Beyond the Sit: Exploring the Frontiers of Canine Cognition with Pat Miller
Your Webinar Description:
Have you ever wondered what is truly going on behind those soulful puppy-dog eyes? For decades, the scientific community underestimated the domestic dog, but we are currently living in a “Golden Age” of canine research.
This webinar takes a brief step back in time to explore the evolution of our understanding—from the early days of behaviorism to the groundbreaking cognitive studies of today. Once we establish the why, we dive headfirst into the how. We will explore a diverse range of cognitive exercises that challenge the canine mind and strengthen the human-canine bond.
Whether you are looking to add variety to your client sessions or want to push the boundaries with your own dog, you’ll learn the mechanics behind:
- Discrimination Tasks: Differentiating between shapes, objects, and colors.
- Concept Learning: Mastering “Match to Sample” and “Same vs. Different.”
- Advanced Communication: Introduction to reading cues and imitation (Do as I Do).
- Autonomy: Implementing choice-based protocols to empower the dog.
From simple brain games to complex multi-step skills, this session will provide you with a roadmap to unlock your dog’s full intellectual potential
Learning Objectives:
By the end of this webinar, participants will be able to:
- Trace the History: Identify key milestones in the scientific study of canine cognition and how these shifts changed modern training perspectives.
- Articulate the Benefits: Explain the behavioral and welfare-based reasons for integrating cognitive challenges into a dog’s daily routine.
- Implement Discrimination Training: Describe the step-by-step process for teaching a dog to successfully discriminate between various shapes, colors, or objects.
- Master Concept Training: Understand the framework for teaching higher-level concepts such as “Match to Sample” and “Imitation.”
- Apply Choice-Based Learning: Demonstrate how to integrate “choice and agency” into training sessions to increase engagement and reduce frustration.
Your Presenters- Pat Miller CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA
Pat Miller, author of The Power of Positive Dog Training (2001), and seven other books on dog training and behavior (most recently, Discover the World of Canine Cognition), has worked professionally with animals her entire life. Miller was a regular contributor to The Whole Dog Journal from 1999 to 2024, The Bark, and Popular Dogs, and is past training editor of The Whole Dog Journal, and Co-editor/compiler of 2023 book: Veterinary Cooperative Care.
Miller worked at the Marin Humane Society in Novato, California from 1976 to 1996, first as a volunteer, then in customer service, as a Humane Officer, Customer Service Supervisor, Field Supervisor, and for the final ten years as Director of Operations. During this time she obtained an Associate Degree in Administration of Justice and a BS in Business Administration.
Miller moved to California’s Central Coast in 1996 (where Paul was Director of Operations at the Monterey SPCA). There she launched Peaceable Paws, and served on the Board of the Santa Cruz SPCA. She joined the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT), was elected to the APDT Board and is past President of that organization. She is also a past Board member of the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT).
After a brief stint in Chattanooga, Tennessee, Pat and Paul moved to Fairplay, Maryland in 2004, where they live on an 80-acre farm with their three dogs, four cats, two horses, and a pot-bellied pig. Pat and Paul operate their dog-friendly training center and horse boarding facility there. Pat continues to offer group dog training classes, private behavior consults (her specialty is aggression), seminars and workshops worldwide, expert witness services for animal-related legal cases, and is Director of the Peaceable Paws Trainer Academies and Training Programs.
In May of 2015, Pat was named by Dog Fancy Magazine as one of 45 people who have changed the dog world, and in October of 2018 was given a Lifetime Achievement Award by the Association of Professional Dog Trainers in recognition of her numerous and significant contributions to the dog training and behavior profession.
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