Author: ACOAM

ACOAM’s 2023 Day of Training

Registration is now OPEN for ACOAM’s 2023 Day of Training: The Forensics of Dog Aggression, instructed by Dr. James Crosby.

This training seminar will be available at two separate locations on Thursday, November 2nd and Friday, November 3rd.

To register for this seminar please use to the QR code in the flyer, or use the following link:

ACOAM’s 2023 Day of Training

Meet the Instructor:

Dr. Crosby is a Certified Behavior Consultant, a recognized expert in canine behavior, dog bites and attacks, and shelter management and operations. He is a retired Police Lieutenant from Jacksonville, Florida, and former Animal Control Division Manager in Bay County, Florida. He has combined his police experience and his animal specific experience to train Animal Control and Police agencies on animal issues, including dangerous dog cases and criminal cruelty investigations. Dr. Crosby has extensive experience in animal crime investigation and teaches crime scene and other investigative procedures to Law Enforcement and Animal Control agencies. Dr. Crosby has taught the Florida Animal Control Certification curriculum and, as Director for Canine Encounters for the National Law Enforcement Center on Animal Abuse, has developed a nation-wide curriculum for Police and Law Enforcement regarding the proper use of force in canine encounters. He is a regular consultant and expert witness regarding legal cases in local, State, and US Federal Courts. Additionally, Dr. Crosby has extensive experience in animal crime investigation and teaches crime scene and other investigative procedures to Law Enforcement and Animal Control agencies. He has substantial training and experience in the investigation of animal fighting cases and has extensive experience in the evaluation and rehabilitation of former fighting dogs. He has conducted many behavioral evaluations on former fighting dogs, aggressive and dangerous dogs, and those with mild to severe dog-dog reactivity.

If you have any questions regarding this training, please contact our Training Committee at training@acoam.org

Award nominations are now open!

ACOAM has been proud to recognize hard working individuals and organizations within the field of animal control and animal welfare at our Annual Meeting & Banquet.

We are now offering online nomination forms for a number of awards, including:

I.M.P.A.C.T. Award
Paul Murphy Golden Bone Award
Richard “Dick” Stein Award
Shining Star
Certificates of Appreciation
Organization of the Year
Animal Control Officer of the Year (awarded by Animal Rescue League of Boston and MSPCA-Angell)
… and more!

A description for each award, including nomination qualifications, and our new nomination forms can be found by clicking here.

We look forward to hearing your stories of all of the individuals deserving of recognition!

Happy National Animal Control Officer Appreciation Week! April 9-15, 2023

Happy Animal Control Officer Appreciation Week!

Letter from the President

On behalf of the Animal Control Officers Association of Massachusetts (ACOAM) Board of Directors I want to take a moment to bring attention to this week, April 9 – April 15 2023, which is recognized as National Animal Control Officer Appreciation Week. Animal Control Officers nationwide and, especially so, right here at home in Massachusetts go above and beyond the call of duty every day they put on their uniforms and go to work! For many it is not just a job and for all it is an honor to do the work that we do. We not only focus on making the lives of the pets within the communities we serve better, we also strive to ensure that we make a positive impact on our citizens – in doing so, we make plenty of personal sacrifices along the way. The job we perform is often thankless and the ACOAM board would like to take this moment to recognize all of you for your dedication, commitment, and the sacrifices you all tirelessly make each day to this profession. We should be proud of the work we all do and the ACOAM board knows that we have some of the best ACO’s in the entire country working right here for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. Remain strong, continue your impactful work, and stay safe!

– Matt Lipinski
ACOAM President