Fellowship of Animal Behaviour Clinicians
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What Drives Us

Our Mission

To promote evidence based behavioural support for animals and their carers, to the highest scientific standards, in an empathetic and compassionate manner.

To forge strong links between animal carers, behaviourists and veterinary professionals.

To support the development of independently accredited practitioners in the field of clinical animal behaviour through mentoring, continuing professional development and supportive fellowship.

The Fellowship of Animal Behaviour Clinicians is a community intended to support the professional needs of independently accredited clinical animal behaviourists and those working towards independent accreditation, as well as liaising with stakeholders in the industry, such as in the academic and charity sector. In providing this supportive role the fellowship aspires to promote the highest standards of animal welfare within the profession of clinical animal behaviour. Our fellowship is made up of five types of members, who work together to attain our mission. In doing so, our community can offer members the following benefits…

MEMBERSHIP ADVANTAGES*

  1. Membership of an organisation that supports independently accredited clinical animal behaviourists and those preparing to be independently accredited
  2. A community supporting each others’ professional development
  3. Full and equal democratic rights for all members to have a say in the running of their organisation
  4. Addition to the FAB Clinicians public membership lists and use of our logo for all members
  5. Access to our supportive member forums, shared resources, dedicated members wellbeing officers and networking opportunities
  6. Inclusive access to most of our webinars and members-only events at no further cost, plus discounted tickets to any of our conferences and 50% off BVBA webinars
  7. Candidate and Student Members are assisted by Certificated Members in their journey towards independent accreditation and have premium access to any CPD and targeted material
  8. Practising Certificated Members are promoted to the public and referring vets, such as through our ‘Find A Behaviourist’ page
  9. Pet owners seeking the help of our Certificated Members are likely to be able to claim behaviourist fees through many of the major UK pet insurance companies.
  10. Inclusive access to the FAB Clinicians digital library of textbooks and online repository of thousands of full-text papers in peer-reviewed academic journals relevant to the field of clinical animal behaviour
  11. We have a partnership with Towergate Insurance for our practising members residing in the UK
  12. 24-7 accredited counselling and well-being line for our members
  13. 24-7 legal line to experienced solicitors and barristers
  14. 9-5 business, tax and employment advice line and online law hub tailored to the work of FAB Clinicians
  15. Exciting collaborative opportunities across the veterinary, academic and charity sectors
  16. Representation to the wider industry

In addition, anyone who is unable to fulfil the requirements for membership of FAB Clinicians may apply to become a FAB Clinicians Sponsor.

 

Types of Membership:

Certificated Members

Our Certificated Members are clinical animal behaviourists independently accredited as being highly qualified and experienced in each species with which they wish to practise.  On working with cases delegated to them by veterinary surgeons, they demonstrate they work to the highest ethical standards, keep abreast of the latest scientific findings, use evidence-based techniques, as well as maintaining a sufficient caseload to keep their clinical skills up-to-date.

Although FAB Clinicians is based in the UK, we welcome veterinary and non-veterinary colleagues from around the world.  FAB Clinicians will represent you to the wider industry and welcome your input on further developing the field.  Currently, our Certificated Members include the following:

Please note that both practising and non-practising CCABs on the CCAB Register are welcome to join us.

Applicants who have gained accreditation with CCAB Certification Ltd. after April 2023 and suitably-qualified applications from outside the UK can appear on FAB Clinicians ‘Find a behaviourist’ list but cannot be added to the ABTC clinical animal behaviourist or veterinary behaviourist registers.

NB:  AWSEL Diplomates of ECAWBM would instead be welcome to become FAB Clinicians Sponsors or you may wish to consider applying for our non-practising Contributing Supporter membership category (below).

Candidate Members

We welcome any practitioners to join FAB Clinicians as a Candidate Member if they wish to prepare for independent accreditation as a clinical animal behaviourist along one of the following pathways:

FAB Clinicians will help you as a Candidate Member along the path to independent accreditation as a Clinical Animal Behaviourist.  Our fellowship supports Candidate Members’ clinical training, such as by linking up those requiring different levels of practical support with those in a position to offer it.  Candidate Members will have access to various mentoring and learning opportunities.  FAB Clinicians will be further developing resources to assist with accreditation progression.

Candidate Members are expected to have already gained the theoretical knowledge necessary before undertaking clinical practice.

Therefore we accept Candidate Members who have one of the following:

Please note that for accreditation by an independent body, candidates who do not fulfil one of the first two criteria, may need to undertake further academic study to demonstrate theoretical knowledge in all of the subject areas as required by the external accreditation bodies.  Then you will need to gain substantial clinical training experience before becoming independently accredited (e.g. for CCAB clincial skills assessment).  We encourage all our practising members to engage with the available support offered by FAB Clinicians.  Candidate Members should only see clinical cases following referral or delegation by a veterinary surgeon and within the extent of their professional competence (sometimes under the guidance of others).  To find out what you will need, please contact the external body responsible for your chosen route.

Due to the specific differences in the mode of assessment for Candidates of international veterinary behaviour colleges compared to that of CCAB accreditation, although we welcome Candidates for assessment by ECAWBM, ACVB or ANZCVS, FAB Clinicians are currently unable to offer support to Candidates that is specifically targeted towards these international assessment schemes.  Candidates seeking accreditation through routes outside the UK would still be welcome to join in any of our Candidate Members events and schemes, which we hope would still be of great use to them.

NB:  Members of ANZCVS not seeking Fellowship and AWSEL Residents of ECAWBM would instead be welcome to become FAB Clinicians Sponsors.  You may also wish to consider applying for our non-practising Contributing Supporter membership category (below).

Student Members

We welcome anyone interested in working towards gaining the knowledge base required for future accreditation within the field of animal behaviour, to apply for Student Membership.  FAB Clinicians provides a nurturing professional environment in which to grow and progress along your career path.  You will be able to access mentoring and learning opportunities targeted for members at various points in their clinical animal behaviour journeys.

The minimum requirement for Student Membership is that you are studying for a course equivalent to UK Government Qualification or FHEQ Level 5 or above, with at least one animal or psychology related unit.  Please note that, although a small number of the academic requirements for accreditation (e.g. as a CCAB) have a minimum requirement of FHEQ Level 4, as part of the independent accreditation process, you will be required to complete further academic courses at least to Level 5 and Level 6 in the majority of the necessary subject areas (e.g. as detailed on the CCAB web site). Completion of a course which has been validated by CCAB is the surest guarantee that the academic requirements for independent accreditation will be met.  Once you have completed all of these academic requirements, then you will be able to apply for Candidate Membership and start acquiring the clinical skills necessary for independent accreditation.

The Student Member category is essentially for those embarking on qualifications in the field who do not currently possess the required experience to see cases independently and who we will support on their academic journey. However, we are aware that there may be some experienced practitioners already in the field who are topping up their qualifications and we would like to provide support and mentoring to help them in their professional progression towards attaining the academic requirements necessary for independent accreditation as a clinical animal behaviourist.  Any Student Members who are clinically practising are required by FAB Clinicians and our regulators to practice under the direct supervision of a registered CAB or another suitably qualified and competent professional in all their behaviour cases outside of their contracted employment.  If you feel that you are in this position as an experienced practitioner, please contact our Membership Liaison (info@fabclinicians.org) who will be able to provide you with further information.  You can also find the answers to common questions about practising as a student member on this document

Retired Certificated Members

Supporting FAB Clinicians, its aims and being part of its community can continue into your retirement. For those who are no longer practising due to cessation of employment in clinical animal behaviour and were previously Certificated Members of FAB Clinicians or previously Certificated by one of its independent accrediting bodies  (ASAB/CCAB Certification Ltd.ECAWBMACVBANZCVS or CVLBAMC), we offer Retired Membership. Note that eligibility for this category does not preclude you from taking on other related work, but you are retired from seeing clinical cases.

To become a Retired Certificated Member of FAB Clinicians, the applicant must have retired from their profession of their own choice and not due to any upheld complaint made against them to any accreditation organisation or FAB Clinicians.  Retired Certificated Members of FAB Clinicians will be encouraged, but not obliged, to play a continuing role in the development and support of FAB Clinicians.  If you are an existing FAB Clinicians Certificated Member and would like to change your listing to Retired, please email info@fabclinicians.org .

Contributing Supporter Members (CSMs)
For this non-practising membership category, FAB Clinicians are looking for people who can forge strong links between animal carers, behaviourists and veterinary professionals, as well as supporting the development of independently accredited practitioners in the field of clinical animal behaviour through mentoring, continuous professional development and supportive fellowship. We would also like to attract individuals who will help us promote evidence-based behavioural support for animals and their carers, to the highest scientific standards, in an empathetic and compassionate manner. CSMs will need to demonstrate how they can contribute to the running of FAB Clinicians, support our mission statement and our members through their qualifications, skills, interest and/or experience, complimentary to the field of clinical animal behaviour. For instance, they may be able to assist on one of FAB Clinicians’ subcommittees. Examples of people whom we would welcome as CSMs are:

    • Lecturers or researchers in areas such as animal behaviour, welfare science, law and ethics, zoology, or human psychology;
    • Individuals working in or associated with supporting stakeholder organisations, such as animal welfare charities;
    • Individuals with complimentary skills and/or experience of benefit to FAB Clinicians, such as those with a background in:
      • professional mentoring;
      • veterinary policy work;
      • producing animal welfare television documentaries;
      • public relations and fund-raising;
      • IT, events management, or administrative experience within an animal care setting.

As with all our other members, CSMs need to abide by our Code of Conduct. Applicants who are practising and seeing behaviour cases should instead consider applying for Certificated or Candidate Membership.  Other individuals may not be able to contribute their skills in a particular membership year, so they may instead wish to consider becoming a FAB Clinicians Sponsor. Alternatively, if part of a particular stakeholder group, they may wish to consider being a Stakeholder Representative.

Fees etc.

All FAB Clinicians members are required to sign up to our Code of Conduct and support our mission statement.  All practising members are required to hold appropriate professional indemnity and public liability insurance.  The membership year runs from April to March and fees are charged annually through our online membership system.  If you join partway through the year, your fees due for that year will be calculated on a pro-rata basis per month.  The annual fee for Certificated and Candidate Members is GBP 140, but these members may be eligible for a 50% studying discount if currently enrolled in or graduated from a relevant academic course in the last two years.  The fee for Student and Retired Members is GBP 70.

If you discover that you would not be able to join FAB Clinicians as a member, but you support our mission and would like to access our fabulous CPD opportunities and research library, you can do this by annual sponsorship.

*Note access to some membership advantages are dependent upon your choice of membership category options and subject to our Code of Conduct.

 

Online Application Forms