The Pet Behaviour Centre

As a member of the APBC, all behaviour cases are seen upon veterinary referral only. This is to ensure that all avenues have been covered and your pet gets the very best, and most appropriate treatment. Please see the veterinary statement below to explain why more fully.

If you think your pet needs a consultation, please download a referral form (PDF). Print one out and take it to your regular veterinarian for completion. This takes only a few minutes. Many vets will already have a referral form in their practice or will prefer to write a personal referral letter or telephone our office themselves to give a verbal referral. Any of these options are fine and lets us know that the referral is formal.

NOTE: If no telephone or written referral has been received at the time of your consultation it will not be possible for you to be seen.

Vets: If you would like to receive a supply of referral slips for use by your clients, please send your postal address to info@petbehaviourcentre.com using REFERRAL SLIPS in the subject box.

Veterinarian's Statement

Before seeking a behavioural consult or beginning behavioural therapy for your pet, you will need a referral from your regular veterinarian. The referral is required because it is very important your pet first receive a full medical check-up, to rule out the many other medical problems that can also cause behavioural changes (liver disease, neurological disease, chronic pain to name just a few). Sometimes behavioural changes can even be normal for the animal, but never seen by the owner before (female cats in heat generate a fair amount of concern, at times to vet and owner alike!).

The vet consult should involve a short discussion about the development of the behavioural problem, any other changes noticed in health (appetite, energy, etc.) and a clinical exam. Depending on your pet's age and/or the presence of other symptoms, your vet may also request a blood sample be taken from your pet. In some cases, recent vet visits and tests may allow a referral without a further consult; you will need to speak to your vet surgery about this. When you and your vet are satisfied there are no underlying medical problems relevant to the behavioural changes, a referral letter confirming this will be sent to your behaviourist.

Take the time to ensure the behaviourist is accredited by an organisation such as the APBC. First of all, most pet insurance will only cover accredited behaviourists (make sure you check behavioural therapy is covered by your insurer's policy). Also, as behaviourists are not yet nationally regulated, there is nothing to stop absolutely anyone from calling themselves an animal behaviourist. It is entirely up to you and your vet to do your research; accredited animal behaviourists have relevant University degrees and many, many hours of supervised casework. They operate under the most current and ethical behavioural techniques.

Stacy Spielman BVMS MRCVS

What To Expect

To make an accurate assessment of the problem, a full history will be taken of your pet's routines and the development of the problem. This consult may involve your family members.

Clinic or Home Visit? When deciding whether to opt for a clinic or a home visit, do remember that it will not normally be necessary for the practitioner to actually see the behaviour being performed to understand the problem.

If you do feel that you prefer a home visit, these are restricted to areas in which we have clinics and it may be necessary to wait a considerable time until an appointment can be made. It will probably be quicker to be seen at one of the clinics. Home visits cost substantially more than clinic consultations due to the travelling time/cost involved and necessary reduction of clinic appointments to accommodate home visit appointments.

Benefits of a home visit include the fact that you and and your pet will be more relaxed in your own surroundings. The time schedule may be slightly longer to accommodate demos or visits to locations. This can be a practical solution as training can be demonstrated and the specific problem may be witnessed in this environment.

The clinic consultation lasts for one to one and a half hours. The practitioner will go through the history of the problem with you, explain why the behaviour is occurring and devise and advise on a programme to modify your pet's behaviour. You will be advised about any equipment which may aid your progress.

The appropriate behaviour-modification programme will be discussed with you. A full written report will be provided and sent to both you and your referring veterinary surgeon. Telephone or e-mail support will be available after your consultation, at no extra cost. However, it will be up to you, the client, to make contact. If required, additional follow-up sessions can easily be arranged to support your progress.

Regional clinics attended by Claire Arrowsmith include Lichfield, Leicester, Hereford, Northampton, Cambridge, Wolverhampton, Nottingham, Derby and Birmingham. Consultations at the Cambridge clinic (held at the Queens Veterinary School, University of Cambridge) need to be made directly by your veterinary surgeon. Visits in Surrey and Kent are also available although you may see a Pet Behaviour Centre Associate.

Occasionally Claire will have a student, such as someone studying pet behaviour at Degree level, a veterinary surgeon or veterinary nurse, sitting in to observe consultations.

It is useful to take some notes during the consultation, and you will receive a report outlining the advice given about 10 days after the consultation.

Consultation FeesInitial Behavioural Assessment Home Visit & Report apprx   £180.00
Clinic Consult (Northern Clinics)                                          £95.00
Cambridge Vet Clinic                                                          £120.00
Hereford Clinic                                                                   £120.00
(Many Pet Insurance policies will cover fees for behavioural referrals so check your policy.)

ImportantPlease Be Aware. There are many people out there calling themselves behaviourists who have very little knowledge about the subject. Unfortunately, it is still an unregulated business. If you seek help from a member of the APBC, or at least ask your vet to refer you to a specialist in your area, you can be sure that you are getting the best, most up to date help available. Be wary of people telling you they have "owned dogs for 25 years" but who are vague on their credentials; after all you wouldn't allow someone to cut and style your hair just because they had been growing and brushing their own hair all their life! You would expect them to have attended training and become qualified as a hairdresser before you parted with your hard earned cash or risked your hair. Your pet's welfare is arguably more important than a disasterous hairstyle, and the results could be more tragic so please take the time to make sure that the person helping you is right for the job. Time and time again I see clients who are having to rectify the damage done by a harsh, unskilled 'specialist'.

Booking
At the time of booking you will be asked to pay a deposit of £30 to secure your appointment. This is to ensure that waiting times for appointments are kept as short as possible by making sure all available appointments are used rather than being subject to notified or un-notified cancellations. The deposit is non-refundable but is deducted from the total fee at the time of consultation.

Making Progress
The behaviour modification programme advised upon may produce results very quickly, but often it will take time, effort and a commitment by all of the family to work at it to produce the improved behaviour. Please be prepared for this to be the case and remember that the animal's current behaviour problems may themselves have developed over a long period of time. Following your consultation we are available for on-going e-mail or telephone advice to ensure that all is going according to plan.

Booking an appointment (normal office hours):