Every day I read posts on facebook chastising people for letting their friendly dog run up to other dogs. The facebook posts make it clear that it's unacceptable and you are in the wrong if your dog runs up to someone else's on lead dog.  Shouting "my dog's friendly" only seems to antagonise people!  However, if you do have one of these dogs, what are you meant to do?

While I don't disagree with this sentiment, it is extremely frustrating and anxiety inducing when you have a dog who doesn't like being rushed up to, intensely sniffed, jumped on, bowled over and all the other things "too friendly" dogs do and you see a "too friendly" dog rush towards you.  In fact, if this happens to my dog Bertie, it not only ruins our walk but it shatters his confidence and sets our training back by months. 

However, I very rarely see anyone offering advice about what to actually do if you do have a dog who just can't help but rush up to every dog he sees, whether he's welcome or not.  Posts telling people not to let their dog do this would be so much more helpful if they told people what they should do instead.  I can almost hear dog people rolling their eyes and saying "recall train them... duh!".  Unfortunately if it was that simple them no one would be having this problem.

How does a too friendly dog behave?
When I think of dogs that get labelled too friendly, rude or a bully they are usually dogs who will run up to almost any other dog.  They sometimes will lie down and watch the other dog, then rush up suddenly or they will just take off as soon as they seen another dogs and run towards them.  Dog's who behaviour is a problem will often go up very close to the other dog and usually totally ignore or do not recognise body language given by the other dog that says stay away.  Sometimes they will try and sniff the other dog, try and engage the dog in play or barge, jump onto or put their head over the other dog. 

Often people tell me their too friendly dog is over confident, but this rarely seems to be the case.  When I meet truly confident dogs, they are capable of greeting other dogs without making a pest of themselves, play without going over the top and don't approach dogs that give them signals that say stay away.

Sometimes our too friendly dogs will get a warm welcome from the other dog but then their play will become too boisterous for the other dog or will involve very over excited play.  Almost always they will ignore and/or evade their owners attempt to get them to come back.  On lead, our "too friendly" dogs will often drag their owner towards other dogs and sometimes be up on their hind legs by the time they get to the other dog.

Do your find yourself calling out "it's ok, he's friendly" or "he just wants to play" in an attempt to reassure the other dog owner? 

Before we can talk about what you can do to help your dog we need to think about why your dog behaves like this in the first place.

Why are some dogs too friendly?
It is helpful to think of too friendly dogs as being like the class clown.  If you think back to those kids in school who would joke around and be disruptive in class, the ones who would play pranks on others and generally be really silly.  Those kids weren't the ones who were deep down confident, they were using their silly behaviour in order to cope when they felt inadequate, insecure, confused or were socially anxious.  Sometimes these were kids who had other big emotional issues to deal with in their lives.

So when our dogs are being over friendly and silly, it's often because they are dealing with feelings of anxiety about social situations with other dogs.  They lack skills in how to understand and communicate with other dogs and compensate with over the top silly behaviour.  Sometimes our too friendly dogs have other, not always obvious, anxieties about the environment, wearing a collar, harness or lead, being close to their owner or other people.  

How to change the behaviour of a too friendly dog?
The first difficult thing to understand is that too friendly dogs, often need as much space from other dogs as unfriendly ones do while we work on changing their behaviour.  There is no point trying to train your friendly dog in the local park while he is distracted by a constant stream of other dogs passing by. 

Here are my top 6 tips to having a dog who behaves appropriately around other dogs.

Number 1 - Teach your dog that you are fun to be around.   
Find out what things your dog really loves and use those things to reward your dog for coming back to you.  Start in your house, after all if your dog won't come to you for a reward in the house, he's not going to come when he's in the park.  Once you've nailed it in the house, move outdoors.  Use a long line to keep your dog safe.

Find ways to play together, be it fetch with ball, tug or any game you invent both you and your dog enjoy.

Find out what foods your dog enjoys the most and give them to your dog generously whenever they pay you attention.  

Don't expect to go to the park, let your dog off lead and then switch off.  You need to keep your dog engaged and having fun with you.

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Number 2 - Prevent your dog practising unwanted behaviour
Use a long line when you are in parks around other dogs, so you can prevent your dog from rushing up to other dogs.  It's also a great idea to walk in quieter places so you don't have to deal with other dogs all of the time.

Number 3 - Encourage sniffing
Sniffing is a normal dog behaviour.  It helps dogs learn about the environment, learn about other dogs who have passed by and it helps relax our dogs.  Often too friendly dogs don't do enough of this.  Encourage this in your dog by walking him places where there is likely to be interesting sniffing.   Along the edges of the footpaths, along fencing, pavements and lampposts seem particularly interesting for canine noses.  Keep your dog on lead if necessary and if he is too excited to sniff, try scattering a few very small treats for him to sniff out and find.  Walk as slow as necessary to allow your dog to sniff as much as he likes.

Number 4 - Find helpful friends
Sometimes you will meet adult dogs who don't mind boisterous youngsters but who won't get involved in silly behaviour.  I call these "good example" dogs.  When you meet these lovely dogs ask the owner if you can walk with them for a little while, even just for a few yards.  Watch how the other dog will often find lots of interesting things to sniff as he ignores your dog until your dog is able to be calm.  

Allowing your dog to be in the company of "good example" dogs will give your dog a chance to learn about normal, acceptable doggy behaviour.  Even if you can't walk with these dogs, allowing your dog to watch them from a safe distance, where there is enough space that your dog is able to be calm, will be beneficial to your dog.  I call this "look and learn". 

Number 5 - Train your dog in a way that builds his confidence
If you can, join a fun, reward based training class where the focus is on building your dogs confidence rather than just traditional obedience.  Some trainers put on fun agility classes that are great for building confidence.

If you can't do this try putting up small and easily achieved obstacles in your garden.  Make sure you reward your dog for any attempts at interacting with the obstacles.   Have a look through our facebook pictures for ideas.

You can also use obstacles in the park such as logs, tree stumps and even benches.  If your dogs is having fun with you, they are not off pestering other dogs.
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Number 6 - Teach your dog how to enjoy walking on a lead
So often, walking on a lead is frustrating for both our too friendly dogs and their humans.  This is often the reason people let their dogs off lead even when they know they might struggle to get them back. 

Use a harness (perfect fit of ruffwear front harnesses are great) and not a too short lead (I recommend a halti training lead). As well as using positive reinforcement methods to teach your dog how to walk on a lead, make sure that being on a lead signals to your dog that you are going to have fun together.  Rather than walking where there are lots of off lead dogs, go on an adventure together.  Explore down new streets, hidden lanes and abandoned places.  Walk slowly and stop to let your dog sniff as much as need be.  Be inventive with where you walk.  Recently I walked round the grounds of abandoned hospital with my dog Velma.  Within minutes she forgot she was on lead and was excitedly following me as we explored together.

Finally, remember to be kind to yourself.  We all have days with our dog where we feel frustrated or embarrassed.  If you have a not so great walk with your too friendly dog, be gentle on yourself, go home and tomorrow is another day.

Jill O'Sullivan
Busy Bee Dog Training Glasgow

If I was only allowed to give one piece of advice to new dog and puppy owner's it would be that they shouldn't force their puppy's mouth open and remove objects.

So often I am called in to help once a dog is either acting aggressively when they have stolen items or when the dog has started to swallow inedible items.  In lots of these cases this stems from when the dog was a puppy and would pick up and investigate objects and the owner would worry and then open the puppy's mouth and remove the object.  Sometimes this takes quite a struggle and I have even heard of it taking more than one person to hold the puppy while another forces the puppy's mouth open.  There are other, better ways to deal with puppies picking up things they shouldn't.

Why do our dog's pick up things they shouldn't?

When your dog picks up an object more often than not, they are just investigating it.  Sometimes they are working out if it is edible or not and when they discover it's not they will likely put it down.  Obviously sometimes they might take that investigation further and give it a chew.

Why is it such an issue to take things from my dog's mouth?

If your dog is investigating, maybe even chewing, an object and you try and take it away, you immediately teach your dog that humans will ignore normal, polite doggy rules.  In the dog world, possession is ten 10th of the law!  For some dogs this will have little or no impact, however for some they will see this intrusion as unacceptable and next time you go to take something they might give you a hard stare and freeze.  If you again ignore this doggy body language that says go away, your dog might feel he has no option but to escalate his behaviour to maybe a growl or snap and if they doesn't work maybe even a bite.

Other dogs might start to think that if they have something that you are so desperate to take, you'll go against everything they understand about possessions, then that thing must be very valuable indeed.  In their desperation to keep the item they might swallow it whole as soon as they see you coming.  This can lead to lots of inedible things become really quite edible!

Other dogs might learn that it's safer to hide when they find something they would like to investigate and chew and you'll only find the evidence later.

Finally some dogs might let you open their mouth and remove the item and there will be no obvious harm.  However, those dogs might learn that people are not that trustworthy and this may effect how they interact with you over all or perhaps they will lack confidence in investigating and trying new things.  

So what should you do instead?

Please note if your dog already has a problem with swallowing inedible objects or is showing signs of growling or aggression, seek the help of a reward based trainer or behaviourist and do not try and tackle this problem alone.

1. Teach your dog to swap.  Practise this with a toy at first.  Give your dog the toy then ask him to swap it for a tasty treat (or multiple tasty treats) then immediately give him the toy back.  

2. Try not to panic.  Puppies often just want to investigate an object and will often spit it out again.  So if she picks up a pebble try and wait until she spit it out, then just move your puppy away from it.  Do your best not to draw attention to the pebble and potentially add value to it. 

If you are out on a walk and your puppy seems to be picking up every single thing they encounter, consider whether they are maybe finding the environment a bit too stimulating and may need a rest, calm down or be taken to a place where they can watch the world go by.

3.  If your dog or puppy won't swap the item in their mouth for a treat, try throwing several treats on the floor.  As your dog picks up the individual treats, put your foot over the dropped item.  If you are at home most dogs can't resist a handful of breakfast cereal dropped on the floor.

If your dog prefers toys to food, then pick up a toy and make it seems like the most exciting toy in the world.  Eventually your dog will want to play with you rather than the object in their mouth.

4. Teach your dog a reliable and solid leave it.  If you don't know how, book a 121 lesson and I can teach you.

5.  Ensure your dogs has lots of opportunities to investigate and try new and appropriate things.  Let your dog try different foods, give them new and interesting toys, try different chews, kongs and food puzzles.  If your dog loves tearing paper then save up cardboard boxes and scatter treats inside and let they rip the box apart.  Play with your dog frequently.  Take them new and interesting places.  Allow them to sniff as much as they need to.

6.  Interact with your dog with toys and build lots of value into your dog playing with they things you would like them too.

7.  Learn to be tidier or keep your puppy in an area of the house you can keep dog-proofed.

8.  Grit your teeth and don't show your dog or puppy you are annoyed.  As frustrating as it is to have another sock ruined, tell your puppy you are pleased they brought you your sock and excitedly run to the fridge for a treat to swap it for.  Believe me, it is so much cheaper to buy new socks than it is to pay a vet to do risky surgery to remove them from your dog's stomach.

If these things don't work for you, then get help.  It's much easier to prevent this turning into a problem than it is to modify your dog's behaviour once they are showing behavioural issues.

​Are your barking dogs driving you nuts?  Is your dog barking at your neighbours? Does every sound set your dog off? 

Barking dogs are a nuisance.  They are stressful to live with and a dog that barks at everything that passes your house doesn't make you popular with the neighbours. 
 

​After moving house my dogs, Bertie and Velma, found the view from the window and new neighbours and their barky dogs all a bit much. All my previous training went out the window.  The first couple of days in our new house were a bit noisy.   Not what you want when you are trying to make a good impression with the new neighbours. 

Here's how we quickly went from Barking Hell to a Harmonious House.

1. Set your dog up for success. 
If your dog spends half the day looking out the window and kicking off every time a person passes,  find ways to prevent your dog doing this.

"Oh but my dog LOVES looking out the window" is something I hear all the time.

If your dog is getting a big kick of adrenaline every time someone passes, they are not doing it for love of watching nature.  They are feeling compelled to look in case they miss out on something happening that they feel they need to have some control over.

Your dogs mental and physical health will thank you for removing that stress from their life. If your dog is barking at the window or barking at birds and squirrels you can;

• Close blinds
• Get stick on/peel off window film
• Rearrange furniture
• Get creative and block access to "perches".

2. Use background noise to mask trigger noises

• Radio 4 or talk radio is great for masking the sound of people talking
• Japanese drumming can mask fireworks or builder noises
• White/brown noises played from spotify (or similar) or a fan running can help some dogs and can be less disruptive if you prefer a quiet house.

​White and brown noise is great way to mask trigger noises that may cause your dog barking at night.
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3. Don’t shout at your dog
Instead gently encourage your dog away from the place they are barking, and redirect them to an activity you would like them to do.  When we shout when our dogs are barking, they either perceive us as joining in, or we just add more stress to an already stressful situation.

In the same vein, tools like anti bark collars or ultrasonic barking collars are inhumane.  They give an unpleasant vibration, shock or squirt of citronella when your dog makes a noise.  However they can go off at other noises and can leave your dog feeling stressed.  They also rarely work reliably.

Muzzles that stop barking also stop your dog panting which is the only way your dog can cool down.  There is a real risk of causing your dog to over heat with a muzzle that prevent barking.
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4.  Keep your dog busy.  
Chilled out, had enough exercises, feeling good dog don't spend a lot of time barking

Adolescent, impossible to tire out dogs do.  Bored dogs.  Dogs who are feeling stressed.

Stress can come about easily.  For my dogs moving house was stressful.  The day after fireworks.  Changes to my work routine.  Visitors to your home.  Learn about what your dog copes well with and what they don't.  Sniffing, licking and chewing are natural ways that dogs can de-stress.

Ways to keep your dog busy;

• Food scatters your dog has to sniff and search for.  A small handful of treats/dried food/breakfast cereal thrown on the floor or in the garden is a really simple way to keep your dog busy at times they might want to bark.
• Natural and healthy chews like calves hooves, dried venison skin, pizzles are also great
• Licky mats, slow feeders, kongs, puzzle mats, and all the other canine enrichment activities are brilliant for keeping bored, lively and stressed dogs busy.

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5. Change how your dog responds to sounds/triggers.
Some of our dogs will bark because they feel alarmed and some will bark because they feel fear or anxiety... Other (my dog Velma is definitely in this category) love barking and appear to get a great sense of satisfaction out of it.

However, regardless, we can change how they respond to triggers and ultimately, how they feel about them too.

The complexities of an effective counter conditioning programme (fancy name for changing how your dog responds to a trigger) for every individual dog are impossible to convey in a blog.  When crafting one for my clients I need lots of information and need to observe the dogs reactions.

However there is a quick and simple tick you can use.

If your dog is barking at the doorbell, throw your dog a handful of small treats onto their bed or into a room for them to search and sniff for, as soon you hear the door bell.  This will start habituating your dog to go to that place when they head the doorbell.

If your dog is barking in the garden, scatter small treats for them to search for.  You can even do this before your let your dog outside, so the nice scent of treats is already there.

If your dog barks at visitors in your home and can't calm down within a minute (a little barking is normal), then take your dog out of the room and let them settle in another room.  Another option is to give your dog an activity to do (chew, kong, snuffle mat).  This allows your dog the option to use natural canine calming activities to help them settle.
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It's a popular myth that teaching your dog a command (or cue) is helpful when they are barking.  If you don't give your dog something else to do when the barking tigger is present, your dog will likely go quiet on your command, eat the treat and go right bark to barking.

My dog Bertie can bark on cue and then go quiet on cue. I taught him it for a dog sport. It's useless when he's alarmed by my new neighbour's dog is barking.  Instead of telling him quiet, I just call his name and throw him a handful of treats to search for.  Now he's sniffing he's not listening to the dog next door barking.
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If your dog frequently barks during the night and struggles to settle there are a few things to consider.

• Health issues, such as dental pain, arthritis or other pain is a very common reason for dogs not settling all night.  If your dog regularly wakes you barking I would discuss your dogs health with a vet.
• If your dog sleeps in another room, background noise such as white noise can help mask triggers
• Some dogs sleep better with a night light on.
• If all else fails, try my suggestions below (keeping a jar of small treats in your bedside drawer can help if your dog shares your room!)

Throw them some treats on the ground to sniff and search for.  Hand them a chew.  Distract them with something they love.

"Won't that teach them to bark for treats?"

If you are following all my other advice and you are setting your dog up for success.  If you are providing your dog with other treats, chews and food scatters at times they are not barking, then no, it's unlikely your dog will bark at triggers for treats.

However, you will help your dog feel better about triggers.  You will get out of the cycle of shouting at your barking dog.  Your dog will want to respond to you and recall away from the trigger.  Finally, your dog will have a natural canine way of de-escalating from all that stress, frustration or excitement.

 Looking for ways to tire you active, not very chill dog out?

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"I can't do this anymore" was the monologue inside my head when I got home from a not great walk with Velma.

It's been a good few years since she'd run towards another dog and barked. I was caught out. The low evening sun in my eyes in a place we rarely/never meet anyone. Velma wasn't expecting anyone either so reacted instantly before I even knew there was another dog approaching us.

It was no big deal really. The man waved over to say everything was fine as I shouted my apology and put Velma on her lead.

But it's started that negative voice in my head. The spiralling of thoughts. Mean words said to myself. By the time I'd got back home I'd didn't feel good at all and was questioned if I should even own dogs, let alone be a dog trainer.

It took me a few days to get back to normal, this one little incident lasting less than a minute, put me in such a poor frame of mind it effected everything.

It led me to question, is owning a dog really that good for your mental health?

There are many studies that cite the overall benefit of having a pet on our mental health.  There is scientific research on the positive effects of dogs on mental well-being.

69% of people survey by American Physiatry said their pet benefited their overall mental health.

The Blue Cross reported 58% of people, suffering with mental health illness, experienced positive benefits from the love they received from their pet.

In many ways, I don't dispute the mental health benefits of dogs ownership, after all I planned out this blog while walking my dogs in the rain.  Without my dogs, I would have probably been sat on the sofa mindlessly watching TV.

Infact, what if your dog is making your mental health worse?

None of the studies I read discussed some of the negative impacts of dogs on our mental health.  It almost feels taboo to mention it.

Yet, for many people, even when they love their dog with all their heart, owning a dog can be tough.  

There are so many ways in which our dogs need to fit into our lives. When they don't it often has a huge impact on our stress levels, anxiety and social confidence.  Some of these behaviours are perfectly normal dog behaviours;

• Does your dogs bark too much?
• Is your dog reactive to other dogs?
• Is your dog unsociable?
• Is your dog scared of strangers?
• Is your dog too friendly and runs up to other dogs?
• Does your dog jump up on people?
• Does your dog have separation anxiety?
• Does your dog not come back when off their lead?
• Does your dog have resource guarding or show aggression over food?

Yet, all these behaviours are stressful when you don't know how to resolve them.

Social media is awash with dog owners, walkers and trainers criticising others people who are almost always doing their best.  It puts so much pressure on people to feel like their dog has to be perfect at all times. 

Not to mention there is no such thing as a 100% trained dog.  Our dogs are autonomous creatures, not programmed robots, and even the most well trained, biddable dog does their own thing from time to time.

All this pressure means it doesn't take much before your perfectly normal dog starts to impact on your mental health.

On a fairly regular basis I see clients who have had an incident with their dog that has caused them to feel extremely stressed.  The narrative is almost always the same.

Their dog has had an interaction with another dog in a public space, like a park.  There has been growling, snapping, maybe a scuffle and the two dogs have walked away fine.

However, sometimes their have been harsh words exchanged between the people. Other times my client has just felt the weight of responsibility to be a good dog owner. Either way my client has felt like a terrible person and this has led them to seek help.

Other times, our dog's behaviour dog does have a real impact on our lives.  Living with dogs who are a risk, who cannot be left alone or who behave in ways that mean you struggle to keep them or those around them safe is a worry and can have a detrimental effect on mental well being. 

'The first thing to understand is, you are not alone.  Many people experience stress from owning a dog.  

It may feel hard to believe, but it's also not your fault.  Not all dogs are easy.  Not all dogs who end up easy started that way.  Not all dogs fit smoothly into our lives.  

There's a million and one reasons some dogs are more stressful than others. Health, genetics, early socialisation, breed characteristics (or lack of), your dog's unique personality, and the environment you live in all interplay into how easy a dog is to live with.  Many of these things are outwith your control.

It's perfectly ok to adore your dog but also question your choices.

After my incident with Velma I had to really dig deep.  Was the incident with the other dog really that terrible or did I just FEEL terrible?

Even if your dog's behaviour issue seems overwhelming, it doesn't mean it can't be changed in a way that improves your relationship with your dog, your anxiety levels and your overall mental health.

Know that there is help and support out there.  Educated dog trainers can help get you are your dog on track.  Many of my clients feedback that it's a huge relief to have someone to talk to and that they feel much less anxious after working with me.  

It can sometimes feel hopeless, and like you can't imagine how a dog trainer could help. However, many training solutions are simple, straightforward but not necessarily something you would understand without professional help.

Velma is getting on for 9 years old now.  Even though at times she has caused me much stress, it's been worth it.  She is hilarious, affectionate and I love her to bits.  She's 100% made me a better dog trainer but I've also learned that I can't give up.  Even on the hard days I had to just grit my teeth, ignore that inner voice and "nevertheless, she persisted".

If you need help with your dog, and want judgement-free solutions that will help you feel less stressed.  Click the blue button below or message me for more info.

That times of year many of us dread is fast approaching.  Firework season.  It's not just the 5th of Nov, but often days and even weeks before and after that has our dog stressed out.

In Advance
1. Speak to a vet
If your dog struggles with fireworks, now is the time to speak to your vet and get prepared.  If your dog shows severe anxiety then I highly recommend speaking to your vet about the variety of medication that is available.

Sileo is a make of sedative medication designed to help with fear of fireworks.  Have a work with your vet as soon as you can to see what they can offer.

Pain/discomfort can also really heighten your dog's sensitivity to sounds.  Even if you don't think your dog is ready for long term pain treatment it can be really helpful to discuss whether this would be helpful to your dog around about bonfire night.

Two of my dogs are getting older and have aches and pains.  Both will be on the maximum dose of their pain relief around about firework season

2. Start a desensitisation plan
While it's usually impossible to create a training plan to fully desensitise a dog to fireworks, because the explosive nature of fireworks is impossible to replicate. There is still lots that can be done to help, especially with puppies who have no experience of fireworks, or are not completely terrified.

Here's a basic plan on how to start.

1. Find some fireworks sounds to play.  You can find these on music apps or youtube
2. Prepare your dog something nice to do, like a food puzzle/kong or a nice chew.  
3. Play the firework noises so quietly your dog does not react at all.
4. You can have other noises on too, like the tv or radio
5. Keep sessions short
6. Repeat the session and increase the volume. 
7. The goal is to systematically increase the volume, but ensuring your dog shows no response. 

One the night

1. Create a Safe Haven
Provide you dog with a secure and comforting space. Choose a quiet room in your home and set it up with their favorite blanket, toys, and perhaps an item of your clothing (your scent can be reassuring). Close the curtains or blinds to minimise the visual impact of fireworks, and play some calming music, white noise or taiko drumming to muffle the loud bangs.

Many dogs will chose to hide in places, like the shower or unusual spots.  This is thought to be because the explosions cause the air to become positively charge, like during thunderstorms and being near copper pipes is calming.

Let your dog choose their safe spot.

2. Keep Your Dog Indoors
It's so easy for even the most robust dog, to get a fright from a particularly loud firework.  Lots of dogs run off in terror around fireworks night.  Take no risks.

3. Tire your dog out
To make sleep more easy for your dog, try and get them out for a good walk during daylight.  Some extra training, brain games or scentwork can also help them start the night in a nicely tired state.

My dogs love searching for a hidden treat.  A few repetitions of this helps settle them, or can even be a welcome distration.

4. Distraction Techniques
Engage your dog with their favorite toys or treats to divert their attention from the fireworks. Chewing on a treat-filled toy or playing interactive games can be excellent ways to keep them occupied and alleviate anxiety.  Snuffle mats, lick bowls, kongs, dried skins.  Stock up.

5. Calming Products
Some dogs benefit from support from some of the calming products on the market.  Thunder shirts, calmex, zylkein, etc.  However, this aren't magic and for many dogs, your money would be better spent elsewhere.

6. Stay Calm and Reassuring
Dogs are sensitive to your emotions, so it's crucial to remain calm and composed during fireworks. It's absolutely ok to offer your dog reassurance and cuddles if that is what they need.  However the most important thing is to model calm disinterest in the fireworks.  You're dog will be looking for your opinion on the matter, so be calm, be jolly, be their safe person.

“Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and what you resist, persists.”

This quote by author, Erkhart Tolle, has been on my mind a lot over the past couple of months and then today I listened to a podcast with animal trainer, Kath Sdao and she mentioned it too... So I decided to write this blog on my thoughts of how Erkhart's quote has so much relevance in dog training.
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I'm sure the quote has it's roots in Buddhist teachings and for me it leads me to think about times when I have had to accept that some things are the way they are in my life and instead of spending lots of energy trying to change them, and in doing so making it a bigger issue, I have accepted them and focused my energy on what I can change.

It also makes me think of times when I've had a strong difference of opinion with someone and I have argued my point, without not considered how the other person developed their opinion.  Instead of changing that person's mind, all my argument does is cause the other person to argue strongly back and more than likely strength their own opinion... We see this sort of argument happened all the time on social media!

So bringing it back to dog behaviour...

In many of the behaviour cases I see, the dog will have a strong need, usually a need that is totally natural to dogs.  At the time the dog's carer contacts me, the dog is meeting that need by engaging in a behaviour the carer finds undesirable.

These needs might include...

• Chewing
• Scent mark
• Consume a range of food
• Keep precious items
• Follow the smell of prey
• Exercise
• Keep mentally busy/avoid boredom
• Social contact (humans or dogs)
• Feel safe
• Dig
• etc

When listed like this, these behaviours don't seem unreasonable, after all, they are all natural dog behaviours. 

However, problems occur when dogs have not been taught how, or are not given opportunities to meet these needs.  In our modern lifestyle it's often difficult to give our dogs the exercise and mental stimulation they need to feel satisfied.  Many people juggle full time jobs and busy lives with dog ownership, meaning other tasks may take priority over entertaining the dog.

Many people live in flats or busy urban streets, with lots of different noises happening 24 hours a day, don't have a garden and only have access to busy parks.  All these things compromise some dogs abilities to have their needs met.

Problem behaviours dogs exhibit when their needs are not met...

• Barking 
• Barking and lunging towards other dogs/people
• Growling/snapping/biting
• Attention seeking behaviour (whining, barking, pawing/nudging)
• Destructive behaviours
• Chewing inappropriate items
• Running away
• Poor recall
• Clingy behaviours
• Urinating indoors
• Obsessive behaviours
• Excessive pulling on the lead and inability to walk safely on a lead (lead biting/spinning/scrabbling/stopping)

What you resist, persists.

So often when people have one of these behaviour problems their sole focus is on preventing or stopping the problem behaviour.  Even some dogs trainers will heavily focus their training on finding ways of preventing the dog from performing the problem behaviour.  This in it's self is not wrong, however if we only prevent a problem behaviour without considering what need the dog is meeting, or trying to meet, then we will either make the problem worse, or will cause the dog to find another way to meet that need.

Angus is a 3 year old border terrier who barks at unknown dogs, sometimes this will escalate to lunging on his lead towards dogs.  When off lead Angus will not do these behaviours however, if other dogs approach him he will often get into a fight with them.  Since Angus hit adolescence, other male dogs have often approached him, when he is on or off lead, with the intention of attacking Angus.  

Angus' carer is very focused on making sure Angus does not bark or lunge.  They have used treats in order to distract Angus when he barks and to reward Angus when he is quiet.  They have taught him to walk past dogs when he is on lead without barking or lunging.  They have followed advice from online positive reinforcement training groups to get Angus to this point.  When I observed this behaviour, Angus is indeed quite and not lunging, however he is tense and his movements stilted and stiff.  He does not look like a dog enjoying his walk.

However, Angus is still likely to bark when his carers do not have food.  They are not able to let him relax and sniff because if they do and an unknown dog approaches he is likely to want to fight them.  Angus frequently over reacts in any interacts with unknown dogs.  

While what Angus' carers have done is not incorrect, they have failed to realise that Angus' need to feel safe is not being met.  Angus' training has taken place in a local park where dogs are frequently approaching him and altercations happen at least weekly.  Angus is always on high alert and he was never going to get better without us helping him feel safe.

Our training plan for Angus focused on understanding he didn't feel safe around unknown dogs and it was impossible to keep him safe in local parks.  We started working with him in places he only met dogs on lead.  This way we could ensure his safety.  During this time we taught Angus ways of using his body language to avoid conflict with other dogs and Angus was able to learn from other dogs how they did this.  We also taught Angus how to tell his carer's he wasn't feeling safe and they learned how to get him out of those situations.  Only once these things were in place could we start on a programme where we taught Angus how to behave around unknown dogs.  Seeing Angus go from a tense, up tight dog, to a loose, wiggly one who actually invited some dogs to play had us all reaching for a tissue.

My own dog Velma, developed a very strong interest in chasing deer scent when she was about 9 months old.  She was very focused on this and on one horrifying occasion she ran off and disappeared for over 15 minutes.   This was a problem for me.  I couldn't keep her safe if she was going to go out of sight.  However, it was clear that following scent was very important to Velma.

Part of her training plan included finding safe ways we could go looking for scent together.  Some of this was done by me teaching her how to search for items I had hidden and other times it included walks with her on a long line in areas where I knew there was likely to be deer scent.   By making sure Velma's need for following scent was met, I slowly was able to teach her how to come back when I called, even around the distraction of deer scent.  Meeting her needs through training, also meant Velma has gradually become less motivated to follow scents when they take her out of sight from me.  Had I not recognised Velma's needs and found ways to meet them, then I am sure Velma's recall would have been almost impossible to train.

 
Whatever you fight, you strengthen.

To add to this we can also inadvertently teach our dogs to become really skilled at the problem behaviour by incrementally increasing how difficult it is for the dog to meet their need.  When I am actually training my dog to do a new behaviour, this is the strategy I actually use...  It's called shaping and is a very effective way of training our dog to do complex behaviours.... However it also works both ways. 

One of the dogs I worked with is a 1 year old labradoodle, Max.  His carer's contacted me because he was chewing furniture and anything else he could find.  By the time they got in touch with me, he was able to escape his play pen, move a clothes horse and open the door handle into a bedroom.  He would then spend any unsupervised time chewing on the legs of the bed, ripping pillows and chewing hairbrushes, make up, etc.

Max didn't learn to do these things in one go.  First of all his carers just tried keeping him in the hall, but he learned to open the bedroom door, then they bought him a play pen but he learned to climb it.  They then tried covering the top of his pen, but he chewed through the cover.  Then they tried putting a clothes horse by the bedroom door but by now he could chew through the cover, climb out of the pen and open the door.  Dismantling and moving the clothes horse was no problem.  Even when they changed the door handle to a round one, the dog would persistently chew and paw until the door handle turned.

Max's carers were right to try and prevent him getting access to the things they did not want him to chew, but what they had not understood was that as a young dog, with a developing jaw and low tolerance to boredom, he needed lots of different materials to chew on and mental stimulation to keep him busy.

The main bulk of our training plan focused on finding way for Max to meet his needs.  He was given lots of different things to chew every day, increasing how many ways Max's was given mental stimulation each day, improving the way he was exercised and his carers found ways of not leaving him at home alone for quite so long.  

Max is just one example, but this happens so often, where in an attempt to prevent a problem behaviour, the carer actually teaches their dog how to be more skilful and persistent.

Can you think how only ignoring your dog's need for social interaction, without making sure their needs are fully met in other ways,  might cause the problem to escalate?

So if your dog develops a problem behaviour, then finding ways to change your environment to prevent your dog doing those behaviours is very important, however top priority must be given to understand what is the function of your dog's problematic behaviour.  What need are they trying to meet?  To resolve the problem it is then vital that you find a way that meets your dogs need in a way that is acceptable to both of you.

Don't forget, “Whatever you fight, you strengthen, and what you resist, persists.”

Jill O'Sullivan APDT ISCP Dip CB
Certified DogTrainer and Behaviour Consultant

Have you ever received a message from your boss that goes something like this? "Once you've finished your lunch please come to my office".

You could be about to get a promotion or maybe even a pay rise but I bet you aren't filled with joy, excitedly awaiting 2pm so you can skip down to his office.

No, I bet instead you are filled with dread.  You are thinking about that time he called you to his office and told you off for being late or that time he pointed out an error in your work.  I bet you don't enjoy your lunch and when 2pm comes you drag your feet down to the office, mouth dry, palms sweaty.  Maybe you'll even pretend you haven't read the email and then once he's gone home for the day you'll try and find out some clues from colleagues as to what he wants.  Perhaps you'll feel so worried you go off sick.

When we teach our dogs to come back when called, we very much risk making our recall cue (the word we use to call our dogs back) the equivalent of your boss' email.  If, when our dogs don't come back as we expect we either use a mild correction like raising our voices, shouting at them, grabbing them by the collar, putting their lead, ignoring them (social exclusion), or even just withholding the treat, then it's very likely our dogs are going to start getting that feeling of dread when they hear us call them.

This is a very common phenomenon with our pet dogs.  Our dog runs off and annoys someone else in the park or they go chasing deer. We call and call but by the time they come back we are annoyed or embarrassed and let our dogs know it... and do you know what, it can only take one instance of the dog feeling like they have been punished for our recall cue to become poisoned.

How many times would your bosses email have to lead to a favourable outcome to undo the bad of that one uncomfortable meeting? 10? 50? 100? Maybe never?  Once you have poisoned your dog's recall cue, it's likely you will only be able to repair the problem by retraining your dog's recall from scratch with a new cue.  

If you then muck up that new recall cue then you are in big trouble.  Now your dog might just associate being in the park, with you calling out any word at all, with the possibility of a telling off, so maybe they are even slower to come back when you call or even avoid you all together once you un-clip the lead.

So, don't risk making your dog think of your recall cue like your boss' email instead make your recall cue like a ice cream van jingle.  Hearing that jingle and running to the van provides positive reinforcement 100% of time.  Rather than a churning stomach and sweaty palms I get really good feelings when I hear that jingle, I might even stop watching my favourite TV show to go and get an ice cream.

When I shout "Velma come" and she runs to me, I am going to provide her with some form of positive reinforcement 100% of the time.  If she's taken a big detour to chase deer on her way back to me, then I will just have to think of how I will prevent it happening next time but that's my problem to solve and not Velma's.  I want Velma to hear me call her and respond as if it's the ice cream jingle.  With enough practice and now with a big enough history positive reinforcement, and no history at all of punishment, Velma will even interrupt her favourite pastime (chasing deer) to come back to me to find out what good thing is in store for her. 

So, if you want a dog that comes back instantly when you call, every time, you need to always reward them for coming back.... ALWAYS.  No matter how "naughty" you think they have been while they were away.  Avoid at all costs letting your dog know you are annoyed.  

If you know you have sometimes let your dog know you were annoyed once he came back to you, you now need to retrain your dog's recall.  You want your new recall word to make your dog think of ice-cream and not telling offs!  Join the mailing list here for tips on how to recall train your dog. 

Whether it's your own dog or whether you are a professional dog walker, remember your recall cue is a precious thing and fragile thing.  Treat it carefully. 

Jill O'Sullivan APDT INTODogs CDT
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A while ago, I was in the company of several dog trainers.  The conversation came round to discussing the sort of cases we were all working on.  One trainer mentioned that all he seemed to work with is reactive and aggressive dogs.  The other trainers all nodded and agreed that they were seeing an increase in reactive and aggressive dogs.

I kept quiet and thought how lucky I was because I couldn't remember the last dog, or any dog, that I worked with that was aggressive.

However later, when I mulled the conversation over I realised quite a few of the dogs, I was working with at the time, could be labelled as aggressive or reactive.  I had just never considered labelling them in that way.

When I work with a dog, I see them as a whole.  The good bits, the loving bits, and the bits that cause their owner challenges.   Therefore, it has just never occurred to me to label a dog, who barks for no more than a few minutes per day, as aggressive or reactive.  After all, the dog is so much more than that.

It is so damaging to our perception of dogs to give them a label that relates to only a small percentage of their behaviour.  

Even when we just label the actual behaviour as aggressive or reactive, it doesn't describe what the actual behaviour is, under what conditions it occurs and what the function of the behaviour is.

Labels stick and once you've started calling your dog reactive or aggressive you will see that as part of who they are rather than looking at it as a behaviour they use is some situations.  When we think of it in terms of behaviour, and we know behaviour can be changed, we can then look at how we can help our dogs use different behaviour.

My other issue with labelling a dog is that it moves us away from thinking about how a dog is feeling when he performs that behaviour.  A dog who is barking and lunging on his lead may get the label as reactive but it doesn't help anyone understand if he is scared, frustrated or over excited?  

If a client tells me their dog is aggressive, my first questions are always;

• What does your dog do when they are being aggressive?
• In what environments does the behaviour occur?
• What needs to happen for your dog to behave this way?
• What happens after your dog has behaved this way?
• And what do you think your dog wants to achieve with this behaviour?

Understanding those things always gives a very different picture of a dog, than one who has been labelled as aggressive or even behaving aggressively.  The answers allow us to think of how we can help that dog feel and behave differently.

So often I hear of people who's confidence in their ability as dog owners or their trust in their dog has been shattered because someone else has called their dog aggressive.  Usually this happens after the other person has witnessed the dog barking and pulling on their lead.

So next time we see our own dog, or someone else's dog, behave in a way we think isn't cool, stop before you slap that damaging label on the dog.