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About Pet Industry Advocacy International |
The Pet Industry Advocacy International (PIAI) believes there is a need for a high level of oversight in the pet industry across all professional disciplines. Licensing has been a proposed option, but licensing without a strong underlying ethical code of conduct and a minimum standard for knowledge and skills of service providers does not provide the minimum requirement for protection and level of service needed by pet owners and their pets. There is a prevalence of individuals who hold no credentials, formal education, knowledge, or skills, yet who are today working across the world with full responsibility for the well-being and welfare of their unknowing clients' precious pets, is no longer considered acceptable. Compounding this, there is also a significant lack of consumer protection and transparency across the marketing and operations platforms of many pet service businesses, leaving pets and their owners in peril. In the pet industry there are also inherent challenges with how pets are legally classified and there is a lack of reporting of animal cruelty. This variability of how animal cruelty laws are enforced means there is insufficient protection for pets and their owners when it comes to holding professionals accountable for their methodology, approach, and philosophy toward their craft and toward the people and animals they serve. |  |
PIAI vision
PIAI believes that the pet industry worldwide needs increased regulation, oversight, and adherence to policies and procedures and best practices as applied to:
- The delivery of and adherence to, professional ethics of a similar and high standard such as those applied in the behavioral sciences and the medical profession.
- Transparent and honest operational policies that protect the end-user and the consumer, from fraudulent and deceptive operational and marketing practices.
- The concept of professional competency, skills, and knowledge of practitioners.
PIAI mission
To achieve this, we seek to develop a coalition of pet professional organizations who agree to implement and hold pet professionals accountable for key, critical to success, best practice policies for all pet professionals by:
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Infrastructure
PIAI will be a 501c4 nonprofit organization. The nonprofit will be set up with 9 founding organizations that will be represented on the PIAI’s Board of Directors.
1. The founding signatory members will be the only voting membership within PIAI2. Each founding organization will be represented by one of their principles on the Board of Directors and will have full voting rights on all Board required activities
3. The PIAI Board will be chaired by a President.
4. The following pet industry sectors may be represented on the Board of Directors
- A Pet Professional Educational Organization
- A Pet Boarding & Daycare Organization
- A Pet Grooming Organization
- A Board-Certified Veterinary Behaviorist
- A Licensed Veterinarian
- A Rescue and Shelter Organization
- A Pet Sitting & Dog Walking Organization
- A Pet Guardian End of Life Organization
- A Dog Club Organization
| Regional sub-committeesTo support implementing the oversight model across different states and countries PIAI bylaws allow and encourage the formation of regional committees that can actively work from the ground to implement the preferred model in specific regions. PIAI is an organization committed to being purposeful in enhancing inclusivity and diversity both within the membership and the wider community. As we move forwards with our initiatives and the development of regional sub-committees we are committed to building teams with a variety of backgrounds, skills and views. The more inclusive we are, the better our collective work will be. We believe that creating a culture of equality isn’t just the right thing to do, it’s also the smart thing to do. |
| Additional EducationAbout This Book In this book, we present our views on the need for a level and model of oversight in the fields of pet training and behavior consulting and for those choosing to practice within them. We discuss the prevalence of individuals who hold no credentials, formal education, knowledge or skills, yet who are today working across the nation with full responsibility for the well-being and welfare of their unknowing clients’ treasured pets. To understand the model please download a copy of this book here |
