What Makes a ‘Good Dog’ and Do Current Dog Training Classes Teach these Skills?
I define a ‘good’ dog as a dog who is considered part of the family, can stay home alone if necessary but goes places if possible, lives in the house, goes on holidays, gets enough mental and physical stimulation, is ‘cool, calm and collected’ most of the time, takes changes like moving or an ...
Does Your Dog Think You’re Management Material?
When you hear the word management, I bet you aren’t thinking about your dog. But I and many of my training colleagues work hard every day to change that. Most people think of management as planning, organizing, leading and directing. Every one of these words describes the type of management ...
The Power of Project Trade
When I first learned of the Pet Professional Guild (PPG) I had just recently worked with a handsome little elderly dog named Pete and acquired my first shock collar.
Rough handling turned Pete into a hand-biter; adding a shock collar made it much worse.
Taking it off Pete probably saved his ...
Breed Specific Legislation: No Evidence that It Works
The following is an excerpt from PPG's recently released Position Statement on Breed Specific Legislation.
BSL can and does result in the destruction of dogs. Research, however, would suggest that there is no evidence to support claims that BSL makes communities safer for people or ...
Are You Really Performing Classical Counterconditioning?
What do the following training descriptions have in common?
“My dog’s afraid of strangers. But when she stops barking and makes eye contact with me, I give her a treat.”
“I hold her foot. Then I give her a treat after I clip each toenail, as long as she stays in place and doesn’t pull her ...
What’s Breed Got to Do with It?
The following is an excerpt from PPG's recently released Position Statement on Breed Specific Legislation.
The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) is becoming increasingly alarmed at the number of dogs being seized or banned in a variety of communities worldwide based purely on their breed or ...
Do Dogs Have a Right to Say NO?
Aren’t dogs supposed to do as they are told and follow so-called "commands?" They are just dogs after all. Interestingly enough, only about 20 years ago we took no for a no and children who approached dogs when they were sleeping or eating were in no uncertain terms reminded to ‘let sleeping ...
The Emergency Muzzle: An Essential Skill
Report from PPG's Four-Day Pet Care Technician Certification Program Workshop (Part Eight of Eight)
This is the final post in a series of eight blogs in which we will share a few of the highlights from the PPG workshop which covered all the necessary skills needed to become a Certified Pet ...