Dr. Monique Pairis-Garcia Receives 2026 AVMA Animal Welfare Award

(SCHAUMBURG, Illinois) June 23, 2026-Dr. Monique Pairis-Garcia, DVM, PhD, DACAW, a leader in farm animal welfare science, is the 2026 winner of the American Veterinary Medical Association's (AVMA) Animal Welfare Award, the association announced today.

The AVMA Animal Welfare Award is presented annually to an AVMA member veterinarian in recognition of their achievement in advancing the welfare of animals via leadership, public service, education, research/product development, and/or advocacy. It is one of three Animal Welfare and Human-Animal Bond Excellence Awards presented annually by the AVMA and supported by Merck Animal Health.

"This is such an honor to receive such a prestigious award," said Dr. Pairis-Garcia. "I am very thankful for my family, friends and colleagues that have supported and inspired me to work in the field of animal welfare. I would like to especially express my appreciation to the swine veterinarians, producers, caretakers and those in the allied industry that have consistently supported, encouraged and pushed me to continue my path in advancing swine welfare on-farm."

"Dr. Pairis-Garcia has dedicated her career to turning rigorous welfare science into practical tools that improve daily life for animals on farms in the United States and around the world," said Dr. Michael Q. Bailey, AVMA president. "Her work in humane euthanasia, pain management and on-farm welfare assessment reflects the very best of our profession, and we are proud to recognize her with this award."

Dr. Pairis-Garcia is a professor of global production animal welfare at the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine, where she leads a research, teaching and service program devoted to improving the welfare of livestock animals. A cum laude graduate of Iowa State University's veterinary program (2011), she earned a PhD in animal physiology from Iowa State in 2014 and is one of a relatively small number of veterinarians board-certified by the American College of Animal Welfare (ACAW).

Dr. Pairis-Garcia began her academic career at The Ohio State University in 2014, where she established one of the few animal welfare and behavior teaching programs in the United States and worked directly with producers through her extension role. In 2019, she received the American Society of Animal Science's Outstanding Young Extension Award before joining NC State later that year, and she was promoted to full professor in 2024.

Her research applies the science of animal welfare and behavior in three connected areas: timely and humane euthanasia, on-farm welfare assessments and audits, and pain management and alternative management practices. Much of this work is conducted on commercial farms in direct partnership with industry, including the National Pork Board and the American Association of Swine Veterinarians-an approach that has made her a nationally and internationally recognized expert in swine welfare. She has secured more than $1.7 million in funding as principal investigator and published more than 75 peer-reviewed journal articles.

A hallmark of Dr. Pairis-Garcia's career is translating research into accessible, real-world tools. She has developed multimedia training programs on timely and humane euthanasia for swine and cattle-available free of charge in English, Spanish and Portuguese-that have been funded and distributed by organizations including the National Pork Board and the National Milk Producers Federation, extending her reach to producers across the United States and beyond.

Dr. Pairis-Garcia was a contributing author to the 2024 AVMA Guidelines for the Humane Slaughter of Animals and chaired the Credentialing Committee of the American College of Animal Welfare. She has mentored numerous veterinarians pursuing board certification in animal welfare, helping to grow the ranks of specialists in this emerging field.

Her influence increasingly extends across borders. In 2025, she began a sabbatical at the University of São Paulo in Brazil-the world's fourth-largest pork producer-to help develop and validate a national program for assessing pig welfare and pre-harvest food safety, work intended to raise welfare standards across the food supply chain.

Dr. Pairis-Garcia's award will be presented during the 2026 AVMA Convention in Anaheim.

For more information, contact Michael San Filippo, senior media relations manager, at 847-732-6194 (cell/text) or [email protected].