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Meet the Research Team

The Research Team is Headed up by Melissa Upjohn - Melissa heads a widely experienced and talented team of researchers and data specialists who support the generation of evidence to inform Dogs Trust’s operational, programmatic and public affairs work. Her research interests lie in understanding people’s attitudes and behaviour relating to animal welfare and behaviour in different countries and in assessing impact of interventions to help dogs and people to live happier lives together.

If you would like to get in touch with the research team, please drop us an email

Generation Pup Team

The Generation Pup team run the Generation Pup study. The Generation Pup study is the first study to follow dogs of all breeds throughout their lives. By collecting information about each puppy we can investigate to what extent aspects such as environment, social interaction, diet, exercise or daily routine may be important in the development of a range of health and behaviour conditions which impact on the well-being of our dogs.

Canine Behaviour Team

The main aim of the Canine Behaviour Research team is to support the work Dogs Trust does by providing an evidence-base to help ensure best practice for canine welfare. We do this by collating existing evidence into literature reviews, identifying current evidence gaps and carrying out new research to help fill these. Lots of myths prevail around dog behaviour and it’s easy to stay entrenched on outdated practices because “that’s the way we’ve always done it”, which is why it’s vital that we continually evaluate the evidence for the way we understand and interact with dogs in our care and in wider society.

Data Team

The Data Team supports the research team by developing and advising on all things data related. This can be as simple as providing some advice as to what tools and techniques might be most suitable, extracting data from existing data stores for the team or more complicated developments and modelling of databases to store and analyse the research data collected. Of course all complying with latest legislation and good practice.

Human Behaviour Team

Human behaviour is key to dog welfare; we cannot improve dog welfare without paying close attention to the human side of the human-dog relationship. Dogs Trust’s Human Behaviour Research Team works to understand human behaviour related to dogs so we can enhance the activities of Dogs Trust and other organisations worldwide to improve canine welfare.

Central Support Team

In addition to the topic-specific research teams, a small central support team ensures that the wider research group can coordinate engagement with interested parties and identify priority requests for both ad hoc and strategic support from departments across Dogs Trust.