I’m pleased to confirm that I will be speaking at two events this year for the International Association of Canine Professionals (IACP), alongside an additional webinar presentation for members.
At the beginning of June, I will be presenting at the IACP European Summit in Kraków, where I’ll be discussing the legislative journey surrounding electronic training collars in England, Scotland and Wales — how we arrived at the current position, the political and ideological influences involved, and some of the likely challenges still ahead.
Alongside that, I’ll also be delivering a webinar titled “Just Because We Can Doesn’t Mean We Should.” The webinar moves beyond the simplistic argument of whether a training tool can be used, and instead examines the ethical thresholds surrounding why, when, and whether its use is genuinely justified in pursuit of meaningful welfare outcomes. As always, my interest lies less in defending tools themselves, and more in discussing responsible dog ownership, context, proportionality, and the wider responsibilities that come with shaping behaviour and living alongside animals.
Later in the year, I’ll also be speaking at the IACP conference in Newport Beach, where my presentation will be titled “Fear of Fear.” That talk will explore modern attitudes toward discomfort, adversity, emotional avoidance and behavioural development — both in dogs and increasingly in the humans raising and training them. It will examine how the fear of causing fear has itself become a powerful influence within modern dog training culture, often shaping decisions, policies and public narratives in ways that deserve closer examination.
I’m looking forward to all three events and to the conversations that come from them
