Mission
The mission of The Companion Animal Sciences Institute is to provide advanced science-based education in animal behavior, training, behavior change programming and consulting, and fitness and nutritional principles in a distance format that promotes both academic knowledge development and hands-on skill practice in order to help students work toward the highest level of professional competence.
Methodological Stance
It is the stance of The Companion Animal Sciences Institute, its advisory board and instructors that animal friendly, positive reinforcement-based methods are the most useful and least harmful methods to use in animal training and behavior change programming, and most conducive to facilitate the human animal bond. Furthermore, we take the stance that aversive stimulation and positive punishment / negative reinforcement based methods are unethical, inefficient, risks serious harm and are the most likely methods to deteriorate the human animal bond. The Companion Animal Sciences Institute, while pleased to discuss these topics in Class, does not condone or endorse the use of aversive tools such as but not limited to choke chains, prong collars, electronic invisible fencing or electronic shock-collars. Nor do we condone or endorse the use of aversive methods such as but not limited to leash corrections, helicoptering, hanging, alpha-rolling, scruff-shaking, spraying the dog in the face with fluid, throwing things at the animal, hitting in any way or otherwise creating fear or pain in animals.