Tuesday, November 24, 2009
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Natural dog training
While watching a program called Animal House Calls a new training technique was introduced. This is called natural dog training. You can learn more about this from looking at their blog which is naturaldogblog.com From reading this blog, it is basically going with the dog's natural instincts and being relaxed. There is one particular article on the blog that is interesting which is called "Be the Moose" This article talks about the dog's prey instinct and how the dog will run with the moose and hopefully have a meal. The main thing is that the moose is the most important thing, that the moose as prey. That hunting the moose expends a great deal of energy. Much more energy than say a jack rabbit.
The article is also saying that what is important is the energy and going with the natural flow of the dog. This technique is very interesting and seems to fit in with positive training techniques. I personally am very excited about this type of training and hope to learn more in the near future.
The article is also saying that what is important is the energy and going with the natural flow of the dog. This technique is very interesting and seems to fit in with positive training techniques. I personally am very excited about this type of training and hope to learn more in the near future.
Sunday, September 6, 2009
Different types of Aggression and dog language
What is aggression? Basically it is a warning to stay away or else things will get nasty. There are different types of aggression.
There is fear aggression where the dog becomes aggressive out of fear
There is maternal aggression where the mother is protecting her young
There is dog on dog aggression which usually happens when a dog has not been socialized properly.
Maternal aggression is understood so no explanation is necessary.
Fear aggression occurs when the dog is afraid of person or another dog and the fight or flight instinct comes into play.
Dog on dog aggression when the under socialized dog becomes aggressive to other dogs as he is not sure how to react or how the other dog will react.
Fear aggression and dog on dog aggression can be fixed with the help of a behaviorist.
Other types of aggression include toy guarding and food bowl guarding as well as territorial aggression. Food bowl and toy guarding can be changed with changes in training. By using such techniques as nothing is for free. For food bowl guarding if the handler starts by putting treats in the food bowl while the dog is eating he will begin to thing that having someone touch his food bowl is a good thing.
The warning signs that a dog has had enough should be carefully observed and respected.
These signs include: the dog becomes more alert, ears stand up straight, the tail wags slowly from side to side. The dog becomes angrier, the tail goes straight up and the fur starts to stand up. The dog is making himself look bigger. If these warning signs are not heeded the dog starts barking, if this is not heeded he shows teeth mouth drawn back and teeth show this is the final warning sign, the next step is biting to protect himself.
Note: please see Dr. Stanley Coren's book "Learning to Speak Dog" for all warning signs.
It should be noted that some people say that pit bulls attack and bite without warning. This is due to the ears being pricked and the tail being docked. With dogs with pricked ears and a docked tail it is difficult to observe the warning signs that aggression is escalating. Hence the person only sees the drawn back mouth and the final warning before attack.
If one encounters a dog that is showing some signs of aggression one should stand still like a tree until the dog leaves.
There is fear aggression where the dog becomes aggressive out of fear
There is maternal aggression where the mother is protecting her young
There is dog on dog aggression which usually happens when a dog has not been socialized properly.
Maternal aggression is understood so no explanation is necessary.
Fear aggression occurs when the dog is afraid of person or another dog and the fight or flight instinct comes into play.
Dog on dog aggression when the under socialized dog becomes aggressive to other dogs as he is not sure how to react or how the other dog will react.
Fear aggression and dog on dog aggression can be fixed with the help of a behaviorist.
Other types of aggression include toy guarding and food bowl guarding as well as territorial aggression. Food bowl and toy guarding can be changed with changes in training. By using such techniques as nothing is for free. For food bowl guarding if the handler starts by putting treats in the food bowl while the dog is eating he will begin to thing that having someone touch his food bowl is a good thing.
The warning signs that a dog has had enough should be carefully observed and respected.
These signs include: the dog becomes more alert, ears stand up straight, the tail wags slowly from side to side. The dog becomes angrier, the tail goes straight up and the fur starts to stand up. The dog is making himself look bigger. If these warning signs are not heeded the dog starts barking, if this is not heeded he shows teeth mouth drawn back and teeth show this is the final warning sign, the next step is biting to protect himself.
Note: please see Dr. Stanley Coren's book "Learning to Speak Dog" for all warning signs.
It should be noted that some people say that pit bulls attack and bite without warning. This is due to the ears being pricked and the tail being docked. With dogs with pricked ears and a docked tail it is difficult to observe the warning signs that aggression is escalating. Hence the person only sees the drawn back mouth and the final warning before attack.
If one encounters a dog that is showing some signs of aggression one should stand still like a tree until the dog leaves.
Tuesday, June 2, 2009
Nutrition
Just last week there was a repeat of a documentary on CBC television called "A dog's breakfast"
This documentary verified that the majority of veterinaries do not get courses in nutrition but rather lectures from pet food companies.
It should be noted that what they did not mention was that there are to bodies of knowledge, research that one can follow re nutritional requirements for both cats and dogs.
There is the National Research Council which is individually funded and does not answer to any companies The NRC lists the nutritional requirements for dogs, and cats through various life cycles.
Then there is the American Association of Feed and Agriculture which is funded by feed and pet food companies.
This lists the minimum nutritional requirements for dogs and cats.
In devising a diet for both cats and dogs, one must keep in mind what they would eat if feral.
Dogs are scavengers thus will eat anything this means that they are omnivores. Cats are obligatory carnivores. A feral cat eats small mammals, and birds not rice, or grain.
It is felt that it is more important to go with the nutritional requirements laid out by the National research council rather than to feed for the minimum requirements.
This documentary verified that the majority of veterinaries do not get courses in nutrition but rather lectures from pet food companies.
It should be noted that what they did not mention was that there are to bodies of knowledge, research that one can follow re nutritional requirements for both cats and dogs.
There is the National Research Council which is individually funded and does not answer to any companies The NRC lists the nutritional requirements for dogs, and cats through various life cycles.
Then there is the American Association of Feed and Agriculture which is funded by feed and pet food companies.
This lists the minimum nutritional requirements for dogs and cats.
In devising a diet for both cats and dogs, one must keep in mind what they would eat if feral.
Dogs are scavengers thus will eat anything this means that they are omnivores. Cats are obligatory carnivores. A feral cat eats small mammals, and birds not rice, or grain.
It is felt that it is more important to go with the nutritional requirements laid out by the National research council rather than to feed for the minimum requirements.
Saturday, April 11, 2009
Once again Dominance theory and the "Alpha" dog
What is dominance theory? It is the concept that humans must dominant not just dogs but all animals, that humans have to be higher than other mammals. Where does this come from?
Basically it comes from the concept that only humans have a "soul". As Dr. Coren in one of his books stated that at one time it was felt that as animals did not have a soul they could not feel pain. Hence it was okay to kick, whip and generally mistreat all animals.
Out of this belief came the dominance theory and the concept that we as humans must dominate all animals. Hence the words and ideas such as "breaking in" a horse came into play.
To dominate an animal is then to break the animal, to have the animal do things out of fear.
In line with the dominance theory comes the concept of the "alpha" dog. This come from observing wolves in captivity where one adult wolf dominates or becomes top wolf over other adult wolves.
In the wild, every adult wolf becomes an "alpha" at one time. This occurs when the wolf reaches sexual maturity and leaves the parents and mates. The adult male and female wolves become the alpha of their pack and nurture the wolf cubs who are "beta".
The observation of wolves is responsible for many of corrective methods used in training dogs.
In order to fully understand dog behaviour, one would be better off observing wild dogs in countries where dogs are feral. In these countries the wild dogs are pretty much solitary, joining a pack or other dogs on a temporary basis in order to forage for food
We as humans have come a long way since the time when it was believed that only we had souls. So why does the dominance theory have so much popularity? Many people still believe that to train a dog is to gain dominance over the dog. In doing so the dog will only do what it is told out of fear and not in a joyful happy way because he wants to. The concept of an alpha dog is also becoming obsolete.
It is granted that some dogs are more assertive than others. This is basically their personality just as some dogs are more fearful of strangers.
So then, one might ask, what about the dog who is food bowl possessive or toy possessive? Are they alpha dogs or is something else going on. Guarding the food bowl or toys is usually about not being taught to give something up. The dog will naturally guard its food bowl unless the human guardian shows the dog that when they put their hands in the food bowl good things go in there.
What then is the alternative to dominance theory and corrective training? It is as I have said before, positive reinforcement, positive training.
Basically it comes from the concept that only humans have a "soul". As Dr. Coren in one of his books stated that at one time it was felt that as animals did not have a soul they could not feel pain. Hence it was okay to kick, whip and generally mistreat all animals.
Out of this belief came the dominance theory and the concept that we as humans must dominate all animals. Hence the words and ideas such as "breaking in" a horse came into play.
To dominate an animal is then to break the animal, to have the animal do things out of fear.
In line with the dominance theory comes the concept of the "alpha" dog. This come from observing wolves in captivity where one adult wolf dominates or becomes top wolf over other adult wolves.
In the wild, every adult wolf becomes an "alpha" at one time. This occurs when the wolf reaches sexual maturity and leaves the parents and mates. The adult male and female wolves become the alpha of their pack and nurture the wolf cubs who are "beta".
The observation of wolves is responsible for many of corrective methods used in training dogs.
In order to fully understand dog behaviour, one would be better off observing wild dogs in countries where dogs are feral. In these countries the wild dogs are pretty much solitary, joining a pack or other dogs on a temporary basis in order to forage for food
We as humans have come a long way since the time when it was believed that only we had souls. So why does the dominance theory have so much popularity? Many people still believe that to train a dog is to gain dominance over the dog. In doing so the dog will only do what it is told out of fear and not in a joyful happy way because he wants to. The concept of an alpha dog is also becoming obsolete.
It is granted that some dogs are more assertive than others. This is basically their personality just as some dogs are more fearful of strangers.
So then, one might ask, what about the dog who is food bowl possessive or toy possessive? Are they alpha dogs or is something else going on. Guarding the food bowl or toys is usually about not being taught to give something up. The dog will naturally guard its food bowl unless the human guardian shows the dog that when they put their hands in the food bowl good things go in there.
What then is the alternative to dominance theory and corrective training? It is as I have said before, positive reinforcement, positive training.
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