Collaborative Care - For All Animals in Human Care

A vital aspect of living alongside any animal is to facilitate each individual to be an active voluntary participant in their own care. What is useful to teach? How is it taught? When should you begin? Who and what should be part of the training?
When the animal's needs are more immediate -some medications may help too.
The animal (learner), their "guardian", and veterinary professionals can all collaborate for the best outcomes in animal care and welfare.

Learning Objectives

• To appreciate that all trainers should facilitate the animals in their care to learn at least some basic foundation behaviours to support their animals when veterinary care is needed.
• To appreciate how much can be achieved to improve animal welfare if time and effort is given to training these behaviours.
• The behaviours required are simple - and the benefits of teaching animals that calm stillness can be positive, that novelty is not scary, and that human's can be trusted - ripple far beyond the vet clinic or hospital.
  

About The Presenter

Dr Kat Gregory

Dr Kat Gregory initially trained as a vet – working a large part of her career in emergency, critical care and anaesthesia. She is now primarily a consultant in applied animal behaviour & training.
Over the past 20+ years she has worked with people’s pets, but particularly in the zoo and aquarium industry, locally and internationally, to facilitate the creation of positive resolutions to a diverse range of problems and challenges in animal behaviour and training. She has a large focus on cooperative proactive veterinary care, in which the animal is a confident voluntary participant.
A collaborative approach is key – and is facilitated by her unique understanding of the combined needs & goals of veterinary teams and keeper/training staff. Katrina has been privileged to work (perhaps) every species of which any child has ever dreamt (elephants, falcons & parrots to seals dolphins, sharks, cheetahs, lions and more) and the humans who passionately care for them.

“Good training”- it’s not just about “perfect” behaviour, the goal is to nurture reliability and confidence, and ultimately a positive resilience in the human- animal relationship. Resilient relationships, based on mutual trust, pay off most, when life doesn’t go quite as planned. In her opinion ethical animal care, welfare and conservation must continue to evolve and improve – Education is the key.

Dr Kat Gregory BVSc.MANZCVSc.(animal behaviour; anaesthesia & critical care)