Kelowna Puppies

10/12/2022

Hello friends, we will be posting more frequently on Instagram. Hope to see you there. canine.minds.and.manners

10/03/2022

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d2bI0xMJMec

09/18/2022

https://www.facebook.com/photo?fbid=553223623270540&set=a.508526774406892

09/11/2022

https://www.facebook.com/loveyourpawsvicki/posts/pfbid0xJBmzks8nUQLUPrEh8ebTzZd3sy8DPd2zup5AjoAGBpcXXjB2fHT7orPNFnSBXs5l

🤷🏻‍♀️😡 “Don’t worry, she’s not hurt, just frightened” 😡🤷🏻‍♀️

These are the words that were called over to a client of mine, whilst her dog (on lead) was crying & yelping in fear, as she was being ‘swamped’ by 2 much bigger dogs.

There is so much wrong with this, that it’s honestly hard to know where to begin. But here goes….

1. If a dog is on lead you shouldn’t allow your off lead dogs to approach. You don’t know why that dog is on lead - they may be recovering from surgery, frightened of other dogs, reactive towards dogs, elderly, deaf, blind, learning lead manners….

2. If you can’t recall your dogs away from another dog they shouldn’t be off lead in that environment.

3. Allowing 2 bigger dogs to ‘swamp’ another dog is not ok regardless of on lead or off lead, or the temperament of the dogs involved. It is rude & inappropriate.

4. Not attempting to call your dogs away from a dog who is crying out & yelling is inappropriate & rude.

5. Brushing it off by saying ‘she’s not hurt just frightened’ shows a complete lack of empathy, understanding of dogs and is extremely rude.

A frightening experience for any dog, of any age & any disposition can have long lasting negative consequences for that dog.

My client was left shaken, angry & deeply concerned for her dog; all completely understandable emotions following such an experience.

With the best will in the world, mistakes happen. Sometimes you don’t see an on lead dog approaching, your dog doesn’t recall when asked as they normally would, you’re distracted & not on the ball.

But IF that happens take responsibility.

Do what you can to get your dog away from the situation & on lead as quickly as possible.

Apologise & double check that the dog & owner are ok.

Don’t make excuses. Don’t brush it off. Chalk it up as an experience not to be repeated & put a training plan & management in place to ensure it doesn’t happen again.

And if you’re unsure how to do that? Then contact a local trainer to help you.

Are my client & her dog ok? Hopefully… after a day to calm down I’ve suggested meeting up with a known, friendly, pro social bigger dog with manners to help rebuild her confidence. She’s a well rounded, resilient, sociable dog so 🤞🏻 she’ll bounce back.

With thanks to Best Behaviour Dog Training for the great graphic.

08/30/2022

The first part of making dogs happy is learning more about them. These days, it's increasingly easy to find information about dogs and how to care for them. The trouble is that much of this information is erroneous and things are changing all the time as research into all aspects of dogs' behavior, cognition, and welfare continues apace. Given the poor quality of so much information, one thing we can all do to help dogs is share good books, blogs, and websites when we find them.

Wag
Zazie Todd

08/28/2022

These gorgeous pups are the latest grads from Good Dogs Have More Fun. The pups and their caregivers were amazing! Congratulations Mack, Willow and Rocco!

08/26/2022

https://bharcs.com/is-your-dog-friendly-with-other-dogs/?fbclid=IwAR3KSWktumYj9O2uQXAXyxYsq28Zym6I3S00U_kQcW32QrTN5WnohAjY_G0

A phenomenal trainer and behaviour consultant.

A big mistake many of us make when we get dogs is that we have a preconceived notion of what a dog or a breed should be. But animals, much like humans, have personalities, histories, choices, moods, sense of humour, insecurities and all the good and bad stuff that make us wonderfully unique and unpr...

08/25/2022

08/02/2022

The latest puppy grads from Kelowna Puppies. Congratulations! Steve, Theo, Bodhi, Lila, Odie, Kayce, Dakota, Willow, Bo and Lila

07/31/2022

The amazing Loki and Gene. The latest grads from Kelowna Puppies. Congratulations!

07/17/2022

https://www.veterinary-practice.com/article/dominance-when-an-outdated-theory-wont-go-away?fbclid=IwAR1LGqpV1atDypcIXZiDJAQnV6QFiy2pbBtXDloTTlSY9LfDSCvgM_YgNmY

Dominance theory is often misunderstood, which can lead to the development and/or exacerbation of behavioural issues in dogs

07/12/2022

While educated, ethical and knowledgeable dog trainers are multiplying wonderfully there are still two types of poor-quality dog trainer active today.


1. The ones who believe that dogs are wolves and believe we are wolves too.

2. Those who think it’s all about punishment and rewards.


Despite an ever-increasing library of evidence of how damaging they are, to this day, people are advocating jerking on the lead, the use of pet corrector sprays, choke chains and prong collars. They even growl at dogs and manhandle them, scaring and threatening them.


All of these are detrimental to the dog's well-being, the human/dog relationship, and welfare.


One of the ways this type justifies abusive methods is by saying that they are using the way the dog learns, to change their behaviour. They say ‘I use all 4 quadrants’, like that limited knowledge makes them look clever.


Here’s something to think about though.


Learning theory is only one of the things dog trainers should know.


Yes, we need to know how the dog learns, but we also need to know welfare, neuroscience, the effects of stressful situations. We need to read dogs, empathise with them and be their advocates.


The use of archaic methods needs to stop.


They are directly in conflict with the law on UK animal welfare
(The Animal Welfare Act 2006)


They break trust, wreck a dog's self-esteem and create a
hesitant individual scared of trying new things or getting things wrong.


They are nasty, unskilled, punitive methods.


The people who practice them need more education, more knowledge, they need to develop empathy.


Canine Principles exists to advocate for dogs and their people.


We aim to spare as many people and dogs as possible from the
methods and situations shown in the picture below.


Let’s work together to make dogs lives better.


Because they deserve no less than our full respect.

07/10/2022

Connection starts with invitation.

Connection starts with invitation https://www.learningaboutdogs.com/connection-starts-with-invitation/?utm_source=facebook&utm_medium=social&utm_campaign=Promo21

07/01/2022

Another fantastic post this morning. Had to share the sense that it spoke.

Beware the self-proclaimed expert – especially those offering to board and train!

While I prefer to focus on the positives in my posts, occasionally something is brought to my attention which is too concerning to ignore. While dog training and behaviour modification remains an unregulated industry, sadly there will always be those who take advantage of the unsuspecting public and do untold harm to dogs and their people. Frighteningly, most of these experts are not deliberately deceiving the public – in fact they tend to have enormous faith in their abilities, and I honestly believe that many genuinely suffer from severe delusions of grandeur.

In the long run many of these “dog gurus” crash and burn as horror stories from their former clients spread throughout the dog community, but new ones unfortunately always pop up and by the time their popularity wanes, too many dogs have suffered irreparable harm. So, after hearing again this week of one of the most troublesome local “experts” partnering with an equally delusional individual to open a “board and train”, I felt I could no longer remain silent and needed to write a brief “warning” post which will hopefully give dog guardians some danger signs to look out for when seeking help:

1. Credible, qualified trainers do not need to boast about their popularity or status. If you come across an advertisement claiming NUMBER ONE BEHAVIOURIST IN SA, SA’s TOP DOG SPECIALIST or TOP AGGRESSION EXPERT, I can absolutely guarantee you that nothing could be further from the truth. Qualified, reputable trainers allow their credentials and their client history to speak for itself. They have no need to make grandiose claims and are not trying to impress anyone.

2. Reputable trainers and behaviour practitioners will have some form of qualification or certification and they will belong to some professional body, which requires them to hold to a code of conduct. INDIVIDUALS WITH NO EDUCATIONAL BACKGROUND, THOSE WHO DALLIED BRIEFLY WITH STUDIES AND THEN DECIDED THEY KNEW BETTER AND THOSE WITH NO TIES TO ANY PROFESSIONAL BODY OR SOCIETY WHICH REQUIRES PROFESSIONALISM AND CERTAIN STANDARDS of practice are usually operating in isolation for a reason.

3. Credible, professional trainers and behaviour counsellors will be able to explain their approach to helping dogs and their people in terms of learning theory, emotionality, physiology and ethology. ANYONE WHO RELIES ON VAGUE NOTIONS OF LEADERSHIP, DOMINANCE, PACK THEORY OR “ENERGY” IS MAKING IT UP AS THEY GO ALONG and likely using punishment without even understanding what they are doing.

4. CREDIBLE DOG PROFESSIONALS NEVER GUARANTEE RESULTS – in fact you will often hear us say “it depends” …. Behaviour is complex and there are no quick fixes. Dogs are individuals and we have to move at their pace an accommodate their needs. We cannot simply “whip them into shape” with our brilliance or charisma.

5. DON’T MISTAKE GOOD MARKETING FOR EXPERTISE – many self-proclaimed experts are supremely confident (arrogant) and are happy to sell themselves shamelessly to the public. They may be very good at this side of things and easily convince people that they know what they are doing, simply due to presentation of advertisements etc. Just remember that you are hiring someone to help your dog, not market a product of yours!

Finally, to address the “Board and Train” issue – please remember that your dog is a family member and whatever is happening with them is in the context of your family, your home and your relationship with them. Removing the dog to a new environment away from everything they know is immediately going to change how they feel and how they behave. Behaviour and training issues need to be worked through holistically in the context of your dog’s life with you – a dog is not a computer who’s hard drive needs cleaning or an appliance with a button that needs fixing and which can be sent away for repairs. It really doesn’t work like that. Your relationship with your dog and how you fulfil their needs must be central to working through any behaviour issue and this won’t happen if you are not there.

Even more concerning is that in handing your dog over to someone else to “fix” you have absolutely no idea what may be done to your dog and what lasting consequences this could have on their emotional and behavioural health. If you are told your dog will go away for a night or two and come back transformed, what do you imagine might be happening during that time? I guarantee it is nothing good. You would surely not hand your toddler over to some “expert” for a couple of days to be “sorted out”, so PLEASE don’t do this to your dog!

07/01/2022

Happy birthday to Canada! As Canadians, this is no doubt our favourite holiday to set off fireworks, but our pets often get anxious and scared from the loud noises. Remember to keep an eye on them during the festivities to make sure they are okay.

07/01/2022

“My dog is unpredictable with other dogs… It’s time to get him neutered!”

That must be really frustrating!

Interactions with other dogs involve an interaction chain - a successful interaction involves your dog moving from one step to the next step seamlessly.

See The Other Dog -> Approach the Other Dog -> Nose-Nose Interaction -> The Move to the Rear -> Play or Disengage!

The thing is, a successful interaction can only occur with three skills:
1. Confidence
2. Disengagement (seeing value in moving away from the interaction)
3. Calmness.

Any weakness in these will lead to unpredictable (or very predictable!!) breaks in the chain. Now when this chain has a break in it - we might see some unpredictable and inappropriate behaviours! It might be that your dog unpredictably snaps when having a nose-nose interaction. It might be that your dog stands over another dog and raises their hackles. It might be that your dog charges and barks at other dogs upon the approach.

I’m sure we can all relate to a time in our lives where we’ve had a fail in one of these departments and had a bad interaction with someone (maybe a partner….) - it didn’t come from overconfidence, it came from all the rubbish that went on at the office that day and your sore back!

Success isn’t about trying to correct, inhibit or STOP a behaviour. What we need to do is grow the skills needed to behave effectively and go through the world feeling great!

Neutering won’t achieve this and might reduce your dog’s confidence further. Testosterone is valuable as a hormone from a behaviour perspective. In multiple species, it has been demonstrated to be closely associated with confidence. Testosterone mediates increases in the thresholds at which an animal experiences the emotions of fear and anxiety in the amygdala, the threat detection area of the brain.

The good news is we can absolutely teach the skills your dog needs to carry out an interaction chain, and not by neutering and, should neutering still be wanted, there are now reversible castration options meaning the effects can be trialed first by placing an implant.

Here’s some first aid advice:

Confidence
Confidence is grown first of all by avoiding bad experiences with other dogs. This means we need to keep him on lead while working on this - even though he is worried, dogs are inherent gamblers by nature and will put themselves in situations they aren’t comfortable with! Then from a distance that they are not reacting, feed your dog some of their daily food allowance when they see other dogs; this will help them link dogs with positive outcomes at same time as stopping any negative outcomes.

Disengagement
We can teach value in moving away from things too. We’d recommend a behaviour consult to review his life overall and then share and demonstrate specific strategies to teach value in moving away from other dogs. It absolutely can be taught! And this will repair his conversations with other dogs.

Calmness
Calmness training often starts before you even leave the house. How is his arousal level at the point he realises he’s going for a walk? Start by promoting calmness here first by popping his lead on and working on promoting calmness by calmly feeding to the floor, mixing things up by going and sitting down and rewarding him on his bed or popping his lead on and giving him a long-lasting chew or filled Kong to remove the walk anticipation and arousal spike!

Should you still be struggling, we can arrange a behaviour referral…… we see these cases on a daily basis!

Behaviour Consultation
You can enquire about a behaviour consult and get all the information here: https://www.beha.vet/contact

We can come up with the complete plan, communicate it and demonstrate it through a Zoom consultation. We do direct claims with Pet Plan, Kennel Club and Agria in the UK and non-direct claims with many others and ensure maximum consult wait times of 5 weeks.

07/01/2022

“You are not an Alpha. You are insecure” And I'll add ignorant about the science of behaviour.

My dogs know their place.

Every year, I hope the people spewing nonsense about being pack leader, about being the alpha, about how you need to show the dog who’s boss, will disappear. Every year I’m hopeful that they will pick up a book (that isn’t written in their little echo chamber), do a course worth its salt, or even just watch the most basic YouTube video explaining why they are wrong.

Every year I am hopeful that I won’t see any more dogs wearing prong collars, e-collars, being strung up on a slip lead, being yanked back, alpha rolled, pinned to the ground, shaken, prodded, hissed at, kicked. Dogs that are just babies, dogs that are traumatised, dogs with behavioural problems that, whenever they ask for help or reassurance, are punished. Dogs that are petrified of something scary, only to be told “Stop crying!” as the thing they’re phobic of is drawn closer and closer to them.

Every year, I’m disappointed.

It’s 2022. The basis of this training was debunked DECADES ago. Why do people still feel it’s acceptable to treat dogs this way? To lazily slap the word “dominant” or “stubborn” on their foreheads and take that as an excuse to now treat them however they like.

Do freaking better.

“Oh, but my dog is a German shepherd/ Rottweiler/ staffie and they need a strong hand”

No. If you are incapable of handling a powerful dog without beating the crap out of it and walking it with ligatures, sometimes spiked ligatures, constricting their throat, seriously consider getting a smaller breed. It doesn’t make you look like a tough man, walking an incapacitated large breed dog, it makes you look like a coward. Nothing screams “I’m an incompetent trainer” like somebody reliant on choking their dog just to get them to walk nicely.

One day, we will look back as a society on the people who treat their dogs like this, and be totally repulsed. We will think “how did they get away with it?” I hoped, by 2022, we would be at that point already. But clearly not.

Yeah, my dogs know their place. It’s right beside me.

TLDR: you’re not the alpha, you’re insecure.

06/27/2022

Does your dog show fear by trying to blend into the background and look small and inoffensive or do they shout loudly to make the scary thing leave them alone?

Almost everyone who lives with a dog who shouts to make the scary thing leave will want to change this, not least because it makes life difficult for us.

What about the dog who just tries to avoid the scary thing? The one who shrinks away or hides? Quite often, these dogs are just labelled as shy or silly and because they don't make a scene and impact our own lives in the same way a shouty, reactive dog might, they don't always get the help they need.

It's often assumed that they'll just get over it if they get used to seeing those scary things, so walks carry on as normal. This is rarely the case though and these dogs can soon become shouty, reactive dogs which do impact our own lives.

These dogs can and should be helped just as much as the shouty, reactive dogs. The emotions underneath are just the same and far too often help is only sought when their fear begins to impact our lives.

All dogs should be helped to live fear free lives for their own sakes, not just ours.

06/26/2022

As a child behaviour specialist I often find crossovers from children and young dogs. Indeed within the dog world we are moving fast from compliance and obedience and expectations of human needs towards a partnership and understanding , empathy , compassion, good parenting.
This is an adapted image many may be familiar with. What does it say for you.

06/22/2022

Our amazing Tails on the Trails class. When dogs and people really get each other. A wonderful experience and one of my favourite classes to teach. Well done Rue, Rocco, Mira, Sokka and Piper, well done indeed. Thank you to my brilliant training partner Tracy .grateful.dog.ca

06/20/2022

Our latest Sunday and Thursday Polite Puppies Grads! Congratulations! It has been such a pleasure to have all these lovely pups and their amazing people in class. Luna, Hugo, Penelope, Mack, Charleigh, Buttercup, Juno and Orca.

06/18/2022

All of these factors and more need to be considered every time you work with, play with or engage in any way with your dog. Dogs have different feelings, just like we do and may not feel up to or ready to engage. Considering the dog in front of you when you’re engaging your dog for any reason must take precedence.

06/17/2022

Aversive tools are devices used to decrease unwanted behaviour in an animal using physical and/or emotional discomfort via the use of positive punishment. Examples include: prong collars, choke collars, shock collars, slip leads, martingales, and even misused leashes and flat collars. Positive punishment is defined as adding something a dog finds unpleasant or scary to decrease a behavior.

Imagine a dog is out for a walk while wearing a prong collar, and he begins to pull on-leash and/or a correction is applied by the handler. If this happens while he is looking at another dog, he may stop pulling toward this other dog because of the pain and discomfort the prong collar is causing. However, he is also making a negative association with the other dog ("that dog caused me pain"), and potentially many other stimuli that were observed or experienced while the punishment was applied, even if that was not the intended association. The more this happens, the more likely that dog is going to become increasingly concerned about other dogs and environmental stimuli while wearing the prong collar. This could start with slight worry, and possibly lead to full-blown leash reactivity: barking, growling, and lunging. This is how something as simple as pulling on-leash can evolve into more severe behaviour concerns. What started as innocent excitement or frustration from not being able to socialize with the other dog has now turned into an even bigger behavioural concern, resulting from pain, fear and anxiety.

Positive punishment can decrease and suppress behaviour, that is why it works! That’s not the argument. But the side effects and consequences are plenty. Increased fear and fear-related aggression, inadvertent and unintended negative associations, damage to the human-animal bond and it also leads to apathetic learners. You can start to see how positive punishment actually slows down an animal’s learning! So, while aversive tools do appear to work on a surface level, remember the possible costs to you and your pet before using them.

For FREE animal training resources, visit 👇🏼

https://www.companionvet.ca/dog-resources/

06/14/2022

Leaving them tied up outside a shop is one of the worst things to do to any dog. Even if it’s just for a couple of minutes the dangers well outweigh the convenience.

06/14/2022

No dog is ever broken. They may need our understanding and empathy, but they are never broken.

06/13/2022

With the warm summer weather upon us, knowing the signs of heatstroke in your pet is important. Take a look at the most common symptoms. Be sure to reach out to us if you think your pet has become overheated.

06/13/2022

"But how will he know what he did was wrong?" Dogs are A-Moral. Which means they have no concept of right or wrong. They only understand successful vs unsuccessful , safe vs. unsafe. When your dog does something "wrong" it means he decided that action was going to be successful for him. If you simply make desirable, or correct, behaviors successful and safe for him he won't perform behaviors are that are unsuccessful. So when we punish, we are doing so as an act of retaliation, not an act of love. An act of love would be to set our dogs up to succeed, condition them to respond to cues in a desirable manner, and never find ourselves in the position to "need" to punish. Love, in any form, should not cause pain.

The relationship between brain damage and punishment is well documented in multiple species. When the brain experiences fear, anxiety or stress (particularly in consistent doses) it becomes less pliable over time, this means the brain is not able to form new neural pathways. Neural pathways are responsible for learning, learning is characterized as the brain's ability to form a new neural pathway to retain information. In cases of compulsion, or punishment, we are literally hindering our dog's ability to learn what he should be doing instead.

Dr. Jesus Rosales-Ruiz (a professor of behavior analysis and learning in dogs, humans, and other species) once beautifully declared that "the worst time to correct a problem is after it has already happened." And he is correct, if we simply make desirable behaviors successful and safe for our dogs, they by default can not be performing undesirable behaviors.

Learning shouldn't hurt.

06/13/2022

You wouldn't want to be yanked, scolded, or told "there's nothing there."