Helping fearful dogs
I spent a wonderful week visiting my mom in Buzzard's Bay near Cape Cod. I boarded Nibbles with a woman and her family who had adopted another of the dogs who were confiscated along with Nibbles and Kelly. Nibbles had a great time working through many of the challenges a dog needs to sort out when they live in a world with people. He was ...
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Bx-ElVQydE?hl=en&fs=1&w=425&h=349] Nibbles was one of approximately 23 dogs confiscated from a home breeder by the HSUS. After being placed in a foster home he fled through a window and was on the lam for a week when he trapped by an ACO 30 miles north of his foster home. How he got that far as fast as he did will remain a mystery, but ...
I've been offline for a few days. The current foster dog living with us, Nibbles, escaped from his x-pen, got on my husband's desk and peed on the modem. Not a fan of technology our Nibbles apparently. Nibbles was pulled from a breeder along with 20 or so other dogs, all chihuahuas or small dog mixes. He'd been placed in a foster home, escaped through ...
Remember those pads of paper with the wide spacing and dotted lines running between solid ones used to teach little kids to print letters and numbers? Teaching dogs new behaviors reminds me of them. We give children those extra wide spaces to accommodate their, as yet, uncoordinated movements and make it even easier for them with a chunky, easy to grip, pencil. Then we assign ...
Yesterday I attended a seminar with Suzanne Clothier to learn more about her Relationship Assessment Tool. It was, as expected, informative and thought provoking, but that's not what I'm going to write about. I'll save that for another post. The seminar was held at the Monadnock Humane Society in Keene NH. It's a pleasant facility with lots of outdoor space for dogs and an open, ...
Tis the season for bad advice. It seems no matter where I turn-blog posts, website, forums, chats- someone is putting ‘don’t comfort your dog when they are scared’ messages out. The last I read, provided by someone who by choice or certification, is identified as a ‘behaviorist’, was a list of tips for dealing with fireworks and storm phobias included; no cooing or baby talk ...
When I read many of the blogs, forums or other posts regarding dog training I get the impression that the writer is well intentioned but the information they are sharing is either wrong or misleading. Words are loaded. They come with meanings we may agree with, or don't. I have a list of words I hate. Or at least strongly dislike. I dislike ...
My preference is not to use physical manipulation when working with dogs, but I will gladly employ emotional manipulation. One of the things a fearful, anxious or shy dog's brain is good at is reacting in a fearful way. The practice of bullying or punishing a dog for inappropriate fearful behavior only helps their already adept-at-feeling-scared brains, keep feeling scared or aggressive. By tapping into ...
You might wonder why I am choosing to go on a rant about crates (this is a warning that a bit of a rant is headed your way). In an attempt for full disclosure- I have a wire crate with the door closed, behind me with a puppy snoozing in it. Crates can help with housetraining and transporting dogs. They can keep our ...
Have you ever stopped to think about the totally unhygienic practice parents have of kissing boo-boos to make them better? Ever thought about how a little TLC can turn a tight-fisted, red-faced, teary-eyed toddler into a pouty, head nodding, ice cream eating miniature human again? If you live with a fearful dog you should. I have been living with a 4 month old ...
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