Dr. Kathy Murphy Dives into the Effects of Pain on the Brain, Nervous System and Behavior

Worry Less, Wag More: The Behavior Vets Podcast

In this episode, Dr. Kathy Murphy (BVetMed, DPhil, CVA, CLAS, MRCVS ) discusses how pain is frequently overlooked as an important component of behavior problems. Don't miss this episode. We discuss:

• The challenges of understanding and treating pain in animals
• Takeaways from the landmark Mills et al. (2020) study "Pain and Problem Behavior in Cats and Dogs"
• Direct and indirect effects of pain on the nervous system and behavior
• How to be a "pain detective" to help your vet diagnose medical issues

Dr. Murphy's bio:
Dr Kathy Murphy (BVetMed, DPhil, CVA, CLAS, MRCVS) is a veterinary surgeon and neuroscientist. She graduated from the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons UK in 1999, initially working in mixed clinical practice before studying for two post graduate clinical qualifications with the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, in Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia, and Laboratory Animal Science.

In 2009 she was awarded a highly prestigious Wellcome Trust Research Training Fellowship to study for her PhD, in Behavioral Neuroscience, at The Queens College, University of Oxford, UK. She subsequently worked in the USA as Assistant Professor of Neuroscience and Anesthesiology at the Icahn School of Medicine NYC, where her research into the long term effects of anesthesia on learning and memory contributed to a change to the safety advice for the use of general anesthesia in children. She moved back to the UK in 2013, to take up clinical-academic positions at the University of Oxford and subsequently Newcastle University, and concurrently completed a Residency in Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia with the European College of Veterinary Anesthesia and Analgesia, during which she became increasingly interested in how pain re-models the nervous system and this can manifest as behavioral problems in pets.

Dr Murphy founded, and is now Director of, Barking Brains Ltd (a neuroscience outreach platform for the animal behavior and training community), which focuses on translating neuroscientific information into practical and useful information for people interested in animal behavior. In order to maximize the impact of her diverse interests and skill set, Dr Murphy teamed up with Behavior Vets LLC in 2022 as the new Chief Scientific Officer. She is now able to focus on her new found passion for science communication and providing evidence based, up to date, accessible, scientific information to clinicians, animal professionals and their clients, about subjects related to pain, behavior, neurobiology and the many interrelated factors.

In addition to Dr Murphy's primary career roles she was Trustee and Veterinary Advisor to the Rottweiler Welfare Association for 14 years; is co-founder of Ethics First (a collective which lobbies for ethical decision making in clinical practice); is an Oversight Committee Member for the UK Dog Behaviour and Training Charter; sits on numerous National and International boards, working groups and ethical review panels; is an ad-hoc reviewer for neuroscience, veterinary medicine and anesthesia and pain journals; and continues to collaborate on research projects. Dr Murphy lives in the UK with her husband Elliot (ex Search and Rescue handler and now scentwork and mantrailing trainer) and their 5 dogs: Dennis a Yorkshire Te

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