In Dog Training as in Life, You Get What You Pay For
Dog trainers say that some behaviors are more "expensive” than others. It’s behavioral economics, and we do it instinctively all the time with each other, with our children, and in the workplace. Only we don’t always do it with dogs.
Living With and Loving a Fearful Dog
It's a long game, right? Maybe you thought this dog was going to be like your last one. Happy-go-lucky, go-with-the-flow, low-maintenance. Your training goals were going to be house training and teaching him not to jump on your guests. Instead, your goals have centered around helping him navigate and feel comfortable in a world that doesn't seem built for him.
Listen to the Whisper
Fergus often puts his ears back and turns his head away when Olivia approaches him. If Olivia gets closer or reaches for him, he gets up to leave. If she pursues him, he will roll over, showing his belly and staring at Olivia with wide eyes.
And when Fergus can’t get away fast enough, he growls.
Weight Limit Ahead: Dogs and Trigger Stacking
Transitions are hard for some dogs. We've made really good progress helping Bruce be less afraid of unfamiliar men, and these days you'd never know he used to have raging separation anxiety. But we're in the middle of a move and have been packing for weeks, and it's showing in our sensitive boy.
Force-Free Dog Training and the Animal Rights Movement
We're made for each other, people. We have the same message: It doesn't have to be this way.
This is Your Dog's Brain on Cheese
I remember being that owner who had been told not to feed my dogs “people food” lest it reveal my weak moral fiber, and I remember the sneaky pleasure of finally getting permission from a bona fide dog trainer to just go ahead and pull out the cheese. What a crime it is that we’ve been told not to use our most powerful motivator when trying to train a dog to do a really difficult behavior.
Tripping the Light Fantastic
Instead of saying no to all of your dog's deepest desires, simply figure out when and where you can say yes.
A Coming Out Story: A Dog Trainer's Account
For a first-person account of seeing a dog through separation anxiety training, click on Bruce's photo below to see my guest blog post for Malena DeMartini!
The Dog Whisperer Dispute
Have you been following the latest Dog Whisperer hoopla and are not sure what to believe? After all, isn't it just a matter of opinion? Isn't it unfair to persecute someone for a difference of methodology? Isn't there room here for all of us?
Help me, I think I’m falling…
It's so hard for us humans to understand how a dog could be afraid of being alone. I mean, it makes no sense. It defies all logic. Some of us—busy parents especially—crave being alone.
Here's the deal: it's like being afraid of flying. Which DOES make sense, right?!