Join us for the first Behavior Job-Alike Meeting of 2022 on January 27th at 9am PT.
@Carley Faughn of Best Friends Animal Society and @Morgan Rivera of the Humane Society of the United States will be talking about: Debunking Myths for Dogs that come from Dog Fighting Backgrounds.
Dog fighting is an underground bloodsport that made its way into mainstream news with the Michael Vick case. Most people in animal welfare have either worked with survivors of dog fighting or heard myths about them. Dr. Carley Faughn and Morgan Rivera will share their experiences with survivors and aim to debunk some of the many myths that surround these dogs. They will share their experiences using pictures, videos, and firsthand testimonials. There is a need for more data and research to prove what they know to be true: these are simply dogs that come from a tough background but deserve to be treated the same way as any other dog that finds themselves in the care of animal welfare professionals. Mainly, each dog should be treated as individuals to understand who they are and what their likes and dislikes are so that animal welfare professionals can find safe placement for them within a community.
Bios:
Dr. Carley Faughn has worked with canines, felines, and nonhuman primates since 2007 merging her passion for comparative cognition, animal welfare, and animal rescue. Dr. Faughn is the Senior Strategist of Research for Lifesaving Programs at Best Friends Animal Society. She focuses on solving for advanced behavior challenges for dogs and works with teams to develop lifesaving behavior modification models for shelters across the country. She also develops and implements applied animal behavior research, initially focusing on large dogs and saving those most at risk nationwide. Dr. Faughn consults with various teams within Best Friends Animal Society and with Best Friends' Network Partners across the country to develop creative wellness and enrichment plans and to facilitate teachings about animal behavior and cognition. Dr. Faughn has held various roles within Best Friends from Dogtown Manager to Senior Manager of Animal Care, to her current position focusing on applied research within the lifesaving scope. Before coming to Best Friends Animal Society, Dr. Faughn served as Executive Director of Acadiana Animal Aid (AAA) in Lafayette, LA for three years and while completing her PhD at the University of Louisiana at Lafayette (Cognitive Science, 2014).
Morgan Rivera has been involved in animal welfare since 2003 and has held various positions from volunteer to Shelter Manager and nearly everything in between. She has started Pet Safety Net Programs, worked as a relief vet tech, and managed a large non-profit, low cost veterinary clinic. She earned her CPDT-KA in 2018, is a member of IAABC's Shelter Affiliate Division, and is set to graduate with her Master's in Shelter Medicine in the spring of 2022. After being a longtime volunteer for the Humane Society of the United States she joined the staff in 2017 and has held various roles in her time with them, including managing their temporary shelters, responding to natural disasters, and acting as a consultant for shelters that have sought the expertise of HSUS's Animal Rescue and Response Team.
Register for the Zoom meeting here: https://maddies.fund/3np1A0tYou can catch up on previous Behavior Job-Alike Meetings on this thread and follow for more information on upcoming events:
https://maddies.fund/behaviorjobalike