AVA Conference Brisbane 2018

Gone are the days when the use of physical and / or psychological punishment to manage “undesirable” behaviours of dogs and cats is something that is acceptable to most of the community. Now understanding why dogs and cats do what they do is what owners not only want, but need, to know. The 3 M plus 1 approach is now used to manage the behaviour of pets that owners wish to modify. All four aspects need to be addressed in order to improve their welfare. Most importantly punishment, whether physical or psychological, does not improve the animal’s welfare. There are better ways to manage dog and cat behaviour to help them live in harmony with their owners. The pros and cons of managing behaviour using reward and / or punishment based methods will be discussed.