CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT 1, IAABC 1

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Emotional Dog -

Riding the canine emotional roller-coaster in our chaotic human world

For those of us compassionate about animal welfare, we want our dogs, and the dogs we work with professionally, to trust us and to be fundamentally ‘happy’ in their day-to-day lives. But what does ‘happy’ actually mean? Over the last 2 decades there have been huge steps forward in our understanding of emotional states in other animals, and much of the more recent research has used dogs as the model because they are easy to study and, like us, have rich emotional lives. We now know what emotional states we humans share with other animals and we also know the emotional states that are most likely to be unique to us. We know where they are generated in the brain, how they work and what happens when they go wrong.

Canis lupus familiaris is the victim of its own success. The process of domestication has led to a number of modifications to the functionality of the core emotional systems that has left dogs more vulnerable to developing mental illness akin to those of humans. In this webinar, Robert will show you where these weaknesses are located neurophysiologically and emotionally, and why you need to know about them in order to fix them. This knowledge is hugely important for anyone working with dogs and are concerned about their welfare, including dog owners, trainers, behaviourists and veterinary professionals. The knowledge you will gain will change how you see dogs forever. This is a bold statement, but it is true.

 

Key Learning Objectives

1. Understand the functional organisation of the canine self.
2. Understand the influence of genetics on canine emotionality.
3. Understand the vulnerability of emotional systems to trauma.
4. Understand the roles of epigenetics and neural plasticity in emotional repair and restoration.

About The Presenter

Dr Robert Falconer-Taylor BVetMed DipCABT MRCVS

Dr. Robert Falconer-Taylor was veterinary director and head of education of the Centre of Applied Pet Ethology (COAPE), the first organisation in the UK to develop government-regulated courses to degree level specifically in companion animal behaviour and training. COAPE also developed the renowned EMRA system used by behaviourists and trainers all over the world, now summarised in their book – EMRA Intelligence: The revolutionary new approach to treating behaviour problems in dogs.

He teaches and consults around the world along with writing for the veterinary and other professional press. He is also author of the informative EMOTIONS-R-US Blog, published on the Emotions-R-Us website, which has been taken up and endorsed by many training and behaviour organisations all over the world.

He is an international consultant to the pet industry where he has engaged in the development and risk assessment of pet ‘toys’ targeted specifically at promoting the welfare of pets and their relationships with their owners. He has been actively involved in the development of the ‘The Puppy Plan’, first launched in February 2012 and updated in 2014, a collaboration between Dogs Trust and the Kennel Club. He is also a member of the International Cat Care Behavioural Advisory Panel.

His primary academic interests include companion animal cognitive science and emotionality, nutrition and its effects on behaviour, and applied neurophysiology, pharmacology and therapeutics in companion animal behaviour therapy.

He promotes the idea wherever and whenever he can that – “The key to better animal welfare is through education and better understanding of the rich emotional lives our pets share with us”.

Register Today & You May Win a FREE BOOK!

 

All those who register and attend the live event, will be in with a chance to win a copy of Dr. Zazie Todd’s upcoming book!

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT 1, IAABC 1, KPA 1

As dogs are increasingly seen as part of the family, we also want to make them happy. In this exciting webinar, animal behaviour expert Zazie Todd will share insights from her forthcoming book Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy, which features a foreword from none other than Dr. Marty Becker. The webinar will begin by looking at the role of emotions in a dog’s welfare, before sharing fascinating scientific research on dogs – and practical tips you can use with your own or clients’ dogs.

The webinar will cover topics important for dog trainers and dog owners, including reasons to use reward-based training methods, why some enrichment should involve the nose, and why dogs play. As well, we will look at the important role of the owner in providing a secure base for their pet, and why this shows you should comfort a fearful dog (if they want it).

Learning objectives:

• Understand the role of positive emotions (happiness) in dogs’ welfare
• Know why it is better to use reward-based training methods
• Identify ways to apply recent scientific knowledge in puppy socialization and dog training
• Develop tips for having happier dogs

About The Presenter

Dr. Zazie Todd

Zazie Todd is the creator of Companion Animal Psychology, a blog about how to have happier cats and dogs (according to science). She has a PhD in Psychology, an MFA Creative Writing, and is an honors graduate of the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers. She takes dogs and cats as clients through her business Blue Mountain Animal Behaviour. She has a Psychology Today blog called Fellow Creatures, and has also written about pets for Pacific Standard, The Psychologist, and Reader’s Digest. Her book, Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy, will be published by Greystone Books in February 2020.

CEUs: PPAB 1.5

This webinar will focus on the dogs who develop aggressive behaviours toward their owners. We will talk a little about what aggressive behaviours are, and how they are perceived by the owners, how they influence the dynamic and relationships in the house, how to address it, manage it and help a dog develop new behaviours.

Learning Objectives

• What does aggressive behaviour looks like
• Why do dogs use aggressive behaviour
• Safety in dealing with dogs who show aggressive behaviours
• Strategies to change aggressive behaviours
• Defensive aggressive behaviour what does it mean?
• How to change the owners and thus change the behaviour?
• Is it management or is it behaviour modification techniques?
• Expectations about other species behaviours and what we want from dogs

About The Presenter

Claudia Estanislau

Claudia is a Certified Dog Trainer and Behavior Consultant. She is currently the manager of It's All About Dogs training center in Portugal operating from four locations. Claudia has been a lecturer at several seminars in Portugal and Brazil on learning theory, aggression and force free training. Paula is also a writer for a national dog magazine in Portugal and writes on dog behavior and training.

Claudia’s formal qualifications are DTBC from the CASI Institute. Claudia completed the LLA course with Dr. Susan Friedman and Claudia is an Associate Certified member at IAABC and a PPG Member.

CEUs: PPAB 1

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Fish have historically not been considered animals that we should care about. Only recently has the scientific community reached some sort of consensus on whether fish are even able to suffer from pain. Assuming that fish can not suffer leads people to treat them as less important and less worthy of empathy than other animals. However, animal welfare legislation in many countries includes fish under the umbrella of vertebrates, limiting what scientists are able to do and setting minimum care requirements for people who keep fish.

Perhaps hypocritically and at least counterintuitively, fish welfare in commercial fisheries is never brought up. Sometimes, there is a debate on the ethics of angling and survival studies of released fish are carried out to assess the impact of catching fish and releasing them. However, angling is only a small way in which humans affect fish welfare. We also farm fish and we keep them as pets. Assuming that fish welfare does matter, what should we do? This webinar will cover some of the things to take into consideration in terms of fish welfare. This will cover “ethical eating”, keeping pet fish, and interacting with fish in nature.

Learning Objectives

Ása Johannesen is a fish welfare scientist working with welfare in farmed fish. She has a PhD in behavioural ecology and has previously trained in animal behaviour and welfare including a BSc with a focus on domestic and captive animals. Having worked for several years with lumpfish, a species that is new to aquaculture, Ása is currently focusing on new challenges for salmon in traditional aquaculture. When she's not working, she enjoys spending time and caring for her cat, dog, and husband in addition to many plants.

CEUs: PPAB 1

“Learning is a relatively permanent change in behavior potentiality that occurs as a result of reinforced practice” – G.A. Kimble

All animals, human and non human, learn in a number of different ways – through trial and error, insight, socially or by association, nonetheless dog trainers typically train with only one approach. Conventional training relies on instrumental and associative learning to accomplish its goals; trainers work with classical and operant conditioning to utilize rewards or punishment to reinforce or dissuade behaviors. How conditioning is applied however, varies greatly in method and technique. Positive trainers encounter a veritable schism of to click or not to click, how to treat, when to treat, how often, to be silent or to be verbal, to use emotion or be neutral, to use one word or two, where to put a name if at all, to use body language or be still, to use eye contact or not and so on. All of which can be a not so positive divide in the world of positive dog training.

Our individual approaches to dog training are highly influenced by what everyone else is doing or cultural norms, personal intuition and experience. And while that may be why we train the way we do, what does science have to say about the how to best train a dog question?

Focusing on the most effective and humane ways to train dogs- without force – this webinar takes a look at some of the latest research on the use of social learning as training methodology and offers insights into the comparisons of the effectiveness of verbal markers, acoustic markers or none when paired with positive reinforcement.

Learning Objectives

• Take a closer look at how learning theory posits a number of different ways all animals learn. How well suited are these to how we train dogs?

• Review the latest research on social learning for dog training.

• Know what the studies find as the most effective cues, markers and reinforcers in associative learning techniques used in training.

•  Answer the “to click or not to click” question

About The Presenter

Frania Shelley-Grielen is a professional animal behaviorist, dog trainer and educator who holds a Masters Degrees in Animal Behavior from Hunter College and a Masters Degree in Urban Planning from New York University, Complimenting her insight into behavior with an in-depth understanding of the built environment. She is a licensed Pet Care Technician Instructor, a registered therapy dog handler, a certified Doggone Safe Bite Safety Instructor, and a professional member of the Pet Professional Guild and the Association of Pet Dog Trainers. Frania specializes in behavior modification work and training with cats, dogs and birds and humane management for urban wildlife.

Frania is the author of Cats and Dogs; Living with and Looking at Companion Animals from their Point of View. She founded AnimalBehaviorist.us in 2009, to share her work on how welfare based, science focused strategies and solutions from the canine and feline point of view are more effective and make everyone happier, including the humans. Frania also taught the ASPCA’s Fundamentals of Dog Care course for the Houlton Institute where she is on the zoology faculty. She has worked on research projects at the Wildlife Conservation Society, the American Museum of Natural History and the ASPCA in NYC. Frania presents and consults in the metropolitan New York area, nationally and internationally. She lives in New York City with her family and cats and dogs.

CEUs: PPAB 1.5

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Re-think Trigger Stacking - Shedding some (candle) light on triggers for behaviors we wish to modify or change

Edie-Jane Eaton has shared her ‘candle’ concept for many years.  We may all be aware of the term ‘trigger stacking’ but Edie-Jane’s brilliant analogy helps canine guardians look more closely at the multiple ‘candles’ that may be burning for a dog that is struggling to learn or cope with his environment and human led activities.

Several candles may be alight due to internal problems such as pain, patterns of tension through the body, the environment at home including slippery floors, noise sensitivity, the games that are played and the way a dog is touched long before more candles are lit once out in the big wide world. 

Whilst it may not be possible to blow out every candle, there is a lot that we can do to help our clients snuff out the flames, reducing ‘ heat’ and enabling a dog to settle and learn. 

This webinar presentation will also include the following learning objectives

1. The link between posture and behavior
2. Introduction to ACE Free Work
3. Simple leash handling techniques to reduce body tension

About The Presenter

Sarah Fisher

Tilley Farm, Farmborough,

Sarah Fisher is a canine and equine behavior advisor. She has worked with animals for over twenty years and incorporates some of the elements of the Tellington TTouch method in her work. She is experienced with a wide range of breed types and teaches staff workshops for many of the UK’s animal welfare organizations including Battersea. She has also worked in Europe teaching staff workshops for shelters including SPCA Malta and GIA (Romania) and has taught workshops and clinics for dog trainers and behaviorists in Holland, Greece, Switzerland, Italy, Austria, South Africa, Ireland, Romania and Poland.

Sarah gives presentations on a variety of topics at dog training and behavior seminars in the UK and abroad, and is a regular speaker at the annual Dog Behaviour Conference (UK). She also conducts behavior assessments for private clients, animal welfare organizations and court cases.

Sarah is a published author and has participated in numerous television and radio programs over the years including the recent Nightmare Pets SOS for BBC1. She runs courses under the name Animal Centred Education (ACE) for trainers, groomers, veterinary nurses, physiotherapists and animal behavior counsellors who wish to broaden their expertize by learning detailed observations combined with Free Work, and techniques inspired by other professionals working in the world of animal welfare and behavior.

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT 1, IAABC (pending), KPA 1

Registered for the live event, get busy and cannot make it!

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"Build it and they will come” worked in the classic movie Field of Dreams. However, that same “build it” concept does not work in creating a successful business! In today’s world of clutter, it’s imperative to have marketing and advertising messages that get directly to those needing our services. In this fast-paced, entertaining and exciting webinar, over 50 marketing and advertising ideas will be presented, giving every attendee the sure-fire opportunity to walk away with immediately applicable ways to grow a business!

Checkout the Pet Loss & Grief Companioning Certification Course  Presented by Coleen Ellis February 22, 2020 - February 23, 2020.  Click here. If you attend the workshop then you receive a FREE webinar ticket for this event and the other event called How to Conduct a Successful Pet Loss Support Group. Presented by Coleen Ellis

In 2009, Coleen founded Two Hearts Pet Loss Center, to guide people who wish to provide meaningful pet death care services in their communities, as well to be an educational resource in the pet grief discipline. In 2009, she received the first Death and Grief Studies Certification specializing in Pet Loss Companioning by Dr. Alan Wolfelt as well as releasing her first book, Pet Parents: A Journey Through Unconditional Love and Grief. She is also Certified in Thanatology and is a Certified Pet Loss Professional.

By 2014, Coleen was ready to take her vision to a new level. Joining Nick Padlo as managing partner and Chief Marketing Officer, they formed an acquisition company whose mission is to standardize and raise the service levels of the pet loss industry. The Pet Loss Center strives to be the nation’s premier pet loss service, elevating the experiential component of pet loss and grief care across the country. In 2019, she shifted her position with The Pet Loss Center to an Advisory/Consultant role.

Coleen is an internationally sought-after speaker on the topics of pet loss and grief. Through her delivery style, pet care professionals learn a variety of techniques immediately applicable to implement on how to companion families in their grief journey. Furthermore, her talks to pet parents give them the permission they need to not only grieve but mourn the loss of their beloved pet.

Coleen is the founder and past co-chair of the Pet Loss Professionals Alliance and past president of the International Association of Animal Hospice and Palliative Care, where she currently serves as an advisor. She is a native of Kansas where she graduated from Fort Hays State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing. She currently sits on the Board of Trustees for Fort Hays State University, and is a recipient of the 2018 Alumni Achievement Award, the college’s highest recognition for graduates.

Dallas, TX, is where Coleen and her husband, Chris Burke, reside. They share their home with their four-legged kids, Crisco, Rudy & Albert.

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT (pending), IAABC (pending), KPA (pending)

Welcome to the age of genetic testing! Suddenly panels of genetic tests for dogs are relatively affordable for the average pet owner. These tests claim to tell you what your dog’s breed ancestry is (for those of us with mystery mixes) and to give you a heads-up about possible health issues. However, although similar direct-to-consumer testing is carefully regulated for humans, there is no regulation in place for them in veterinary medicine. Additionally, while trained genetic counselors are available to help interpret these results for your human family, no such speciality exists among veterinarians, and general practice veterinarians are not typically trained in this area. How much can we trust the results of these tests? Are some tests or companies more reliable than others? Dr. Hekman is a veterinarian and a genomics researcher who studies canine genetics. She will explain how these tests work, and will build on that explanation to explain the differences between various products, and which products are helpful in which situations.

Learning Objectives:

• Be able to read canine ancestry results ("what breeds are in your mix?") with an understanding of which results are more or less reliable, and why.
• Evaluate different genetic testing companies with an understanding of which products are better for your needs.
• Understand and explain differences between health test results with traditional at risk/carrier/clear status versus those with more complex interpretation.
• Describe the basics of how genetic testing works.

About The Presenter

Dr. Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD

Jessica is a veterinary researcher who is fascinated by dog behavior. After eleven years working as a computer programmer, she decided to go back to school to research the causes of behavior problems in dogs. She received her veterinary degree in 2012 from the Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Massachusetts, where she also received a Master's degree for her work on stress behaviors in hospitalized dogs. After graduation, she completed a year-long internship specializing in shelter medicine at the University of Florida Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program. She received her PhD in genetics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, studying a group of foxes (often known as the "Siberian silver foxes") which have been bred over many generations to be friendly to humans. She is currently working at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard as a postdoctoral associate, studying the genetics of behavior in pet dogs through the Darwin's Ark project and the Working Dogs Project. Her ultimate goal is to find genetic causes of fearfulness in dogs, to work with behaviorally challenged shelter dogs, and to help people better understand the science behind dog behavior. She also frequently teaches online classes and webinars about canine genetics and behavior. Jessica lives in Raymond, NH with her husband and three dogs. You can follow her on Twitter @dogzombieblog or on Facebook at facebook.com/dogzombieblog.

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT 1, IAABC (pending), KPA 1

Registered for the live event, get busy and cannot make it!

No worries you will automatically receive a recording!

Starting and continuing a successful pet loss support group is exciting, and tedious, all at the same time. In this session, attendees will hear the finer points of how to market a pet loss support group, how to create a continuum of mourning activities throughout the events to seamlessly walk with families from session to session, as well as how to maintain a safe group and assist with the emotions of the group. Furthermore, are physical group meetings the only type of pet loss sessions that can be successful? If is in your initiatives as a pet care professional, this course is FOR YOU as you will get all of those answers and more!

Checkout the Pet Loss & Grief Companioning Certification Course  Presented by Coleen Ellis February 22, 2020 - February 23, 2020.  Click here. If you attend the workshop then you receive a FREE webinar ticket for this event and the other event called The Finer Points of Marketing Pet Loss Services. Presented by Coleen Ellis

In 2009, Coleen founded Two Hearts Pet Loss Center, to guide people who wish to provide meaningful pet death care services in their communities, as well to be an educational resource in the pet grief discipline. In 2009, she received the first Death and Grief Studies Certification specializing in Pet Loss Companioning by Dr. Alan Wolfelt as well as releasing her first book, Pet Parents: A Journey Through Unconditional Love and Grief. She is also Certified in Thanatology and is a Certified Pet Loss Professional.

By 2014, Coleen was ready to take her vision to a new level. Joining Nick Padlo as managing partner and Chief Marketing Officer, they formed an acquisition company whose mission is to standardize and raise the service levels of the pet loss industry. The Pet Loss Center strives to be the nation’s premier pet loss service, elevating the experiential component of pet loss and grief care across the country. In 2019, she shifted her position with The Pet Loss Center to an Advisory/Consultant role.

Coleen is an internationally sought-after speaker on the topics of pet loss and grief. Through her delivery style, pet care professionals learn a variety of techniques immediately applicable to implement on how to companion families in their grief journey. Furthermore, her talks to pet parents give them the permission they need to not only grieve but mourn the loss of their beloved pet.

Coleen is the founder and past co-chair of the Pet Loss Professionals Alliance and past president of the International Association of Animal Hospice and Palliative Care, where she currently serves as an advisor. She is a native of Kansas where she graduated from Fort Hays State University with a Bachelor of Science degree in Marketing. She currently sits on the Board of Trustees for Fort Hays State University, and is a recipient of the 2018 Alumni Achievement Award, the college’s highest recognition for graduates.

Dallas, TX, is where Coleen and her husband, Chris Burke, reside. They share their home with their four-legged kids, Crisco, Rudy & Albert.

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT (pending), IAABC (pending), KPA (pending)

This presentation is geared to introduce Mantrailing as a dog sport. It will talk about our methods to teach it, the hypothetical science behind it and how the sport can influence a dog´s behaviour even off the trail.

As with other dog sports, the reward system plays an important role to get a more driven canine partner for the task.

But what is it that makes Mantrailing such a popular dog sport around the world? Can any dog participate?

Lisa will be answering any questions, that you might have about Mantrailing, after the presentation.

Learning objectives:

• What is Mantrailing?
• Tasks of a Mantrailer
• How do we teach Mantrailing?
• What is the dog looking for on the trail?
• Introduction to the science of scent
• Can any dog do Mantrailing?
• How can Mantrailing influence a dog´s behaviour?
• The reward system
• The scent article

About The Presenter

Lisa Gorenflo

Lisa Gorenflo is an active operational Mantrailing dog handler who will be assisting the Search & Rescue and Police in the UK with her young German Wirehaired Pointer, Rufus.

She gained her certification as a Mantrailing Instructor for Mantrailing International over the past 4 years and is the only instructor to hold this qualification in the UK. She qualified her own dog under the British Mantrailing Academy and was also awarded the Skills for Justice certificate.

Mantrailing UK is the only Mantrailing training centre in the UK certified by Mantrailing International.

Lisa has a background in the IGP and THS sport. She has worked with dogs all over the world, including rescue centres in Germany and the US, rehabilitating and training dogs for a better life.

Her training is based on the Kocher Method, but she tailors all of her training to work for each individual dog handler team. Her goal is for each team to find their way together.

Lisa has brought the Mantrailing sport over to the UK 5 years ago.

Mantrailing UK has 32 instructors in the UK as well as Guernsey and Spain. Lisa strives to work together with international organisations such as the FEGMA, the Spanish Federation of Mantrailing Groups, to make this sport accessible to more people around the globe.

A 2-Day Workshop with Leslie McDevitt

Reactive to Relaxed: Next Steps in Control Unleashed 

CEUS: PPAB 12, CCPDT 13, IAABC Working: 15 Auditor: 12

Both Working Spots & Auditor Spots Available

Want Monthly Payments?

If you would like to spread your payments over a few months, then go ahead and register. Do not pay the initial invoice you receive. Email Sharon Nettles within 24 hours of registration and she can help get you all set up.

Daily Schedule

9:00 AM – 4:30 PM, with breaks at 10:30 AM-10:45 AM (refreshments), 12 Noon-1 PM (lunch) and 2:30 PM-2:45 PM (refreshments).

Come learn what's new in Leslie McDevitt's groundbreaking Control Unleashed training program!

In this workshop, Leslie will teach material from her newest book Control Unleashed: Reactive to Relaxed.

Working dogs will enjoy discovering they can make choices and control outcomes with counter conditioning games such as Pattern Games, Voluntary Sharing, and Requested Approach Training. Using these games and other foundational training from the Control Unleashed program, we will explore how to use voluntary or 'start-button' behavior to empower anxious or reactive dogs to direct their own learning experience.

Leslie McDevitt MLA CDBC CPDT-KA

Leslie is a dog behavior consultant, author, and speaker who specializes in creating operant counter conditioning procedures to empower working, performance, and pet dogs to feel safe and comfortable so they can function confidently in stressful environments. She has taught the material from her groundbreaking book Control Unleashed: Creating a Focused and Confident Dog to students all over the world, and her books have been translated into multiple languages. She has also presented at various conferences including Clicker Expo, Penn Vet Working Dog Conference, The UK Puppy Conference, and is looking forward to her debut at PPG.

Workshop Location

This event is sponsored and hosted at the DogSmith Training Center & DogNostics Career Center. The facility is a 2000 square foot fully air-conditioned indoor training room on 24 acres, with Kings Lake as a backdrop. RVs are welcome but there is no water or power hookup. The confirmation email gives local accommodation details and directions to the facility. See pictures here . Event location is 9122 Kenton Road, Wesley Chapel. FL 33545

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT (pending), IAABC (pending), KPA (pending)

It is likely that social isolation contributes to reduced welfare for dogs living in animal shelters. One type of intervention that addresses this concern, human interaction out of the kennel, has been demonstrated to improve behavior and reduce physiological measures of stress for shelter-living dogs.

In this presentation, I will discuss research from the Canine Science Collaboratory & the Applied Animal Welfare & Behavior Lab that was conducted across the United States in which we’ve investigated the impact of two-nights away (sleepovers) from the shelter; and more recently, two-hour outings (field trips) on dogs’ stress, rest, and activity levels. We’ll examine their particular effects to better understand how these programs are impacting the lives of dogs awaiting adoption in animal shelters.

Learning Objectives:

• Gain a better understanding of the impact of human interaction on the welfare of dogs living in animal shelters
• Reference the different physiological and activity measures used to measure canine welfare
• Differentiate the effects of these interventions and their overall impact on welfare
• Utilize this information to develop enrichment strategies for dogs in your shelter

About The Presenter

Dr. Lisa Gunter

Lisa Gunter, PhD, CBCC-KA is the Maddie's Fund Research Fellow at Arizona State University in the Department of Psychology and conducts her research in the Canine Science Collaboratory. She currently leads the Maddie’s Fund Nationwide Fostering Study. Before beginning her graduate studies, she worked for nearly a decade with dogs in animal shelters and with pet dogs and their owners. The goal of Lisa's research is to better the lives of dogs. To this aim, she has investigated the breed labeling of shelter dogs, their breed heritage, housing and dog-to-dog interaction in the shelter, temporary fostering and short-term outings, behavioral indicators of welfare, and post-adoption interventions focused on owner retention. Under the mentorship of Clive Wynne, Lisa earned her Masters in 2015, and her PhD in 2018 as a graduate student in the behavioral neuroscience program at Arizona State University. She has published her research in scientific journals, presented her findings at numerous conferences, and received national and international media attention for her work.

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT (pending), IAABC (pending), KPA (pending)

So you have a shy dog - one who's easily frightened of strange people or places, or maybe even one who sits at home IMAGINING what horrible thing might happen next. Is this because of genetics? Or did you mess up somehow? In this webinar, Jessica will talk about the biology behind anxiety: the roles of genetics, early environment (as early as in mom's uterus!), and socialization.

Spoiler alert: you didn't mess up. But this webinar will help you understand better where your dog is coming from and help you think through the many different puzzle pieces that made her who she is. Jessica will also provide concrete suggestions for breeders, puppy buyers, and working dog trainers to help minimize the chances of producing or buying anxious dogs.

Learning Objectives:

• List the different methods by which parents pass information on to their offspring, which might make offspring more or less anxious

• Discuss the importance of mild stress, but not trauma, in early life

• Explain how genetics and early life experiences can interact to result in adult anxiety

• Describe the pre-fear period in puppies and explain its relevance to adult anxiety

• List some negative effects of stress in terms of health and well-being

About The Presenter

Dr. Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD

Jessica is a veterinary researcher who is fascinated by dog behavior. After eleven years working as a computer programmer, she decided to go back to school to research the causes of behavior problems in dogs. She received her veterinary degree in 2012 from the Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Massachusetts, where she also received a Master's degree for her work on stress behaviors in hospitalized dogs. After graduation, she completed a year-long internship specializing in shelter medicine at the University of Florida Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program. She received her PhD in genetics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, studying a group of foxes (often known as the "Siberian silver foxes") which have been bred over many generations to be friendly to humans. She is currently working at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard as a postdoctoral associate, studying the genetics of behavior in pet dogs through the Darwin's Ark project and the Working Dogs Project. Her ultimate goal is to find genetic causes of fearfulness in dogs, to work with behaviorally challenged shelter dogs, and to help people better understand the science behind dog behavior. She also frequently teaches online classes and webinars about canine genetics and behavior. Jessica lives in Raymond, NH with her husband and three dogs. You can follow her on Twitter @dogzombieblog or on Facebook at facebook.com/dogzombieblog.

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT (pending), IAABC (pending), KPA (pending)

Veterinarians used to routinely recommend that your dog be neutered (spayed or castrated) at 6 months of age.  That recommendation has been questioned in the past decade as information about the possible health consequences of early age neuter (or neuter at any age) comes to light.

Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD, will discuss what we know about the relationship of spay/neuter timing and changes in the risk of development of cancer and/or of orthopedic injuries such as cranial cruciate ligament disease (CCL tear).  She will also talk about how spay/neuter can affect behavior, for better or worse.  She will specifically discuss some recent studies and will detail problems designing effective studies to ask these questions. She will also cover alternative approaches to the traditional spay/neuter surgery. If you are wondering when, or if, you should neuter your dog, make your decision based on facts, not emotions.

Learning Objectives:

• Interpret recent findings about spay/neuter outcomes in light of what those studies can actually tell us
• Make reasoned decisions about the risk of cancer/orthopedic disease and early spay/neuter
• List alternatives to traditional spay/neuter and compare their pros and cons to traditional spay/neuter
• RELAX about this decision!
  

About The Presenter

Dr. Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD

Jessica is a veterinary researcher who is fascinated by dog behavior. After eleven years working as a computer programmer, she decided to go back to school to research the causes of behavior problems in dogs. She received her veterinary degree in 2012 from the Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Massachusetts, where she also received a Master's degree for her work on stress behaviors in hospitalized dogs. After graduation, she completed a year-long internship specializing in shelter medicine at the University of Florida Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program. She received her PhD in genetics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, studying a group of foxes (often known as the "Siberian silver foxes") which have been bred over many generations to be friendly to humans. She is currently working at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard as a postdoctoral associate, studying the genetics of behavior in pet dogs through the Darwin's Ark project and the Working Dogs Project. Her ultimate goal is to find genetic causes of fearfulness in dogs, to work with behaviorally challenged shelter dogs, and to help people better understand the science behind dog behavior. She also frequently teaches online classes and webinars about canine genetics and behavior. Jessica lives in Raymond, NH with her husband and three dogs. You can follow her on Twitter @dogzombieblog or on Facebook at facebook.com/dogzombieblog.

CEUs: PPAB 1, CCPDT (pending), IAABC (pending), KPA (pending)

Anxiety is a major problem for many pet dogs. What happens in your dog's brain and body when something scares her? How long can you expect her stress response to last?

In this webinar, Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD, will talk about the stress response in dogs. She will explain the original evolutionary purpose of the stress response; what the hormones involved in it (like cortisol) do in the body; the difference between acute and chronic stress and the different effects they have on dogs' health; and what we know about how long it takes the body to clear those hormones. You will definitely learn some cool stuff about how the brain works and what that means for your stressed-out dog!

Learning Objectives:

• Describe how the stress response functions and what its purpose is.
• Describe health effects (both positive and negative!) for acute versus chronic stress.
• Explain how the stress response affects the dog's brain and their ability to think clearly and behave normally.
• Describe how long it takes the stress response to clear from the body, and list possible alternative explanations for dogs who display signs of stress longer than it takes for stress hormones to be cleared.

About The Presenter

Dr. Jessica Hekman, DVM, PhD

Jessica is a veterinary researcher who is fascinated by dog behavior. After eleven years working as a computer programmer, she decided to go back to school to research the causes of behavior problems in dogs. She received her veterinary degree in 2012 from the Tufts Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine in Massachusetts, where she also received a Master's degree for her work on stress behaviors in hospitalized dogs. After graduation, she completed a year-long internship specializing in shelter medicine at the University of Florida Maddie's Shelter Medicine Program. She received her PhD in genetics at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, studying a group of foxes (often known as the "Siberian silver foxes") which have been bred over many generations to be friendly to humans. She is currently working at the Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard as a postdoctoral associate, studying the genetics of behavior in pet dogs through the Darwin's Ark project and the Working Dogs Project. Her ultimate goal is to find genetic causes of fearfulness in dogs, to work with behaviorally challenged shelter dogs, and to help people better understand the science behind dog behavior. She also frequently teaches online classes and webinars about canine genetics and behavior. Jessica lives in Raymond, NH with her husband and three dogs. You can follow her on Twitter @dogzombieblog or on Facebook at facebook.com/dogzombieblog.