New Content
BARKS Podcast with Dr. Marina Bayeva: How You Can Help the Fundraiser for Ukrainian Animal Shelters
The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) is supporting an important fundraiser for six animal shelters in Ukraine. In this podcast, we meet the fundraiser creator, Dr. Marina Bayeva, as well as supporting veterinarian Dr. Paula Klek and PPG's Shelter & Rescue Division Chair K. Holden ...
BARKS Podcast: Expert Panel Discusses Growing Your Pet Business
Join pet industry experts (above, left to right) Niki Tudge, founder and president of the Pet Professional Guild and DogNostics Career Center, Veronica Boutelle, founder, consultant lead, ...
Pet Professional Guild Announces Geek Week 2021; Invites Proposals for Presentations from Industry Experts
Following on from success of inaugural event, second edition of Geek Week will take place on November 13-17, 2021
The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) has announced that the second edition of its ...
Latest Articles
The Arrogance of Punishment
As a professional force-free dog trainer I often hear dog owners use the term “punishment” and understand it from their perspective as a word in common use.
Webster’s dictionary: 1 the act of punishing; 2 a. a suffering of pain or loss that serves as retribution; 2 b. a penalty inflicted upon ...
But It Worked for My Dog!!
What happens when someone shares a “success” story about training with aversives? Here’s my response to a commenter who did so on one of my previous posts.
A Parable
Once there was a woman named Reva who had a serious health condition that needed intervention. Her intexagog was inflamed and ...
The Prodigal Dog
It is so hard not to be cross when Rex runs off. You call him, and without even a backward glance he keeps on running towards something he would rather be doing than keeping you company.
I think of the parable of the prodigal son where in essence the younger son is a waster who leaves home ...
Why is Empathic Practice Important?
While historically empathy has perhaps been seen as a fluffy, feel good emotion with little relevance to science, or science based practice, our lack of empathy has, arguably, led us into the dangerous territory we entered in decades gone by. Those beliefs include the view that animals are ...
Free-Feeding From A Bowl Can Be Costly!
Food is sustenance; it keeps us alive, it fuels our activities, but for most of us it is emotional comfort. Food can trigger wonderful memories of family gatherings, or console us when we’re sick or upset, so no wonder we want to show our love for our pets with food. And it behoves ...
How To Train Your Dog to Stand Using Capturing
When people consider how to teach a dog to stand, they usually envision the action of standing up. They focus on getting the dog up on their feet from a sit or a down. But that’s the hard way to start, especially since by the time most people get to training stand, they have ...
Working Dogs Want to Have Fun, Too
Off-duty working dogs enjoy many of the same dog sports as pet dogs … but training for and competing with a career dog raises some interesting questions.
Deni Elliott, whose guide dog, Alberta, has nearly earned her Rally Advanced Excellent title, but their start in the sport was a bit ...
Progressive Zoos Never Use Aversive Punishment — Should You?
This series of blog posts recounts topics drawn from the Pet Professional Guild Radio Show, featuring Linda Michaels (2).
Question: What are some of the benefits of using Positive Reinforcement (+R)?
Answer: The benefits of using Positive Reinforcement training with our companion animals ...
Pet Professional Guild Announces Third International Chapter, PPG Singapore
The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) continues with its quest to promote humane, scientifically sound training methods for pets worldwide with the opening of its first international chapter in South East Asia, PPG Singapore. The Singapore Chapter represents the third overseas launch in just six ...