Portland Blog Competition: Conflict vs. Cooperation
By Marie Selarque
At the time of writing, Bix was almost 8 months old and was staying with me for board and train. The focus of his training was jumping and biting, but the truth is, he taught me as much as I taught him. Silly me though, I did not initially get quite enough information ...
Herrnstein’s Matching Law and Reinforcement Schedules
When we bake cookies, some reinforcement is on a variable interval schedule.
Have you heard trainers talking about the matching law? This post covers a bit of its history and the nuts and bolts of what it is about. I am providing this rather technical article because I want something to link ...
Dog Adoption, Done Right
Dog adoption is near and dear to my heart, and one which, hopefully, leads to a celebration that lasts for the life of the pet. The main concern I have heard people express is that adopting a dog is likely to result in dealing with “issues” such as fear, aggression or separation anxiety. I ...
An Allegory: What Happens if a Dog is Punished for Having a Phobia?
By Sandra Machado
Johnny is five years old and he is a great kid. He is loving, does very well in school and absolutely adores his mom.
One day he was playing in the park and was badly bitten by a spider. He was never afraid of them before until he got bitten. He became so fearful ...
Treat Value: What Should You Use?
By Yvette Van Veen
Which Treat Value Is BEST? It depends. There’s so much variation in how food reinforcements are used that we have to look at the objective of the training.
Generally there are two styles of training. We can primarily work in classical conditioning or we can primarily ...
BARKS Podcast with Dr. Nathan Hall: February 7, 2019.
Guest: Dr. Nathan Hall, assistant professor of companion animal science at Texas Tech University in Lubbock, Texas, and the director of the canine olfaction research and education laboratory in the department of animal science.
Topic: Understanding Gene-Behavior Relationships in Domestic ...
Tips for Working with Clients with Mobility Impairments
By Veronica Sanchez
A large and rambunctious dog can pull an owner off their feet, even if they do not have any physical limitations. However, people who have mobility impairments are at a higher risk. Additionally, the consequences of an injury may be more serious. Fortunately, there are a ...
Portland Blog Competition: May I Speak to the Manager?
By Tina Ferner
Last week, I received a voicemail that a trainer NEVER wants to hear. It went like this, “Tina, this is Eileen. Dolly just killed Miley.” Dolly was a rescued mixed breed dog that weighed approximately 65 pounds while Miley was a Maltese mix that weighed 8 pounds.
There had ...