Trainer or Behaviourist

Training is essentially your learning theory and exercises such as recall, loose lead walking, drop it etc and is so often the answer to behaviour problems. Behaviour theoretically goes deeper into the biochemistry or the brain, internal, external environment, pharmacology etc. Behaviourists should be more equipped to deal with fear phobia, anxiety & aggression. However in my humble experience there are some ‘Trainer’s’ who really are amazing ‘behaviourist's’ from there ongoing experience and professional development and there are some behaviourists who academically know their stuff but actually are rubbish when it comes to the actual art of training. In fact training plays such an important part in addressing behaviour that in my opinion even though I am both, I have interchangeably referred to myself as trainer or behaviourist.

So my point is do you want to be a trainer or behaviourist? Well lets assume you aspire to know it all and be great at your job? So to get there you could start as trainer and become behaviourist which I think is very valuable or you could go straight to behaviour by studying longer initially. However please don’t under estimate how important the technical skill of training is. Alternatively you could focus on training and if the issue you then face is too much refer it out, or if it interest’s you, keep studying along the way until you are a trainer who knows so much more than there initial qualification, that strictly speaking they are a behaviourist too.

So how do you get there….?

This is absolutely not the only way to go but my suggestions are…

University

If you can go to university for three years and study up to level 6 do it! If you want a job afterwards or work experience give us a shout. And yes I would definitely expect you would start on higher pay rates but also the experience is of huge value and requirement.

Courses wise there are some listed below but also check out Angela Ruskin Univeristy, Writtle University, Harper Adams etc.

Non University:

However If you have had a career change, can’t / don’t want go to University / already know a lot etc then you can definitely study all the theory at home and gain experience elsewhere so for starters check out:

CCPDT

This is more an exam for accreditation than a course. But the exam syllabus is there so if you wished to study from books and short courses you could find out the sort of things and experience you need to know to eventually pass here.

I like it because its a good course and if you already know a lot you only need to study what you don’t know and then prove you know the rest in the exam. It is the first official qualification I took.

 https://www.ccpdt.org/certification/dog-trainer-certification/about-the-examination/

Note: you need at least 300 hrs of hands on training experience to pass which working with us you could get. In my experience it’s one of the most cited qualifications in articles. Though it is bigger in the USA. In fact there are not that many UK certificate holders.

Other Accreditation Bodies

I mention the CCPDT because its what I know but there are others which you could consider joining instead and I believe like CCPDT these are not courses but exams to prove you know what you know and bodies to ensure you uphold certain professional and ethical standards. Therefore check out:

Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors

www.apbc.org.uk ABT, CAB, VB

Association of Pet Dog Trainers

www.apdt.co.uk ATI

Dog Knows

www.dogknows.co.uk ATI

Fellowship of Animal Behaviour Clinicians

www.fabclinicians.org CAB, VB

International Association of Animal Behaviour Consultants

iaabc.org AAB

Karen Pryor Academy

www.karenpryoracademy.com ATI

The Canine Behaviour & Training Society

www.tcbts.co.uk ATI, AAB, ABT, CAB

Professional Association of Canine Trainers

www.pact-dogs.com ATI

With PACT I know that Iif you want to follow a full course from home but with some weekends away and couldn’t other wise rack up the 300 hrs check out this could be a really good one which ultimately comes with the accreditation at the end:

https://www.pact-dogs.com/learning/p/ctic

This is what our very own Katie did.

Is That it?

Nope! Those CCPDT & PACT essentially get you to Level 4 dog trainer and from there you can really get going with training and a lot of behaviour.

However with the knowledge you have from those courses you may still find you need to refer to someone with more knowledge for more complex issues. Also for the CCPDT at least, you need to do continued education units every three years to advance on your knowledge and keep it up to date which means within that qualification you may become very experienced and advance well beyond Level 4. At any rate, even if you can basically deal with most issues with what you know, you may wish to learn more and I assure you, you will certainly benefit from knowing more about how and why things work. In fact once you delve deeper there is so much further to go and those bodies that say ABT, CAB, VB etc those are behaviour ones which you will need further study for.

Therefore some further education courses to check out to take you up to Level 5 and 6 and beyond include:

Level 5- Advanced Diploma Applied Animal Behaviour  (Canine) [DL] – Compass Education Ltd click here for link

(Equally some people might do a level 3 and then go to level 5 as their professional development has helped them get there.)

(If CCPDT do this in time to use as CEU’s, so start it about 1.5 years after you complete your level 4.)

The CCPDT actually have a lis of online events for CEU’s too:

https://www.ccpdt.org/certification/continuing-education/events/

Victoria StillWells Dog Behaviour conference is also worth checking out for CEUS.

If you want to advance beyond Level 5 and become a Clinical Animal Behaviourhist you could check out this and again I suggest starting about 1.5-2 years after Level 5 but you should already know a hell of a lot by Level 5.\

Level 6 Clinical Animal Behaviourist

Advanced Diploma Applied Animal Behaviour level 6 [DL] – Compass Education Ltd click here for link

What else?

From there you may move to veterinary behaviour, research etc and start re writing the book on dog training.

Equally after Level four you may decide behaviour is not so much your thing and you want to focus more on agility or scent work, or service dog training or tricks. Equally as you do them you will find how behaviour is important for them and how they help with behaviour.

Its one big circle so the more experience you have the better.

Experience

On that note, getting a-wide range of experience is really valuable so go volunteer at all the rescues. Shadow as many different trainers as you can. Be a dog walker and meet hundreds of different dogs and practice on them. I was lucky but maybe also unlucky in that I got a lot of work quite quick. This meant I got a lot of experience with lots of dogs and people but I didn’t observe as many different professionals to learn from. So try and strike a balance and not rush into one thing.

Okay some courses….

ABTC Recognised University Courses

Animal Trainer

DipHE Animal Management (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP]– Writtle University College click here for link

DipHE Animal Science (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP] – Writtle University College click here for link

BSc (Hons) Animal Management (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP]  – Writtle University College click here for link

BSc (Hons) Animal Science (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP] – Writtle University College click here for link 

Animal Behaviour Technician

Advanced Diploma Applied Animal Behaviour level 5 [DL] – Compass Education Ltd click here for link

BSc (Hons) Animal Management (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP]  – Writtle University College click here for link

BSc (Hons) Animal Science (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP] – Writtle University College click here for link

Clinical Animal Behaviourist

BSc (Hons) Animal Behaviour and Welfare (Clinical) – Harper Adams University click here for link

MSc or PGDip Clinical Animal Behaviour [DL] – University of Edinburgh click here for link

MSc or PGDip Clinical Animal Behaviour – University of Lincoln click here for link

BSc (Hons) Animal Management (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP] – Writtle University College click here for link

BSc (Hons) Animal Science (Pet Behaviour and Welfare) [MP]  – Writtle University College click here for link

Intro Courses

If you are not quite sure yet and just want a little intro perhaps check out…

Level 2-3 training and behaviour

https://www.compass-education.co.uk/Canine-Behaviour-and-Training-Diploma-p/csc-canbt.htm

Level 3 dog training

https://www.compass-education.co.uk/Canine-Behaviour-and-Training-Diploma-p/csc-canbt.htm

Level 3- Prep for skipping to Level 5

Good if you just want to go straight to behaviour but not quite ready.

https://www.compass-education.co.uk/Foundations-of-Canine-Behaviour-Management-Diploma-p/csc-fcbm.htm

 Level 3 IMDT

https://www.imdt.uk.com/correspondence-courses/level-three-6-months-learning-motivation-and-reinforcement/

Canine First Aid

First Aid

https://www.compass-education.co.uk/Canine-First-Aid-Certificate-p/csc-canfac.htm

 https://www.dog-first-aid.com/courses/dog-first-aid

Reading

Intro:

Pryor K (2002) Don’t Shoot The Dog Lydney. Ringpress. Surrey, England.

Pryor K (2010 )Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals.

Great complete reads for non professional & Professional

Rogerson J (2011) Dog Vinci Code. Metro Books, London.

Glazebrook, L (2021) The Book your Dog wishes you would read. Orion Spring london

Complete Book for Proffesionals

Lindsay S (2000) Handbook of Applied Dog Behaviour and Training. Volume 1 Iowa State University Press

Lindsay S (2001) Handbook of Applied Dog Behaviour and Training. Volume 2 Iowa State University Press

 Lindsay S (2005) Handbook of Applied Dog Behaviour and Training. Volume 3 Iowa State University Press.

Essential Learning Theory

Reid P J (1996) Excel-erated Learning. California. James and Kenneth Publishing. Toronto.

Reading List:

Aloff, Brenda (2002) Aggression in Dogs. Wentachee. Dogwise.

Aloff, Brenda (2009) Canine Body Language. A Photographic Guide: Interpreting the Native Language of the Domestic Dog. Wentachee. Dogwise.

Barry J (2008) The Ethical Dog Trainer: A Practical Guide for Canine Professionals. Washington. Dogwise Publishing.

Bradhsaw J (2011) In Defence of Dogs. London. Penguin.

Coppinger R, Coppinger L (2001) Dogs: A Startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior Evolution. New York. Scribner. 

Glazebrook, L (2021) The Book your Dog wishes you would read. Orion Spring london

Lindsay S (2000) Handbook of Applied Dog Behaviour and Training. Volume 1 Iowa State University Press

Lindsay S (2001) Handbook of Applied Dog Behaviour and Training. Volume 2 Iowa State University Press

 Lindsay S (2005) Handbook of Applied Dog Behaviour and Training. Volume 3 Iowa State University Press.

McDevitt L (2007) Control unleashed. South Hadley. Clean Run Productions.

Mackinnon P (2007) Detector dog: A Talking Dogs Scentwork Manual. Hubble & Hattie. Dorchester

Pryor K (2002) Don’t Shoot The Dog Lydney. Ringpress. Surrey, England.

Pryor K (2010 )Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals.

Reid P J (1996) Excel-erated Learning. California. James and Kenneth Publishing. Toronto.

Rogerson J (2011) Dog Vinci Code. Metro Books, London.

Rugaas T (2005) On Talking Terms with Dogs: Calming Signals. Dogwise Publishing. Washington.

Rugaas T (2008) Barking. Dogwise Publishing. Washington.

Ryan T (2005) Coaching People to Train Their Dogs. Legacy Canine Behavior and Training, Inc. USA.

Swagger P (2015) Rescue Your Dog from Fear. Conneticut. Lyons Press.

 Swagger P (2008) Training the Hard-to-Train Dog. China. TFH Publications Inc.

 Swagger, P (2012): Solving Separation Anxiety in Dogs. DVD. Dogwise.com.

Interested in having a role as a dog trainer or behaviourist?
Check out careers page for more details