Fear of the Clicker: How to Train Your Dog Through It
Does the sound of one of these send your dog running for the hills? Read on for some tips to fix that!
Most dogs take to clicker training like ducks to water! But occasionally, one of our […]
Puppy Day School Success Story: Alice [VIDEO]
Meet Alice! She is a 9-month-old Border Collie mix puppy. Her owner enrolled her in our Puppy Day School program to work on her socialization skills around other dogs.
Alice missed her critical socialization period while waiting to be adopted. Then, shortly after coming to her new home, she broke her leg and had to be kept quiet for several weeks. She was nervous of new places, unfamiliar people, and most other dogs.
This is a typical outcome when puppies are underexposed to the “real world.” As […]
Reactive Dogs: Resources for More Information
There are some wonderful resources available for owners of reactive dogs who want to learn more about helping their canine companions. Many of these books have training plans that can be used to rehabilitate reactive dogs. However, I strongly urge you to seek professional help from a trainer or behaviorist who uses only humane, pain-free methods of training. Any graduate of Karen Pryor Academy will meet that criteria.
Books
Scaredy Dog! Understanding and Rehabilitating Your Reactive Dog by Ali Brown. I feel this is the most user-friendly of the three books […]
Calming Signals in Dogs: What are They?
Lip-licking is one of the most common calming signals. (Photo Credit: Dave Lindblom)
What is a calming signal?
Calming signals are behaviors that dogs naturally exhibit when they are feeling stressed and are trying to diffuse a situation. Norwegian dog trainer and author Turid Rugaas coined the phrase “calming signals” and she has identified approximately thirty behaviors as such. These behaviors include: licking the lips, showing the whites of the eye, sniffing the ground, turning away (either just the head, or the entire body), lifting a front paw, yawning, full-body shaking (as if […]
What is a Reactive Dog?
One common cause for reactivity is fear. By putting on a fearsome display, the dog effectively scares his trigger away. The increased distance makes the dog feel more comfortable, and is therefore reinforcing. (Photo Credit: Leon G. – Flickr)
(This post is the first in a mini-series I will be writing about canine reactivity. Be sure to subscribe so you don’t miss any future posts!)
What is a “reactive dog?”
Simply put, “reactive dog” is shorthand for a dog who over-reacts to particular things in the environment. Most of the […]