Mentoring the Next Generation of Trainers
I entered the field of dog training late in life, following my initial career in law enforcement. When I consider the things which made that 30 year career successful a long line of teachers parade through my memory and make me smile. They saw my potential, fueled my interest in learning and guided me toward my goals. They prepared me for the success which followed. At this stage in my life I think the older trainers and behavior consultants among us have an important role to play by preparing the… Continued
Book Review: Puppy Training
Recently I read a Kindle book on the subject of house training a dog, written by Alexandra Santos. I recognized her from a Pet Professional Guild webinar I attended on August 6, 2019 titled Fear Learning and How to Work With Fearful Dogs. Santos is a professional canine behavior consultant who graduated from the Animal Care College in the U.K. with a Diploma of Advanced Canine Psychology. She has previously written Puppy Problems and Puppy and Dog Care books, among other things. During her fearful dogs webinar I was impressed with… Continued
To Chase, or Not to Chase?
I live in the countryside on a 25 acre parcel surrounded by farmland. We developed our property to support wildlife. Needless to say there are critters of all kinds and in all directions. My dogs love it as much as I do. The major difference is I have no hard-wired impulse to chase the critters. My Labradors, on the other hand, face temptations every day. A little Angel sits on one shoulder preaching self-restraint while a little Devil sits on the other shouting the contrary. To chase, or not to… Continued
Prehistoric Dogs and Humans
Dogs and humans have a long history of living and working together, unique among species on this planet. In the modern age dogs wear many hats…companions, herders, protectors, search and rescue, guides for the blind, bomb and drug sniffers…just to name a few. During prehistoric times dogs served our ancestors as well. In “The Invaders: How Humans and Their Dogs Drove Neanderthals to Extinction” Pat Shipman, a retired Adjunct Professor of Anthropology at Pennsylvania State University, chronicled in exquisite scientific detail the alliance between the two predator species. That alliance conveyed… Continued
Lawn Chemicals and Dogs
Spring is a time when people work and play on their lawns. It is also when many folks apply weed killers. I did so for years and thought nothing of it. Then in 2016 I read an article in a local newspaper and learned that a nearby village was spraying a particular brand of lawn chemical in a dog park, so I did some research. Many weed killers contain 2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid (2,4-D). I learned there are over 3,000 sources in the scientific literature on this chemical. I did not read… Continued
For a Healthier Life, Don’t Let Your Pet Get Overweight
Years ago my wife and I adopted a wonderful yellow Labrador named Charlie. At first, he had normal weight, at around 75 pounds. He steadily gained weight until he reached 100 pounds. A veterinary exam determined Charlie had a thyroid problem. With daily medication his weight returned to normal. Charlie lived over 14 years, but his quality of life was cut short by severe arthritis. Like other pet owners who have lost their pets too soon, I felt cheated. In Psychology Today, Stanley Coren, Ph.D., DSc, FRSC commented on a… Continued
Beating the Winter Blues
This winter has been very challenging, especially for those of us living in the northern half of the United States. Winter has behaved like a house guest who does not know when it is time to leave. As I type this and look outside I still see thick snow and packed ice, with temperatures about 30 degrees below average. It is enough to give some folks cabin fever, and it is hard on pets too. About seven weeks ago a heavy ice storm covered my property, followed by repeated heavy… Continued
Dog Adoption, Done Right
Dog adoption is near and dear to my heart, and one which, hopefully, leads to a celebration that lasts for the life of the pet. The main concern I have heard people express is that adopting a dog is likely to result in dealing with “issues” such as fear, aggression or separation anxiety. I often hear the person express a desire to buy a puppy in order to begin with a clean slate and avoid pre-existing “issues”. I appreciate that not everyone is suitable to adopting a pet with pre-existing “issues”… Continued
Give New Pets Time to Adjust
Getting a new pet is exciting and family members may feel eager to get started with all the fun they have imagined having with their new addition. That is certainly how I felt about every new animal which I took into my care over the years. Even though the new pet may well be in a better place than previously, this is a significant change for animals and people alike. Planning ahead can help avoid pitfalls. Considering the needs of the specific species is a good first step, and the… Continued
Partnering With the Veterinary Community
As a force-free professional dog trainer and behavior consultant I practice a holistic approach to pet care and training and have worked to develop a network of professionals in various fields who serve the needs of dog owners. These services are grooming, pet sitting, boarding, daycare, pet supplies and veterinary. My goal is to develop a referral network with those who put the welfare of pets at the pinnacle of their business model, as I do. As a result of this strategy I enjoy referrals from about 15 veterinarians with… Continued
Managing Dog-Dog Greetings
Recently I attended a dog event and observed about 30 dogs and their handlers come and go in the course of three hours. Most of the dogs were taken to one another for greetings. Call it the curse of knowledge, but I see such interactions through the lens of human handling skills and canine body language. Sometimes what I saw was relaxing and fun and at other times I worried about the outcome, especially when handlers allowed overly aroused dogs to engage each other. There is a correlation between arousal… Continued
Halloween and Pet Welfare
I confess that Halloween is my favorite holiday. I enjoy the creative costumes, haunted house attractions and horror films. For me, the creepy nature of the holiday is fun. Behaviorally healthy dogs may accept Halloween activities like trick-or-treat visitors in costume as just another silly thing humans do. For many other dogs Halloween celebration can be truly frightening. Years ago I trained a cute Dachshund puppy named Manny. I was a rookie trainer and he was a star student who excelled in the group training environment, but when he later… Continued
Appearances Can Be Deceiving
Adoption is a popular option among many families who wish to bring a dog into their lives. Sometimes, their goal may be to adopt a specific breed. Science Daily defines “A dog breed is a group of dogs that have very similar or nearly identical characteristics of appearance or behavior or, usually, both, primarily because they come from a select set of ancestors who had the same characteristics.” Many of us have our favorites and mine happens to be Labradors. Of the five Labs I have lived with the last… Continued
Reading List for Dog Owners
When I got my first dog in 1983 I knew nothing about living with dogs, so naturally I got a puppy. Needless to say I knew even less about raising a puppy. Samantha relied upon me to teach her, and I relied upon the only source available at the time: a book. If there were local dog trainers or puppy classes in particular I was unaware of them. There was no internet to search nor a Pet Professional Guild to inform me. I bought the best selling dog training book… Continued
Pet Guardians Need Help Finding Professionals
As a professional dog trainer taking behavioral cases I see how confusing it can be for pet owners to know what sort of help they need and where to find it. Lack of regulation and transparency in the industry can lead pet guardians into pitfalls. This happened to a client whose dog was fearful of other dogs during leash walks. He would bark and lunge, but then retreat. The owner sought help from a trainer who took her dog into his care for several days. The trainer called her a… Continued
Leaving Dogs in Cars Can Kill Them
Like many dog owners, I enjoy taking Buddha and Gandhi in my car when I run chores. They enjoy riding with me and have learned to recognize familiar locations such as the town dump, the bank, the vet clinic and even the local car wash. When I look around during those trips, I see others with dogs in their vehicles, too. Cooler fall, winter and spring months make this practice fun and relatively safe, but summer months bring the risk of heat exhaustion and hyperthermia in dogs. People can sweat… Continued
The Unintended Consequences of Shock
(Confidentiality Notice: Names in this blog have been changed to protect privacy, but the facts remain unchanged. Photographs have been used with written consent.) Betsy is a kind person who contacted a shelter in June of 2016 to help find a nice family dog to share her life with through adoption. She learned of Zelda, a female one year old mixed breed. Zelda’s online biography suggested she was “fine” with other dogs and was “friendly” with people, but jumped on them “to say hello.” Little was known about Zelda except… Continued
Retractable Leashes Are Risky
Judging by the number of people I see walking dogs with retractable leash devices on their dogs it appears the product is popular. They are also unsafe. As Dr. Karen Becker describes them “A retractable leash is not so much a leash as it is a length of thin cord wound around a spring-loaded device housed inside a plastic handle” in her article “10 Reasons Not to Use a Retractable Leash.” The length of the retractable cord varies from 15-30 feet, and may be locked in place. Pet stewards have… Continued
Animal Abuse Harms People Too
If you are reading this blog then I may safely assume you are an animal lover, but sometimes love is not enough. Sometimes advocacy through direction action is required. I post this as an urgent call to action to help pass animal abuse legislation which Humane Society of the United States (Wisconsin) state director Melissa Tedrowe declared in her testimony to be a “gold standard” law. Current law has significant loopholes, as I heard Senator Wanggaard declare in a Senate hearing. For the past few weeks I have supported HSUS… Continued
Thunderphobia in Dogs
Thunderphobia is the fear of thunderstorms and it can be severe enough to make a dog’s life miserable. It may be more common than you know. At least 20% of dogs suffer noise phobias including thunderphobia, according to ethologist Dr. Karolina Westlund, Ph.D. There are about 80,000,000 dogs in the United States and if 20% suffer thunderphobia the scale of the problem is enormous. It may be even greater, as Zazie Todd, Ph.D. wrote in Companion Animal Psychology in 2013. “Dogs that responded badly to fireworks tended to also react to… Continued
Zoophilia*: A Hidden Horror for Animals
I entered law enforcement at 20 years of age. When I retired 30 years later I thought I had seen the full spectrum of human abuse, violence and degradation. The cruelty of humankind no longer shocked me, though it wore me down. Through the years I never investigated a single case of sexual abuse of an animal and none of my fellow officers ever spoke of it. The crimes occurred under the radar, hiding in the long dark shadows of secrecy, pain and trauma. On January 25th of 2018 I… Continued
Dogs Require Daily Enrichment
As a professional dog trainer 60% of my cases are behavioral in nature. Training is about teaching dogs (and owners) how to do things while behavioral cases usually involve changing underlying emotional states such as anxiety, stress and fear. I often see lack of enrichment in the dog’s life in behavioral cases. I often hear from owners they have a “high energy” dog who engages in annoying behaviors such as excessive barking, chewing, jumping on people, and general inability to settle down. Very often the first recourse applied by pet owners… Continued
Santa Claus May Scare Dogs
People around the world enjoy the winter season and many nations celebrate a version of Saint Nicholas. In the United States I witnessed an increase in commercialization and marketing hype since I was a child and Christmas decorations now appear after Halloween in my locale. There is a lot of social pressure to “be happy” during the Christmas season. Personal and social expectations of “joy and happiness” rose substantially over the years and today pet owners may draw their dogs into the frenzy by dressing them in holiday attire or… Continued
Being Your Dog’s Best Advocate
In 2012, my wife and I enrolled in a therapy dog training class which led to a Pet Partners evaluation process for therapy animal teams. I partnered with Buddha and my wife partnered with Gandhi. It was only by working closely together for our mutual benefit that we truly became teams and passed the evaluation. The instructor taught me two significant concepts I had never before considered. One was that I was my dog’s best advocate, and the other was the application of PETS. Although I had kept dogs in… Continued
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