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Scent Work Works for Shelter Dogs
Using scent work as part of enrichment programs in shelters can improve both welfare and adoption rates for dogs
by Rachel Lane
You’ve probably heard people say that when you adopt a shelter dog, you adopt problems and bring home headaches—or another version of the same sentiment. I ...
BARKS Podcast with the PPG Advocacy Panel: Discussion #10 – Recognizing Microaggressions
Recognizing Microaggressions So They Can Be Managed and Avoided
Join the Pet Professional Guild (PPG) Advocacy Panel for a discussion on Recognizing Microaggressions So They Can Be ...
Introducing Cats: Slowly Does It
By Patience Fisher
There are many challenges for shelters in finding adoptive homes for cats. As an adoption counselor, I always found it disheartening to have a cat returned to ...
Latest Articles
On the Danger of Dog Collars
By Karolina Westlund Ph.D. of PPG corporate partner Illis Animal Behaviour Consulting
There’s a debate raging in Sweden about whether choke collars are potentially dangerous to dogs.
Pros and cons of choke collars? Photo: Elf, Wikipedia
Several influential dog coaches on TV use and recommend ...
All Hallows and…..All Positive
By Anna Bradley
October 31 (and the following week up until November 5 here in the United Kingdom) might be exciting, colourful and full of fun and entertainment, particularly for youngsters, but for pets and pet parents it can be a stressful time. The issue has been compounded in recent ...
Encounter with a Poisonous Toad: How Positive Cues and Scent Games Saved the Day
In the early morning hours of a wet April in 2015, I found myself rushing my gorgeous Staffordshire bull terrier Jambo to the emergency vet. As a result of what happened on that stormy night, I shared our experience and the information that my veterinarian subsequently shared with me in a ...
A Miniature Puppet Master
By Bob McMillan
I’d heard about dogs like Bentley—manipulative, ready to take over the house and quite likely the entire block, a mastermind who bends all other dogs to his will. Bentley was my first chance to observe a Svengali of the dog world in his native habitat, which in this case was ...
The Pet Professional Guild Position Statement on Cat Declawing
Introduction
The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) believes that all cats have an intrinsic right to be treated humanely, to have each of their individual needs met, and to live in safe, enriched environments free from pain, force, and fear. Scratching is a natural feline behavior. Declawing ...
Position Statement on PPG’s Pet Industry Education Mandate
The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) and its membership hold themselves accountable to a high standard of ethics, protocols and transparency. Since its inception in 2012, PPG has been unwavering and unequivocal about where it stands on equipment philosophy and training methods for pets. As such, ...
PPG Summit 2020 Sessions: Bunny Cooperative Care
BARKS presents session details from PPG's 2020 Summit and Multi-Species Workshop Events in Phoenix, Arizona
Session Details:
Presenter: Emily Cassell
Session Title: HusBUNdry Basics: Language, Observation and Behavior in Bunny Cooperative Care
Session Type: Arizona Humane Society Workshop ...
PPG Summit 2020 Sessions: Building Stronger Teams for the Shelter
BARKS presents session details from PPG's 2020 Summit and Multi-Species Workshop Events in Phoenix, Arizona
Session Details:
Presenter: Sherry Woodard
Session Title: Building Stronger Teams for the Shelter, Community, Rescue, Adoptions, Daily Care and Enrichment
Session Type: Lecture (1.5 ...
Pushing and Pulling are for Luggage, Not for Dogs
One of my recent puppy clients was a precocious fellow named Colt. He was hardly bigger than the family cat, and it was the first puppy the family ever had. From day one we covered all the basics of raising a puppy, with an emphasis on keeping things safe and fun, and applying the training ...