The award is in recognition of Carol's efforts for Cavaliers and also for the hundreds of unpaid hours she has put into setting up the Dog Breed Health website which aims to provide puppy-buyers with the information they need to make the right choices.
Carol is pictured above with top neurovet Clare Rusbridge, Carol's guest at the event and, on her left, Dan O'Neill from VetCompass, who nominated Carol.
“Carol’s caring, focused and determined approach to improving the future of British dog breeding has been outstanding," says Dan. "Her time has been spent helping owners to recognise hereditary disorders affecting UK dog breeds, giving helpful advice to many owners. Carol should be recognised for her sterling efforts to improve pedigree dog welfare."
It's a fantastic achievement - and the Dog Breed Health website goes from strength to strength with those with grass roots experience in individual breeds helping to refine the information. Please take a moment to read what the site says about your breed and, if you have input, to contact Carol and let her know.
Carol has also recently added pages for the Labradoodle and Cavapoo in an effort to provide health information for 'designer' crossbreeds, too.
Meanwhile, there's great news from VetCompass - the UK health surveillance scheme based at the Royal Veterinary College. The scheme has now enrolled 250,000 companion animals - over 126,000 of them dogs - and is about to release its first data. I've had a sneak preview and it's fascinating... Watch this space!