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Compulsive Eating in Dogs
By Maureen Tay
Also known as compulsive eating disorder, compulsive eating is a disorder where a dog tends to eat everything - from food items to non-food items. The specific practice of eating non-food, non-nutritive substances, such as wool or paper, is known as pica. Stool ...
Life Beyond Leash Reactivity
As far as behavior consults go, it's fair to say that reactivity is probably my most commonly encountered issue.
The term 'reactivity' has become, I feel somewhat of a buzzword over recent ...
BARKS News – April 2021
Listen to the April 2021 edition of BARKS News!
Highlights include:
FREE member event Up Your Business Game!
New PORTL workshop dates
New member job posting board & member profile ...
Latest Articles
Misconceptions of Counterconditioning Leash Reactive Dogs
Misconception #1 – Feeding a dog when they are barking or fearful reinforces the fear.
Absolutely not true. You can only cause more fear by implementing more fear or pain. Fear trumps food, so if the dog is taking the food, they are not that fearful.
The food is not the focus of the on leash ...
Wanna Play?
Humans and dogs love to play together; from recent research, it seems that this shared love for play has been a key element in shaping our close bond. While there is still a question as to whether shared play creates a solid relationship between a person and a dog or it merely adds to an ...
Not All “Choices” Are Equal
Shout-outs to Companion Animal Psychology for the post, The Right to Walk Away” which covers the effects of offering that particular choice in animal experiments, and encourages us to apply the concept to our animals’ lives. Also to Yvette Van Veen for her piece, “A” Sucks “B” Stinks What ...
Let Rats Decide
I generally write a lot about dog body language in my blog. I discuss letting animals have a say in how and when they are handled and touched. I talk some about how to perceive their answers through observation. And I have shown, in my most popular post of all time, dogs communicating “yes” ...
Distinguishing Ourselves as Force-Free Professionals
Some time ago I engaged in an online conversation with a dozen or more force-free trainers and the subject of professional certification came up. Most of the trainers had CPDT-KA credentials and some were considering letting them lapse because they saw little value in it. Others were new to ...
Dog Bites and the Importance of Education
I was very fortunate to be able to attend PPG Special Council member Victoria Stilwell's second Annual Dog Bite Prevention and Behaviour Conference, held earlier this month at the University of Lincoln in England.
The conference is a national event dedicated to finding practical and workable ...
Use of Reiki in Pets
Reiki is a Japanese technique, based on the teaching of Mikao Usui in 1922, for stress reduction and relaxation that is also stated to promote healing 1. Practitioners believe that the human body is made up of energy and Reiki balances the human energy fields known as Auras, and energy centers ...
Murphy the Hero Dog
by Beth Napolitano
Dogs have an intense ability to smell. Around 60 percent of a dog's brain is dedicated to being able to identify, sort and locate smells. All dogs have the ability to smell and track multiple odors simultaneously, but many times pet dogs don't know how to make use ...
Non-Aggressive Behaviors as a Precursor to Outright Aggression
Certain non-aggressive behaviors are often overlooked, yet can be a precursor to outright aggression if the dog is pushed to the point of no return. Colleen Pelar investigates the issues of escape and avoidance in the child-dog relationship. Originally published in BARKS from the Guild as Less ...