The BCP Orientation is your first stop in the Behavior Consulting Program and is designed to set you up for success. In this introductory course, Ken Ramirez reviews the educational goals of the BCP, explains how the curriculum is structured to achieve those goals, and introduces each course in the program.

Ken outlines the available education pathways, explains the criteria for program completion, and reviews the requirements for earning the KPA Specialist, Canine Behavior (SCB) certification. You will also learn how to navigate the online learning platform and how to access faculty and administrative support throughout the program.

The course concludes with a live, real-time group Q&A session with Ken, offered monthly via Zoom.

Problem Solving is a cornerstone course of the Behavior Consulting Program and provides a comprehensive understanding of KPA’s Problem Solving model. In this course, you will work step by step through the practical application of handling advanced behavior cases in a consulting context.

The course covers the full consulting process, including initial client contact, case planning, determining the underlying causes of behavior challenges, understanding motivation, selecting appropriate intervention strategies, and evaluating and documenting outcomes. It also includes focused discussions on the use of AI tools, animal welfare, professional ethics, and other topics essential to professional behavior consulting.

Ken will also lead weekly live online group working sessions for each course cohort, providing guided discussion, case-based application, and opportunities for participants to ask questions. This course integrates and connects the concepts taught across the rest of the program, serving as the unifying framework for advanced behavior work.

This core course, taught by Susan G. Friedman, Ph.D., is a vital component of the Behavior Consulting Program’s curriculum. It introduces students to the science of behavior change and provides a clear, conceptual overview of behavior analysis.

While the Problem Solving course focuses on the practical application of working with complex behavior cases, the LLA course illuminates the scientific principles that explain how behavior works and why behavior-change strategies are effective. Together, these courses link theory and practice in professional behavior consulting.

Students who have passed this course outside the BCP are not required to retake it, and tuition credit is available. Please see the tuition FAQs for requirements and other details.

Working with clients is a critical component of success as a behavior consultant. This course focuses on the professional skills needed to work with clients effectively throughout the consulting process.

Participants will learn how to ask productive questions, coach clients through behavior change plans, build buy-in from all stakeholders, and support implementation with clarity, kindness, and compassion. Emphasis is placed on communication, relationship-building, and practical strategies that help consultants translate technical expertise into successful real-world outcomes.

This course is designed to go beyond recognizing basic body language signals, such as a dog’s yawn or lip lick, and to deepen your ability to accurately interpret behavior in real-world contexts. Emphasis is placed on developing refined observational skills that are essential for effective behavior consulting.

The course relies heavily on video-based learning to help you recognize subtle indicators of stress, discomfort, and emotional states in both dogs and cats. You will evaluate body language shown in video examples and receive detailed, written feedback from evaluators on the Shelter Playgroup Alliance teaching team. This guided analysis strengthens your accuracy, confidence, and professional judgment when assessing animal behavior.

This course focuses on the practical application of functional analysis as a core skill in behavior consulting. Participants work through real-world case studies designed to deepen their ability to assess problem behavior and identify the variables that influence it.

Building on foundational concepts students learned in How Behavior Works: (LLA), the course emphasizes hands-on practice, guided analysis, and structured feedback. Kiki Yablon leads coaching and evaluation to help participants refine their functional assessment skills and apply them effectively and responsibly in client cases. 

Please note: Functional Assessment and Program Development for Problem Behavior: A Practical Handbook, 3rd Edition, by Robert E. O’Neill, Richard W. Albin, Keith Storey, Robert H. Horner, and Jeffrey R. Sprague is a required textbook for this course. You can find it at online retailers and possibly at your local or university libraries. Please obtain a copy before the first real-time virtual session.

KPA has traditionally emphasized operant conditioning in its training programs. As a behavior consultant, however, you may frequently collaborate with veterinary behaviorists or work on cases that require the use of classical conditioning strategies such as systematic desensitization, counterconditioning, and generalization.

This course provides a clear overview of classical conditioning principles and focuses on developing a fluent understanding of how and when to apply these skills in professional behavior consulting contexts. Emphasis is placed on conceptual clarity and appropriate application across a range of behavior challenges.

This course requires access to a dog or other animal. The animal will need to accept food from you and allow you to approach and touch them; there are no other behavioral requirements. Reactive or nervous animals are fine, as long as you can work with them safely. The animal doesn't need to be yours; a friend's or family member's pet works great, as does an animal you interact with through work or volunteering. You won't need frequent or extended access, just enough to complete a few specific exercises.

Classical Conditioning, Part 2 focuses on the applied use of the classical conditioning skills introduced in Part 1. Participants move from conceptual understanding to hands-on practice, working through scenarios that require accurate implementation of classical conditioning principles.

This course provides opportunities to practice, demonstrate, and refine the application of classical conditioning strategies so they can be used effectively and responsibly with clients. Emphasis is placed on correct execution, decision-making, and professional application in consulting settings.

This course requires access to a dog or other animal. The animal will need to accept food from you and allow you to approach and touch them; there are no other behavioral requirements. Reactive or nervous animals are fine, as long as you can work with them safely. The animal doesn't need to be yours; a friend's or family member's pet works great, as does an animal you interact with through work or volunteering. You won't need frequent or extended access, just enough to complete a few specific exercises.

A wide range of behavior change protocols, developed or recommended by trainers, are commonly used to address specific behavior challenges, and new protocols continue to emerge within the professional community. This two-part course examines the structure and use of commonly applied protocols and evaluates both established and emerging approaches.

In Protocol Integration, Part 1, students learn how to determine when a protocol may be appropriate, avoid common pitfalls in application, and place protocols within a broader problem-solving framework. Students will learn about several protocols and learn to integrate them with the Problem-Solving model taught throughout the Behavior Consulting Program. The specific protocols addressed in Part 1 include those for noise sensitivity, separation anxiety, exuberant door greetings, and food aversion.

Part 2 of Protocol Integration extends the evaluative frameworks introduced in Part 1 across aggression, fear and related behavior cases and a series of protocols used to address them. The focus remains on thoughtfully integrating these protocols with the problem-solving models taught throughout The Behavior Consulting Program to enhance professional judgment, appropriate protocol selection, and responsible application.

In this course, students apply the protocol evaluation frameworks to the behavioral issues of general reactivity and resource guarding. Ken also introduces additional concepts and skills required for effective, safe work in these areas, including integrating operant and classical conditioning strategies, understanding the role of conditioned emotional responses, managing arousal, and protocols and procedures designed to support both client outcomes and practitioner safety.

This course is designed to provide intensive, applied practice using the full range of skills developed throughout the Behavior Consulting Program. Participants work through four comprehensive cases, approaching each as they would with an actual client.

Working closely with the course instructor team, participants alternate between client-facing problem-solving and coached reflection. Instructors assume the role of both client and coach to support skill integration, decision-making, and professional judgment. The course includes live Zoom meetings every other week to review cases and progress. Due to the volume of case work, written submissions, feedback, and live sessions, participants should plan for a demanding workload. This course requires 3-5 hours of student work each week.