COAPE - Centre of Applied Pet Ethology

Professor Ray Coppinger
Professor of Biology at the School of Cognitive Science at Hampshire College in Massachusetts, USA until 2006, Ray Coppinger has studied dogs, bred dogs, raced dog sled teams in the Arctic and worked with dogs for decades all over the world. He is also a consultant to the famous Wolf Park, Indiana, USA.

Along with his wife, Lorna, he is co-author of the must-have book, ‘Dogs - a startling new understanding of canine origin, behaviour and evolution’.

Indeed, Ray and Lorna have developed the modern theory of how the dog evolved from the wolf, which explains

how behavioural selection by man shaped the dog’s form as well as its function and behaviour, and how our dogs went on to become the most successful wolf ever known.

Ray brings together all his amazing experiences and life’s work as a professional scientist to explore the emotions, intelligence and development of the behaviour of animals in his courses with COAPE.

Lorna Coppinger MSc
Lorna Coppinger majored in Slavic Studies at Boston University, and earned her M.A. in biology at the University of Massachusetts. While their two children were growing, Lorna published many popular articles, mostly about dogs, and when Ray began training and racing a team of sled dogs, she followed with pen and camera and wrote the first (and award-winning) comprehensive book on sled dog racing.

As a co-founder (with Ray) of the Livestock Guarding Dog Project in 1977, Lorna began fifteen years as research associate/outreach specialist at Hampshire College. She and Ray have studied working dogs throughout the U.S. and Europe. They imported dozens of guardians for a breeding program for the U.S., and credit these specialized breeds with providing the spark for their subsequent ethological research.

Lorna has written numerous technical articles for the scientific journals, but the most fun for both authors has been distilling two lifetimes spent in professional and personal association with dogs in their 2001 book, Dogs.

Robert Falconer-Taylor
BVetMed DipCABT MRCVS
Robert Falconer-Taylor successfully passed his COAPE Diploma in 2002 and has since become Veterinary Consultant to COAPE and one of the three tutors on the COAPE Diploma course, as well as being the author and tutor of several other COAPE courses. He qualified from the Royal Veterinary College in London in 1981 and first went into mixed veterinary practice and then into exclusively companion animal practice.

Robert has also spent time in industry as a management consultant and IT specialist and as a trainer to the veterinary and allied professions. He is the website designer and manager for the COAPE websites.

He joined COAPE as a partner in September, 2008 where he plans to devote more time to education, lecturing, writing and animal welfare, while maintaining a link with a busy small animal veterinary practice in West Sussex.

For information about companion animal behaviour practices run by Robert and his Associates Click Here

Professor Peter Neville
Peter Neville is a founding Partner of COAPE and became Clinical Professor at the Department of Veterinary Medicine, Faculty of Agriculture, Miyazaki University, Japan in 2008. He is also a Visiting Scholar at Ohio State University, USA. He established the behaviour referral clinic at the Dept of Vet Medicine, Bristol in 1990. Peter has been in practice for the treatment of behaviour problems in pets for over 20 years, he is a speaker in high demand at veterinary, behaviour and training meetings all over the world.

Author of the best-selling books: ‘Do Cats Need Shrinks?’ and ‘Do Dogs Need Shrinks? Peter is a behaviour / marketing consultant to Nestle Purina PetCare and the European licence holder for the patented Gentle Leader® Headcollar training system for dogs.

He leads ‘behind the scenes’ special safaris observing the behaviour and studying the ecology of African Wild Dogs, big cats and elephants first hand with biologists and vets in the field.

For information about companion animal behaviour practices run by Peter and his Associates Click Here

Kirsty Peake
DipCABT CABP APDT Member No 681
Kirsty successfully passed her COAPE Diploma in 1999 and was one of the first to qualify as COAPE Association Behaviour Practitioner with the launch of the Association in 2005. She now runs a busy full time animal behaviour referral and training practice, mainly in in the south-west of England, but also helps out with dog behaviour problems on a voluntary basis from her second home in Montana, near Yellowstone Park in the USA.

Kirsty has a lifetime of experience with dogs, cats and horses and has bred and shown Lakeland Terriers successfully for the last 20 years. She has also lived and worked in Africa and the Middle East working in Human Resources in the construction industry were she became involved with ‘village dogs’ around the construction sites.

Her fascination for how dogs behave began here, and then she ‘discovered’ wolves and studied their relationship with the modern dog. She now regularly visits Yellowstone National Park in the USA to study wolf behaviour and leads study groups there to observe the wolves and experience a truly wild ecosystem.

As a member of the Professional Speakers Association, Kirsty gives presentations to high level industry clients both at home and overseas on topics such as ‘Working as a Team’, where she often uses the wolf pack’s social structure and organisation as an example. She is also a former member of the British Olympic sailing team. For more information about Kirsty Click Here

Jo Scott VN Dip CABT(NOCN)COAPE CABP
APDT Member No 205
Jo graduated with her COAPE Diploma in 1999 and was one of the first Diplomates to qualify as a COAPE Association Behaviour Practitioner with the launch of the Association in 2005.

Jo worked for Cedar Veterinary Services for 25 years, initially as head nurse and then from 1994-2008, as a full time professional referral pet behaviour therapist and dog trainer, latterly at their Canine Care Centre. Her puppy socialisation groups were one of the first in the country to be attached to a small animal veterinary surgery, and her canine behaviour rehabilitation classes helped set the standard of best practice in this challenging field.

Jo now works full time as a lecturer in animal behaviour, animal care and veterinary nursing at Kingston Maurward College in Dorchester, Dorset where she runs a variety of courses for a wide range of students.

She also writes books and articles on companion animal behaviour and lectures regularly outside the College for COAPE and for companion animal interest and veterinary groups both at home and overseas.

Val Strong MSc
Val Strong has been a Partner of COAPE since 1997 and now heads a large behaviour practice in the north of England. She has worked with dogs and horses for most of her life and was responsible for developing the first puppy socialisation classes in South Yorkshire.

She is an international speaker and is well known for her work in the assistance dog training industry, being the world leader in the training of Emergency Response Dogs for people with epilepsy and other complex medical conditions. Val has many years experience in the training and rehabilitation of problem dogs and horses and is an expert in the effects of diet on canine behaviour, rehabilitation and training. Val has written a number of booklets on canine behaviour and training and is co-author of several research papers.

Val divides her time between running a Boarding Cattery, training her 2 horses, teaching, lecturing and running a mentoring scheme for students wishing to specialise in training dogs for people with disabilities and special needs.

For information about companion animal behaviour practices run by Val and her Associates Click Here

Animal Advisors: Here, just for fun, is a selection of your tutors' pets at their best, and worst. Have a flick through the album and see if you can match each pet to a particular tutor.