Richard Polsky began his career as an academic conducting research in animal behavior at various universities in the United States and England (Ph.D. from the University of Leicester (England), 1975; Post-doctoral fellow at the University of Birmingham (England) (1974-1976) and Post-doctoral fellow and Research Associate in animal behavior at UCLA, (1976 - 1981). After 10 years in academics, Dr. Polsky phased-out his career in academics in order to pursue a career as a solo practitioner in applied animal behavior. He open his office in Santa Monica in 1981. At that time he limited his work to dogs, and in 1984 he expanded the practice to include cats. Shortly thereafter he moved his office to the Rancho Park section of Los Angeles where he has been ever since. In 25+ years in practice, Dr. Polsky has been called on to help thousands of owners solve a wide variety of behavioral problems, ranging from territorial and dominance aggression in dogs to litter box problems and compulsive disorders in cats. In 1985, he started the Head Start Puppy Training Classes. Dr. Polsky's puppy training program program functions to train owners to train their puppies in humane and scientifically proven ways in order to prevent behavioral problems from developing later in the dog's life. Dr. Polsky is certified as an applied animal behaviorist by the Animal Behavior Society.

 

In addition to the behavioral counseling services he provides dog and cat owners, Dr. Polsky has served as a paid consultant in animal behavior to Los Angeles Department of Animal Regulation and the Los Angeles SPCA. He helped formulate the behavioral guidelines used in determining dangerous dogs by the hearing officers at the Los Angeles City Department of Animal Control. Dr. Polsky has been public speaker and seminar leader on many occasions to veterinary groups and dog clubs in California. He is author of the text User's Guide to the Scientific and Clinical Literature on Dog and Cat Behavior, 2nd edition (published in 1985) and, in addition, he has authored over 50 papers published in the animal behavior and veterinary literature. In recent years, Dr. Polsky has been frequently retained by attorneys as an expert witness in both criminal and civil matters. He served as the expert in animal behavior for the defense in the well-publicized San Francisco dog mauling case. He is the author of educational websites on dog bite prevention, the San Francisco dog mauling and fatal dog attacks in the United States. His professional affiliations include memberships in the Animal Behavior Society, American Psychological Association, International Society of Applied Ethology, American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science.

 

As an academically trained animal behaviorist, Dr. Polsky has a strong interest in keeping abreast of the current scientific literature in dog and cat behavior for the purpose of applying these findings to real-world situations with pet owners. He continues to submit papers for publication in peer-reviewed journals. Dr. Polsky resides in Los Angeles with his family and two dogs: a male Standard schnauzer, Obi-won, and a female border collie mix, Swoozy.

richardhpolsky@mac.com