This month A Day in the Life heads to Western Australia, where Zoe Devine works as a Behavioural Vet at Animal Sense near Fremantle. Devine was inspired to become a veterinarian at the age of six after watching Harry’s Practice on television after school and fulfilled a childhood dream when she graduated from Murdoch University’s veterinary program in 2017. After vet school, she worked in mixed practice and doing after-hours work in regional South Australia for 18 months, returning to Western Australia – quite fortuitously as it turned out – right before the pandemic struck. By this time, Devine was working in small animal general practice but had already begun taking steps towards the specialised career path she now treads. The Veterinarian was lucky enough to catch up with Zoe recently to find out just what a day in the life of a Behavioural Veterinarian is like.
Devine began her transition to working in the behaviour veterinary space after returning to Perth in 2019, when she started treating a lot of shelter dogs and working at a clinic well known for its fear free skills. She noticed the benefits of this work almost immediately. “My handling skills of animals that are fear aggressive at the vet increased greatly,” she said. “I pride myself on trying to make the vet experience as low stress as possible.” Devine began offering behaviour consults in a general practice setting as early as 2019, completed a CVE course in Veterinary Behaviour in 2020 and became a Fear Free Certified Professional. She was accepted as a member of the Australian & New Zealand College of Veterinary Scientists in Veterinary Behaviour after successfully completing her membership examinations in 2022 and was recognised with the Robert Holmes Award for being the highest scoring candidate in that year. After completing her membership studies, Devine began working exclusively as a Behavioural Vet.
A typical day for Devine is not dramatically dissimilar from that of a regular veterinarian, in that she has initial meetings with new clients and follow up consultations with existing patients. What is substantially different, however, is the time each consultation takes, and the amount of preparation required before an initial visit. “Our initial consult runs from 60-90 minutes, when we discuss the questionnaire whilst we observe the patient as they interact with the space and ourselves,” Devine explained. “Prior to our initial consults, caregivers complete an extensive questionnaire outlining their pet’s behavioural history and detailing the concerns they are currently having, and we also collect any history from the general practice vet to ascertain whether physical health conditions are a factor.”
The treatment space in which Devine works is also different from that of a regular veterinary practice. “We have very large consulting spaces, probably two to four times bigger than a regular consulting room,” Devine said. “This allows the animals to move freely in the environment. We can learn a lot from this, as we can see what the animal chooses to interact with and whether they want to engage with us. It can also be easier to see any physical abnormalities as they move through the area.” Having larger spaces and longer consulting times enables Devine to assess the pet more fully, and to dive into issues more deeply than a regular veterinarian might be able to. She often performs tests with fake stooge dogs to see how her patients might react to unknown dogs, and makes use of Adaptil bandanas or Feliway towels to ensure the pet remains calm. The clinic also has safe spaces for patients who are not comfortable with being in the same space as a vet.
After examining a patient, Devine works with their caregiver to develop a specifically tailored treatment plan that consist of a combination of management strategies, behaviour modification techniques and medication. “The aim is to reduce practice of the unwanted behaviour by removing the stressful triggers and teach the animal new ways to cope,” she said. “Medication can make this process more effective.” Patient progress is then monitored at return visits to the clinic every three to six months. “This is an integral part of our work which ensures we are making our patients feel more comfortable at home, and for caregivers to feel as though improvements are being made. If this is not being seen, then part of the plan needs to change,” Devine explained. “We work closely with positive reinforcement trainers, general practitioners as well as other specialty clinics to facilitate these plans. It is a real team effort helping these pets and their people.”
Devine is undeterred by the more challenging aspects of her work, and readily acknowledges there are often barriers to overcome when attempting to bring about behavioural change. These challenges can have genetic, experiential and environmental aspects, and may also result from a caregiver’s reluctance to ask for help. This reluctance frequently stems from pet owners being blamed for their pet’s behaviour, which discounts internal factors within the animal, such as genetics or epigenetics. “Behavioural problems often stem from an animal’s genetics, as well as previous experiences and what the animal has learned from them,” she said. “Caregivers sometimes wait to ask for assistance as there is still a degree of stigma associated with behavioural problems, so sometimes the animal has been practicing the unwanted behaviour or coping strategy for a long time. Practice does mean perfect, so it can be challenging to form new behaviours in the face of this.”
In other cases, Devine must manage caregiver expectations of what their animal can or cannot feasibly do – particularly in relation to the environment in which they live or wish to be part of. For example, not every cat is able to live harmoniously with other cats, and not every dog is able to successfully navigate a dog park. “This can be challenging for caregivers to come to terms with, as the reality they experience looks different from how they imagined their lives to be with their pet,” she said. “I try to find a happy medium for both parties, as well as making sure everyone is having a fulfilled life.”
Another challenge Devine regularly confronts relates to stigma regarding aspects of behavioural veterinary treatment, particularly in relation to medication – which is often seen as a last resort, even though early intervention supported by medication and training can improve patient treatment outcomes. This is one area in which Devine hopes to see substantial change in the future. “There are still punishment-based training or handling methods being used to suppress unwanted behaviour rather than manage the underlying emotion of the animal, which is usually fear or anxiety, and this greatly impacts the animal’s ability to trust and learn,” she said. “Ongoing education of pet professionals and caregivers is a passion of mine, which will hopefully result in some of these outdated views being overturned.”
Devine cites improving the mental health of pets and their people as being both the focus and most rewarding aspect of her work. She is quick to point out that while physical health issues affecting pets impact the quality of life of the family unit, more animals are surrendered or euthanised due to behavioural concerns rather than because of physical ailments. “I love collaborating with other pet professionals, including groomers, positive reinforcement trainers, pet physiotherapist and other vets to form a holistic plan that can have a long-lasting impact on the quality of life of all parties,” she said. “It’s amazing to see patients become calmer, happier versions of themselves and for them to become more comfortable with their day-to-day life.” The flow on effect for human caregivers is, in Devine’s view, equally important, as an animal’s transformation has a massive impact on the mental health of their caregivers. “It’s a joy to watch new goals being reached, and to form meaningful relationships with both human and animals,” she said. “The human-animal bond is a special thing and so different in every case. I love watching this bond develop over time and become stronger.”
And now, to conclude our Day in the Life with Zoe Devine, she answers our slightly cheesy but ever so interesting Creature Questions:
Do you currently have any pets?
I am very blessed to have three amazing animals in my life currently. Olive is a five-year-old domestic short hair cat. She is the snuggliest cat and likes to sleep wrapped around my head every night. Clancy is a four-year-old Border Collie, another throwback to my childhood obsession with Dr Harry! He is the most people orientated dog you will ever meet – the more people he can say hello to, the better. Finally there’s my most recent addition, a three-year-old mini lop rabbit called Cinnibun. He is best friends with Clancy, as they are both social and love food. I learned a lot about rabbits during my membership studies, and when Cinnibun came into the clinic as a stray I went in to feed him some banana. He came home with me a few weeks later.
What is your favourite animal?
Dogs are my favourites! Through my work I am continuously in awe of their individual personalities. Their desire to be a part of our lives is incredible, and I think it is such an honour and privilege to be able to find out what makes them tick, and work with them to fulfil their drives and abilities.
If you could transform into any animal, what would you be and why?
I would be a grizzly bear, because they look cute and harmless, but they are actually weapons. They are fast on land and in the water, and as someone who enjoys training for and competing in triathlons when I’m not working, these are abilities I would love to have!