University of Liverpool Dogs Mobility Study

08/07/2024

We had the pleasure of welcoming Kira Leith-Ross from the Labrador Retriever Breed Society and Labrador Breed Council today to bring her 5 Labrador retrievers to participate in their 2nd year of the gait study 🐕 It was 'all hands on deck' this morning, however, everyone had a great time and the dogs received lots of compliments from the staff at the William Henry Duncan Building 🫶

28/11/2022

Hello!

A while back we asked if any of you wanted to join us for our November Public Involvement Panel (PIP) meeting and we got a fantastic response!

We are now advertising for people to join our 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 PIP meeting. However, this time, we will be combining our Canine PIP team with our Equine PIP team to bring you talks on the new and innovative research in both departments. Please find a '𝒔𝒂𝒗𝒆 𝒕𝒉𝒆 𝒅𝒂𝒕𝒆' card below to give you more information about the night.

The PIP meeting aims to inform people about recent and upcoming canine and equine research. During these events, panel members will have the opportunity to hear talks from experts in their field, have a chat with veterinary researchers about how their work will be beneficial to dogs and horses, and meet other like-minded individuals.

Our December meeting will be held at the 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲 𝐨𝐟 𝐋𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐥, 𝐋𝐞𝐚𝐡𝐮𝐫𝐬𝐭 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐩𝐮𝐬 (𝐨𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐖𝐢𝐫𝐫𝐚𝐥) 𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝟏𝟐𝐭𝐡 𝐃𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐, 𝟕-𝟖:𝟑𝟎𝐩𝐦

You will receive a £15 voucher for your time and we will also be providing a festive buffet - wearing festive-themed clothing is also encouraged but not compulsory 🤶🎅

If you would like to attend the event or require more information, please comment on this post or email me on 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐜@𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐥.𝐚𝐜.𝐮𝐤

Thank you and we hope to see some of you in December! 🎄🎅🦌

Best wishes,

Natasha

07/11/2022

Hi all,

Our friends at the William Henry Duncan Building gait lab are investigating how wearing harnesses can impact a dog's gait, and they are still looking for a few more volunteers. Please use the below email address if you would like to participate or gain more information about the project.

𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐠 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤: 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐝!

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒚 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕?
We are recruiting dogs to participate in a study that will help determine how different harnesses and loads (such as cameras) affect your dog's movement. With this knowledge, handlers of working dogs can decide on the best load weight and position for the dog to avoid injury when working.

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒗𝒆?
Dogs will be asked to perform different tasks such as stepping over objects and weaving through poles on the ground both inside and outside. We will measure their heart rate (using a heart rate monitor) and the motion of their joints (using skin markers and cameras), both being non-painful and non-invasive tools.
The data will be recorded and analysed and the study will take place at the University of Liverpool campus in Liverpool.

𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕?
Your dog does not need to be a working dog but ideally will be a German Shepherd, Labrador, Cocker Spaniel, Springer Spaniel or breed of similar size. They need to be between 1 and 8 years old with no signs of health problems that affect their movement. Your dog must currently be going for walks of between 30-90 minutes a day and should be a good healthy weight. They should also be happy to be handled and do some basic tasks such as stepping over objects and walking around objects.

**𝐀𝐥𝐥 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐰𝐢𝐥𝐥 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐞𝐢𝐯𝐞 𝐚 £𝟑𝟎 𝐀𝐦𝐚𝐳𝐨𝐧 𝐯𝐨𝐮𝐜𝐡𝐞𝐫 𝐟𝐨𝐫 𝐭𝐚𝐤𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭**

If you are interested or would like further information, please contact:

James Charles at 𝐣.𝐜𝐡𝐚𝐫𝐥𝐞𝐬@𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐥.𝐚𝐜.𝐮𝐤 or 𝟎𝟕𝟖𝟗𝟏𝟗𝟕𝟔𝟐𝟒𝟎
Karl Bates at [email protected] or 07792595055 or
Suzanne Cottriall at [email protected] or 07792 306989

21/10/2022

*** THANK YOU TO EVERYONE WHO HAS EMAILED, ALL AVAILABLE SPACES HAVE NOW BEEN TAKEN ***

Good morning,

The University of Liverpool recently set up a Public Involvement Panel (PIP) which aims to inform people about recent and upcoming canine research. During these events, panel members will have the opportunity to hear talks from experts in their field, have a chat with veterinary researchers about how their work will be beneficial to dogs, and meet other like-minded individuals.

We aim to hold three meetings per year and our second PIP meeting will be held at the University of Liverpool, Leahurst Campus (on the Wirral) on 𝐌𝐨𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝟕𝐭𝐡 𝐍𝐨𝐯𝐞𝐦𝐛𝐞𝐫 𝟐𝟎𝟐𝟐, 𝟕-𝟖:𝟑𝟎𝐩𝐦. The meeting will include a break, a light buffet and a voucher for your time.

We thought some of you in this group may be interested in attending this free event. Therefore, if you would like to attend or require more information, please email 𝐧𝐚𝐭𝐚𝐬𝐡𝐚𝐜@𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐥.𝐚𝐜.𝐮𝐤 or 𝐜𝐡𝐫𝐢𝐬𝐭𝐢𝐧𝐞.𝐩𝐲𝐞@𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐥.𝐚𝐜.𝐮𝐤 at your earliest convenience.

Please note that allocation is on a first-come, first-served basis and we apologise for any inconvenience this may cause. However, our third meeting will be scheduled for early December 2022.

Thank you and we hope to see some of you in November!

Best wishes,

Natasha 🐶

30/09/2022

It's time for a celebration🎉as we had our 60th Labrador, Chilli, in the gait lab today🥳

Chilli was very well-behaved and looked adorable with her reflective markers on - thank you Rachel and Chilli for your participation and support!❤️

15/07/2022

!! 𝐑𝐄𝐂𝐑𝐔𝐈𝐓𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓 𝐅𝐎𝐑 𝐋𝐀𝐁𝐑𝐀𝐃𝐎𝐑𝐒 𝐇𝐀𝐒 𝐍𝐎𝐖 𝐂𝐋𝐎𝐒𝐄𝐃 !!

A massive thank you to everyone who has contacted us regarding participating their Labradors and shared our advert on social media and via word of mouth. We have been overwhelmed by the support you have all given and we can’t wait to meet you all in the gait lab over the next few months.

Even though we have closed our books, research doesn’t stop! Our friends in the Institute of Life Course and Medical Sciences are looking for Spaniels, German Shepherds and Labradors to participate in a new and exciting study. Please find more information about the project below.

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𝐓𝐡𝐞 𝐞𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐬 𝐨𝐟 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐠 𝐜𝐚𝐫𝐫𝐲𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐥𝐨𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐧 𝐢𝐭𝐬 𝐛𝐚𝐜𝐤: 𝐒𝐭𝐮𝐝𝐲 𝐩𝐚𝐫𝐭𝐢𝐜𝐢𝐩𝐚𝐧𝐭𝐬 𝐧𝐞𝐞𝐝𝐞𝐝!

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒊𝒔 𝒕𝒉𝒊𝒔 𝒔𝒕𝒖𝒅𝒚 𝒂𝒃𝒐𝒖𝒕?

We are recruiting dogs to take part in a study that will help determine how different harnesses and loads (such as cameras) affect the movement of your dog. With this knowledge, handlers of working dogs can decide on the best load weight and position on the dog to avoid injury when they are working.

𝑾𝒉𝒂𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒆𝒔 𝒊𝒕 𝒊𝒏𝒗𝒐𝒍𝒗𝒆?

Dogs will be asked to perform different tasks such as stepping over objects and weaving through poles on the ground both inside and outside. We will measure their heart rate (using a heart rate monitor) and the motion of their joints (using skin markers and cameras), both being non-painful and non-invasive tools.
The data will be recorded and analysed and the study will take place at the University of Liverpool campus in Liverpool during June - December 2022.

𝑾𝒉𝒐 𝒄𝒂𝒏 𝒕𝒂𝒌𝒆 𝒑𝒂𝒓𝒕?

Your dog does not need to be a working dog but ideally will be a German Shepherd, Labrador, Cocker Spaniel, Springer Spaniel or breed of similar size. They need to be at least 1 year old with no signs of health problems that affect their movement. Your dog must currently be going for walks of between 30-90 minutes a day and should be a good healthy weight. They should also be happy to be handled and do some basic tasks such as stepping over objects and walking around objects.

**All participants will receive a £30 Amazon voucher for taking part.**

If you are interested or would like further information, please contact:

Karl Bates at 𝐤.𝐭.𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐞𝐬@𝐥𝐢𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐨𝐥.𝐚𝐜.𝐮𝐤 or 𝟎𝟕𝟕𝟗𝟐𝟓𝟗𝟎𝟓𝟓

11/07/2022

We had a very busy day in the William Henry Duncan Building on Friday with six lovely Labradors participating in our study 🐕

They were all very well behaved and an absolute credit to their owners

23/06/2022

We had our first online reunion for the UoL GenPup-M cohort tonight.

These owners and dogs participated in the 2020-2021 Masters project and helped validate the GenPup-M owner-reported mobility questionnaire.

We were able to share our findings from the Masters project and give out some well-deserved awards 🏆 🥇

We hope to see these dogs back in the gait lab again in 2023 for more data collection! 🐶

⚠️ We are still recruiting Labrador retrievers for our 2022 mobility analysis, so if you or someone you know has a Labrador and would like to participate, please either send me a message or email [email protected] ⚠️

27/05/2022

Hi all,

Thank you for liking this page.

It is a new page that will be dedicated to my PhD project over the next 3 years. I aim to use this platform to provide updates about the project, gain further interest in recruitment and invite you to (online) evening "wrap up" sessions.

The first year of my PhD aims to collect 60 Labrador retrievers to undergo a veterinary clinical examination and 3D gait analysis at the University of Liverpool's specialised gait laboratory (L7 8XL).

If you would like more information about participating your Labrador for my project, please do not hesitate to send me a message.

Thank you and best wishes,

Natasha

27/05/2022

27/05/2022