Britain’s Westies Are Exhausted, And According To One Of The Country’s Leading Veterinary Behaviour Experts, So Are We

As millions of dog owners battle broken nights, early wake-up calls and the endless debate over whether the family Westie belongs on the bed, Dr Robert Falconer-Taylor believes the real issue runs far deeper than avoiding muddy paws on the duvet.

The respected Highlands-based veterinary behaviourist says our modern obsession with productivity, artificial light and round-the-clock stimulation has quietly reshaped not only human sleep, but the emotional wellbeing of the animals who share our homes.

After nearly 30 years in the veterinary profession, Dr Falconer-Taylor is now urging owners to rethink what “a good night’s sleep” really means, for themselves and for their pets. Later this month he will headline the first-ever Pet Remedy Emotional Wellbeing in Animals Conference in Torquay, Devon, where he plans to challenge conventional thinking on everything from co-sleeping to canine stress.

“For decades we have focused on welfare, not wellbeing,” he says, speaking from his home in the North West Highlands of Scotland. “Welfare is the bare minimum, shelter, food, water. It keeps an animal alive. Wellbeing is about happiness, emotional health and a life worth living. They are not the same thing.”

In 2010 he carried out research into the concept of welfare, concluding that much of our legislation remains rooted in what he describes as “very old-fashioned ideas”. While developed nations now conduct annual wellbeing surveys to measure human happiness, he argues we rarely apply the same lens to the animals whose lives we control.

“In the human world we ask, what do people need to feel fulfilled, safe, content? We should be asking the same of our pets,” he says. “Our behaviour directly influences their emotional lives.”

It is a theme woven through his varied career. A former veterinary director and head of education at COAPE, the Centre of Applied Pet Ethology, he helped develop degree-level courses in companion animal behaviour and co-created the widely used EMRA system, now outlined in the book EMRA Intelligence. He also played a key role in developing The Puppy Plan with Dogs Trust and the Kennel Club, and has worked at the intersection of animal and human healthcare as part of the World Health Organisation’s One Health approach.

But he is increasingly concerned about what he calls the “noise” surrounding pet advice in the social media age.
“There are a lot of so-called experts online, and a lot of virtue signalling,” he says. “My job as a scientist has always been to untangle that and present clear, evidence-based information that the average pet guardian can understand.”

In 2024, as science advisor for Pet Remedy, he launched an online tool designed to help owners assess their pet’s emotional wellbeing more objectively. It forms part of his broader mission to shift the conversation from survival to thriving.

At the Torquay conference, held on March 30 and 31, his lecture will delve into the science of sleep in both dogs and people. The subject, he says, is far more complex than the usual arguments about whether dogs should be allowed under the covers.
“Human sleep hygiene has been disrupted since the Industrial Revolution,” he explains. “Artificial light, long working hours, stress, technology, all of it affects how and when we rest. And because pets are part of our families, our flawed habits affect them too.”
He dismisses rigid rules about co-sleeping. “There are no hard and fast rules. It is about knowing yourself and knowing your dog. Some combinations work beautifully, others don’t. The key is awareness.”

The interconnected nature of modern life means stress rarely stops at night. “If you are anxious, overstimulated, not managing your own wellbeing, that will have an impact on your dog,” he says. “Pets and their people live intertwined lives. Getting the balance right matters.”

The conference itself reflects that philosophy. The immersive two-day event will bring together a world-class line-up including Dr Robert Falconer-Taylor, Dr Amber Batson, Chloe Scoones, Daniel Shaw, Victoria Stilwell and Andrew Hale, all exploring the fast-evolving science of emotional wellbeing in animals.

Find out more about the conference here: https://petremedy.co.uk/vewac26/?srsltid=AfmBOoqa4oAqMrVXuNRCCvh_I1xfoqOM7aqSetfrfmYj4m8NHLSlIxLj