Working in partnership with others internally and externally (nationally and internationally) including other leading universities, charities, governmental organisations and businesses.
We have an established track record of research funding from Government, Charity and Industry as we seek to translate fundamental research to real world impact. Significant investment for our research has been obtained from research organisations such as: BBSRC, Defra, dstl, ONR, NC3Rs,: as well as charitable and commercial organisations: RSPCA, UFAW, Boehringer Ingelheim, CEVA Santé Animale, Dogs Trust, Border Force.
In addition, we offer external consultancy and continuous professional development courses to those wishing to work with leading authorities in animal behaviour, cognition, health and welfare. This includes members of the animal care and pet food industry, agricultural producers, veterinary pharmaceutical companies, television and other media as well as clinical behaviour services.
We challenge the status quo in order to explore and identify new, inclusive and innovative ways to address complex contemporary issues of regional, national and global significance. This includes a focus on addressing the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals in our research.
Our Purpose
The Animal Behaviour, Cognition and Welfare Research Group uses a multidisciplinary approach to generate and translate fundamental research for the purposes of providing innovative, practical solutions for the benefit of society, including for all animal species with which we interact.
Our Vision
Our vision is to be a transformative force for good within society, enabling excellent health, welfare and prosperity within an inter-connected and complex world.
Our Ambition
Our long-term ambition is to maintain and grow our global reputation for research excellence relating to animal behaviour, cognition, health and welfare.
Our Values
As a civic university, we believe it is important that we articulate our values as they reflect who we are and what we stand for. Our guiding principles are:
We accept personal responsibility for the wellbeing of people, our community, the environment and animals with whom we co-exist. We are committed to morally responsible research and the promotion of ethical practices.
We have the courage to challenge each other respectfully in order to expand the boundaries of scientific understanding and maintain rigorous standards.
We prioritise inclusive practices in all our work, embracing difference through a global mindset that recognises the value and inclusive benefit of diversity, especially in relation to gaining greater insight into complex problems and their solutions.
We strive for excellence in everything we do, holding high expectations of our performance and the impact of our research. This is enabled by our excellent facilities which include internationally recognised behaviour, perception and cognition laboratories for vertebrate and invertebrate species, the university farm and related research facilities at Riseholme.
We work collaboratively, creatively, and innovatively as a team and with a range of stakeholders in order to co-create research, inform policy and deliver solutions with meaningful economic and societal impact.
Our Research
Animal Cognition
Animal cognition investigates the way animals perceive the world. We are interested in how animals learn about their environment, how they use and retain this information, and how it impacts the decisions that they make. Studying animal cognition can give significant insights into the evolution of intelligence and is also important for understanding animal welfare.
Clinical Animal Behaviour
Clinical animal behaviour research focuses on how we can better evaluate the behaviour of animals in order to interact with them, manage them and train them in ways that optimise their wellbeing. We also develop new treatment methods for helping animals with problem behaviour.
Animals and Society
We couple our strengths in cognitive biology, clinical animal behaviour, and animal health and disease with research approaches from the social sciences, as we recognise that translating the findings from our foundational and applied animal research into real-world impact will inevitably involve addressing the human and societal factors.
Animal Welfare
Animal welfare is a growing scientific discipline reflecting considerable public concern. Our research in animal welfare is led by a multi-disciplinary team of international experts, who work with a variety of animals including laboratory, farm, companion, and zoo animals.
Animal Health and Disease
Animals are under constant pressures from disease, the environment, and human activity. When animals are unable to overcome these pressures, their welfare suffers. At Lincoln, we are passionate about improving the health of companion, farmed, and wild animals of all types.
One Health
The One health principal encompasses human, animal and environmental health and is covered in much of the work within the group focussing on animal health and human animal interactions. The transmission of different diseases between animals and humans has led to major disease outbreaks over the last few years, including COVID-19, Ebola, and influenza.