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Latest Training Articles
COVID-19: 3 Tips for Dog Trainers on Adapting to the ‘New Normal’
By Susan Nilson
Last month, the Pet Professional Guild (PPG) hosted a webinar with Anna York, BSc (Hon) PhD, Stephanie Perniciaro PhD MPH, Anne Wyllie PhD, Maikel Boot PhD, Chantal Vogels PhD MSc BSc, and Kayoko Shioda DVM MPH of the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut and Dr. ...
Living with a Dog Who’s Going Deaf
Buddha, my black Labrador, has always had a sharp sense of hearing. Teaching him to respond to word cues was easy, and I also taught him several hand cues. Doing so probably saved his life on one occasion.
About eight years ago a solar panel system was installed on our barn roof. That ...
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Why Do Dogs Eat Toilet Paper and Paper Products?
I am often asked why dogs eat toilet paper. I would estimate that in every group dog training class I teach, it's asked at least once during the course. And during that inquiry, more than one person's dog eats toilet paper or paper towels, ...
Dining Experience
I’m not a fan of feeding dogs from bowls, as it doesn’t provide any type of enrichment. A bowl filled with food, is typically devoured within a few minutes, and needless to say, there is no particular skill or challenge to that act! Dogs are ...
More Than Training; Examining both Parts of the Relationship
When we’re called out to training and behavior consultations it’s so easy to get completely focused on the animal in front of us. Swept along in the human client's description of what is going on but, what about the perspective of the animal ...
The Dog Decides
“The dog decides what is reinforcing.” Positive reinforcement trainers frequently say that to their human students. What they mean is that people can easily be mistaken about whether something constitutes reinforcement. For instance, we may ...
Look at the Whole Dog
In a class I’m teaching on dog communication, we recently discussed a study on how well people interpret dog body language. The study, Description of the behaviour of domestic dog by experienced and inexperienced people, was published in ...
The “Choice” Challenge
Thanks to Debbie Jacobs and Randi Rossman for their input on this topic. Any weird conclusions are mine alone.
I have come to believe that most of us who thought we were using “choice” as a reinforcer were mistaken.
Wait! Before you come ...
Teaching the TrickMeister Way!
How important is it to teach your canine companion what you would like them to do?
I believe it is extremely important but what is even more essential is that you teach in a way that doesn't cause any stress; that you teach in a way that is ...
Just Say No to Saying No
“Can I say no to my dog?” is a question I often hear from new clients.
My short answer is “Yes, you can use any word or sound you please in training.” Pavlov proved that long ago. The problem is in the way dog owners use “no” and whether it ...