Board-certified
ACVB, North America
Board-certified
ECAWBM, Europe
Author
Small Animal Veterinary Psychiatry
Teaches
Universities of Bristol and Edinburgh
EDMONTON AND ALBERTA · Virtual consultations for dogs and cats
When training hasn't worked, your pet needs a diagnosis, not another class.
Dr. Sagi Denenberg is a board-certified veterinary behaviour specialist, one of a small number worldwide certified in both North America and Europe. He sees Edmonton families by video, so help starts at home, where the behaviour actually happens.
Board-certified, ACVB and ECAWBM
Wrote the textbook
1.5 to 2 hour consultations
Virtual, anywhere in Alberta
A real diagnosis. Full history, medical factors, environment, emotional state. You will finally know what is driving the behaviour.
A written, step-by-step plan built for your household: behaviour modification, management, and medication when it is clinically appropriate.
The specialist himself, every time. Every consultation is with Dr. Denenberg, not a junior or an associate.
Dr. Sagi Denenberg, DVM, Dip. ACVB, Dip. ECAWBM
Rated Excellent by families like Herbie's, whose rescue dog had started biting and is now "calmer, more settled, and far more relaxed."
WHAT DR. DENENBERG TREATS
From early concerns to the cases nobody else will take.
Specialist assessment and treatment for dogs and cats across Alberta.
Aggression
Toward people, other animals, or both. Growling, snapping, biting, lunging, or conflict at home.
Anxiety and fear
Generalized anxiety, fear of people, new places, handling, or specific situations.
Separation distress
Panic when left alone: vocalizing, destruction, restlessness, accidents.
Reactivity
Over-the-top responses to other dogs, people, vehicles, or noises on walks.
Sound phobia
Thunderstorms, fireworks, construction. Usually gets worse without treatment.
Compulsive behaviours
Licking, pacing, tail chasing, shadow chasing that the pet can't seem to stop.
House soiling
Litter box avoidance, marking, and anxiety-related accidents.
Multi-pet conflict
Tension, avoidance, or fights between pets sharing a home.
Cognitive dysfunction
Disorientation, disrupted sleep, and new anxiety in senior pets.
SOUND FAMILIAR?
You've tried. It keeps coming back.
You've done the training.
Puppy class. A private trainer. Maybe a behaviourist too. Things improved for a few weeks, then slid right back to where they were.
It's getting worse, not better.
What started as a growl is now a snap. What started as whining at the door is now a destroyed door frame and a neighbour complaining.
You're scared of where this ends.
Someone getting hurt. A vet or a friend suggesting you rehome. The question you don't want to say out loud. You are not the first family to feel this way.
Here is what nobody told you: behaviour disorders are medical conditions.
Fear, anxiety, chronic stress, pain and brain chemistry drive most serious behaviour problems. Training changes what a pet does. It cannot change what a pet feels. That is why the same problem keeps coming back, no matter how good the trainer was.
A veterinary behaviour specialist diagnoses what is driving the behaviour first, then treats it. That is the whole difference, and it is why families come to Dr. Denenberg after everything else.
YOUR SPECIALIST
Meet Dr. Sagi Denenberg
Sagi decided to specialize in behaviour in his first year of vet school, after learning that behaviour problems are one of the most common reasons pets are surrendered or euthanized. He has spent his career since on the cases that are hardest to solve: aggression, anxiety, fear, and the problems that have not improved with anything else.
After a formal residency in veterinary behavioural medicine, he became board-certified in North America and then in Europe, a combination held by only a small number of specialists worldwide. He wrote the textbook Small Animal Veterinary Psychiatry that other veterinarians learn from, and he teaches at the University of Bristol and on the University of Edinburgh's MSc program.
Diplomate, American College of Veterinary Behaviourists (ACVB). Board-certified specialist status in North America.
Diplomate, European College of Animal Welfare and Behavioural Medicine (ECAWBM). Board-certified specialist status in Europe.
MRCVS and CCAB. Member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons and Certified Clinical Animal Behaviourist.
Author, Small Animal Veterinary Psychiatry. The clinical textbook on the subject.
University teaching. University of Bristol, University of Edinburgh MSc program, University of St. Matthew's.
"The goal is not simply to suppress behaviour. It is to improve the patient's ability to cope and function in everyday life."
Dr. Sagi Denenberg
Dr. Sagi Denenberg
DVM, Dip. ACVB, Dip. ECAWBM, MRCVS, CCAB
Clinical lead, Denenberg Veterinary Psychiatry
WHY A VETERINARY BEHAVIOUR SPECIALIST
Not all "behaviour help" is the same.
In most places anyone can call themselves a behaviourist. Here is the difference between the three, line by line.
Dog trainer
Teaches skills and manners. In most places anyone can use the title.
Veterinary degree
Rules out medical causes
Residency and board exams
Can prescribe medication
Takes aggression and high-risk cases
Works alongside your vet
Often the right call for obedience and manners. Not equipped for fear, anxiety or aggression.
Behaviourist
Non-veterinary. The title is unregulated, so training and standards vary widely.
Veterinary degree
Rules out medical causes
Residency and board exams
Can prescribe medication
Takes aggression and high-risk cases
Works alongside your vet
Can be excellent, but there is no shared standard and no medical training behind the advice.
Veterinary behaviour specialist
A veterinarian with a multi-year residency in behavioural medicine and board certification.
Veterinary degree
Rules out medical causes
Residency and board exams
Can prescribe medication
Takes aggression and high-risk cases
Works alongside your vet
Trainers do valuable work. For obedience and manners they are often the right call, and if that is all your pet needs, Dr. Denenberg will tell you so. This page is for the problems that training has not fixed.
WHAT YOU GET
Not a quick look. A proper assessment.
1
1.5 to 2 hours with the specialist
Not a 15-minute appointment. A full review of your pet's history, medical background, environment, triggers, and emotional state with Dr. Denenberg himself.
2
A diagnosis you can understand
Sagi walks you through what is driving the behaviour and why, in plain language, so the plan makes sense and you can explain it to everyone in the house.
3
A written plan for your household
Behaviour modification, management, environmental changes, and medication when it is clinically appropriate. Follow-up appointments are available as your pet progresses.
Your pet stays calm at home
No car ride, no waiting room, no clinic stress, so Sagi sees the real animal.
He sees the actual environment
The doorway, the couch, the yard. The places where it happens.
Show it, don't describe it
Share video clips of the behaviour instead of trying to explain it.
Anywhere in the South West
Serving Bristol, Bath, Weston-super-Mare, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Cardiff and beyond.
OUR TEAM
The Alberta Behaviour Specialist Team
Dr. Sagi Denenberg
DVM, Dipl. ACVB
Dr. Denenberg is a board-certified veterinary behaviour specialist with a clinical focus on complex behaviour disorders in dogs and cats. His work is grounded in accurate diagnosis, behavioural science, and evidence-based treatment, with a particular focus on cases involving aggression, anxiety, and conditions that have not improved with previous approaches.
Shelby Mildenberger
Registered Veterinary Technologist
Shelby is a Registered Veterinary Technologist and Board-Certified Veterinary Technician Specialist in Behaviour, with experience supporting dogs and cats with fear, anxiety, reactivity, aggression, and complex behavioural concerns. She combines veterinary knowledge, behavioural science, positive reinforcement, and practical management strategies in her welfare-centred approach. Shelby also specializes in cooperative care, helping animals feel more comfortable with veterinary care, grooming, and handling.
Tamara Hutchinson
Receptionist
Tamara graduated from the Animal Care Attendant programme at Sheridan College with honours in 2009 and has been working in veterinary medicine and animal care for over fifteen years. She brings a calm, dedicated approach to supporting patients and clients at the North Toronto clinic.
HOW IT WORKS
From this page to a plan, in three steps.
1
Send the form
Tell us whether it is a dog or a cat and, if you like, a sentence about what has been happening. That is it.
About 2 minutes
2
We book your time
We call or email within one business day, answer your questions, confirm the fee, and send a short intake questionnaire so Dr. Denenberg arrives prepared.
Within 1 business day
3
Your consultation
1.5 to 2 hours by video with Dr. Denenberg. You leave with a diagnosis, an explanation, and a written plan for your household.
1.5 to 2 hours, from home
Herbie is a rescue with anxiety and fear-related aggression who had reached the point of biting my husband. This was our last attempt to keep him with us. Dr. Denenberg, Lindsay, and Tamara were kind, supportive, and genuinely concerned throughout. Herbie is now calmer, more settled, and far more relaxed in daily life. We cannot thank the team enough.
H
Herbie's Family
Rescue dog · fear-related aggression
QUESTIONS FAMILIES ASK
Before you send the form
Yes, and for behaviour it is often better than a clinic visit. Dr. Denenberg sees your pet in the place the behaviour actually happens, without the stress of a car ride and a waiting room, so he sees the real animal. You can share video clips of the behaviour itself instead of trying to describe it. Any medication is prescribed and monitored appropriately and coordinated with your regular veterinarian.
It is the most common story we hear, and it is useful information: it tells us the problem is not a skills gap. Bring everything you have tried. It becomes part of the history and helps Dr. Denenberg get to the diagnosis faster.
When it is clinically appropriate, yes, and never as a shortcut. Many pets do not need it. When they do, it is usually because fear or anxiety is running so high that learning cannot happen, and medication is what makes the rest of the plan possible. You will always understand why something is recommended and what it is expected to do.
Yes. These are the cases the practice exists for. Safety and risk assessment for your household are part of the consultation, and you will get practical guidance on management from day one.
It is rarely too late. Herbie's family came to us as a last resort and he is still with them. It is also never too early: behaviour problems that are left alone tend to get worse, not better, and earlier cases are easier to treat. If you are asking the question, this is the right time to ask it.
No. Pet owners can request a consultation directly using the form on this page. Dr. Denenberg does liaise with your regular veterinarian, which is how specialist care should work, and shares his findings with them.
Probably not, and we would rather tell you that now. If the concern is limited to obedience or manners, a good trainer is the right call. If there is fear, anxiety, aggression, or a problem that training has not fixed, a specialist assessment is the right next step.
Tamara reviews your enquiry and calls or emails within one business day. She answers your questions, confirms the fee, books a time that suits you, and sends a short intake questionnaire. Then you meet Dr. Denenberg by video for your consultation.
© 2026 Denenberg Veterinary Psychiatry. Built by Rachel Kalmar Consulting