Canine Behavior Science and Technology

The Canine Behavior Science and Technology program our rigorous 500–hour (560–hour with specialization track)/1–year completely distance-oriented flagship program of study intended to help dog trainers, animal behavior technologists, or other animal-field professionals upgrade and expand important skills and knowledge well beyond the current industry standard for their careers in training dogs and helping clients resolve challenging problem behaviors. Key topics in behavior change project management is addressed in great depth, including the principles of behavior, tactics, strategies, and procedures in non-coercive animal training, functional behavioral assessment of problematic behaviors, contingency engineering procedures, professional activities, case management, professional ethics, and species-specific behavior. Students will have the opportunity to conduct hands-on training with their dogs and participate in a problem-behavior resolution project. The program begins with a brief introduction to the discipline and then addresses several foundational natural science courses related to behavior. ​Students can expect to spend a significant amount of time studying and preparing assignments in this program of study. They can also expect to work hands-on with their own dog. The graduate will have a solid fluency with the natural science of behavior at the Masters level and have had the opportunity to engage in hands-on training utilizing both basic and advanced procedures and to work through a behavior change project to resolve a problem behavior (achieved by first training a harmless "problem" behavior). Graduates will possess a thorough and in-depth knowledge of behavior, along with a systematic strategy for applying powerful, science-based procedures to change behavior effectively and efficiently in even the most complex cases. Graduates may use the credential letters CBST after their name and utilize the CASI Graduate logo for marketing purposes.