Fish Welfare and Behaviour: From Clinical Assessment to Evidence-Based Care
When
30 September 2026
Where
Four Points by Sheraton Ljubljana Mons
Meeting objectives
This ECAWBM residents’ study day aims to enhance understanding of fish welfare and behaviour across a range of clinical and applied settings. The programme will focus on recognising and alleviating pain in fish, alongside the assessment and management of clinically relevant behavioural problems. Through expert-led sessions, residents will explore how behavioural principles inform welfare assessment and clinical decision making in ornamental, laboratory and farmed fish, supporting evidence based, species appropriate veterinary care. This is followed by a meeting with the subcommittee chairs, outlining procedures related to residency, credentialing, and examinations to ECAWBM residents and supervisors.
Chair of the Study Day
Manuel Sant’Ana, Congress Organizing Committee Chair
Organizing committee
James Hunt, Chair of AWSEL
Sarah Heath, Chair of BM
Lorella Notari, Chair of BM Education Subcommittee
Elein Hernandez, Chair of AWSEL Education Subcommittee
Claire Diederich, AWSEL Training Officer
Isabel Luño, BM Training Officer
Ludovica Pierantoni, ECAWBM Vice-President
Peter Thornton, ECAWBM President
Programme
Please note that this is only a provisional agenda and that changes are still possible.
08:30 – 08:45
Registration
Meeting Room Plečnik 1
Plenary Session: BM and AWSEL
08:30 – 08:45
Opening – Manuel Magalhães-Sant’Ana
09:00 – 09:50
How to ensure your ornamental fish are healthy – Donna Snellgrove
09:50 – 10:40
Pain Assessment in Fish – Lynne Sneddon
10:40 – 11:00
Coffee break
11:00 – 11:50
Anaesthesia and analgesia in Zebrafish – Lynne Sneddon
11:50 – 12:40
Improving the welfare of ornamental fish – Donna Snellgrove
12:40 – 14:00
Lunch
Breakout Scientific Session 2
BM and AWSEL residents’ parallel meetings
14:00 – 16:00
Meeting Room Plečnik 1
Fish Behaviour Case Discussion
Moderators: Sylvia Masson, Isabel Luño and Lorella Notari
Meeting Room Ravnikar
Fish Welfare Science, Ethics and Law Case Discussion
Moderators: Elein Hernandez, Manuel Magalhães-Sant’Ana, Sophia Hepple
16:00 – 16:20
Coffee break
Breakout Sub-specialities Session
BM and AWSEL residents’ parallel meetings
16:20 – 17:20
Meeting Room Plečnik 1
UPDATES from the Chairs of the 3 Subcommittees (BM)
Meeting Room Ravnikar
UPDATES from the Chairs of the 3 Subcommittees (AWSEL)
17:20 – 17:30
Meeting Room Plečnik 1
Closing remarks – Lorella Notari
Meeting Room Ravnikar
Closing remarks – Elein Hernandez
Speakers
Lynne Sneddon
Professor Sneddon is an award-winning scientist that has worked for over two decades on topics that have advanced fish health and welfare and used her research to drive the agenda for the improved treatment of fishes. She first discovered nociceptors in fish in 2002 and has since conducted research on understanding the capacity for pain in fishes and other aquatic animals as well investigating ways to improve the welfare of zebrafish. Sneddon currently leads her team, the Aquatic Animal Welfare (AAW) group, at the University of Gothenburg investigating how to improve the way we treat fishes, decapod crustaceans and cuttlefish.
Donna Snellgrove
Dr Donna Snellgrove is currently the Fish Research manager at the Waltham Petcare Science Institute. Having worked there for the past 22 years she is responsible for the Fish team and all the research undertaken in the Aquacentre. Their research develops novel solutions for the Mars Fishcare business, providing scientific and translational support to strengthen existing and to create new claims for Fishcare products. Both fundamental and applied research is conducted with a diverse range of ornamental fish species, covering numerous research disciplines. Research is conducted at Waltham and at various Universities in the form of PhD studentships. As a fish nutritionist she is responsible for their fish food formulations, integral to product development, advising sales and marketing, raw material specification and regulatory aspects associated with food products.
She has a BSc degree in biological sciences and marine biology from the University of Plymouth, an MSc in biological research methods from Exeter University, and a PhD from Plymouth in fish nutrition and physiology. Post-doctoral research was based at the University of Connecticut (US), involved culturing seaweed (Porphyra sp.) for use in integrated aquaculture.
She also represents Mars Fishcare at the UK Pet Food Association, as the Chair of FEDIAF’s small animal working group and the current Chair of the Board of Directors for the UK’s Ornamental Trade Association.