Background Companion animal behaviour problems significantly impact companion animal (and owner) welfare. Veterinary behavioural medicine (VBM) is an emerging discipline and aims to provide evidence-based advice to owners and veterinary professionals to support normal behaviour in companion animals through appropriate socialisation and training and to address behaviour problems in a constructive and welfare-friendly manner. The approach to problem behaviours in dogs has changed in recent years; previously a mis-understanding of the biological theory of dominance has been used to explain certain behavioural problems in dogs which has led to the use of punishment-based treatment methods. Current research advocates the benefits of reward-based methods and highlights the risks of implementing positive punishment-based training techniques to both dogs and owners. Golden and Hanlon (Ir Vet J 71: 12, 2018) have reported that veterinary professionals in Ireland are frequently asked to advise on dog behaviour problems. This study aimed to explore veterinary professionals' understanding of training and treatment options for frequently encountered dog behaviour problems, and to help support the development of competences in VBM in Ireland. Methods An online survey was developed, including a pre-test evaluation by a pilot group of veterinary professionals, on SurveyMonkey®. The link to the online survey was distributed via third-party professional associations and social media. The survey contained twelve vignettes illustrating advice from veterinary professionals on common behaviour scenarios. Using a Likert Scale, respondents were asked to assess the likelihood of the advice to support best outcome for the dog. Best outcome was defined as one which provides a resolution to the behavioural problem while not compromising the animal's welfare. Results 84 private veterinary practitioners (PVP) and 133 veterinary nurses (VN) completed the survey. In the majority of vignettes, most veterinary professionals agreed with our classification of best outcome, but several areas of uncertainty were identified. Marked variations in response were found for PVPs in vignettes depicting advice recommending citronella collars, invisible radio fences, trainers utilising dominance language, and another dog for separation anxiety. For VNs, variations in response were found in vignettes depicting dominance-based training and advice on separation anxiety. Significant differences were found in the responses of VNs and PVPs for the vignettes recommending the use of citronella collars (p < 0.01) and invisible radio fences (p < 0.05), where VNs agreed with their recommendation less often than PVPs. PVPs graduating since 2013 agreed with the recommendation of invisible radio fences less often than PVPs graduating before 2013 (p < 0.05). VNs graduating before 2013 agreed with the recommendation of an accredited trainer (p < 0.05) and disagreed with the use of flooding to treat fear (p < 0.05) more often than VNs graduating since 2013. Conclusions Our findings have identified specific areas of uncertainty with regards knowledge of positive punishment-based training and the treatment of common dog behaviour problems, highlighted the demand for continuing professional education in VBM and provided further evidence of the need to develop day one competences in VBM for veterinary medicine and nursing programmes at university level.

中文翻译：

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探索爱尔兰兽医专业人士对常见狗行为问题的最佳实践方法的理解。

背景 伴侣动物行为问题显着影响伴侣动物（和主人）的福利。兽医行为医学（VBM）是一门新兴学科，旨在为主人和兽医专业人员提供基于证据的建议，通过适当的社会化和培训来支持伴侣动物的正常行为，并以建设性和福利友好的方式解决行为问题。近年来，解决狗的问题行为的方法已经发生了变化。以前，对生物优势理论的误解被用来解释狗的某些行为问题，这导致了基于惩罚的治疗方法的使用。目前的研究提倡基于奖励的方法的好处，并强调对狗和主人实施积极的基于惩罚的训练技术的风险。Golden 和 Hanlon (Ir Vet J 71: 12, 2018) 报告称，爱尔兰的兽医专业人士经常被要求就狗的行为问题提供建议。本研究旨在探讨兽医专业人员对经常遇到的狗行为问题的培训和治疗方案的理解，并帮助支持爱尔兰 VBM 能力的发展。方法 我们开发了一项在线调查，包括由兽医专业人员试点小组在 SurveyMonkey® 上进行的预测试评估。在线调查的链接是通过第三方专业协会和社交媒体发布的。该调查包含十二个小插曲，说明兽医专业人士对常见行为场景的建议。使用李克特量表，受访者被要求评估建议为狗提供最佳结果的可能性。最佳结果被定义为在不损害动物福利的情况下解决行为问题的结果。结果 84 名私人兽医 (PVP) 和 133 名兽医护士 (VN) 完成了调查。在大多数小插图中，大多数兽医专业人士都同意我们对最佳结果的分类，但也发现了一些不确定的领域。在小插图中发现了 PVP 的反应显着变化，小插图描述了推荐香茅项圈、隐形无线电围栏、使用支配性语言的训练员以及另一只狗来治疗分离焦虑的建议。对于 VN，在描述基于支配地位的训练和分离焦虑建议的小插图中发现了不同的反应。VN 和 PVP 对建议使用香茅项圈 (p < 0.01) 和隐形无线电围栏 (p < 0.05) 的小插图的反应存在显着差异，其中 VN 同意其建议的频率低于 PVP。2013 年以来毕业的 PVP 同意隐形无线电围栏建议的比例低于 2013 年之前毕业的 PVP (p < 0.05)。2013 年之前毕业的越南学生同意认可培训师的推荐（p < 0。