Frequently Asked Questions
Below are some of the questions we get asked about anything APBC.
Behaviourist Roles
What is the difference between an ABT and a CAB?
The ABTC standards set out the requirements for Animal behaviour Technician (ABT) and Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CAB): Practitioners – ABTC
ABT K&U is assessed at Level 5
CAB K&U is assessed at Level 6
I do not have a relevant qualification and cannot/do not wish to do full time study. Can I apply? How do I get my Knowledge and Understanding (K&U) assessed if I haven’t done an ABTC recognised course?
Assessment of the K&U is carried out by the ABTC for those who wish to demonstrate competence through their Prior Experience and/or Learning: APEL – ABTC.
Is there a time limit from passing APEL to then progressing to the APBC Assessment process?
No – APEL (Assessment of Prior Experience and/or Learning) is a process for you to demonstrate that you have met the required Knowledge and Understanding requirements for the role of Animal Behaviour Technician (ABT) or Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CAB), if you have not undertaken a course recognised by the ABTC. Once you have demonstrated that your Knowledge and Understanding meets the ABTC requirements, you will receive a certificate from the ABTC confirming this. You can then progress to the APBC Assessment of Practical Skills in the same way as someone who has completed a course recognised by the ABTC.
Once you have demonstrated you have met the Knowledge and Understanding requirements for your role, you are able to join us as an Associate member.
Associate members are generally expected to book their assessment for Full Membership within five years. However, we recognise that individual circumstances – such as case volume, case type or personal factors – may impact this timeline. If you are unable to meet the five-year timeframe, we encourage you to contact the APBC Assessments team for support and guidance, to help you progress.
Support For Members
How do I get support for assessments?
The APBC offers support from Assessment Tutors the details of which can be found here.
Assessment Tutors are trained members of the APBC Assessments team and have a high level of knowledge about the assessment process. Our Assessment Tutors work with you to explain the application process, practice oral interviews with you and provide feedback to help you with your written, observation and oral assessment.
What support do you provide to applicants working towards their application?
We provide a range of support for our members as they work towards Full membership. This includes webinars, online support groups and a closed Facebook group for case discussion, business development and moral support. This allows members of all types to share their collective knowledge and experience by discussing their cases and experiences. We believe, this allows Student and Associate members to grow in confidence as well as giving Associate members an opportunity to gain experience presenting cases they have worked on. This is very helpful in preparing for the assessment for Full membership.
Where can I find a breakdown of the Practical Skills for each ABTC role?
The Practical Skills can be found for each of the role Standards which are listed here:
The APBC also provides a detailed breakdown of the Practical Skills for both the Animal Behaviour Technician (ABT) and Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CAB) role in our Application Information documents
Is there any guidance on what our written case records should look like and what should be included?
Yes – our Application Information documents highlight all the information that is necessary to provide in your case records
Are there any case record examples available for guidance?
Yes – please use the following links to access our GoogleDrive containing case record examples for both the ABT and CAB roles:
Do I need to be supervised by another practitioner before I apply?
The APBC Assessment route does not require members to complete supervision before submitting case records. A number of our Full members do offer this service, if it is something you would find helpful. However, this is not a necessity for our application process.
Written Case Records
Can I apply for assessment even though my written case records are not quite ready?
There are assessment windows throughout the year. Once you have submitted all the evidence required you will be assessed in the next available assessment window.
Does it matter how I source my cases?
The main thing to take into consideration is whether your cases demonstrate that you can meet the ABTC Practical Skills requirements for your chosen behaviourist role: Animal Behaviour Technician (ABT) or Clinical Animal Behaviourist (CAB).
We accept applications from behaviourists working in private practice, those working in veterinary practices e.g. running socialisation clinics and acclimatising patients to vet visits, and also those working in a rescue setting e.g. giving preventative behaviour advice to new owners or providing treatment plans in-house to staff members.
Do all of the cases submitted in my case records need to be ‘resolved’, or can they be a mix of current and prior cases?
At least one of the cases you submit in your case records should have taken place within the past 12 months. In order to fully demonstrate the Practical Skills, you are advised to also choose at least one case with significant follow up that has reached a resolution.
Is it possible to apply for multiple species in one application?
Yes, you would be encouraged to provide at least one case record for each species with which you would like to demonstrate competency.
Do I need to submit a case study for another species e.g. feline, if I only want to work with one species e.g. canine?
No, if you only want to work with dogs then you can submit 3 dog case records. In order to demonstrate the ABTC Practical Skills fully we may ask you questions about other species. You can expect to be questioned about hypothetical case examples during your oral interview(s), especially related to multi species households.
Should the 3 case records I submit cover a range of behavioural issues?
Yes, you should provide a range of cases in order to maximise your opportunity to demonstrate that you meet the ABTC Practical Skills which can be viewed here: Practitioners – ABTC
You can expect to be questioned about any of your cases on which you can draw experience, or hypothetical case examples, during your oral interview(s). This may include other species as well as other behavioural problems or differential diagnoses. The interview questions are designed to ensure that you demonstrate competency in all the Practical skills.
What is required as written evidence of veterinary correspondence?
The list of written evidence required for your cases can be found at: apbc.org.uk/membership/become-a-member/full/
Video Case Records
Can I apply for assessment even though my video case records are not quite ready?
No, you should apply when all your evidence is ready. The assessment windows start 1 Jan, 1 May and 1 September.
What should be included in the video case records?
You should include a full initial consultation and follow up session with a client. Video of 1-2-1 training sessions can be submitted as your prophylactic case (for Animal Behaviour Technician applications) or in addition to your behaviour cases (for Clinical Animal Behaviourist applications) in order to demonstrate your handling and training skills plus interactions with clients.
Why are follow up visits included in the case records?
We assess follow up sessions to ascertain how you evaluate the effectiveness of your treatment regime and make revisions as necessary, in response to client feedback.
What training video evidence is required?
We require you to demonstrate that you are able to train 3 behavioural cues, showing or identifying how you would progress each exercise. This could be with a client’s animal or with your own animal.
You are also required to demonstrate that you are able to coach clients to teach a behaviour. If this is not included in the 3 behavioural cue videos, or the consultation videos, you will need to send additional evidence demonstrating you coaching a client. A video of you teaching a training class with clients could be submitted as evidence to meet these Practical Skills.
What equipment is acceptable to use for my video case records?
We are happy for you to record your initial consultation using any recording device. Typically this is done using a mobile phone or camcorder. These should be set up in a location where both the practitioner and client can both be seen and heard clearly.
Bodycams may be a useful alternative although please be aware this does not allow us to view you properly during your interactions with your client so may only give us half the picture.
If conducting an online session, i.e. via Zoom, these can be recorded. Please change your recording settings to ensure the meeting is recorded in gallery view and not speaker view. Again, this ensures that we are able to see and hear everyone involved in the consultation/follow up session.
Can the video evidence exclude seeing the face of the client if they do not want to appear on video?
The face of the client could be obscured but it would be more helpful if it was seen, as the purpose of this evidence is to assess the communication skills of the applicant, including their reactions to client’s responses.
If this causes you particular problems, please advise the APBC office at info@apbc.org.uk as we want to be as flexible as possible in offering these assessments.
How do I send the large video files to you?
If the file is over 2GB there are two options:
- Upload to your iCloud storage such as OneDrive or GoogleDrive and send us the access link.
- We can email you a link for you to upload it to our GoogleDrive (you do not need to have GoogleDrive to be able to use it).
If you are experiencing difficulties uploading files of a large size, please contact the office (info@apbc.org.uk) for alternative options.
What will happen to the video files after assessment?
As part of your application, you will submit a confidentiality agreement for use with clients indicating that they are happy for the video evidence to be used for this purpose only and that assessors and any other APBC staff who have access to the files will destroy them once the application is complete.
Re-Submission/Re-Application
What happens if my assessment is unsuccessful?
We are very proud to say that we have a high success rate for our assessments and we can attribute this partly to the supportive nature of the process. However, the assessment process is also rigorous and, in some cases, we may require an applicant to submit further materials to ensure the Practical Skills have been fully met.
In this instance an applicant will be provided with a feedback document showing all the Practical Skills and whether they have been fully met, partially met or not yet met. If there is something lacking that prevents progression to the oral interview stage – this will be made clear.
If after a maximum of 3 one-hour interviews, we feel there are some Practical Skills that have not been sufficiently met, again this will be communicated clearly in the feedback. You would be assessed on the remaining Practical Skills at the next available assessment window or when you feel ready. You will need to resubmit your application within the next two assessment windows if your initial evidence and assessment is to be included.
Please note that the number of applicants being reassessed in each window will be capped to ensure that new applicants coming through are also given assessment opportunities.
How soon after an unsuccessful assessment can I re-submit/re-apply?
In some cases, where only a few Practical Skills have not yet been met or only partially met, an applicant will be invited for re-assessment in the next assessment window (1-4 months later). This will include an additional oral interview and may require additional written case records to fully meet the Practical Skills.
In cases where an applicant has been deemed not ready for Full membership, they will be encouraged to put our recommendations into practice before submitting another application. These applicants are encouraged to make another application once new skills have been applied in practice, and they are ready for Full membership.
What are the costs for re-submission/re-application?
The cost for re-submission depends on the amount of additional evidence required. Applicants may be asked for one additional oral interview, one additional case record and one additional interview or two additional case records and one additional interview. For a breakdown of additional fees please email info@apbc.org.uk.
In the case that an applicant is deemed not ready and a full re-application is necessary, the full (unsubsidised) cost will apply. These fees can be found here.
Continuing Professional Development (CPD)
Is it possible to work with species I have not been assessed for e.g. working with equines, if I have only been assessed for canine/feline species?
All ABTC practitioners must work within their competency level and it is important not to practise outside your field of confidence/competence. You would need to demonstrate an appropriate background with any additional species and this may include additional CPD. All APBC members are required to complete a minimum of 30 hours CPD per year to develop their knowledge and practical skills.
Accessibility
How accessible is the APBC assessment process?
The APBC wants to make the application and assessment process accessible to all our members. If members have any special requirements regarding their submission, please contact the office on info@apbc.org.uk to discuss.
English is not my first language and my video records will be in my native language. Is this ok?
Yes – the APBC wants to make the application and assessment process accessible to all our members including our international members. As our assessors are not multi-lingual, we would be pleased to accept video submissions that are clearly subtitled in English so that we can understand what is being said. We would also ask that you gain written permission from your client that they are happy for us to share the recording with an interpreter should we need this.