Archive for the ‘Communication’ Category

Body Language: Hip Nudge

Tuesday, August 2nd, 2011

Hip Nudge (2)The Hip Nudge is an often misunderstood signal. Many people would look at this and through the “dominance goggles” and see a dog trying to control the resource of space and push the other dog out of the way with her hip.

But in the context of the situation this isn’t what was actually happening. These two dogs had just met and were getting to know each other. The dog on the left had cropped ears (thanks to some scissors) and a docked tail. Although she was very friendly with other dogs, sometimes other dogs couldn’t read her friendly intentions because of her “alternations”.

Watching these two meet each other and interact was a lot of fun. Since the traditional fast tail wag was out of the question, there was a lot of “shake offs”, yawning, and excitement bordering on over stimulation (piloerection). But these two soon realized the other’s friendly signals and started to play. The dog on the right however, still mildly concerned (because of Zoe’s cropped ears?) that maybe Zoe was too intense, so throughout the game she would “hip nudge”.

Hip Nudging is an “appeasement” behavior, signally friendly intentions and usually the communication is something like “I like you, do you like me?”

Dogs will hip nudge each other and humans that they like as well. This is not a  “dominance” behavior because there is not competition for a resource. Is it attention seeking? Yes! Can it become obnoxious? Yes again (just look at Zoe’s face, she is tired of being nudged)! If your dog is constantly Hip nudging you, then maybe she is feeling a little insecure, or maybe she has learned it is a good way of getting attention. If she does it occasionally, then take it for what it is, your dog likes you!

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Territorial or Anxiety? Does it Matter?

Tuesday, July 12th, 2011

DSC_2476I have had a number of cases where someone is fed up because their dog is regularly peeing around the house. A few things strike me as similar in these cases.

First: The  issue has been going on for some time.

Second: The family feels as if the dog is doing it “deliberately” (I think they mean “maliciously”).

Third: They just got a new ——-. Fill in the blank with; sofa, rug, shoes, duvet…etc. And the dog has either already christened it, or they are desperately trying to prevent such an action.

Keep in mind that these are not normally puppies, they are 8 months-7 + years old and have regular incidents either everyday or at least once a week for months if not years. Frankly there is an issue if you dog is more than 6 months old and still house soiling regularly (I italicized regularly as there is always an exception for dogs who have been rehomed and such).

So, is it territorial? Is your dog trying to get one over on you and “own” the house in your absence? (Usually the incidents occur when no one is around to see).  Or is it some sort of mild separation anxiety? Maybe your dog is anxious so pees out of fear of being left alone? Or maybe a “pack leader” issue of him being stressed that you have left the house without him and you are in some sort of danger?

These are all interesting and possibly true explanations. But does it matter? I tend to think it matters very little.

If it is territorial peeing than we need to manage the environment to break the habit and create a new better behavior to take its place. In the process of this we will hopefully learn a little more about the dog/human relationship involved and make adjustments to communication, leadership issues and relieve some anxiety the situation is causing the family (including the dog).

If it is anxiety peeing than we need to manage the environment to break the habit and create a new better behavior to take its place. In the process of this we will hopefully learn a little more about the dog/human relationship involved and make adjustments to communication, leadership issues and relieve some anxiety the situation is causing the family (including the dog).

I think you can see the pattern.

It is alright to look at an observable behavior and try to understand why it might be happening. That is absolutely necessary for cross speciesEddie (3) relationship building. But ultimately unnecessary to actually solve the immediate problem of regular, non medical, house soiling.

I find a good portion of a session is discussing why the behavior, while deliberate, is probably NOT malicious. The dog is not doing it to “get back at you” for going out late.

Look into your dog’s eyes, is he really angry at you, or is that just a projection of your own feelings at the time? It is funny to me that someone can be so close to their dog is then so willing to assume the worst intentions. Please remember that your dog is not like Jaykel and Hyde, he does not suddenly become a malicious peeing monster and take revenge on you for letting the cat sleep on your bed. He is the same dog, just isn’t making very appropriate decisions right now.

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Being the “Pack Bully”

Tuesday, July 5th, 2011

I started reading books on wolf behavior because of all the talk about “Wolf Pack Theory” this is the general idea (not an actual Scientific Theory) that you can predict your dogs behavior based on how wolves act.

This idea is propagated by various well known dog trainers like Jan Fennell, and Caesar Milan. (Although they seem to interpret dog behavior in the same way, they have very different methods of responding to it).

Some of the major themes of this idea; You need to “show your dog who is boss” usually by domination tactics and physical corrections like the infamous “Alpha Roll”, you need to be a “Pack Leader” and act aloof, confident and calm in his presence always so as not to lose your rank, you must never let your dog on the couch, your bed, or walk through doorway first.

All of these themes are based on observations that came from ethologists in the “field” in the 1970’s. Here is where the idea falls apart.

In the 1970’s Wolves were extremely hard to observe in their natural environment. Partly because they were almost extinct and were very hard to find. When they were found they were still hard to track. The technology used to track animals in the wild was cumbersome and often broke. So most of these observations were taken by wolves that were either wild caught, or raised by humans and observed in their “home” territory (a large fenced section).  You can see now how this breaks down down. The wolves were not actually being observed in a natural way. They were not among blood relatives and they did not have 100,000’s of acres to roam. It is no wonder really that they were seen as territorial and rank focused.

“The Wolf: His Place in the Natural World” by Erik Zimen, Published in 1981 is one of these books whose author, through necessity, had to focus most of his research on human raised, captive wolves, from various bloodlines. Although he does seem to realize this problem and endeavours to find wolves in the wild to study as well.

One of the really interesting points he makes is on page 208

“It was not superior young wolves who left the pack because of their competition with the alpha animal, as had often been claimed, but inferior animals; and leadership of the pack was “democratic” rather than “authoritarian”. DSC_0280

Wow, just wow.

He wrote this in 1981, how is it that the vast majority of the dog owning population still feels it is necessary to “pull rank” on their dogs, when as observed by Zimen in the 70’s that wolves in fact DON’T act this way!

30 years later it is time for a change to the “traditional” way of understanding and interacting with our dogs. It is not all about being a “Pack Bully” but being a role model for how we want our dogs to behave. If we bully them, that is how they learn to act with other dogs and other members of their human family (toddlers watch out!).

Lets take a step back from “Wolf Pack Theory” and start thinking rationally about our family canines. Dogs are dogs, not wolves. And even if they are like wolves, wolves are not what the majority of the population seems to think they are.

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Posted in Aggression, Book Review, Communication, Training Methods | 2 Comments »

Mine is Better than Yours!

Tuesday, June 21st, 2011

DSC_0345

Has your dog ever decided to get your attention by thieving something he shouldn’t?

Socks, plastic bags, rubbish from the bin, cushions from the couch….

I think we have all been there, especially with puppies but even older dogs who have realized that the “keep away” game is TONS of fun…for the dog.

The best way to prevent this behavior is not to buy into it! Puppy wants a game? How about the “Mine is better than yours” game!

“Mine is better than yours” has a few simple rules.

Scenario: Dog has taken a sock and shows it to you to entice you to chase him.

-Make eye contact but remain calm. Take an item of his and start petting it and giving IT all your attention. Make sure your dog sees this.

-Turn and walk away from your dog, find a corner and turn your back from him, watching him with your peripheral vision.

-If he drops the item, turn and praise him, offer him the item you have (if it is appropriate for him to play with). If you were only able to grab something that is not a “dog” item, then show him what you have but only let him sniff it, give him plenty of praise for dropping the sock!

-Keep in mind that if you use the same item every time and your management system fails regularly, he may not be as interested in what you have, as he has learned to expect it. Vary your items. If you only use items that you can’t give him to exchange, he also may learn not to be interested in ‘your’ item as he doesn’t get anything from the exchange.

We will talk about the benefits of “trading up” later!

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APDTNZ conference 2011- a synopsis

Tuesday, June 14th, 2011

Recent nasty cold/cough aside, I had a great time at the APDTNZ conference this year. The conference delegates ranged from all over New Zealand and included many dog trainers (of course) but there were also quite a few Veterinarians, Vet Techs, kennel workers, shelter and SPCA staff, all looking to brush up on their understanding of dog behavior and training. The subjects covered were engaging, current and even a little controversial!

Dr Gabrielle Carter started the conference with a great overview of the four quadrants of learning theory and why Positive Punishment is the least useful of quadrants for dog training. Basically Punishment works, but the fallout is so high and scientifically, the results so unpredictable that it is far better to stick with Positive Reinforcement and Negative Punishment.

Next Teresa Crich, director of DogPlay in Australia, discussed “The Role of Trust in Training”. This covered some great examples of dog communication through body language and how much of this communication is missed by their human caretakers, leading to distrust on both sides with usually bad results for the dog…

Nicki Cross, a Technical Advisor for MAF Animal Welfare Directorate, gave us all an overview of the recent changes in the animal welfare act that involves dog training nest practices, and the recent change to the status of prong or pinch collars. It is now a prosecutable offense to use these collars on your dogs, (about time).

In “What’s New Puppy Dog?” Teresa Crich walked us through a bunch of new dog toys on the market as well as many new items used for training.

Dr Gabrielle then returned to talk about Aggression in dogs. What is aggression, what is it used for, how is it affected by genetics and early learning experiences? She also discussed how brain chemistry and nutrition affect aggression and she covered different types of aggression such as; possessive, learned, predatory, fear, and on-leash aggression.

The second day of the conference was introduced by Jean Donaldson via Skype in the US. Donaldson discussed dog-dog bullying, how to identify it and how to address it.

Dr Carter came back to talk to us about fears and phobia. She discussed how to avoid your puppy becoming a fearful dog through early socialization to their environment and how genetics and later learning experiences can also affect a dog’s fear based behaviors. She specifically discussed Noise phobias and Separation Anxiety in dogs. Then covered many ways to prevent and treat these issues.

Teresa Crich talked more about play behaviors and how to avoid your dog becoming a bully while playing with other dogs. Also how important it is for YOU to play with your own dog to help with training, bonding and polite behaviors!

Dr Carter then finished off the second day of the conference with the most controversial subject of all. “Questioning Leadership”. This topic has been on my mind for some time, so I was very interested in hearing her thoughts. The new research with wolves and dogs has shown us that dogs are not in fact pack animals, their dog-dog relationships are actually much more fluid and independent. She talked about the original information that lead to  Dominance Theory and how it has now been shown to be based on flawed research. Carter also questioned if the term ‘leadership’ was very necessary (it isn’t) and how it means many different things depending on your training methods. Finally and most importantly, she went over what is necessary to teach dogs to make the right decisions when it comes to how they interact with their environment.

These subjects were all so interesting and enlightening! I am already looking forward to next year! And I will be sure to follow up this blog with deeper looks into each of these discussions.

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Posted in Animal Welfare, Body Language, Canine Ethics, Communication, Ethology, Health, learning, Training Methods | 3 Comments »

Calming Behaviours: Tongue Flick

Friday, May 13th, 2011

Blue- lip licking

Calming Behaviours are “out of context” behaviors that signal that the signaller is friendly or nervous. Basically a dog who is not looking for a fight.

One of the most common calming/anxiety signals is lip licking. This is a quick tongue flick that usually indicates nervousness and appeasement. It is usually accompanied by a slight head turn.

The tongue flick is presented out of context, that means your dog didn’t just eat a tasty meal!

I have frequently seen dogs tongue flick at their owners during group classes.  They read their owner’s excitement or frustration in their body language and tone, but either through lack of practice or unclear cues the dog doesn’t understand what the owner wants. In order to appease the owner the dog will tongue flick and head turn. Unfortunately most dog owners are not fluent in “caninese” and they interpret the dog’s actions as ignoring them. This frustrates them more and the dog gets a sharp tug on their collar. The dog is now even more anxious and confused and so continues to try to appease the owner through canine body language. You can see where this is going…

I have seen this so often that I decided to blog about it. Hopefully more owners will be aware that their dog is actually trying to communicate with them and they make an effort to learn a little “dog”. I have decided to make “Caninese” a regular topic so stay tuned for more body language blogs!

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Posted in Canine Ethics, Communication, learning, Methods | No Comments »