The Animal Health Trust (AHT) was a large national independent charity in the United Kingdom, employing over 200 scientists, vets and support workers. Its objectives were to study and to cure diseases in companion animals (horses, dogs and cats), and to advance the teaching and practice of

veterinary Veterinary medicine is the branch of medicine that deals with the prevention, management, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, disorder, and injury in animals. Along with this, it deals with animal rearing, husbandry, breeding, research on nutri ...

art and science. It was founded in 1942 by Dr WR Wooldridge CBE, FRCVS, and was awarded a

Royal Charter A royal charter is a formal grant issued by a monarch under royal prerogative as letters patent. Historically, they have been used to promulgate public laws, the most famous example being the English Magna Carta (great charter) of 1215, bu ...

on 29 July 1963.

The Queen In the English-speaking world, The Queen most commonly refers to: * Elizabeth II (1926–2022), Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 1952 until her death The Queen may also refer to: * Camilla, Queen Consort (born 1947), ...

was the charity's patron from 1959 until the end of 2016, and

the Princess Royal Princess Royal is a style customarily (but not automatically) awarded by a British monarch to their eldest daughter. Although purely honorary, it is the highest honour that may be given to a female member of the royal family. There have been sev ...

was its president. Based in Newmarket in Suffolk, it was a

registered charity A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a ch ...

under English law and received no government funding. Following fundraising issues exacerbated by the

Coronavirus pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identified ...

, the charity was forced to close its doors and enter liquidation on 31 July 2020.

Principal activities

The AHT: * Develops new knowledge and techniques for the better diagnosis, prevention and cure of disease * Provides a clinical referral service * Promotes post-graduation education * Communicates its findings to others. The AHT has a range of means of achieving these objectives. It combines them, where appropriate, for best effect. These are grouped under three main headings: Research, Education and Veterinary Services.

Research

Research can be broken into two key areas:

inherited disease A genetic disorder is a health problem caused by one or more abnormalities in the genome. It can be caused by a mutation in a single gene (monogenic) or multiple genes (polygenic) or by a chromosomal abnormality. Although polygenic disorders ...

and

infectious disease An infection is the invasion of tissues by pathogens, their multiplication, and the reaction of host tissues to the infectious agent and the toxins they produce. An infectious disease, also known as a transmissible disease or communicable dise ...

. Inherited disease research includes

genetics Genetics is the study of genes, genetic variation, and heredity in organisms.Hartl D, Jones E (2005) It is an important branch in biology because heredity is vital to organisms' evolution. Gregor Mendel, a Moravian Augustinian friar wor ...

oncology Oncology is a branch of medicine that deals with the study, treatment, diagnosis and prevention of cancer. A medical professional who practices oncology is an ''oncologist''. The name's etymological origin is the Greek word ὄγκος (''ó ...

and stem cell. Infectious disease includes

bacteriology Bacteriology is the branch and specialty of biology that studies the morphology, ecology, genetics and biochemistry of bacteria as well as many other aspects related to them. This subdivision of microbiology involves the identification, classificat ...

virology Virology is the Scientific method, scientific study of biological viruses. It is a subfield of microbiology that focuses on their detection, structure, classification and evolution, their methods of infection and exploitation of host (biology), ...

immunology Immunology is a branch of medicineImmunology for Medical Students, Roderick Nairn, Matthew Helbert, Mosby, 2007 and biology that covers the medical study of immune systems in humans, animals, plants and sapient species. In such we can see there ...

and equine epidemiology and disease surveillance.

Education

The AHT is involved in the provision of education and post-graduate training. Its clinics run active internship and residency training programmes. The Continuous Professional Development (CPD) programme has also expanded in recent years. The AHT publishes papers detailing its research and clinical findings in journals and online, for the veterinary and science professions. It also has its own open-access library. Housing journals, publications, and findings, it is available for use by anyone studying animal health.

Veterinary services

The Animal Health Trust's veterinary clinics provide referral services to small animal and equine veterinary practitioners. It has two clinical centres: the Centre for Small Animal Studies and Centre for Equine Studies. It also offers diagnostic laboratories and DNA testing services. Both clinics have active clinical research programmes. Together with the diagnostics and DNA testing services, the clinics work closely with their research teams to further scientific developments and achievements. Both clinics are core to fulfilling their educational objectives. Various collaborations both domestic and international have been done with AHT The above activities are underpinned by the AHT's fundraising and central support teams. Central support incorporates directorate, finance, information technology, human resources and estate and premises management.

History

The AHT was founded in 1946 as the "Veterinary Education Trust" by Walter Reginald Wooldridge; it was renamed the "Animal Health Trust" in 1948. accessed 14 February 2019 One of its first major donors was

Annie Henrietta Yule Annie Henrietta Yule, Lady Yule (1 August 1874 – 14 July 1950) was a British film financier and a breeder of Arabian horses. She co-founded the British National Films Company and Hanstead Stud, and commissioned the superyachts of her day. Earl ...

, co-owner of

Hanstead Stud The Hanstead Stud was a breeding farm in England for Arabian horses. It was active from 1928 to 1957, and its animals had a significant impact in many countries, "second only in importance to" Crabbet Arabian Stud. It was based at Hanstead Park, ...

, who offered the Trust the use of her Newmarket stable, Balaton Lodge. The Trust operated from there until 1999. Following fundraising difficulties and issues aggravated by the Coronavirus pandemic, the Animal Health Trust entered liquidation on 31 July 2020 just after 75 years in existence

References

External links

Animal Health Trust
{{authority control Non-profit organisations based in the United Kingdom Partner institutions of the University of Cambridge Organizations established in 1942 Pets in the United Kingdom Veterinary organizations Charities based in England 1942 establishments in the United Kingdom Veterinary medicine in the United Kingdom