Featured Rescue - Bandit the Jack Russell Terrier

Today's Featured Rescue is Bandit, the Jack Russell Terrier (JRT). Although it seems that the Grey Bruce Animal Shelter (where he is residing) doesn't have a lot to say about him except that "he is bright and high energy and is not suitable for a family with small children" ... In such a small sentence, they say A LOT. They are looking for a home with previous JRT experience.

I have found that far too many people put little dogs that pull on halters. Call it a pet peeve of mine, but all it does is encourage the dogs to pull more! I don't want to hear that "it's easier on their little necks" because that's just a cop out. If you take some time and train your little dogs not to pull, it's actually better for them to have them on a FLAT collar (if not trained to walk properly off leash)!

15 Amazing Facts About Therapy Dogs

Thought I'd share this with everyone. I have always been fascinated with Therapy Dogs and one day I would really like to set my Flat-Coated Retriever to do some Therapy Dog work. Most Therapy Dog programs require only a few hours of your time every month (for St. John's Ambulance, the requirement is 2 hours of community service time and one meeting per month of 2 hours = 4 hours per month ... not including training).

15 Amazing Facts About Therapy Dogs

Therapy dogs perform the exact same function as their name implies. These gentle, altruistic animals interact with humans suffering from chronic mental or physical conditions - usually at hospitals, elder care centers, and rehabilitation clinics - and provide the patients with a conduit for lowering blood pressure and quelling anxieties. Both these canine friends and their owners deserve as many accolades as they can get for the wonderful services they perform for the suffering masses.

RANT - WoofStock 2010 Toronto

I went to Woofstock this weekend. Not sure if that's a good thing or a bad thing. My head almost exploded with all the crap I saw. I don't even know where to start! I start thinking about something I saw and I can't even type it out fast enough. After careful deliberation, I believe the best place to start is this ...

I can't begin to tell you how much of this I saw. Do you think that people picked it up?? Not a chance. Granted, there were some good dog owners there this weekend who were picking it up, but sometimes the few ruin it for the many. By the end of Sunday the streets smelled like dog feces and urine. There were dog shit piles every 6 feet or so, making it difficult to walk, look at booths and keep an eye out for land-mines at the same time. It was disgusting. A good way to ensure I NEVER move to the city.

(more pictures in full article)

Training Rant - Grey Matter

Ok, I've read trainers who preach both sides of some arguments and it drives me crazy. On the Furniture. Off the Furniture. Feed rawhide. Don't feed rawhide. Do this. Don't do that.

I really dislike it when it is all or none ... black or white ... good or bad. It bothers me. Why? Probably because it is misleading and it's not real life. Correct me if I'm wrong, but in my experiece, real life is not yes/no, black/white, good/bad answers ... it is full of grey matter. When trainers start preaching their way or the highway and push that the only way is their way, it really irks me.

On the flip side, it really bugs me when I am talking to a client and they want a definite answer. I can't always give that.

Sometimes the answer really IS "maybe".

Next time you're talking with a trainer or veterinarian about your dog, please don't get mad if their answer is maybe. It could be that "maybe" is the best answer they can give.

Have you ever had an experience with this? When? What was it about? Was there any grey matter?

News Reel Rants - Dog Bites Family and Biting Dog

Sunday was the first time I've picked up a newspaper in months (aside from our local community news - I always check up on the Humane Society's column). I don't usually like the dog training columns in the paper because they don't generally give advice that I agree with. The unfortunate thing is that other people will read the article and then apply whatever advice given to their own dog(s). Usually it's the total opposite of what you should do or it's only partly correct. I couldn't believe it on Sunday ... I read the article Dog Bites Family and actually agreed with the columnist!



Holy Jumpin. It's a day for celebrations. Here's the quote that I ABSOLUTELY love ... "I class all truly abusive and positive dog trainers in the same category. They both hurt dogs. The former does it in an obvious way and the latter an insidious way." Beautifully written. I couldn't have said that better myself. If you have time, check out the article. There's some good info in there.



Then I get an email about this article, Biting Dog Needs to be Desensitized from a different paper and a different columnist. I read it and couldn't believe what I was reading. Basically the article said not to use punishment (positive or otherwise) because it doesn't work or if it does, it is only temporary. Check out what this columnist published ... The blue is her published work, the Red and Black are my comments:



"Leash corrections are in the same category as spanking" WTF?! Are you serious? That's one broad statement. So if a person has a dog on the leash and the dog is aggressively charging the TV (the example given - what if it were another dog or a child??), you should not use the leash to correct? What the heck do you suggest the person do? Let go? Do you even know what this "correction" is that the person who wrote in used?



The most interesting thing is that by using the word "spanking" as the comparison, the columnist has half the readership already nodding in agreement not because they disagree with leash correction but because they disagree with spankings.

Watch what you read.

Most good writers are taught what's called persuasive writing ... In fact - did you know that most grade school children are learning persuasive writing?? I have the pleasure of sitting in on some of these classes during my day job - interesting stuff ... wish I could learn some of it! HA.



Then she wrote this "Research indicates the effects may be temporary unless the punishment is immediate, consistent and severe". What research? I would like to read some research studies that prove this - it would be interesting. I don't agree with this statement. (This is where I'm going to have all sorts of readers up in arms about what I've written) Again, it is far too broad and doesn't explain spit. What does "severe" mean? Each dog will view punishment as different so you really can't make such a statement. I also don't agree that punishment needs to be immediate for everything ... while I have many examples I could use, this is the best and most recent one I can think of ...



You better believe that the day I walked in the door after work to see my nice new cat pillow shredded all over my livingroom floor, my dogs knew exactly what was going on when I picked it up and said "What is THIS?! Who ate my pillow?!" (I knew exactly who it was because only one dog was new to being out of the crate throughout the day and she is a "destructor dog".) (Granted ... living with 5 dogs I really should have KNOWN that a CAT PILLOW would not be on their Top Ten List for decorating our house but I think of it sometimes as MY house). I didn't catch them in the act. I did give them trouble about it - all of them. They haven't done it again (I have a matching pillow with a DOG on it and they seem to think that one's just fine). It's all part and parcel of training. If I had expensive crap, I wouldn't have dogs. What's the point of this story? My dogs received verbal correction, then got the cold shoulder until dinner time. The punishment was not immediate (it was possibly even hours after the behaviour), consistent (it didn't happen more than once) or severe (not physical in the slightest; all they got was me tossing my arms around my head in frustration, a bit of yelling and then the ignore button) but it worked.



"Although punishment may work for some, it can be ineffective and even has the potential to backfire" At this point in the article it sounds like this columnist is lumping all punishment in the same box. You have to think outside the box when you're training dogs. Punishment is different for each and every dog and when you find out what works for that dog, it is quite effective. You sure wouldn't use the same template on every dog. Not all dogs are the same. For some, I could use verbal. For others, I could put them on ignore. For others, I would put into isolation. For others, I can use a leash correction. For others, a time out where they aren't isolated but are limited in movement works. You can't assume that the thing that works for dog number one will work for dog number two and if you have assumed this than of course you would make a statement as above.



While this columnist has some good points ("Systematic desensitization is one effective choice. Instead of waiting for the dog to fail and then correcting it, the dog is set up for success"), these shining rays of hope are overwhelmed by the huge amount of crap she has written. It honestly sounds like she picked up a Behaviour Modification book and cut, copied and pasted certain key phrases to be interspersed with the crap. That way it sounds like she actually knows what she's talking about. She uses key phrases like "positive punishment", "learning theory", "Systematic desensitization", and "anxiety-provoking triggers" but then puts in the sentences as outlined above.

Here's what really bothers me ... when you get someone giving advice in such columns and they have no idea what they are talking about. The scary thing is that people at home will take that advice and apply it to their own dogs, often making the problems worse.

If you have a dog at home that exibits any aggressive tendencies (or other negative behaviours) you wish to resolve - PLEASE go to a trainer! Don't just read an article in the paper and assume you can fix it yourself.

Training Rant - Holidays are Stressful!

This is going to be a short post ... I hope. I just wanted to post a reminder that though we may love our dogs, there is a possibility that your Aunt (etc.) who is coming to visit doesn't or perhaps she likes your dog but your dog doesn't like her. It is a fact of life. Please remember that the holidays are a very stressful time for your dog.

You have changed your routine and redecorated the house (and possibly moved furniture around to compensate). You may be caught up in the Happy Holiday Spirit that makes everyone smile or you may be a big grouch who doesn't want to talk to any of those Happy Holiday-ers. Believe it or not, most of you don't go around your house the same way throughout the rest of the year (smiling, singing and/or humming) ... well, some may go around grumping, but that's not what I'm getting at here.

The point is that your dog is probably pretty stressed out. You may have people come over for the holidays and you need to understand that your dog may not be able to deal with the people, excitement and hustle-bustle of this time. During these times, watch your dog.

If he or she looks like he's uncomfortable with a person or situation, than why wouldn't you give your dog a little quiet time in a bedroom or in his crate? Take some time to do a little Internet searching and learn how to read the body language of a dog; this is a good article from Modern Dog. Keep in mind that each and every dog is different and will display different language and these are only basic guidelines. There are actually hundreds of different signs of stress, but these are the most common.

Take some time to get to know your own dog and his or her signs so you know what things you need to work on. You will end up with a better rounded, happier dog.

I am sure I don't need to tell you how many dog euthanasia's I used to see working at the veterinary clinic during December. Most of them were in because the dog had bitten a relative and the owners couldn't deal with it.

Training - Expectations and Moon Cycles

Do you ever have days where you just want to roll over and go back to sleep? I don't mean the days where it's hard to get up, but rather the days that you can't shake that feeling all day long. Today is just such a day for me. I will have to keep my head low at work ... usually days like this are days where I really shouldn't talk to people. I run out of tact and shoot from the hip. I completely believe that we all have days like this and I'm not alone (perhaps I'm just hoping I'm not the only cranky one out there!), so what does this have to do with dogs and my blog?

When you are interacting with your dog and you are training him/her, you need to be aware of the different sorts of days you will have. Believe it or not, it will affect your dog and the training you are working on. Admit it, we don't all have Good Days every day. Here's something of what I mean:

I woke up this morning not wanting to get out of bed. I am in a rotten mood and don't want to talk to anyone. Knowing this, I will not plan to do any training with my dogs where I need a lot of patience. That means I won't work on something with them that they have been struggling to figure out (like Stop). I will work on things that they know but need solidified. For example, my new dog ... I will work on Sit and LieDown at home but I won't take her to PetSmart and work on the same thing. I will save that for a day when I have more patience.

Now, something that I should also mention in this post ... Dogs have off days too. I won't say "Bad" because I don't know if they are bad days. They are days where the dogs can't focus, have all sorts of extra-crazy energy, forget all the rules or like to sleep in. I have noticed that during Full Moons the older dogs can't focus and have extra-crazy energy. During New Moons the older dogs like to sleep in and don't want to do too much. (I haven't been able to completely track the new dog's range of behaviours because her behaviour training progresses so much on a weekly basis.)

Tonight is a Full Moon. Couple that with my mood and it is NOT a day when I will work with my dogs on training. I know it will simply set them up for failure and that's not the name of the game. We will go for a nice long walk and have fun together. Maybe play some Hide and Seek. Probably a bit of Fetch.

Have you noticed anything different about your dogs throughout the Moon cycles?

Training Rant - Jumping and Kneeing

Ok ... this is DRIVING ME CRAZY! We all know how annoying it is when a dog jumps on you; many of us are even aware of the dangers that it can present. Yes, it sucks; but it takes time to re-train a dog if they've been rewarded for behaviours.


I ran into the following problem around a week ago when I took my newest dog out in public ... the jumping is something we are working on, but we can't address that fully until we build up some self-control (of which she has little to none - she's like a bouncy ball). Since the jumping was a behaviour that was reinforced with both praise and cookies, it takes time to redirect. (Don't get me started - that's another rant for another day!)


So we're hanging outside, working on self-control and watching people walk by. She's doing very well. At this point, I am telling people that no, they can't pet her; she's training. Most people accept this and move on. When they stop, she gets up to approach the people and I put her back into her sit. She settles in pretty quickly at this point. (We do spend time working with approaching "strangers" - people I know but she doesn't - but that's not what we were doing that day)


One woman asks why I don't just let her approach so she can give the dog a pat? I say "Two reasons - One; I don't want her to get used to just running up to every person she sees. Some people are afraid of dogs. And two because we are still working on jumping and I don't want her to jump on you."


The woman replies confidently "Oh, don't worry - I'll just knee her and she'll get off quickly."


"WHAT!?" I said loudly. "You can't do that! You should never knee a dog."


"Why not?" She asks. "I've always done that. I had friends with two big dogs and that's how I taught them not to jump on me"


"Why not?! Well, for starters, you can quite easily break the dog's ribs." I say (which she scoffs at and dismisses).


"Do you know how thin a dog's ribs are?" I ask her. "They are TINY! Not to mention that this dog is only about 25 lbs ... her ribs are probably thinner than your finger bones. Do you think your finger bones would hold out to being kneed? Besides that, if you break them, what if it pierces the dog's lung? Now the dog has to go to an emergency clinic, will need surgery and will quite probably die." Ok, granted - I'm starting to use scare tactics on the woman, but she is just not listening. I really wanted to ask her to brace her finger on a ledge and I would knee it - that way we could see if it would break, hurt or not.


"Well it worked for those big dogs that used to jump on me" She retorts. "They got off right away."


This still isn't working, so I use a different approach. "Of course they got off right away - you just gutted them. Best case, you knocked the wind out of their sails. Worst case ... well, do you still see the dogs?"


"I haven't visited them recently. I'm pretty busy you know; I have a life" She replies. (As though I know what this stranger's personal life is like?)


So I move on and ask. "Would you give the dog an upper-cut with your fist as hard as you can?"


She shakes her head No while saying "Of course not! That would be cruel."

"Then why would you do it with your Knee instead? Look at the shape of your knee when it's bent - does it not look like a fist?" I ask. She nods. "Then why would you think that kneeing the dog is any different than using your fist? How fast is your knee coming up? So how fast would you use your fist to come up if you were to mimic this action?"

So she left and I continued working with the new dog. Now, keep in mind that I probably embarassed the woman and she likely refused to consider different methods because of that. I would hope that she left and continued to think about what I said. Perhaps she won't knee the next dog. Perhaps she will. I can't change the world - just me.

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Ok ... here's my inspiring thoughts for today ...

We all agree that there are different training methods when it comes to dogs. Some work, some don't. Some are too good to be true. Some mask and DON'T train. Some are idealistic but in reality don't work.

I don't have all the answers, that is why I keep searching and learning. I want to know. Every day I learn something new; sometimes it is totally new, sometimes it contradicts something else. That doesn't mean I stop looking for answers; it just means I consider that the answers I find may not be the absolute truth.

I have been studying, learning and reading about dog training since I could pick up a book. Some people enjoy reading fiction books (mystery, romance, fantasy); I read non-fiction. The very first book I read about dog training encouraged the use of choke collars. That doesn't mean it wasn't true, it just meant that at the time it was the best practice. For some dogs I still use a choke (the ones I don't know won't take my arm off, for example!).

The world is constantly evolving and changing ... so too should we. If you've got your head too far up your ass that you can't even acknowledge new things then that's really unfortunate and you are doomed to eternal failure. What's even worse ... you doom your dog to failure.

Training Rant - Plan B

In my last post I mentioned that I have started working with some of the dogs in my area. I was approached by a vet who has watched what I've done with some of the foster dogs I've had go through. He asked if I would be willing to work with some of the dogs brought in for behavioural euths.


The first question I had for him is ... why would you need me? Aren't there other trainers in the area more experienced than I? His response was that the other trainers in the area aren't interested in working with these dogs or have worked with them and failed. Great. Fine. I'll do it. Don't give them the juice. I'll give it a go.


There is something seriously wrong with the dog training world when they "reject" the dogs that need training. Sound like an oxymoron? Well, I'd say someone is an oxymoron around there, but that's none of my business, is it?


Viatecio commented on my last post about trainers and posted a link for us to check out. I wanted to ensure we all read it - I went and read it through and I couldn't have put it better myself! I think you should all take some time and read the article. It's called Plan B - Kill the Dog. What a great article to read.

Training Rant - Table Manners

Well we've had way too many raindrops and lollipops around here lately. This is because I’ve been stewing about some things but haven’t yet been able to put them out into well formed sentences – let alone well developed posts! I imagine you all don't want to see a post full of me sputtering unintelligibly. The amount of drafts labelled “Rant” in my blogger account is staggering. So, I figured I’d finish one off today … today’s special is Table Manners.


Why do some people find it so difficult to teach appropriate table manners to their dog?! This is NOT a difficult concept – I promise! Good grief. I get tired of people coming over and having their dogs drooling on my dinner plate.


With every foster dog I’ve had come through, it usually takes around five days to teach them appropriate table manners. FIVE DAYS! That includes the puppy mill dogs who have lived their whole lives in crates; it includes the neglected dogs who have lived outside tied up their whole lives; it includes the owner surrender who used to eat off the owners’ plates; it includes the aggressive dogs, the shy dogs and the abused dogs.


So why is it that I have such success with table manners but people who have had their dogs for months (or even years) are not able to teach this?? I’ve been trying to figure this out for a while and I can only assume it is one of two things:


1 – They don’t care how their dog acts while they are sitting at the table.
2 – They don’t know how to teach appropriate table manners.


So, what do I mean by “Appropriate Table Manners”?? Well it is really quite simple. Here's what I don't want ...


- No begging (staring at people and using “Jedi Mind Tricks” to get food)
- No drooling on people, the floor or the table (the last thing I want is to slip on a puddle on the floor and break my neck! Not to mention the fact that leaving said puddle on the table, people or floor is just gross)
- No nose/face/other body parts on the table (that is where my food is – not the dog. I don't even put my nose or face on the table, so why would I let the dog?)
- No walking around or under the table (makes me dizzy)
- No walking around people (this not only makes me dizzy but makes me feel creeped out)
- No pawing at people (what a great way to knock the food out of the person’s hand so it falls on the floor, eh?)
- No dogs on laps at table (this is just plain irritating let alone the fact that it's is Rude and allows the dog to drool on people and the table. It also opens it up so the dog thinks it is ok to check out the table's offerings.)
- No playing (we don’t need fur flying around food and if I have to monitor the play then I don’t have the opportunity to eat my dinner in peace)


So, that’s a good list of what I don’t want, but what do I want? What is appropriate? One of the most IMPORTANT things in training dogs is first identify what you don't want, then identify what you DO want. Focus on what you want and teach them how to do it.
Here is my idea of appropriate table manners …


The dog needs to go lay down somewhere in the room and ignore the people eating as well as any other dogs in the room at the time. (It doesn’t count if the dog is in a down and staring at someone who is eating – that is considered begging.)



I spend most of my time when I’m not in my day job volunteering for the humane society, walking/playing with our dogs, training the dogs in my care or teaching people how to train their dogs. You know what? My dinner time is my time. Just like my shower time. I will gladly open up my house to all manners of four leggers, but I expect the dogs to go lay down during these times.
Call me selfish. Call me what you want. But don’t expect me to share my meal with your dog.

Training Rant - Loose Leash Walking

This is one of the things that drives me crazy! So many people out there can't be bothered to teach their dog not to pull on a leash (or maybe they don't know how). ARGH!!


Yesterday, I saw a lady with someone I could only assume was her 10 year old daughter walking a young yellow lab (dog looked about 1.5-2 yrs). They were walking along a very busy road. The daughter had ahold of the 6 ft leash - not the adult. (From the looks of it, the adult's hands were empty.) The dog was pulling for most of the walk that I saw and the daughter was obviously struggling.


*HEADDESK, HEADDESK*


This is something I see all the time and it is SO dangerous! Each and every dog I foster is taught how to walk on a loose leash before I will consider adopting them out because it is so very important.


What do you think would have happened had the dog run out onto the road?


How about the following scanario ...


The dog sees a cat/squirrel/other dog on the other side of the road. Dog runs out and across the road. Daughter has the leash looped around her wrist and can't let go fast enough. Daughter is dragged out in front of cars. Car in near side of road is able to stop in time (whew!) but truck on other side of road has heavy load and needs extra room to down-shift and stop (yikes!). Dog and Daughter are hit by truck. SPLAT! That is one big mess to clean up.


All for the sake of a bit of training.

Training Rant - Importance of Bonding

I was discussing dog training with a friend of mine last night and I shuddered when I heard the same thing come out of her mouth as I hear from everyone else ... "To teach the dog what Good Girl means, you have to click and treat so you associate it" What?! I almost spat out my coffee in surprise to hear it come out of her mouth (of all people)



My dogs (permadogs and fosters both) know what that means and I've never associated Good Girl/Boy with a treat (but they still get all wiggly and excited when I use the word as praise), so it got me thinking. Why? How do they know?



My dogs know what Good Girl/Boy means because my pitch and tone changes. Sometimes it is associated with a pat, othertimes it is not. It is the relationship - the bond - behind those words that rewards the dog - not the words themselves (or the treat! But I'll talk about treat-training another day).



Why are there so many people out there who don't know how to build a solid bond with their dog? Why don't people spend the time to create that super special bond? Do they think that it just appears?



Ok, let me backtrack a few steps here ...


So much of dog training depends on the bond you develop between the two of you. It might be the single most important aspect to your relationship with the dog. So why don't dog trainers encourage it more? Why do they ignore it?


If I look at everyone I know with dogs I'd say not even 15% have that bond. It is so sad to see so many empty relationships. The worst part is that many dog owners aren't even aware that part of their relationship is missing because they hide it with treat rewards.


Do you remember when you were little and you had a dog?


The dog was your best friend. The two of you went everywhere together. It was like you knew what each other was thinking! You could communicate with each other without all the fancy training. Do you remember turning to your dog, making eye contact and feeling like everything is right in the world so long as you and your dog are together? Knowing that no matter what happened, your dog would be there with you? No one seemed to understand any of this (including your parents). When your dog passed away or left you, it was like the world stopped turning.


Maybe that's why; maybe deep down we do know how to create that bond, but we're too afraid to try.

Training Rant - Guarantees

You know, it never ceases to amaze me that people would get sucked in to a trainer because the trainer gives them a "guarantee". I laughed when I read this ad ... it has a lot of words but says nothing.

100% satisfaction guarantee ... every time I see this I laugh.

Why do trainers feel the need to advertise that they have a guarantee?? Shouldn't the results of your training speak volumes for you? Why aren't previous clients coming forward to proclaim their satisfaction with your training?

I have met many people who have received training from a dog trainer with 'lifetime guarantee' on their training and you know what?? The training doesn't work. Unfortunately, they have to sign a big contract before training can begin and they find out later that they aren't able to get their money back because some small stipulation in the contract breaks the guarantee.

Have you ever been to a trainer with a guarantee? How long ago was it? Are you still satisfied with the training?

Training Rant - House"breaking"

This has been driving me crazy for a while. Why do people use the term house- "Breaking"?? I always make sure I use the term "Housetraining" and I correct anyone I hear who uses "Housebreaking".


Do you Potty-Break your child? No. You Potty Train them.


It is the same. You House TRAIN your dog. You are not breaking him (at least, I would hope your methods aren't such that you could use the word "break" with it).


HouseTraining is supposed to be fun. Most dogs I have come through pick this up within a week. Some take as much as three weeks. Why do people make it a big angry scary thing?


There was one dog I know who "couldn't be housebroken" (I have many stories like this, but you only get one per rant!!). One of the big time training facilities (PetSmart) told the owners that she couldn't be housebroken and recommended that she be euthanized. She was a shih tzu ... a puppy mill dog. I agreed; she couldn't be housebroken ... but that didn't mean she couldn't be housetrained. This was the dog that took three weeks to housetrain. Yes, she took longer than most I work with, but that doesn't mean she couldn't be trained! All dogs learn at different speeds.


Sometimes I am amazed that the one side of my head isn't flat from banging my head on the desk so often ...


Training your dog is fun. So are you making it into a chore??

Training Rant - Special Needs

I was out walking my troublemaker this week (the one posted in my picture) working on a bit of socialization and environment changes. While we were out, we ran across a situation that I think most owners don't think to train for. I wanted to post about it because I think it's something we should all prepare for. It takes less than a second for your dog to bite someone and it is your responsibility to do everything you can to prevent this.


In my area, we have a lot of special needs group homes. While we were walking, we came upon an individual who is frequently out in the community. Doesn't seem like a big deal, right? Well, for us it may not have been, but for other dogs it is often a preable for disaster.


One of the things I've been teaching my guy is how to properly meet and greet people (and dogs too). Sounds so simple, eh? If it's so simple, then why do so many dogs bite?


Now, for a little clarification, "meet and greet" doesn't just mean a person standing and we can walk up to them. This means we can allow people of various shapes, sizes and styles to walk up to us and we can walk up to them (without negative reactions). I want my guy to be able to deal with any situation that arises ...


He should be ok with children walking up to him
He should be ok with them running screaming by him
Or the person pushing a stroller (screaming child or no)
Or the person with a grocery cart (maybe the local bag-lady?)
Or the smelly guy who lives at the corner
Or the super neat freak lady who lives across from the laundry mat and always smells like detergent
And yes, he should also be able to deal with the special needs individual who comes lumbering up to meet him saying, in a squeaky voice that sounds somewhat like a chipmunk, "Hello Dog! Hello! Hello Dog! My name is Tony! Hello! Hello Dog!"


It is up to me as the handler to give my dog the tools that he can use to deal with these situations. I have been teaching him how to deal with different scenarios and different people. He was so very well behaved when meeting Tony earlier in the week.


While we were chatting, Tony told me about the last time he was bitten by a dog (he's been bitten many times but doesn't understand why). Last time, the dog barked at him while he was walking along the street. Perhaps many of us are saying to ourselves that he should have stopped walking, but he didn't know to do that. The important thing that you must keep in mind is ... *He didn't know* He told me that he thought that the dog's barking was ok and that the dog wouldn't bother him. Unfortunately, the owner (who was on the other end of the leash) didn't realize the potential danger of what was going on and didn't control her dogs very well. Tony continued walking along the sidewalk and the dogs nailed him on both legs. There were puncture wounds on both legs and much bruising.


Tony was bitten. It could have been a child. Was the dog quarantined? No. The owner disappeared quietly. Will this happen again? Probably.


I want everyone out there to be aware of the potential danger that a situation like this may present. It could happen at any time. When Tony lumbered up in his swinging and staggering walk, my dog sat down and waited just as I asked. If my guy had lunged or barked ... I don't know what the reaction would have been from Tony. Who knows. I couldn't have controlled Tony or his reaction. All I can control is my dog and myself.


My point is ...


You can't expect every person to know how to properly interact with your dog so therefore it is your job as a dog owner to teach your dog how to properly interact with people - ANY people.

Training Rant - Fear

There are so many people out there who think it is ok that their dog will cower behind them when other dogs/people approach. What's wrong with it? The dog is physically managed - beside / behind the owner ... so why is there a problem? Never mind that the dog is nowhere close to the place mentally where she should be!

I get so frustrated when people say something along those lines! I just want to bang my head on the closest hard surface and leave the world behind ...
If the dog can't deal with different stimuli, than you will begin to see fear-biting when you remove her security blanket. It will happen; it's a natural progression. This is a dangerous behaviour and one that many dogs have been euthanized for.
We saw the behaviour turn into fear aggression with the dog we were sitting over the weekend. Funny thing when you remove an emotional crutch ... the dog has to deal on her own! This particular one can't seem to deal with anything approaching her or walking towards her (like another person/dog on the sidewalk opposite).
This is not a behaviour the owners see because the owner is the crutch (or security blanket). The dog leans on them for support and is not able to stand on her own. When you remove that security, you see the dog's true colours and you can begin to understand a bit about how the dog feels. It is really sad for me to see a dog like this with so much potential ... especially one who has been with the same owners from a pup because then you know the problem is with the owners and their training.
Fear can be a strong motivator. Newsflash. It is NOT ok for your dog to cower behind you (or between your legs)! She is NOT a trust worthy, stable dog! This is a very serious behaviour that could develop into something dangerous!
This is something that could be fixed so easily and quickly in the early stages ... if only the owners will commit.
It's too bad that not every dog owner has the opportunity to have someone take their dog for a few days for a test run. Then you can easily figure out which behaviours are fanned by the owner and which ones are dampened (there will always be some on both sides of the fire).

I spoke with the owners about this issue (and a few others) at which point I learned that they only walk her twice a week (on a good week, OFFLEASH) ... otherwise, she just goes out to the backyard for bathroom breaks. Of course we don't walk the dog ... we don't have time for THAT! (No wonder she was absolutely exhausted after three days worth of running with my dogs plus a petsmart visit plus long walks every day!)
I hope they do something about it, though I'm not overly hopeful.
(I'm not hopeful because I have the castoff dog from the same family (brother's house) and he obviously started with the same issues - it's like looking at a young him. We are still working through his reactivity, though he no longer tries to attack cars and he's pretty good with people now.)
Fear is something that can turn very quickly into a worse behaviour. What seems like some simple submissive behaviour can actually manifest into something terrible. Most of the dogs that I get start out with simple fear. The problem becomes more than most owners can handle when the dog gains the self-confidence to go with the fear; then they have a real problem.

Training Rant - The New Puppy

Have you ever noticed that when people get new puppies, they let them do whatever they want? In my discussion with the person who just got a Border Collie puppy, one of the things that she said was that the breeder told her not to use the word "No" for a few weeks. (Now, I have to warn you that I have quite a lot to say about this conversation and my ranting may go on for a few days about this ...)

What the hell is with that?!

Does it go hand in hand with the "don't say no to your children??" I'm not going to get into that one, but lest I remind everyone that DOGS ARE NOT CHILDREN. Trust me, you will NOT hurt their feelings or scar them for life if you say "No" in a controlled manner when he tries to chew your $600 pair of boots that came from some foreign country that you bought on your honeymoon.

Hearing things like this makes me want to bang my head on my desk ... again and again and AGAIN.

So here's the thing. Image you get an 8 week old puppy and you don't say "NO" for two weeks. During this time, you have done what so many people do with a new puppy - gave them the run of the house, didn't crate train and let the puppy do whatever he wanted. What do you think the puppy thinks his role is in the family?

Now he's 10 weeks old. You start imposing rules (and trying to enforce them). You figure it's ok for you to start saying "No" to him now that he's been with you for a few weeks so you start telling him not to chew the carpet, shoes, boots, sofa, chair, table, wall trim, and anything else he finds to chew. You quickly find that "No" comes out of your mouth more than any other word. Not only that, but you also find you have a power struggle.

Finally, he eats something he shouldn't and you lose it. You've been holding in your frustrations for a few weeks, quietly replaced what he destroyed, but this is the last straw. The thing he chewed was your great grandmother's thing-a-ma-bob that she left to you in her will. Now you yell at him and tell him he's a bad dog for eating such an important thing. Maybe you put him in "jail", maybe you isolate him in a room or crate, maybe you do something more drastic?

Guess what? You may have just created damage that it will take months to fix. Depending on how scary you were, you just crumpled the pup's confidence in himself and the trust he has been building in you as well as creating an "if they don't find me doing this I'm not in trouble" attitude.

Here's what you SHOULD do with your new puppy. Your puppy should be crate trained so he can go in there with a kong treat or a teething cloth when you are not supervising. Your puppy should not have free run of the house. When not crated, your puppy should be with you, not wandering around. You should start teaching appropriate vs non-appropriate toys; have two different toys he can play with and when he has something in his mouth that is not appropriate, say "No" and exchange the shoe/etc for a dog toy. You should have set meal times through the day and potty breaks should follow those meal times by 15 minutes (so 15 mins after eating, it's time to go out). Start obedience training right away - walks should be NO Pulling; he can learn Sit and probably Paw/Shake in the first week. Start bonding exercising immediately and he needs to spend time with each member of the family.

Why do I keep hearing the same things from people about their new puppy? I can tell you why they are all crazy and uncontrollable by the time they are 6 - 12 months old.

I wonder how many will disagree with me on this one?

Training Rant - Resource Guarding

I often hear about dogs that guard things like food, toys and people. This is what is called "Resource Guarding".
Many dog owners don't see Resource Guarding as a problem. They accept this behaviour because they love their dog and don't want to think that their dog has problems. Or they don't know how to deal with this problem.
It seems like an innocent behaviour but by allowing it to continue the behaviour is reinforced and rewarded. How? If he guards it, he gets to keep it. It's self-rewarding
I tend to suggest to people to use common sense (I know, that's a lot to ask!). I have some questions that I ask people to think about and answer honestly.

Question 1 - What do you think your dogs think of you? How do they "see" you?

Question 2 - Would you let your children do this (guarding of toys) to their siblings or friends? (think about the "Sharing" lesson we all learn in kindergarten)

Quesion 3 - Do you believe there is a "top/alpha dog" or a "pecking order"? If so, where is your spot? (Hint - If your dog is resource guarding when you're around then your spot is not at the top.)

Question 4 - The "top dog" takes control of the situation all the time when they are present, do we agree? If you don't take control of the situation and you let your dogs do it for you, then what does that tell the dog?

Question 5 - Having answered questions 1 - 4, let's go back to question 1 and rethink it - What do you think your dogs think of you? How do they see you?
Personally, we don't allow resource guarding between dogs that share our home. Because we don't allow it, it doesn't become a problem. Multiple dogs or stranger-dogs can come over and share toys (we can play fetch with as many dogs as we want at the same time with one ball), multiple dogs can eat in the same room and we don't ever have dog fights, etc. None of these things become a problem because we don't allow it to be.
If you don't control the situation with your dogs in your day to day life, then you don't have control. What are you going to do when dynamics change and a power struggle ensues? Why not prevent it before it has a chance to occur?
A change in the dynamics may be:
- New dog / cat coming on the scene (new permanent pet? or visitor?). Example, we encourage our friends to bring their dogs when they come over so visits also become play dates for the dogs. Learning is a lifelong process not only for humans but also our canine companions.
- Other adults or kids enter the space. Example, A neighbour's kids or your family members come over for a visit. Maybe they try to take a toy and play with the dog. What does your dog do? Does he guard it and snap because he has never been trained not to? What if he bites the child or adult?
- Other dogs existing in the house get older and many times aggression will be shown towards the other dogs when they age. This one is hard because people just don't seem to understand why this happens and it is difficult to explain because they are often not thinking of their dogs as dogs.
- The resource guarding will develop into something more. It always does - it may take a few years, but it will grow. It will begin with guarding, then turn to showing a bit of a snarl, then may turn into a growl, then a snap, and finally a bite. It is usually a slow process, but it is a natural and self-rewarding one.
People don't "see it coming" because the dog "never gave any warnings". Warnings are present, whether you choose to see them or not.
If you choose to let your dog continue Resource Guarding, don't be surprised if one day he bites someone or somedog. I'm not going to judge if a person or owner allows Resource Guarding, but I'll expect a phone call in a few year's time when the problem has escalated to a point where the owners can't deal with it. I don't want to hear about how the dog bit someone "out of the blue so we had to put it to sleep."
Be forewarned ... If I get a call from you about this or hear you did it, I may smack you upside the head, call you an asshat and walk away.

Training Rant - Volume Control

How many people have heard a dog's handler yelling at the dog with increasing volume? I don't know how many times I've been out with my dogs and see a handler trying to get their dog to "Sit" without success. When the dog doesn't listen the first time, they start making their voice louder and louder.

One of the many things that bothers me about dog handlers is their misunderstanding of volume. I know what you're thinking ... there are many ... many things that bother me but this is one of those things that just makes me cringe.

Have you ever heard the saying "I will talk very slowly because you can't read very fast"? I know it's not exactly right for the situation, but I can't help but think of that whenever I see someone raising their voice at their dog.

Maybe no one ever taught those people the difference between "talking to" and "talking at"? I don't know.

If your dog isn't doing what you ask, that means he or she is ignoring you - not hard of hearing! It also doesn't mean your dog is dumb ... maybe he's smarter than you think? (Or maybe he's simply smarter than you?)

Maybe they should ask themselves "why am I being ignored?" Instead of simply getting mad and showing the people around them (as well as the dog) how completely incompetent and insecure they are.

All I want to do is go up to those people and give them a congratulatory hand-shake for being the biggest asshat I saw that day.

What are some of the circumstances that you have witnessed this sort of 'behaviour'?

Training Rant - The Aggressive Dog

A fellow blogger, Fred, asked "Will you be doing any posts on how you're dealing with the aggression? Very interested." as a response to my post about the latest foster dog we have. For those who didn't read the post, you can read it here.

First off, I'd like to encourage everyone reading this blog to go check out Fred's blog, One Bark at a Time. It's a great blog about everything from his adventures in volunteering to experiences with his own dogs to general dog related topics.

Now, back to the point. How do I deal with the aggression? What a great question ... but bloody hard to answer! Each dog is different so it's hard to pinpoint a specific answer, but I will try to do the best I can.

I always look for a hands-off approach when working with these dogs. Why? Because I don't want to get bitten and I don't want to make the problem worse! I am a small person and not that strong. Most of the dogs I work with are stronger than me; a few are heavier. The thing that too many people don't understand is you don't rehab dogs by being the strongest or "dominant".

Generally, the dogs I get are the ones that are on euth-row. Most can't be handled by people, many have shown signs of aggression, some have bitten, almost all of them are simply shy and scared and have found that showing aggression is the best way to deal with their problems.

The first thing I do is determine why the dog is showing aggression. What is fueling it? Boredom? Fear? Anger? Frustration? Once you know why, you can start addressing the problem. Also, I usually isolate the dog I'm working with and start introducing stimuli one at a time so I can figure out what their issues are. When I find an issue, I work the dog through it.

Remember the post I put up about expectations? Always remember to set your expectations somewhere where the dog can reach. If you want to raise your expectations, than you should set them up for success so they can meet them.

For example, this is what I expected walking into my latest foster situation.

At the end of the first day I worked with her, I expected she would take a cookie from my hand.

By the first week, I expected she would take a cookie when I was standing and she wouldn't back away after taking a cookie from my hand when I was squatting down.

By the second week, I expected that she would allow me to touch her lightly and that she would take a cookie from me when I was taking a few steps.

By the third week, I expected that I could put a leash on her with some resistance.

When she showed aggression towards me (snapping at my hand), I knew she was trying to scare me (from what I could tell, she wasn't really a biter) so I called her bluff - that gamble paid off. We had a few power struggles, but she won none of them. Once I set myself up to be the one who calls the shots, I knew I could control any situation we walked into together.

When she showed aggression towards my dogs, I corrected with a leash tug and No. When she launched herself into the air to grab them, I stepped between them and used my big-angry voice (which was new for her) while simultaneously controlling the situation with the attached leash. With this particular dog, I knew that would be enough which is why I allowed the situation to exist in the first place. My dogs were told to Stay (if they left, she would have learned that this behaviour causes the dogs to leave which is what she wants). Once we were all calmed down (which took almost 10 minutes) and there were no more residual growls and all the dogs were looking at me, each got a cookie. We have been working with this and she is now to the point where she will physically show her stress (head shift, ear moves, muscles tense, face moves, etc), but she will not bite, nor verbalize - almost there, but not quite.

This only works because I have put enough foundation training into my own dogs that I can trust them explicitly. I know exactly what they are going to do because I have trained them how to react with these situations. They are experienced enough now that they will follow my direction without the need for a leash or a second handler to correct (provided they are within 15 ft). They also trust me to control the situation.

When I know the problem is more (example, the rottweiler/ridgeback x last summer/fall) than I start with people being the first stimuli. When the dog is ok with people, I get my husband to walk one of our dogs and we begin working the foster's thresholds (I'm still teaching my dogs how to stop and sit on command at specific points far away from me - so far they will do it 15 ft or less away but it needs to be further). In that case, because I knew the aggression was borne out of more than simple fear, we dealt with it differently and didn't allow the foster into a situation where she will fail. Always know your expectations and encourage the next step (but only the next step - don't leap!)

Every little reaction, every act is a learned behaviour. People forget that.

So, here are the things you need to know when working a dog with issues:

Why is the dog showing aggression?

Will the dog bite you/others or is it simply a show?

What are the dogs thresholds?

Once you have determined the answers to those questions, you can begin working with the dog and setting him or her up for success.