Canine Nation

Wouldn't you love a perfectly trained dog? I thought so too. Then I did a little reading about "perfect" dogs. The ones who are instantly compliant and never do anything unexpected. My dogs aren't machines provided for my amusement and required to immediately attend to my every command. My dogs are, well, imperfect dogs. Dogs who sometimes do the things dogs do even when I want them to do what I want. And that kind of intelligent imperfection seems to be perfect for me and my dogs.

Humans are reasoning creatures. We have a tremendous capacity to reason out how things work from the barest of facts. But when it comes to dogs, perhaps we need to take care in how we reason. Observation is often a useful companion for reason. Dogs are not what we think they are. They are what they are. And that is for us to discover and learn.

We're back from our 2 week road trip with our dogs! It's always fun but it takes a bit of extra planning to make sure the physical and mental needs of our dogs are met while we are on the road. Thinking ahead and bring the things you need is part of it, but taking time to involve our dogs in our daily activities makes it fun for them and more fun for us!

We enjoy travelling. Many times, we travel off to dog events like Dog Agility Trials. Leaving our dogs behind when we travel is just not an option for us. So even before we ever leave home, we are already teaching our dogs the skills they need to be happy and comfortable travellers. You might be surprised at just how much you can do to get your dog used to the various sights, sounds, surfaces, and situations that travel requires without ever leaving your home town!

I talk quite a bit about dogs and science in my articles. But other than reading about it in books, it can be difficult to find real research and science on canine cognition, biology, genetics, or behaviour. I was fortunate to attend a conference recently with some of the leading scientists researching dogs. To say it was amazing would be a huge understatement. It's incredible to see the things we are just now learning about dogs!

We have all kinds of signals for our dogs. Most common are "that's wrong" or "that's right." But do we have other signals for our dogs? There are some we might not even realize we are giving them. They know when it's time for a walk or when we are preparing dinner. Maybe they even know when we're not paying attention to them. If we teach our dogs the signals we would like them to know, think of the possibilities!

Our dogs are going to make mistakes when we train. And we have a choice to make about how we respond to those errors. The fastest way to get the behaviour we want might also discourage our dog from wanting to learn anything else with us. How we tell our dogs they didn't get it right matters. With a little help from marine mammal trainers, there is an interesting way to get our dogs back on track without interrupting the flow of learning.  The Least Reinforcing Stimulus or LRS can be just the thing to make the occasional error a non-event and keep your dog eager to learn what you are trying to teach!

Giving your dog a reward will certainly encourage them to perform behaviours for you. But what do they find most rewarding? Do you reward them often enough? Do you know how the mechanics of rewards affect your dog's behaviour? You might be surprised at how it all works. The science of behaviour provides us with some pretty clear guidelines for when and how to reward behaviour.  It is our dogs who will provide the best feedback on how valuable they find those rewards.  Rewarding often enough and for the right behaviours is only part of the process.  Knowing what our dogs want to work for gives us a much greater chance of success!

The clash of cultures is growing within the dog training world. Traditional compulsion based training is being re-branded to appeal to 21st century dog owners.  Newer methods for living with and teaching dogs based on science and rewards is gaining popularity.  Differences between proponents of these approaches to training can be confrontational and not entirely factual. Change can be difficult. And our knowledge of dogs and how to work with them is changing.  It could be that dogs and their owners are getting caught in the crossfire of debates on dog training philosophies. Can we make the transition to newer and better ways to train with less conflict and more insight? I wonder.

My dogs are silly sometimes. I'm quite proud of that. And I'm delighted that I get to be silly with them too. There is nothing quite like getting down on the floor and rolling around with my black dogs! With a little training and practice, we have created many fun and safe games that we play together.  It's a great way to teach them the rules and reward them with fun. And I never have to yell at them to "knock it off!

I hear the word "dominant" used a lot when people talk about dogs. Unfortunately it's a mostly inaccurate term that is used incorrectly. And that often results in some pretty rough treatment for some dogs. Do you think you have a dominant dog?  You might want to think again.  In fact, you might want to take a step back and make sure of what you mean when you say "dominant."  It's time we took a closer look and found a different way to talk about unwanted behaviour.

Most dog owners are proud of their dogs when they are behaving themselves. But it never surprises me how often dog owners blame their dogs for their own failures as trainers.  We find it all too easy to blame their dogs for when then see them misbehaving.  Do we have a right to put responsibility for bad behaviour on our dogs? I don't know but I'm sure we have a responsibility to teach them so we never have to make that call.  Is it the owner or is it the dog? I’m pretty sure I know who is at fault.

Sometimes important things happen in our lives with our dogs. Good things. Things that can show you the value of good training, patience, and the benefits of using Behavioural Science over the long haul. This is the closing chapter in a difficult period with my wonderful dog Tiramisu.  My "broken dog" is broken no more.  And she has come out of her difficult times as a champion.

We all find ourselves in new or difficult situations.  It can be hard to keep your wits about you when something sets you on edge.  Fortunately, for most of us familiar things can be great comfort when we are in new and stressful situations.  It could be a something we carry with us, a familiar sight or sound, even an activity we know well.  It's the same for our dogs.  The familiar can be a source of comfort for them too.  A little planning can give us the tools to help our dogs be more calm and confident.  If we train them well, the will last us for our dog's lifetime.

I'm big into science.  I spent more than 25 years of my life involved in the computer and networking industry.  Understandably, my approach to most things is methodical and I prefer to depend on evidence I can see rather than taking someone's word for it.  There are some that feel this makes me less passionate about dogs and more passionate about the science. I have found that the two are intimately intertwined.

Do you know what your dog says about you and their life with you?  It's written all over their body language if you know what to look for.  Our dog's feelings about us and their life is pretty much an open book to those who understand the language of dogs.  As humans, we have a lot to say about our dogs. So it shouldn't be surprising that they have some thoughts of their own to share.

For many in the dog training world it comes down to "us or them or them or even them over there" in the dog training world. Whose ideas on dog training do you follow? How can find the best way to raise your dog? The answer might be much closer than you think. It's probably drinking from the water bowl right now.

Sometimes the simplest things can be the most difficult to master. In learning to train dogs, I have found that mastering myself has been the most difficult part of teaching dogs. It should come as no surprise that the ancient wisdom of Asia and the Far East can help us on our way to being better teachers for our dogs.

Sometimes all we need to do to help our dogs be better is to interrupt their bad behaviour and show them something better. Working with our dogs doesn't have to be a fight.  A friendly reminder can go a long way!

Training our dogs is important. But maybe more important is how we manage them. Sometimes management is needed while we train and other management is a lifelong project. It could be managing their environment, their access to spaces or objects, it could even by the situations we put them in.  How we manage our dogs can mean the difference between a "good dog" and a dog that we are constantly yelling at.  Management can be simple but it takes planning and thought.  In the end, it’s all to make our dogs and ourselves successful.