About Us
Enhancing the human-animal bond through practical knowledge of animal behavior.
Our Story
The Animal Behavior Connection was founded out of necessity. When I was young, I fascinated by B.F. Skinner, the founder of the behaviorism psychologic perspective. As a result, I started on my animal training journey right after high school. Although I wanted to be a dog trainer, I was fortunate enough to come across a veterinary technician who was also my division manager at the first shelter that I worked at who encouraged me to pursue a career in veterinary medicine. After learning about the profession of a veterinary technician specialist in behavior, I was sold. I loved the idea of helping numerous different species with their behavioral health from the unique multidisciplinary lens of veterinary medicine. After all, the brain and the body are not separate entities. During my vetmed journey, while working in both general practice and shelter medicine settings, I noticed that there was a huge need for animal behavior services, however, I was very limited in what I was allowed to do to help with this demand due to a lack of industry support for my specialty. Although behavioral disorders are the most common ailment seen in patients, in general, veterinary professionals unfortunately receive very little or no training in behavior unless they pursue it on their own. I would see many clients and pets who were very desperate for help that would receive troubling advice from veterinary professionals or trainers who are often well-meaning but lacked the skills and knowledge to safely help. I worked tirelessly to develop my behavior skillset, but felt stuck as I was very limited in my ability provide behavior services, as a great deal of my industry did not see it as valuable when compared to my other competencies such as anesthesia or medical nursing. Thus, the Animal Behavior Connection was born with the goal of providing training and development in clinical behavior to veterinary and pet training professionals alike, as well as provide underserved shelters, clients, and pets with best practices in science-based behavior support.
Meet the Behavior Consultant:
Nicholas DeRoma (He/Him)
Nicholas is a certified behavior veterinary technologist currently pursuing board certification as a Veterinary Technician Specialist (VTS) in Behavioral Medicine.
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Education, Certification, Memberships:
Nick holds an MS in Psychology and BS degrees in Veterinary Technology, Animal Studies, and Business Administration. He also completed post-graduate certificates in Applied Animal Behavior through the University of Washington, and Animal-Assisted Therapy through the University of Denver. Most recently, with interests in applied behavior analysis and translational neuroscience, Nick began studying towards another graduate degree in Animal Behavior. Additionally, Nick is pursuing board certification in Animal Welfare Science.
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He is Veterinary and Shelter Fear Free Certified, Low Stress Handling Silver Certified, Human-Animal Bond Certified, and a Certified Cat-Friendly Professional. He is also Fear Free Certified in Avian and Equine care. He became a Certified Trauma Professional, Certified Compassion Fatigue Professional, Certified Veterinary Business Leader, and a Certified Human Resource professional to better provide organizational consulting services and training to animal-care staff. Additionally, Nick pursued training in securing grants and fundraising in order to help shelters obtain some much-needed resources. He is extremely passionate about creating a healthier animal-caregiving industry in order to better serve clients, animals, and the community.
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As a behavioral researcher, Nick is an Associate Professional Animal Scientist through the American Registry of Professional Animal Scientists, in addition to holding CITI certifications in Good Clinical Practice, Good Laboratory Practice, Institutional Review Boards, Clinical Research Coordinators, Biomedical and Clinical Research Investigators, Social and Behavioral Research, and Regulatory Affairs. He has also participated in contributing to and conducting Animal Behavior and Welfare Research at the American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, where he is also involved in CARPE, a division dedicated to the Ethical Inclusion of Animals in Research at the ASPCA. Nick sits on an Institutional Review Board at Rutgers University and has an interest in IACUC protocols (animal care and use in research settings).
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He belongs to the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants, the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (formerly the Society of Veterinary Behavior Technicians), the National Academy of Veterinary Technicians and Assistants (NAVTA), the Academy of Veterinary Technician Educators, The Association of Shelter Medicine Veterinary Technicians, the American Psychological Associations Human-Animal Interaction Division, the Humane Handling Institute through the University of Wisconsin - River Falls, and the NC3R's - an organization dedicated to the reduction, replacement, and refinement of animals in research and testing.
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Nick regularly attends conferences, seminars, roundtables, and summits in pursuit of continuing education, something that is extremely important to stay abreast of best-practices in both behavioral science and veterinary medicine.
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Prior to founding the Animal Behavior Connection, Nick worked in primary care hospitals, animal shelters, and specialty practices. Most recently, he worked in a large specialty hospital providing cooperative care services to clients through a collaborative between the primary care and behavioral medicine departments. He still does relief work for hospitals and shelters in New Jersey, and still provides behavior services in two hospitals.
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In addition to interests in behavioral science and behavioral medicine, Nick also has clinical interests in anesthesia, pain management, shelter medicine, complementary and alternative medicine, bioethics, and bovine medicine.
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In his free time, Nick enjoys riding his on-road/off-road motorcycle, and doing essentially anything that involves the ocean and the great outdoors.
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Recent Continuing Education:
- IAABC Flock! Conference 2026
- Veterinary Behavior Symposium 2025
- Midwest Veterinary Conference 2025
- IAABC Pounce! Conference 2025
- NAVC VMX Conference 2025
- Animal Welfare Science Centre Research Showcase Program 2024
- Clinical Animal Behavior Conference 2024
- Decoding Your Canine Summit 2024
​- Midwest Veterinary Conference 2024
- ASCPA Shelter Medicine Conference 2024
- Dog Training Secrets Summit 2024
- DVM 360 Fetch Coastal Conference 2024
- Veterinary Behavior Symposium 2024
- Out of Control Dog Summit 2024
- NAVC VMX Conference 2024
- Karen Pryor Academy Clicker Expo 2023
- NAVC VMX Conference 2023
- ASPCA Shelter Medicine Conference 2023
- Pet Anxiety Summit 2023
- Pet Pain Relief Summit 2023
- Midwest Veterinary Conference 2023
- Veterinary Behavior Symposium 2023
- DVM 360 ACVC Conference 2022
- ASPCA Behavior Roundtables (ongoing)
- Maddie's Fund Community Conversations (ongoing)
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