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Behaviour Congress

Thursday 1 June 2023

Early Bird pricing is available until Friday 7th April 2023

Virtual Event

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What is Behaviour Congress?

Behaviour Congress is a one day virtual event focused on animal behaviour.

This congress offers 7 hours of evidenced CPD and in previous events we have welcomed a range of expert industry speakers to deliver lectures on topics including:

  • Reducing Stress in Hospitalised Feline Patients
  • Managing Behaviour in a Multi Cat Household
  • Fear and Anxiety in Dogs and Cats
  • Phantom Pregnancy - The Silent Killer
  • Behaviour modification for dogs who are fearful or neutral at the vet

Who should attend?

Veterinary nurses looking to develop their knowledge and understanding of animal behaviour. This congress will be particularly useful if you're:

  • Interested in learning more about reducing stress and anxiety in dogs and cats or managing behaviour in multi pet households
  • Aiming to progress within your role
  • Interested in keeping up-to-date with everything happening in the industry

Why attend?

  • Listen to lectures from a range of speakers who will be sharing their experiences and knowledge
  • Q&A sessions mean your questions will be answered by the speakers themselves
  • Gain practical takeaways that you can implement in your practice
  • Gain information, product knowledge and offers from our virtual exhibitors
  • Earn 7 hours of evidenced CPD
  • Gain online access to recordings of all the lectures and lectures from previous congresses up until the next event

We strongly advise viewing our events on Google Chrome, using a PC or Laptop (or on Safari if using a MAC).  Unfortunately, our software is not currently compatible with iPads. If you have no other means of accessing the event, please do get in touch ahead of time for further guidance.

Further details about our 2023 event will be available soon. In the meantime, take a look at the agenda from our 2022 event:

Online Registration and Exhibition

Chairman's Welcome

Lauren Norton BSc (Hons) RVN PGDipCAB CertVNECC, The College of Animal Welfare

Reducing Stress in Hospitalised Feline Patients

Alexandra Taylor RVN CertSAN ISFM Dip&AdvCertFB, The Cat Nurse

In this webinar we will be going through measures veterinary nurses can put in place to help reduce stress and improve compliance in hospitalised feline patients. Key learning objectives include:

  • Understanding feline specific needs – what makes them so special as in-patients?
  • Learn how to set up your cat ward and accommodation to make it as cat-friendly as possible - it doesn’t need to be fancy!
  • Know how to handle and restrain cats to help reduce stress and improve compliance
  • Learn why pain scoring cats is so important and how to recognise pain in cats

Managing Behaviour in a Multi Cat Household

Mami Irimajiri BVSc, PhD, DACVB, Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology

Cats are believed to be a solitary animal but they can actually be social animals. Because we know that cats can live in a group, we are able to keep multiple cats in a household, even those cats who are not related by blood. Some cats can live in peace but some cats within the same household can have fights that end up with lots of hissing, injuries, and spraying. Within this presentation, we will discuss how cats communicate, how to know if cats are good friends or not and how to have a comfortable space for multiple cats so they can avoid each other. When there is inter-cat aggression in a household, what treatment can be considered will be discussed including medication and behaviour modification techniques.

Live Q&A Panel

Present questions (anonymously if desired) to the speakers.

Online Exhibition and Lounges

Fear and Anxiety in Dogs and Cats

Rosie Bescoby BSc(Hons), PGDipCABC, CCAB, Pet Sense

This talk will consider why the emotional state of animals is important to consider. We will look at the difference between fear & anxiety, and how body language can be observed to determine emotional states in both species. It will explore how to respond appropriately to dogs & cats when they exhibit signs of fear/anxiety, as well as how to reduce fear & anxiety associated with the vet practice.

Live Q&A Panel

Present questions (anonymously if desired) to the speakers.

Online Exhibition and Lounges

Phantom Pregnancy - The Silent Killer

Sara Davies BVMS MRCVS CTC ABTC-VB

Recent research has highlighted the importance of the age at which we neuter dogs, but the timing in relation to the oestrus cycle of the bitch has received far less attention. Unfortunately, if spayed at the wrong point in their cycle, a bitch can enter a state of ‘persistent phantom pregnancy’ and, unlike a normal phantom pregnancy, this does not go away on its own and can lead to intractable and unpredictable anxiety or aggression. In this session you will find out why this happens, how to recognise, treat, and prevent it and also why it’s ’the silent killer’.

Behaviour modification for dogs who are fearful or neutral at the vet: The Academy's Husbandry Project

Kristi Benson CTC, PCBC-A, The Academy for Dog Trainers

Many dogs fear veterinary care, and these fears present barriers to veterinary care. Fears of social stimuli such as veterinarians and staff, fears of environmental contexts such as veterinary offices, and fears of handling such as restraint respond to behaviour modification involving operant and classical conditioning. The Academy for Dog Trainers’ Husbandry Project is the first practical research project to test training protocols to address these fears specifically and release these protocols to the public. In this webinar, the presenter will provide an overview of the project, the training, and the protocols, and provide all the instructions and plans as well.

Live Q&A Panel

Present questions (anonymously if desired) to the speakers.

Chairman's Close

Lauren Norton BSc (Hons) RVN PGDipCAB CertVNECC, The College of Animal Welfare

Virtual Exhibition and Lounges

Further details about our 2023 event will be available soon. In the meantime, take a look at who presented at our 2022 event:

Alex TaylorAlexandra Taylor RVN CertSAN ISFM Dip&AdvCertFB
The Cat Nurse

Alex qualified as a veterinary nurse in 1997 and has completed the ISFM feline nursing certificate, diploma, and advanced certificate in feline behaviour. She has a particular interest in feline nutrition, behaviour, and stress related diseases in feline patients.

Alex is currently studying towards gaining her advanced diploma in applied animal behaviour (feline) and is hoping to achieve the Animal Behaviour Technician qualification in the next few years.

She currently works part-time in first opinion practice and also runs her own company ‘The Cat Nurse’ where she offers CPD about feline nursing and behaviour. Alex is a volunteer for her local Cats Protection branch and has been a BVNA Council Member since October 2018, as well as being a member of the International Cat Care Feline Wellbeing Panel.

Kristi BensonKristi Benson CTC, PCBC-A
The Academy for Dog Trainers

Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers, where she earned her Certificate in Training and Counseling (CTC).  She is now on staff at the Academy for Dog Trainers, helping to shape the next generation of canine professionals, and has earned a PCBC-A credential. In addition to directing the Academy’s Husbandry Project, she is on the Fear Free Speakers Bureau. Kristi lives in beautiful northern British Columbia Canada with her crew of rescue sled dogs and her wife.

 

Lauren NortonLauren Norton BSc (Hons) RVN PGDipCAB CertVNECC
The College of Animal Welfare

Lauren graduated from the BSc Veterinary Nursing programme in 2010, and has since worked in small animal general practice and referral. Having completed a Post Graduate Certificate and Diploma, she is currently studying for an MSc in Clinical Animal Behaviour, and is an online tutor and module leader for the behaviour and training elective on the BSc Veterinary Nursing programme. Lauren is particularly interested in patient friendly practice to improve animal experiences in the veterinary clinic.

 

Mami IrimajiriMami Irimajiri BVSc, PhD, DACVB
Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology

Dr. Irimajiri graduated from Nippon Veterinary and Life Science University in Tokyo Japan. After graduation, she worked in small animal clinics in Tokyo for several years before she joined PhD program at Purdue University in the US. She completed behavior residency program at University of Georgia and board certified in veterinary behavior medicine in 2012. Currently she works for Tokyo University of Agriculture and Technology Veterinary Teaching Hospital as a clinician and for Veterinary Specialty and Emergency Center in Saitama, Japan.

Rosie BescobyRosie Bescoby BSc(Hons), PGDipCABC, CCAB
Pet Sense

Rosie Bescoby is registered as both a Clinical Animal Behaviourist and Animal Training Instructor with the Animal Behaviour and Training Council. Based in Bristol and North Somerset, Rosie works with dogs, cats and rabbits and their owners. She has worked in rescue, provides dog assessments, is a guest lecturer for vet nurses, vet students and training & behaviour students, provides staff training for veterinary practices and has worked with various brands including Lily’s Kitchen, Pure Pet Food, Adaptil, Feliway and Zylkene. Rosie is Press & Media Officer for the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors and has been featured in various magazines, on TV and radio.

Sara DaviesSara Davies BVMS MRCVS CTC ABTC-VB

Sara is a UK practising vet who spent nine years in small animal practice before switching to pet behaviour and training where she has worked for the last 19 years. In addition to her vet degree, she is an honour graduate of Jean Donaldson’s Academy for Dog Trainers, a full member of the APBC (Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors), and an ABTC registered veterinary behaviourist and clinical animal behaviourist. She is a committed reward-based trainer with a keen interest in both the welfare of the pet and the comfort of the client.

Further details about our 2023 event will be available soon. In the meantime, take a look at who exhibited at our 2022 event:

APBCAssociation of Pet Behaviour Counsellors (APBC)

The Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors (APBC) is a network of friendly and professional practitioners who work alongside the vet-led team with a variety of species including dogs, cats, horses, small mammals, reptiles, birds and other animals. APBC members offer a variety of in-person and remote services (including internationally).

Full APBC members are qualified, assessed and regulated, having met the standards set out by the Animal Behaviour and Training Council (ABTC), to promote animal welfare through training and behaviour change.  Full members have a depth and breadth of skills, knowledge and experience, unrivalled within the animal behaviour industry.

The APBC also organises regular events aimed at owners, trainers, behaviourists and the veterinary team.

CAW LogoThe College of Animal Welfare

The College of Animal Welfare is one of the largest providers of veterinary nurse training in the UK, with centres in Cambridgeshire, North London, Yorkshire, Greater Manchester, West Midlands, County Durham and Scotland. We strongly believe that education and training is the key to raising standards of animal welfare. To this end, we strive to create new and accessible opportunities for learning, and encourage employers and those working with animals to undertake appropriate levels of training and continue with lifelong learning and education.

Register your details now to receive information about this event and other CPD courses

Behaviour Congress is a one day virtual event that focuses on animal behaviour.

Why exhibit with us?

  • Limited exhibitor numbers - Unlike larger congresses where hundreds of exhibitors often mean that visitors will not remember everyone, exhibition space for these events is strictly limited. As such you will get the opportunity to engage with the delegates attending our congresses personally.
  • Make meaningful business connections – Network with those that influence decision making in veterinary practice and make relevant industry contacts virtually.
  • Cost effective – with exhibitor packages starting from just £50+VAT, our prices offer value for money and fall considerably below that of larger events within the industry.

To find out more contact Claire Gregory on 01480 422060.