Clicker Training for Cats (4/6)
By Paula Garber and Francine Miller Clicker Training for Behavioral Problems: Clawing Furniture/Destructive Furniture Scratching Destructive furniture scratching is a commonly reported problem in cats, and one of the many unwanted behaviors that clicker training can help. Without going into all the reasons cats scratch (for more details on scratching, see Scratch Here, Not There, BARKS from the Guild, July 2016, pp. 25-26), it is suffice to say that cats have to scratch. It is a natural behavior that serves many purposes. Having said that, cats can certainly be taught… Continued
A Change in Routine Can Be a Shock to the System for Dogs too
By Julie Naismith Dogs and novelty don’t always mix. Although many dogs breeze through change, anxious dogs can be thrown by it. If it could talk, the stressed dog would probably say: “Ok, I was feeling good about everything, but I worry when I don’t know what’s round the corner.” Regularity can help anxious dogs become comfortable with whatever might be stressing them out, especially if the worry is only mild. But switch the routine, change even one thing, and suddenly all bets are off. Anxious dogs are continually working… Continued
Give Me a Break!
A little too often I think we may demand too much of our dogs. It’s about expectations. If we push too much, we may ultimately push too far, and this is not good with an animal who soaks up what we give him like a sponge and internalizes everything around him. Manage Expectations I sometimes see owners with young dogs and puppies become despondent and, while it’s fabulous to have goals, owners also need to remember that they have a young dog, and that other things can take over when you’re tiny…like… Continued
Quality of Life for Blind/Deaf Dogs
By Debbie Bauer I receive a lot of great ideas for new blog posts – Thank you so much for those. I’m always looking for ideas to write about that will be useful to each of you as readers. One idea that truly intrigued me was to discuss what quality of life a blind and deaf dog can have. I think it caught my interest because I had never thought about my dogs not having a good quality of life. I began to think about how we measure quality of… Continued
Why Every Cat Needs a Place to Hide
By Dr. Lynn Bahr Has your cat ever gone MIA in your own home? I lost an entire litter of kittens once in a small 1 bedroom apartment. All five furballs disappeared while I was out running errands. Imagine my panic and the frantic search that ensued to find them. Where could they have gone? I pulled out drawers, furniture, and the refrigerator to no avail. Fearing I would find them by smell weeks later, I sat on the couch to have a good cry. That was when I heard… Continued
The Opposite of Force
I think I’ve figured something out. I continue to see the concept of choice bandied about the positive reinforcement-based training world. It can be a code word for a setup that includes negative reinforcement. “I’m going to do something physically unfamiliar or unpleasant to you and you have the choice of staying here and getting a piece of food or leaving and being relieved from whatever it is I’m doing.” I’ve suggested that this is not a laudable kind of choice; as trainers we can use our skills and take our… Continued
Zoophilia*: A Hidden Horror for Animals
I entered law enforcement at 20 years of age. When I retired 30 years later I thought I had seen the full spectrum of human abuse, violence and degradation. The cruelty of humankind no longer shocked me, though it wore me down. Through the years I never investigated a single case of sexual abuse of an animal and none of my fellow officers ever spoke of it. The crimes occurred under the radar, hiding in the long dark shadows of secrecy, pain and trauma. On January 25th of 2018 I… Continued
An Open Letter to Veterinarians on Referrals to Training and Behavior Professionals: Recommended Best Practices
Dear Veterinarian, There are numerous professional organizations that offer membership and credentials in the field of animal training and behavior. Few, however, hold their members to a strict code of conduct which involves the application of their trade through scientific protocols and the objective to cause no harm. Unfortunately, the pet training industry is entirely unregulated, meaning that anyone can say they are a trainer or behavior consultant. As a result, those who call themselves dog trainers, or even “dog whisperers,” may still be utilizing punitive methods, such as disc… Continued
New Puppy – What Now?
We’re getting a puppy! How amazingly, brilliantly, wonderfully exciting…. then puppy arrives! No, really – having a puppy is an incredibly enriching period of our lives and we are indeed privileged to share our lives with these wondrous, funny, all absorbing beings. Truth is though that we owe it to these dogs, to serve them the very best we can and to do our utmost to ensure the transition from puppyhood to adulthood is as smooth as possible, for our sakes as well! A Time You Can’t Get Back –… Continued
Clicker Training for Cats (3/6)
By Paula Garber and Francine Miller Cats learn best when they are comfortable and free from distractions. They are sensitive and will flee from any threat or uncertainty (and we don’t work with them on a leash!) The best place to teach a cat is somewhere he finds quiet and familiar. This may be challenging because with their acute senses of smell and hearing they may be distracted by things we are unaware of. You should train in a place with a litter box available, fresh water and a place… Continued
Did you cause your dog’s separation anxiety?
By Julie Naismith “Is it my fault my dog has separation anxiety?” That’s the most common question dog owners have when they first find out their dog has separation anxiety. It can be hard to ignore the suggestion that you caused your dog’s separation anxiety. But, I’m here to tell you that you didn’t cause your dog to develop a panic disorder. Neither you nor your dog are at fault. As if it weren’t enough that your life is turned upside down by your separation anxiety dog, you had better… Continued
Teaching Deaf (and Blind) Dogs to Use Their Mouths Gently
By Debbie Bauer A common complaint among those who live with deaf (and blind/deaf) dogs is that they use their mouths roughly. This is very common throughout puppyhood and adolescence, but if dogs are not taught to use their mouths gently, this problem can extend into adulthood. Deaf dogs sometimes get a bad rap for being more aggressive than other dogs. But this is a myth. Let me tell you more … Dogs use their mouths in many ways – when they eat, chew, play, discipline, bark, and too many… Continued
Preventing Dog Reactivity with a Barrier
My back door opens onto an elevated wooden porch. There are ten steps down to the yard. The top of the steps provides a view into the neighbor’s yard, which can be a very interesting place. Clara runs there when anything might be happening, primed to react. In the picture above she is watching a guest dog at the neighbor’s house. You can see that that’s not a friendly look, right? Tight commissures (corners of the mouth) with the muscles bunched and pushing forward. Direct gaze with a fairly hard… Continued
Dogs Require Daily Enrichment
As a professional dog trainer 60% of my cases are behavioral in nature. Training is about teaching dogs (and owners) how to do things while behavioral cases usually involve changing underlying emotional states such as anxiety, stress and fear. I often see lack of enrichment in the dog’s life in behavioral cases. I often hear from owners they have a “high energy” dog who engages in annoying behaviors such as excessive barking, chewing, jumping on people, and general inability to settle down. Very often the first recourse applied by pet owners… Continued
An Open Letter To Pet Retailers Concerning The Availability of Pet Training and Management Devices That Deliver Electric Shock
In September 2017, the Pet Professional Guild (PPG) rolled out its Shock-Free Coalition, the key purpose of which is to build a strong and broad movement committed to eliminating electric shock devices from the worldwide supply and demand chain. It is our intent to fully realize the goal of shock tools and equipment being universally unavailable and no longer permitted in the training, management and care of pets anywhere. We plan to work diligently to achieve the following: 1. To engage and educate pet owners and shelter/rescue workers to help… Continued
Clicker Training for Cats (2/6)
By Paula Garber and Francine Miller In clicker training, primary reinforcers are things that are instinctively or inherently rewarding to a cat. Reinforcers for cats should be given in small amounts and frequently to maintain learning momentum. For cats who are food motivated, use high-value food or treats for clicker training. Many cats like foods with a high animal protein content, like cooked or freeze-dried meat or fish. Other foods to try include canned tuna, deli meat, meat-based baby food (make sure it doesn’t contain onions), and liver paste made… Continued
Counterconditioning Leash Reactivity, the Hybrid Approach
Leash reactivity towards dogs, humans or traffic, is one of the most challenging training endeavors. This is simply because there is no consistency in the appearance of the stimuli, and there will most assuredly be at some point, an over threshold event for the dog due to “criteria pile up”. More than one piece of criteria at a time combined with a lack of sufficient distance, too much duration, and or both, then add in the stimulus entering the environment with intensity of both the visual and auditory components known… Continued
Separation anxiety: 7 reasons why you need to have strong support
By Julie Naismith Have you been out for a coffee recently? Did you spend the time chatting about your dog’s separation anxiety? I’m guessing not. Or if it did come up, your friends probably didn’t want to go into it in any detail. At the risk of sounding dramatic, it’s a socially isolating condition. Having a dog with separation anxiety sets you apart. No one else is going to get it. No one understands what it’s like to own a separation anxiety dog until they have one themselves. I recently… Continued
Ensuring Festive Fun For Fido!
Christmas will be here again before we know it – sadly, every year, dogs can become casualties during the festive season. So how can we ensure that everyone has a fabulous time including our furry friends? Here are a few tips: KEEP CHRISTMAS PLANTS OUT OF REACH Those lovely Christmas traditional plants are poisonous for our dogs, so keep them well out of the way: mistletoe, poinsettia, holly, and amaryllis. NO BONES It’s nice to share the Christmas turkey but, remember, don’t give your dog any bones as they can splinter… Continued
Are You SURE Your Dog Prefers That Food Toy?
It just occurred to me that it is super easy to make assumptions about how much our dogs prefer a particular food toy, or even whether they really enjoy them that much. Don’t yell at me. To be clear: I use food toys for my dogs every single day. I think they can be enriching and that they are ethical things to use. But food toys present us with a funny little problem. The laws of behavior get in the way of something we might like to know. How can we tell… Continued
Santa Claus May Scare Dogs
People around the world enjoy the winter season and many nations celebrate a version of Saint Nicholas. In the United States I witnessed an increase in commercialization and marketing hype since I was a child and Christmas decorations now appear after Halloween in my locale. There is a lot of social pressure to “be happy” during the Christmas season. Personal and social expectations of “joy and happiness” rose substantially over the years and today pet owners may draw their dogs into the frenzy by dressing them in holiday attire or… Continued
An Open Letter to Pet Industry Representatives Regarding the Use of Shock in Animal Training, Management and Care: We now know enough to stop shocking our pets
Shocking pet dogs remains a common, if controversial, training practice worldwide. In this open letter, Pet Professional Guild (PPG) combines decades of research, the opinions of certified animal behaviorists, and the question of ethics to explain why using electric shock in the name of training and care is both ineffective and harmful. PPG concludes that shocking constitutes a form of abuse towards pets, and, given that there are highly effective, positive training alternatives, should no longer be a part of the current pet industry culture of accepted practices, tools or… Continued
Making Peace with Muzzles
I’ll give you the moral of this story first: Make peace with muzzles. Be OK with dogs who wear them, applaud owners who use them, and put one on your own dog if the situation warrants it. Now I’ll tell you the story. It’s about mistakes I made that led me to this moral. I hope it’ll bring you there, too. (And if you only read this far, at least check out The Muzzle Up! Project’s website.) Years ago I had a gentle, low-key mutt named Sachem. She was easygoing with… Continued
How to Teach Your Deaf (and Blind) Dog to Wake Up Gently
By Debbie Bauer There is a myth that deaf dogs can be “dangerous” because they will bite when they are startled or woken up. Could this ever happen? Yes, it could. But it could also happen with a dog that can hear just fine. Does it happen a lot? No. Most deaf dogs are no threat when startled. Can this scenario be prevented? Yes, definitely! You can teach your deaf dog to wake up easily and happily. By teaching this skill to your new dog, you can prevent this issue… Continued
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