How dog bites are like Tetris

Here is another great article, this one by Casey Lomonaco, "How Are Dog Bites Like Tetris".  This is a great way to look at trigger stacking, which is at the root of most (if not all) dog bites.

When you take a situation apart, you can see how several triggers (or stressors) accumulate, pushing the dog over his/her bite threshold (the point at which a dog will bite -- and ALL dogs will bite, given the right circumstances).  One trigger on its own probably wouldn't result in a bite, but several triggers together are just too much.

For example, if a dog is made anxious by several things (night-time, children, strange noises, people carrying long stick-like things, events that happen suddenly, and men), and more than one of those things happens at the same time, then the likelihood of a bite substantially increases.  Imagine our example dog, out walking at night past a man shoveling snow and making that scraping noise that shovels often do.  Then from beside a car, a child in a puffy snowsuit carrying a toy shovel suddenly appears.  This situation is a recipe for disaster, because of the accumulation of triggers that make the dog anxious.  Any one trigger, on its own, might have been fine -- the dog would have been anxious, but probably wouldn't have been near his bite threshold.  But all of them together are too much for the dog, and he may snap, snarl or try to bite, depending on where his bite threshold is.  The more triggers there are at once, the more likely a bite becomes.

In her book, The Culture Clash, Jean Donaldson gives a wonderful explanation of how trigger stacking works, complete with diagrams.  It's well worth the read!

Is your dog a good daycare candidate?

This is a great article by Pat Miller about dogs and doggy daycare -- how to determine if your dog is suited for daycare, and if he/she is, how to choose a good one.  Daycare isn't appropriate for all (or even most) dogs.  The same thing can be said about dogs and dog parks -- most dogs are actually not going to have that good of a time at the dog park, even though their people might think they should.  (I will write about this in more detail soon!)

If you are considering doggy daycare for your pooch, be sure to read this article!

Polite Dogs Get What They Want

Inspired by a lovely Dobie in one of our classes...

Dogs do what works.  If jumping up on people gets them attention, they will continue to jump up.  If they get the treat out of your hand when they are “sharky”, they will continue that behaviour.  If they get to go where they want to go by pulling on the leash, they will keep pulling.

One of the ways to train your dog to be polite is to make sure that you don’t give him what he wants if you don’t like what he’s doing.  Sounds simple, but sometimes it’s a challenge.

Think about what your dog wants in any given situation.  Is it a food reward?  Attention?  Petting or affection?  To move forward?  Then think about what he is doing to get it.  Sharking your hand to get at the treat?  Jumping up on you when you greet him?  Grabbing your hands in his mouth?  Pulling on the leash?  If you don’t like the behaviour he is doing, then you need to make sure that your dog never gets what he wants unless he gives you a behaviour that you want first.

For example, if you want to stop your dog from jumping up on people when he greets, ask yourself what your dog is getting out of that behaviour.  He is probably getting attention, even if that attention is negative.  That attention is reinforcing (that is, it means something to the dog and increases the likelihood that he will repeat the behaviour, in this case jumping up).  The way to train your dog not to jump up is to take away the reinforcement for the behaviour, in this case the attention.  Do not look at your dog, don’t scold him, don’t push him off with your hands – all of this is attention, and will make it more likely that your dog will keep jumping up.

Instead, cross your arms across your chest, turn your back and ignore your dog.  Only give your dog attention when he has four feet on the floor.  It will take many repetitions of this response to change what your dog does – think of how many times your dog has jumped up and received attention for it.  You have to un-do all those repetitions with your new response to the jumping up.  And your dog might go through something called an “extinction burst”, where he sees that what worked for him before isn’t working now, so he tries even harder.  Stick to your new response, and it will work eventually.  Changing behaviours takes time, commitment and consistency.

This process will work faster (and better) if everyone in the dog’s life follows the same rules.  So if your partner lets your dog jump up but you don’t, your dog is getting conflicting messages.  Everyone has to work with the same rules, it’s only fair to the dog.

Remember that dogs do what works.  If your dog keeps repeating a behaviour you don’t like, then he is getting something out of it.  Try to think like your dog to see what he’s getting out of the behaviour.  Then, stop letting him have it.  Easy, but not simple.  Persevere and you’ll teach your dog that polite dogs get what they want, and rude dogs don’t.

How to greet a dog successfully

This is a great article by Dr. Sophia Yin on how to greet dogs.  Seeing it from the dog's perspective makes all the difference.  I wish everyone would read this article, and learn how to greet dogs in ways that make them more comfortable.

Online study of human interpretations of dog behaviour

Columbia University is doing a very cool study of human interpretations of dog behaviour.  The online study takes about half an hour, but you can save your survey and come back to it later if you want to.  It was fascinating, and I can't wait to see the results!

If you're in the Westport, CT area, you can also apply to take part in an in-person study.

Halloween and Pets

Every year at this time, I give our students a handout about Halloween and pets.  Here are some thoughts about this fun holiday, and how it can be stressful and dangerous for pets.

Halloween is a noisy, boisterous time.  Strangers dressed in costumes come to the door, and in many places, people set off fireworks.  It can be very stressful for our dogs and cats (and other pets).  The constant ringing of the doorbell, seeing people dressed oddly (think of how odd costumes must look to our pets!), the opening and closing of the door... all of this can create confusion and anxiety in our pets.  There is usually more going on in the streets around our homes than usual, and then comes the booming sounds of firecrackers being set off.

Our pets can truly find this alarming.  Pets who become panicked can dart out the open door and either get into traffic or become lost.  Some animals that are especially anxious have been known to jump through windows to try to escape situations that they don't understand, but find very scary.  If they are outside, many animals will try to leave their yard to try to escape the noise and upheaval.  Animal shelters are often overwhelmed after Halloween with lost and frightened animals.

So it's important to make sure your animals are as comfortable and as safe as possible.  If you are going to hand out treats at the door, make sure your pets can't get out the open door.  There are many ways you can do this.  For instance, you can put a baby gate across your front door or an exercise pen (x-pen) around the door area.  When I was growing up, my father used to wait until Halloween to change the screen to storm glass in the front door, and he would leave them window empty while he handed out treats.  At the end of the evening, he'd put the glass pane in the door.  A great way to have the door closed but also open at the same time!

You can set your pets up in another room where they can't get to the door.  (Make sure you give them something to do to occupy their time and keep them busy.  Bones, treat-dispensing toys, bully sticks... anything that will keep them mentally engaged and not bored -- and make it clear to them that they are not being punished!)  Sometimes, it's best to have your pets down in the basement where they are as far from the activity as possible, especially if they are sensitive to noise.

If you are going to have your pet in the living room with you, I suggest having your dog on leash or in a crate or x-pen.  If your cat is going to be with you, I also suggest having him or her in a crate.  (Only use a crate if you have trained your pet to enjoy being in one.  Halloween is NOT the right time to introduce a crate!)

Just in case your pet does escape, make sure he or she has up-to-date identification.  All pets should have either a tattoo or microchip (or both!), and should wear a tag on their collar that gives your phone number and/or address so that anyone who finds them can make sure they get home to you.

Fireworks can be especially anxiety-provoking for many animals.  If your pet is bothered by them, try putting them in a room in the basement with a tv or radio on to try to minimize the sound.  My dog is extremely scared of fireworks, and we always spend Halloween downstairs with the tv up nice and loud.  If your dog is bothered by noise, there are other things you can do to help him or her.  I'll try to do a post about that soon;  in the meantime, here's a good place to learn about noise phobias and dogs.

The treats of Halloween can also be dangerous to pets.  Chocolate contains a theobromine, which is toxic to dogs and cats.  (And probably other pets, too.)  So don't let your pet consume chocolate;  if your pet does manage to ingest any, call your vet right away.

Even the wrappers from Halloween treats can be hazardous.  If your pet swallows them, it can create an obstruction in their digestive system, which is not only potentially fatal but also very expensive to remove.  Keep all treats and wrappers out of your pets' reach, just to be on the safe side.

Finally, your pets are probably happier and safer if you leave them at home.  Although I would agree that most of the time, our pets would prefer to be with us, this is one occasion when we need to be good guardians and leave them home for their own good.  Don't take them trick-or-treating with you;  they really will be better off at home.

I hope everyone has a safe and happy Halloween!

At last!

Well, the past year was a rough one, so I didn't get this blog started.  I had great plans, none of which came to fruition.  But now, its time to get posting!

I'm an apprentice dog trainer in Kamloops, BC, and I have the great fortune to work with several women who are both friends and mentors.  I am truly lucky to be able to learn from them, and trust me -- I learn A TON from them all the time!

One of the reasons I wanted to start this blog is because I have all sorts of ideas floating around in my head about dogs and dog training, and I need a place to explore them.  And now, I have many great friends in cyberspace who clue me in to good resources, and I want to share them.  And finally, I help teach classes for puppies and adolescent (teenaged) dogs, and I wanted a site where I can post about things that are brought up by our students.

My intention is to write a post for this blog once a week, and to post links to other good resources and articles as I come across them.  We'll see how crazy life gets, and if it gets in the way of my plans!  You know what they say about the best laid plans...  :)