Speak Doggish

08/10/2021

Dog Nail Trimming Tips 📢🐕
In addition to the dog trimming technical methods you'll be able to find in the attached images, here are some behaviour related tips on how to cut your dog's nails.

If your dog is already desensitized to you touching their paws, that's great. If not, that's a great time to start!

Touch your dog's paws; in between their paws; and their nails and hand-feed or give treats simultaneously. Please note that if your dog is displaying aggressive behaviour while being handled, please do not proceed and consult a dog behaviour specialist.
Next, you will start touching your dog's nails with objects made of different materials (metal spoon, plastic pen, etc.)
You will then introduce the nail clippers by letting your dog smell them first (let the dog come to the clippers rather than sticking them in the dog's face) and then putting them next to the dog while petting and giving treats. You can now start touching your dog's nails with the clippers while implementing the desensitization process routines. Eventually, you will move to trim one nail or more in one "trimming session", depending on your and your dog's comfort level.

Keep in mind that it may take a week or two before you get to the actual nail trimming, but in this case, slow and steady wins the race. The keyword in this process is graduality.
It's better to trim the nails bit by bit and feel comfortable in the process than rushing to cut as much as possible. Trimming your dog's nails about every two weeks will not only increase your comfort level during this process, but more importantly, will make the quick (the vein in the dog's nail, or more precisely, a blood vessel and a nerve) recede, so you'll be able to trim the nails shorter.

07/29/2021

Very important information especially for dog lovers 😉🐶🥰
https://m.facebook.com/spiritofhoperescue/photos/a.539495766114237/4510447385685702/?type=3&d=m

Statistics show that 95% of all dog bites are preventable.

06/22/2021

If your dog is pulling you on walks and you get tired only thinking of the upcoming dog walk, book your private behavioural session asap and start enjoying life again!

06/15/2021

The Rich Dog Owner

I'll start this post with a story about human relationships, and I'm sure you'll understand how it works with dogs.

It's a story about two rich men. Both rich men were very respected, had many friends who wanted to spend time with them, listened to them and followed their advice.
One day, after both rich men made a really bad investment, they lost all their money. It didn't take long before things started changing. The first rich man found himself all alone. His friends stopped visiting him, they had no interest in talking or listening to him and didn't want his company anymore.
For the other rich man, the situation was completely different. His friends continued visiting him and tried to support him as much as they could. Anyone could see that they still cared about him, appreciated him and wanted to be there for him.

Was money the most important ingredient in those friendships?
In the first case - yes, and in the second - no.

The first rich man was worthless to his friends without his money.
The second rich man was highly regarded for his strong character and kind disposition, even without his money.

This story demonstrates very accurately most relationships between dogs and their owners.

An owner with lots of treats (that the dog is interested in) but no true relationship will be left alone when the treats are gone.
Owners with treats and a real connection will continue to be valuable to their dogs even when they run out of treats.
Their dogs will continue to listen and be close by. They will not run away or ignore their owners when there are no treats involved.

Are you a rich dog owner, who is only important to your dog when owning treats, or are you the owner who can be trusted, respected, and deserve loyalty with no conditions?

#

06/11/2021

Off Switch for your Dog

Does your dog have an OFF switch?
Can your dog stop a behaviour when you ask them to?
We for sure know how to use the ON switch with our dogs. We can get them to start running, jumping, playing tag and tug, but can we get them to stop? Do we know how to use the OFF switch?

My advice is if you haven't mastered the OFF switch, don't turn your dog ON.
I agree it's very fun to have a playful and happy dog, but what happens when this playfulness grows into excitement and then turns into a completely out of control dog?

Would you be able to stop your dog's jumping or biting game? If the answer is yes, congratulations, you know how to use the off switch. If your answer is "No" then consider what games you are choosing to play with your dogs, and in the meantime, take the time to learn and improve your "off switch" dog skills.

If you need any advice, feel free to ask me, and I'll be happy to help.

06/07/2021

If you don't use it, you lose it!
This is true about so many things in life.

In dog behaviour management, when you set rules and boundaries, you should practice them every time you have the chance, so your dog knows what you expect from them.

As a dog behaviourist, with every new experience, I am able not only to sharpen my skills but to identify the core problem and come up with a solution in a faster and more efficient way.

In the photo, you can see my personal trainer Sunny, that helps me become a better dog behaviourist every day.

06/02/2021

One of the most common problems of dog owners in our current Covid world is the lack of socialization and dog interaction experience.
It's especially hard for new puppy owners who have little to no chance to expose their young dogs to other puppies and older dogs.
Positive interaction of puppies with other dogs is an extremely important stage in the development of a confident and balanced dog. Positive experience creates confidence, and a confident dog is less likely to be aggressive.

But what can we do in the meantime?

Socialization is not only meeting other dogs and humans.
Socialization is also experiencing new environments, noises, smells, surfaces, textures, and electrical appliances 😄
Try to expose your dog to new elements and make these experiences positive (give treats, pet and praise)
Such experiences will enrich your dog's life and help nurture a calm and stable character.

I hope to be able to help you with any issues with your dog's reaction to the things around us in a private behavioural session in the near future.
Meanwhile, feel free to contact me with your behaviour related questions and I'll be happy to help.

05/26/2021

You CAN teach an old dog new tricks, and it's never too late to transform your relationship and have a truly meaningful bond.

Of course, it's better (and easier) to start early and have your puppy understand what behaviour is acceptable and what isn't, but again it's never too late!

A good relationship is built on clear communication, and the key elements are trust, respect and loyalty. As dog owners, we need to earn these fundamental milestones. We can earn them by fulfilling our dog's needs. By helping dogs get their energy out through a joint physical activity, we gain their trust. By setting rules and boundaries, we gain their respect. At this point, we can shower them with affection and earn their loyalty.

Most of us start with affection, have no rules, and expect loyalty. We keep on wondering why our beloved pets try to run away anytime the door isn't properly shut.
Why do they even want to run away? We are giving them so much love, the best food possible and yummy treats, but we are not aware that we are missing the things that matter the most to them.

Feel free to contact me with your behaviour related questions and I'll be happy to help.

05/03/2021

There is a difference between dog behaviour and dog training.
There are many well-trained dogs with no manners and very few untrained and well-behaved dogs.
Of course, having a combination of both is best.
For a family dog, I would choose behaviour rather than training.
What would you choose?

04/27/2021

DOG TIP TUESDAY 🐕‍🦺

Desensitize your Dog to Touch
In other words, a dog should not be displaying any aggressive reaction or discontent when the owner is touching the dog.

Why is this important?

The main reason is safety, and another reason is being able to enjoy cuddle time with your four-legged family member.
Here are a few examples to demonstrate how important it is to have your dog be used to touch and comfortable when handled.
1. Family members'/visitors' safety - Not everybody knows the rules of proper communication with dogs, and most dog lovers would immediately try to pet your dog. Dog owners would surely prefer that any interaction is safe, and doesn't end with a bite. The more a dog is used to being touched and handled, the less sensitive and tensed it will feel when being petted.
2. Young children interacting with dogs - Babies and toddlers often interact with dogs in a very "creative" way. Pulling the dog's ears and tail, poking the dog's eyes, and the list goes on. Kids playing near a dog, might accidentally bump into the dog or step on its tail. A desensitized dog would probably react in a more tolerant way towards these behaviours.
3. Visiting the veterinary clinic - When it's time to visit the vet we want to make sure that all the required check-ups and examinations can be performed, and preferably with no anaesthetics, when it's not required. For the safety of your dog, as well as the safety of the veterinary clinic team, it would be best if the dog is used to being handled.
4. Grooming/nail trimming - I guess you can imagine how stressful these procedures can be to a dog not used to being touched and handled.

How is desensitization achieved, and when should you start?

The sooner you start getting your dog used to being touched, the better and easier this process would be. With puppies, it's great to start immediately, as the puppy has no previous experience and it would be easier for the owner to imprint a good association with being touched.
Please note that with older dogs, you should start this process only if there are no signs or history of aggression when touched. In case of aggressive behaviour when handled you'll need to consult a dog trainer/behaviourist to make sure everything goes smoothly and most importantly safely.
The owner's role in the process of desensitization is not only to make touching the dog possible but also pleasurable to the dog.
It is done by simultaneously touching and treating the dog. This way, the brain is distracted by the smell of the food, paying less attention to the touch, and when the tasty treat is being delivered and consumed a connection of touch and pleasure (food=pleasure) is being imprinted in the dog's brain.

What body parts are often forgotten?

Except for the usual spots being touched during petting time, like back and belly, most owners remember that they should be touching the legs, ears and tail.
Next on the list of body parts to be forgotten are the paws, and most importantly in between the toes.
The most neglected body part, "touch-wise", is the mouth, and more specifically inside the mouth, including gums and teeth.

I hope you found this information helpful. Please feel free to ask questions about anything relating to this week's dog tip.

04/20/2021

DOG TIP TUESDAY 🐩

Dos and Don'ts of Dog Name Use

What does a dog's name mean to the dog? We can talk a lot about this, looking from a humane perspective, but to simplify things, when we call our dog, we expect it to pay attention and respond by looking at us and/or coming to us.
In other words, from the dog's point of view, their name is like an attention command.
As most dog owners want their dogs to respond to their names, here are a few tips on how to make it happen.

The main idea is to use your dog's name primarily in a positive context.
By doing this, we create an association in the dog's mind between "name" and pleasant feeling. Thus, making the dog want to respond to its name as quickly as possible in any situation.

Do

1. Say your dog's name and give a treat to your dog when the dog responds to its name.

2. Say your dog's name and give a toy and/or play with your dog when the dog responds to its name.

3. Say your dog's name and pet your dog, give it attention, a massage, or any other pleasant touch, when the dog responds to its name.

Don't

1. When your dog misbehaves, don't use your dog's name to scold your dog or show your discontent with the dog's behaviour. The best option would be to respond calmly and use sounds or short words (other than the dog's name) for this purpose. If you continue yelling and screaming your dog's name, you will soon start noticing that every time you say your dog's name it runs away from you and maybe even hides under the table or any other safe spot.

2. Don't repeat your dog's name over and over again to get its attention when your effort is unsuccessful. By such constant repetition, it won't take long before your dog makes the connection of "Name" = ignore owner.

You may also choose to change a name given to a dog by the previous owners in case you're adopting a dog. As I've already mentioned, a dog's "name" has some kind of meaning to the dog. There is a connection between the name and a pleasant, unpleasant, or maybe even a traumatic experience for the dog. Because we can't know how the dog's name has been used by the previous owners, we have no idea what is mentally happening to the dog when it hears the name and what is triggered by it.

As always, feel free to comment and ask questions about any issues relating to the weekly dog tip.

04/13/2021

DOG TIP TUESDAY 🐕
The Right Time to Pet Your Dog
Most people pet their dogs whenever they feel like it. This makes sense, as we perceive our pets as our cute, fluffy companions who are always there for us. In this sense, it seems that any time is petting time.
In reality, dogs' nature and inner world differ from humans', and this, in turn, causes owners' confusion regarding dog petting time.

For humans, showing physical signs of affection, be it cuddling, hugging, gentle strokes or any other pleasant touch, will be followed by a feeling of comfort, warmth, support, and relaxation, basically at any given time, as long as the affection is genuine.

Petting your dog at the right time can be one of the best rewards a dog can receive. It will build and strengthen your bond and will become an activity mutually pleasant to both sides.
Petting your dog at the wrong time can have a very unfortunate outcome.

In general, when we are pleased with our dogs' behaviour, we praise them and pet them. From the dog's point of view, petting is an approval of a behaviour or a state of mind, and an encouragement to continue performing the same behaviour and maintain the specific state of mind.

In other words, petting a dog at the wrong time reinforces unwanted behaviours.
As most of us are inclined to pet a dog anytime, I will mention the most common times when you should NOT pet your dog.

1. Frightened Dog
2. Uncertain/anxious Dog
3. Overexcited Dog
4. Aggressive Dog

Looking from a humans perspective, we wish to comfort our dogs when they are scared, anxious, and overexcited as we would do with other humans to support them and help them overcome the uneasy situation.

With dogs, it would work the exact opposite way!

Petting a dog, talking and paying attention to the dog when it is frightened would mean to the dog that his human owner is encouraging such behaviour, and is happy when the dog maintains this state of mind. The same applies to any negative and/or undesired behaviour.
Even with an aggressive dog that barks and tries to lunge at other dogs passing by, we'll be able to see many dog owners holding the leash tightly, nervously petting the dog while saying over and over "It's OK", not realising the damage caused by such a response.
A dog can become fearful or aggressive due to petting at the wrong time.

Please pet your dogs as desired in all the remaining situations. For example, when you walk into the house, your dog is sitting or laying down, gently wagging its tail, and happily waiting for you (instead of jumping on you and knocking you over) would be a great time to pet your dog, and encourage such safe and happy greeting.
Always be prepared to notice positive behaviours and reinforce them by as much petting as you wish.

Feel free to comment and/or ask questions about any issues relating to the weekly dog tip.

P.S. I was petting my dog while writing this post as it was the right time 😄

04/06/2021

DOG TIP TUESDAY 🐶
This month I would like to share some tips, tricks and techniques to help you communicate better with your dogs.
Every Tuesday, I'll be posting a new tip. Feel free to comment and/or ask questions about any issues relating to the weekly dog tip.

Recall Tip
What to do when you're trying to get your dog to come to you when it's time to leave the park, when you want the dog to stop chasing a squirrel or at any other time?
Of course, it's nice having a dog responding to a "come" command, but if it's not the case yet or if you're not practising commands at all, there are techniques you can use to get your dog coming to you.

Check out these 3 tips:
1. Run away from your dog - As much as this may sound counter-intuitive, running away from your dog will get your dog chasing you and eventually coming to you. We're usually chasing our dogs when we're trying to get a hold of them, but it is the reverse action that will help us get them coming to us.

2. Use high pitch sounds - When calling your dog to come to you, use high pitch voice. It may be their name or any other interesting sounds that you can make, as long as they are high pitch (squeaky sounds) and are pronounced in a happy and energetic manner.

3. Celebrate a dog's own choice to come to you - At any given time that you haven't called your dog to come to you and your dog decides to come over on its own, you should do one or all of the following: give a treat to your dog; pet your dog; praise your dog with words; display signs of happiness and excitement.
These actions will gradually make your dog love coming to you. This way, when you do call your dog, it will be happy to do it because coming to you is always fun.

In general, every dog is unique. There may be different reasons for a dog's behaviour. The more deep relationship you have with your dog, the faster it will respond to you and ignore any other distractions. A dog's trust and loyalty can be earned over time by practising a balanced relationship in which all the basic needs of the dog are being met first. Exercise and discipline first and then lot's of affection.

Enjoy your dog!

03/25/2021

Physical and mental stimulation is a key factor in a dog's well-being!
Try to exercise your dog both physically and mentally every day to get a well-behaved dog!
Here are some creative ways to exercise your dog.
https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/health/how-much-exercise-does-dog-need/

03/22/2021

Strengthen your bond by practicing eye contact.
If you don't know how to do it, contact me and I'll be happy to help!

03/18/2021

Hand feeding is a great way to bond with your dog and an excellent opportunity to train your dog. If you are choosing to feed your dog from a bowl you should do it the right way to avoid food aggression.
Contact me to learn more about it!

03/18/2021

Getting a new puppy?
Good luck😜

https://barkpost.com/life/destructive-dogs/

Epic messes from dogs.

03/18/2021

Speak Doggish is not about dog training it's 100% about Dog Behaviour Management. Although dog training may be implemented as a means of mental stimulation, which helps eliminate unwanted behaviour, it is mainly training of the owners on how to communicate with their dog.
Barking and lunging at dogs and people, pulling on walks, displaying food aggression or resource guarding, fear of loud noises or bath time, these and many more everyday problems are the focus of my work.
Most behavioural issues are resolved in one session (up to 6 hours long) during which the problem is identified and solved by the behaviourist, then explained and taught to the owner, and finally solved by the owner on their own. This is the point where I can say that my job is done, and now it's up to the owner to keep up the good work!

03/18/2021

Understanding dogs' body language and how they communicate is just about the most important ingredient in establishing and maintaining a happy, healthy, and meaningful relationship with your dog!
Contact me and start experiencing an even more amazing bond with your four-legged family member!

03/18/2021

Welcome to Speak Doggish! My name is Helena, and let me tell you how I became a dog behaviourist.
It all started with a little girl who told her mom that she has a dream that might never come true. Being the mom of this little girl, I decided that it's my role as a parent to show my daughter that dreams do come true when you do something to achieve them.
So my daughter and I started learning about dogs as we were getting ready for her dream to come true.
The more we researched the more I was becoming engaged in this magnificent world of dogs.
Little by little I started learning online from the best dog behaviourists and trainers and began building a perception of what is the art of understanding dogs and communicating with them.
It took almost six months of studying before my daughter's dream finally came true and we got a sweet German Shepherd puppy named Sunny.
At this point, I've started implementing my theoretical knowledge in real life. First with my new super energetic and stubborn puppy that was making me learn at least five different ways to resolve each behavioural issue, and later on with other puppies and adult dogs of family and friends.
The more I was working with dogs the more enthusiastic I became about dog behaviour management, to a point in which it seemed that I wasn't the one choosing to become a dog behaviourist, rather this profession has chosen me.
So this is the shortest way to tell you my story, and now I'm waiting to hear your dog stories and hopefully help you live a better and more joyful life with your best friend!!!