Getting the Trot with Positive Reinforcement
Getting their equids to move from a walk to a trot can be frustrating and elusive for many people. Most often, the equid is not offering the trot because the handler is not breaking down the behavior enough or being clear in what they’re asking. Jumping straight from a walk into a trot is a considerable jump in criteria (what you expect from your learner) when you’re in the early stages of training and developing movement. Mark and Reinforce for Clear Communication When you’re working on changing gaits, it isn’t… Continued
Taming the Dreaded Oreckosaurus Rex
Some dogs run and hide at first sight of the vacuum cleaner or unleash a barrage of barking, lunging and biting at the dreadful thing. Others quickly identify the vacuum cleaner’s lair and the fear response begins as soon as the person reaches to open the closet door. Cleaning house soon becomes stressful for dog and person alike. A Canine Perspective Imagine what a vacuum cleaner appears like from a canine perspective. Dogs are conscious of height, size and elevation as it relates to their sense of security. With more… Continued
Five Tips for Being the Best Guardian for Your Senior Dog
This blog post earned Honorable Mention in the Pet Professional Guild’s Pets and Their People Celebrating Life Together community outreach competition in the Pet Professional Activities- Write a Blog Post category. As our dogs get older, they start to change physically, emotionally, cognitively and behaviorally, and that change can impact us – more barking, restlessness at night, noise sensitivity, health issues that can be emotionally and financially challenging. Watching our beloved family member go from a bouncy happy dog to one who is slowing down is hard. But there are things you can… Continued
How Your Dog Can Tell How You’re Feeling
One of the most amazing things about dogs is how well they can read our emotions and know whether we’re happy, sad, anxious, or angry. I believe that many dogs may be able to “read” the people in their family, as well as (or better than) their closest friends can. Your Scent, Body Language, & Tone of Voice The date dogs started living with us is subject to continuing research, but it could be as much as 35,000 years ago. The most logical theory about domestication suggests that dogs domesticated… Continued
Free Treats for Better Behavior
This blog post earned Honorable Mention in the Pet Professional Guild’s Pets and Their People Celebrating Life Together community outreach competition in the Pet Professional Activities- Write a Blog Post category. You know that rewarding behaviors you like gets you more nice behavior, but did you know that consequences aren’t the only way our pets learn? By giving your pet “free” treats – no good behavior required – you can build powerful associations which influence behavior and emotion. If you’re used to consequence-based teaching, the hardest part of using this technique may be… Continued
Positive Reinforcement vs. Punishment: The Best Approach to Cat Training
This blog post is the Runner-up in the Pet Professional Guild’s Pets and Their People Celebrating Life Together community outreach competition in the Pet Professional Activities- Write a Blog Post category. When we think about correcting unwanted cat behavior, the first thing that often comes to mind is the outdated method of using a spray bottle. This approach, though common, is actually an example of positive punishment. In simple terms, positive punishment means adding an unpleasant stimulus—like a spray of water—to discourage a behavior. However, using punishment, in general, is not the answer… Continued
Best Life with Your Big Feeling Dog: How to love the dog you have
This blog post is the Winner in the Pet Professional Guild’s Pets and Their People Celebrating Life Together community outreach competition in the Pet Professional Activities- Write a Blog Post category. Happy dog lounging content on his bed. Social walks and play dates with other dogs. Public events with your four-legged friend. All situations I imagined when we brought home our tiny, adorable beagle puppy. Anxiety (genetic), fear, the pandemic and two dog attacks. My beagle is anxious and fear-reactive. He has really BIG feelings, and not to mention, a loud voice.… Continued
Celebrating Life Together – The Votes Are In!
The Pet Professional Guild has announced the results of the public voting portion of the Community Outreach Competition! Thank you to all who participated in the PPG Advocacy Event and Community Outreach Competition – Raising Awareness for Humane, Ethical, and Effective Pet Training and Care! Whether you presented at or attended the Celebrating Life Together Virtual Educational Event (or purchase the conference recordings package), entered into the outreach competition, or voted for your favorite entry, by joining forces to be part of the solution, you helped provide the antidote to… Continued
Learning – From a Dog’s Perspective
I suspect that human beings seldom consider how dogs may learn from us, and I suppose many assume dogs will learn just as we do. But what if dogs have different innate abilities and learning methodologies? Are we working together as a team, or at cross purposes? Do we set dogs up for success, or failure? After all, we are trying to impose a human-oriented world order upon dogs, who evolved for eons according to the rules of nature, not the rules of humankind. I propose that we look at the learning process… Continued
A Sheltered Life: How to Choose a Great Shelter Dog
I’m just an average middle-aged guy. I have a nondescript tannish brown coat, I’m carrying a few extra pounds, and going a little prematurely gray around the muzzle. I’ve lived here at the shelter for the past two weeks. It’s not so bad, the food is decent and the people are pretty nice. I know it’s only temporary until some nice family sees my inner beauty and decides to take me home to live with them. I can’t wait to be in a family again; I loved my last one.… Continued
Common Mistakes People Make When Training Their Animals
Have you ever thought, “Why aren’t they getting this?” You are not alone. Many people get stuck while training their animals. Whether it’s with clients or a post on social media asking for help, I see animal caretakers making the same mistakes over and over while training their animals. Professionals like us frequently make them too! In this multipart article, I’ll list mistakes I commonly see and how you can fix them. Mistake #1 –Training without a Plan Are you using a training plan to train your animal? If not,… Continued
Let’s Go on Sniffari!
Should people allow their dogs to sniff during walks, or is it all about marching forward in lockstep? I suppose the tone of the question predicts my response. I suggest that dogs not only be allowed to sniff but should be encouraged and empowered to do so…and here is why. As a professional dog trainer and behavior consultant, I enjoy educating the public about dogs. My motivation is to help others avoid the many mistakes I made with my puppy in 1983, when I knew nothing about raising a puppy. Note to… Continued
Need Before Breed: Assistance Animals Are Not Limited to the “Fab Four”
Not everyone wants or can handle one of the “Fab Four” (Lab, golden retriever, standard poodle, or German shepherd dog). Some people may need a smaller or larger dog. Some may have fears of specific breeds. The “Fab Four” in the Assistance Animal Community The Labrador retriever and the golden retriever are two of the most commonly seen breeds trained to be assistance animals. Generally speaking, it is because these two breeds have temperament traits that best fit with the requirements necessary for a working dog who will encounter a… Continued
Why is “Balanced” Dog Training Controversial?
The term “balanced dog training” reflects a specific approach within the broader spectrum of dog training methodologies, aiming to strike a balance between reinforcement and correction techniques. However, “balanced” training has been a subject of debate and controversy. Critics argue that the use of aversive techniques can be harmful to a dog’s well-being and damage their trust in their owner or handler. Core Principles of “Balanced” Dog Training Types of Corrections Key Factors Contributing to “Balanced” Dog Training’s Popularity “Balanced” dog training remains in the public eye despite empirical evidence… Continued
Benefits of Force-Free Dog Training
Dog training is essential to pet ownership, shaping your dog’s behavior, enhancing communication, and ensuring their well-being. Training without aversives (force-free) focuses on positive reinforcement and promotes trust, confidence, and consistent behavior without the risk of causing harm or distress to our dogs. Strengthened Trust and Bond Reduced Behavioral Issues Ethical Considerations Trainer Transparency Transparency about training methods often reveals a trainer’s commitment to force-free methods and is critical when hiring a dog trainer for several key reasons: ★Ensuring humane treatment: Knowing the training methods helps ensure that the techniques… Continued
Help Pets Overcome Their Fears with Counterconditioning
If our pet doesn’t like something that we need them to tolerate, like vet care or grooming, we need to help convince them it’s worth it. Focus on Feelings We spend a lot of time training our animals’ behaviors (stationing, picking up feet), but sometimes the problem is emotional (fear, stress). We want to approach these situations from a more classical psychology perspective. It’s important to start by making the thing they dislike as small and mild as possible. So, whether you make it quieter, smaller, slower, or further away,… Continued
Why Is Advocating for Our Pets So Important?
Some dogs spend so much of their relatively short time with us hoping to be noticed…hoping that the door may open, or the cookie cabinet will open, hoping for even a short massage. I see many dogs daily, weekly, yearly who are trying their best to live in our modern world, a world of rushing, Zoom calls, humans with good intentions but not much time… We need to help dogs to feel accomplished, happy, cared for and heard. But in this crazy busy world, we might instead tend to push… Continued
Welcome to Hotel Bruno: How I Transformed the Space Beneath Our Basement Stairs into a Storm Shelter
This spring has brought frequent severe weather, requiring us to take shelter in the basement due to tornadic activity. I was motivated to create a storm shelter beneath the basement stairs and described how to plan ahead for people, and their pets. I describe how I built and stocked the shelter. Considering the nearly daily severe weather events all across the nation, this may help families stay safe. Meteorologists just a few years ago hesitated to link local weather catastrophes with climate change, but now it is common for them… Continued
What Do the Boy Scouts of America and U.S. Dog Trainers Have in Common?
A Lot, the Fox Is in the Henhouse By Annie Phenix and Pilley Bianchi Best-selling authors Annie Phenix and Pilley Bianchi have teamed up to write a compelling, fact-based news article that examines how family dogs are living in a time of major transition as they become more and more embedded in our families. More is expected of them, and more often than not, people expect their dogs to inherently know the rules of order. Sit, stay, come, chew this, not that. But despite 40,000 years by our side, dogs… Continued
Celebrating Life Together – Our pets share our lives, and never for long enough!
I recently lost my Kitty Kat; it gave me pause, as always when we lose a pet. We flashback to all the memories, laughs, and lovely moments we shared over the years. I sat in a quiet location as my tears subsided and flashed back to how she came into my life. I have not yet reached the point where I can think back fondly with a smile; the pain is still too raw. But what I can do is reflect on our time spent together, our reinforcement history, the… Continued
A Puppy’s Tale of the Yellow Brick Road
My understanding of the “Wizard of Oz” film is that it’s about a group of individuals who struggle to deal with fear and then seek recovery from it. This is a story about Juniper’s journey along that “Yellow Brick” road. I think that we all travel along that particular road at one time or another. Juniper’s mother was a stray, pregnant and struggling to stay safe, living in a deep southern state. She was captured with her pups and taken to a local shelter, eventually packed into a truck with… Continued
Cat Not Using the Box? It Could Be the Litter Box Setup!
Unwanted elimination is one of the most common behavioral reasons cats are surrendered to shelters. Why is this problem so common? And what can be done about it? First, take your cat to the vet to check for possible medical causes. If the cause isn’t medical, it could be behavioral, such as separation anxiety, inter-cat aggression, or outside threats. In these situations, I’d recommend you contact a cat behavior consultant to help you problem-solve. As a cat behavior consultant, experience has taught me that elimination issues are often due to… Continued
How to Train Your Equid to Stand for a Foot Soak
From softening the hoof so that it’s easier to trim in dry weather, to drawing out an abscess or treating a hoof condition, there are many reasons why you might need to soak your equid’s feet. Here is a brief guide to training your equid to stand for a soak. Step 1: To teach your equid to stand for a foot soak, I like to start with training them to stand on a mat. This behavior is useful for many different things, and the more you strengthen this behavior, the… Continued
Avoiding the ‘Brush-Off’! (Part Two)
All dogs need to be groomed – to rid the hair of dirt and debris, to check for parasites, stimulate oils and to avoid tangles, are just a few reasons. How do we make sure though that the whole process is pleasant, or even something the animal may come to look forward to, rather than a negative experience or a battle of wills? Turn grooming into a game I like to use target training as a fun game with grooming issues. Essentially, you’re changing the whole association of the tool… Continued
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