A HADDINGTON man has won a national award for his contributions to veterinary science.

Eddie Clutton was presented with the British Veterinary Association's (BVA) Advancement of Veterinary Science Award at the first BVA Awards Dinner.

The event, held at the five-star London Marriott Hotel Canary Wharf, celebrated the achievements of "exceptional" vets and veterinary teams across four awards.

Mr Clutton, clinical director of the Wellcome Trust Critical Care Laboratory for Large Animals at the Roslin Institute, was recognised for his "distinctive contributions" to the field of veterinary anaesthesia.

Roslin Institute (Image: Google Street View)

After graduating from the University of Liverpool in 1981, Mr Clutton began post-graduate training in the Department of Anaesthesia at The Royal Liverpool Hospital before working in the University of Virginia, USA, for five years as an assistant professor in veterinary anaesthesiology.

He gained the RCVS Diploma in veterinary anaesthesia in 1985.

He went on to hold the role of head of veterinary anaesthesia in the Royal (Dick) School of Veterinary Studies (Edinburgh) from 1990 to 2015.

During this time he also became a Diplomate of the European College of Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia.

He was editor-in-chief of the journal Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia and president of the Association of Veterinary Anaesthetists.

He is also a member of the Royal College of Anaesthetists, the Association of Veterinary Anaesthetists, the Animal Welfare Science, Ethics and Law Association, the Laboratory Animal Veterinary Association and the Laboratory Animal Science Association.

Mr Clutton, who was previously awarded the Morpheus Award by the European College of Veterinary Anaesthesia and Analgesia and an RCVS Fellowship in 2019, said: "It is difficult to describe what I felt when I discovered that I had been awarded the 2024 Dalrymple-Champneys Cup and Medal, but it was not dissimilar to what I experienced in 1975 when I received the A level grades that got me into Liverpool vet school.

"It’s a mixture of amazement, disbelief, relief and elation – but it’s mainly gratitude.

"My profound gratitude goes to the BVA for awarding me this honour and recognition.

"Then, gratitude to my veterinary colleagues in North Wales and Cheshire for putting up with me while seeing practice and to the inspirational lecturers I had in Liverpool.

"Importantly, my thanks to my mentors, Ron Jones and Avril Waterman-Pearson, who showed me the nobility of a career preventing pain in animals.

"I am thankful to all my colleagues and friends in veterinary anaesthesia and laboratory animal medicine, and to Michael Thrusfield, for their friendship and support.

"Finally, I thank my long-suffering family, Lynne, Rhiannon, Caitlin and Liam, for letting me do what I have done over the years."