Spotlight on Head of Campaigns and Public Affairs, David Bowles: 29 years of service

When did you join the RSPCA and in what capacity? Has your role changed since you started?

I joined in 1995 as the person responsible for lobbying for animal welfare in Europe. I had to convince members of the European Parliament to raise and vote for animal welfare improvements. Campaigners play a vital role in this as democratically elected legislators have to pay attention to what their constituents want. Amazingly MPs get more correspondence on animal welfare than any other issue showing the power of campaigning. After we voted to leave the EU in 2016 that part of my job changed considerably as we are only a side participant in Europe at present. During my time here I've had at least six different roles up to Director of Communications. But it hasn't really changed as I’m still really doing what I came here for - to campaign and lobby to get better protection for animals in law and to change the way people perceive and care for animals.?

What has kept you at the RSPCA for all these years?

Two things - firstly the variety involved in the job as you never know what each day will bring in terms of challenges and opportunities. Secondly the satisfaction at seeing progress made to improve animal welfare in legislation and behaviour change which you have played a small part in creating and progressing. I reckon that I've had involvement in a small way in changing over 100 laws in England, Wales and Europe during this time. Some of the highlights over 29 years include the ban on the laying hen battery cage, securing the import ban on wild-caught birds which overnight stopped the import of these animals from places such as Africa and South America, and the ending of quarantine for people who wanted to take their dog abroad on holiday.?

What have been your favourite moments working here?

One of the most totemic was when the World Trade Organisation agreed that the EU’s seal ban could be retained under WTO trade rules. I had worked on this issue for 20 years and never really believed it would happen. It is important for two reasons. Firstly the ban saves seals from being bludgeoned to death, which we can see by the drop in seals killed by Canada and Greenland since the ban. But even more important, it categorises animal welfare as a moral issue which, when adopted by a country, is allowed under trade rules. This opens up a Pandora’s box of other trade possibilities such as a foie gras or puppy import ban, mandatory method of production labelling or animal welfare subsidies to help farmers. My second moment was the change in horse fly grazing law, the Control of Horses Act, which allowed quicker intervention when a horse had been abandoned on someone’s property. We know this has also worked as horse fly grazing has declined in the eight years it has been in place.

Do you have any idea how many animals you’ve helped through your work at the RSPCA?

No, I’m not sure it is possible to add them up - I’m just satisfied that the laws I've worked on will have changed and improved countless animals’ lives.

What’s your favourite animal and why?

The babirusa, an endangered wild pig from Sulawesi, Indonesia. They look like a cartoonist has made them but they have great characters. I looked after them in zoos and studied them for five years in the UK and Indonesia.?

What do you think is the most pressing issue for animals today?

The RSPCA has been going for 200 years but continues to see on a daily basis people not understanding or meeting animals’ needs when they are responsible for them. I hope we can soon be at a stage when people finally understand having an animal is a responsibility, not a right. The RSPCA must work for a society where we are no longer needed. Most of our work occurs due to a lack of understanding rather than deliberate cruelty. Education to change people’s perceptions is the solution but can only be done by understanding how to give the right messages at the right time to the target audience. Our exciting new behaviour change work will determine if we get this right.?

Is there anything else you’d like to add?

All the RSPCA achieves is from like-minded people working to improve the lives of animals in this country and abroad. That applies just as much now as it did in 1824.? That ethos and drive has and will not change despite all the other changes I have seen in my 29 years at the RSPCA.?

Two hundred years ago, a group of people met in a London coffee shop, determined to change animals’ lives for the better. That goal has been the beating heart of the RSPCA ever since. Find out more about our history and join our Million-Strong Movement for every kind today!