About Me
Dr Matt Hartley
BVetMed MApplSc PhD CertZooMed PGCTLHE FHEA MRCVS
Senior Research Fellow - Nottingham Trent University
Government Appointed Zoo Inspector
Board Member West African Primate Conservation Action
Reproduction and Social Behaviour Work Group Leader - UK Elephant Welfare Group
Advisory Panel Member - UK Great Ape Welfare Group
IUCN Wildlife Health Specialist
IUCN Conservation Breeding Specialist
IUCN Tapir Specialist
IUCN Deer Specialist
Qualifications:
| Year | Qualification | University |
|---|---|---|
| 1998 | Bachelor of Veterinary Medicine | Royal Veterinary College, London |
| 2002 | Masters of Applied Science Wildlife Health & Population Management | University of Sydney |
| 2005 | Certificate in Zoological Medicine | Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons |
| 2007 | Post Graduate Certificate in Finance & Management | National School for Government |
| 2016 | Post Graduate Certificate in Teaching & Learning in Higher Education | University of Chester |
| 2018 | PhD "Use of Risk Analysis for Decision Making in Zoo & Wildlife Health & Welfare" | University of Chester |
I have worked in zoos and with wildlfe for over 20 years in varied and diverse roles as a zoo veterinarian, in senior zoo leadership posts, as a civil servant, conservation research scientist and academic. My full CV is available on request.
I started my career as a clinical zoo vet in large zoos in the UK, Australia and South Africa, where I also had the opportunity to participate in game capture work. I became focused on the influence and impact of best practice animal husbandry, nutrition, promotion of natural behaviours and innovative facility design on health and welfare leading to me moving into curatorial roles. Over the years, I have held a number of senior positions with respsonsibity for for strategic and operational functions including financial and resource management, collection planning, enclosure development and masterplanning.
My Masters degree at the University of Sydney studying infectious diseases in wild wombats, platypus, echidna and koalas ignited my interest in wildlife disease epidemiology. This led to me being appointed by the Department of Environment, Food and Rural Affairs as the UK’s first Wildlife Veterinary Adviser. In this role I was responsible for developing wildlife health policy and managing wildlife diseaese surveillance. I led the UK negotiations at the European Commission for zoo animal import policy and developed an inspection process for welfare of circus animals. This role developed my skills in policy development and legislative enforcement.
I have held both visiting and permanent academic posts at Universities and have taught undergraduate and postgraduate students. I have supervised both MSc and MRes research projects and ran field expeditions in South Africa and Costa Rica. I am currently a Senior Visiting Research Fellow at Nottingham Trent University. I contribute to teaching and supervise research students in both zoo based and field conservation projects.
Zoo and Wildlife Solutions Ltd. was founded in 2011. Since then I have undertaken consultancy work full-time and alongside permanent posts in zoos and academia.
Please see the 'Services' pages which describe the work of Zoo and Wildlife Solutions.