tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-71236191799756639002024-02-06T22:29:57.091-08:00Mindful Leadershipsilvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.comBlogger129125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-31483720094297691722013-12-05T07:31:00.000-08:002013-12-05T07:31:36.651-08:00New Blogspot blog siteHello Friends, Clients, and Readers<br />
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After about four months in, I am still liking my new website silvia4dogs.com, however, putting up posts is a pain in the you know where.<br />
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Because I like my life to be easy and uncomplicated, I decided to create a new account with blogspot. It aligns with my website, and me - as in how I developed professionally over the last few years, and I will publish posts on an ongoing basis that are informative, current, and sometimes have a certain bite to it. <br />
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<a href="http://silvia4dogs.blogspot.ca/" target="_blank">Here it is</a> - love for you to joint me there.<br />
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<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-84870799072919718042013-09-09T09:17:00.001-07:002013-09-09T09:17:26.220-07:00New Website and a New Place for my PostsHello loyal readers - and all of you who peaked in every so often.<br />
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I have a new <a href="http://www.silvia4dogs.com/" target="_blank">website</a> and all new blog posts will be there from now on. Please join me.<br />
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My old website was really dated, plus I grew professionally and personally in the last 6 years like every good professional should. The new site reflects that.<br />
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One blog post is already up. It talks about a PBS Nature documentary shoot I was part of last week, and about two cautious puppies who met for the first time. There are photos as well, so go check it out, and follow me if you like. I plan to put up a few more posts till about mid. October, and after that about one a month.<br />
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This here blog site won't be deleted, so you can continue to look for information that is, albeit perhaps not always quite current, always informational - as information should be.<br />
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Thanks for all your interest and comments in the past, and really hope we'll hook up on my new site - oh, and feel free to share.silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-78463360962816246812013-09-03T09:11:00.000-07:002013-09-03T09:11:02.470-07:00No-Show Blog Posts, but a Full Circle Guest Post I know, I've been silent for a while. But not slacking off. Far from it. Summer was extremely busy and what's left of it won't be any different. Not that I'm complaining - in a time when many are struggling a lot of work is easy to swallow.<br />
The downside is that it leaves little time for writing, and hence, the no-show blog posts.<br />
In addition, I am working on a new website. Not that the present one is not doing its job, but I evolved and technology has too, and after 6 years it is time for a new look.<br />
So, more quietness for a while longer. But to tie you over, here is a guest post I wrote for the Full Circle Veterinary Clinic on <a href="http://fullcirclevet.ca/2013/09/03/separation-anxiety-advice-from-silvia-jay/" target="_blank">Separation Anxiety</a>.<br />
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<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-24668139407351737612013-07-23T06:05:00.001-07:002013-07-23T06:05:52.317-07:00Lauchie, The Hoarder Collie<br />
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No, I am not talking about people who can never accumulate enough stuff, and never throw anything away, and eventually drown in junk and filth. The ones you see on reality TV; Hoarders TV exposes for ratings.<br />
In reality, I don’t watch much reality TV: No Dog Whisperer, no “dumb-and-proud-of-it” hick show, and no crazy junk and animal hoarders in my living room - unless I need a reality check when I obsess over my home being a tad too messy. One episode convinces me that I don’t have to feel guilty about spending the afternoon in the sun joined by a glass of wine and a book when I ought to tidy up.<br />
I am talking about canine hoarders; dogs that collect every scattered toy and whatever else they find on the ground and deem valuable, put it on their bed or in their crate, and often guard the accumulated booty against cohabitating fur animals, and sometimes also against the hairless kind.<br />
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The root of resource hoarding and guarding is resource insecurity. Always. And almost always humans are to blame: owners and breeders who either stole the dog's possession in the name of misunderstood dominance, or raised him in resource deprivation - didn’t provide what the pooch needed and thereby forced him to compete for the little that was available. In the latter case, both the dog who regularly lost out but also the one who was successful in defending his possessions can become a hoarder and aggressive guarder in the next home.<br />
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My friend Ann’s new Border collie pup <a href="http://flyingtailsdogsblogs.wordpress.com/2013/05/26/whats-in-a-puppy-name" target="_blank">Lauchie </a>reminded me recently that even pups from a really good breeder can have quirks. Here he is.<br />
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And this is our last foster dog Reggae, also conscientiously bred, also a hoarder at a very young age.<br />
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But let’s talk about the collie – it is fresh in my mind.<br />
Little Lauchie is from England. His first eight weeks of life were how it should be for every puppy born, and there was no reasonable expectation that he'd be unsure about anything, including resources. And yet he seems to be and collects, as Ann likes to name the behavior because it sounds a lot nicer than hoarding.<br />
Although Lauchie isn’t aggressively guarding his stash, it is still an issue his momma wants to address. For starters, he is still just a baby and things could change as he matures, but also because he evades coming when called when he is in possession of a toy. Or when he returns, he does so without it. <br />
Running away with a treasure between the teeth can be a puppy thing, but Ann felt that it wasn't the fun factor of playing catch-me-if-you-can that drove the behavior, but the worry that he’d lose his bounty.<br />
Lauchie is smart and sweet and social and shows all the behaviors of a carefully bred and raised pup. He is attentive and keen to be with his person, at the breeder the litter had everything they needed, and he has now always accessible toys aplenty. He gets to play many games, and comes just fine when he doesn’t carry something. So, why the out-of-character behavior when it comes to toys? It initially had us stumped. Funny, Ann’s dogs have a habit of making my brain hurt – and I mean that in a most affectionate way.<br />
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The best explanation we could come up with is has to do with Lauchie’s thoughtfulness. Yes, you read that right and yes I am anthropomorphizing but I don’t care. Besides, it is the best word to describe his personality that, by the way, consistently presented itself very early on. Lauchie is not slow-witted or fearful, but watches, and processes, and then acts. He has natural impulse control, and with so many dogs getting into trouble because they lack it, I wouldn’t exactly say that that is a problem, but it might mean that he lost out against his siblings who all were quicker on the draw. I think we are on to something because Lauchie is also very food driven, which corroborates that his littermates might have gotten more than their fair share in that aspect as well.<br />
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There are two ways to address hoarding: either one needs to convince the dog that resources never run out, and that it's more fun to bring toys than hoard them, or one must eliminate free access to toys completely and also control what else happens to lie around within the dog’s reach. I like the former better for following reasons: Free access to a toy box alleviates anxiety and boredom, micromanaging the dog and resources for a lifetime is a cumbersome thing to do, and common sense dictates that resource overflow is the fasted way to instill resource security.<br />
That said, with some hoarders free resource access can make things worse, as was the case with another friend’s rescue German shepherd. She had a number of anxieties, and was overwhelmed with too many toys and bones and the task to collect all of it, was constantly searching and pacing, and permanently tense trying to guard the treasures on her bed against the other dog. Life in paradise initially made her more anxious, and taking a more structured approach to resources was necessary. She is fine now, by the way, thanks to patience and the unfailing provision of everything she needed and wanted.<br />
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Since little Lauchie is neither anxiously pacing nor aggressively defending his collections, there is no pressing need to withhold free access. Instead, Ann exploits Lauchie’s brain and love to learn and interact – traits found in many dogs not just Border collies – and teaches him to identify individual toys by name, and then bring the one she asks for in exchange for a play session. It is a game that stimulates any pooch’s mind and body, but with a hoarder the added benefit is that toys are going to be perceived in a different way: Because it directly involves the human, it puts value on the person and not just the toy. Eventually, the dog will bring specific objects to solicit interaction with his person, which will become more rewarding than playing keep-away alone.<br />
In addition, it creates a hierarchy of toys and games, meaning that the dog will have a preference he didn’t have before. When some object are of high value, naturally all others are meh and hopefully not worthy of hoarding any longer.<br />
Like with any behavior we want changed, new habits can take time, and until then it is important that the undesired old ones aren't rehearsed. To prevent Lauchie from running away with a toy, Ann taught him “retrieve the named toy” in the bathroom first, a very small space that didn’t give the pup any option other than to share his toy with his momma. The idea is to orchestrate rewarding experiences, and then gradually expand outward to bigger spaces.<br />
I have no doubt that it'll do.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-88116578544067347592013-06-29T08:41:00.000-07:002013-06-29T08:41:46.528-07:00Sheepdog Training Not Just For Sheepdogs<br />
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It is no secret that I have an affinity for sheepdogs, particularly Australian shepherds, followed by Border collies. I ever only owned one, but know and worked with many, and as soon as I have the time – and when the time is right, we'll invite another Aussie into our home and hearts. Because I love sheepdogs, I am fascinated with things sheepdogs do, like herding.<br />
In 2006 I participated with Davie in a herding workshop with Randy Dye in Bowden, Alberta - there is not too much info online about him, but if put Randy Dye Border collies in your search box, you’ll find a couple of blurbs. Davie and I had a ball, metaphorically, but what I found most remarkable was how much of what I learned is applicable to all dogs. That sentiment recurred a couple of months ago when I read Lorna McMasters book “Dancing with Sheepdogs”. Trust me, you don’t have to have a herding breed dog to appreciate the lessons in this book.<br />
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For starters, both Randy Dye and Lorna McMasters train without pain. McMasters says: “You build reliable obedience and behavior with patience, not force, and the dog will love to work with you.”<br />
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Lorna McMasters uses her voice – verbal commands, and that is something I also preach. One of my biggest peeves with traditional, pack leader, and e-collar trainers is that they let the tools speak for them, and the words they do use are warnings rather than information: Heel! Sit! Come! And you better, or else!<br />
As one of a few force-free trainers who does not use a clicker, I feel validated by the author’s statement that you should use your voice to support your dog. The voice, then, becomes a feel-good trigger for your dog, and whenever you open your mouth you raise work attitude, draw your dog to you, and you can decrease momentary distress.<br />
Like every good force-free trainer, Lorna McMaster is not permissive. She emphasizes the importance to always enforce a command once it is given, so that the dog doesn’t learn to second-guess you. But she has nothing against repeating a command, because it verbally encourages the dog to keep doing what he is doing. This, too, corroborates what I’ve teaching for quite some time. For instance, when I recall I don’t repeat the word “come”, but egg my dog on with a high-pitched “yip-yip-yip” or “quick-quick-quick”, especially with the beginner learner, and especially when the dog is presented with a huge distraction in opposite direction to where I am.<br />
Both Lorna McMasters and Randy Dye explained that the speed and intonation the request is made matter. Drawn out words slow the dog down, and conversely rapid short words speed him up. Randy Dye taught us that the duration of the whistle cue has to correspond with the verbal one: short and sharp for directional changes, prolonged to keep the dog methodically going in the same direction.<br />
By the way, Patricia McConnell talks at length about tonal inflection and speed in her really good book “The Other End of The Leash”. Don’t confuse that with the TV show “At the End of My Leash” that stars Brad Pattison, Canada’s answer to Cesar Millan. The former is an accredited and internationally much respected behaviorist, the other an alpha male upshot physically skilled enough to punish dogs into submission and temporary compliance.<br />
Lorna McMasters warns to never raise your voice because it raises your energy and signals loss of control, which can cause the dog to escalate. I agree with that too. Yelling and screaming conveys anger or anxiety, and neither is favorable to learning, the relationship, or to defuse a conflict situation. That said, and contrary to common data and wisdom, my very loud and deep-toned “enough” has so far successfully broken up dogs in a tiff.<br />
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When dogs work, they aren’t always visually connected with their human in charge. A collie has to keep his eyes on the sheep, the pooch doing dog sports on the equipment, and the hunting companion on fowl or game. Lorna McMasters believes that dogs should learn to respond to verbal commands without looking at you. Indeed, that’s when verbal commands make most sense because obviously the dog will not see your hand-signal or gesture.<br />
I almost exclusively work with people who, all they want is a well-mannered family member they can take anywhere dogs are allowed to go. For that purpose, visual connection between dog and person is important, and I aim for eye contact the dog offers whenever she needs direction, and eye contact given when I call my dog by name to direct her. I do have one command, though, that allows Will, who sometimes just can’t shift her visual attention away from whatever in the environment holds it, to keep it, while I still get the control I am after: “Halt” means: “Don’t move and wait till I catch up with you”. Perhaps I should elaborate in my next post, or the one after.<br />
Interestingly, Lorna McMasters also likes to catch up with the dog after a herding lesson instead of recalling him. She places the collie in a, for a collie natural, lie-down and as she approaches gives lots of repetitive verbal reminders to stay in that position plus pays attention to her breathing so that he knows that she is calm and he has done nothing wrong. Calm, not assertive, just calm and relaxed, makes a person appealing rather than repelling. Even when the dog breaks, she doesn’t discipline, but repositions and tries again. It is never about letting a dog do as he pleases, she says, but to help him understand without creating resistance, ambiguity or nervousness in relation to the handler and the work they do together.<br />
And this surprised me: After three tries she reinforces even if the dog is still not getting it right to avoid that he becomes “stale”. Rewarding a behavior you don’t want counters positive reinforcement rules, but I think she on to something: The long-term goal of a functioning working relationship must overrule laws established in a laboratory.<br />
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Aside from using verbal commands, both Lorna McMasters and Randy Dye use their body to make their intentions clear. In the beginning, they exaggerate gestures, and as the dog becomes more skilled, they become subtler. For example, McMasters invites the rookie dog with open arms and moving backward when she recalls.<br />
Randy Dye had an indoor arena, and at our workshop all dogs were off the leash right away. Instead of using a long line to influence the dog, he taught us how to use body movements. Always the whole body, he stressed, not just hands. Facing and blocking the dog makes him change directions, and being at his flank causes him to move out. Being at the dog’s tail, he said, only makes him run faster away from you. If the come command is ignored, he walks in as close as he must to get the dog’s visual attention, and then entices him with whatever works to follow. He doesn’t grab the collar to pull the dog away because he wants him to follow voluntarily. After the workshop, I implemented that right away with my group clients.<br />
Lorna McMasters does use a leash and long line with dogs not yet off leash ready. I wish the general public would do that too, instead of taking the dog they adopted 24 hours prior to the dog park. A leash and a long line for managing and training purposes is a must until the relationship is established and the dog reliably responds to his person’s requests. However, and especially with puppies, I do prefer to work off the leash, especially regarding following, but it must take place in the house, and areas outside that are securely fenced-in.<br />
McMasters says that a dog should always wait for a release command, active permission, before allowed to interact with the environment, and that he should never completely disconnect from the owner; that the person should never be excluded from the relationship the dog has with other dogs, or animals. I totally agree with that. If playing dogs don’t respond when their names are called, it is high time for a play pause.<br />
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I was also surprised by Lorna McMaster’s take on leash tension. In a time when everyone preaches to have a loose leash, she says that leash tension is not always a bad thing because it signals connection, and like voice can provide support when the dog is confused or nervous, but she stresses that it must be even tension, not jerking.<br />
Ideally, I don’t want any information coming through the leash. Ever. Loose leash, ideally, is my tune too, but I also know that ideal isn’t always realistic. Our Will, without our doing, does perceive the leash as connection and support around unfamiliar dogs and small children, and when there is a passing bus or truck. And I must admit that I like a slight tension in the leash because then I don’t trip over it.<br />
Even pulling a dog along McMasters doesn’t see as a problem, but again advises that it must be without a correction, and that praise and reward ought to follow as soon as the dog mentally connects with the handler again. I heard and saw that at a Suzanne Clothier seminar a few years ago. Truth is that with most dogs sooner or later a situation arises where there is no option but to pull the pooch along with you, and it is important that laypeople, my clients, understand that it is not all that bad when it happens; that they are not messing things up forever as long as they don’t discipline as they pull him away, on the leash, from a situation he can’t handle – yet.<br />
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In essence, both Randy Dye and Lorna McMasters are heavy on relationship, and controlling the dog by controlling what the dog wants: his drive, his instincts, instead of setting traps and punishing for mistakes. The sheepdog must heed to the human’s directions to access the sheep, and because sheep are important to any good sheepdog, it works. Herding is advanced obedience without the use of food treats. If you find what floats your dog’s boat, and then make access contingent on behavior, it will work for you too.<br />
Is a punishment ever warranted? Not in my world, but both Lorna McMasters and Randy Dye do not shy away from adding something unpleasant when absolutely necessary.<br />
Sheep are a shepherd’s livelihood. Not just that, but the human has the moral responsibility to care about the welfare of all animals, not just the dogs’. A bad herding dog is not only useless, but harmful. Lorna McMasters uses one type of correction, a whip across the nose, but only when the dog aggressively violates a sheep’s flight zone, and only when he persistently disregards commands and body pressure.<br />
At Randy Dye’s workshop there were 17 dogs, and only one had to be corrected in the same way: an out-of-control, non-responsive Groenendael who was about to rip a sheep apart.<br />
Personally, I prefer to manage the dog until the desired behaviors are established. Nevertheless, the sharp corrections didn’t compromise the value of Randy Dye’s workshop and Lorna McMaster’s book. One must remember that these are knowledgeable handlers who correct correctly, a skill lost on all lay owners, and many of the punitive trainers who take a six-week course somewhere and then let themselves loose on dogs with behavioral issues. Those quickly “certified” folks lack the experience, knowledge, and even general interest in dogs and behavior, and rather than sending one clear message, like McMasters and Dye do, they punish ineffectively, on an ongoing basis, or so harsh that they mess up the dogs and the relationship with their owners even more.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-18678304788453178492013-06-04T11:05:00.001-07:002013-06-04T11:05:15.109-07:00The 4 F Responses When a Dog Feels Threatened<br />
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In May, I discussed the 4 Ds in a position stay and Brian Hare/Vanessa Woods “The Genius of Dogs”, and I want to stick with that theme – 4-letter something then book - for this month. First, the 4 F responses available to a dog who feels threatened, and followed by my take on Lorna McMasters’ “Dancing with Sheepdogs” toward the end of June or beginning of July.<br />
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Whenever a dog perceives someone or something as a threat, to his welfare or possession, and it doesn’t matter if in reality it is or isn’t, there will be an emotional response. It is impossible for a dog, or any animal, to not feel what they feel, to willingly alter hormonal and neurochemical changes that come with the emotion, and not express it. However, what the expressions look like varies, and depends on nature, past experiences and possibility.<br />
I like to believe that just about everyone knows two of the Fs: Fight and Flight, and I come back to them in a moment, but there are two more less understood by the average dog owner: Freeze and Flirt.<br />
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Let’s have a closer look, and let’s start with Fight, the behavior people are most concerned about and that sends many a dog to the doghouse, shelter, or veterinarian to be executed.<br />
When a dog is ready to fight, he is confident enough to confront the threat. The intent is not always to injure or kill, especially regarding social group members, but to cause the threat to back off or not move closer – not increase the pressure. Normally, naturally, there is a hierarchy, or ladder, of warning signals that precede a bite: a high, forward leaning and tense body – the dog doesn’t blink, the ears don’t play, direct fixation on the trigger, a puckered mouth, a high stiff or quivering tail tipped toward the head. Humans have a tendency to ignore those signals either because they aren’t bilingual and don’t comprehend them, or because they are stupid and intentionally disregard what the dog is communicating.<br />
When they proceed with whatever they were doing, the dog in fight mode turns it up a notch and might growl, and almost every person understands that and feels compelled to do something about it.<br />
However, the typical human responses create dilemmas.<br />
Dilemma 1: If the person backs off, he reinforces the growl and the dog will growl in the future to keep someone at bay or keep a resource. The dog wins in people's minds, which is a big problem for their tender egos. The person doesn't like his pooch anymore and either gives up, or feels justified to do whatever it takes to stop the growl; either labels the dog aggressive and surrenders or kills him, or punishes harshly and destroys the mutually rewarding relationship he could have had.<br />
Dilemma 2: Dogs that growl a lot, because they’re confronted a lot, become stuck in that behavior pattern. If the growl suddenly doesn’t work anymore, for example when the owner hired a mighty “whisperer” wash-up who comes equipped with tools and the skill to suppress the growl, another emotion arises: Frustration. The dog becomes more stressed, more aroused, and angrier. Anyone who believes that an emotion can be punished away is a fool, but the expression might be. Growls can successfully be quelled when the punishment is harsh enough, but the dog, still feeling threatened, resorts to the next level of aggression, albeit perhaps only directed against people or dogs seen as weaker. <br />
A growl isn’t good, but a bite without a warning is worse.<br />
Dilemma 3: If the person ignores the growl, persists and insists, the confident dog will bite, resulting in two big problems: It hurts, and I have yet to meet a person who will NOT retreat when the dog injures and thus reinforce the escalation of aggressive behavior.<br />
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A dog who feels threatened but is not self-assured enough to confront wants to leave the scene and situation. Get out of Dodge instead of driving the threat away. Chooses Flight to Fight.<br />
Don’t just think running away, but also stepping back, curving out, leaving a room or a certain area at the dog park – anything that increases distance to something or someone without attacking. Averting eyes, head and body are the subtle signals.<br />
The dog who chooses non-confrontation is not sure he can successfully defend himself or a resource, or he might generally like his social encounters, but not the situation at the moment. I recently met a beautiful German shepherd believed to be aggressive with people who in reality was rather friendly and interested in interacting when given the opportunity to hang back until the new person was more familiar.<br />
Often dogs in possession of a valued resource, like a bone, walk away with it. That is not submission; the dog does not surrender the resource, but doesn’t trust the people and/or dogs around him completely and in that context seeks a safe place. The worst thing someone could do is follow and take the resource away. The dog is non-confrontational on purpose. Don’t punish that, or he might fight next.<br />
Fight dogs are often flight dogs who can’t flee because they are restrained or cornered.<br />
The German shepherd I just mentioned chose Flight, but nevertheless had a bite history because some people did not give him the space to hang back, and he was confident enough to Fight when pressured. Knowing that, I allowed him the Flight option, and whenever I introduced something new, he created distance, but moments later returned and then was motivated to learn the new thing. By the end of the afternoon we had a real connection and not once did I feel I was in danger.<br />
Don’t confront a dog in Fight or Flight mode, but instead investigate why the dog feels defensive and address that. Regarding resources, my goal always is that my dog trusts me with anything she has, and brings it to me. <br />
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Freeze is not only the muscle tension stillness before an attack, but an expression of a dog who has no options; who has resigned himself to his fate and imploded. The dog is too terrorized to move, extremely stressed with no resolution.<br />
Sadly, lay people often misconstrue Freeze with well behaved, but the truth is that the dog is not behaving at all. He isn’t doing anything because he is afraid of the consequence when he offers a behavior. Freeze is non-behavior. Our Will was a Freeze dog: born feral, humans were completely foreign to her, and forced to live with them paralyzed her in fear. She would neither aggress nor try to get away. Will was frozen to no fault of ours, but some dogs are punished into that state, and that is abuse. You can see these dogs in training facilities: they perform, but joylessly, and they don’t behave at all unless ordered to.<br />
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Flirt is a term Barry Eaton in his book “Dominance in Dogs” uses to explain active and passive appeasement. I like both the term and the behavior. Yes, ideally we aim for a relationship and environment in which a dog never feels the need to appease, but methinks it might be elusive. In the socially complex world our dogs live in, there likely will be encounters and situations they feel uneasy about, and I want them to signal that with a lowered body and low wagging tail, exaggerated blinking, lip licking and yawning, instead of checking out or attacking.<br />
A dog might feel a bit intimidated by a certain tone of voice, scent, body language or action and asks for assurance that he is still safe. A dog who has a resource pleads to let him keep it. A dog who flirts seeks social connection in a submissive way.<br />
I think Flirt is the most appropriate word for a puppy who begs a resource from an elder, and sometimes the older dog will orchestrate a situation to prompt submissive begging for educational purposes.<br />
A good number of dogs, fosters and guests, entered our home throughout the years, but only twice, with a 4-month-old pup and a 2-year-old Aussie, Will saw the need to teach that lesson: She grabbed a toy, arbitrarily because Will does not and never did care for toys other than one red ball to play fetch with, played to keen the other dog’s interest, and then guarded it with a tense body, hard stare and growls - the fight signals she displayed to communicate that she has the confidence to follow through should a resource ever be disputed. Will would ignore the dogs' barks and intensify the aggressive signals when they tried to steal the toy, but relinquished it the moment they became obnoxiously solicitous and goofy, exaggeratedly bowed, with lips, ears and eyes drawn back - the stupid grin face. The pup, in addition, whined and rolled on her back.<br />
I know that dominance is a loaded word, but appeasements, flirting in social contexts, signal that power is acknowledged and a friendly connection wished.<br />
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It is important to point out that Fight, Flight, Freeze and Flirt are not static behaviors, but context specific. Which of the four options a dog chooses depends on what he has learned in the past and what is possible at the moment. And it depends on the dog’s nature: genes predispose to respond in a certain way.<br />
Even so, within a lifetime a dog will demonstrate all four. Will’s M.O. was freeze with all humans, it is flirt now, and fight with some unfamiliar dogs. Davie's was fight with unfamiliar humans, ignore and avoid - flee unfamiliar dogs, and flirt with us whenever she wanted access to a resource, or keep it.<br />
So don’t label the dog, but the situation. If you don’t like how your dog acts, address why he feels the way he does. Address the emotional state, instead of fixating on the expressions.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-26452827396802850262013-05-16T06:25:00.001-07:002013-05-20T11:50:29.397-07:00"The Genius of Dogs" Book Review<br />
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I had a birthday recently. One more year to Freedom 55. Not that realistic – it’ll be more like Freedom 65, or 75, but it doesn’t matter because I love what I do: Working with dogs, reading and writing about dogs. Hence, I was delighted to find Brian Hare and Vanessa Woods’ book “The Genius of Dogs” in the parcel our daughter sent me.<br />
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Brian Hare, Ph.D., is an Evolutionary Anthropologist and Associate Professor at the Duke Institute for Brain Sciences, and interested in apes – the human and hairier kind, but also dogs. You can check <a href="http://www.dukedogs.com/">www.dukedogs.com</a> to find out more. Vanessa Woods is an Australian scientist and journalist, and Brian Hare’s wife.<br />
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I loved the book. Loved it for its conversational tone that makes the information accessible to everyone. No science degree needed to comprehend the material.<br />
I love the subject matter. In a nutshell: How dogs are smart; How they compare cognitively and emotionally to infants and young children; How they rely so much on humans for information. How humans and dogs work, and more importantly how we work together – the psychological convergence between us.<br />
Like many other books about dogs, this one has a chapter on domestication, and also like many others talks about Belyaev’s foxes. I almost skipped that section exactly because I had read about it several times before, but am glad I didn’t, because Brian Hare tells the story with fascinating history attached, for example that Stalin declared geneticists enemies of the state. Our present Canadian government labels our environmental scientists and activists enemies of the state. How is your evolution coming along? Eh?<br />
Back to dogs, or more accurately foxes. There’s a photo of one of the domesticated ones in the book I've never seen in any other dog book, and I promise you'll fall in love with the cuteness.<br />
In the context of domestication, Brian Hare elaborates on aggression and kennel club breeding practices that, for the last 150 years or so, select for appearance more than function and temperament. Breeders fail to breed against aggression in favour of a uniformed look, and that might need a mental shift if we want peaceful dogs in our midst in the future.<br />
And the public needs to be educated what to look for, and where, when they dog shop. At the end of the book the authors make a statement I so agree with: Good breeders don’t sell to pet stores, brokers, or online.<br />
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Although "The Genius of Dogs" is not a training manual, it talks about methods including behaviorism. Much of what it says plays into Alfie Kohn’s “Punished by Rewards”, with the difference that Kohn’s book refers to humans, and Hare/Woods of course include dogs.<br />
One of the issues they have with the Skinnerian model to influence behavior is that it always relies on deprivation, which I believe can negatively affect the relationship. I have given this a lot of thought lately and am not at all done thinking yet.<br />
About the clicker the authors say: “At least for the moment, there is no scientific evidence to support the theory that clicker training facilitates faster learning in dogs”. A controversial statement for sure, and they concede that a clicker might make layowners better trainers and could have value in that.<br />
I don’t use a clicker, so that preliminary evidence vindicates what I was thinking all along: Dogs have a natural connection with humans, pay attention, watch for and are receptive to verbal and gestural information, and that was and is always my primary method in relating with and teaching a dog – with the clicker being an option for certain dogs/people, and particular things I want to accomplish.<br />
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Brian Hare is a scientist and the book is peppered with studies that back the statements he makes. Studies he and his associates conducted, but also studies done elsewhere, for example at the Eötvös Lorand University in Budapest, Hungary, and you can find out more about that at <a href="http://www.familydogproject.elte.hu/">www.familydogproject.elte.hu</a>.<br />
Perhaps Adam Miklosi rings a bell, and Vilmos Csanyi who wrote the book “If Dogs Could Talk” a few years ago, which I also liked a lot.<br />
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I think that we will continue to see studies that reveal how special dogs are - amazing really in their abilities and relationships they form with humans. My hope is that with that people increasingly will steer away from trainers who use the outdated wolf model to justify their forceful and punitive ways. But perhaps also the purely mechanical, operant conditioning method might be adjusted to less of a cookie-cutter, and more of an individual approach.<br />
The end of June, there'll be a <a href="http://caninescience.info/" target="_blank">conference</a> outside of Seattle I was seriously thinking of attending, but I live on the other ocean, and in Canada at that, and although it is not completely out of my mind yet – alone the road trip from Abbotsford/BC to Redmond/Washington is tempting - for now I’ve signed up for the life stream. I will keep you in the loop.<br />
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Coincidentally, a friend and I discussed all that recently, and before I had read “The Genius of Dogs”, on the way to a trainers’ dinner. She wondered what dog training might look like in a decade from now, and I am wondering that too, but feel quite excited about the journey. </div>
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The book came with a birthday card in which my daughter wrote that I already know everything about dogs. She is wrong there: I possibly will never know all there is to know about dogs. Learning never stops. New studies will reveal new insights, and I also believe that like us, dogs are still evolving – evolving with us.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-10242025822385601212013-04-02T04:45:00.000-07:002013-04-02T04:45:52.220-07:00About Food, Other Rewards and Intrinsic Reinforcement<br />
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I said it before, and I say it again: Force-free works with every dog, not just the sweet-tempered, biddable ones. But it’s gotta be done right, and that is much more than having a clicker in a hand and an endless supply of tiny-sized food pieces in a treat pouch.<br />
Applying positive reinforcement most effectively means to know: How to use food, when to reward with food, when to reward with something else, and when it is advisable to refrain from externally adding anything at all.<br />
I want to talk about food first.<br />
Food is, of course, an existential need for all animals, and hence all animals are motivated by food – well, almost all. For humans, though, food is much more than simply survival. In every culture, around the world, food sharing and eating is part of ceremonial and celebratory rituals. Food has religious significance, and is an integral part whenever families and friends gather: We have romantic dinners, and fund-raising ones to help the poor and downtrodden; conferences and seminars involve food, and they advertise what is served to attract more people - to wet people’s physical as well as mental appetites. <br />
Compare that with how food is used in a laboratory setting, the place where behavior, including positive reinforcement, was established and is still studied. Scientists prefer food exactly because most animals are highly motivated by it, and especially so when they are artificially kept a certain percentage under normal weight, when they are purposely underfed to raise motivation, when there is food scarcity, deprivation, a limited supply.<br />
How do our companion dogs fit in that spectrum? Obviously, they are not humans. Dogs eat for the sake of eating and not to celebrate a mating or the birth of a litter. But they aren’t laboratory animals either: animals in an environment that utterly disregards everything non-scientific, including the human/dog relationship, and yet, many dogs are treated as if they were.<br />
The daily kibble, the basic need that is our responsibility to provide when we own a dog like we nourish our children, is used, often entirely, to reinforce specific behaviors. Nothing is life is free, right? Particularly not for the family pooch.<br />
Not just that, but like traditional trainers who recommend placing the dog in a stimulus deprived environment hours before a training session so that despite harsh corrections he still wants to work with the handler, some positive reinforcement trainers suggest not feeding the dog prior to training to raise motivation and even, like the lab rat, to keep the dog a little underweight. In the first scenario, being with a human on task is the lesser of two evils; in the second, the dog is keen to be with the human only because the human has food. Neither is the relationship I envision with my dog.<br />
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Food, including sharing some of our good-for-dogs human food, is free in our home. No strings attached because sharing gives me pleasure, and because my dogs learn that I, the mighty powerful one, have access to all these amazing assets I periodically dole out just because we belong together. Food sharing is a very bonding activity, and I get a lot of offered attention when I prepare food, and eat food, and eventually anytime and anywhere. Belonging and attention develops naturally and becomes a habit. And by the way, we never had a dog who was overweight. And this might surprise you too, also never one who was unmotivated by treats in training situations.<br />
Here is the thing: If you like really like something, you’ll still like it even when it happens again, and again, and again.<br />
You think a dog will only work for food if he is hungry? Just like a person might only push a hypothetical red button that spits out five-dollar bills if she actually needs small change? A rich person wouldn’t be bothered with such a dumb activity you think, and yet wealthy people sit for hours in front of slot machines, and you have dogs who have many balls in a toy box, and daily play, and still want more. When I give Will 10 pieces of chicken, does she say “Nah, thanks, I had enough” when I offer her one more? No. She says: “What can I do for you to get another piece”?<br />
The truth is that if a dog, and person, is motivated by something she will stay motivated even if satiated with other stuff. To figure out what that is, is taking interest in the dog, and that, too, is bonding and will bring your relationship to a whole new level.<br />
Artificially limiting resources for training and shaping purposes isn’t necessary, and can actually backfire when the dog becomes so hyper focused on food that the attention is not with the owner, or task, or body awareness, but only with food. Connecting and working with her human becomes but an activity to get done quickly in order to get food.<br />
A dog who has to work for every morsel won’t do anything unless she’s paid in the currency she’s been taught, like the 6-month-old poodle client who’d only pay attention when she saw the treat pouch hanging off her person’s belt.<br />
Let me be very clear: I use food to teach, and influence, and reinforce behaviors I like to see again. Food is easy to use and opens the door to learning. But when food is part of every interaction, and when dogs are deprived of what I think is their right, people and dogs become fixated and dependent on food, and worst of all, the owner becomes lazy and doesn’t explore what else their pooch is interested in, or doesn’t want to do. That’s the problem.<br />
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Reptiles in nature aren’t used to eating small pebbles of food frequently and, in scientific behavioral studies, never faired very well because they aren’t very motivated by frequent small pebbles of food. Hence, they got a reputation that they aren’t very smart - we all know the term lizard brain: other than instinct and core body functions, no one is home. Surprisingly, when scientists reinforced with the warmth of a heat lamp, something reptiles deeply care about, behaviors could be trained and lizard-brain turned out to be quite bright. <br />
There are many things other than food our dogs care about; things they are intrinsically, by virtue of their nature, motivated by: Playing, sniffing, trailing, moving, distance, fetching, chasing, pulling, jumping – the best reinforcement for boxers, barking, and even biting – the often preferred reinforcement for Schutzhund trained German shepherds and Malinois.<br />
The instructor at the herding clinic Davie and me participated in didn’t need food or a ball to get his collies do his bidding. They heeded their handler’s commands because otherwise they lost access to the sheep, for the moment. The opportunity to control sheep’s movements was what made them obey every whim, because controlling sheep is what floated their boat the most.<br />
A couple of months ago we took care of a young Australian shepherd while his people were on vacation. As a typical Aussie, and after a rather short adjustment period, he was so responsive to us that I felt confident letting him off his leash. He never ran out farther than about 20 feet, checked in with me, returned, circled around me and dashed off again. This was on day three, and I was really tempted to food treat to reward such impeccable behavior, but didn’t because I didn’t have to. Re-orienting to us, his new lifeline as far as he knew, returning and circling, were all reinforcements in their own right and I didn’t need to add anything to it – anything other than giving him my full attention and erratically dodging around a bit so that he could chase and circle me some more.<br />
However, we also practiced formal recalls and that I did reinforce with food, even though typically I like to reinforce coming when called with a game, not food, or at least food being part of a game, but because we already played movement games a lot, I used food for this particular dog and situation. I could have used a ball as well the Aussie was über-passionate about, but there were icy patches – it was winter in Canada – and I didn’t want to risk an injury.<br />
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I think you are getting my gist: Think when you work with a dog instead of following a popular template. You don’t have to “make a dog operant”. The dog is operant by virtue of being alive. When an action is intrinsic, facilitating opportunities for the dog to do what is natural is hard to top with anything added externally.<br />
Yes, food is easy to use, but not always the most effective reinforcer, so don’t shove a treat in the dog’s mouth if he wants to sniff and mark the local piss pole.<br />
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And then there are situations in which any reinforcement that comes from you leads exactly to the behaviors that you don’t want.<br />
I can’t count the number of young obnoxious dogs I met who are shaped to go the mat, and promptly reinforced with a click and treat, and as soon as they gobbled it up self-release and are right back to doing something obnoxious again. Going to the mat, and being pesky, forever yo-yos back and forth, and the mat itself can become part of an attention seeking game. Same thing with jumping when greeting: The dog is shaped to sit and sits, is clicked, treated and released to say hello, and as soon as she gets to the person, jumps.<br />
Sometimes your dog simply needs to do something because you say so. Bet you thought you’d never hear that from me, and of course I am not talking about inflicting pain and punishments, but about managing with a leash until a new behavior is conditioned - or popping the pooch in the crate provided it is not perceived as aversive.<br />
I recently had clients with a boxer puppy who at one point was wound so tight, so incapable of settling on her own, that I did just that: I gently, but manually, put her in the crate after her owners unsuccessfully tried to lure her in with food. Literally within seconds, and without any crying or scratching at the door, she was zonked out.<br />
When a busy and energetic dog finally settles, operant conditioning laws tell you to reinforce that so that the behavior is repeated and you’ll get more settling in the future. In reality, the opposite will happen: the sleepy pooch on the mat or in her crate, sparked by your attention and the reinforcement, becomes active again, and potentially annoying. Having a safe and cushy spot to rest undisturbed when tired is reinforced, just not by us, and the wise owner leaves it like that.<br />
One last thing: I don’t externally reinforce, no matter how good my dog’s behavior, if my goal is that certain stimuli become irrelevant, for example ducks in one of the parks we periodically visit, or the horses in our neighborhood. Reinforcing when my dog focuses on it would make the stimulus too much of a big deal, so I simply habituate.<br />
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Reinforcement, and not some magical telepathic emotion exchange as heard on TV, creates behavior. Silent pride is a heap of crap. That said, if the humans set the stage for companionship by: being together instead of always doing together, sharing food, and unconditionally giving affection and protection, you don’t always have to use a stick or carrot, or rather a choker or cookie, to get the kind of conduct that makes living with a dog so pleasurable. Your dog will want to be with you and please you.<br />
And you also get away with requesting something from your dog she might not be so keen on at the moment. You won’t mess up your relationship if you have, as Dr. Susan Friedman says, enough accumulated trust in your bank account.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-14669011845556473282013-03-08T05:02:00.000-08:002013-03-08T05:02:01.678-08:00Introducing a New Dog<br />
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Last month we had a canine houseguest. We typically don’t dog sit because we are always über-busy, and it affects Will’s routine, but the dog we were asked to care for while his people enjoyed a vacation is an Australian shepherd, and we couldn’t possible say no to having an Aussie in the house for a little while.<br />
We know the owners well, but only met the pooch, a 2-year-old entire male, a few times, and Will never met him at all. Nevertheless, I was not too worried inviting him into our midst because I know Will, knew how savvy and conscientious the Aussie’s owners are, am experienced with dogs and, surely, anything can work for a temporary period of time with clever management.<br />
My criterion for long-term cohabitation is different. Clever management is not good enough, not fighting isn’t good enough, even dogs just tolerating one another isn’t. In my home, for dogs to permanently live together, they have to genuinely like each other. Can you imagine living with someone you don’t like in close space and for the rest of your life?<br />
Most people want the same I do when they play with the idea of getting another dog. They want everyone to get along and envision their dogs being companions for each other. Hence, I regularly find inquiries how to accomplish that in my inbox. People are unclear if same or opposite gender works better, if the new dog should be close in age and have an alike, or complementary disposition.<br />
Like it is so often the case when it comes to dogs, there is no clear answer. It depends, and that is what I typically email back - and not to drum up business for myself. Who fits best really is an individual thing.<br />
That said, there are some general aspects that increase the probability of peaceful co-existence. For example, it helps if one dog is naturally deferent. Makes sense, doesn’t it? If all dogs are equally confident, no one will back away if there is a resource dispute. Who defers doesn’t matter. I don’t buy into the common belief that the exiting dog must be the alpha – yes, I am aware that alpha is a loaded word; sometimes it is the other way around, but it is essential that the existing dog’s life is not miserable because of the interloper. I don’t mean to sound callous, but I have a “last one in, first one out” rule. My loyalty is with the pooch I have had for many years, and I know how tough it can be letting go, but re-homing is the kinder solution when dogs truly clash.<br />
Obviously, choosing the new dog wisely makes necessary re-homing less likely. Male/male, male/female and female/female combinations can all harmonize wonderfully, but two intact males can have ongoing issues, especially when there is an intact female around who becomes a desired, yet limited resource when she is in heat. Limited resources are a big deal, and big deal things incite potential confrontational reactions. But even that can work with a savvy owner.<br />
Compatibility is more important than gender, and also more important than age. Our 11-year-old Will is snooty and aloof with just about every adult dog, and we thought that a pup she could raise any which way she wants to would be the best match, and yet, she quite liked the Aussie house guest. Methinks because, although Will didn’t know that particularly dog, there were many behaviors that resembled our Aussie Davie’s, who was her companion for 9 years.<br />
He was also quite respectful, yielding to her. He still lives with his mother who obviously taught him manners. And he is very human oriented because his people do a lot of fun stuff with him. He solicited play with Will for sure, but was easily appeased to play with hubby Mike and me instead when Will wasn’t in the mood. I was able to re-motivate him, and therefore he didn’t pester her.<br />
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Dogs like Will that are not all that keen on goofing around with other dogs are more common than you might think. Age can play a role, but genetics and the dog’s life experiences during the critical developmental stages are contributing factors. Singleton puppies and ones removed from their mother and littermates too soon are often socially inept and awkward with other dogs; puppies who had to fight for basic needs, food, can view other dogs as rivals and aggress over resources. They can still successfully live with the right other dog, one who isn’t relentlessly space-rude and overbearingly playful.<br />
Conversely, dogs that had littermates, were naturally weaned, and had in general more positive contact with dogs than with humans, will be happiest in a home that includes a dog who equally enjoys the company of his own kind. Sometimes such a dog is actually needed as support for a dog who knows little or nothing how humans function.<br />
Extremes are rare - most dogs straggle the middle having a slight preference for either dogs or humans - but they do exist, and asking questions about the dog’s past living conditions can provide valuable clues if, or if not, he’ll fit nicely into your social group.<br />
Unfortunately such information isn’t always available. All dogs have a history, but often it is either unknown or not revealed, so in reality the only reliable tool a potential owner has is to observe how the desired add-on moves and behaves around other dogs, and how the existing dog and the newbie act around each other.<br />
My favorite way to check that is going for a walk. Whether it is in the existing dog’s neighborhood or on neutral ground depends on the dog. If he is anxious in unknown territory, home ground is better; if he is strutting home ground as if he owned it, neutral ground is better.<br />
Best-case scenario is when both dogs are casually aware of each other, curious without being tensely fixated or frenetically pulling. Ideally, the dogs switch between ogling each other and being interested in other things in the environment. Ideally, each dog can easily be prompted to pay attention to his/her respective handler.<br />
Two weeks before the Aussie guest landed on our doorstep we arranged for a walk in a multiuse off-leash park both dogs were familiar with. The Aussie was aware of Will and came for a sniff, but backed off instantly when Will gave him the “too soon for intimacy” eyeball. Both dogs had no issues moving together in the same direction though, and shared an interesting sniffing spot within the first 10 minutes. Both dogs took treats from the Aussie’s person and me, loosely close in space and patiently waiting their turn. I knew they’d be getting along.<br />
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Some humane societies and rescue organizations make it obligatory that all family members, including the canine one, must meet the dog they are thinking of adopting. It is a rule I like. Personally, I would not consider adding on a dog mine hasn’t met, unless I’d have an easy-going pooch who likes everyone. <br />
We all know that real life and ideal doesn’t always link: People don’t know what to look for; get a long-distance dog they’ve never met; inherit a dog; consciously understand that the newbie might not be the best fit but want him anyway or, as it was the case with one of my recent clients, they had always boarded their dogs with a friend when away, but their new acquisition didn’t get along with the friend’s dog. What to do in those cases?<br />
You still want to go for a walk, but you probably have to start from a greater distance to get the casual awareness behavior you are after. Just to clarify, you don’t want complete avoidance, a fixed “watch the owner”, because when dogs ultimately live in the same household they can’t avoid each other. What you do want is a “There’s an unfamiliar dog – oh well, not a big deal”.<br />
If one of the dogs is deliberately and constantly looking away, or sniffing the ground, he is overwhelmed and you need to decrease pressure by increasing distance.<br />
When you work patiently at the dog’s comfort level, eventually they will become familiar and curious about one another, and at that point you can get closer, and if both dogs stay fluid and can be prompted to reorient to the person, a brief sniff’n’greet can happen. The dogs choose where they want to sniff: head first or anogenital area, but how they do indicates who, if there is a dispute, will likely defer. Although you want to use rewards later on to convince each dog that being near the other is great news, there is no need to add treats to the initial sniff – the dogs being able to gather more information about each other is intrinsically reinforcing.<br />
Keep the initial contact brief, and then increase the distance again, on a loose leash by encouraging the pooch with body and voice to follow. Yo-yo between sniffing and walking away, gradually increasing the time the dogs are close together.<br />
Be animated when you walk away, but don’t use any other reinforcements when cohabitation is the goal. You want to make the best resources available when they peacefully share space, not when they are apart, thereby fostering cooperation.<br />
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With some dogs, going for a few walks is all they need to become buddies; with others, you have to meet at different places and more often before you enter home-turf together. Whenever you incorporate a new area, make the other components easier: start from a greater distance and decrease duration of sniffs, and once that new place is familiar, decrease the distance and increase duration again.<br />
Also be aware that animation increases arousal. The dog might be loose and non-reactive when the other does “normal” things: walks, sniffs, looks, but over-reacts when he does something odd. For example, when Will made a snow angel, the Aussie boarder got all excited and was on his way to pounce on her, which without a doubt would have resulted in an argument. Because I was aware of this, I was able to prevent it by re-motivating the Aussie. So, pay attention to that until the dogs are familiar with each other’s idiosyncrasies.<br />
The first time the dogs are together in their home, up the value of reinforcements. They should experience, once again, that the best things manifest when they are sharing space. Life for the existing dog has to stay the same or become better with the arrival of the gatecrasher. Ensure that the familiar routine is kept, that he has access to all places he had before, and that, if he is older, has opportunities to rest and sleep undisturbed. And don’t forget that owner attention is a highly valued resource, so don’t shift your gaze away when the other butts in. All that seems commonsensical, but I have had clients who suddenly banned the older dog from the bed or a certain part of the house with the new arrival, and then wondered why his behavior changed for the worse.<br />
If a dog is – or feels – put out with the appearance of another, anxiety, animosity and aggression builds.<br />
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Alike seeks alike and meshes well - unless they are equally jaded and confrontational. Initially less than perfect matches can still work, if the humans meet each dog’s individual needs, and that can mean a lot of extra time a day that goes to the dogs.<br />
If, or if not, a social group harmonizes depends on the dogs, but also, perhaps more so, on the people’s level of skill and available time; the amount of effort and commitment they are comfortable making.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-6344137389316998162013-02-19T07:15:00.001-08:002013-02-19T07:15:31.994-08:00Sunshine to Maritime Dogs<br />
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Last week the first shipment of about 100 animals coming from Palm Springs, California, arrived in Nova Scotia. 46 dogs were driven in an RV across North America, with another load expected in a couple of weeks that also includes some 50 cats. The arrangement was a cooperative effort between <a href="http://animalrescuecorps.org/" target="_blank">Animal Rescue Corps</a> and several local rescue organizations. The arrival of the dogs was met with great fanfare - and a lot of controversy that seems to continue based on the conversations I had at the recent Dog Expo with a number of people.<br />
Since this whole thing became public, I followed various Facebook threads, had private conversations with other trainers, met some of the dogs, talked with people who met the dogs, and talked with people that are involved with rescue organizations that were not part of the Sunshine Dogs project. Based on that, and my personal experience working with dogs for more than a decade and being loosely involved with humane societies and rescue folks for equally that long, a whole bunch of thoughts circled around in my brain, and I want to share them with you – rationally and unemotionally albeit not impartially, because we all see the world through our own filter, and I am no exception.<br />
Let’s start with the different positions folks have taken, and no, I won’t line up who said what and where, a) because a number of people shared similar viewpoints, and b) because some of the conversations are confidential.<br />
On one end of the opinion spectrum are people who are openly against it because they feel that we have enough dogs in need here, and already limited resources to help all of them. As one person pointed out: We are importing dogs from a population and resource wealthy area to a resource strapped and low population area.<br />
I agree with that. There are large dogs sitting in shelters sometimes for months, like Maverick at the Colchester SPCA who is there since November, and no one looks at him, and calls for help with local rescue was largely ignored. Every rescue group here is forever fund raising and asking for donations, including covering veterinary expenses for the Sunshine to Maritime dogs. So, I am by and large opposed, but not so annoyed that I will stop supporting the organizations that were part of this event. <br />
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On the other end are the people that are in favor. Some, because they feel that it doesn’t matter where animals saved come from, as long as they are saved. One person inferred that whoever makes negative comments is generally anti-global, and also against funding starving children because they live elsewhere. Hm? I’m not.<br />
Others point out that many of the dogs that came are small ones we don’t have enough of here, and if rescue can’t supply folks who want a small dog with a small dog, they’ll look for one elsewhere, for example online. That is a valid point, but for me there is a but: Do the small dogs have the temperament Joe and Jane Frontporch are looking for? Or do they, or some, have issues that, based on my experience, the general public doesn’t have in mind when they're looking for a dog.<br />
Some rescue dogs experienced a horrible past and need more than love to fix things. In fact, they might reject the love owners, especially ones that want a toy size, are so eager to give. Lay people generally have certain expectations and envision a pooch they can snuggle with, take on walks, to the park, on trips and when visiting friends and family. They typically don’t want a dog who is detached, nips at people, defends resources or growls when the collar comes on, reacts to other dogs and pisses in the house. I am not saying that the Palm Springs dogs all have these issues, but some, I am sure, do, because dogs who lived in a shelter for months, or in a hoarding situation where there was filth and fights over limited resources, have learned to void in the house, run or crate, and fight over resources. In addition, they can be distressed because of constant noise overstimulation, and mental/physical understimulation.<br />
The probable consequence when people struggle with the dog they adopted is that they are less likely to get another from that rescue, or rescue period, and more likely to look for a breeder’s pup in the future. And where does the majority look? Online.<br />
Speaking of, all dogs at one point are produced somewhere, and I argue that many in rescue originated in mill type facilities or back yards, and were purchased online or in a pet store. The general public sadly still doesn't have a clue that an ill-bred pup might be sickly and can have behavioral issues right from the start because he didn’t get what he needed during his critical developmental stages. When things don’t work out, the dog is surrendered or dumped, and eventually ends up in rescue. So indirectly, every organization that rescues makes room for more dogs produced for profit, and that is not much different than an individual purchasing a pup online or in a pet store.<br />
Of course I am not suggesting that rescue organizations cease to exist. Dogs’ wellbeing has been my mission for many years and rescue is a big part of it. And it is never the dog’s fault - every pooch deserves a second or third chance. But what I am saying is that the answer isn’t as simple as: “Let’s all get a dog from rescue and we’ll all be happy”. There is no easy solution, no right answer, other than legislation that stipulates who can breed and sell; legislation that shuts down people that pop out litter after litter after litter and sell to anyone who hands over money, or liquor, or dope, or whatever trade-in stuff they need at the time - the kind of scum rescue often also bails out when they buy a whole litter because they pity the pups. But of course, they too, like the individual, make room for the next litter.<br />
I argue that the best way to prevent future suffering is not getting a dog from rescue, but getting one from a conscientious breeder who cares about health and temperament, has only the number of litters they can imprint, raise and place properly, and who provides a contract with a lifetime return guaranty. Until we have that North America wide, rescue organization everywhere will be overloaded and underfunded in perpetuity.<br />
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The other thing that was discussed in several threads was that not all Sunshine to Maritime dogs that came with the first shipment are small. Some are large, and methinks we indeed have a surplus of large dogs in this province – see Maverick. Perhaps he’ll become the spokes dog for all the large dogs that are falling through the cracks.<br />
And what’s up with getting 50 cats? Everyone seems to be against that. They will go to Prince Edward Island, and perhaps they lack cats there. But then why wouldn’t they take our cats we can’t give away here? Transport would be cheaper, too. Apparently the whole thing ate up about 15.000 bucks in transportation costs.<br />
Perhaps the cats coming from Palm Springs are special cats – a certain size or color we don’t have anywhere in the Maritimes.<br />
Or perhaps they were part of the deal to get the small dogs. A local blogger wrote that the small dogs sweetened the deal for the large ones.<br />
I don’t know. Can someone enlighten me?<br />
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The arrival of the Sunshine dogs, as I mentioned, received a lot of media attention, and several people pointed out that that is a good thing because it will raise public awareness and therefore increase the number of people who will look to rescue first when they want a dog. Again, in my opinion if or if not adoptions and support will increase long term depends largely on the experience people will have with the dog they adopted. Experiences they will talk about with friends and family.<br />
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Another point made on a Facebook thread was that rescue and foster homes should hire professional trainers, the certified ones, more often to help with problem behaviors. Emphasis on hire. That irked a number of people, according to comments on that thread and people I talked with at the Dog Expo a couple of days ago, who felt that they know as much as a trainer and therefore don't need to spent money they don't have.<br />
Personally, I share the sentiment that trainers, like any other professional, should get paid for their service. Of course we should, and I am miffed when someone has no issues paying for every other service, except behavioral advice. However, based on my experiences, that happens more with lay people than rescue organizations. The ones that asked me for advice in the past always offered payment, which I, if it was via email or phone, refused. I respect foster homes because I know the effort they put in, and the least I can do is help out every so often. If a personal visit is needed, I accept payment they often insist on, but give a discount. Also, when I gave free seminars for foster homes and the SPCA, I always received something: Locally made crafts, homemade bread, a gift certificate for a restaurant, a bottle of local wine – all of it warmed by heart. It doesn’t always have to be money. Not for me anyway.<br />
In addition, some rescue organizations helped me with an occasional client who needed to re-home - and some others didn’t even return my email. Naturally, in those cases help is for free, including a personal visit. How could I expect rescue to take in a dog I was involved with, cover future food and vet care costs, and in addition also pay for my advice if they need it?<br />
More often than not though, the rescue folks I deal with indeed know what they are doing. Of course they would. Living with many, many dogs for many, many years makes one an expert, even if not certified. On the other paw, we professionals who specialize in dogs and behavior might know things rescue people, who have jobs, and a family and the dogs, and little time to stay current, don’t know. <br />
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One advice I always give is to allow rescued dogs the time and space they need to find their bearings in their new environment. I mean, those Sunshine dogs’ life as they knew it, however crappy it might have been, just ended: They were uprooted, on an 8-day RV trip, bombarded with a number of new people and new hands and cameras, and then thrust into another unfamiliar environment in their foster homes. They need time to settle; they don’t need more new people, more stimulation in the name of exercise and socializing, more prodding at the vet, or yet another foster home. First and foremost rescue dogs, often shell-shocked or at least the wind taken out of their sails, have to find safety again in a new routine that is then incrementally expanded from inside the house and yard, outward.<br />
Depending on the dog, that can take a couple of weeks, and until then, until they are settled and their true personality surfaces, they should not be adopted. How can a dog be placed in the best home possible if you don’t know much about the dog’s behavior, likes and dislikes, and potential issues. Relying on accounts from the rescue folks that brought the dogs in, or in other cases on what former owners say, is not good enough. Foster homes need to experience for themselves if the dog reportedly house trained and not at all aggressive, is indeed house trained and not at all aggressive, and then they can let him go to his hopefully forever home, and make room for more dogs that need their help.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-70081738117423259832013-02-13T06:10:00.000-08:002013-02-14T05:44:44.830-08:00Can Manipulation of Body and Communication Signals Change Behavior?<br />
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We love our dogs, don’t we? We love to watch them play, love when they’re attentive - follow us literally and figuratively, when they are affectionate and soft, and some of us even love when they act doggish: zoom in wide circles, bark with excitement, dig in the snow, sniff'n'mark, drag a log out of a pond, roll in yucky stuff - well, perhaps love is too strong a word regarding the last one.<br />
Dogs, we say, are honest and incapable of wearing a social mask, and we love that too - until they express that they feel aroused, anxious or angry. Those signals: the tension and warning stares; the barks, whines and growls; the tucked-under tail and bristled hair, we don’t love. We accept dogs’ frankness only when they “say” what we like, and aim to extinguish their not so sweet signals – either with inflicting punishment or applying reinforcement. With some dogs, either method effectively manipulates signals, but the important question is if we also successfully influence future behavior.<br />
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A few years ago scientists conducted an experiment in which people were asked to carry a pencil between their lips for a few minutes several times a day. Carrying a pencil, of course, resembles a smile. Scientists knew that hormones and neurochemicals dictate behavior, but what they wanted to find out was if it happens the other way around: If molding the body affects brain chemicals. Indeed, there were measurable changes in the test subjects, so it seems to be the case.<br />
Since humans and dogs are physiologically similar, the notion to use that information to help dogs is apparent: If we manually flatten raised hair, move ears forward, lift the tail, could we increase a dog’s feel-good neurochemicals and make him relaxed, confident and proud? This is what one renowned trainer, who cited the above study at a seminar, proposed, albeit with a question mark because she wasn’t quite convinced. Neither was I, and there is scientific evidence that shows that although behavior seems to influence brain chemistry, it does not change brain circuitry, and that is an important distinction.<br />
When a person smiles spontaneously, because they feel joyful or experience something funny or inspiring, the brain’s emotional center in the limbic system fires up. In comparison, when a person is prompted to smile, for example a politician for a photo op during an election campaign, neurons in the cerebral cortex, the thinking part of the brain, light up. There are muscles in the face that are not under voluntary control, and are only involved when the smile is genuine, emotional. To an onlooker, a smiling person might be regarded as happy and affable, but that doesn't mean it is real.<br />
Likewise, I believe that a dog's submissive display isn't necessarily real either, and I have observational evidence that backs it up. One dog in particular sticks out: A juvenile Labrador retriever named Abby who, for a few months, joined a loosely formed walking group I belonged to in Calgary.<br />
Abby, when she arrived, greeted each of our dogs, at any given day 10-15 of them, in a very groveling fashion. She did it every time anew, and every time was promptly growled at by just about every dog while she was still on her back, and after that, after they let her get up, everyone happily roamed together for the remainder of the walk.<br />
Our dogs’ growls upset Abby’s owner. She felt that since her dog so exaggeratedly submitted, ours shouldn’t be so offensively aggressive, and wanted them disciplined. Discipline, she shared with us, they implemented from day one as outlined in the training guide they followed: The Monks of New Skete’s “The Art of Raising a Puppy”. Although we were a little stumped by our dogs as well, we didn’t intervene because they were typically quite appropriate, even with newcomers. We, as a group, speculated that perhaps they knew more than we humans did.<br />
As it turned out, we and our dogs were correct. As Abby matured, a different personality surfaced. No more groveling, no more submission, but high arousal, attacking and bullying dogs, and offensively barking at people. Eventually, Abby got into so much trouble that they stopped coming.<br />
The original version of “The Art….” advises the alpha roll, the forceful putting a pup on her back, and I wondered then if Abby’s initial submission was feigned, and our dog savvy dogs, perceptive of subtleties in body language, saw it for what it was: Learned and superficial rather than felt deference.<br />
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People can manipulate crude body language, but not the finer expressions that reflect a dog’s emotional state: facial muscle tension, dilated pupils, an open or closed mouth with retracted or puckered commissures. Most people have difficulties comprehending dog communication when it is loud and clear, never mind subtleties. Dog savvy dogs, however, know - and perhaps smell, the emotional state and intent and decide, based on that, how they want to greet, or if. Manipulating a dog, including turning one around so the other can sniff butt and genitals, without understanding what is going on, leaves a lot of room for mistakes.<br />
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Trainers who use negative reinforcement instead of physical molding to extinguish undesired expressions do pay attention to those finer signals. They orchestrate situations in which the dog is exposed to the problematic trigger close enough that the trigger is indeed perceived as problematic. As long as the dog responds with unwanted signals, neither handler nor trigger do anything, but as soon as she gives appeasement, curious or friendly signals, the trigger releases the pressure by increasing the distance. Whatever is reinforced is repeated, and trainers who use negative reinforcement to treat reactivity claim that when practiced enough, the operant conditioned friendly expressions will lead to an authentically friendly dog. Again, I have doubts, and again, studies as well as real life experience seem to substantiate them.<br />
In an experiment, human test subjects were instructed to move their facial muscles to mirror a specific emotion: anger or happiness. Like the pencil between the lips study, the scientists wanted to see if consciously invoking an expression would lead to the corresponding emotion, and indeed the participants reported that they felt respectively angry or happy. So at first glance, deliberately producing body signals appears to bring about the feeling, but closer investigation and evidence from electrophysiological recordings revealed that the artificial smiley and angry faces created different brain wave patterns than those generated by real smiles and real anger. The brain just can’t be fooled.<br />
In addition, the test subjects were not happy or angry at any particular thing, which is of course the case when we work with dogs who react to very specific and real stimuli: mainly other dogs and/or strangers.<br />
I encountered dogs who were shaped with negative reinforcement, and from a distance indeed didn’t snarl any longer but displayed sociable signals, one even play bowed, but reacted when the distance decreased and pressure became overwhelming. The one that play bowed attacked when she was within teeth range. Had she changed her mind about dogs? Obviously not.<br />
Like body molding, shaped friendliness void of the emotion behind it is mock friendliness, and mock friendliness puts people in a false sense of security. There is a real risk that the dog becomes more dangerous. Like punishing the growl, we suppress the dog’s natural warning vocabulary when we reinforce the ones we like better. Before you had an aggressive dog who signaled it and you could take action; after punishment and shaping for sociability, you have one who doesn’t and the attack comes unannounced. Furthermore, people typically approach closer when they see friendly body signals, and in that case you want to be certain that your dog IS friendly, and not just acts friendly.<br />
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Yes, we have accounts that insecure people feel stronger when they consciously walk tall and with conviction, and anxious ones who become more centered in stressful situations when they practice relaxed breathing, but don’t forget that when people fake it till they make it they do that voluntarily, without external manipulation and shaping.<br />
Even then, an assertion such as: “I carried a pencil between my lips for a few weeks and permanently lost my fear of spiders” sounds ludicrous. I am sure phobic folks wish a cure was so easy.<br />
In my opinion, if we want honesty from the dog, anything emotional must come freely from the dog, and not be shaped, prompted or manipulated. If a dog feels afraid or angry, reflected in his body signals, I respect that. It is preposterous human arrogance to decide for the dog what signals she should give. That doesn’t mean I ignore problem behaviors, but that I try to change the underlying issues instead of expressions. If I am successful, the signals I don’t like will disappear automatically and authentically.<br />
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Many owners want what I want: a canine companion who feels relaxed, curious and confident, content and happy. You get that not with manually lifting the tail, but when you facilitate opportunities for the dog to succeed.<br />
During a tracking workshop, our German shepherd friend Fin found the hidden person and was overjoyed. No food reward was needed to motivate him to do it again.<br />
Will once successfully snatched a ball from her nemesis Gracie. She carried it in a way that it hung out of her mouth for all to see. Will never carried a ball that way before or after.<br />
Our Aussie Davie snubbed all her dog friends at the park after a herding workshop. Even before I told the group what we had been up to, they commented that she was different.<br />
Our Newf Baywolf hightailed and pranced after he finally dislodged a big branch he was working on for a good 10 minutes.<br />
No fake signals in any of these dogs, but expressed, authentic joy – pride, there is no better word to describe it.<br />
So, can we manipulate the signals a dog gives? Absolutely.<br />
Should we? My answer is no.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-36072377007891795812013-01-29T09:32:00.000-08:002013-01-29T09:32:50.637-08:00Rescue Chi in Defensive Mode<br />
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Aggression is a major reason why dogs are surrendered to rescue organizations and humane societies, who then must decide what to do with the pooch.<br />
A Chihuahua named Loco is one of those dogs. His rescue people decided to work with him, to make him safe and adoptable, and asked for my advice. I thought it perfect blog post fodder.<br />
Watch this video Loco's foster parent made:<br />
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AKM1lr1JjXI" target="_blank">https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=AKM1lr1JjXI </a><br />
Loco is described as guarding his crate, and although he reportedly also guards food and toys, I’d say that he is defending the safety the crate represents, rather than possessively guarding the object. He doesn’t want people near him because he doesn’t trust them.<br />
How trainers work with a dog like Loco depends on their philosophy and skill level. Any of the things below are done to dogs – it all depends in whose hands they are lucky, or unlucky, enough to fall in.<br />
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1. Euthanasia. Nowadays, thanks to the popular No-Kill movement, fewer aggressive dogs are killed and more get a second chance.<br />
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2. Hands-on force.<br />
Toys are easy to overpower, so why not put on heavy leather gloves and forcefully take Loco's resource away until he understands that all things belong to people and stops objecting?<br />
Couldn’t we just pin him until he submits?<br />
Although we don’t know for sure, chances are that it is exactly that kind of treatment that caused Loco’s aggression in the first place. A dog forced and overpowered doesn’t get used to being manhandled and losing his valuables, but becomes increasingly more suspicious and defensive. If he only succeeded once with the aggressive displays and the person he felt threatened by backed off, aggression was powerfully reinforced and became his default mechanism for keeping people away.<br />
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3. One could use a shock collar and zap the expressions out of him.<br />
Shock collars, banned in some countries, are commonly used in North America. There are, in fact, shock collar franchises. Why are they popular? Because they can be effective. A shock impresses the dog and often suppresses the undesired expressions pretty much right away. That impresses the owners: they don’t see how their dog feels anymore and are happy. It's a lucrative business. But make no mistake: the underlying emotion does not magically vanish. How anybody believes that a shock makes a dog feel better about people, dogs, or whatever the triggers are, is delusional.<br />
If you can stomach watching shock-trained dog video clips, you see robotic, mechanical obedience and behavior: dogs that won’t do anything but what they’re told, and are eerily non-responsive regardless what situation they're put in. No behaviors offered; dog’s spirit left the building.<br />
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4. Rewarding the dog for appropriate, friendlier behavior.<br />
That is a more humane approach, popular with force-free trainers, and the one the foster home chose with Loco. The reward is distance, so moving away, as soon as the dog stops his aggressive displays. You see that clearly in the clip. The concept behind it is that if you functionally reinforce the desired behavior, the dog will do more of it, and in time become friendlier and more trusting because people don’t steal and hurt anymore. It sounds logical, but is not how I work with aggressive dogs and here is why: What is happening here, in operant conditioning terms, is negative reinforcement: something unpleasant is applied, and when the dog shows the behavior we are after the pressure is released. The problem is that the person is still “something unpleasant”, which means we might be changing the dog’s expressions by reinforcing the more preferable ones, but we are not changing how the dog feels about people any time soon, and as long as people put pressure on the dog. Humans, from Loco’s point of view, are still bad news, and the only thing he learns is to do certain things to make them go away. I'll elaborate in my next post why I don't like manipulation of communication and body signals.<br />
In addition Loco was clearly overwhelmed with that exercise and "practiced" aggression for a period of time before he finally walked away. It is not a conscious process, but brain pathways are strengthened every time neurons fire. Behaviors that are well established, that are done over and over again, have very strong neural pathways. When we work with dogs, we want to do everything possible not to strengthen the aggressive pathways further. <br />
There are some real physiological things happening when a dog is anxious, afraid or angry. Adrenalin level rises, and when that happens a lot a dog can become chronically hormone imbalanced, and we want to avoid that too.<br />
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5. My goal, when I work with a defensive dog, is to change his emotional response to the trigger: from it being perceived as potential trouble to it announcing something wonderful. If done successfully, the nasty expressions will simply, authentically, disappear.<br />
This is what I wrote Loco's foster person: Think away from operant conditioning - what, or what not, you are reinforcing. Don’t see the aggressive expressions as negative behavior that needs to be quelled, but the emotional state the dog is in. We might not like it, but he can’t help it.<br />
To instill trust in people, walk toward the crate, toss Loco the best treat, and walk away. Treat and retreat, without any strings attached. He gets it just because a person is approaching. No pressure: You don’t hang around the crate, you don't look at him, and there is no demand for him to do a certain thing.<br />
Most dogs quickly begin to anticipate the appearance of the trigger, in Loco’s case the human, excitedly because they associate it with something good.<br />
Once Loco begins to trust, the person gradually gets closer and stays close for longer, and looks at him for longer. The next step is expanding, using the same approach, to all problem zones, and then incorporating different people.<br />
You want to orchestrate many opportunities for Loco to experience that humans are, with 100% predictability, non-threatening. Emotional safety cancels the need to act defensively, but safety has to be felt: it can neither be taught with reason, nor forced with compulsion.<br />
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The wonderful people who are working with Loco are giving this try and promised to keep me in loop. I will update you.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-28109754471955326462013-01-08T11:53:00.000-08:002013-01-08T11:53:03.613-08:00Dog Parks and Dog Play<br />
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Morning glory is to slurp a whipped cream topped latte while heading to my favorite dog park. Although I like wearing the halo of an amazing dog owner because I allow mine to express her dogness unrestricted by a leash, the truth is that my reasons for visiting such places are self-serving: I love watching dogs, mine and others.<br />
Proof that I am not the only person who does is the popularity of off-leash parks. Owners galore point to the many benefits, the exercise and real quality time spent with other dogs and people, when they push their municipal leaders to designate a space for dogs to run free.<br />
True, dog parks are good for the human and canine mind and body, but bliss turns into nightmare when a dog is injured or killed by another. That happened recently in Calgary – a city and its off-leash parks very familiar to me. Here are the details:<a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/charges-could-come-against-both-dog-owners-in-calgary-pit-bull-attack/article6878160/" target="_blank"> http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/charges-could-come-against-both-dog-owners-in-calgary-pit-bull-attack/article6878160/</a><br />
I don’t want to get deep into the pit bull debate, because I want to discuss dog parks and dog play, but let me say that I am against banning certain breeds. What I am also against, though, is that anybody can sell or buy any dog they wish, without required to know even the basics in dog behavior, communication and management, or care about their welfare. I’d like to see legislation that addresses that so that powerful dogs don’t continue to end up with people ill equipped to keep them and society safe. <br />
Based on my experience, many pits are owned by the wrong people. I am not talking about just gangstas, but young males who get a tremendous ego boost when they adorn themselves with a macho-reputation dog and the looks that go with it; and even young and middle-age females who argue that “bullies” are but victims of media hype and deny that they, like any other breed, come with specific characteristics.<br />
Pits were traditionally bred to have a heightened awareness of dogs, confront them, and follow through with an attack. Not all pit bulls attack dogs, but when they do they are serious about it, like the ones in that article who ripped a Pomeranian apart, and severely injured a powerful livestock guardian breed dog, a great Pyrenees.<br />
The pit owner claims that his dog was provoked: <a href="http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/dogs-fighting-in-off-leash-park-in-calgary-results-in-death-tears-accusations/article6837962/">http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/dogs-fighting-in-off-leash-park-in-calgary-results-in-death-tears-accusations/article6837962/</a><br />
I don’t care if he was or wasn’t. A dog who does such damage shouldn’t live.<br />
The owner says that his dog would never hurt anybody. Evidently, that is not the case.<br />
Such attacks result in trauma for all involved: The humans who witness their dog being harmed, the dogs that are injured, but also the attacker who is seized and forced to deal with a totally unfamiliar environment, and might lose his life.<br />
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Fortunately, attacks like that are rare, and they can happen anywhere, not just in off-leash parks. I never witnessed a dog seriously injured or killed, but I often do encounter socially inept dogs who shouldn’t mix freely with others: dogs timid and overwhelmed, or out of control wound up. In almost all cases the owners are oblivious bystanders.<br />
A dog park, contrary to popular belief, is the worst place to establish social skills. Dogs who don’t have them get worse, and dogs who have to deal with dogs who don’t have them become irritated or fearful.<br />
Social skills and obedience must be in place before off leash in the big distraction dog park is introduced. That means that the pooch is acclimated to a variety of park users, including children, feels fairly comfortable around them, and acts appropriately, including with small dogs. Multi-use trail parks don't have a small dog area sectioned off, but even in parks that do I see large and tiny ones mingle. So, there is no other way around it: Before a dog is allowed free reign, he must be all-around socially appropriate and owner responsive. Neither segregation nor a muzzle can replace that. Last summer I witnessed a muzzled greyhound relentlessly hunting down a toy-size dog. He couldn’t physically harm, but the little one was terrorized nevertheless. None of the other dogs at the park acted that way, so eeny meeny miny moe – which is the dog who should go? Hint, not the toy.<br />
A dog who might do serious damage should not be in an off-leash park, leashed or not, muzzled or not. Sometimes an owner has no pre-existing knowledge of that level of aggression, but sometimes they do and expose their dog to others anyway.<br />
An off-leash park is also the wrong setting for the scared dog. He will be overwhelmed when his need for personal space and time to observe and process what is going on aren't heeded, and chances are that he’ll become increasingly more sensitized, nervous and reactive, instead of more “socialized”.<br />
A dog who is not dangerous but inappropriate and frightens most other dogs should be on the leash.<br />
New owners of a rescue dog should not visit an off-leash park until they know more about the dog’s social skills, and until a certain amount of attachment has taken place.<br />
Key to a successful park outing is that the dog switches his attention between person and the environment, because then it is more likely than not that he will respond to a command, including come when called. I admit, I didn’t always observe that rule. Our Newf Baywolf was so friendly with everyone that a reliable recall seemed unnecessary, but that was 15 years ago and since I learned a thing or two: even the friendliest dog can irritate another who wants to be left alone.<br />
Now I call my dogs back when I see:<br />
Another dog on the leash<br />
A number of small dogs chasing each other <br />
Rowdy dogs interacting <br />
A dog who gives fear signals toward mine<br />
A dog who irritates mine<br />
Any unusual encounter, for example a child making snow angels, or a grossly overweight and snorting pug wiggling along.<br />
In addition, my dogs have an emergency sit, which means that I can place them into a stationary position and walk away to deal with oncoming trouble myself if need be.<br />
Oh, and don’t rely on the other person’s account of their dog’s emotion, intention and behavior. Recently, when trailing one of my favorite parks with a friend and her dogs, we encountered a dog on the leash who stiffly stared – the hard locked and loaded look – at my friend’s juvenile. When the owner sensed my hesitation, she assured us that her dog “just wants to play”. I told my friend to recall and leash her dogs.<br />
<br />
Off-leash means that dogs can enjoy physical freedom.<br />
Off-leash does not mean that every dog enjoys interacting with all other dogs. Many, especially mature adults, are quite content to mind their own business, play with a familiar canine buddy, sniff around, or have fun with their person. <br />
When dogs do interact with one another, owners should keep an astute eye on their dog to ensure that play does not escalate in something more serious. Boisterous, competitive play can quickly change into aggression if one dog gets the upper hand. We see that in sports: As soon as one team is winning, the other initiates aggression or cheats to turn things around.<br />
When one dog aggresses, the other might lose interest and stop the interaction to avoid an injury, but by that time the aggressor can be too pumped to break it off. You can see that scenario played out typically between almost equal or similar, often same gender, dogs. <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8T0x2XvyWvY" target="_blank">Here is a clip that illustrates that nicely.</a><br />
Pay attention how the owner dealt with the situation: he was there; he was plugged in and understood his dogs; he split when he needed to in a calm and directive way, without force and corrections, and without taking sides. When the dogs were relaxed again, he praised them. Take note folks – this is how it’s done.<br />
<br />
In play, everyone is a willing participant, and authentic play is beautiful to watch.<br />
Canine buddies, so dogs that are familiar with each other, often joyfully play, and unfamiliar dogs can become instant friends when they are young or share the same play style.<br />
Two is company and three a crowd seems to be true for dogs as well: often the best play sessions happen between two dogs attentive to each other, and things can get a little weird if a third one wants to join in.<br />
In normal play, there are little pauses that prevent that the interaction becomes too heated, and then the dogs pick it up again, each one seeking to continue.<br />
A trademark of true play is a loose and fluid body. Tension and hard-eyed staring can be part of a chase invitation between friends, with the staring dog characteristically the one who runs to be chased. Play tension is brief and combined with a “play face” – pulled back lips and an open mouth, contrary to prolonged tension with a clamped up, puckered mouth when a dog feels conflicted.<br />
Tension when dogs first see each other is a sign of nervousness or aggression, not play. <br />
During play, all signals and expressions that are part of a dog’s behavioral repertoire can be used, including bites in the neck/throat area. But again the body is loose, the mouth wide open, tongue visible and teeth covered. The bites are inhibited, and both dogs voluntarily stay in the game.<br />
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Here are two puppies playing – ignore the humans babbling in the background.<br />
Normal play is reciprocal: dogs switch between chaser and chasee, and positions - sometimes one dog is on top, then the other.<br />
Sometimes a more powerful dog will even level the field for his buddy, for example lie down or roll on his back.<br />
When dogs truly play, they are still peripherally aware of stimuli around them. They can be interrupted by distractions, including the owner calling, and won't startle and overreact when a dog or person moves into their space. If your dog has you so tuned out that he doesn’t respond to his name anymore, he is too wound and fixated. Interfere.<br />
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The responsibility for a conflict free park lies solely with the humans. If we are responsible as a group, we will keep off-leash privileges, and if not, well – I’d certainly hate to lose the opportunity to watch my dog enjoy unrestricted fun. Self-regulation, in combination with legislation and education, might be the measures that prevent that, and prevent breed bans along the way.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-41835975859256025052013-01-02T11:59:00.001-08:002013-01-02T11:59:25.371-08:00About Monkeys, Peace and Aggression<br />
<br />
<br />
World-renowned primatologist and ethologist Frans de Waal talks in his book “Our Inner Ape” about an experiment in which physically bigger, but peaceful type of monkeys were housed together with smaller, but cantankerous and more aggressive monkeys – all of them juveniles. When the aggressive ones started a fight, the peaceful ones simply ignored them. Completely! They didn’t even look in their direction. Obviously, the physically stronger, peaceful monkeys had no need to attest their strength exactly because they were more powerful; their own safety was not in jeopardy.<br />
The monkeys stayed together for five months, and there was rarely a physical confrontation: all, especially toward the end of the experiment, lived harmoniously with each other. Not only that, but when they were separated, the inherently aggressive monkeys continued to be more peaceful. Peacefulness, it seems, can be learned.<br />
Genetically programed means that there is a higher or lower propensity for a behavior, but for it to occur it needs the corresponding environment. With these cranky monkeys, when aggression was not reinforced, and when they observed peacefulness in cohabitating animals that could clean their clocks if they wanted to, the aggressive propensity did not find the corresponding environment, and thus their behavior – lastingly - changed.<br />
In our relationship with dogs, we are the more powerful species, like the bigger and stronger monkeys were. That makes us the ones in charge, the only ones who can set the stage, the corresponding environment, that allows dogs to acquire the social skills we are wanting.<br />
I don’t believe in aggressive breeds, but also not that every dog, or breed, is a genetically clean slate. Selective breeding happens for a reason or it wouldn’t happen: humans aim and breed for certain traits, and although using the mouth is natural for all dogs, some are more active, determined and ready to aggress when pressured. A dog hardwired to overtly act more than retreat will live out those tendencies in an environment that is charged up and aggressive - that is where his nature finds fertile ground to be expressed; the predisposition to become a behavior.<br />
Especially with these dogs it is crucial that we counter that by providing a peaceful environment, by addressing their aggression issues in non-aggressive ways, and also, while not ignoring that a problem exists, by not giving the aggressive expressions that much attention. <br />
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Here is another interesting monkey story that has to do with peace and aggression.<br />
Stanford University Professor Robert Sapolsky studied baboons over several decades. Baboons, unlike dogs, are very hierarchical and there is a lot of pressure and bullying happening from the top down. Consequently, there is a lot of stress in the underlings, measured in the glucocorticoid levels in their urine output.<br />
At one time, a particular colony Sapolsky observed lost about half their members when they consumed contaminated meat. None of the ruling alphas survived, and my guess is because as alphas they had priority resource access and were brutish food hoggers at the expense of low-ranking baboons who lost out on the feast.<br />
In any case, suddenly the colony was without leaders, and interestingly the troop didn’t fall apart, but rather the aggression level dropped, and the affiliate social level rose. The whole colony thrived, and again it was lasting: After 20 years without alphas the baboons in that colony were still friendly and non-aggressive with one another, with each individual having some control, each one flourishing, contributing and cooperating with everyone else.<br />
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In 2013, I will continue to take lessons learned from dogs and people, and perhaps monkeys, to heart.<br />
In 2013, I will continue to share with you what I know, and hopefully help more humans and their canine companions to a flourishing and harmonious coexistence.<br />
I am wishing you, and your dogs, a healthy, happy and prosperous 2013 – and that you experience only peaceful hairless apes this year.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-16843721316430780042012-12-14T10:07:00.000-08:002012-12-14T10:07:41.756-08:00Dog Ads Online! Reading Between the Lines<br />
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It is almost Christmas, and like every year, I am sure, some folk will scramble for the memorable present that impresses the kids or the girlfriend, and what better way to do that than with a furry bundle of pup? Luckily, dog shopping is really easy in North America. Go online, be bombarded with ad after ad, fall in love with the cutest ever face, hand over the money, and done.<br />
You might have guessed by my tone that I am sour about dogs advertised and sold online – and yet, a few months ago, in an attempt to procrastinate a lengthy report I had to write, I clicked on Kijiji. The dog section. Worse yet, a pup caught my eye in a big way: An Australian shepherd who looked so much like our Davie who died almost two years ago and we’re still missing. Worse yet, I promptly inquired with the seller and was ready to travel 400 km to meet the pup, but she was already sold.<br />
Once the disappointment dissipated, disbelieve set in that I, who has an insight scoop how dogs suffer when they are bred, raised and placed without conscience, was receptive to that. And I came to understand that if I am, how much more susceptible laypeople are. People who fall for ads and think that just because someone breeds dogs that they care about dogs.<br />
I like to believe that had I been able to meet that Aussie pup, I would have had enough sense to walk away if there were any red flags. Most people though, once they answered an ad, once they are at the breeder, once the see the puppy or dog, don’t walk away. They don’t recognize red flags, and even if they do find it difficult to leave without the pooch in tow, wanting to rescue him out of the situation he is in.<br />
It is understandable and yes, kind humans make life better for that one dog, but what they are also doing is to enable a for-profit business to pump out more puppies, and the suffering continues.<br />
Because we have lousy animal welfare laws, the best way to ease suffering is through the pocket book. If the masses would recognize red flags and shop elsewhere, the unscrupulous breeders’ source of income would dry up.<br />
I know what to look for; most laypeople don’t. Thus, I went online again, this time to point out obvious, and not so obvious, red flags.<br />
I googled several Canadian provinces, and found similar ads everywhere. The ones below are authentic: copied and pasted as listed, but I did remove the sellers’ personal info.<br />
Here we go:<br />
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<i>“Our much anticipated goldens, buffs, blk/tan and chocolate cocker spaniel puppies have arrived. Our cockers are only bred once a year to ensure dams and pups are in optimum health and temperment. These family raised dogs have been proven great temperment family dogs that love kids, cats and other dogs. Parents are on site. Pups will be Vet checked, dewormed, immunized (1st needle)and have thier own puppy pack and photo album inclulding pictures of parents and grandparents. Puppies will be ready to go November 26, 2012, an early Christmas Present!</i><br />
<i>A $200.00 deposit is required to hold your puppy. Serious enquires, thank you.”</i><br />
Red flags:<br />
There were 15 puppies in total from two litters, and that doesn’t sound too bad, does it? Except – I found another ad worded almost the same way with the same spelling mistakes, and listed on the same date, and it announced 11 puppies. Same person? If yes, we are talking 26 puppies and that are too many dogs.<br />
The pups are advertised as purebreds, but it doesn’t make a reference if they are registered – a requirement in Canada. Dogs advertised as purebreds must be registerable.<br />
The birth/when ready dates also raised my eyebrows: The ad gives one birth date - were both litters born on the same day? Or is one litter younger? To the best of my knowledge, Kijiji pulls ads when pups are sold too young, but some breeders cleverly circumvent that by advertising the older litter, and when the potential buyer shows up all those pups “have just been sold”, and they push the younger ones before they should be leaving their mom and littermates.<br />
I also don’t like the reference to Christmas. Life animals should never be advertised as Christmas presents.<br />
Compare it with this ad and you’ll see what I am talking about:<br />
<i>“Beautiful Registered Purebred Chihuahua Puppies.</i><br />
<i>The estimated adult weighs for these puppies is between 3.0 to 5.0 pounds full grown.</i><br />
<i>All pics are taken close up, zommed in and cropped, they really are tiny.</i><br />
<i>Both parents are Registered Purebred Chihuahuas and are on site to meet you.</i><br />
<i>Litter #1 Born October 5 2012... They will be ready to go to their new homes on Novermber 30 2012.</i><br />
<i>Pic #1 -- Male Puppy **SOLD**</i><br />
<i>Pic #2 -- Female #3</i><br />
<i>Pic #3 -- Female #2</i><br />
<i>Pic #4 -- Female #1</i><br />
<i>Pic #5 -- Female #4 **SOLD**</i><br />
<i>Litter #2 Born October 12 2012... will be ready to go their new homes on December 7 2012.</i><br />
<i>Pic #6 -- Male#1 White Male with Blue Eyes</i><br />
<i>Pic #7 -- Male #2 Blue Male with Blue Eyes.</i><br />
<i>Pic #8 -- Female</i><br />
<i>They come with:</i><br />
<i>Veterinary exam and health records</i><br />
<i>1st set of shots</i><br />
<i>3X deworming</i><br />
<i>One Year Written Health Guarantee</i><br />
<i>Registration</i><br />
<i>And a gift bag full of things you will need to get you and your puppy started at home."</i><br />
<br />
Here is an ad that looks to rehome an adult dog: <i>“Female dog for sale. Very well trained. She is an excellent gaurd dog and I do not want to part with her but I am pregnant and she should NOT be around small children. She is very faithfull and needs lots of attention and exercise. Only serious inquiries please.”</i><br />
Big red flag: “NOT be around small children”. Unless someone lives insulated from people, there is always a chance that a dog will meet small children. That’s how the human race keeps it going. This dog should not be sold on Kjiji, but evaluated by an expert and adopted to an experienced home who knows how to work with those issues – and knows how to manage the dog properly. A few days ago, another incident of a child bitten in the face made the news here, and although I don't know the details in that case, ads like that are part of the problem: someone with minimal dog experience and knowledge might read “very well trained”, and expect exactly that.<br />
Other red flags:<br />
<i>“Excellent guard dog”</i> – or potential liability?<br />
<i>“Faithful”</i> - or protective?<br />
<i>“Needs lots of attention and exercise”</i> - what does the dog do when she doesn’t get it?<br />
As a general rule, I wish laypeople would consult with a professional before they acquire an adult dog they spot online. I know, there are great dogs and people out there, but owners, even if they are honest about the dog’s issues and quirks like this one absolutely appears to be, rarely comprehend the full magnitude and are typically also not experienced in selecting an appropriate new home. Furthermore, nothing more than handing money over is required of a dog owner in our lands.<br />
For profit breeders don’t care where their pups are placed.<br />
Layowners often do care, but don’t have the necessary skill.<br />
It is the dog that suffers most when placed in the wrong home, and some go through several before they end up in rescue, or are euthanized.<br />
<br />
A statement I found in many ads: <i>“Loves kids, dogs and cats.”</i> Yes, some breeds are more or less predisposed to like people, be tolerant of small hands, and cohabitate peacefully with other dogs, but no breed is genetically programmed to love all other beings automatically and without work put in by breeder and owner.<br />
There are exceptions, but most 8-week-old puppies don’t have the guts to object aggressively to handling or attack the adult dog next door, but there is no guaranty that it will be so when he is 8 months old.<br />
<br />
Here are more concrete ads:<br />
<i>“Please to announce our newest litter of Comfort Retrievers.</i><br />
<i>Males and Females Available</i><br />
<i>Last 4 pictures are a few of our Grown Comfort Retrievers</i><br />
<i>This is a breed (cross between a Golden Retriever and Cocker Spaniel) that we decided to try about 4 years ago. We loved the Golden Retriever but wanted something a bit smaller. We attempted to breed resulting in a 40-50 lb Golden Retriever looking family pet. Our goal is to achieve a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever Size.</i><br />
<i>Our Comfort Retrievers have the temperament and disposition of the Golden Retriever. We have not received any feedback on Health Concerns - they tend to be a very healthy Pet. They LOVE the water.</i><br />
<i>Our newest available litter of Comfort Retrievers were born September 24th and will be ready for rehoming between November 12th and 19th. In this litter we have 4 girls and 5 boys available. We already have a small waiting list for this litter but still room to add on.”</i><br />
There are no huge red flags, other than backyard breeding, and I hope they don’t charge pure breed prices for a mutt by design. Just to be clear, I have nothing against backyard breeders or mixed breed dogs - I live with the most wonderful one since more than a decade. What I don't like are amateurs putting a steep price tag on their special creations. <br />
<i>"Tend to be healthy"</i> is a bit ambiguous. Are they, or aren’t they? Before the breeders continue breeding, they should make sure they are.<br />
The ad claims that the dogs have the disposition of a golden retriever. Genetics taught us that offspring has the DNA of both parents. Chances are that sooner or later there will be some cocker disposition creeping in. Not that that’s a bad thing, but it should be mentioned in the ad, because golden people will expect a small golden.<br />
For comparison a springer spaniel ad:<br />
<i>“SPCA inspected/approved. CKC Permanent registered kennels and award winning breeders of 30 years .Pups are extensively socialized, immunized, hunting/field training started,home raised and come with 8 year health guarantees against hereditary diseases.Also, pups are lovingly and humanely raised with tails/dewclaws left intact. Parents are CKC CHAMPIONS, OFA,CERF clear and DNA tested for serious eye problems. Parents and some grandparents are available to meet. References available. Note: pups are offered for sale to approved homes only; interview, home visit and references requested. Litters due early November and will be available for homing for the end of January 2013. Show breeding stock from either litter price may be available ; breeders will provide mentorship and guidance with purchase of this quality of puppy. Reduced price to homes on fixed incomes or to hunting/working and animal therapy placements.”</i><br />
See the difference? And pay attention to the pups staying with the breeder for 10-12 weeks. I also liked that there are grandparents on sight - a sign that they don't get rid of older dogs that are not monetarily useful any longer.<br />
My hunch is that these breeders make good money, and deservedly so, because they obviously prioritize the dogs’ welfare.<br />
<br />
Check this one out:<br />
<i> “We are proudly the FIRST breeder to be certified by the Humane Society for ethical breeding practices! You can see the certification badge on our website, and please think twice about purchasing from non-certified breeders!</i><br />
<i>We breed quality CKC Registered Labrador Retriever puppies and match them with good homes and families. We are committed to the welfare of our labs, and place an emphasis on responsible breeding practices.</i><br />
<i>Each lab puppy comes with:</i><br />
<i>5 Year / LIFETIME Genetic Warranty,</i><br />
<i>LIFETIME Breeder Support, and</i><br />
<i>LIFETIME Return Policy.</i><br />
<i>- This ensures you are happy and secure in the decision to purchase your next family member, and guarantees both us and you that none of the dogs we produce will end up in an animal shelter.</i><br />
<i>- All our breeding dogs are screened for 8 different genetic health problems (Hips, Elbows, Eyes, Cardiac, PRA, EIC, CNM, DM). Please read the "Genetic Health 101" page of our website for more information.</i><br />
<i>- All pups go home at 8 weeks of age. They have basic housetraining, and are microchipped, dewormed four times, and have their first TWO sets of vaccinations. This saves you an expensive vet visit, and ensures the immunity of your puppy when you take it home. Six weeks of free pet insurance is also included. All these details ensure you are delivered a healthy puppy, as we endeavour to minimize visits to the vet over the lifetime of your companion.</i><br />
<i>- We have an open kennel policy, so upon visiting us, you will be given a full tour and get to meet all our dogs. We believe it is important you see first hand that you are dealing with reputable breeders who care about their dogs.</i><br />
<i>- We have an assortment of different lab puppies available at different times each year. Listed below are what we have available in the next few months:</i><br />
<i>- We have litters with all colours expected for the fall and winter. So ask us, or see our website for details! Please contact us in advance of the time you're looking for a companion, as we have a busy deposit list.</i><br />
<i>We aim to retire our breeding dogs by 4 years old, and we usually have opportunities for the adoption of some great older dogs. We also have some great options to foster older pups and younger adults. Check out our website or contact us for details!”</i><br />
It sounds like these breeders do it all right, but I still would not buy from them. They have too many puppies for my liking - too many dogs period, indicated that they have options to foster older pups and younger adults. Kennel raised? It doesn’t say, but my hunch is yes.<br />
Rescue groups can’t find enough foster homes – a for-profit breeder asking for a foster home puts a bad taste in my mouth.<br />
And I wonder why they retire them so young? Are they worn out at age 4?<br />
<br />
<i>“Border Collie, Kelpie and Dingo cross pups for sale. Parents are excellent cattle working dogson a large cattle ranch and pups have started to show some instinct as they play with each other. Father came from the States and mother is a registered purebred. Please email with any questions. 2 males, 3 females.”</i><br />
I admit that if these pups were closer, I’d be really keen on having a look, but they shouldn’t be advertised online. The drive they probably have most laypeople can’t handle, and the risk is that the ad attracts folks who don’t know much about dogs, but are intrigued by the Dingo part. There are members of society who crave social attention, and seek to possess something the Jones’ don’t have. Years ago I had clients who bought two male littermate wolf hybrids for their teenage son. Guess what? It didn't work out.<br />
<br />
Here is another example:<br />
<i>“Hunting Labradors for sale</i><br />
<i>Bred for hunting, father registerable American chocolate lab -mother from hunting stock American black lab,</i><br />
<i>1st vaccinations, family friendly, raised with kids, love water and swimming, males and females, these pups need room to run, NOT city dogs, Very playful, great for family pets or working dogs.”</i><br />
City folks will read the ad, and will he turn them away when they come with a checkbook? I have met working stock Labradors and they did not make great family pets. They had a one-track mind: working in the field with very low motivation for anything else.<br />
<br />
And one more:<br />
<i>“Taking reservations for the next litter of Great Pyrenees pups. Ready for their new home mid Jan 2013. Pups will be well socialized with sheep, goats, chickens, ducks and people.</i><br />
<i>Both dogs come from a pedigree of good working stock. Sire parents are reg with AKC and from Colorado. Dam works on a sheep farm. She is hip certified. Father will be when 2 yrs old.</i><br />
<i>Great Pyrenees are very smart gentle giants who bond with their family and very laid back and easy going. They do need a fenced in area and daily exercise. These pups will make great family pets or superior livestock guardian dogs. They will be vet checked, de-wormed several time, have their first vaccination, and micro chipped.”</i><br />
People reading that ad see <i>“great family pets”</i>, without understanding the breed's needs. I have had two clients with Great Pyrenees recently, and one told me that she wished she’d done more research, but believed the online ad, fell in love with the face, and got the pup. Both dogs, as superior<br />
livestock-guardians, are hypersensitive to sound, and motion, and both live in a suburban area with lots of noise that perpetually overstimulates them, and they react to.<br />
Another red flag is <i>“that the mother is hip certified, but the father will be when 2 years old”</i>. The father should not have been used for stud prior to being checked. Just to make it clear, he will be checked for hips, not necessarily certified.<br />
<br />
Here are two ads for Rottweilers:<br />
<i>“The Rottweiler is good-natured, placid in basic disposition,very devoted, obedient, biddable and eager to work and make the Most Amazing Family Dogs</i><br />
<i>Our family has loved and owned Rottweilers for about 15 years now</i><br />
<i>We are by no means a large breeder and have no intentions of ever becoming one. We breed for Quality not Quantity Our top priority is ONLY breed dogs with excellent Pedigree's Health and fantastic Temperaments. All our dogs and puppies have beautiful Square heads and dark mahogany markings they are extremely Affectionate and their puppies are raised in our home as part of the Family This makes them extremely confident, sociable and happy with outstanding temperaments.</i><br />
<i>We welcome you to come visit our Home and meet our wonderful dogs. The Sires and Dam Hips and Elbows are OFA Excellent & Good, All are Dogs are health certified for eyes,heart, thyroid, hips and elbows.</i><br />
<i>If you are interested in a Quality puppy Whether you are looking for Show, Work or Family Companion/Soul Mate, we have laid the foundation for a well rounded, stable puppy to become everything that you are looking for.”</i><br />
If I’d be looking for a Rottie, this breeder would be on the top of my list. No red flags. I like that they use the word “confident”, understanding well that confident dogs are less prone to anxiety issues. And I like that they say that they “laid the foundation” cause that is all a breeder can do. The rest is in the hands of the owner, and if he messes up, even the most carefully bred pup can develop behavioral problems. But more likely than not, these breeder will ensure that the pups are placed in the right homes.<br />
Compare it to this one:<br />
<i>“Hello Everyone. I have 5 adorable Rottweiler puppies available on November 27th 3 boys and 2 girls. They have their tails, i couldnt get them done because its illegal in the province . They will have first shots and health check as well as deworming up to 8 weeks.The Parents are my Pets not breeding dogs i own both. I brought the father up from ontario with me when i moved here . The father is about 90lbs and the mother is about 85. The mother is still growing she is only 11 months as it was her first heat. Im looking for forever homes for these little guys, and would like a 200$ deposit to hold them until the 27th please contact me with any questions.”</i><br />
No words. Well, not very many. I don’t think this person is malicious, just absolutely clueless and I hope no buyers are found: If s/he can’t sell the pups and has to figure out what to do with them, hopefully s/he takes measures to prevent that the female is knocked up every time she is in heat. But what are the chances. And what are the chances this person can distinguish a good home from a bad one.<br />
<br />
For the finish an ad that should be pulled because the pups are only 4 weeks old when the breeder deems them ready. <i>“Just got a new litter on Oct 5th, I have 10 puppies, 1 female 400$(SOLD) and 9 males 200$ They'll be ready Oct 30th. If approved to have one of my pupps, down payment of 150$ is needed. You will have the option to have the dog have his first shots or you will be able to do that yourself (contract will have to be signed if you choose that option to have the shots not done) If your interested please email for breed, etc. Thanks”</i><br />
If approved? My hunch is s/he’ll approve anyone who hands over a 150 dollar deposit for a 200 dollar pup. Quite the down payment. And why doesn’t s/he advertise the breed?<br />
As you see, one of the pups is already sold, which means that there are indeed people who hand money over to a person such as this one.<br />
<br />
Online has become the convenient venue for all sorts of people, including Pet Stores - to my dismay I saw a Petland ad, to sell their wares.<br />
The result is that many pups, and older dogs, with a plethora of physical and emotional problems are sold to unsuspecting people; people who look for a pet and end up with a project. We are not talking about a lemon car or scratched kitchen table when the deal goes wrong, but a living, feeling being meant to be a family member for a decade or longer, and who will suffer if denied that.<br />
For that reason, and even though I found seemingly responsible breeders also, I am still dead-set against dogs, any animal for that matter, advertised and sold online.<br />
Finding individual breeders, going to dog shows and talking to people who own the breed you’re interested in, searching and researching rescue groups, visiting shelters, are the first steps of good dog ownership, and I wonder when people acquire a dog the easiest way possible, what they’ll do when life with that very same dog presents hurdles.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-10065143714049181442012-11-25T10:10:00.001-08:002012-11-25T10:10:52.429-08:00The Things Cesar Millan Says<br />
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In a little more than a week Cesar Millan will be in Halifax, and this is my last post on that topic, at least for a while. This one wasn’t planned until I went through my material recently and found a bunch of notes I made when I watched his shows, and read his written words.<br />
Millan’s devotees often accuse his critics of ignorance. Yes, I am sure there are people who base their opinion on a few isolated YouTube clips, but that is not the case here. I watched 4 complete seasons, read all his books, and several articles and interviews, and I can tell you that there was rarely an episode or chapter that didn’t irritate me.<br />
Millan makes many statements he has no proof of and that are contrary to what biologists, ethologists and other behavioral scientists say. The list long, and I selected only a few - the ones that particularly stuck out for me because he repeats them often, or because they are so… well laughable actually if dogs wouldn’t be harmed in the process.<br />
Here they are: <i>The things he says</i> - and my comments.<br />
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<i>Work with calm-assertive energy</i> – When a choke or prong collar, or 20-cent rope, is placed around a dog’s neck we are dealing with physical control, not mental energy. Believe your eyes, not your ears.<br />
The rope and choke collar is not only reserved for hardened, misbehaving dogs, but he also advises it for puppies' boundary training. You mean, his calm-assertive energy doesn’t even work with a puppy?<br />
Millan’s explanation that he only shows owners how to use the tool they are already using correctly, an explanation balanced trainers frequently use as well, doesn’t fly with me either. Dog professionals have the duty to determine what's amiss that causes the dog to behave badly, not to adjust to the method and tools the person wants. We are influencers, not just informers, and should act on the dog’s behalf.<br />
Despite Millan's rhetoric, the tool he uses matters most, otherwise he would use a normal buckle collar and have the leash loose at all times.<br />
Millan is correct, though, when he says that one should not follow the dog’s energy, except he breaks his own rule each time when he react's to the dog's aggressive displays and pins him.<br />
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<i>Biting with fingers to create relaxation</i> – Really, who believes that? The last time I was bitten I felt anything but relaxed. Dogs he “bites” aren’t relaxed either, evidenced when they stress pant or have large round whale eyes.<br />
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<i>Dogs live in the moment</i> - Correct, but that only means that they don’t obsess about the past, not that the past doesn’t affect their behavior. Whatever is relevant is stored in a brain area where memory sits, but also where emotional learning takes place.<br />
The more of an impact an experience has, the more it is memorized and can trigger a future action for a very long time, sometimes for life. Panic and extreme fear behaviors often begin with trauma: A person, or dog, experiences a perceived worst-case scenario and survives, but the fear stays imbedded in the brain - and also what got the organism out of the situation.<br />
Yes, dogs live in the moment, but they do anticipate future events based on cues that predict that event. The doorbell ringing predicts the visitor and elicits barking; the leash and keys predict a car ride to the park and elicits excitement; the nail clippers predict getting the nails clipped and elicits fear.<br />
If dogs wouldn’t have memory, they could not remember learned commands, who their friends and adversaries are, that this or that neighbor owns a cat, or what a veterinarian does.<br />
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<i>When dogs greet, each one takes his turn to sniff the other’s butt and genital region</i> – Some dogs do, and some don’t. Studies showed that olfactory information gathering often starts at the head and proceeds to the tail end of the dog, and that male dogs are more likely to sniff the anogenital region than female dogs, and that the dog that is being sniffed is most often the one who terminates the greeting.<br />
We shouldn't manipulate a dog's body into a position we think is appropriate. Sometime next year I’ll write a post about it.<br />
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<i>When you bring a new puppy into the house, carry her by the scruff and let her down with the back legs first</i> – For crying out loud, most people don’t deal with a feral pup who was scruff-carried by its mother to a safer hideout. We deal with one who was lifted by the breeder’s hands, in and out of the whelping box, to the weight scale, to the car and veterinarian...<br />
By the time a pup leaves the breeder for a new home, she should be plenty imprinted to human handling, including being carried. Suddenly being lifted by the scruff will frighten a pup more than anything.<br />
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<i>A pup will not pee at a place where she already peed</i> – False. It is the opposite. That is exactly why house training is more difficult if the accident area isn’t cleaned up to the satisfaction of the dog’s nose.<br />
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<i>All mothers are calm-assertive</i> - Wrong. Some are stressed and some are calm. Some are too strict and some too lenient. And that is especially true for human manipulated dog mothers who can be malnourished and anxious when her humans treat her as a money making machine or neglect her needs.<br />
On the same note, puppies are not born a as clean slate either, ready to be programmed by us, but come with a genetic predisposition, and are exposed to their mother’s stress hormones when in utero.<br />
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<i>A dog must always be in a calm-submissive state</i> – The expectation that a dog never expresses fear, anxiety, discomfort, excitement or frustration, lifelong and regardless what kind of pressure he is under, is so unrealistic that it baffles me why otherwise rational adults would believe that it is possible without creating side effects.<br />
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<i>Dogs listen to discipline, but not punishment </i>– Discipline and punishments are intertwined: Discipline is the enforcement of set rules through punishment, and dogs surely listen to punishment when it is severe enough.<br />
Millan is adding something that feels unpleasant to the dog as a consequence to what he (Millan) perceives as misbehavior with the intent to curb it, and that is positive punishment.<br />
What emotional state the punisher is in is irrelevant. I get a kick out of the idiotic claim forceful trainers use that as long as the person is not angry, the punishment dished out won’t cause harm. Tell that to someone who experienced pain at the hand of another. The lab rat's scientist is definitely not emotional, yet can shock it into learned helplessness and aggression.<br />
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<i>When a pup/dog arrives at a new home, nobody is allowed to make eye contact and touch the dog</i> – What a dog needs most in a new home, right after he had to leave mom-dog and littermates, is social acceptance. If no one acknowledges his existence and does not reciprocate his offered eye contact, he learns in a blink moment that there is no belonging and information available in this group – and he’ll look elsewhere to have his needs facilitated.<br />
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<i>Discipline comes before affection, and affection is only given if the dog is in a calm-submissive state</i> - Nature’s affection is not a reward that reinforces good behavior, but something that is freely given as a sign of belonging, acceptance and comfort.<br />
New Caledonian crows are masters in tool making and the savants amongst birds. Their skills are unmatched in the non-human animal world, and researchers at the University of Auckland suggest that the reason why they are so exceptional is because of the care elders provide their offspring.<br />
During a 3-year-long field study, lead author Jennifer C. Holzhaider observed that baby New Caledonian crows enjoy an extended childhood in a stable and loving home, with elders that lead by example: They are persistent and patient, apply positive reinforcement, and indulge even near adult offspring once in a while. The crows live in a close family structure and feed, groom and touch one another, and share tools.<br />
It appears, that it is affection, affection, affection and little discipline that brings out the best in these avian geniuses. I believe that the relationship we have with our dogs should resemble exactly that peaceful, harmonious and mutually rewarding coexistence. And we, the leaders by virtue of our species, have to set the stage.<br />
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On December 04, the day Millan will have his corporate-sponsored event, a panel of local dog experts are donating their time and hold a FREE Q&A session at Dalhousie University. We, too, will be discussing problematic behaviors, but will suggest solutions that are safe and strengthen the relationship with the dog.<br />
For more info, check out: <a href="http://www.facebook.com/events/461110740601942/">http://www.facebook.com/events/461110740601942/</a><br />
If you’re not the Facebook type, the location is: Scotia Bank Auditorium - 6135 University Drive in Halifax. Doors open at 7.00 p.m. and the event begins at 7.30.<br />
Hope to see you there.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-51043256462517979332012-11-12T14:38:00.000-08:002012-11-12T14:38:35.750-08:00Nature's Punishments <br />
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Dog trainers who intentionally inflict pain and discomfort to influence a dog’s behavior often refer to Nature’s Rules as an explanation. They argue that Mother Nature punishes missteps, misdeeds, mistakes, and hence we must adopt that template or risk that our pooch turns into an unruly, and perhaps even aggressive, menace.<br />
True, Mother Nature and Mother Dog’s consequences are not always pleasant. Life in itself isn’t. But how does that relate to our life with dogs? Should we emulate Nature?<br />
To answer those questions, we must have a closer look at the results when Nature punishes: The efficacy and fallout.<br />
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When we lived in Calgary, one of our favorite areas was Bowmont Park, an interconnected path system straddling the Bow River. We ventured there several times a week, alone or teamed up with friends, all year around. No kind of weather could keep us away for long. Because our dogs are generally very responsive to us, they were mostly off the leash.<br />
Once, during early spring, young Aussie shepherd Davie trailed along the still partly frozen shoreline, spotted a duck on the river, and charged for it. Thankfully the ice didn’t break, but it made an eerie cracking sound that scared Davie so much that she came flying back to me - and for the rest of her life not as much as looked at a duck. One incident led to complete avoidance… of fowl.<br />
The unquestionable intent of a punishment is that something decreases, or ideally ceases altogether for now and for always, and that is exactly what happened here. Equally undisputable is the fact that the connections a dog makes with an unpleasant sensation is not necessarily congruent with what actually happens. In the above example, the only thing Davie linked with the scary sound was the obviously very powerful bird, but neither the ice nor her behavior, which means that she continued wanting to chase wildlife other than ducks, including along iced shorelines.<br />
Nature’s punishments, you see, can be a bit sloppy in eliminating the specifics we’d like to see eliminated.<br />
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Outcomes are more precise when another animal deliberately delivers a punishment. Our Newf Baywolf, again when young, had issues with certain dogs and always growled at a female Amstaff we occasionally met at Bowmont Park whenever she came too close to me. Nothing I did curbed that behavior for long, but keep in mind that I wasn’t as dog-wise then as I am now, and finally the Staffie, typically very sweet and tolerant, had it and chased Bay halfway up a hill. He never growled at her again, and for the rest of his life avoided her. The punishment she dished out worked as she intended – for her, and only for her. Bay continued to growl at some other dogs, until we dealt with the issue properly and all dogs became good-stuff announcers.<br />
Last year, at Shubie Park in Dartmouth – our “Bowmont Park” since our move, a Labrador retriever was dumb enough to mount Will. She ejected him in a split second and he got the hint, but I saw him mounting another dog a little later when our paths crossed again.<br />
Nature’s punishments, you see, can successfully eliminate a behavior, but not necessarily in all contexts; it continues elsewhere.<br />
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Truth is that Nature’s successes are limited, and sometimes don’t work at all. One aspect that determines whether a consequence is a deterrent is the intensity of the drive.<br />
The cracking sound the ice made was enough to stop Davie from chasing ducks for the rest of her life, but ducks weren’t that big of a deal for her to begin with. Had it been a cat on the river, or even a ball, I am not sure that the result would have been the same.<br />
Baywolf, forever curious and the most social dog I ever met, was so motivated to investigate and greet that being quilted by a porcupine never stopped him from saying hello again. And no, he was not a dumb dog. His memory served him well in other situations, but with this one his hardwired spirit to socialize superseded the pain he experienced.<br />
Will, on the other hand, was never quilted but witnessed when Baywolf was, and she never approached a porcupine, but returned to me whenever she spotted one, and also respectfully stays away from raccoons.<br />
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When punishment is effective, dished out by Nature or humans doesn’t make a difference, avoidance is the definite result. That is the whole idea: that the recipient doesn't do whatever it was he was doing again.<br />
When we punish our dog, it is avoidance we create, but what he will avoid, what connections he makes, is impossible to accurately predict. Will he avoid repeating the action he was punished for? Will he avoid any or all details that were present when he felt discomfort? Will he avoid his human?<br />
Trainers who use Nature’s Template as justification to inflict pain and discomfort forget about the social relationship between dog and owner. Yes, mom-dog might correct her pup, but mom-dog doesn’t plan for a future relationship that needs to function; pups rarely live with their biological mother after 10-20 weeks of age. <br />
People do envision an ongoing and mutually rewarding friendship, but that’s not going happen when one is a deliberate and repeated punisher the other will try to avoid as a result.<br />
Let’s say my 5-year-old child is riding her bicycle recklessly. I could intentionally give her a fall-causing shove to teach her to be careful and heed to my warnings, and I bet she would learn her lesson very quickly, but she also wouldn’t trust me anymore, would she? And how would she feel about other activities that include me? It is the same with a dog.<br />
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Punishments lead to avoidance and escape. There are dogs that run away every chance they have, and some stay away. “Lost” on purpose. In Nature, every adult animal has the freedom to leave a situation that’s not working for him.<br />
Another escape route is to take the punisher out, which also happens in Nature. In any given situation an animal might retreat or defend itself, and when a dog feels strong and confident enough, a fight can ensue, and bites with real teeth, not a claw-hand or knuckles. Furthermore, when his fight reaction is reinforced, so when the person or other dog backs off, threats and bites can become a habitual way to deal with the environment. Punishments train aggression.<br />
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When we choose Nature as our template, we take a gamble. We can’t predict before we start if our envisioned canine companion will: Disconnects from us, aggress against us, or becomes so stressed that he is perpetually guarded, hypersensitive and over-reactive to any stimulus.<br />
Another natural and therefore very possible, and indeed common, side effect is displaced aggression; hostility against anyone perceived weaker.<br />
In Nature, an elder might correct a young animal’s out-of-line actions. Through that, the pup learns self-restraint and deference, but what he also learns is who in the group he needs to be careful of and who he bully in return; who he is more powerful over. Of course, that is also something we do not want in our social group.<br />
It is unacceptable that the dog we correct beats up the kitty, but Nature is not one-sided. The traditional and balanced trainers who excuse their punitive methods with “Nature’s Template” are one-sided: they punish, but fail to acknowledge all possible outcomes. As it is human nature, they take the part that fits their purpose, and don’t mention that there is nothing natural about applying an isolated aspect of complex and dynamic interactions in the wild. They miss the point that balance is when one accepts all facets of Nature, including the dog avoiding, distressing, leaving or aggressing; including the part that Nature kills or ostracizes the one who jeopardizes the survival of the pack. Millan’s red zone dogs Nature would not tolerate. Only humans keep someone alive within their social group who causes ongoing conflict.<br />
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We don’t behave like Nature, but use it whenever it suits us. We claim that the dog is a primal animal and we ought to treat him as Nature would, but demand that he adjusts to our refined human expectations.<br />
We have a whole set of rules that are very unnatural - and I discussed several in previous posts: we disallow freedom to communicate, to sniff, to move at will, to get excited and so on.<br />
We don’t permit a dog to defend a resource, but that, too, happens in Nature. According to renowned wolf expert L. David Mech, every wolf regardless of rank has an ownership zone around his mouth he has the right to defend. We want our dogs to release things to us.<br />
In Nature, attacking an interloper is a desired trait. Millan and alike punish the dog who barks and growls at a stranger who enters home territory.<br />
Nature doesn’t micromanage and demand precision obedience. Dogs don’t care if another breaks a down stay or rather chases a squirrel than come on recall. We do care about that.<br />
Nature doesn’t set an animal up for failure just to have the chance to punish it. That is what traditional trainers do when they “proof” the dog. They set a trap the dog innocently walks into, orchestrate situations that guarantee that he will make a mistake, and inflict the unpleasant consequence when he does. It would be like a grade school teacher giving a right and wrong spelling of a word, and then punish the pupil when she spells it incorrectly, so that she never, ever forgets to do it right. Chances are it works, but the costs are easy to comprehend. For a dog who falls in the hands of such trainers, everything he learns plays out that way.<br />
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Except battery farmed food and research animals, owned dogs are the only other ones prevented from living out their intrinsic drives. Regarding the former, any person with a thread of empathy feels bad, but justifies it as a sad but necessary requirement so that we can eat and treat illnesses. With dogs, masses believe trainers who allege that the coercive stifling of natural behaviors is Nature’s Template, and that it will lead to a happy and balanced animal. Not only that: The guy who demonstrates how to do it effectively is glorified on TV, supported by big business, and faithfully followed by millions of dog owners and wannabe trainers. <br />
In Nature, life is ruff sometimes, relationships transient and the outcome of punitive consequences unpredictable. Nature doesn't care if the individual lives and prospers, or dies or suffers.<br />
Our relationship with dogs is a different one. We want consistency and permanency. Most owners don’t want any of the side effects. They want the opposite: instead of detachment, companionship; instead of anxiety, even-temperedness; instead of aggression, friendliness.<br />
To get that, they must adopt a different template as their guide than Nature’s.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-5193828767234700382012-10-27T07:35:00.002-07:002012-10-27T07:35:33.366-07:00Are Dogs Pack Animals? <br />
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Wolves in their natural environment, so not captive ones, function as a pack. They hunt cooperatively and raise their offspring together. There is group cohesion because there is common interest, and the breeding pair sets the direction not so much because they fought their way to top position, but because they are older and more experienced - the pack consists of parents with several generations of offspring.<br />
The wolf pack is not as static as once believed. Internationally recognized wolf expert L. David Mech states that every wolf, once an adult, has the freedom to disperse, mate and form a new pack, and many do. Furthermore, a wolf who doesn’t benefit the group runs the risk of being ousted or killed.<br />
However, that revised information is not common knowledge. The belief that wolves are hardwired status challengers, and that it is the physically strongest one that prevails and keeps the others in check, and that the same is true for dogs since wolves are dogs’ ancestors, is so widespread that even non-dog-owning folks believe it.<br />
It is also what Cesar Millan accepts as true. In “A Member of the Family” he writes that canids in the wild arrange themselves in smoothly functioning packs, and if a dog misbehaves or aggresses, it is because the pack leader has weak energy the subordinate recognizes and takes advantage of. Handily, he has a number of dominance displays up his sleeve the weak human ought to apply to demote the canine ladder climber a few rungs, but warns not to repeat it at home.<br />
In any case, just because Millan says something and masses believe it, doesn’t mean that it is so. A three-year study of feral and stray dogs in Italy revealed social behaviors that are not at all wolfish – or packish.<br />
The normal adult group size was 3-6, but there was a high mortality rate and new dogs were frequently recruited to keep the number stable. In other words, only the number of adult dogs was stable, the make-up dynamic; by the end of the 3 years only one dog of the original group remained.<br />
When the optimal size was reached, outsiders were aggressively driven away, but there was no aggression within the group, and there was no animosity observed against other dogs on the garbage dump feeding sites. Only the home resting area was defended, not the roaming range, or food.<br />
The dogs in the group had preferred associates and sometimes roamed with a buddy, but each one also spent time alone. There was no obvious pack leader.<br />
There also wasn’t a breeding pair. All females mated and preferred familiar males to the strongest ones. Since the stud, unlike daddy-wolf, neither protects nor feeds the brood, strength is irrelevant.<br />
Mom-dogs whelped away from the group, and stayed away for 4-5 months. The group did not help raise the pups, but stayed in loose contact with the female.<br />
After the pups were weaned, they followed their mom to the feeding sites - neither she, nor any of the group’s adults, regurgitated food.<br />
Only about 25% of the pups stayed with group.<br />
The observations of this study align with others made around the world. Feral and stray dogs universally:<br />
Do not form hierarchical packs, but loosely and transitory groups, and/or roam with a buddy, and/or alone.<br />
Females breed often and with every male they choose, and are on their own raising the brood.<br />
Unlike wolves, dogs don’t hunt cooperatively, but scavenge independently. Some avoid humans and adjust feeding to times when people aren’t in the vicinity, for example at dawn and dusk. Such was the case with our feral born Will, who was first spotted by humane society volunteers outside of Calgary. She and her 4 littermates were a guesstimated 10 weeks old, they traveled with mom-dog but no other ones, and all of them were so apprehensive that they couldn’t be trapped, not even with smelly wet cat food, but had to be tracked and cornered in their home-base hideout. And it's hideout, not dugout. The feral dog study found that the dogs did not dig dens, but moms-to-be used already existing cavities to whelp.<br />
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Strays are often less elusive. I observed non-owned dogs Greece and Southern Spain who solicited food from tourists, even though they were repeatedly shooed away by locals. They never jumped and stole food, and there are accounts aplenty of bolder strays that do, but the ones I observed didn’t. I also didn’t see any aggression, not against people or each other. They just hung out where tourists were, where they experienced morsels being tossed their way.<br />
In Chalkidiki, a mom-dog and her litter followed me to dinner for a week, and in Andalusia a large blond dog arrived at the hotel pool each day when I had my lunch. Once I understood his pattern, I bought lunch for the both of us, and sometimes the hotel manager’s purebred Old English sheepdog would join in – both dogs intact males, no aggression.<br />
So, an unchanging linear hierarchical pack, and the dominance that comes with it, is about as unnatural as it gets regarding dogs that are not directly manipulated by people. That is not how self-governing dogs arrange themselves.<br />
The relevant and important question is if that changes when we eliminate autonomy and make dogs our dependents. When we include a dog in our social setup, don’t we function like a pack? Isn’t the owned dog a pack animal then, if not by nature, by adaptation?<br />
Well yes, although I dislike the word pack in that context. Humans who live together, share space and purpose, are called a family, circle of friends, sports team, focus group, school class, organization, but never pack. And owned dogs live with people, not the other way around, so my dog is a family member. But that is just semantics and rather trivial. What we have to understand, and that is crucial, is that the moment we acquire a dog, he has no option but to assimilate and become a functioning part of our intimate social group. At that point, the dog needs someone who teaches him how to: how he fits in, like members of any group need someone who outlines the direction. That instills safety in the newcomer, and group.<br />
In the dog/human composition, it is the person who is the leader by virtue of species.<br />
The ambition to lead humans is a choice. Many people are perfectly content to dabble away and let others make the important, and sometimes tough, decisions. In our relationship with dogs, there is no choice. The dog has lost independence and became a dependent, relying entirely on his people to provide for his needs. Like you would need a roadmap how to function successfully in a foreign land or culture, the dog needs directions how to access resources, how to gain social acceptance, how to feel secure - safe, and how to deal with stimuli that are part of his environment. <br />
It is a no-brainer that that level of dependency makes the dog the one family member who is exactly NOT dominant and in charge. You are, and your dog knows it.<br />
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Forget and forgo the idiotic and damaging dominance rituals Millan and alike prescribe. Forced submission and physical power displays emotionally paralyzes the timid by nature dog, and provokes aggression in the confident one. We instill distress, and foster competition in a species programmed to orient to humans and be solicitous.<br />
Dogs are not pack animals, or perhaps even innately social ones, but they are hardwired to be able to form close and permanent social relationships, which is what we're banging on when we invite a pooch to share our life’s journey. Studies showed that dogs look at humans for information; wolves don’t. Dogs are food, but also social opportunists. They are perhaps the only, other than human, animal who can feel more comfortable living with another species than their own.<br />
Far from being naturally dominant, the dog is a natural follower. Remember that puppies follow their mother to where the food is? Following who facilitates basic needs is hardwired in dogs; they pay attention to whoever is important.<br />
Attention is an offered behavior and has nothing to do with rank, but facilitation. Once we earned that attention, all we have to do is teach behaviors that please us the pooch can use to get what pleases him. In other words, the dog learns to access what motivates him through cooperation, and once these behaviors are habitual, no further leading is necessary - unless the situation changes, at which point the dog who has authentic group identity, feels bonded and trusts, will seek information from his human and follow his lead.<br />
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A pack, any social group, shares space and has common purpose. One does not become a pack leader by entering someone else’s home, pinning the dog or forcing him with a 20-cent rope to trot behind. Millan’s “pack” is nothing more than an arrangement of individual dogs coerced to avoid a certain set of behaviors when he is in the vicinity. That’s all. His is a relationship based on dominance and forced submission, and indeed requires what he preaches: to be on top of it all the time, to always be calm-assertive.<br />
How tedious and impractical a relationship with an animal who is by nature not hierarchical, but programmed to form a cooperative close social bond and live in harmony within group.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-2523406312036568772012-10-18T06:56:00.002-07:002012-10-18T06:56:57.591-07:00Email From a Morphed Alpha Human<br />
I want to share with you an email that landed in my inbox, one of many similar ones, by the way. Here it is: <br />
“I own wolf dogs and if you are not the alpha, they take over. A stern voice or glance makes my dogs go to the ground. I would never hit them, however. I will snarl, stare and let them know I am the dominant of the pack. I have also neutered and spayed them because my husband and I are the only breeding pair in this pack. We have also started showing them that our son has a higher place than them in the pack. My male tries to be the dominant one, but has never successfully won. Nor will we let him. I am alpha, he is a pack dog and nothing else.”<br />
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Here is my response: <br />
The author believes that she has a functional pack because the way she and her husband relate with the wolf dogs follows Nature's Rules. Like many, she's been misguided.<br />
In nature, the social climbing male could and would leave and form his own pack.<br />
In nature, the existing alpha would always have to be on guard, and it appears that the author of this email also is.<br />
In nature, no wolf is forced to submit to the next generation offspring, her son. Rank comes with seniority.<br />
It appears, that her male wolf dog understands how nature works and hasn't authentically submitted. The sentence: “My male tries to be dominant but has never successfully won” implies that he continues to challenge, and that means that his humans have not convinced him that he is nothing but a pack dog.<br />
To "never successfully won" I answer: So Far!<br />
This sentence worries me. I see a real risk that if the owners have their backs turned, the male might try to take the weakest link out first - the child. And that risk is there regardless if the owners are actually accurate and the dog is dominant, or erroneous and he is anxious, frustrated and angry because of the way he is treated.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-63441766434189511392012-10-12T07:21:00.000-07:002012-10-12T07:21:17.738-07:00Resource Aggression <br />
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As part of his Canada Tour, the famous TV dog trainer Cesar Millan is coming to our province in December. In my next few posts, as a welcoming gesture, I will give you my take on key premises he is basing his methods on.<br />
Planned are: The Migration Myth and how much exercise a dog really needs; Whether or not Dogs Are Pack Animals, and if I have enough time Mother Nature’s Rules and the twisted thinking that because a tree hurts us when we hit it means that we must inflict pain when our pooch does something we disagree with.<br />
I’ll begin with Resource Aggression. A behavioral issue more than a premise, it is today’s topic nevertheless because of a couple of video clips that made the social media rounds a few weeks ago, because it is a common problem, and because many people, including some trainers and rescue folks, still address it confrontationally.<br />
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Dogs, as a species, are deferent to humans. I said that before, and am not the only one saying it. We have the big brains to decide dogs’ fate, the bank accounts to provide what they need and want, and the dexterity to impose our will onto them with the help of collars and leashes. For some 14.000 years dogs experienced us as direct or indirect food suppliers, and owned dogs are entirely at our mercy, depend on us for everything: food, water, safety, shelter, mental and physical stimulation. How much more dominant do you need to be?<br />
If dogs are so deferent, you might argue, then why do some fiercely aggress against the very people who provide resources? Isn’t that dominance? Isn’t that proof that the dog feels in charge and needs to be demoted a few notches? No, not necessarily.<br />
Resource aggression, in fact, is always rooted in fear – the fear of losing something. Although partly hardwired: resource possessiveness is nature’s survival and normal for all species, a dog who defensively guards food, stuff, space or himself often either experienced loss at the hands of humans (or dogs), or resource deprivation, or both. <br />
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If a dog is given access to something he considers valuable, or that is an existential necessity like food, and moments later challenged for the very same thing, he becomes distressed and defensive. The tension, the growling and snapping, are the expressions of it. Rather than a dominant disposition, intragroup aggression is human-induced.<br />
The foundation can be laid by the breeder, so before the owners have access to their pup. Such was the case with one of my recent clients, new owners of a giant breed puppy they acquired from someone who removed, as a rule, the litters’ food after 5 minutes without concern if each pup was satiated. Circumstances warranted that my clients’ pup stayed with that breeder until she was 16 weeks old, which means that during her entire critical developmental period she experienced food scarcity. It beats me what the breeder aimed to accomplish. Teach the puppies to eat speedily? Like gorging is a good thing, especially for a deep-chested giant dog. Did he want to get the pups used to people taking food away? Acclimate them when they’re young so it wouldn’t be a problem later on? That is my hunch, but what a misguided idea.<br />
True, repeated exposure and experiences can habituate a dog to stimuli or events, but regarding resources it doesn’t work that way. Think about it: Would you get used to someone stealing the tomatoes from your garden just because it happens every day? And realistically, tomatoes aren’t that important. Food, to a dog, is. Food is what money is to you: Survival. If someone would repeatedly pilfer your cash, you’d be more than a little annoyed. You’d be distressed, suspicious and defensive, and likely go to great lengths to stop it.<br />
How do you think my clients’ now 24-week-old pup feels when people approach her food dish? Yeah! She is suspicious and defensive, but because she is in a new environment, young and not that confident yet, her signals are still subtle and mild. Considering though that she could reach an adult weight of 150 pounds, and that there are young children in the family, future and overt aggression over resources are a real risk. Luckily my clients recognized that and hired not one, but two positive experts to help them with all aspects of ownership, and I am confident they’ll be fine.<br />
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Food floats animals’ boat, and a dog can be protective not just over his meal, but also accidently dropped people food, garbage, the dish even when it’s empty, and the area where feeding takes place.<br />
In addition, pretty much anything can be perceived as defend-worthy: a bone, toy or stick, a person, and space: the dog’s bed or yours, his crate, the couch, the car, the property and the home’s entrance points.<br />
A dog who guards his food rarely only guards food, and conversely: just because a dog doesn’t guard food doesn’t automatically mean he won’t defend other things.<br />
There is one important facet of aggression in association with resources that is often overlooked: The dog feeling unsafe. In other words, it might not be just the loss of a resource the dog is worried about, but his own hide.<br />
My guess is that’s what happened between the dog Holly and Cesar Millan. Watch this video clip, brilliantly captioned by dog trainer Carol Byrnes <a href="http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=4655581307021" target="_blank">http://www.facebook.com/photo.php?v=4655581307021 </a>and you can see what I mean. Perhaps the initial issue was food related, but the first attack happened when Millan “tssted” and reached for her, and the second, the bite, when the pressure continued despite her appeasement signals. When Holly had no option to flee, she fought. Notice that the whole time she neither oriented to where the food was, nor did she try to dodge for it. The food wasn’t the issue any more; the man and his hand were.<br />
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Does force and confrontation work sometimes? Yes, it does. Every method works with some dogs, but with many it doesn’t. And when it doesn’t, a nasty bite like the one we see on the clip is a possible result. Bites like that in an average home typically means a one-way ticket to the veterinarian.<br />
Holly, though, didn’t get euthanized, at least not yet. You can see in this clip <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=yXE-fwI0SWU">http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=yXE-fwI0SWU</a> what happened next.<br />
Holly doesn’t attack, and that is success, right? Not so fast. Notice that the context changed; Millan, this time, doesn’t rely on his calm-assertive energy that provoked the bite, but on his ever-ready rope he placed right behind Holly’s ears to give him absolute physical control. He corrected her a few times, and had she acted out, in his words he would have pulled her up. How far up I leave to your imagination, but my guess is front paws off the ground, which of course asphyxiates the dog.<br />
We also don’t know what happened between the bite and rehab clips. Was she shocked, or muzzled and pinned, until she capitulated?<br />
Plus, the Dog Whisperer used step-up stairs. He claims to bring the dog in a less dominant position while she eats, but methinks that it coincidentally, but conveniently, also provided a barrier between him and Holly at one point.<br />
On a side note, watch Millan’s own dog, the pit bull Junior. At the beginning of the clip he does something wrong. What eludes me – all I can see is a dog who excitedly greets his human, but Millan disapproved and Junior responded with exaggerated submission. What does the world’s best dog trainer do? He says “No” and walks away. No what? No submit?<br />
Natural deference and fear are two different things; a deferent dog still seeks social affiliation, a fearful one avoids it. Lets see what Junior does next: He picks up a ball. When my dogs find a ball, they bring it to me and solicit play. Millan’s dog lies a distance away and first gums it a bit, and then moves even farther away. He avoided his pack leader; wished no social interaction; is, in my opinion, fearful.<br />
Back to Holly! Based on the second clip, would you say that she is cured of resource aggression? Well, she might behave with someone she has learned can overpower her, but my educated guess is that she might not be equally non-aggressive with every person, for example a child. A dog “cured” by force doesn’t trust, and a dog who doesn’t trust isn’t trustworthy. It is as simple as that.<br />
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Dogs are safe in every context only when they authentically feel resource security: have learned that people aren’t competitors and confronters, but resource providers, protectors and cooperators. Once a dog is convinced that his stuff is safe, and that he is safe, he won’t feel defensive any longer and the aggressive expressions disappear.<br />
Here are some tips how to achieve that:<br />
~ If food is the issue, vary the places where you feed, so that your dog doesn’t become possessive of a certain space.<br />
~ Remove the empty food dish and food. If your dog is teased by its presence all day long, food, when it finally manifests in the dish, is a big deal. It is like having the world’s best chocolate cake in a locked class container in front of you. When you find the key, you are all psyched out and would snarl at anyone who comes near it, especially if there is not enough to share.<br />
~ On that note, share your food. Good people food is better than most kibble, and food sharing is bonding. Don’t worry about your dog thinking he’s alpha. The giver has the power, not the receiver, so you actually score leadership points when your dog realizes what wonderful assets are under your control.<br />
~ Although free feeding is not a viable option for everyone, a dog who experiences surplus is less likely to guard. One of my friends has food everywhere all day long, and never had a resource issue with her own dogs or her fosters, even the ones that came to her with food aggression issues.<br />
~ Have several identical food bowls. Offer a lower value food and walk away with the higher value food, call the dog and hand it over. Repeat. You can have several bowls with different food, or you can increase the amount of the same food, so that each time your dog leaves his dish voluntarily to follow you, he gets tastier, or more, food.<br />
~ Put most of your dog’s ration in the dish, release him to it, and walk away. While he eats, approach, toss a high value treat, and retreat. Gauge the distance carefully, because ideally you want to toss before the dog becomes defensive, but what you do is not contingent on his behavior. In other words, even if you misjudge and your dog growls, still toss and walk away. Don’t punish tension or a growl by removing the food. Even if you are temporarily successful, there is real danger that you create a time bomb without the tick: a dog who still feels defensive and might explode, but won’t signal it any longer. Think away from reinforcing the growl with this toss and retreat exercise, because what you are after is to change your dog’s emotional response. His mind. What a person near his bounty means: From it potentially disappearing to more materializing.<br />
In a considerable short period of time your dog will anticipate your coming closer with excitement, not suspicion, and then you can get closer and closer, and eventually add the extra loot by putting your hand in his bowl, and then take some out and put it back in, and so on.<br />
Although you want to practice this, also let your dog eat in peace. Being bothered while consuming food, even when bothered with a cookie, is irritating. Try it. Give your partner and kids permission to nicely interrupt each meal you enjoy. I mean, my morning coffee is sacred. I don’t speak English before I haven’t had my coffee, and the last thing I want is someone solicitously offering me candy.<br />
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Adding instead of removing is the core concept regarding other resources as well, including when dogs aggress against other dogs. If you have three dogs have three toy boxes and ten balls in the yard.<br />
When a new dog moves in, life has to become better for the other ones, meaning more resources, including attention and interaction with their humans.<br />
Food is a dog’s right, and they shouldn’t have to jump through figurative hoops to receive it. Regarding other resources: toys, space, your food, teach your dog to “leave” and “give”. There is a lot wrong with forcing a dog, but nothing wrong with controlling access to what’s important to him. I wrote about “leave” <a href="http://voice4dogs.blogspot.ca/2011/04/leave-it.html">http://voice4dogs.blogspot.ca/2011/04/leave-it.html</a> before, and give can be a fun game when you trade in and up. Check out Chiraq Patel’s fabulous Drop-It clip <a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndTiVOCNY4M" target="_blank">http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ndTiVOCNY4M </a><br />
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One last thing: Once a dog trusts, you can count on it that he is safe, but keep in mind that life is never static. What an animal deems important enough to defend is dynamic and can change with age, health or situation.<br />
Take for instance the dog who never guarded food, but is on medication and always hungry. You might suddenly see aggression against other dogs pop up, rarely against his humans.<br />
Think of a dog who is sore and more defensive being touched because it hurts.<br />
My friend’s dog never guards food or water because he lives in a land of plenty, yet once snarled a dog away from a water dish because he was particularly thirsty after having played Frisbee on a warm sunny afternoon.<br />
Smart owners know that dogs are living organisms and not programmable robots, and they proactively take measures to decrease the chance of conflict when life becomes more difficult. I always err on the side of caution, and so did my clients who segregated their two male littermate brothers while their biological mother was in heat. The boys are castrated, so an unplanned mating wasn’t the issue, but they had an injury inflicting fight history with each other, and made progress to a degree that surprised me. To prevent any regression, the owners temporarily backtracked when the situation in the home changed.<br />
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We saw in the first Holly/Millan clip what can happen when a dog is under pressure. It beats me why anyone would choose a method that puts him, and his loved ones, at risk. In all fairness, it is not just Millan who applies these methods, but he happens to be the one who influences laypeople the most these days; people who do what they see on TV even though there is a disclaimer that tells them not to.<br />
When you choose a non-confrontational way to deal with a dog’s defensive behaviors, you CAN do it at home. That said, whenever aggression is involved, hiring professional help expedites progress. Some dogs have such a deep-seated fear of loss, based on ongoing deprivation, that they can be quite dangerous and harder to convince that their needs will be predictably fulfilled from here on in. The problem is compounded when the dog is also defensive of himself; feels unsafe in the vicinity of humans, when touched, and reacts to hands that reach for him. With such dogs, one can’t work beyond their comfort level. Neither reason nor compulsion can make one feel safe; it has to be experienced, and even gently caressing hands initially can be too much for a dog who is that jaded. An experienced and positive dog expert will be able to accurately determine where to begin and how to proceed, so that trust can be established again, and the dog eventually becomes trustworthy.<br />
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silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-16030450816776017112012-09-17T10:01:00.000-07:002012-09-17T10:01:37.876-07:00Solutions to Barking and Lunging on the Leash<br />
Without a boring introduction and further ado, cause this is a longer post, I’ll share with you how I address barking and lunging on the leash; behaviors so many dog owners are struggling with.<br />
Here are the Dos and Don’ts.<br />
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DON’T allow yourself being pulled toward whoever your dog wants to get closer to. Even if he just wants to say Hi, seeks friendly interaction but is impatient, letting him pull you reinforces pulling and lacking impulse control.<br />
DON’T let your dog off the leash when he is tense, even if you believe that he behaves better off than on. We have leash laws everywhere in North America, and letting every dog loose is not an option. DO relationship and leash work, so that he trusts you, and it, in a problematic situation.<br />
DON’T move closer to whatever/whoever when your dog is on the leash and tense, even if he doesn't pull.<br />
Check in front of a mirror what it looks like when you contract your muscles in your face and body. On your dog, you might see a fold between his forehead, still ears, no blinking, the mouth clamped shut, shallow breathing. The whole dog is still, perhaps only the tail tip quivering a bit, or the tongue tip rapidly, snake-like flicking in and out.<br />
In my last post I said that sometimes an anxious dog becomes more relaxed when he has the opportunity to sniff the other, but the underlying emotional issues: insecurity, fear, nervousness, are not addressed, and the trust in you and leash not strengthened, and as a result the dog will continue being unsure and tense whenever he spots his triggers, typically dogs and/or people. Furthermore, depending on the other dog’s reaction, or a person’s for that matter who can act erratically when presented with a tense dog sniffing his legs, hands or crotch, things can escalate quickly. Allowing a tense dog within teeth range to anybody is never a good idea.<br />
DON’T wait too long when you have an appropriate on-leash greeting before you move on. Keep it short and sweet, and then be on your way with a happy “let’s go” command.<br />
DON’T collar correct, zap or punish your dog. It will do nothing to change his mind about the stimulus he feels queasy about. To the contrary: being jerked back arouses him more, and he might lunge again with increased power.<br />
If the reason for out-of-control actions is frustration because he can’t get to a potential playmate fast enough, corrections can turn a dog who initially sought friendly social interaction into an aggressive one. Force and pain cause distress where there was none before, and remember from the last post, possibly - probably also to the leash.<br />
Regardless of motivation, overreaction to environmental stimuli means the dog is already disengaged from you, and discomfort coming from you will lead to more mental avoidance. Your goal is the opposite: you want your dog to connect and take his cues from you. Not the leash, not the collar, but you. <br />
It is a realistically achievable goal, which brings us to the Dos section.<br />
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DO give your dog the information he needs when he is in conflict. If you don’t, he will react like a dog who is frightened or excited. Dogs have to act on how they feel. They have no choice. Most humans do too, despite our rational brain capable of overriding emotions.<br />
Information comes in form of words and gestures, commands, and they have to be taught and practiced before they become, from the dog’s point of view, useful. In other words, the dog must understand them as information.<br />
Some commands dogs can learn by your capturing and naming behaviors. For example, “Let’s go” is our cue for moving in the same direction together, and I say it each time we do exactly that. It is a command that feels good to my dogs, one that is rehearsed often, and one I can also use to guide them away from a stimulus. “This way” serves the same purpose, but I use it when I change directions, and “over” when I curve out to increase distance to a stimulus.<br />
"Walk away”, is a command I only use in conjunction with a subject or object I want my dog not just to ignore, "leave", but to walk away from. When something is on your dog’s radar, but before he loses his mind, turn 180 degrees and bring him with you simply because he is on the leash. Walk away without jerking or luring, and generously reinforce as soon as he mentally disconnects from the stimulus, and reconnects with you. Catch that moment and play a game, toss treats out, playfully jog. I especially love chase games because moving and catching up is intrinsically reinforcing for most dogs, more than tug. Plus, you are using yourself as the reward, which means you have an always handy reinforcement if you forget treats and a toy. When you invite your dog to chase you, be upbeat and animated. I use a staccato-like "quick-quick-quick" to egg mine on whenever I want them to close the distance to me, so when I want them to follow or heed the come command.<br />
When the interesting, or scary, stimulus is stationary, so not approaching closer provoking an outburst, waiting the dog out until he shifts his focus on his own is an option I like, cause whenever a dog finds a behavior, whenever not prompted, it is internalized; the dog owns the behavior. After he shifts his focus, continue with the same "walk away" routine.<br />
In time, you can get closer and closer to the trigger and tell your dog to: “walk away”. Rehearsed enough, it should become your dog’s conflict copout, which is much better than barking and lunging.<br />
“Leave” has to be trained, but when it is solid and generalized, it can jog a dog’s memory to shift his focus away from a stimulus - leaving it alone and reconnecting with his person. The way I teach it also includes a follow-up word that tells him what to do next. "Walk-away" is one, but also "say hello" when he can greet, or "get" when I permit access to an object or allow chasing a squirrel.<br />
It is critical that a dog learns the meaning of words a person can then use as information. Not teaching that is one of my biggest peeves with Cesar Millan. He doesn’t give dogs information prior to their making a mistake, only corrects when they walk into the trap he set up.<br />
There are two commands people often use in an attempt to settle their reactive pooch: “sit” and “watch me”. Typically neither is very successful, because when a dog is asked into a sit outside, the trigger often approaches closer, and the situation becomes more difficult for the dog. Hence, complying with the sit command is punitive, and not only will he be reluctant to obey in the future, but because the word predicts pressure, it also raises arousal. “Sit” becomes a poisoned cue and backfires.<br />
“Watch me” only works if the dog trusts his human without reserve, and it takes a lot of trust to be able to look away from something that is frightening and might come closer.<br />
Imagine you walking with someone in a dark alley and a shady character is appearing, and perhaps looking at you, making you his visual target. Could you sit still and ignore him on demand? Look away? Comply with the person you’re walking with? Would handing you a five-dollar bill every 30 seconds make a difference?<br />
Perhaps you could trust your partner or parent explicitly because they proved again and again that they have your back and are able to keep you safe, but you probably wouldn’t trust an acquaintance or even a friend that absolutely. So, don’t expect that level of trust from a dog you adopted a couple of weeks ago.<br />
The pleaser or treat-bribed dog might hold it together, but like the punished one, will feel pressure, is internally aroused, and still feels the same about whatever he is worried about.<br />
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DO pay attention when the dog’s mood is changing, to subtle signals. When you take action before he is in an emotional outburst, you have the best chance to successfully guide him into an alternate behavior.<br />
Common scenario: a person walks the dog and a human friend joins in. The people yak away and don’t pay attention to the dog and what happens around them. Meanwhile, he is bored and focused on the environment, and spots something that first alerts, and then excites or concerns him. His mouth closes, ears pop forward, eyes become rounder, tail stops wagging or wags frenziedly, and breathing might increase. He yawns or flicks his tongue, lags or pulls – and perhaps even looks at his person for information what “that” is and what he should do about it, but the owner misses it all and keeps moving in the direction of the stimulus that might move head-on toward the dog at the same time. Eventually, the pooch loses it and barks, and suddenly gets his person’s attention.<br />
The oncoming person/dog combination typically reacts as well at that point and likely retreats, creating more distance. Barking worked: his human paid attention and the trigger backed away - the situation changed, and because barking was reinforced, it might be the dog's first and preferred course of action in the future. Barking and lunging on the leash becomes an operant conditioned, learned behavior trait. <br />
Eye contact, the dog reorienting to you, is your clue that he might need something. Eye contact is the primary and natural way for a dog to connect and communicate directly that he needs help. Pay attention to that and provide information and guidance.<br />
Don’t expect your dog to only connect when it matters to you. When I walk with friends, it is an unspoken rule that I might interrupt in mid-sentence if my dog needs me. If I don’t take charge then, and the scary thing comes closer and closer, and she’s got no viable copout, she’ll act in dog-typical ways: lunge, bark, growl, snap.<br />
If your dog erupts because you miss the subtler hints, are on a narrow trail and can’t avoid a conflict, or a dog or person suddenly pops around the corner or stealthily creeps up behind you and startles you both, get through the situation the best you can. Increase the distance the safest way you can, but don’t give it any other attention. Walk with conviction and confidence, but without anger and anxiety, and bring your dog with you without jerking on the leash.<br />
If you are thinking with me, you might argue that increasing the distance reinforces the barking and lunging, and depending on the dog’s motivation, you are correct. But you really have no other choice at that moment. You have to do something, and it is better to guide your dog to walk away than to wait until the environment, which you can’t control, takes action. When you act on your dog’s behalf, you become trustworthy. Doing nothing and letting the environment decide makes you a useless bystander from the dog’s point of view.<br />
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DO pay attention to your two friends: Distance and Alternate Behavior.<br />
Regardless if your dog’s motivation is to make the opponent disappear because he is afraid, or seeks social stimulation and is frustrated because he can’t get to it quickly enough, distance and fun interactions with you are the two key components that will authentically change his behavior.<br />
You need distance because when a dog is too close to the stimulus he is unable, not unwilling, but unable, to respond to you.<br />
After an outburst most people go home. A dog’s acting out leaves people feeling discouraged, frustrated, or even defeated, and understandably they want to retreat to their safe cave. But if the goal is to change the dog’s emotional response to the trigger in the future, what they should be doing is to turn the troublesome event into a positive learning experience by interacting with him in the proximity of the trigger, but at his comfort level.<br />
The threshold distance is when the trigger is on the dog’s radar, but when he is still able to voluntarily shift his focus away from it and back to you, and the emphasis is on voluntarily, so no prompting or luring. That distance is different for each dog and situation, so pay attention to subtle signals. When he reconnects, stay engaged: have fun, do tricks, toss treats or a ball, work the area in a positive way. Yes, it might be counterintuitive to interact playfully with a dog who acted “aggressively” and embarrassed you just moments prior, but remember that it is not his choice. He is not being bad on purpose, his actions not a calculated move to tick you off. Rather, he acts on how he feels, on emotions, and your job is to remain rational and make the area a safe one – a safe one again, and interacting in familiar and rewarding ways together does that. Always aim to end the outing on a high note, and then you go home.<br />
That said, if the dog absolutely can’t chill out, but reacts to more and more triggers from farther and farther away, he is too charged up and too overwhelmed, perhaps even just by virtue of being outside, and then do abort your walk and go home. If that happens often, you might have to give the dog a complete break for a couple of weeks, and then very incrementally introduce stimuli back into his life.<br />
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When you interact with your dog in a way that is rewarding for him, you are the big deal, not the environment. The anxious dog will have a viable copout that involves you – and you might be surprised how many dogs are agreeable when an alternative is opened. I met many forward lunging dogs that were almost relieved when controlled retreat, walking away and doing something else, was made an option.<br />
And of course spending quality time with you also works for the bored pooch who lunges and barks because he wants to play with, or herd and control, other dogs.<br />
There are two German words occasionally bounced around in behavioral and dog training circles: One is Umwelt, the other Merkwelt. Translated, the first one is “Surrounding World”, the second “Remembering World”. Umwelt includes all stimuli in the environment the organism lives in and encounters; Merkwelt are the things that get stuck in the brain’s memory center – and yes, dogs have that. You can imagine what happens when everything the dog encounters on a walk is Merkwelt for him; stuff that, from his point of view, matters and is relevant. Not only will he be perpetually overstimulated, but he’ll also be unable to focus on, and be responsive, to you.<br />
Engaging your dog with you forms the contrast between what should be irrelevant: environmental stimuli at large, and what should be important: you, things you do together, guidance you provide in conflict situations – the safety and pleasure you facilitate.<br />
You can’t avoid that the Umwelt is on the dog’s radar. Of course he registers the world around him. A dog should be allowed to look at dogs, people, cyclists, horses, cows, cats, squirrels… and be allowed to sniff, play and greet when appropriate, but you should always be more important than anything else. And if a trigger is already a big deal in the dog’s mind, don’t make it an even bigger deal by either punishing the dog, or treating him when he looks at it. You want to reinforce when your dog willingly looks away from it, and it is up to you to orchestrate many situations that set him up for success. Remember distance? Practice where you have enough space to increase it when you have to.<br />
With a dog who has unlearned to connect with his human once outside - they are typically the ones who were neglected or punished on walks at one point - initially accept and reinforce the shifting away from the trigger, but the end goal always is authentic mental and emotional connection with you, signaled with prolonged eye contact.<br />
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DO make sure your dog is comfortable when you are out and about together.<br />
Make sure that he is not hungry or thirsty, and free of pain and discomfort, which includes the equipment you are using. A head halter, such as a Gentle Leader, feels very uncomfortable to many dogs. It adds pressure around the dog’s sensitive nose, often leads to sudden neck twists when he lunges, and that, like a startling neck pain coming from a choke or prong collar correction, or an electric shock, causes or contributes to stress.<br />
I like to use a 6-foot leather leash and a front buckle body harness. My favorites are the Freedom Harness at www.wiggleswagswhiskers and the Sense-Ation harness at www.softouchconcepts.com. Likely you won’t find either in your neighborhood pet store, so check for a local distributor on the manufacturers’ websites, but also compare prices. Sometimes even with extra shipping costs, shopping from someone farther away can save you money.<br />
The body harness allows your dog unrestricted head movements and to communicate freely, it is perceived as comfortable by almost every dog, and you still have good physical control.<br />
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DO stay calm.<br />
I despise the term calm-assertive because, although synonyms include confident and self-assured, it also implies forcefulness, pushiness and aggression, and none of those attributes exuded from the person the dog depends on will help him out of emotional conflict.<br />
What happens at the loop end of the leash is very important. When a dog is charged up, the person must remain centered. The dog’s lunging and barking means that he is literally out of his mind at that moment. If you become agitated as well, you’re adding fuel to the fire.<br />
If an insecure dog’s companion conveys with muscle tension, jerky hand movements, rapid patting, increased breathing, and fast-spoken words that there is reason to worry, the dog’s fear intensifies. Dogs don’t have the brain-ability to talk themselves into being rational. They need us to direct them.<br />
Instead of jerking your dog back, or hands-on pushing his butt into a sit, or patting him on the head, or worst of all pinning him to the ground, anchor him: keep a loose leash as much as you can, and confidently, calmly, increase the distance. Use your information words you rehearsed.<br />
Hands-on-body often arouses a dog more, so only physically handle him if you have a certain touch that brings about relaxation. It could be scratching his ear, or for our Will it is drawing a diamond shape with my finger between her shoulder blades. It became a conditioned feel-good touch because I do it each morning when we snuggle in bed.<br />
If you are anxious, sing a song. Your dog will hear your normal sounding voice, and that, unless you regimentally bark orders, should be a conditioned feel-good cue. Plus, singing loosens your facial muscles and regulates breathing. Tell yourself mentally that what other people think doesn’t matter; your dog's welfare does.<br />
Rehearse your copout steps: the shortening of the leash by bringing your hand closer, the leave command, the “let’s go” or “walk away” distance increasing maneuvers, the whatever fun interaction that follows. Rehearse when there are no triggers, so that you don’t have to think about everything at once when one appears.<br />
Calm role modeling will take conscious effort, but is key to success. A calm and confident dog can be a great helper, but be careful with that. The anxious, pumped, or excited dog usually influences the grounded one more than the other way around.<br />
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DO teach impulse control. Duration position stays, “leave”, and delaying the reward after a behavior teach the dog patience.<br />
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We began with Don’ts and here is one more for the finish:<br />
DON’T be lured into quick-fix, look-good on TV and YouTube solutions. The dog you see after he is rehabbed in 5 minutes or less might not bark anymore because he is intimidated and zapped into silence, but the unwanted expressions are only suppressed. There are others. If you watch closely you typically see stress panting, cowering, whale eye, a tail tucked under the belly, lot's of blinking, or a dog frozen shut. Those dogs are subdued, not calm. You see no fluidity, no offered eye contact, no active communication, no social interaction seeking and inquisitive behaviors. So don’t be fooled: Just because the dog doesn’t bark and lunge anymore doesn’t mean he isn’t distressed anymore.<br />
For that matter, I caution against adopting a dog from a rescue organization or humane society that applies methods that suppress expressions. You have no idea about a dog’s true disposition and behavior if the part of his communication that signals how he feels is quelled. He might show wonderfully at the shelter or foster home, where and with whom the punishments happened, and when under surveillance, but explode in anxiety and stress outbursts in the new, less skilled one.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-83513698560635150392012-09-01T10:22:00.001-07:002012-09-01T10:22:21.175-07:00Why Dogs Bark and Lunge on the Leash<br />
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If I’d dig up all my clients’ files from the last 15 years, I bet half my dog book collection that on-leash aggression was the single most problem behavior owners hired me to help them with. On-leash aggression, or rather reactivity, is very common.<br />
The typical explanation most laypeople, and some trainers, offer for the kind of barking and lunging that makes everyone’s head turn, frightens the targeted individual, and embarrasses the owner, is that the dog is protective, dominant, thinks he is in charge. It seems plausible: after all, the dog is moving forward, toward the target, and he is loud and threatening. However, “This is my space/mom/kid” - fill in the blanks – “get lost” is typically not the motivation that drives leash reactivity, and more enlightened dog pros know this.<br />
If not dominance, what are the reasons for a dog flipping out? Well, there are several, rooted in following underlying emotions: fear, distress, excitement, frustration.<br />
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Failure to socialize, meaning that the pup didn't have enough exposure to a variety of environmental stimuli during the critical developmental stages, is generally blamed when a dog is fearful. Like the dominance angle, it makes a lot of sense to people and indeed, puppies raised in a bubble or in isolation can become neophobic: will fear and react to anything new. That is compounded when the odd novel encounter was unpleasant, and if the pup felt alone - didn't have a safe refuge zone and the loyalty of his owner. <br />
But it is not just the unfamiliar that can cause dogs to overreact. Things known, but associated with discomfort, can provoke an undesired response as well.<br />
Dogs make a blink assessment, based on their life experience, when presented with a stimulus.<br />
Is it familiar?<br />
Depending on the dog, if it is unfamiliar it is automatically perceived as a threat.<br />
If it is familiar, does it announce: Pleasure? Or Discomfort? It is safe? Or not?<br />
Whenever a dog anticipates discomfort, the stimulus is perceived as a threat; a threat to his safety, and that always causes distress. The barking, lunging and growling are the expressions, the symptoms of it. <br />
Familiar stimuli are cues that predict a consequence, and dogs react to cues.<br />
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One might expect that dogs perceive other dogs generally as familiar. Shouldn’t a pooch identify another as a conspecific being? Innately “know” a dog as a dog?<br />
Not necessarily: We have a vast variety of breeds that differ in structure and behavior, and if the pup only experienced his own, he might not recognize others as familiar, but as threats.<br />
The other aspect to consider is that dogs to each other are providers: initially food, then entertainment, but also resource competitors. Dog-dog relationships can be complex, with each unfamiliar one a potential rival, and a familiar one a known rival, unless experienced otherwise. In my professional world, lunging and barking directed at dogs is more common than toward humans.<br />
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When a fearful dog barks and lunges, his motivation is to increase the distance, to drive the perceived threat away. Yet, many owners report that their pooch relaxes once he gets close enough to get a good sniff in. Why the obvious contradiction of wanting distance, but behaving better when it decreases? There is an explanation: Information reduces anxiety because it makes the unknown more familiar and predictable, and dogs’ preferred way to gather intelligence is through the nose. When there is no information forthcoming from the owner - information that, from the dog’s point of view, provides a copout, he has no choice but to get it from the other dog, and so he’ll attempt to get closer even though emotionally he wants him to disappear.<br />
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It is not always fear, though, why a dog acts out. Frustration plays a big role, and there are several reasons why a dog can be frustrated. One, again, has to do with information seeking.<br />
Greeting rituals exist to find out more about a stranger while preventing and defusing potential conflict meetings. That is true with humans and dogs. When we shake hands, smile, bow or curtsy, and introduce ourselves, perhaps hand over a business card, the other understands that we don’t wish confrontation. Socially normal dogs first communicate from a distance: might raise or lower their bodies, lean back or forward, open their mouths or close it, lay back their ears, orient to the opponent directly or avert their eyes, and hold or wag their tails a certain way. Depending on the back-and-forth signals, at one point they might agree to sniff each other, typically in the head and/or anogenital region, to gather detailed information. Out-of-control barking, of course, isn’t part of normal greetings, but neither is being restricted from it. When the rather dense dude at the loop end of the leash prevents his pooch from behaving normally, perhaps even from communicating properly when he manipulates him with a head halter, frustration and its expressions result.<br />
Fear is added to frustration if the dog is choke, prong, or worst of all, shock collar punished when he reacts; when he experiences pain for being curious, for wanting to communicate, for attempting to greet in a, for his species, appropriate way. In short, if a dog’s normal social behaviors and emotions are stifled with force, the stimulus, a dog or person, becomes a cue that triggers a stress response. Even if the consequence only happens sometimes, the dog will respond accordingly all the time.<br />
Not only that, any detail that is part of an unpleasant event can become a cue, for example: the leash, the collar, the person who dished out the punishment, and the area where it happened.<br />
When the leash in itself is an issue, the dog is already tense before the trigger even appears. Frenetic pulling and sniffing, and completely disconnecting from his person once outside, are common signs that the dog is distressed by virtue of being on the leash and/or outdoors. <br />
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Anything in a dog’s life that has a big impact leaves a big impression and provokes a big reaction in the future. If it is other dogs that were relevant events in the pooch’s history, he'll react whenever he sees/hears/smells another dog. Big deal suggests pressure and discomfort, but that is not always the case.<br />
Dogs who repeatedly experience other dogs as primary facilitators of physical and mental entertainment, the ones who go to daycare or are chauffeured to the dog park and let loose once a day come to mind, have a certain expectation when they encounter a dog - any dog: fun and romping begins. If it doesn’t manifest because of the leash, or not quickly enough because the person who holds it is a slow-footed creature, the pooch, you guessed it, becomes frustrated, and the outburst can look very similar to the fearful dog’s, especially to a layperson.<br />
And by the way, that kind of frustration, when something that’s expected doesn’t happen, is not reserved to people and dogs. During a “leave” exercise, a 12-week-old beagle pup soulfully bayed at me because he couldn’t access the treat I had tossed.<br />
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There is one more aspect that falls in the frustration compartment, and it is not fear or information seeking, and also not exactly play-motivated.<br />
Some dogs, typically ones belonging to the herding group, have a heightened sensitivity to motion combined with an innate urge to control anything that moves. Steve White calls them: “Born with a badge on their chest”. These dogs have a strong natural drive to bring order back into the perceived chaos of animated dogs – or children, and become mighty agitated when the leash prevents them from doing their self-appointed job, but also often behave improperly when off the leash, at least from others’ point of view. Even though at times jokingly referred to as “fun police”, some dogs and most humans have little tolerance for a pooch who stalks and chases; is locked, loaded and controlling. The bossy dog also doesn’t have much fun: He is easily overstimulated when presented with ongoing commotion in a busy dog park or daycare center, and overwhelmed with the task to organize and tone everyone down a few notches. A trained herding dog knows what to do and has the guidance of his handler - and is successful. A dog who has the drive but no training, the instinct but no clue, let loose on uncooperative other dogs and trailed by a yelling, irate owner, is not successful - and distressed as a result, and reactive on, but also off the leash.<br />
On a little side note, the serious always-on-the-job dog can also be short-fused when another butts in while they work. In that context, the ball fetching Border collie who snaps at a space-encroaching retriever is not resource guarding, but annoyed by the interruption. I recently had an Australian cattle dog client where that was clearly the case. Believed to be dominant and aggressive, she was simply so focused on her human and what he had in his hand, and if he might throw it, that anybody who'd pop in her face got a sharp and clear: "Buzz Off!" Unfortunately, in an dog park or off-leash trail, it is exactly that kind of focus that gets other dogs' attention and provokes them to "check out what that dog is so interested in".<br />
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Frustrating situations make dogs irritable and pumped, and when confronted regularly with the triggers, the cues, they become sensitized: have a heightened sensitivity to predictors, motion and sound, probably also scent, and act more and more out of control from greater and greater distances. The collar and leash, because of the restraint and discomfort they represents, amplify the problem.<br />
The question one must ask when a dog barks and lunges is what he expects to happen next. Play? A job? Emotional discomfort? Physical pain? That expectation is based on the dog’s experience, and is what dictates future behavior. Expectation dictates behavior.<br />
I bet what you all want to know next is what to do about it. I will tell you – in the next post, but I’ll give you a hint right now: neither clipping the leash off, nor allowing yourself being pulled closer to the trigger, is it. Oh, and commanding the dog in a sit position and coercing him to watch you isn’t it either.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-26831230717609741072012-08-06T13:04:00.003-07:002012-08-06T16:21:25.735-07:00My Answers to Brad Pattison's Interview with PetLife Magazine<br />
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Okay, I said I wasn’t going to post anything in August, but a recent PetLife Magazine interview with dog trainer Brad Pattison urged me to put my fingers to the laptop and share what was going through my mind as I read it.<br />
In case you don’t know, Brad Pattison is the actor of a TV show called “At the End of my Leash”, and someone who also trains and certifies others. So, he is one of media darlings who influences many: mostly layowners, but also people who wanna be trainers and sign up for his 6-week course.<br />
Unless you find reading what Brad says a waste of your time, which could be a strong possibility, here is the interview.<br />
<a href="http://petslifemagazine.ca/petslife-interview-with-dog-trainer-brad-pattison/">http://petslifemagazine.ca/petslife-interview-with-dog-trainer-brad-pattison/</a><br />
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And here is how I would have answered, had PetLife interviewed me.<br />
Q = question and My A = My Answer – in case you’re wondering. <br />
Here is goes.<br />
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Q: Did you grow up with animals?<br />
My A: No, at least not with dogs. But I always wanted one, always felt a certain kinship with dogs. In lieu of it, I pretended to be a dog when I played “house”, and made books my friends.<br />
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Q: What inspired you to become a dog trainer?<br />
My A: Yes, my love for dogs, but more so because when finally was able to have one, I made a total mess of it. I did some research into breeds and breeders, but certainly not enough and we ended up with the wrong breed from the wrong breeder. When problems became obvious, we sought help and got exactly the kind of advice Brad Pattison gives, and implementing it made matters worse, things escalated and eventually we had our first dog Cedric euthanized. I never wanted that to ever happen again, so I began to learn about dogs; learned lots from a variety of people, and many dogs, before I let myself loose to work with other people’s pooches. But I also wasn’t broke and needed to make money, so there was no pressure to rush things.<br />
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Q: Did you have a teacher or a mentor you learned from or apprenticed with?<br />
My A: My first volunteer job that had to do with dogs was with the Calgary Humane Society, and they offered many learning opportunities I took full advantage of. After that I attended numerous seminars and workshops, attended classes with my own dogs, did field research, read books, watched DVDs, it’s all posted on my website. By the way, to a lesser extent I still learn from others. Learning never stops.<br />
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Q: Are there other trainers out there that you admire?<br />
My A: Yes! But not Cesar Millan. The big names for me include Suzanne Clothier, Patricia McConnell, Steve White, but there are many others, including local people I admire for their superb handling skills, or expertise in dog sports, or how they breed. I agree with Pattison that not one single person is the best. I don’t think, though, that Cesar Millan could teach him something, but I think that Victoria Stillwell could, rather than the other way around.<br />
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Q: Were there any books that you read that helped you along the way?<br />
My A: I read too many books to list, including body language books and books that are about behavior, but not specifically dogs. You can find some on my webpage <a href="http://www.voice4dogs.com/dog-books.html">http://www.voice4dogs.com/dog-books.html</a>, but it hasn’t been updated for some time, so there are many I read since. The latest ones are BAT by Grisha Stewart, and Insight of a Dog by Alexandra Horowitz, and Never in Anger by Jean L. Briggs is the next one on my shelf to read. That one is not about dogs, but about an anthropologist who had an insight scoop of the daily life and behavioral patterns of the Utku Eskimos in the Arctic, and their way of treating their children and how they handle deviations from desired behaviors.<br />
So yes, learning never stops.<br />
By the way, I also read Cesar Millan’s three books and watched four complete seasons of Dog Whisperer, so that I know what I am talking about. Except excerpts, I never read Pattison’s stuff, but I seen some of his At the End of My Leash episodes.<br />
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Q: How did you become a behaviorist, and do you consider yourself a dog behaviorist?<br />
My A: Like Brad Pattison, I don’t have a degree in any of the behavioral sciences, so I omit the ‘ist, even though legally I could get away with it as long as I don’t call myself a “Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist”, but I respect people that do have a degree.<br />
I like to call myself a Dog Behavior Expert, and if someone, like a veterinarian, refers to me as a behaviorist, I ask them not to.<br />
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Q: Have you taken any classes or courses on animal behavior?<br />
My A: See my webpage <a href="http://www.voice4dogs.com/behavior-expert.html">http://www.voice4dogs.com/behavior-expert.html</a><br />
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Q: What classes did you take with your own dogs on your road to becoming a dog trainer?<br />
My A: I took: puppy, obedience, Rally O’, Freestyle, herding. Unlike Pattison, I never got kicked out of class, but I left on my own account because I was unwilling to hit my dog under the chin with a flat hand for wanting to come to me.<br />
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Q: What led you to creating your own training certification?<br />
My A: I don’t have that. Right now, in an unregulated industry, each school and organization can come up with its own certification program, so it doesn’t really mean much – or at least is no guaranty that the trainer is top notch and able to help you.<br />
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Q: How would you describe your training method?<br />
My A: It’s an easy question to answer, and has nothing to do with titles, as he claims.<br />
I just talked about my methods in my last posts: positive reinforcement/negative punishment, emphasis on relationship, management to decrease fear/anxiety and set the dog up for success, conditioning and counterconditioning, distance threshold, functional rewards, managing. No clicker. No force. It is really humane and recommended by the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior.<br />
Who are the pet industry professionals that recommend his methods?<br />
If he allows dogs to be dogs, why does he correct many of their natural behaviors?<br />
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The next question is N/A because I don’t have a course where I certify others.<br />
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Q: Do you have any credentials and certifications?<br />
My A: I’ll answer that question the same way Pattison does, minus the CTE certification. I would never attend his course, nor would I let someone he certified even look at my dog, let alone hand over the leash.<br />
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Q: Do you have a preferred breed to work with?<br />
My A: I work with any breed and mixed breed, any age, and love it, but admit that I have an affinity for herding dogs.<br />
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Q: Why do you have such a preference to the Martingale collar?<br />
My A: Well, I don’t. Not that it is an awful tool, and yes, it can be the safest one to use for canine Houdinis, but my favorites are the Freedom Harness at <a href="http://www.wiggleswagswhiskers.com/">www.wiggleswagswhiskers.com</a> and the Sense-Ation Harness at <a href="http://www.softouchconcepts.com/">www.softouchconcepts.com</a>.<br />
In any case, the Martingale collar is NOT meant to lift a dog’s front paws off the ground to make him sit, like you see him do in the first video clip.<br />
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Q: What about the other training methods you did disagree with?<br />
My A: Of course dogs understand the “language” of rewards – all animals do. And they also understand human words – or let’s say they can learn the meaning of a word if people teach it. Has Pattison ever met a dog in his longtime professional career who goes ape when he hears the word: walky, leash, carride, ball. Ball is a big one for many dogs. People have to spell it, and spell it backwards, and the dog still understands. What about come, sit, down. Mommy. Daddy. Dogs can detect relevant words in a sentence of several irrelevant ones.<br />
Dogs understand words when we teach them, but also when we use them consistently. He should try that sometime.<br />
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Q: Have you heard of Chicken Camp? What are your thoughts on this?<br />
My A: Yes, of course, but I am not surprised that Pattison never heard of it. It is great for learning technical skills. Although I have never attended one, it is absolutely applicable in the dog industry. Behavioral laws are universal to all species. The fact that Pattison never heard of chicken camp indicates to me that he isn’t really that interested in behavior, but rather in control and mindless obedience.<br />
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Q: Would you be willing to attend a chicken camp?<br />
My A: Sure.<br />
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Q: Have you ever trained an animal other than a dog?<br />
My A: A little bit – our neighbor’s cat. And what a surprise (sarcastic): positive reinforcement worked with him too.<br />
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Q: Was that anything like training dogs?<br />
My A: The kitty had a shorter attention span.<br />
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Q: Tell us about your experiences doing canine rescue operations with your CTEs.<br />
My A: Although I volunteered for humane societies and helped rescue consistently throughout my career, I never did anything that got such media attention.<br />
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Q: How did the TV shows come about?<br />
My A: I don’t have a TV show, but I am on CBC Radio One about every second month to answer call-in questions. CBC called me for an opinion on something dog related in the province I live in, and it evolved from there.<br />
I know for sure though that I would be myself if I had a TV show, not someone my friends wouldn’t want to watch. Perhaps that’s why I don’t have a TV show – what you see is what you get, and that’s obviously not good enough to reel in big ratings, which is the only thing media really cares about – not credentials, not certification, not the welfare of dogs.<br />
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Q: Tell us about your time with the show. Was it a positive experience?<br />
My A: I have a lot of fun with CBC Radio One. I get to help owners, and with the methods I recommend, it makes life better for the dogs, too.<br />
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Q: What are some of the more memorable families?<br />
My A: I don’t have a show, but clients, and many are memorable. Some started as clients and became friends – they are memorable.<br />
My happiest moment is when I see a dog labeled dominant and punished for misdeeds in the past improve, because he was anxious and fearful all along, and his people followed my advice and created an environment that allows him to function better.<br />
Lately, I worked with a wonderful Border collie, an agility competitor, and that is memorable because it gave me a deeper insight into a sport I don’t know too much about.<br />
Complex issues are memorable because they propel me to learn more.<br />
And timid of strangers dogs who choose to be near me – gravitate to me voluntarily, without a leash or a jerk or force, are memorable. A dog wanting to work with me is so much more rewarding than one seeking distance. Another thing I suggest Pattison try sometime.<br />
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Q: Has there ever been any follow-up with the families from the show?<br />
My A: Via my clients’ exclusive online forum, the humans I worked with can be in touch with me as often as they like or need, and for the lifetime of the dog. Many take advantage of that.<br />
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Q: How do you feel about having such vocal critics?<br />
My A: Since I am not so much in the public eye, I don’t have to deal with critics to the degree Pattison does. The fact that I don’t cause a dog to yelp in front of the camera, and that I actually understand behavior, might have something to do with it as well. That said, of course not everyone agrees with the way I do things, and I am fine with that. Water off a duck's back.<br />
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Q: You have said that you would welcome an open conversation with your critics to answer questions and help them understand your methods. Your critics say that you have never given them the opportunity for such a situation and don’t respond to their online requests. What are your thoughts?<br />
My A: Well, this is another one that doesn’t really apply to me because I do answer online requests. I am always, always open to discuss things online, on the phone, or in person. Always! With clients, that is. In fact, I welcome questions and arguments, because it allows me to explain things a bit better, perhaps in a different way. Someone asking a question tells me that they haven’t quite understood yet what I am after, and the onus is on me to clarify the whys and hows.<br />
I also enjoy a healthy discussion with fellow professionals, and can agree to disagree on some things. But I have no time for someone who tries to convince me that dogs can’t be trained without force, compulsion, corrections, or the threat of it, which is intimidation.<br />
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Q: The next four questions relate to four video clips you can watch, and then read his explanations and points of view.<br />
My A: Here are mine.<br />
First clip: Regardless what euphemism Pattison chooses to use, what I saw was a dog hit across the nose. For what? From my viewpoint, when he was on his way back to his owner, so for wanting to return to his owner. My hunch is that Pattison lost his cool, patience, and therefore hit the dog. Telling the owner that she annoys him indicates that as well. I never said that to a client. If that were to slip out of my mouth, it’d be a sign that I need to work on self-control. How can he expect impulse control from a dog if he doesn't have it.<br />
By the way, I also don’t believe that a dog must obey every idiot who can hold leash. The dog should pay attention to the owners and that’s it. Owner attention is paramount, but for it to be reliable it must be voluntary. I teach my clients how to get their dog to want to stay connected with them, not because he is jerked back or “nicked”. I work on attention first, and then built in distractions incrementally. That’s is setting owner and dog up for success, and success builds on success.<br />
Second clip: Is much of the same, and yes, the deaf dog is giving fearful signals when he avoids the bicycles. Fear is in my opinion also the reason why he keeps Pattison in check; afraid to make a mistake he’d be corrected for. Alas, he made one anyway by forging ahead, and promptly got yanked back.<br />
Third clip: Is just silly – sad silly. Pattison is running so close by the trees, or changing the direction abruptly, that the dog has no choice but move to the other side of it. Gotta give the dog a chance man. I’d like to try that with him. Put him on a leash, run closely past obstacles not giving him any information what I am about to do, and see what he does to avoid running into them.<br />
Fourth clip: Hm, I never had to put a neighborhood block under lockdown to work with a dog – and I never met a human who is fast enough to catch up with a dog whose intention is to evade or bite.<br />
Oh, and one more thing. Moving away from something is flight, not moving toward it. I actually saw that same mistake in one of the Cesar Millan's episodes when a German shepherd who wanted nothing more but to get away from him was described as an attack dog.<br />
Oh, and another thing. Of course a deaf dog doesn’t hear the sound of a clicker, but one can most certainly train a deaf dog with positive reinforcement. A couple of my friends did: their deaf from birth dog competes in agility and even goes for off leash walks. It’s all about voluntary attention my friend.<br />
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Q: Some of your critics claim that you’ve been sued or criminally charged due to your training methods. Have you?<br />
My A: I never have. And I don’t muzzle my clients. They don’t have to sign a contract that they won’t publicly talk about our sessions. Does he?<br />
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Q: One of the claims you have made was that clicker training or treat training kills dogs. How did you come to this opinion?<br />
My A: The same claim was made recently in a blog post that circulated on FB. Of course it is not so. I am sure anybody could come up with an anecdotal story of a dog who was NOT clicker and treat trained and was hit by a car. And as far as obesity goes, use part of the dog’s daily ration and have her earn it. Duh. Or reduce the amount of treats from the daily ration. It’s really not that difficult to comprehend.<br />
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Q: How do you feel about dogs being cuddled, coming up on couches, or sleeping on the owner’s bed?<br />
My A: It totally can be a daily thing. In my house it is a daily thing. I love having my dogs near me. I feed them, I walk them, I open the door to let them in or out, I facilitate their basic needs. Guess what? They are already dependent. They are dependent by virtue of being owned by a species who has bank accounts, opposable thumbs, and a more or less well developed cognitive brain.<br />
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Q: Do you believe that treats are bad for dogs?<br />
My A: No, but I agree that a dog who has learned how to sit doesn’t need a treat for every sit, but that’s not what positive trainers do. I explained using treats, or rather applying positive reinforcement, in my last three posts.<br />
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Q: Why are multiple toys bad for dogs?<br />
My A: They aren’t. Multiple toys, novel toys, food toys, all in an accessible designated place, offer mental stimulation, prevent boredom and anxiety, and is exactly what prevents a dog from chewing up inappropriate things.<br />
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Q: Do you think home cooking is best for dogs?<br />
My A: I agree with Pattison. Feeding right is an individual thing and home cooking one of the ways.<br />
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Q: The next question, and another one further down, challenges Pattison to define terms commonly used in dog training and behavior circles, for example: operant conditioning, counter-conditioning, LAT, Premack Principle, primary and secondary reinforcer, aversives, calming signals and more.<br />
My A: Defining these terms goes beyond the scope of this post, but I have addressed some in previous posts, and continue to explain others in following ones.<br />
It might not be ignorant to talk over layowners and clients’ heads, but it can be arrogant – I agree with him on that. The thing is though, that when I claim expertise, I have to know what these terms mean, and how to use them as tools in a toolbox full of methods to change and influence behavior. I don’t have to lord them over my clients, but I have to know them, and explain the one or the other, as applicable, in a way they can understand. I think Albert Einstein said that if you can’t explain something in simple terms, you haven’t understood the concept - or something like that.<br />
And by the way, the theories don’t come from dog-dog relationships and interactions, but the rules also apply to dogs.<br />
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Q: A lot of critics say your methods go against modern science and peer-reviewed scientific research. What are your thoughts on that?<br />
My A: My methods don’t, but his do, which he admits. I agree that real life doesn’t happen in a Skinner box, but again, knowing how behavior works gives one the tools to influence it. To me, the rank-reduction talk is a sure-tell sign that the person has no clue how behavior works, and to boot, knows little about dogs as a species.<br />
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Q: In your new puppy book you advocate pinching a puppy’s ear until he yelps as a training strategy. Why do you believe using this method is preferable to alternative methods that do not cause pain and are scientifically validated?<br />
My A: I would never advocate that regardless if I see it used in the service dog industry. It is archaic, and was used (likely still is) as a way to train field dogs to hold a dumbbell. The ear pinch caused the pup to scream, he opened his mouth, the dumbbell was shoved in and at the same time the pinching stopped, so holding the dumbbell became a good thing for the dog. In operant conditioning it’s called negative reinforcement. There is nothing good about it. Sadly Pattison doesn’t learn from experts who don’t use pain to train. Perhaps he could go to chicken camp.<br />
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Q: The next question is about “nicking” the dog’s nose, and I already addressed that – and him confusing flight with fight/chase.<br />
The question after that asks about pinning a dog, and he answers it with benefits of rank reduction. My answer: There are no benefits, but plenty of side effects, including biting hands.<br />
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Q: What is your view on BSL?<br />
My A: I am against BSL, but agree that there are dogs that shouldn’t be in a pet home, and those dogs can be found in any breed. So, am against BSL, but not entirely a supporter of No-Kill.<br />
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Q: The next question deals with a statement by the Ontario SPCA what to look for in a dog trainer, and follows it with his methods not fitting the bill.<br />
My A: All SPCAs, rescue groups, and veterinarians should follow such a statement, and many do. Nowadays, there shouldn’t be any professional who recommends someone who intentionally inflicts pain as a consequence of a behavior, or to elicit one. Should isn’t reality though. There are a number of local vets who send their clients to see the shock collar trainer, and some rescue folks who work with punitive trainers, or punitive trainers who rescue.<br />
On the other hand, our provincial SPCA is committed to modern, stress-free techniques, and of course some veterinarians and rescue groups are as well.<br />
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Q: The next question challenges Pattison to a training competition, and he said he’d be up for it but questions who decides the rules and if treats are used.<br />
My A: Who cares? If the clicker trainer is more successful that’d be proof, wouldn’t it? That said, I, personally, would not participate and for sure not downtown Vancouver. A competition like that could put a lot of pressure on the dog, and fear of punishment can be a powerful motivator, so Pattison, to the untrained eye, might actually look better in that moment. A shutdown dog also can look well behaved to an untrained eye. A competition would have to unfold over a period of time and a number of things must be evaluated to determine who is more successful in the long run, for example if the dog is self-directed in his good behavior, or if he behaves for all family members and not just for the effective punisher.<br />
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Q: Do you think your methods use positive punishment?<br />
My A: Mine don’t, but his do, even though he doesn’t think so. But then he also didn’t define operant conditioning, did he?<br />
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Q: A reader explains that her dog can’t be on a collar – any collar, because of a past injury, and asks what to do in that case.<br />
My A: We’ll work on a body harness. That simple. I often work with a body harness like the Sense-Ation or Freedom Harness anyway. I am neither clicker nor collar dependent.<br />
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Q: The next two questions deal with certification and government regulation, and I already answered that earlier. Some uniformed regulation in a now unregulated industry would be great. I’d like to see that.<br />
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Q: This one deals with an excerpt of his book Synergy, in which he describes the up to one-hour pinning exercise and the expressions a dog can display.<br />
My A: Advice like that creates aggression, anxiety, avoidance and a number of behavioral problems that weren’t there before. In my opinion, it is abuse. I feel sad for every dog whose owners deliberately, and repeatedly, cause him shriek, thrash, bite, urinate and defecate. Imagine doing that to a person? To a child?<br />
When a dog defecates and urinates, whines, avoids, tries to get away, it is fear. Damn well it is fear, which answers the next question.<br />
And no, fear body language is not different in every dog. Can he tell when a person is fearful? When one screams and cries, avoids and voids, retreats and runs, hyperventilates, breaks out in sweat. Are those fear – panic really, expressions universal to all people? Of course. Why would it be any different with dogs? Stating that is ludicrous, especially coming from someone who claims to have studied dogs for, how long?<br />
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Enough of it. People that criticize punitive trainers are often accused of being envious of their fame and money. I can’t speak for others, but that is so not why I am critical. I have nothing against him personally, but the methods he uses, in my opinion, hurt dogs, harm and destroy the relationship with their humans, create side-effects including aggression, and yes, are inhumane. I feel sorry for every dog who is unlucky enough to fall into his hands, or one of his CTEs.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-82857574998522433582012-07-27T12:31:00.000-07:002012-07-27T12:31:36.839-07:00If You Punish Your Dog, Make it Negative<br />
My chosen method how I train and relate with dogs is positive reinforcement/negative punishment combination (plus plenty of other things that are in a positive trainer’s toolbox). Trainers worth their money know exactly what I mean, but laypeople often don’t. Folks that follow my writings regularly might even be a bit puzzled that I put the word “punishment” in my mouth.<br />
Behaviorally speaking, punishment isn’t necessarily a bad thing. It means that a behavior decreases in frequency and intensity, eventually ceases. And negative means that something is removed. Applied, we remove something the dog wants to make a behavior we don’t want disappear.<br />
World-renowned veterinarian, behaviorist and puppy guru Ian Dunbar illustrates negative punishment wonderfully: Whenever he plays with a pup, and the babe is too rough with his teeth, Dunbar steps out of the exercise pen. By removing himself, he also removes what the puppy seeks – social interaction. The removing part is the “negative” aspect, and the goal that the pup won’t bite down that hard the next time, the “punishment” one. Since the pup is still learning, he will get another chance momentarily, and if he blows it the person steps out again, and so on.<br />
Ian Dunbar uses the same approach to stop his dogs from making a ruckus in the house. When their roughhousing becomes annoying, he yells “outside” – threatening them with being figuratively kicked in the yard, and because his dogs rather stay inside with him, they tone it down.<br />
Negative punishment is effective if indeed, in the future, the undesired behavior decreases, and is replaced with a better one: the pup becoming softer and more self-controlled in play, the rowdy dogs toning it down a bit inside the house.<br />
Although in real life negative punishment works, one must use it wisely. Let’s say your dog is hogging the place next to you on the couch and growls when his canine cohabitant wants in on the loving. Intuition dictates that the grump should lose his favorite spot as a consequence for behaving undesirably, but in that scenario there is a drawback: If punished, the already competitively feeling pooch will dislike his furry companion even more and will increasingly become more suspicious. And not just regarding the couch or bed, but in other situations as well, and from a greater distance. Although the growling might stop, the anxiety and/or aggression is still there, and if you confirm to the offending dog that the other’s appearance is indeed bad news, true animosity can form. Punishment, negative and positive = inflicting pain, although intuitive, would be counterproductive. <br />
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Equally counterintuitive to not punishing a growling dog is, for many owners, the advice to ignore a bad behavior. And there are situation where ignoring is also counterproductive, despite the operant conditioning law that states that behaviors ignored become extinct.<br />
The problem is that life with a dog doesn’t happen in the controlled conditions of a laboratory. In real life, just because you ignore a behavior doesn’t mean that it is ignored. Something or someone in the environment might reinforce it, plus there are natural drives that are intrinsically reinforcing.<br />
Let me explain that. When I teach “leave-it”, I have the dog leashed so that he can’t access the treat I tossed out. There is only one way he can get it, or an even better reward: he has to completely disengage from the loot on the floor and connect with me. I don’t help, don’t give the dog any clues. He has to come up with the solution, and I can wait until he does exactly because I control the situation, and therefore can ignore any pulling, barking or staring at the treat – any and all behaviors I don’t want when I say “leave-it”. Don’t worry: it is not as mean an exercise as it sounds - it takes most dogs only about 20 seconds to figure it out.<br />
It is a different story when a dog barks out the window at a passerby. That I can’t ignore, because the person’s natural moving along is reinforcing if the dog wishes distance. In addition, barking itself feels good to some dogs, beagles and Shelties come to mind; it is in their genes, intrinsically reinforcing. The result of me ignoring the barking in that situation is that the barking will worsen.<br />
In that case, and any other one when the dog’s undesired behavior is reinforced by something that is beyond my control, my choice of action is to interrupt the behavior I don’t want and direct the pooch into one I do want.<br />
The interrupter is verbal, for the obvious reason that a dog focused on something else but me will not see my hand signal. “Oops” is the word many trainers use. My dogs understand “ah”, “knock it” and “oh yoohoo”. Whatever word it is, it should never be a warning sound that announces your wrath, but information for the dog that he’s strutting the wrong trail, and that he should pay attention. Once he does, I guide him into a behavior I like better, and he likes a whole lot too. That the new, better behavior feels good is important, because then it will become the one the dog will choose in the future.<br />
That’s the plan anyway, and typically it works - other than that the very clever pooch, when bored, might deliberately use the undesired behavior to elicit an “oops” and the followed treat or game. Our Aussie Davie mastered that. On an off leash walk, whenever she felt snubbed, she’d find some deer poop to sniff, eyeballing me from the corner of her eye, checking if I see her and interrupt her behavior, so that she could obey and reap the reward of fetching the ball or finding tossed treats.<br />
Thinking dogs amuse me, and so I never minded, but it can be a problem if such brilliance involves another animal. One of my clients has a sweet-natured collie/retriever cross who “mauls” the cat to get his owner’s attention. Never aggressively, he holds her with his paws and gums with his mouth, and although the kitty doesn’t struggle or vocalize in distress, my client feels that she is not always a willing participant, and so she stops the pooch with a “no”, and he promptly releases, gets a treat, just to catch the cat again to elicit another. In that case, I would not wait till he has the cat in his mouth, but condition a new response when he sees her.<br />
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Repetition creates a new habit, and the stimulus that once triggered a bad behavior can become the cue for the new one. Anything is possible. The sight of a deer became Davie’s cue to play a chase game with me, and not the deer.<br />
Especially during the learning stages, and depending on the dog’s degree of motivation, you want to redirect into a prolonged activity. With a dog who’s fixated on the Sunday dinner ham, an “oops” followed by a piece of kibble when he stops ogling it, won’t cut it. If the redirected interaction is too brief, the dog will be left in a mental “now what?” vacuum, and return to the last behavior, or stimulus, he found important.<br />
The prolonged alternate activity can be anything the dog likes, and is not limited to food, but can include food. Should include food. Don’t be afraid to use food. It is handy, and most dogs are motivated by something they can devour or gnaw on. There is nothing worse that a work-driven dog not motivated by food in a pet home. He will forever pester you to be on task together: to play Frisbee, or train, or locate birds, and you can’t even redirect him into quietly emptying a Kong or finding “hidden” kibble or cookies.<br />
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So, if you catch your dog doing something you dislike, instead of: “no” ignore, punish or even click and treat when he stops his behavior, try: don’t do this, but do that instead.<br />
Ensure that the dog receives a lot of social attention when he redirects and behaves desirably.<br />
Interrupting and redirecting is also your best shot with a dog that is compulsive. I don’t mean to trivialize a complex issue; of course stereotypies have many facets that need to be considered and addressed, but studies with people locked in a behavior showed promising success when they are redirected into a different activity. Not just any activity – it had to be one they liked.<br />
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Disciplining someone for wrongdoings is deeply ingrained in our culture. It is intuitive and emotional, and regarding dogs there are two contributing factors: we expect that they are grateful for the care we provide, and we have an innate fear of teeth and worry that the pooch might harm us if we slack off. Not surprising then that people find it easy to follow the “rewarding the good behaviors” part of training, but have difficulty not disciplining him for his misdeeds. But withholding access to something the dog wants until he pleases you, and removing something the dog cherishes as a consequence of unwanted behaviors, should be your dog’s worst punishment. Humans don’t have to correct. Really.<br />
Neither negative punishment nor interrupting a behavior is oppressive, but constructive. It effectively influences behavior and has a great impact on the dog without the risk of instilling or increasing fear, anxiety or avoidance. It fosters social cooperative bonding, learning, and voluntary attention and obedience. Don’t correct, but redirect. It is absolutely possible to have a well-mannered dog who has never been corrected.<br />
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I'll be focusing on other dog stuff in August, so the next post won’t be published till September. It'll deal with a problem so many owners are struggling with: barking and lunging on the leash.<br />
<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-7123619179975663900.post-81198879799640009782012-07-17T07:27:00.000-07:002012-07-17T07:27:25.204-07:00Common Mistakes that can Delay Training Success<br />
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The idea behind positive reinforcement is to cause dogs to repeat actions humans desire, and in time have a repertoire of behaviors that make them good companions and canine citizens. It is a realistically achievable goal. In theory, positive reinforcement is as effective as positive punishment, which in operant conditioning is the delivery of something unpleasant to stop an unwanted action from recurring. More importantly, positive reinforcement strengthens the relationship between dog and owner, dog and his social group, and generally dog and the environment, while positive punishment comes with a high probability of ruining it. I argue that one cannot have true companionship with a dog if one chooses to train with force and pain. In addition, punitive training suffocates the dog’s welfare and potentially leads to side effects like aggression, anxiety and avoidance. It is well documented, and I talked about that in the past.<br />
In laboratory settings and scientific studies, positive reinforcement leads to reliable and self-directed behavior quickly, but dog owners aren’t scientists or savvy trainers. Dog owners come with diverse levels of experience, skill and know-how, and some are completely new to dogs and reward-based training. Even though neither is very complicated, they make mistakes, like anybody new to anything would. The good news is that with positive reinforcement mistakes won’t have long-lasting or irreparable negative consequences, but it can delay progress and cause enough frustration in the impatient person to give up on the concept altogether.<br />
Here are the most common errors I see people, including some trainers, make.<br />
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Your intended reward is the dog’s punishment.<br />
Not only can a pooch feel “Meh” about a reward, but it can be perceived as an aversive, and when that happens you get the exact opposite of what you’re aiming for: when your reward is the dog’s punishment, the behavior you meant to happen again actually decreases. A perfect example is taps on the head or hearty pats along the ribcage. Most dogs don’t like it and shy away.<br />
If your dog avoids or refuses a reward, it isn’t a reward in his mind and won’t reinforce the behavior you are after. Don’t offer it again if he doesn’t want it. And that can include food. Don’t shove a treat into your dog’s mouth if he wants distance to a worrisome trigger, or play ball, or read peemail.<br />
Not long ago I had a cattle dog client who perfectly demonstrated that: he brought the ball right back into the owner’s hand, who promptly gave him a pat on the head, with the result that the dog first snapped at the hand, and then refused to bring the ball all the way in the next time. The dog was labeled aggressive and erratic, when in fact he just acted that way as a result of being “punished” for bringing the ball back. When we “rewarded” him with throwing the ball again without delay, he stopped snapping and eagerly retrieved the toy all the way in.<br />
The reverse also happens in many households: your punishment is the dog’s reward. The best example for that is the inadvertent reinforcement when the jumping dog is pushed off. That is attention, and from the dog’s point of view perhaps even an invitation for a wrestling game, and exactly what he wanted. Jumping is reinforced and therefore will happen again.<br />
So, the take-away message is that a reward is what the dog wants, or it won’t reinforce the behavior you are after. Be creative. You don’t always have to be elaborate, although sometimes your pizzazz can greatly impress your dog, but know what he wants and use it to your advantage.<br />
Right now, on walks, Will wants me to get rid of the pesky deer flies that bury themselves in her coat. I comply and pluck them off, but each time before I do I say “halt”, which in our world means don’t move and wait till I get to you. Her halting on command is powerfully reinforced with me killing the insects, plus we have many naturally occurring opportunities to practice, and because of both I can use the command in situations when it matters to me that Will stops in her tracks.<br />
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Your timing is off.<br />
It means that your dog doesn’t form an association between behavior and reward. Especially for fleeting moments, a reward marker, for example a clicker, helps because it bridges action and reinforcement and clarifies to the dog exactly which behavior made the reward happen.<br />
Along that train of thought, holding a grudge, although understandably human, is counterproductive.<br />
If you are still upset about the dug-up flowerbed and gruff when your dog comes straight away when you called him out of the planters, you punish a perfect recall and he might not be so keen to return to you in the future.<br />
It is the last action that counts, and if it is one you like, reinforce it. There is a hitch though: when a bad and a good behavior are lumped together, so when two actions occur very close in time with the first being undesired, but the second reinforced, there is a risk that the dog connects both and will always perform them in sequence. The best example is a dog who lovingly celebrates your homecoming with jumping, but a flash-moment later is sitting – either self-corrected or obeyed your command. Of course you want to reinforce the sit, but not the jump/sit combination. I deal with that by keeping the dog mentally engaged for a few seconds while she is in a sit, followed by asking her to do something else desirable, which I then reinforce. In other words, I give the sit some attention, but then invite the dog into a short, fun, interaction I like and that is rewarding, and/or rewarded. After that I inform the pooch with the “all-done” word and hand signal that I’m about to disengage and that she’s on her own for entertainment for a while.<br />
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Your reinforcement schedule is off.<br />
Without getting too technical, reinforcements have to happen in rapid succession, right away, when the dog learns something new.<br />
When the dog gets it, connects the dots between cue and a certain action – a good rule of thumb is the dog complying instantly and correctly 9 out of 10 times when prompted, but also deliberately offering the behavior to elicit a reward - you have two options: If it is the end goal behavior, continue to reinforce randomly, without a fixed pattern. That cements the behavior. An end behavior would be reliably coming when called. It doesn’t get any better than a dog returning to you enthusiastically. You should always acknowledge him for being so accommodating, but you don’t have to toss a handful of treats his way each time.<br />
If it is an approximation, so just a step toward your goal, stop reinforcing altogether and raise the bar by a small increment. For example, if you shape a lie down on a mat, glancing at the mat, or having one paw on it, is not the final behavior, but you must reinforce each step constantly until the dog gets it, and once he does, so once you have the 9 out of 10 times reliability or he seeks out the mat when he is bored and proudly puts one paw on it, stop reinforcing that step and raise the criteria to bring you closer to your end goal, and then you reinforce that constantly until he gets it, and raise the bar again, and so on.<br />
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You are not orchestrating enough opportunities for your dog to earn a reward.<br />
In other words, you are not practicing enough. If you can’t find reward-worthy behaviors often, lower your criteria and/or change the situation for the dog so that he can succeed.<br />
The more you do it, the more the action you are training becomes a habit, and then your dog has one more good one up his sleeve. Habit means that the behavior learned with the help of operant conditioning becomes classical conditioned. Steve White, one of my favorite dog gurus, says: “ Anytime you use operant conditioning, Pavlov is sitting on your shoulder. And that is one dude you really want on your team.”<br />
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Not managing the dog wisely before a behavior is solid, thus setting him up for failure.<br />
Don’t put your dog’s favorite bed near the picture window when barking at passersby is a problem. Their moving along is reinforcing for your dog and maintains barking at the window. If he has opportunity to do that all day long, the little bit of “quiet” practice you do when you are home won’t have much of an effect. <br />
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Communicating unclearly.<br />
For example using the same command for two behaviors, or not enforcing a command.<br />
In that category also falls making unreasonable requests and raising the bar too quickly – in other words, being impatient and asking for more than the dog can do, but also chaining behaviors together before each one is solidly learned separately. If you work on a position stay, reinforce when the dog is still in position. If you call him out of position and reward him when he comes to you, you are practicing come, not the position stay. I will write more about command clarity sometime in the future, but for now remember that dogs are brilliant, but not mind readers. Say what you mean and reinforce when your dog does what you say. If you can’t enforce what you say, don’t say it.<br />
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Taking good behaviors for granted. Dogs offer behaviors we like all the time: don’t ignore, but capture and reinforce them. Don’t ignore the dog calmly chewing a bone on his blanket, and give attention when he steals your leather Italian pump.<br />
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If you made mistakes, don’t beat yourself up. The beauty of force and punitive free training is that you can’t really mess things up too badly. Positive reinforcement can be adjusted without creating unwanted and unexpected fallout. But if you can avoid making those common errors in the future, you’ll accelerate your training success and reach your goal faster.<br />
When I see clients, positive reinforcement is a big part of the consultation, and the humans receive all the information they need to do it effectively. Just about everyone I meet gets it. It makes sense to them and is aligned with how they feel: most people don’t want to hurt their dog. Yet, at times and typically after a prolonged pause, I hear the question: “Yes - but how do I correct my dog when he misbehaves?” Indeed, how do we punish? Or should we?<br />
That, I will sort out for you in the next post. Look for it the end of July.<br />
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<br />silvia4dogshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/06754651331524490306noreply@blogger.com1