Midnight Dog Walking and Behavior Consultation + Training.

05/30/2022

04/24/2022

A blog about dogs, training and the emotional impact of living with reactive dogs.

02/24/2022

Know the signs of a force-free, ethical trainer versus one that is not...

📷 Dog Training Consultants (UK)

https://www.thecanineconsultants.co.uk/post/tv-dog-trainers-aren-t-magicians

11/25/2021

Happy cats and happy dogs, thanks to science. Companion Animal Psychology by Zazie Todd PhD is the trusted resource on your pet's behaviour

11/25/2021

A tired dog is not a good dog. How do you feel when you're tired??? Not your best self? Neither is your dog.

All too often we hear the phrase "a tired dog is a good dog", but that is a misconception that needs to stop. When you're tired, you're potentially grumpy, unable to process new things, easy to anger, easily frustrated, unable to do your normal activities as well as normal..... you're tired.

Well- when your dog is tired, they're showing the behaviours listed in the poster and so much more because they're what- TIRED.

Exercise, will not solve your dog's behavioural concerns, in fact it will often increase them. Why?? Physical exercise does not change emotions for triggers- it worsens them as the dog is unable to process their emotions like they can when they're not tired. It also doesn't change your dog's associations for the triggers again- it'll more than likely worsen them, as then your dog isn't their best selves when encountering the trigger, which then worsens their negative associations towards the trigger.

Exercise is fantastic, but like all things, you need to build your dog up gradually over time for exercise. Not take a puppy out for a random 3hr hike or intense jog -which would definitely hurt their growing joints, potentially causing lifelong physical damage and increase overarousal/mouthing behaviours!

A tired dog is not a good dog- it is a frustrated, exhausted, overaroused, overstimulated, reactive, - it is a dog whose emotional needs are not being met.

What is good -as all dogs are great? Meeting your dog's emotional needs.

Contact WFA to learn more about our group classes, in-person or virtual 1-1 classes, to learn how you can meet your dog's emotional needs.

11/07/2021

Who here has a little big dog? 😘

10/22/2021

Just a bit of Vega time ❤️

10/20/2021

Dogs communicate with body language. Learn how dogs use appeasement gestures, such as lip licking and yawning, to tell us how they're feeling.

10/20/2021

Canicross is running with your dog in a special harness. It is often done at a club and competitive level, and it can keep your dog happy and healthy

10/09/2021

She still has a solid rollover ❤️. I offer behaviour sessions to teach clicker training/behaviours or I can do them. It’s better for you to learn how for that bond to be intact though.

04/18/2021

They all just want to live their lives. 😘

03/25/2021

I had so much great feedback about my puppy biting post I thought I would elaborate a little bit more. These are only three tips but ones that hopefully can help someone out there that is struggling at the moment. Just remember that this phase will not last forever… I promise!

03/19/2021

🤯Aggression Ladder

🧐There is so much to behaviour than meets the eye. I often hear clients distressed, saying that their dog has never behaved this way and don’t understand where it’s come from and that they are normally so good. Obviously there are events that trigger behaviours but they don’t just come from nowhere, and can be prevented if you know what you’re looking at and know how to interpret it.

🙈When a dog behaves in a way that a human being finds inappropriate or rude, we forget that dogs are not human. They behave in a normal manner that’s natural for their species, and we as humans have unrealistic expectations of our dogs. We both ‘speak’ different languages. We mainly use vocalisation and dogs mainly use body language.

🎢The ladder of aggression is what can help you understand how a dog can escalate from what seems like a normal relaxed dog, to all of a sudden barking, growling, being reactive and biting.

🥺You may first notice your dog sending something called calming signals. This is not only to help them stay calm but to indicate to you that the dog is not a threat, and the messages the dog is sending should calm down a situation the dog is not ok with. This can be in the form of lip licking following a sneeze, excessive blinking, yawning, head turns and avoidance behaviours. These behaviours will appear out of context and are to ideally defuse a tense situation.

🖐If the messages the dog is sending are being ignored the next thing you may see are displacement behaviours. This is when the dog redirects their attention to something else so the don’t have to deal with the ‘scary thing’ or situation. It can be a form of a self soothing behaviour that can give the dog a moment of relief. It can be random ge***al checks, eating grass, randomly scratching, or over sniffing in the environment etc... The dog is now exhibiting stress signals.

😳The dog may now move to more intense behaviours if he/ she has not shut down and gone into a learnt state of helplessness. You may see your dog is barking and their breathing has rapidly increased. The dog most likely is trying to deter the threat. You may even notice the dog dips their head down, snarling with excessive lip licking. At this stage the tongue will be going right over the nose with every lick. The dog’s teeth may be bearing and even growling. In between these behaviours you may still notice more calming signals.

😤If the dog gets to the stage where their behaviour is highly reactive and they are lunging out, barking and growling, teeth bearing, snarling and or quite still in between while exhibiting these behaviours, then this is a dog who is completely over threshold and not coping. It’s their last resort before they follow with a bite. Their body is in overdrive and they are in fight mode as their other behaviours of freeze, fidget and flight did not work. The dog is in SURVIVAL mode and the next step is to bite to protect/ defend himself/ herself.

✌️Behaviours can escalate quickly. Within a blink of an eye, your dog can go from being ok to nervous to flight or fight. Identifying body language, facial expressions and signals is an incredibly important step in PREVENTING unwanted behaviours and making your dog feel safe.

02/10/2021

Understanding your dog's body language helps you to recognise how your dog is feeling and this enables you to meet their emotional and behavioural needs. It also makes training more effective and strengthens your bond with your dog. Would you like to understand your dog's body language?

We have a new workshop in our Skill Hub entitled Canine Communication: A Language of a Species. Check it out!
https://www.canineprinciples.com/course?courseid=canine-communication-webinar

We also offer an amazing Canine Communication Diploma Course.
https://www.canineprinciples.com/course?courseid=Canine-Communication-diploma

01/11/2021

07/14/2019

05/10/2019