As we approach the 10 year anniversary of the decision to form the Animal Behaviour and Training council the sector is coming close to a major milestone in the recognition of a formal regulator. It is a topic that has divided opinion and raised emotions since the CAWC report was published in 2008.

As things stand there are far more regulatory requirements to sell burgers than deliver training and behaviour services to our pets, this cannot be right and has to change. The irony is that the majority of people involved in this work agree that regulation is required but many don’t want anything that is going to impact on the way they operate and that is the root of the problem of voluntary self-regulation. Without any compulsion to take part in regulation only those who least need it get involved, those with the lowest levels of knowledge and training simply avoid being a part of it.

Everybody believes they an expert, nobody wants a system that is going to mean undertaking further education and assessment and they don’t want to be told what they can and cannot say on their websites because it is only others that need such interventions. Organisational loyalties play a large part for many as well with clearly identified ingroups and outgroups (see social identity theory) and conspiracy theories abound as a result.

On 29^th October a meeting to consider the question of regulation again was attended by about 175 interested people, it was hosted by the All Party Parliamentary Dog Advisory Welfare Group at Westminster. I say ‘again’ because it is something that was first considered around twenty years ago and has had regular airings since. The mood at the meeting reaffirmed the general agreement with the principle of regulation and we went on to hear opinions and some new proposals for such a structure although this has been done several times before. We are now at the stage when some of the people learning about this topic were still at school when the process started and are not fully aware of the work that has gone into reaching the point we are at now. We have now gone full circle and are starting to go over ground that has already been discussed tried and not succeeded before.

Since 2009 there have been five different attempts to bring practitioners together under one regulator but none have enjoyed the steady growth and progress seen by ABTC. No other has the support of the veterinary profession, no other represents as many practitioners and no other operates a fully comprehensive system of ensuring that trainers and behaviourists are suitably qualified and competent to practice. It operates the only independent complaints and disciplinary process and is now poised to be accredited by the RCVS in early 2020.

If you are interested in another blog on the subject  go to https://www.bva.co.uk/news-campaigns-and-policy/bva-community/bva-blog/integrating-qualified-trainers-and-behaviourists-into-the-vet-led-team/