A Positive Exchange
By Cecelia Sumner One of my general observations about dogs is they are not good at sharing. From a canine point of view, attention, food, toys, even a comfortable resting place might be worth protecting from encroachment. And, the encroachers might be any species, humans, canines or even felines can be subject to threats or attacks by a dog determined to retain a coveted item or location. When I was a child, my parents always cautioned me about approaching a dog when he was eating. As an adult, I can… Continued
Running in Circles
By Jane Gerard It is often stated that the relinquishment of dogs to animal shelters in Europe and the US is largely due to behavior issues (American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, 2008; Miklósi, 2007). I am saddened but not surprised by this. As a trainer I have witnessed it many times. Perhaps around half my clients have adopted rescue dogs and they often present with behavior issues. With behavior modification and training these can eventually be extinguished in many cases, but it takes time and commitment. If a shelter… Continued
BARKS Podcast with the PPG Advocacy Panel: Discussion #6 – What Does Pet Industry Licensing Look Like?
What Does Pet Industry Licensing Look Like? Join the Pet Professional Guild (PPG) Advocacy Panel for a discussion on What Does Pet Industry Licensing Look Like? Pet guardians and pet professionals, listen as panel members share their expertise in a fun, free-flowing format. Your Moderator: PPG Advocacy Committee Chair Don Hanson Your Advocacy Panel for this discussion includes: PPG president Niki Tudge, K. Holden Svirsky – PPG Shelter & Rescue Committee, Aaron Jones – PPG Inclusivity Committee, Monique Williams – PPG Equid Committee, Dr. Eduardo Fernandez, Laurie Williams, Pat Miller, Linda Michaels, and Sam Wike. Listen to the… Continued
The Art, Science and Ethics of Using Decoy Dogs
By Yvette Van Veen Learning to work with a reactive, anxious or fearful dog is a challenging process. Dog owners especially struggle. They must learn new skills and execute them correctly, while working with a difficult, if not dangerous, dog. In such situations, owners are often robbed of the opportunity to begin basic skills with an easy dog. It is not an ideal way for anyone to learn. Decoy dogs are one way in which we, as behavior consultants, can create some flexibility. Rather than honing skills during chance encounters… Continued
BARKS Podcast with Cynophobia Specialist Stefani Cohen: January 21, 2022
Join Niki Tudge and PPG Canine Committee chair Judy Luther as they Chat and Chuckle with licensed clinical social worker Stefani Cohen, about cynophobia, aka fear of dogs. Stefani helps dog lovers and dog trainers understand more about the fear of dogs, as well as how to help both others overcome their fear. In 2020, she published her book, Overcoming Your Child’s Fear of Dogs, which is a step-by-step guide for parents based on exposure therapy using a live dog. Listen to the Podcast with Stefani Cohen on your choice of… Continued
The Rollercoaster of Reactivity
By Mary Jean Alsina Leash reactivity can be one of the most common (and embarrassing) problems dog owners deal with on a daily basis. It is also one of the most requested behavioral issues I work on with clients. Disapproving glances from passersby, the constant feeling of being out of control, and not having a grasp on how to address the behavior are all concerns for owners of leash-reactive dogs. Dogs may react poorly when on leash for a variety of reasons, which can include fear, excitement, pent-up energy or… Continued
BARKS Podcast with Dr. Karen Becker, Author of ‘The Forever Dog’: January 14, 2022
Join Niki Tudge and PPG Canine Committee chair Judy Luther for a very special Chat and Chuckle with Dr. Karen Becker. Dr. Becker is discussing her New York Times bestseller, The Forever Dog – Surprising New Science to Help Your Canine Companion Live Younger, Healthier, and Longer!, co-authored with Rodney Habib. Listen to the Podcast here on a choice of platforms. Or simply click ‘Play’ below. About Dr. Karen Becker Dr. Karen Becker has spent her career as a small animal clinician, empowering animal guardians to make intentional lifestyle decisions to enhance the… Continued
The Art and Science of Consent Testing
By Angelica Steinker Consent testing is the process of observing a dog’s body language to see if he is fine with whatever environmental change has been presented to him. It can be used informally or formally. Informal use would be during play or social interactions, when two dogs or a dog and a human are interacting. All the tester needs to do is observe if each party wants to interact. Formal consent testing is when a situation is staged and whereby the tester determines the dog’s desire to interact or… Continued
The Art of Teamwork
By Gail Radtke In a previous article I wrote about how my dog, Lanie, became a St. John Ambulance (SJA) therapy dog in British Columbia, Canada (see The Miracle Mutt, BARKS from the Guild, October 2014, pp. 36-39). Lanie was a year old at the time and had a beautiful, friendly temperament. A friend suggested that we apply to the SJA program and I thought it would be the perfect outlet for her natural abilities. Although Lanie and I had already done a great deal of obedience training at that… Continued
Animals: The Greatest Teachers of All
A PPG Member Profile featuring Anna Francesca Bradley, who owns and operates Perfect Pawz Training and Behaviour Practice in the northeastern part of the UK. Anna Bradley credits her own pets with kickstarting her whole career from a very early age. Q: Tell us a little bit about yourself, how you first got into animal behavior and training and what you are doing now:: A: I was lucky enough to share my life with animals (horses to begin with) who, at that time, were given labels such as ‘difficult/stupid/bad’… Continued
Knowledge for Life
A review of Puppy Socialization: What It Is and How to Do It by Marge Rogers and Eileen Anderson The greatest gift my parents gave me was a love of reading and a thirst for knowledge. It was a gift given out of love, knowing that it had the potential to benefit not only me but those around me. I believe it was the greatest gift I have ever received. It has nurtured my life-long love of learning, a character trait essential for any professional. What we have learned about… Continued
Reinforcing Foraging
This article sets out the steps the author used to train Cricket, the lone quail, to step on the scale for weighing, and how she later applied the same protocol for training chickens and roosters As a certified parrot behavior consultant trainer, I have had the opportunity over the years to train many different companion birds, ranging from budgies to yellow streak lorikeets. So when the chance to train a quail came up, I could not say no. Quail Surrender to Rescue My local rescue contacted me one day to… Continued
A Stronger Partnership
To celebrate the recent launch of PPG’s Horses with Voices initiative, this article discusses how we can give our horses a voice, as well as build confidence and resilience, through motivation. We sometimes ask a lot of our horses when it comes training. We use training for many different purposes, including specific activities, daily routines, and just spending time together. If we practice an activity, whether we have the aim of competing or not, we train our horses to repeat exercises over and over again. Often, we expect them to… Continued
Cat Sitter or Cattery?
This article provides a guide for feline behavior professionals to help their clients decide on the best care option for their cats when they’re away from home. Pet owners often worry about leaving their animals in care while they take a well-earned break. As a cat behavior consultant, I am often asked for advice on what’s best for a client’s cat and, as many of these cats are known to me because they have had a current or previous behavior issue that we’ve been managing, the decision is not always… Continued
The Cornerstones of PPG: Engaging, Educating, and Empowering
An interview with PPG founder and president Niki Tudge about why she started a member organization for force-free training pet professionals, what members and pet owners can expect from PPG, and what sets PPG apart. PPG founder and president of PPG Niki Tudge started formulating the idea of establishing an organization for force-free pet training professionals in November 2011, after she had witnessed a trainer in a pet supplies store hanging a screaming dog in the air with a choke chain while shouting “No!” Upon complaining to the store’s… Continued
Ask the Experts: A Little Bit of Magic
PPG corporate partner dogbiz talks dog trainer cancellation policies and how to make them stick. Q: Dear dogbiz, I need to learn how to stand up for myself when clients try to break my policies. I find it really hard to enforce them in the moment. I’m tired of being a pushover, but I hate conflict and just never know what to say. Any magical tips? S.F. in Anaheim A: Well, S.F., I don’t know about magical, but I do have some tips. Before I share them, I want to say how… Continued
The Right Choice
This article discusses learning environments for puppies, explaining why classes may not be the best option for all puppies and why one-to-one training can be far more beneficial – depending on the dog. In this article I’m going to talk about learning environments. I’ll start by asking some of the basic questions I would advise puppy owners to consider. For example, are your learning choices the right ones for your dog? Should you automatically assume a class is the best fit for your pup? Are you being led into believing… Continued
Please Don’t Touch
In this article the author shares a tale of nature versus nurture based on her experiences with Zia, whose reluctance to be touched led her to seek a behavioral consult to help snap her out of the training impasse she suddenly found herself in. You know how some clients start their story about the current dog they’re having problems with by describing their previous dog’s behavior? How the last one “was perfect, but this one……” Okay, so bear with me, because I’m going to be “that client.” In describing my… Continued
Canine Communication and Social Behavior
This article highlights the importance of dog training and behavior professionals being fluent in reading canine communications so they can understand a dog’s emotional state at any given moment in any given context, as well as be able to educate owners when a dog is experiencing a negative emotional state, such as fear, stress, or anxiety. Dogs often feel stressed or anxious in certain situations and will give signs to indicate their discomfort. In such cases, there is a need for awareness and, if appropriate, intervention to prevent pushing a… Continued
From the Editor
Welcome to our new-look BARKS from the Guild! We’ve taken BARKS completely digital to provide you, the reader, a more seamless and user-friendly experience. No more navigating or downloading PDFs (although we will still be providing some special educational PDFs for PPG members) – just lots of easily accessible and shareable content that we will be updating regularly. The format may be different but we still have the same top-level educational and informative content thanks to our loyal band of regular contributors who, as always, are delivering in spades. Get… Continued
Stuck in the Mud
By Lara Joseph Mini, pocket and teacup are all adjectives used to describe pigs and are specifically designed to impart a certain image to any potential pet pig owner. What might one think of when one hears the word “mini?” ‘Something weighing under five pounds’ might come to mind, or ‘something that fits into a purse.’ While both considerations might be correct, when referencing a pig, they will only be accurate for about two months. What happens then, when the pig gets bigger than five pounds? Along with these misleading… Continued
Happy Holidays…for Dogs too!
It can be so easy in all the madness and mayhem to overlook our dogs’ needs over the holiday period. Certainly, I always have an influx of inquiries at the beginning of a new year because a dog’s behavior has regressed in some way. Of course, we can’t expect ourselves to be ‘on it’ 100% of the time, every single second of the day – especially over periods like the holiday season. That’s only natural. But at the same time, there are things that we can do, small and easy… Continued
BARKS Podcast with the PPG Advocacy Panel: Discussion #5 – Meeting People Where They Are to Facilitate Change
Meeting People Where They Are to Facilitate Change Join the Pet Professional Guild (PPG) Advocacy Panel for a discussion on Meeting People Where They Are to Facilitate Change. Pet guardians and pet professionals, listen as panel members share their expertise in a fun, free-flowing format. Your Moderator: PPG Advocacy Committee Chair Don Hanson Your Advocacy Panel for this discussion includes: PPG president Niki Tudge, K. Holden Svirsky – PPG Shelter & Rescue Committee, Aaron Jones – PPG Inclusivity Committee, Beth Adelman – PPG Feline Committee, Dr. Zazie Todd, Dr. Eduardo Fernandez,… Continued
PPG Advocacy Panel: Making Education More Accessible
By Susan Nilson The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) Advocacy Panel was launched in August and has already held its first three sessions, where the panel discussed How To Best Advocate for Positive Reinforcement Methods, How to Reach and Work with Your Local Veterinarians, Your PPG Advocacy Panel at Work! Advocating to Let Dogs be Dogs, Cats be Cats, Equids Be Equids, and “Being Nicer” While Advocating (links to all podcasts and videos below). Panel members to date include Beth Adelman, Kristi Benson, Dr. Laura Donaldson, Dr. Eduardo Fernandez, Dr. Robert… Continued
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