Dr Sarah Ellis

Feline Behaviour Specialist

Sarah knew from a very young age she wanted to make a difference to the lives of animals. So much so, she sought the education, knowledge and practical skills to allow her to do just that. Armed with a degree (Zoology and Psychology), postgraduate diploma (Companion animal behaviour counselling) and PhD (Feline behaviour and welfare) and work experience with a variety of animal species. She then spent the next 8 years as a research scientist, investigating first hand, novel ways to improve the lives of one of our most popular pets – the domestic cat. It was during time, Sarah narrowed her interests in animal welfare to that of the cat – a move some might say was risky, but for Sarah, made her career.

Sarah is a great believer that science should be accessible for everyone.

“Published research should not just stay in print, on the shelves of libraries gathering dust, it should be disseminated widely, in as easy a language to understand as possible, to ensure it is used to make a difference to our world.”

Coupled with her passion and drive to improve cat welfare, Sarah left her role as research scientist to be able to dedicate more of her time to putting this scientific knowledge into action. She now works for international animal welfare charity “International Cat Care” where spends a great deal of her time educating the general public and animal professionals to help improve the lives of domestic cats globally.

Sarah is an experienced speaker, published author and has had several TV appearances as an expert scientist on the subject of the domestic cat.

“People often said to me – you will never be able to make a career from working with cats. Determination, hard work and innovation has proved such opinions are not substantiated.”

Her key messages are therefore, find what topic excites and motivates you and strive to become the best there is in that subject area.

Testimonials

"I have known Sarah for nearly 10 years and she worked as a post doctoral researcher with me as part of this relationship. I have seen her speak many times and her work is always meticulously prepared and most importantly, scientifically accurate. I also believe Sarah has exceptional skills in being to communicate complex ideas in a way that a child could understand without sacrificing scientific merit. She also has a style of delivery which I think is second to none – she is a natural communicator and I believe this is one reasons her appearances on TV are so widely praised. If you require any further information. Please do not hesitate to get in touch." Professor Daniel Mills, School of Life Sciences, University of Lincoln.