Sophie Common

Wildlife Veterinarian & Research Associate

Curriculum vitae

2020-Present: Wildlife Veterinarian & Research Associate, IOZ, ZSL
2020-Present: Veterinary Surgeon, RSPCA Stapeley Grange Wildlife Centre and Cattery
2020-Present: Guest Lecturer, Manchester Metropolitan University
2020: Guest Lecturer, University of Liverpool School of Veterinary Science
2020: Teaching and Learning in Higher Education (TLiHE) Course, RVC
2018-2020: Veterinary Surgeon (Locum), Various
2019: Asian Elephant Health and Breeding Management Course, Chiang Mai, Thailand
2018-2019: MSc Wild Animal Health (with Merit), ZSL/RVC
2017-2019: Veterinary Surgeon (Pro Bono), East Sussex Wildlife Rescue and Ambulance Service
2016-2018: Veterinary Surgeon, Ark Veterinary Group
2011-2016: BVetMed, Royal Veterinary College, London

Professional organisations

Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons
Member of the British Veterinary Zoological Society

Research Interests

I currently work as a Wildlife Veterinarian and Research Associate within the Disease Risk Analysis and Health Surveillance (DRAHS) team at the Institute of Zoology, ZSL. The DRAHS project works in partnership with Natural England (NE) and other key collaborators to assess the risk of disease during conservation interventions and undertake post-release health surveillance to inform future decision making. To find out more about DRAHS and our work please click here.

I combine my role within the DRAHS team with a job as a veterinary surgeon at RSPCA Stapeley Grange, a busy wildlife hospital and rehabilitation centre in Cheshire. This role involves undertaking clinical veterinary work in hundreds of British wildlife species across multiple taxa.

I am passionate about wildlife and particularly interested in epidemiology of viral diseases in free-living wildlife and how this can be used to positively impact conservation.

Publications

Common, SM, Shadbolt, T, Walsh, K, Sainsbury, AW (2021) The risk from SARS‐CoV‐2 to bat species in England and mitigation options for conservation field workers. Transbound Emerg Dis. 2021 https://doi.org/10.1111/tbed.14035