Mission Statement

Our mission is to enhance the emotional well-being of pets by identifying and promoting local businesses and professionals, across the pet industry, who are committed to using force-free principles, guided by current animal behavior research, and by serving as a resource to the Michiana community for animal behavior education.

Each Member of the Positive Animal Wellness Society adheres to the following pledge.

To do my best to respect and enhance the emotional and physical well being of every pet in my care, at all times.
To avoid using or advocating for training methods that rely on fear, pain or force to motivate the animal, such as shock collars, choke chains, pinch/prong collars, or other methods detrimental to the animal's physical or emotional health.
To do my part to dispel misinformation, such as dominance theory, and promote scientifically sound, humane, reward-based methods that strengthen the human-animal bond.
To learning to recognize and respect the signs of fear, anxiety or stress in the animals in my care and to reassess my approach as needed.
To continuing my animal behavior education by actively attending live or virtual conferences and seminars relating to animal behavior and welfare, and/or reading scientific articles on current animal behavior research.
To referring my clients to other pet businesses and professionals who also uphold these values.
To help recruit, train and support other pet professionals in their journey to obtaining membership status.