Kindred Creatures Inc.

11/08/2024

“Everyone who is thinking of getting a dog should read this, because you need to understand this reality: “

Scope of the relationship between behaviour, boredom, and oppressed natural outlets beautifully illustrated.

Copied and sharing.
Credit to the author, Elsa Louise Weiss

Please reach out via DM if you want ideas for enrichment for your dog, or help choosing a new dog.
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From French trainer Elsa Louise Weiss...

***I'm a dog of the 21st century. ***
- I'm a Malinois.
Overqualified among dogs, I excel in all disciplines and I'm always ready to work: I NEED to work.
But these days I get asked to chill on the couch all day.
- I am the Akita Inu.
My ancestors were chosen to fight a bear.
Today I was asked to be tolerant and getting scolded for my reactivity when addressed by others.
- I am a beagle.
When I'm chasing my prey, I raise my voice so the hunters can follow.
Today they gave me an electric collar to keep me quiet, and you are forcing me to come back to you - no running - snap of your fingers.
- I am a Yorkshire Terrier.
I was a scary rat hunter in the English mines.
Today she thinks I can't use my legs and she is still holding me in her arms.
- I'm a Labrador Retriever.
My vision of happiness is to dive in the pond to bring the duck that was shot, to my master.
You'll forget today I'm a walking, running, swimming dog; that makes me fat, made to stay home and watch kids.
- I am a Jack Russell Terrier.
I can stand up to a fox, a bad badger and a rat bigger than I am, I in their lair.
Today I was scolded for my temper and great energy and forced to turn into a calm dog in the living room.
- I'm a Siberian Husky.
I experienced the great, wide open spaces of northern Europe, where I could pull a sled over long distances at impressive speed.
Today I have as a horizon only walls of a house or a small garden and holes that I dig in the ground just to release energy and frustration. Trying to stay sane.
- I am a border collie
I was forced to work daily in cooperation with my master and I am an unmistakable artist in working with the herd.
He is angry at me today because due to lack of sheep I try to check bikes, cars, kids in the house and everything in motion.
I am ...
I'm a dog 21. of the century.
I'm pretty, I'm alert, I'm obedient, I stay in my bag ... but I am also an individual who needs to express my instincts from centuries of training, and I am *not* suitable for the sedentary life you would want me to lead.
Spending eight hours a day alone in the house or in the garden - no work and no one to play or run, in the evening when you get home, and just walking to the small toilet makes me very upset.
I'll express it by barking all day, turn your yard into a minefield, do my needs inside, be unmanageable when I find myself outside, and sometimes spend my days sunk, sad, lonely and depressed on a pillow.
You may think I should be happy to be able to enjoy all the comfort while you go to work, but in reality I will be exhausted and frustrated because this is absolutely NOT what I should be doing or have to do.
If you love me, if you've always dreamed of me, if my beautiful blue eyes or my athletic looks force you to, but you can't give me a real dog life, a life worth living by my breed, and if you can't offer me a job that my genes ask for, DON'T buy don’t even adopt me!
If you like my look but aren't willing to accept my temperament, gifts and traits of a long genetic selection and think you can only change them with your good will, DON'T BUY OR ADOPT ME.
I'm a dog from 21. a century, yes, but deep inside me, the one who fought, the one who hunted, the one who pulled the sleigh, the one who led and protected the herd, still lives inside.
So think **very** carefully before choosing your dog. And to think I'll get two, rather than one, so I'll be waiting for you all day so lonely. Eight or ten hours is just a working day for you, but for me, it is eternity to be alone.

10/20/2024

Even if our dogs have ‘never’ done it before—reached that high or helped themselves to that kind of thing—they could! Please learn about the hazards of pet suffocation (occuring in places and by materials you would never consider dangerous). It’s horrific what happens to a rigid plastic or foil lined bag when warm doggy breath softens it and the saliva turns it to glue. Gruesome. Heart- wrenching. Please talk about it! Chip bags, cookie bags, bread bags, yogurt containers—the more empty they all are, the more dangerous they are.

This pet owner was heartbroken to lose her beloved rescue pup, Sadie, on Saturday when she suffocated in a pet food bag. Tracie Lea writes, "Just last night. A bag of dog treats. I think the cats may have knocked them off the counter. Sadie was so good she never counter surfed. I came home from work and found her. I’m absolutely destroyed. She had a hard life before I adopted her, this was supposed to be a safe place for her to live out her life with lots of love."

So many people still do not know about the dangers of pet suffocation. Please share in honor of Sadie to help spread awareness. It's our best defense against pet suffocation.
www.preventpetsuffocation.com

10/20/2024

Should we be seeking to fulfil our dogs' desires??
Unequivocally, yes.
Equally, we should consider their point of view too. Truly and always.
Sound indulgent?
Maybe so. But needs, desire, and point of view are driving emotion and behaviour in our dogs regardless of whether we collaborate to honour them or not. Needs, desire, point of view make the world go around. For all of us they are defining at every point in time. Biology is these things. And biology is in the drivers' seat.
The degree to which a creature's natural needs, desires and point of view are fulfilled and acknowledged determines where on the continuum of 'rich to impoverished' a life lives.
Doing our level best to meet our dogs where they are at in these is the good and moral thing to do. But it takes know-how. It requires paying careful attention. And it is far from being always convenient. But when we succeed at being cognizant and responsive to these realities it pays dividends because not only does the dog benefit, we do too. Everything is easier for the dog and with the dog when the dog is happy and heard from its own point of view. Beyond being the right thing to do it is imperative that we tune in at this level in light of the fact that a pet is captive to us. We choose our dogs' environments and control their access to most everything. If we tune in to what they show us about their needs and desires--their real needs and desires falling from species and breed--and respond supportively, skillfully and respectfully to that canine point of view, our dogs will simply, truly be less stressed and more content. That means our bond will likely be stronger and more fulfilling, and our quality of life together, better. This, from the dog's point of view too.

10/05/2024

https://l.facebook.com/l.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fetologi.dk%2Fthe-so-called-predatory-aggression%2F%3Ffbclid%3DIwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR3LYKQIYjUj-L_OPiuGay3oOTdk9ubZt31-hcEId33j6rqQMhdhN2Tlwm8_aem_Ro3vpsn1O1nj_urMR_tSUA&h=AT1mEf4bs8jjPjcezu-NS1mqTjrMSReNKmgMOWgfLjiNk511keXcQN5lgazI8F-___WzOAosdLxkVBvULw09IZ4ZoN7J3g03ZT8RMLnJuZghwQwuSr-UmibjMuWqyig7U-Ut&__tn__=H-y-R&c[0]=AT10Q-nAdYopuplRHMaEDx0_oT2OnCv37wHAWcQXxQeYmZ3hBUv7azHzsTwNeBfnBdVHIaIXbBQ0WIHv2GvhOa6WjasX65pjwROPrZ2wFWt1fnCYJDaMkKTz0vyq2klP5QnHPL6Jaq6hJDDT1MB84vOC5t-fVhu4ALXZtm2Mf0TJQQRFi5Sv3A9V1K08VfUrUPpJpaEmSIy1Bs2FyqOeeStYb27moELtO3doeIYxO1eCc6J_Y9oYMqZ7Rk7E0vEMCR97XKxRY95IiXMBVLMWIYJwTe_f

Human-Animal Science

09/27/2024

The question was asked if I could train a deaf cattle dog to stop biting tyres [sic] using positive reinforcement, and the answer is yes! There's a caveat, however. What is referred to as positive reinforcement training is not as simple as those who advocate aversive methods of training would like to believe. It involves a whole lot more than simply giving a dog a cookie! But unless you've ever seen or been introduced to really good training, you would not know that, and you would not understand how powerful and versatile non-aversive, fear-free, evidence-based training is! To the person who asked this question, I would like to in turn ask these questions: can you train a wolf to accept nail trims using a shock collar? Can you train a tiger to accept blood draws using a shock collar? Can you train a rat to identify TB or locate a landmine with a shock collar? Can you train a fish or a butterfly with a shock collar? Which arm would you put the shock collar on to train an octopus? Why on earth do you need a shock collar to train what could be arguably described as the most agreeable domestic animal on the face of the earth? ~Cindy

09/27/2024

Such a great post. Superb information, grounded and calming advice that can benefit us all.

𝗦𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗼 𝟭 - an adolescent dog (who, because of the very fact he's adolescent, has low frustration tolerance and high impulsivity) gets frustrated when he can't get access to other dogs around him. That frustration presents itself as lots of big, loud behaviour - pulling, barking, lunging etc

𝗦𝗰𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗿𝗶𝗼 𝟮 - the owner of the adolescent dog gets frustrated because his dog is lunging & barking when he sees another dog. That frustration presents itself as as lots of big, loud behaviour - shouting at the dog, yanking on the lead, being forceful etc

Both are frustrated because they aren't getting what they want. Both are dealing with that frustration poorly.

Before we can expect to teach our dogs how to deal with frustration we first have to look to our own behaviour. If 𝘸𝘦 can't deal with big feelings without resorting to reactive behaviour is it really fair to expect our dog to be able to do it?

𝙒𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙤𝙬𝙣 𝙛𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 -

• Recognise & acknowledge the feeling for what it is. For me, simply noting to myself that "I'm feeling frustrated" is often enough to help me check myself & start to calm.
• Change something! Frustration builds up when we keep repeating the same thing in expectation of an outcome which doesn't happen. Doing the same thing over and over and expecting a different result is a surefire way to frustration...
• And if you can't change something in the moment, let it go. Sometimes there's little we can do in the moment to make things better and accepting that can stop us pointlessly over reacting and adding more fuel to the flames.

𝙒𝙖𝙮𝙨 𝙬𝙚 𝙘𝙖𝙣 𝙗𝙚𝙩𝙩𝙚𝙧 𝙝𝙖𝙣𝙙𝙡𝙚 𝙤𝙪𝙧 𝙙𝙤𝙜'𝙨 𝙛𝙧𝙪𝙨𝙩𝙧𝙖𝙩𝙞𝙤𝙣 -

• Learn the early behavioural signs that frustration might be building so that we can pre-empt an explosion
• Don't put them in situations you know they haven't yet got the skillset to handle
• If they can't get access to 𝙩𝙝𝙖𝙩, give them access to 𝙩𝙝𝙞𝙨. Can't play with that dog? Play with me. Can't chase that cat? Chase this ball.
• Train behaviours which help your dog learn there's more to life than instant gratification - calm engagement, disengagement, settling, searching

If it's not ok for our dogs to vent their frustration by losing control then it's not ok for us to vent our frustration by losing control. We're the humans with the big brains and we can't expect more from our dogs than we do from ourselves.

09/19/2024

Collaboration. It’s more than positive reinforcement; it’s the best of positive reinforcement on a two-way street!!!

The Shock-Free Coalition believes that pets have an intrinsic right to be treated humanely, to have each of their individual needs met, and to live in a safe, enriched environment free from force, pain and fear.
More info & resources: https://www.petprofessionalguild.com/advocacy/shock-free-coalition/

09/18/2024

Our dogs’ genetics matter. Our culture doesn’t exactly encourage us to always take this into consideration, or show us how, but there are lots of great resources out there. Even a basic internet search will produce a few good paragraphs to get us started on learning about our dogs’ breed- specific tendencies. But there’s no better resource than Family Dog Mediation creator Kim Brophey’s “Meet Your Dog”, available at most bookstores, through Amazon, and also as an audio book on Audible.

Our dogs live in a world that’s very different from the one their ancestors experienced. Through captivity and artificial selection, we’ve shaped our dogs’ genetics and environments to fit our needs and lifestyles. While this has led to the development of countless beloved breeds, it has also introduced challenges that can significantly impact their behavior.

In captivity, dogs often face restrictions that prevent them from fully expressing their natural behaviors. Whether it’s limited space to roam, lack of social interaction, or an environment that doesn’t cater to their instincts, these conditions can lead to stress and behavioral issues. Similarly, artificial selection has amplified certain traits—like herding in Border Collies or guarding in German Shepherds—sometimes making it difficult for these dogs to adapt to a typical household environment.

For example, a dog bred for hunting might struggle with life in a small apartment, leading to behaviors like excessive barking, anxiety, or even destructive habits. These behaviors aren’t just “bad” habits—they’re often responses to an environment that doesn’t match their genetic predispositions.

Have you noticed any behaviors in your dog that seem to be linked to their environment or breed-specific traits?

09/07/2024

The logic is irresistible.