Safeguarding for Pet Professionals

Original Air Date: 23rd February 2023

Presenter Bio:

Maya has over a decade’s experience working in the field of domestic and sexual abuse both academically and practically. She has a Master’s of Law in Human Rights and is also both a qualified Independent Sexual Violence Advisor and Violence Against Women, Domestic Abuse and Sexual Violence Trainer. Maya spent several years working on the frontline supporting survivors of abuse emotionally through 1-2-1 support and as an advocate in statutory spaces; she is passionate about using a truly trauma informed approach and believes in the resilience and strength of both humans and animals to recover, adapt and grow post-abuse. In her current role as a trainer, she educates a variety of organisations on domestic abuse including both 3^rd sector and statutory agencies.Maya discovered that the skills she used with survivors of abuse such as empathy, compassion and a natural inclination to ask rather than tell, easily transferred over to working with animals when she got her dog in 2019. Since then, she has had the privilege of engaging with some of the best well-known names within canine behaviour and her comprehension of animal behaviour has grown exponentially. She has found that her knowledge of trauma responses and using a trauma informed approach has leant itself well to supporting her dog through adolescence and reactivity as well as being able to help pet professionals improve their engagement with survivors of trauma at both ends of the lead.

In addition, Maya also sits on the editorial boards of several organisations’ training programmes looking at domestic abuse and the impact it has on both the human and animal victim survivor as well as trauma and dogs.

Presentation Information:

This webinar is part 2 of a series on the issues surrounding companion animal neglect/cruelty and domestic abuse. Part 1 aired in November 2022 and is available to watch through the APBC Event Website.

Content Warning for discussions of abuse which some may find triggering.

During this webinar we will focus on raising your understanding of the stages of leaving, touching on how the companion animal human bond can act as a protective factor for survivors but also as a barrier to leaving the abusive relationship. You will learn how to respond to survivors at each stage, including what questions to ask, using a trauma informed approach.

We will also explore your legal duty and responsibilities to act in certain circumstances if you suspect abuse and how to manage risk to the survivors, yourself and your other clients. Furthermore, we will discuss what resources and agencies are available to you as professionals as well as survivors.

Price: APBC members £12.50 ABTC members £25 Non-members £35

The recording will be available straight after purchase. You will also receive a link direct to the webinar replay in the purchase confirmation email.

Please note: APBC and SPEAKERS CANNOT BE HELD RESPONSIBLE FOR ANY TECHNICAL FAILING IN THE RESULTING RECORDING. Purchases of webinar recordings are not refundable.