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
Resolving Destructive Behaviour in Your Pet
By Karolina Westlund Ph.D. of PPG corporate partner Illis Animal Behaviour Consulting Destructive behaviour can be extremely frustrating. Image: concept by ILLIS ABC, drawing by Pyrrth Destructive behaviour from your beloved pet can be a nuisance. Assuming there’s not an underlying medical condition or the behaviour isn’t anxiety-related, let’s look at some ways of addressing these types of behaviour, regardless of whether you’re a dog dude, a cat gal or a parrot person. Or hang out with any other critter, for that matter. I’m going to use cat furniture scratching as… Continued
Dog Play and Prediction Error
Dog play is comprised of “ritualized aggression”, and aggression is rooted in fear. In ritualized aggression, there are varying degrees of fear/stress/aversions, along the spectrum from slight stress to possibly full blown fear, that results in a fight or bite or an attempt to flee. The fun, enjoyable parts of the “dog play stress spectrum” are positively reinforced, and intrinsically so, by their very nature. These are behaviors that are reciprocated and or result in play being accepted by the other dogs. Play bows, shoulder rolls, invitations to be chased,… Continued
Four Steps to a Thriving Group Class Program
By Veronica Boutelle of PPG corporate partner, dogbiz Do any of these group training class challenges sound familiar? Students who tell you their dogs “only behave during class” or “when the trainer is around” Starting class with 6 students and ending with 3 Students who check training off their list after Puppy or Basic Manners class, never to return Cancelling or postponing classes that don’t fill in time. Teaching half-empty classes Struggling to teach students with a wide variety of skill levels and needs Fitting in make-ups for students who… Continued
Case Study: Stress and Fights in a New Home Living with Another Dog
An elderly family member is no longer able to look after her dog, so her Cairn terrier Ben has gone to live with a couple and their dog Bonnie, a Labrador cocker spaniel mix. She’s small in size, no bigger than a cocker. Fights Each dog is great individually but being together is a challenge for both of them. In the short while that Ben has been living with his new family, there have been a couple of fights and another few altercations that the owners have interrupted. Six-year-old Bonnie… Continued
From 1 to 2…Smoothing the Transition
So you’ve decided after much decision and debate that another four-legged member will join your household. It’s definitely something that needs lots of careful consideration: A quick checklist to think about: Should you choose a dog or a bitch? How does your existing dog get on with either and of course think about the obvious – is your current dog neutered? If you are going for a dog of the opposite sex and your current dog is entire, how are you going to work that out? Are you absolutely sure… Continued
Hide My Deaf/Blind Dog Away?
By Debbie Bauer Here is my handsome, clever, fun-loving boy Vinny on our recent trip to Purina Farms. This picture was taken at their Visitor Center and he is smiling, which is his normal state of mind. You see, on this day, it was Saturday morning and the Visitor Center was full of children! In fact, we struggled at times to get a picture, as children were running up to him trying to pet him and say hello. Vinny loves children! They are just at his nose height and he… 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
Does a Wagging Tail Mean a Happy Dog?
Zani’s tail is up, and you’ll see in the video below that it is wagging. Does she look friendly and happy? Why do dogs wag their tails? The prevailing view is that they do so when they feel happy and friendly. Many do, but dogs also wag their tails in other situations. So the answer to the title question is no. Dogs wagging their tails are not always expressing friendliness or joy. Not by a long shot. Many dogs will wag their tails from arousal or when performing predatory behaviors.… Continued
Case Study: Puppy Joyfulness Lost, Tail Between Legs, Acts Cautious
Hettie is an adorable Cockerpoo puppy who is now 16 weeks old. For the first four weeks that Hettie was with them (8 to 12 weeks old), she was a typical confident, happy and energetic puppy. She would fly around in puppy joyfulness, grab things and cause the usual puppy chaos. Why, then, has she now lost her puppy joyfulness? Before getting Hettie, her owners had already booked their vacation. While they were away, they left her in what they believed was the best place possible. This was a well… Continued
Case Study: Attack – The Best Form of Defense?
Just look at this dog! Isn’t she wonderful? Billie is a four-year-old Aylestone bulldog and her guardians have had her for six weeks. Previous to this she had been used as a breeding bitch and ended up in a shelter, so she probably didn’t have a very good life. She certainly has a good life now. Scared – attack may be the best form of defense Billie is a sweet-natured dog, although maybe a little worried about things. She is a dream at home, but out on walks she is… Continued
The Comparison Curse
Owning a dog is a privilege, as is the opportunity to share our lives with them for 12, 15 years and, let’s hope, longer still. During that time, think about all those battles and struggles you conquer together, what you achieve that, at first, seemed insurmountable, those amazing journeys you have together and, of course, that inexplicable personal relationship you strike up which no one else can understand. Time spent with a dog is never long enough, but each day is spent creating incredible memories – a unique canine/human time… Continued
Dogs and Body Pressure: A Photo Study
Can you guess what just happened here? Zani and Clara and I were playing a game I call the Gravity Game. It has evolved over the years. The indoor version is as follows: Clara deliberately drops her ball It rolls Zani picks it up Zani brings it to me I trade it for a piece of kibble I toss the ball back to Clara Repeat I have a previous post on The Gravity Game. Clara invented it, first using gravity to play a game of fetch with herself, then training… 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
Case Study: Separation Distress, Insecurity and Panic When Away from His Owner
Darcy watches his lady owner all the time. When she’s out of sight he pants and he paces. Even when left at home with his male owner, he whines and stresses. Separation specifically and only from the lady owner freaks him out. Strangely, he shows no sign of being possessive of her. The daughter can hug her and she can hold the baby without Darcy doing more than continue to watch her. Darcy is 9-year-old of mixed breed, probably Patterdale and Labrador. After a bad first year which he came… Continued
Case Study: Barks Aggressively at Dogs, Counterconditioning, Changing Emotions
On walks, Daniel the Deerhound Lurcher barks aggressively at other dogs. At home, he is a well-behaved, quite self-contained but friendly boy, four years of age. The owner has had him for two years. He lived on a narrow boat For the first two years of his life, Daniel lived on a narrow boat, so he has had several years to rehearse barking at other dogs in order to make them go away. When he barks aggressively, it works! The dogs carry on walking. Living on a boat, I’m sure… Continued
No Recall? Is It Really Your Dog’s Fault?
Of all the doggy and doggy parent issues, not coming back when called has got to be nearing the top of the list. There could be lots of variations of this, a casual sauntering back when your dog feels like it, taking in a few sniffs along the way. Maybe your dog might be one of those explosive types, let off the leash and, crikey, she’s off like a bullet and, before you know it, is a speck in the distance. Meanwhile, you begin that Olympic sprint before collapsing in… Continued
Teaching Your Dog to “Go Say ‘Hi'”
By Danette Johnston I am not a fan of dogs greeting on leash for several reasons but I do like to teach dogs a “GO SAY HI” cue for the following circumstances: Times when it may be OK for the dogs to meet on leash. For emergencies when another dog or human is approaching without consent. Therapy work. GO SAY HI is a bit of a fake-out cue. What GO SAY HI means to me (and my dogs) is: go ahead and step toward that dog/human, sniff for 1-2 seconds and then come back… Continued
Actually, I **Can** Get My Dogs’ Attention
I was thinking the other day about how and why I have a dream relationship with my dogs. They are cooperative. They are sweet. They are responsive and easy to live with. You know how I got there? Training and conditioning them with food and playing with them. They weren’t the most difficult dogs in the world when they came to me, but they weren’t easy, either. Clara was a feral puppy who was growling at every human but me when she was 10 weeks old. Zani is so soft and… Continued
Are Head Halters Like Prongs?
By Yvette Van Veen Are Head Halters Like Prongs? Head halters took the training world by storm years ago. Some trainers are hanging up their head halters because they simply don’t like how dogs seem to fight them. Other trainers, those who use force have long tried to make the claim that head halters are no different from prong collars. Generally, the argument made is that if you use a head halter then you really are no different from a trainer who uses prong collars. That we are in denial. That aversives are necessary. That we… Continued
Animal Trainers: Take Animal Emotions into Consideration!
By Karolina Westlund Ph.D. of PPG corporate partner Illis Animal Behaviour Consulting Is the dog fearful, or crouching? Does it matter, when you’re training? The world of animal trainers is divided, and I find that some trainers avoid the subject of animal emotions altogether. “There’s no need to factor in and understand emotions, just deal with the observable behaviour”, is the gist of what some trainers and animal professionals say. No doubt their unwillingness to consider emotions stems from the Father of Behaviourism, influential to this day. Skinner said: “The ‘emotions’ are excellent examples… Continued
Eight Tips When Traveling with a Puppy
Traveling with a dog can be a great adventure for both you and your trusty canine. Now that you have a new puppy in the home, you want to take him on epic road trips and travel the world. But, there are a few things to consider and prepare for prior to your epic dog-friendly road trip. In this article I will help you and your puppy get off to a good start traveling in a car. Active puppy socialization prior to your trip is essential. When you brought your… Continued
Case Study: Over-Excited, Frustrated, Habituation and Freedom
Dylan is an enthusiastic, friendly young dog, if a little over-excited at times. He is beautiful, but someone coming to house is a very exciting thing for the young 16-month-old Labradoodle. When I arrived the lady was doing her best to control him. She repeatedly told him to sit and stay on a mat just round the corner where he couldn’t see me. She was fighting a losing battle. It’s hard to control a dog that is so over-excited. In this state of mind he can’t be expected to exercise much self-control.… Continued
Double Asset or Double Trouble?
There comes a time in many dog owner’s lives where the thought is sprung…. ‘I wonder if Fido would like a friend?’ Inextricably bound with the idea are feelings of excitement, guilt, worry because there are so many aspects to consider if you’re going to go through this whole doggy journey twice over! Let’s take a look at some of those. Who are you doing this thing for? Question this first. You love dogs, I love dogs, we all love dogs & that’s great but think seriously, yes most of… Continued
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