Contalbrigo Laura
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Role | Veterinarian |
| Structure | SSDS2 – Animal Welfare and Biosecurity National Reference Centre for Animal Assisted Interventions (Pet Therapy) |
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| Phone | +39 0498084247 | |
| lcontalbrigo@izsvenezie.it |
Professional profile
Laura Contalbrigo is a senior veterinary officer at the SSDS2 – Animal Welfare and Biosecurity Unit of the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale delle Venezie (IZSVe) and at the National Reference Centre for Animal-Assisted Interventions (CRN IAA).
After graduating in Veterinary Medicine in 2004 from the University of Padua, she earned a Ph.D. in Clinical Veterinary Sciences from the same university in 2008, investigating the effects of radiofrequency electromagnetic fields on hematobiochemical parameters in Sprague-Dawley rats at the “Cesare Maltoni” Cancer Research Centre. She completed a specialization in Inspection of Foods of Animal Origin” at the University of Bologna in 2012, followed by a specialization in Laboratory Animal Science and Medicine at the University of Milan in 2017. Passionate about canine welfare and behaviour, in 2022 she obtained a 2nd level Master’s degree in Clinical Ethology of Companion Animals from the University of Pisa and qualified as a expert veterinarian in Animal-Assisted Interventions (AAI) in July of the same year.
She has been working at the IZSVe since 2009, initially building expertise in laboratory logistics and customer relations. Later, working for the IZSVe’s Directorate of Health, she focused on biosecurity and occupational safety. From 2013 to 2015, she contributed to adapting the organization of the IZSVe’s animal facilities in compliance with Legislative Decree No. 26/2014, as well as managing the Animal Welfare Body (OPBA) and the IZSVe Ethics Committee, of which she is currently a member.
In June 2015, she joined the staff of the National Reference Centre for Animal Assisted Interventions (Pet Therapy), where she coordinates Research and Development focusing on animal emotions, as well as the welfare and behaviour of dogs and equines. She also carries out institutional activities regarding assistance dogs for people with disabilities. Since 2019, she has represented the Italian Ministry of Health on the UNI GL022 Technical Committee – Canine Professions, contributing to defining technical standards for professional qualifications in the canine sector. Since 2019, she has served as a CEN expert for CEN TC 452 “Assistance Dogs”, and since 2021 as co-convenor of WG6 “Accessibility” within the same standardization process. She is also a member of the ENCI Technical Committee “The Dog as a Social Actor”. Since 2020, she has been involved in urban veterinary hygiene, acting as the IZSVe contact person for the National Reference Centre for Urban Hygiene at the Istituto Zooprofilattico Sperimentale dell’Abruzzo e del Molise.
She teaches human-animal interaction and animal-assisted interventions at Universities and regionally accredited training organizations. She serves as a scientific reviewer for various peer-reviewed journals and as a speaker at national and international conferences on topics related to companion animal and equine welfare, as well as human-animal interaction. She is the author and co-author of articles in peer-reviewed journals and popular science publications.