Rob Laidlaw is a Chartered Biologist, children’s book author and the founder and Executive Director of Zoocheck Canada, a national wildlife protection charity, established in Toronto, Canada in 1984. His work over the years has involved:

• hundreds of welfare audits of zoos and other captive wildlife facilities in Canada and around the world;
• organizing, delivering and/or participating in a wide range of successful local, regional and national wildlife protection campaigns, including dozens of successful bylaw initiatives and regional campaigns to establish wildlife in captivity legislation, as well as campaigns to protect wildlife in the wild, including polar bears, elephants and wild horses;
• providing assistance and expert commentary to various governmental and non-governmental agencies regarding wild animals in captivity and various other wildlife issues in Canada and around the world;
• organising dozens of pubic awareness and capacity building events, including local, regional, national and international lectures, workshops, seminars, conferences and rallies.

Laidlaw has also served as Project Manager and Technical Advisor for the World Society for the Protection of Animals, Chief Inspector at one of Canada’s largest urban humane societies and Canadian Coordinator for Mobilization for Animals. He is a former member of the board of directors of the Canadian Federation of Humane Societies and the Borneo Orangutan Society Canada.

From 2000 – 2005, Laidlaw acted as Project Manager (Canada) and Technical Advisor for the World Society for the Protection of Animals where he was responsible for ongoing investigative and legislative work regarding the welfare of captive wildlife (including the development of the Zoo Exhibit Quick Audit Process); ongoing advocacy and capacity-building initiatives with a number of Asian animal welfare organizations; a long-term investigative study of Canada's role in the international pet reptile trade; and the development of a humane stray dog control program for remote communities in northern Canada.

From 1989 – 1990, Laidlaw was a cruelty investigator and then Chief Inspector at one of Canada's largest urban humane societies. In addition to handling a range of animal cruelty complaints, Laidlaw designed a pet store inspection program and worked to address the unacceptable treatment of animals in circuses and traveling shows.