I often get asked if it is “okay” to sleep with a dog in bed. This is one of the issues that is actually quite personal. Some people – I would say most people, love sleeping with their dogs but other folks would rather not. And sometimes the “rather nots” do not know how to…
While dogs that wear muzzles often carry the stigma of being “bad” or “dangerous” and while that is really unfortunate, muzzles indeed are tools that can often not only keep people and other animals safe, but they can also – believe it or not, improve the life of the dog wearing it. ANY dog – and I…
I have a beef with rescue organizations when they equate a good home for a dog just purely based on love. Yes, really. So, my rumination begs the question: How does our love translate in our daily life with our pets? Let me explain my position above. Not long ago I had a client who…
Unfortunately, leashes and other barriers such as windows in homes and cars, fences have contributed greatly to dogs feeling frustrated about seeing other dogs and not being able to interact with them. When this frustration becomes too much to bare, dogs can begin to exhibit what is called barrier frustration. Most dogs when frustrated because…
When dogs are stressed or anxious for whatever reason, Kongs or any other food dispensing toy- especially the ones where dogs need to use their mouths rigorously to extract the food, satisfy a pretty basic need in them. So many of my clients have dogs that are dedicated barkers, lick themselves, chase skateboards or cars…
If you live with dogs, you can relate to a moment of gasping for breath, as you realize someone left the gate open, and now the dogs are gone! These couple of years have left many of us with similar moments of wanting to take in a nourishing, calming breath. To let go a little….
As I was describing in part 1, living with fearful dogs is not an easy task. It requires constant management of some kind, and constantly assessing how comfortable the dog is at a given moment when presented with the scary stimulus. There is so much that one can do (and I would argue should do)…
Living with a dog that is afraid, especially of people, is very hard. It is very hard for the people, and of course, a living hell for the dog. While every case is unique, there are certain things people can do to make everyone’s life better. I am working with a couple who have a…
I am talking to my colleague about a recent case he had. We are discussing different possibilities as to why training or behavior modification might not produce the results we would like. We toss around ideas and I settle for three possibilities: 1. The technique or techniques employed are either not appropriate or they are…
As part of my ongoing education, I attend monthly webinars that touch upon different topics surrounding behavior and training. A recent topic was related to the questions of: Are we asking too much of our pets? And, if so, what specific environments or concepts can put a pet’s well-being at stake? Funny that this particular…