Mojo is a sensitive Boston terrier who is timid and easily scared. Zen is her vivacious, outgoing sister. It’s easy to tell them apart; not by their physical appearance but by their different behaviour. I visited for a training session expecting to the teach the Boston sisters to stay. During the week,  however, Mojo had an experience that left her fearful of her collar and harness.

It was the usual routine: the girls were called into the office, each sat in front of the chair to have her chest harness put on followed by the collar. On this occasion, Mojo’s ears flattened to her head at the same time as the buckle was clipped together, pinching her ear. She yelped in pain and despite the ear being released immediately and lots of reassurance and cuddles, she was visibly affected. For the next week Mojo would run away at the sight of the harness which wasn’t even the ear-pinching culprit. During the assessment her caregiver reported that Mojo usually flattened her ears when the collar was put on, and that’s how the ear got caught. This is a significant piece of information. Ears back are often a sign of stress; a signal that a dog is worried about something. Mojo may have had concerns about the collar being applied in the past but tolerated the procedure because she likes treats and enjoys the walks that the collar predicts. The painful incident may have tipped her over the edge so that something she didn’t particularly enjoy now became something she earnestly wanted to avoid.

She had to be physically lifted into the office where she would roll over onto her back in a desperate appeasement gesture to prevent the impending harness ritual. The harness had always been the precursor to the offending collar being applied, so it had now become part of the signal that the collar was coming next. This is very common whenever a painful or unpleasant event occurs. Dogs remember many of the aspects of the environment that were present during the traumatic event and these then become salient signals of impending doom in the future.

The harness and collar could be put on if Mojo was gently restrained but given the choice, she would rather flee. Once the collar was on she seemed uncomfortable or distressed, trying to remove the collar. On the walk she finally appeared back to normal. But each day it was the same escape response at the sight of the harness. Adding treats didn’t improve her behaviour; she simply ate and ran. This is because treats were given before the harness was produced. Treats had become one of the signals that the scary apparatus was next to appear, so get out of Dallas now! When using food in training it’s not all about the food that gets results. It’s the way food is used. This knowledge was used as part of the plan to help Mojo overcome her fear. Food must not come before the harness or collar.

I observed Mojo’s reaction in order to assess the different parts of the procedure and to devise a behaviour change plan for her. It was obvious that she was an unwillingly participant whose modus operandi was to avoid the office, harness and collar. But avoidance wasn’t working for her and instead of getting used to the process she was scared every day.

Her caregiver had used food to make it more pleasant, but for the reason I’ve already mentioned, this wasn’t working. She’d also tried to help Mojo get used to the clicking sound of the buckle by sitting on the couch with Mojo and repeatedly making the clicking noise. Mojo would startle each time and it didn’t change her avoidance behaviour at the sight of the harness. This is a common approach adopted for helping dogs overcome fears: present them with what they are trying to avoid (or part of it) over and over and they should get used to it. It doesn’t always help dogs. It can backfire and can intensify a dog’s fear. It’s also an unpleasant process for the dog to go through whether it works or not. There are effective alternatives that avoid the distress this process may cause to the learner.

I aborted my observations at the point where Mojo was restrained and rolled over in a tense appeasement gesture. It was clear that the harness could be put on despite her attempts to communicate her stress and I didn’t want to risk slowing down the training that was coming next by ignoring her body language.

I created a new plan to introduce the harness and collar in a carefully choreographed way.

1. I left the office behind and started in the living room. Remember those salient environmental factors that dogs associate with a fearful event? The office may well be part of this because every time the harness and collar are put on it is in the office. The painful event occurred in the office. The office is not a safe place as far as Mojo is concerned – a biting collar could pop up at any time. The living area is large, open and she can see what’s going on. No surprises will pop around the corner.
2. Mojo was not restrained. I did not run after her or pick her up. She came when she felt comfortable and she could increase distance when she needed. If she pulled back or rolled over, I stopped what I was doing. (In the accompanying video you will notice that I didn’t totally respect this part of the plan and clipped up the harness while she was lying down. Ideally I should have continued to touch and move the harness in small increments until she showed no signs of escape or avoidance. I recognized this and spent a minute or so reinforcing her for simply remaining with me, no pressure or touching, before continuing with the plan. I was trying to demonstrate as much as I could in a short amount of time for the caregiver to continue with. But, that’s really no excuse, is it Mojo?)
3. The harness was presented in stages and she received food each time it was shown. The harness disappeared behind my back and no treats came. It is only when the harness appeared that food magically arrived. This order is very important. Harness first signals food is coming rather than the food predicting the scary harness is coming. Reversing this order can make the whole process ineffective.
4. The harness was shown to her first from a small distance. If there was little or no sign of avoidance like tensing, flinching, ears back, leaning away or moving away, the next step was taken.
5. The harness was shown to her at a closer distance.
6. The harness was placed beside her.
7. The harness was slipped over her head, followed by a treat and her behaviour was observed to see if she would escape. I took my time at this point rather than immediately putting her front leg through the harness or doing it up. She needed to be comfortable and show no signs of running away. I wasn’t physically restraining her and I didn’t want her to go running off with a harness half-on, half-off.  I was ready to slip it off if she looked like running away. I kept giving food since the harness was still present.
8. The harness was touched and wiggled while it was on, followed by food.
9. The harness was clipped up followed by food. (This is where I went too fast.) Despite my haste, Mojo stayed with me and accepted food. This was a good sign because later in the procedure, when a step was too much for her, she would run away without taking food.
10. The collar was introduced in a similar way to the harness; shown first from a distance followed by a treat, then the collar disappeared and treats stopped.
11. The collar was shown to her at a closer distance.

It was at this point that I started to introduce another process. So far I had been using respondent conditioning where a simple association is being made that one thing predicts another. So the collar predicts treat and treats are good. This good feeling bleeds back to infect the collar, so now the collar is good! I like to introduce operant conditioning as soon as I can so that I get the benefit of two types of conditioning (or learning processes). Operant conditioning simply means than now I am going to make treat delivery contingent on her performing a certain behaviour. The collar will still appear but now she also needs to do something to get the treat. She will be making a positive association with the collar and a behaviour will be reinforced at the same time. I made sure the behaviour was so darn easy that she couldn’t fail because she was already doing it. All she had to do was stay when the collar was presented instead of running away or rolling over. If she had not been staying already and still overly concerned with the collar, I would have waited longer to introduce this part of the training. I now used a clicker to mark the behaviour of staying still whenever I presented the collar.

1. The collar was placed beside her and the tags jiggled. She stayed, I clicked and reinforced with a treat.
2. The collar was placed under her chin and jiggled. She stayed and the behaviour was reinforced.
3. The collar was held with two hands and placed under her chin. (It had been held in one had prior to this.) This is where she backed away and then ran away without taking a treat. Holding a collar in one hand is very different to the collar being held outstretched in two hands that are reaching for her neck.  This is valuable information and lets me know I have progressed too quickly.

When Mojo showed signs of stress, I stopped what I was doing and went back to the previous step until she was ready for the next level.

I then added her caregiver to the plan. I’ll remind you again of how dogs will be making associations with many things that are in the environment when they experience something unpleasant. Mojo was able to come up to me despite me holding the harness and collar whereas she ran away when her caregiver held them. One of the reasons for this difference may be that Mojo and I have no negative history, or any history, relating to the harness and collar. I spent the time proving to her that she had nothing to fear from the harness and collar before moving on to the scenario more similar to real life: her caregiver sitting in a chair. Remember that the collar is usually put on from a chair, so this is an important environmental aspect to add. We ran through the steps above with the collar that I had demonstrated. Then we progressed to touching the collar under her chin for a second.

That was enough for one session. I left instructions for future steps:

1. Wrap the collar around her neck for a second. Reinforce for staying.
2. Wrap the collar around her neck for 2 seconds, then 3 seconds, then 4 seconds etc and reinforce for staying.
3. Wrap the collar around her neck and make a clicking sound with the buckle without doing it up and immediately reinforce Mojo for staying. I predicted this would be a hard step because the buckle sound came immediately before the pain. It was important to make sure she showed no signs of stress with many fake clip-ups before moving on to the next step. This is so the collar can be removed quickly if she startles in the early stages. If it’s done up and she runs off, she takes the offending collar with her!
4. Wrap the collar around her neck and do it up. Reinforce her for staying.
5. Have a party with her now the collar is on. The collar is fun. Ask her to do her favourite tricks or the easiest tasks she knows and reinforce.
6. Then take the collar off and the party is over. This makes her look forward to the collar going on again.

This training was to be done about two to three times a day for up to 20 minutes at times when there was no need to go for a walk so that it was not rushed and there was no stress for the trainer or trainee. If Mojo had to be walked during this time it would be best to take her to another part of the house or into the car and place the harness and collar on in there, to protect the training where it needed to occur. It would be best not to put the collar on but it is a legal requirement when out in public for the identity and registration tags. I predicted it may take a few days or maybe a week to get the collar on without escape behaviours. Whether it transferred to the office easily would need to be assessed at the time she was ready.

I was elated when I got a message the next day from Mojo’s mum which blew my conservative estimation out of the water:  “Just got the collar on and she is happy - thank you SO MUCH. Did it a bit this morning and let it go and then 20 mins this afternoon and she was right.  I will continue doing it for a bit yet until she is absolutely comfortable but she was fine when I clipped it on and is running around playing.”

The challenge now is not to go too fast and ignore the ears back. Ideally this game should continue until Mojo comes running expectantly, keeping her ears forward as the collar is put on. Then we know we have helped to a point where she is more confident than when she originally started having the collar put on.

This is not a how-to article, it’s more of a synopsis on how to approach and problem-solve the escape and avoidance behaviour of a particular individual in a particular circumstance. The principles can be transferred to other individuals. I hope it highlights how going slowly in very small steps is not painstaking but is quicker in the long run. Mojo was not improving until she was assessed and a plan was designed specifically for her. What makes a successful behaviour change plan is also its implementation. Her caregiver was committed to helping her overcome her fear and this was key to a successful behaviour change programme and, no doubt, to the breakneck speed of improvement. She wasn’t in a rush and already had a strong, positive relationship with Mojo. Despite the incident, Mojo still trusted her so the damage done by this single painful event was minimal. Mojo will most probably always be a sensitive wee soul but if her fears are approached with care and patience, she will gradually develop more resilience.

Thanks to her caregiver for allowing me to share her story and video footage. Here is the link to Mojo's video for email subscribers: https://youtu.be/wuhlbOwJtCI

Have you missed me? I've been decidedly quiet in my blog in the last few months. But I haven't been idle. I've been spending some time training my own dog, Zuri. One of my passions is teaching dogs to cope with routine handling and vet examinations. Things like having ears checked, eyes cleaned, blood taken, injections given, nails clipped, body parts handled and a host of other practical tasks. I espouse the value of such training and try to enthuse others about the benefits of teaching a dog to enjoy these intrusions which will, inevitably, be a part of every dog's life. I like to go one step further and teach the dog to be an active and willing participant in these procedures, without restraint if possible.

The benefits are numerous. It reduces stress in an anxious dog. It reduces stress in the care-giver. It reduces the probability of aggression resulting from fear due to restraint or unknown procedures. When a dog has been conditioned in a positive way to handling, there is less to fear and therefore less need to aggress. A dog who feels safe is a safer dog.
​
On Mother's Day I spent some time with Zuri and a colleague, working on helping Zuri cope with having blood drawn, her temperature taken in two different positions, her heart and lungs checked (auscultation) and her ears checked with an otoscope.

Zuri has recently spent a lot of time at the vet and she is anxious when strangers try to touch her. All the training we have done has helped reduce her fear incredibly. I did need to restrain her for a catheter insertion but even that went smoothly due to the prior training we had done together; teaching her to stay still while I hugged her gently. Such a difference to the dog who once panicked and needed three people to hold her down.

In the video below I am introducing a stranger to make some of the techniques closer to what she will encounter at the vet. It won't always be me doing the procedures. I also take her temperature in two different positions because I noted at the vet that they took observations while she was recovering from sedation and it startled her. We hadn't yet practised while she was lying down, so I added this position to my training plan. Notice how she is wagging her tail during the training. This is what I love to see; a sense of expectation and enjoyment at playing a training game. To her it's just another way to gain reinforcement.

I've used a quote from Chirag Patel, an amazing behaviour consultant in the UK, as the title for this blog. He sees great value in teaching animals to be prepared for the everyday activities needed in order to care for them. I couldn't agree more. ​​

Here is the video link for email subscribers: ​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hZc0SD96IEM

A lot of people teach their dog to wait before getting fed. The dog is usually asked to sit and wait as the bowl is put on the ground. Then after a second or two, the dog is released to eat din dins. The guardian is usually standing alongside. This is what the dog may be learning: to sit and wait while the guardian stands alongside and lowers a food bowl, wait four seconds, then eat as the guardian walks away. 

Change any part of the routine a little and the dog may seem to forget what the guardian  intended wait to mean. The change could be waiting longer before releasing and the dog starts to eat before the verbal release. If one waits the same duration every time before giving a verbal release cue, the dog may be learning wait is specifically for four seconds and then he may eat. The guardian is assuming that it's the release cue the dog is using as the signal to eat. If one varies the time of waiting at each meal, the dog is more inclined to wait for some other cue to release. Another change could be that the dog can wait while someone stands next to him, but not if they walk away. This can occur if the dog is learning the pattern includes that walking away means it's OK to eat. So when one walks away before releasing, the dog is reading the physical signal that it's time to eat. (Who knows, maybe he thinks the trainer simply forgot to release!?) Pretty clever really. After all, he's always happily eating when you walk away. It could be any part of the wait routine that breaks down, even using a bone instead of a bowl; to the dog, wait may mean wait for "bowl" not bone!

The sad thing is, the reluctance to wait is often misinterpreted as a dog being wilfully disobedient, showing dominance or just plain old stupid. In fact it's usually none of these. It's more often a deficit in training and a misunderstaning between two individuals who don't speak the same language. One is trying to teach the other. Have you ever tried to communicate with someone from another country and they totally misunderstood your gestures? It can take a while to get the message across.

Teaching wait in every scenario may seem daunting and endless! The great news is that if you teach your dog a few differences (wait for longer, wait while I stand away from you, wait while I go out of sight, wait while another dog eats) they get better and quicker at generalizing what you mean each time. They get better at learning how to learn.

I enjoy training Zuri to wait before eating, at doors, at gates and before getting out of the car. I train at home and then I like to test if Zuri has understood it in a new, more demanding environment or context. Especially in more life-like set ups. I set up training sessions that replicate (or as close as possible) what might happen unexpectedly in the real world. For example, if she can wait while she is in the middle of eating something at home, I have a better chance of getting her to wait if she is eating something stinky on the beach. If she can resist bolting out of the car to greet and play with her favourite friends at the beach, there is a better chance of her waiting if a car unexpectedly drives past in the carpark as we are disembarking. If she succeeds during the test, brilliant! If not, it's not a failure. It's valuable information of what I need to work on in order to help her understand what I would like her to do in future. 

Here's a video showing how I test to see what Zuri understands wait to mean: ​https://youtu.be/NYxoO8NhKpI

Zuri is scared of noisy appliances. I introduce her to any new, noisy appliance in a carefully planned way and she is getting less fearful with every introduction. The rotary sanding tool is one gadget she doesn't like the sound of. It's not just the noise, it's also that it is associated with nail sanding which she doesn't really enjoy. I have helped her overcome her fear and gone one step further: I've got her to be happily excited at the sound and she comes running from wherever she is, whatever she is doing, when she hears it. Check it out.

Scout needed betadine solution applied to her muzzle twice a day. I wanted her to feel comfortable with the process so that it wasn't a drama each time. I also didn’t want to physically restrain her in order to apply the medication. I felt this was especially important since it had to happen more than once a day for many days. If I forced her and it became an event she wanted to escape, it may well become harder each time. I may have to use more restraint on subsequent attempts or have to chase and corner her to apply it. This would be unpleasant for both of us and do nothing to improve our relationship. These reasons were worth devising a plan to make it a game where if she stayed still and let me apply it, I would reinforce this with something she liked: Food!

​​I started with repeated and small steps rather than applying the betadine all at once.
 
Step 1: Scout stayed still while I stretched the skin for a second with my finger.

I helped her understand that I wanted her to stay still by using the well-known cue of “wait”.
If she moved away, I stopped immediately. She had some control: an ‘out’ if you like.
 
Step 2: She stayed still while I stretched the skin and touched the area with my finger for a second.

Step 3:  I touched for a little longer with my finger.
 
Step 4:  I touched with a dry cotton ball for a couple of seconds.
 
Step 5: I presented a cotton ball dipped in betadine for a second  but didn’t touch her.

​When it was wet it smelt of the betadine and dripped a little. Presenting it gets her used to the smell first, rather than coping with the smell and then the feel of a wet cotton ball on her skin. I made sure it wasn't too wet on future applications so it didn't drip. Practice makes perfect.
 
Step 6: She stayed still while I touched her with the betadine cotton ball for a second.
 
During the game, I touched her for a little too long and she drew back. When this happened I made a fuss and reinforced the behaviour of staying. She could have run away and disengaged. She was subsequently better the next time I touched her.
 
Step 7: I touched her for longer with the betadine cotton ball.
 
Step 8: Job done!
 
It took just over three minutes the first time. Much less on subsequent applications as she knew what was expected. It was quite hard for Scout to keep her head still (or any part of her body for that matter!). She likes to sniff and touch anything coming her way and most things end up in her mouth. In retrospect, I would improve the way I approached this by going even slower: by staying on each step longer to ensure Scout was even more comfortable and was able to keep her head still for a little longer as well. I would also add another step of presenting the dry cotton ball before touching her with it.
 
Here’s the video showing how it was done.

Animal training is my passion. For me it is not just training. I’m not satisfied with just getting a job done, or training a certain task to a certain level. It’s the journey. It’s how the job is done: how the task is taught. How the animal is responding matters immensely.
 
It is really important to me that the animal is showing signs of wanting to engage. Further, I want to engender an attitude of joy in the trainee. I want it to be fun for the learner. There is a wonderful by-product of creating an enjoyable learning experience – the trainer is associated with the positive experience. The trainer is the source of all good things, someone to keep an eye on, to gravitate towards. The trainer is consistent, to be trusted and not feared. The trainer is a good communicator, not confusing or a source of stress. This is a huge factor in relationship building.
 
I was challenged when I reviewed video footage of a training session I had with Zuri. I wanted to measure her nose for a muzzle. I hadn’t done this before and Zuri is hesitant with new things (enter the tape measure) and handling.  “This would make a great video topic”, I thought. What a great way to show a functional use of a well taught ‘touch’ and ‘wait’ with a reluctant dog. It would also demonstrate how seamlessly a dog can learn something new if they have a history of learning other tasks and playing training games that are enjoyable.  Off I went and duly measured Zuri’s nose in front of the camera. It got the job done quickly, in less than two minutes. When I watched the footage back, I was disappointed. On the surface it looked pretty good: no physical restraint or enviromental restraint (like backing a dog into a corner), no force, no struggle, no harsh words or physical intimidation, no avoidance by seeking distance or walking away on Zuri’s part. Yet it lacked enthusiasm. It lacked the joyful demeanour of a softly wagging tail. Where was the anticipation and engagement with gusto? I even noted some subtle signs of stress such as repeated blinking, paucity of movement, head turning away from me and the tape measure, drawing the head away from the tape measure and, because I know her body language so well, even the slight tension in her floppy ears as they pulled backwards and close to her head just a few millimetres. She was licking her lips at times. I wasn’t sure if this was due to the food or a sign of stress, but I suspected stress. She wasn't wagging her tail.
 
I was simply too focused on getting the job done: the job being showing how ‘touch’ and ‘wait’ were so cool for teaching other tasks. I wasn’t using overt force but I was pushing her into a level of discomfort and I was lucky she was staying despite this.
 
What I didn’t like:
 
* I was doing it slowly, but not slow enough.  Instead of breaking the process down into small enough steps, I was jumping straight from presenting the tape measure to touching her with it.
* My hands were moving towards her with the tape, rather than giving her the option of approaching. That’s a big deal for animals: to have options of when to engage and disengage. When an animal feels safe, they will be more compliant. Part of feeling safe for an animal is having the ability to stop the process at any time.
* When she looked away, I prompted her to touch my hand instead of waiting for her signal that she was ready to continue. (All because I wanted to demonstrate ‘touch’!)
* I asked her to ‘wait’ and then held the measuring tape on for too long. I should have been quicker to remove it and built up the duration gradually.
 
This just wouldn’t do. The functional goal had been met but the journey could have been much better for Zuri. She's my bud and this matters to me. So I did it again the next day with the goal to get footage of Zuri engaged with obvious enjoyment. One of my favourite catch phrases is, “Our behaviour changes a dog’s behaviour”. I changed what I was doing ever so subtly.
 
* I broke the process down into even smaller steps. There were quite a few in between showing the tape and wrapping it for a few seconds around her nose to measure.
* Breaking down the process into smaller steps resulted in being able to give a higher rate of reinforcement which is a sure way to get an enthusiastic learner.
* I let her approach the tape rather than put it on her nose.
* If she looked away, I didn’t ask for a ‘touch’. I waited until she was ready.
* I threw treats away from me and let her return in her own time to look for the measuring tape.
* I was more relaxed and my body language was more playful, not so darn serious!
 
The difference was noticeable. Her tail was wagging, her body soft, she was eager to engage and find the tape even when I hid it from view. Her floppy ears were pivoting forward more. The lip licking that was present in the first video was greatly reduced in the subsequent footage. The blinking reduced.
 
I got the behaviour required for taking measurements and then just kept on playing the game because we were both enjoying the moment. It took about one and a half minutes. That said, how long it takes is less of an issue to me than how much fun it is. I make mention because many people believe that it's too time consuming to approach dog handling in this way and therefore resort to physical restraint. I will add that if you do not have a solid trust account with your dog, it will take longer.

Approaching handling this way is a delightful journey where both participants enjoy the ride.
​
Email subscribers can watch our journey here.

In my view, training and playing with my dog are synonymous. Training should be fun for both participants. The most mundane of tasks can be made into a “training game” with a little bit of creativity. Playing with my dog can also morph into a covert training session that she is ecstatic to participate in.
 
Whenever I play, I try to have guidelines that my dog needs to follow. It’s not as regimented as it may sound. How many games do we play that have rules that need to be followed that enhance the fun? Even the most basic of games have some guidelines: count to ten before chasing, then when you’re tagged, you’re it!
 
When I think about it, even spontaneous rough and tumble with my dog has certain guidelines such as “bite me very softly, not hard” or “dodge me, don’t slam into my legs” to keep it fun. The play spontaneously stops if these rules are broken because I’m no longer having fun!
 
Some of the guidelines I apply when playing fetch or tug with my dog are:
 
1.  "Wait" patiently for the game to begin - don’t help yourself to the toy from my hand
2.  "Sit” to ask to start the game – I like this to be automatic, not asked for by me every time
3.  Game starts when you hear “OK” or “Tug”
4. “Give” the toy into my hand, don’t drop it at my feet or 2 metres away
5. “Find” a dropped object
6. “Leave” a toy, no matter how enticing. At a more advanced level, leave it even if you are chasing it

I have no problem with playing tug with a dog. If you teach a dog the rules, there is no problem with aggression or over-arousal. I don't understand the advice to never let the dog win either. It's a win-win game when you play with your dog. When you say "give", the dog gives and then the game starts again when you say the word. It's darn fun!

​​I was dismayed to read a negative comment on both videos. It went a little something like:
 
I came here to see how to train my dog not to chase birds. My dogs go crazy at the sight of birds. All you are doing is showing how good your dogs are. No one cares about that. Waste of time.
 
Always one to take on board {constructive} criticism in an attempt to improve communication, I went back to review the videos. Had I not made it clear that I was actually teaching? Reviewing the videos I realized that to anyone new to dog training or used to added punishment or forceful techniques requiring unpleasant {aversive} stimulation, it did indeed look like I was doing nothing and just showing off how the dogs didn’t chase the birds. The dogs didn’t even seem to want to chase them.
 
This set me to pondering; how I could get the message across that a viewer was actually watching a carefully planned training session? That I was actively involved in changing the behaviour of these two dogs from the moment the video began. Maybe I should have shown a “before” shot of the dogs going crazy and chasing the birds. My train of thought stopped dead in its tracks right there!
 
One of the most important principles when changing behaviour is preventing the undesired behaviour from occurring in the first place. Any behaviour that is practised and reinforced gets stronger. In a practical sense it means if a dog is given the opportunity to continue chasing birds, no matter how infrequently, it will make changing this behaviour a little harder than if it had been consistently prevented. I make a conscious decision to only get “before” footage in any or a combination of the following situations:
 
* It is safe to do so.
* I need a baseline that I have never seen before.
* I need to test a hypothesis of whether intervention will work.
* I am prepared to work a bit harder during training to counter the consequence of this rehearsal of the undesired behaviour.
 
For these two dogs, chasing birds was highly reinforcing. I wanted the best chance of getting good results so I chose not to put them in a situation where chasing would occur. Another consideration I had was that I had worked lovingly and consistently to gain the trust of the Willie Wagtails. I was now able to use them to help me during dog training. Being chased by a crazy dog is very stressful. I did not want to undo the wonderful progress I had made getting them to come to me on cue, nor did I want to cause them any undue stress. Hence – no “before” footage. It also means I'm not prepared to deliberately let each dog fail {chase the birds} by making it unnecessarily challenging early during training in order to demonstrate that they really want to chase! Viewers will just have to picture Zoe, the Cocker Spaniel, launching onto the outdoor table to chase the Willie Wagtails. Likewise, my reports of Scout, the Black Lab puppy, lunging and barking like a banshee after birds will have to suffice.
 
You may be wondering about the title of this blog by now. It doesn’t seem to have anything to do with surfing!
 
The training in the videos certainly looks like two dogs who didn’t chase birds in the first place. It was Zoe’s first session and Scout’s second. In terms of effectiveness, no barking and chasing ticks the box. In regard to ethics and humane practice, the lack of physical or psychological intimidation, another tick. This is due to being a teacher who S.U.R.F.S with dogs (and other animals).

From the moment I decided to help the dogs stop chasing birds, I was formulating a plan to give them the best possible chance of succeeding quickly and without frustration. The plan went something like this:

 * Prevent all bird chasing at any time, not just training sessions. Keep dogs inside when Willie Wagtails come to visit. Check for Willies before letting the dogs out the back. Have the dogs on lead when going out the front. Be constantly vigilant, ready to run the dogs inside if I see the Willies before they do.
 
* Choose an alternative behaviour to chasing, lunging and barking at birds. For Scout this was to look at me or look at the birds in place of chasing them. For Zoe it was to stay on a chair. It needs to be easy. Too hard and it makes chasing the birds the chosen option. A behaviour that is already in the dog’s repertoire can make training quicker. Scout was used to looking at me for reinforcement so this was a head start. Zoe chose the chair and was more relaxed there, so I utilized this.
 
* Choose a reinforcer that will be more reinforcing or at least of equal reinforcement value to the birds. This was really interesting and challenging and one of the reasons I made Zoe’s video. Scout would work for dry kibble. Zoe wouldn’t touch roast chicken when birds were around but she would stop everything for a scratch and a silly word! Go figure. It’s the individual who tells you what they find reinforcing at any particular point in time.
 
* Set up the environment {antecedent arrangement} to achieve immediate success. In Zoe’s case, she could resist the birds for longer if she was sitting in a chair. If she was standing, it was a very quick transition to chasing. For Scout, she needed the lead on at first and I needed to stand close to her, even blocking her view as soon as the birds were present and asking for her to look at me. The environment includes the birds: they need to be further away at first. It’s easier {more economical} to get reinforcement from me than run the distance after the birds. Dogs do what works and will choose the easier of two options if the reinforcement value is comparable.
 
* Choose a high rate of reinforcement at first to make it worthwhile to just watch the birds. I’m talking once every three seconds. I’m talking reinforcement for just glancing at the bird for a microsecond. I’m talking, if I see your ear prick up towards the sound of the bird, I’m reinforcing. If I waited too long and was stingy with food or scratches, both dogs might as well try to chase.
 
* Change the environment and increase difficulty of the task when the dogs demonstrate they will succeed. A stationary bird 10m away is easier to resist than a stationary bird right in front of a dog’s nose. A moving bird is often harder to resist chasing than a stationary bird. I stopped using the lead almost immediately with Scout and had it loose just for safety. Eventually I used a 10m lead so she could walk away from me and choose to come back instead of chasing the birds. For Zoe, having her sit on the ground instead of the chair was making it harder for her. Then having her stand would be making it more difficult. Each subject will let you know what they find harder or easier. It is the teacher’s role to tailor the plan to meet the learner’s needs at any particular time.
 
* Keep the rate of reinforcement high when making the task more difficult – or I may lose the dog to the original reinforcer. This doesn’t mean I will always need a high rate of reinforcement. Once I have trained the dog to a high level, the reinforcement can be changed. This may mean I still reinforce continuously but can use lower value reinforcement. For example, I can praise Scout now when she looks at birds and give her a pat and she responds to this. In the early stages of teaching, this would not have been the case.
 
* Maintain the behaviour. Give refresher training sessions. Randomly reinforce excellent behaviour with an unexpected, high value reinforcer. Continue using more natural reinforcers in everyday life e.g. attention, praise, play, physical contact, access to sniffing. This keeps the behaviour going. However, if I consistently ignore the dogs when they look at me or the birds, eventually they may revert to another behaviour that does pay off. Probably barking and chasing again.
 
I’ve resigned myself to the fact that I didn’t make a movie depicting a riveting, edge-of-your-seat, battle of wills fight against two crazy dogs straining to tear after birds. Instead I shared a moment in time of thoughtfully planned training devoid of frustration. No frustration for the trainer, trainee or the feathered helpers. It was also two snapshots that filled me with joy: to have the birds engage without fear and the dogs succeed so quickly.
 
Enough of my musings! Now that I’ve given a backstory to what is going on, what do you see happening in the videos?

I've included a third video showing Scout's progress and how she responds to verbal cues to come away from the birds and shows little interest in them now.

Video links for email subscribers:
​https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qDwN2ZtgbAY

Scout is learning to give. We have training sessions where I set up easy scenarios for her to give me things. I reinforce this relinquishment with something more reinforcing than the original object. For Scout, this is often food. We’ve got to the point where she is 80-90% reliable in giving me something during training and inside at random times.

I have phased out food in these instances and reinforce the behaviour of giving using praise, petting and cuddles or a quick game of fetch. It’s always good stuff. I’ve made myself pretty epic to hang around with and I’ve made the consequence of “giving” always, ALWAYS, enjoyable.

The challenge is when she pilfers something and doesn’t care to offer it up when asked. This often happens when I’m not expecting it. On these occasions it seems the object is usually something novel or a favourite chewing substance that is more desirable than anything I can offer. Well, almost anything. I have a sneaky trick. If she chooses not to come, I remove the one thing she values fairly highly. At the risk of sounding terribly conceited, the thing she enjoys more than almost anything else is me.

I disappear for a few seconds, saying “Bye Bye” or “I’m going” and I go inside or to another room. Sometimes I hide behind something so she can’t see me. Almost without fail she notices my absence and will follow and give the object; “Don’t go. Here, you wanted this? Now stay and play with me.” If I’ve gone inside, when I go back outside, she usually comes and gives easily. I can then reinforce this behaviour by giving her more time enjoying the most wonderful thing ever: Yep, that’d be my company.

One of the worst things I could do in these situations is start chasing her to reclaim the object. This would lead to a fun game of chasey that is likely to be repeated on subsequent occasions. If I approached this situation in anger and she dropped the object out of fear or intimidation, or because I’d caught her by the collar and forced her, the chance of her letting me near her again in a similar situation may diminish in the future. She may run faster, hide or retaliate in some way e.g. snarl, try to protect the object from being removed. I may successfully get her to give me things in this way – but the bond I have with her will be slightly diminished each time I use these techniques. It will be marred by the fear of my approach and any “giving” will be motivated by intimidation rather than joyful expectation.

One of the wonderful benefits of reinforcing desired behaviours and doing this routinely during everyday activities is that YOU become a source of all good things. You are predictable. You are fun to be around. You are the best thing ever. Doing what you ask is a pleasure, not a chore because you always say “Thank You” in some way (food, praise, a game, a cuddle, a walk, a sniff, access to good stuff).

There is a downside to this sneaky trick. Times it won’t work are if:

* there is not a strong history of playing, spending mutually enjoyable time with your dog or training using positive reinforcement of desired behaviours. Without this history you may not have developed a relationship where you are the best thing since sliced bread. If your dog fancies lots of other stuff in preference to your company, your disappearance will mean naught. The amount of energy and engagement required to develop this relationship will vary depending on the individual dog. For Scout, I have to admit, it’s pretty easy because she has a natural affinity for people and seeks engagement readily. With Zuri, my Rhodesian Ridgeback, I had to earn the privilege of being highly desired above other enticing distractions: a role I never take for granted.

*  there is a strong history of punishing your dog for undesired behaviours. In this case, your dog may be relieved that you have disappeared so that they can have unbridled fun with the contraband. If you have become associated with punishment, your disappearance heralds the disappearance of the threat of punishment. It’s not rocket science.

As an aside, I’ve heard an argument that reinforcing “giving” in this way leads to an increase in stealing behaviour. If you plan your training, have developed a mutually satisfying relationship with your dog (e.g. they are not attention seeking because you fulfil this need), are proactive instead of reactive, have good timing and know exactly what you are reinforcing, this should not happen. It actually decreases criminal behaviour! One reason it may happen is if you only “trade” with your dog for an object when they steal it and at no other time. You are actually teaching your dog that the only way to get your attention and something desirable is by nicking things first. That is an error of application, not a failure of the training principle involved.

Here’s my disappearing trick in action: https://youtu.be/q2jFWY1pVw8

I'm teaching Zuri to feel comfortable wearing a muzzle.  If there is an emergency and she is in pain or under great stress, it may be a wise choice. If she is already under duress, the last thing I want to do is suddenly shove a plastic grill she's never seen before onto her face. This will only increase her stress levels.

Everything was going really well until I changed the location of the training as well as her position from lying to standing. She indicated that she wasn't doing so well in this new scenario.

It's my responsibility as teacher to listen to her and modify the plan if she is having trouble with it. Training should be fun for both of us. If the fun-factor disappears, I need to get it back as quickly as possible. If I don't, at best, reaching my teaching goals will be slow, inefficient and devoid of enthusiasm on the part of  my pupil. At worst, Zuri may develop a dislike of the particular training task leading to avoidance or escape and even fear of the muzzle when it is presented.

So what did I do? I stopped trying to make her move whilst wearing the muzzle. All she had to do was stand for a few seconds with it on and I fed her. Back to how we began on the bed. I then kept it on for longer and longer before I asked her to move. When I did ask for movement, I chose a task she knew really well and enjoyed: Touch. She didn't have to move her body, just her head so her nose touched the palm of my hand. Very quickly this transitioned to her being able to move a step to touch and then follow me a few steps to touch without showing signs of discomfort. Soon she was spinning when asked and even of her own accord!

And now for my unfortunate analogy: https://youtu.be/Vp85lVTgTFo

If you would like to see a video tutorial of how I started teaching Zuri to enjoy wearing a muzzle, let me know in the comments section.

Scout, the six month old black Labrador puppy, came to stay for a while. Her integration into the household relied heavily on Zuri’s reaction to having a new housemate. I wrote about how Zuri’s behaviour changed when Turbo the foster greyhound came to stay. Turbo and Zuri just didn’t hit it off. No fights. No major stand offs. Zuri never relaxed during his stay. After nine weeks, they still had not played.

The minute Scout arrived, I set about choreographing daily life to give Zuri and Scout the best possible chance of getting along. Scout is a wiggly, in-yah-face, barky, playful ball of exuberance. At all hours. In all places. Zuri is calm, respectful of space and prefers to observe before making an acquaintance. Good Lordie, what was I thinking trying to bring these two together? I was counting on past experiences and knowing that Zuri does enjoy the company of other dogs – given the right circumstances. Once she feels confident (safe?), she plays with joyful gusto.

So our dance began:

* Baby gates.

* Closed doors.

* Separate feeding.

* Tethering Scout (whilst I was present) to prevent unwanted advances on Zuri.

* Occupying Scout with alternatives to accosting Zuri (treat dispensers, Treat and Train, carrots to chew, training sessions, car rides, shopping trips, one-on-one time).

* Routines, routines, routines. For example, when coming home with Scout, leaving her in the car while I greet Zuri first minus a bouncing puppy, then bringing Scout inside on lead.

* Avoiding situations where Scout-the-Ninja would come out of nowhere to an unsuspecting, sleepy Ridgeback (especially in hallways, doorways and any transition areas).

* Reinforcing for any pro-social behaviours Zuri showed around Scout e.g. looking at Scout, simply entering the room if Scout was already in there, coming outside if Scout was there, standing still if Scout began sniffing her. It was a most vigorous schedule of Differential Reinforcement of Other (DRO) behaviours, instead of avoidance and escape. It had no other outcome but to make hanging out with Scout a cool idea. Zuri even started coming out the back on Scout’s toilet stops.

* Reinforcing any ‘polite’ behaviours Scout showed towards Zuri e.g. looking at her briefly (instead of staring or nose bopping), coming away immediately when called, waiting patiently while Zuri was fed a treat before getting hers. Again, a really high rate of reinforcement for a wide variety of desired behaviours. This was also done on lead at first to prevent Scout practising unwanted behaviours and to protect Zuri, giving her no need to seek escape or take other action. The lead was removed when Scout became more reliable.

We had some accidents. Zuri was dive bombed by a Kamikaze puppy in the narrow, dark hallway when a door was opened. Zuri's sleep-in was rudely interrupted by a whirlwind of puppy playfulness bombarding the bed. I learnt from these incidents to be more careful with the ‘zones’ and to prevent incidents rather than go into damage control after the fact.

After eight days, no signs of reciprocal play were in sight. The longest it had taken Zuri to play with a new house guest in the past had been four days. I tried to think of all the things in the environment that may have been different with these other dogs compared to Scout (and Turbo). One difference was that the other houseguests, except for Turbo, had slept in their crate in our bedroom. Maybe a simple change in the environment, bringing Scout from the laundry into the bedroom to sleep, might have an effect. So I tried it. 

Did all this have any effect? On the 12th day, after four nights sleeping in the bedroom, Scout and Zuri broke into spontaneous play out in the front yard. Maybe it was just the extra time. Or maybe it was actually precipitated by the sleeping arrangement: Zuri being able to see, hear and smell Scout in a relaxed environment for a prolonged period with no chance of ambush. Was a positive association being made in a safe environment? Maybe it was the ample space out the front. Maybe it was a combination of any or all of these, or some I haven't even thought of.

I hadn’t planned the play and was simply teaching Scout on a long lead while Zuri was wandering around getting her random treats for being in the presence of the crazy black dog. I was ecstatic! Mutual play is an excellent sign that two dogs are going to get along. It must be mutual. Many dogs look like they are playing when in fact one is trying to escape or avoid the contact of an insistent partner. What was even more impressive was how beautifully Scout modified her play style to suit Zuri’s preference. It meant she was listening to Zuri’s signals and adjusting. Scout is a barker and a head banger: every time she barked or banged her nose into Zuri, Zuri turned away, looked away or paused. Scout soon realized that play was more continuous if she didn’t bark into Zuri’s face or bulldoze her. They both loved to chase and run, to play bitey-face with well controlled bite inhibition and to wrestle. They both took breaks and mirrored each other with a shake off. Scout was actually better at being recalled from play than Zuri. I must work on that!  Email subscribers can watch here.

The interesting thing was that Zuri would still not engage in play out the back or inside. There could be any number of reasons for this. I focused on continuing to create positive associations (especially in these areas), reinforcing for desired behaviours, keeping Scout sleeping in the bedroom and providing deliberate opportunities for play out the front once or twice a day. The next video shows that it was pretty tense in the lounge room initially.

On day 19 they broke out into play in the back yard. Only for a few seconds, yet my heart leapt. The breakthrough came later that day inside, when Scout’s play stares were answered with a play bow from Zuri and it was on. It was cautious at first, with Zuri looking at me often when Scout was getting too rough – which melted my heart because it seemed as if she was seeking my assistance. I helped settle things in a light-hearted way rather than by yelling or saying “no” – I wanted them to enjoy play, not superimpose the threat of anything aversive from me when they were playing. So I would pause the play with a recall or by distracting Scout with a butt scratch or by throwing a toy, or simply letting Zuri hide behind me until she was ready to resume. The whole experience needed to be as enjoyable and stress-free as possible. Email subscribers can watch here.

I set up opportunities for inside and outside play every day at times I knew would be most conducive. Not first thing in the morning. Scout is a morning puppy. Zuri likes a sleep-in. Each play session became less cautious and lasted longer. I still felt the need to supervise. Any play between dogs can be very arousing with the risk of tipping over into aggression. Scout gets very excited and sometimes doesn’t stop when Zuri tries to disengage. Since it was early days, I wanted to referee until they had more practice self-regulating. They even let me join in sometimes. How cool is that? Scout was back in the laundry after ten days of bedroom privileges. There was an added advantage to the time in the bedroom that transferred to the laundry. I’ll save that for the next blog.

All in all, I was overjoyed to witness them playing – even if the lounge looked like a pillow cannon had gone off! Compatible play bodes well for a more relaxed cohabitation in a two-dog household. Scout seemed calmer. She even chewed less. Zuri seemed less tense and was around more. It also meant that if I couldn't be bothered taking them for a walk, I could palm them off with, "Go play with your sister!"

It's funny ‘coz it’s true. Training (or conditioning) is something that occurs 24/7, whether one is aware of it or not. For this reason I incorporate training aims into the mundane, everyday tasks of life. I really enjoy doing this. Things like asking Zuri to wait at doorways, all doorways, before going out. Also waiting before jumping out of the car, eating food, or removing the lead to allow play. The reinforcement for waiting at all these times is gaining access to something she wants: the great outdoors, food, and play. When I could see this becoming problematic at times – it increased her arousal so that she didn’t pay any attention to me once released – I worked on teaching her to ‘check-in’ with me after being released, instead of just running off. You can see the ‘check-in' here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J24ycE8AFtU

I love applying the principles of behavioural science to training other species as well. Just for fun. Just because I enjoy interacting with animals. Take the resident Willie Wagtails. Over a few months I have taught them to come on cue: the signal being my outstretched finger or hand. Then I taught them to stay longer on my hand. They took me by surprise and even flew in to pose for a New Year’s Eve photo. However, I noticed that when I had dogs come to stay, the Willies were hesitant to come and land. This prompted me to teach them not to be so fearful of various dogs that came to visit whilst I was present. Never in my wildest dreams would I have imagined that all this time spent playing with birds would have a most practical application. 

Scout, the assistance dog puppy, has come to stay. Wouldn’t you know it, she loves to chase moving objects. Birds definitely fit that category. Here’s the wonderful part. All the times the Willies and I have played together safely around strange dogs has culminated in them gaining a confidence to approach and land on my finger with dogs present. When I took Scout outside to do some training and the Willies flew in to visit, Scout was enthralled. She lunged after them with gusto. The Willies were unperturbed and still flew near and tried to land on my hand. I immediately changed my training plan and decided to teach Scout a new task: not to chase the birds. To do this I needed to give her something else to do which paid off big time. Scout practised her new behaviour of sitting watching instead of chasing them no matter what they did. Since the Willies came and stayed on cue, I could use them as distractions in a very controlled and  safe way. It worked beautifully within seconds. I had the presence of mind to run inside and grab the video camera. Who  knows when an opportunity like this may come again? https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iVE9k2f83T4

The moral of the story? The meme about wasting time training has so many more applications than we first imagine. I use it with Zuri in everyday life because it makes our life together more harmonious. I extended it to spending immensely enjoyable time with my backyard friends and enhancing my training skills on wild animals who could leave at any time. The fact that I was then able to use this history of conditioning to help teach Scout impulse control was an added and unexpected bonus. Definitely none of it time wasted.

A common complaint that comes up with puppies who are first learning to walk on lead is that they bite, chew and tug the lead as soon as it is put on. It’s not a problem limited to puppies either. Many full grown dogs have the same habit. Some people get around the problem by using a metal chain that’s not pleasant to chew. Or by spraying something nasty tasting onto the lead. Or by punishing the behaviour with a leash jerk, a choke with a choker collar or a raised voice. I like to approach the problem by first assessing when and why this behaviour might occur.

Reasons may include that:

* it’s reinforcing. Puppies explore with their mouths and many leads seems to feel good to chew. The attention a dog gets when they start chewing may also be reinforcing: the dog gets looked at, spoken too, touched to the point that trying to retrieve the lead from his mouth becomes a super-fun game of tug. If it wasn’t reinforcing, a dog wouldn’t continue to do it.

* it’s due to frustration. It may be a displacement or replacement behaviour. If a dog cannot access something they want, they may turn on the lead which is restricting them and chew in response.

* it’s a response to something a dog wishes to escape or avoid. They may desperately chew on the lead that is preventing escape.

I choose to introduce a behaviour that replaces the biting and pays off more. If the reason is due to frustration, I provide an alternative behaviour in conjunction with teaching the dog some impulse control in an environment in which he can succeed. It is not effective or efficient to attempt teaching a dog who is already frustrated. For fearful dogs I avoid putting them in the situations that trigger the escape/avoidance response whilst working on helping them overcome the fears in a controlled and safe environment.

My ethos is that training should enhance the relationship between the dog and guardian. For this reason, I avoid punishment-based techniques to stop the behaviour after it has already occurred. Punishment has side effects. The type and intensity of the fallout becomes evident only after the damage has been done. Further, it is generally much harder to reverse than it is to cause. I value the human-dog relationship too much to risk gambling with such consequences.
 
I label many training tasks as games. I do this deliberately because games should be;

a) mutually enjoyable,
b) a vehicle for building positive relationships, and
c) a fun way to learn practical skills.

When has playing games been boring or time wasted with friends? Of course, each individual must enjoy the actual game chosen. It's not truly relationship building if only one party is enjoying it. So it should be with our dogs. I add another proviso; games with our dogs should be win-win. There is no loser when teaching your dog in this way. You will choose to teach your dog skills which will be beneficial and your dog will be reinforced with something he values and enjoys. A relationship of trust is another wonderful outcome.

The “Don’t Chew The Lead Game” and “Drop The Slack Lead Game” are two of my favourite ways to prevent lead chewing and tugging. The emphasis is on prevention by setting the dog up for successfully choosing an alternative behaviour before he bites. If he gets distracted and starts chewing, the “Drop The Lead Game” then gives an alternative behaviour rather than continuing to chew or tug. No force is required and no raised voice.

Here’s some handy extra hints:

* If your dog starts chewing as soon as the lead is clipped on (or before), start the game earlier. Simply show your dog the lead and reinforce for the behaviour of staying still, sitting or just looking at the lead rather than jumping up to bite it. Only clip the lead on when you know your dog won’t bite it. If your dog won't give you an alternative behaviour when you are showing the lead, problem solve why this might be. 
Is he looking for one second before jumping? Anticipate this and work on your timing. Click that look and get the treat to his mouth before he can leave the ground. 
Is the lead too close to him? Hold it higher. 
Does movement make him jump? Hold the lead still. 
Is he grabbing the end of a dangling lead? Fold the lead up and show him, so there are no dangly bits.

* Deliver food directly into your dog’s mouth or onto the ground as this will prevent your dog jumping up. This helps prevent jumping to get the lead as well.

* Avoid letting your dog chew the lead at other times. Avoid putting him in situations where he does chew to get quicker and more robust results.

Here’s a video showing how I approached teaching Yoda the kelpie and Abby the labrador not to chew and tug the lead.

Yoda and Abby simply found chewing and tugging reinforcing. The principles are the same for every dog, but the process itself may need to be modified slightly for each individual. This may include how quickly you progress through the stages or how small you have to break down each increase when raising difficulty.

I hope this helps you in devising a plan for preventing this behaviour. Most of all, I hope this increases the fun-factor for you and your dog.

Turbo is a greyhound I am fostering. Greyhounds in Western Australia need to wear a muzzle by law, unless they undergo a behaviour assessment and are "Green Collar" assessed. Turbo has undergone this assessment and passed, but because I am not his final home, he still needs to wear a muzzle when out with  me in public. I noticed he didn't like to put the muzzle on, so I set myself the task of making him enjoy putting the muzzle on.

It's a great idea to teach dogs to wear new things like muzzles before they ever need to wear one. This helps associate it with being enjoyable, rather than a cue for unpleasant things happening. It's a really handy skill for all dogs to have; even the friendliest dog may bite if they are severely injured and in a lot of pain and discomfort. Knowing how to wear a muzzle before hand makes having to wear one in an emergency no drama at all, where as not having that skill just adds another stressor onto an already unpleasant situation.

I really enjoyed making this video. My objectives were to:

1) encourage guardians to listen to their dogs, even when they speak 'quietly',

2) promote positive reinforcement of desired behaviours rather than using force to get behaviours,

3) demonstrate how mundane training tasks can transform into fun games and quality time for trainer and trainee, and

4) improve human-dog relationships through all of the above.

Please help me spread this message by sharing this blog and video.

To adopt Turbo contact: Greyhounds as Pets

Another milestone has been reached with crate training. Turbo finds company, attention and physical contact more reinforcing than food. In a practical sense this means if I walk out of a room, he will stop eating to come follow me and would rather stay where I am than return to the food.

Well, he used to.

I am teaching him that it's OK for him to be alone and not to follow me abso-jolly-lutely everywhere. In baby steps, with small amounts of time and with the help of the Treat and Train®. I resist petting when he follows and solicits me for attention; this will only reinforce his shadowing behaviour and make him pushy for attention. I am selective and save it for reinforcement of any other desired behaviour, such as when he's resting in his crate or doesn't follow me to another room or doesn't jump. He's such a softy, so it 'aint easy not to cave in and cuddle him whenever he asks, but it's worth it. Some of the benefits include:

1. It will improve his emotional wellbeing i.e. less distress at being alone.

2. It will enhance his confidence.

3. It will subsequently increase his adoptability.

4. It also gives me some space when I need it.

Just as an aside, here’s an example of how caving in to Turbo’s requests for attention and petting may prove detrimental in the long run. When friends come over, Turbo loves to say hello by nudging them and putting his head in their lap. If they oblige him by scratching his ears and rubbing his head, he stays there. If they stop, he nudges again. If they don’t resume, he proceeds to nudge more and may try to hop up onto their lap, because obviously they are not getting the subtle message. If they start laughing, he loves this and snuggles up closer. Once you let him know you are a push over, you have a very large lap dog! Cute? Well, yeh….until he asks at inopportune times and then you have to physically remove him (because he doesn’t know “off” yet) and he keeps trying because, hey, you usually let him do this. However, with me, because I am consistent and avoid giving him a pat when he nudges, he comes up and waits patiently for me to engage. It never gets to the point where he is pushy or tries to become a lap dog. He learns that waiting gets him what he wants with me. One of my favourite catch phrases is, “Our behaviour can change a dogs behaviour”. So the same dog can behave very differently with two individuals.

I'm one of those people who is guilty of taking photos of my dog with a silly hat on. I get great pleasure out of getting a neat shot of Zuri with a hat that corresponds to a special occasion and sharing it. Getting good shots of a dog with a silly hat can be no mean feat. If you approach it the right way, it is amazingly easy and can be enjoyable for both photographer and subject. For me, it must cause no or very minimal signs of stress in Zuri. Here's a sneak peak into how I capture adorable shots of Zuri. She's such a good sport. (Video link for email subscribers)  

I mention the "trust account" that I have with Zuri. Below is a video by Dr Susan Friedman which describes this trust account beautifully. (Video link for email subscribers)