I worked for the Department of Agriculture in Northern Ireland for 20 years before my early retirement (due to ill health) in 2009. My Fellowship in 1992 took me to Sweden and the Netherlands for six weeks to learn about advances in the welfare of animals during transport. My Fellowship also awakened an interest in the visual arts through weekend visits to Swedish galleries. I was subsequently promoted to divisional veterinary officer with responsibility for animal welfare and was actively involved in developing legislation to protect animals during transport. Ultimately, I became the Deputy Chief Veterinary Officer for Northern Ireland where I maintained an active interest and involvement in animal welfare.

I graduated from Ulster University in 2013 with First Class Honours in Fine Art. There is a lot of crossover between my current artistic practice and previous veterinary career. For example, I use microsurgeon's loupes to enable the rendering of very fine details in my work, I make direct observations of microscopic structures using my own microscope and use surgical instruments to make fine incisions in encaustic panels.