The Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors and the Veterinary Profession

Owners of cases being referred to a member of the APBC should bring a completed copy of the Referral Slip (.pdf 48 Kb) to the consultation.  Veterinary surgeons may also wish to use a copy of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons Approved Referral Form (.pdf 83Kb), available from the Companion Animal Behaviour Therapy Study Group.

Over recent years there has been an explosion of interest in animal behaviour within the veterinary profession. Numerous regional BSAVA groups now include behavioural therapy in their continuing education programme. There is an official BSAVA affiliated behaviour group which holds an annual satellite meeting at the BSAVA congress. APBC members have taken part in many of these meetings as well as various other behaviour courses for the veterinary profession and have also been actively involved in the incorporation of behavioural therapy into the undergraduate curriculum at some of the university veterinary schools.

The APBC continues to recognise that a strong link between the veterinary surgeon and the behaviourist is essential in all cases and it emphasises the importance in its membership requirement that all members must work solely on veterinary referral, not least because of the link between some medical conditions and behavioural symptoms. In all of these ways, the APBC has demonstrated its commitment to the veterinary profession and its willingness to help in any way that it can, in order to establish behavioural therapy within a veterinary context.