Kersti graduated in Veterinary Science with Honours from Sydney University and became very interested in animal behaviour while working overseas. To further her knowledge she went back to university graduating from Macquarie University with a BA in Behavioural Sciences with a major in psychology. In 1992 she began developing the program of Puppy Preschools® in veterinary hospitals around Australia, and while no longer running these programs regularly remains actively involved in their development. This interest led her to complete a MA (Hons) degree by thesis on the long and short term behavioural effects of puppy socialisation and training programs.

Kersti is a registered specialist in Animal Behaviour, a Fellow of the Australian College of Veterinary Scientists in Animal Behaviour and a Diplomate of the American College of Veterinary Behaviourists. She is a member of the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behaviour, member of the Australasian Society for the Study of Animal Behaviour and the Delta Society. She has studied at Cornell University, USA, University of Pennsylvania, USA, Guelph University, Canada and Queensland University, Australia. In 1999 she spent 7 months on faculty at the University of Pennsylvania, based in the Department of Clinical Studies, Animal Behaviour Clinic.

Dr Seksel runs a behavioural referral practice in Sydney and is actively involved in developing Puppy Preschool® and Kitten Kindy® training programmes for veterinarians and veterinary nurses. She teaches the Post Graduate Foundation, Sydney University Distance Education Course in Behavioural Medicine as well as lectures to students at Sydney University and University of NSW. She is also a tutor in the North American Veterinary Post Graduate Course in Behavioural Medicine. Currently, she serves as a member of the ASAVA committee and is president of the Animal Behaviour Chapter of the Australian College of Veterinary Scientists. Kersti has presented at conferences and meetings in Australia, NZ, UK, Japan, China, Taiwan, Europe, Canada and USA. She has published numerous papers on animal behaviour in scientific journals, magazines and periodicals and is a regular contributor to print and electronic media. Currently she is a regular presenter on ABC radio on pet care and behaviour on behaviour problems.

Last updated: February 2006