The Canine & Co Classroom

24/07/2024

This is difficult to watch but a great point made by The Perfect Puppy Company

24/07/2024

ADORING YOUR ADOLESCENT?? These lovely dogs are all in the life stage we call Adolescence which can be a challenging time for us as humans BUT also very difficult for our dogs to navigate due to internal changes that involve hormones and brain chemistry, it can sometimes seem they have forgotten everything. Understanding this life stage is key and often going back to basics and being patient is all that’s required plus some management around, dogs, resources and novelty. These 3 have been a joy to get to know and help through this stage their caregivers have made massive progress within the past few weeks and continue to enjoy their dogs

22/07/2024

As you can see we use Pickpocket Foragers- Ted loves them, they are his favourite enrichment equipment. why not try to win some for your own dog the details are in the original post.

***COMPETITION TIME***

Me thinks it has too long since we’ve had a give away so here goes… Let’s have some pictures of your doggies enjoying “summer” (pictures in the pouring rain are perfectly acceptable!!!) to win two sets of three foraging pouches. Flat-nosed breeds are welcome to enter as pouches can be made to suit. UK entries only, winner will be picked at random to keep the competition open for all. To enter, please like & share the page and tag in three of your wonderful friends. 😃Closes 31 July at 8.00pm.

19/07/2024

Keeping cool doing some physio (under the duo dance of our Vet Physio)

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19/07/2024

Early walkies then snuffle and sleepy time…..zzzzz💙

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14/07/2024

10/07/2024

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04/07/2024

A fantastic post and great points to consider if you are very lucky to share your life with an older dog 🐶

SILVER PAWS SERIES
Part three

Increasing fragility, both physically and emotionally are common as dogs age.

In human medical science an increasing area of attention has been how to retain / improve resilience to help the individual cope better with age related change.
An acronym that has been proposed to consider factors that support resilience, is PURPOSE OF LIFE.

I think there are many parts of this acronym that we can consider in our aging dogs.

P. Purpose in life. We start off with one of the harder concepts to apply 🤣. But I think for our dogs, this is about them still feeling a part of our lives, being appreciated, being able to participate in the activities that have previously brought them joy.

U Unable to manage, leading to increased stress. There are lots of ways we can make life easier for our dogs. From using non slip flooring, to steps on and off of the sofa, being physically supported up and down stairs, feeding softer food or treats … we can look at what our dogs are finding trickier and speak to our vet, a physiotherapist, a behaviourist … and come up with ideas to help.

R Restrictions in mobility. Just because our dog is aging, doesn’t mean we should just accept reducing mobility. Speak to your vet, organise a physio assessment, take a look at Canine Arthritis Management. There are lots of options to maintain mobility. Equally though, try not to equate senior dog welfare with the dog having a similar mobility to earlier life. Silver Paws may be physically weaker, have more discomfort, may tire easier … and they can still have lots of positive experiences with reduced or even no, walks. We ll come back to this in a separate post

P Physical Health. A whole variety of body organs can be less efficient or even diseased as dogs age. Speak to your vet about your dog’s health and aim for regular health checks.

O Optimism. What moments of joy does each day bring to keep both your dog’s and your own outlook on life positive. Again, more on this in a separate post

S Social connections. Elderly dogs may play less. They may not be as social with other dogs or humans as they once were. This doesn’t mean they don’t enjoy time with their favourite individuals. In fact many dogs, due to perceived vulnerability, like more social contact with long standing bonded individuals. It just looks different! It’s sitting together. It’s more gentle stroking / grooming. It might be options to investigate their dog friend’s toys rather than meeting in person.

E Emotion. If a senior dog is increasing in anxiety/ fear or becoming more withdrawn, seek professional help from a vet and / or clinical behaviourist to make sure we are addressing this in the most appropriate way.

O Outward mindset - embracing change. Can we support our dog through this life transition? We can provide more social reassurance, add in mobility/ physical and cognitive appropriate positive experiences. But we should also recognise change is challenging for many elderly individuals. So limit change. Make sure life is predictable, as much as we can.

F Family cohesion. Is everyone on board with how we are supporting our elderly dog? Who in the dog’s family might need more support in coping with this life stage. Caregiver burden. Anxiety about change / loss, are common emotional experiences for human s living with aging pets. Sometimes distancing themselves from the old dog is a coping strategy. Empathising with these feelings is crucial. Another post on caregiver burden will follow.

L. Locus of control. What choices can the aged dog make? Do they feel they are in control of themselves? Do we need to medically support them with elements of this? (Incontinence / needing to toilet more frequently as examples)

I Independent Activities of Daily Living. What can our aged dogs manage by themselves and where do we need to add in more support or environmental modification? Are we providing regular opportunities where they get to do activities they can manage and enjoy for themselves?

F Financial security. Dogs don’t worry about this! But us humans do. Aging dogs can get increasingly expensive. Have we a plan for that? Do we know our own limits and have we considered different cost based options?

E Environment. Enrichment Exercise. Canine Arthritis Management has some excellent resources on considering the safety and comfort of the reduced mobility dog’s environment. Considering enrichment and exercise for aged dogs will be a separate post, as there’s lots of great options and considerations

Trying to find time to pause and reassess many facets of our silver paw’s life can be invaluable to their quality of life. Resources for assessing quality of life will be coming soon.

Aprahamian, I., Woo, J., Vellas, B. and Morley, J.E., 2022. Resilience and successful aging. The Journal of nutrition, health and aging, 26(7), pp.652-656.

03/07/2024

Great advice from Understand Animals a quick check after walkies can make a huge difference and prevent unnecessary discomfort.

29/06/2024

Had to share this fantastic post from Dog Communication.
Please read

THRIVING OR BARELY SURVIVING?
I took this photos of the pumpkin field next to my field at Dog Comm. Some of the field is always shaded due to the lovely trees. The pumpkin plants in full sun are huge already, leafy green and promising substantial pumpkins come the autumn. The plants in the perma shade are so much smaller- a quarter the size or less and with the best will in the world, they won’t ever thrive like the ones in the sun.

The difference between the plants that are thriving and the ones that are barely surviving is the environment they are in.

I’m not really talking about pumpkins, am I? 🎃 😂
It’s exactly the same for our dogs and us too, our environment and what we are exposed to dictates our ability to just survive or really thrive.

If your dog’s environment isn’t ideal and they are exposed to lots of stress and don’t get opportunities to fulfill themselves and do things that make them happy then they are unlikely to really thrive and they may just be focusing on surviving. You can do all the ‘training’ in the world but if you can’t at least try and improve the environment, try and reduce stress and give them the opportunities they need to feel happy then they are unlikely to really thrive.

How have you helped your dog to really thrive?

Laura McAuliffe, 2024, Dog Communication

25/06/2024

Had to share this.
Thank you The Perfect Puppy Company for highlighting the need for caregivers to ask questions about the professional helping to shape their dogs life.

Apparently these two fingers are all you need to stop a puppy mouthing you. It's magical and "works every time". The only caveat is you have to be firm and "do it as if you mean it". If you treat your puppy gently it just won't work. But, hey, what's a little harsh treatment if it solves the problem, right? All you have to do is prod your puppy (your 𝘱𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘺, remember...) sharply in that lovely vulnerable, soft part of their abdomen just between their rib cage and their leg. A few sharp pokes and your puppy biting problems are over.

I wish I was joking. But I'm not. This is actual advice given to a client by someone they paid money to to help them.

Not one question was asked about the pup's routine. About the conditions under which the puppy was biting. About how much rest they were getting. Whether they were teething. Whether they were overstimulated. What they were being fed. How they were being played with. Not one question. Because who wants to be bothered with all that when a good dose of physical punishment and emotional intimidation works on a young animal who is just doing what puppies do?

𝗕𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗵𝗶𝗿𝗲 𝗮𝗻𝘆𝗼𝗻𝗲, 𝗱𝗼 𝘆𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗵𝗼𝗺𝗲𝘄𝗼𝗿𝗸. Training is a totally unregulated industry and 𝙖𝙣𝙮𝙤𝙣𝙚 can set up as a trainer regardless of education, experience, insurance or ethics. So if you don't want to end up with someone who'll tell you to hurt your dog do your homework. Check qualifications. Check education. Check ethos. Check their vibe. Because your dog can't.

And if they use force, fear or intimidation it would be totally understandable if you felt the temptation to use a two fingered gesture of your own...

25/06/2024

Please read this study regarding dogs overheating in hot weather.
I’ve seen some many being walked in hot temps already!!
There’s lots of things you can do at home to keep cool and keep them entertained-but just chilling in this heat sounds like bliss to me.

IF IN DOUBT DON’T TAKE THEM OUT

The RVC urges owners of hot dogs to “cool first, transport second” Published: 20 Jul 2023 | Last Updated: 20 Jul 2023 07:00:23 A new study by the VetCompass team at the Royal Veterinary College (RVC) has found that dogs with heatstroke may be suffering even further due to outdated first aid pr....

16/06/2024

Happy Fathers Day to all the Dog Dads and thank you for all you do for us from our lovely holidays, to cuddles, to helping Ted feel safe on walks.

07/06/2024

THIS!! 🙌🏼 Why aren’t we all doing this??

I was on my normal walk today with Twig and Lucky, it’s a nice walk through a meadow by the river to a park in the middle of town. It’s busy with people and dogs (which mine love) and a mix of onlead and offlead dogs.

As I got to a narrow bit this morning, a saw a couple approaching with two dogs on extendable leads and as they saw me they shortened the leads right up and I could see that the people looked really worried about walking past me and my dogs.

I put my dogs onlead, took my dogs off the path into the undergrowth, and distracted them with food (made sure they didn’t look at the dogs) as the people walked past. If I had seen them coming sooner I would have asked them if they wanted me to move off the path. Not everyone feels comfortable to ask you to give them space but it’s normally pretty obvious when people are worried about walking past you and it’s easy to help them out.

The people and dogs walked past and thanked me for giving them space- no drama and we both went on our way.

I have no idea why they were worried about walking past me- the people may have been worried about strange dogs, their dogs may have been worried about strange dogs, the dogs may have been unwell or in pain or elderly or in season. Honestly it’s NONE of my business why they wanted space but it’s my job as a decent human being to be empathetic and respect that these people wanted some space.

I didn’t offer them advice, as it’s not my place. I’m sure we’ve all had unwanted advice over the years and most of it is awful. I bet every day they get told they ‘should let their dogs off lead’, or that ‘they were making their dogs anxious by making the lead so tight’ or that ‘they shouldn’t be walking in that place as it’s an ‘offlead’ dog place’.

I know people who’ve had reactive dogs carry on helping out other owners long after their own reactive dogs have passed away as they remember what it felt like. It costs nothing to try and make someone else’s day a bit less stressful. Even if your dog is totally fine with other dogs you can help other owners out who look stressed (and it’s none of our business why they might be stressed) by giving them space.

Laura McAuliffe, 2024 Dog Communication

06/06/2024

The loveliest last day of our holiday-the time has flown, but we are all relaxed and have had the most wonderful time making lovely memories and just being together

05/06/2024

Think someone’s going to need a holiday to get over his holiday!! Saw some wonderful things today

03/06/2024

Oh we do like to be beside the seaside

30/05/2024

We’re taking a break off to have some fun in the sun 🐾🐾

27/05/2024

The temptation on the he was sparko before I opened the packet!! I never get a whole packet to myself-sharing is caring 💙

19/05/2024

CONGRATULATIONS to the latest graduate’s of my Beginners to Scentwork course. They were all super sniffers and it shows dogs of all breed types can participate in this wonderful activity. Well done to everyone and hope to see you at the workshops.
If you would like information about my courses or 1-1 sessions please get in touch.

13/05/2024

A little share…I’ve been accepted as Student Member of the Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors - APBC.
This means I am currently studying 📚 for a qualification as an ABT (Animal Behaviour Technician) which means one day I’ll hopefully get my qualification and will be able to work alongside and support a CAB (Clinical Animal Behaviourist) during the process of behaviour modification. 🤞🏼🤞🏼
As lots of you know I love all things dog, but behaviour is my true love-watch this space.

Welcome to Sarah Wynn who joins the APBC as a Student Member!

The Association of Pet Behaviour Counsellors (APBC) is a network of friendly and professional practitioners who collaborate extensively with vet-led teams, focusing on a variety of species such as dogs, cats, horses, small mammals, reptiles, birds, and other animals.

Come join us! https://bit.ly/3wzreH8

07/05/2024

Love this post. Thank you Laura McAuliffe Dog Communication
Some great points for greater understanding of our dogs 🩵

FRUSTRATION IN DOGS, WHATS THE BIG DEAL?
Frustration in dogs is often misunderstood, we’ve all heard people talk about ‘frustrated greeters’ and it implies that a dog may be vocal and bark but once they get there and can say hi, they are totally fine!

In my experience, frustrated greeters are actually rare. Many dogs who are reactive at a distance aren’t fine when they actually get chance to say hi! Frustration issues around other dogs aren’t always due to a lack of social contact. Frustration is complex and we need to think about what frustration actually is:

Frustration is defined as an aversive emotional reaction that results from unexpected absence of reinforcement (Domjan, 2003) or as any interference in the performance of goal-seeking activity (Dollard, 1939). That’s quite a mouthful but what it really means is that frustration feels bad, it’s a negative emotion that happened when things don’t turn out the way dogs (or people!) expect. Frustration also occurs if dogs are prevented from doing something they are driven to do, particularly if they miss out on a reward because of it.

Many dogs are frustrated around other dogs but it’s not as simple as just letting them say hi to fix it. Why isn’t it that simple?!

🛑 Frustration may be due to prevention of other goals, the dog might not actually want to say hi! They may just want to be near dogs but without interaction or they may want to get closer to investigate or they may even want to drive the other dog away! We need to think about what their goal actually is.

🐕 Frustration can occur if the expected reward is not obtained- if the other dog does not play or does not play in the desired way. We may then see a burst of frustration that can tip over into aggression.

💊 Some dogs may have pain or health issues which mean they are then sensitive about interactions when they get to the other dog and things may then go wrong

😑 Some dogs are conflicted and want to go and say hi but then suddenly become anxious when they get there (and may then lunge etc to try and increase distance). This is really common

🐩 Some dogs have more generalised frustration issues- it’s not just about dogs, they are struggling with frustration in multiple aspects of their lives and we need to work on the underlying cause of this.

🐶 Some dogs have very poor communication skills and so don’t do well when they actually get the chance to interact with other dogs. They may be too much for most dogs and may then get negative feedback and that can then also tip over into aggression.

Frustration based issues need a qualified and experienced professional to help as they can be complex.. So many dogs with frustration issues have underlying health issues and pain or have anxiety issues too that are contributing to stress. We need to look at the dog as a whole to see how we can help them. I’m lucky and have a team of dogs who help me and they are far better skilled than I will ever be at reading other dogs and can tell if a dog is frustrated and what help that dog needs too.

Follow for more info about how we can help dogs who are struggling with frustration

Laura McAuliffe, 2024 Dog Communication

26/04/2024

Another fantastic post from Dog Communication. Sharing life with a reactive dog can be challenging but I wouldn’t have it any other way.
My lad really has changed my life 💙

If you have a reactive dog you probably didn’t sign up for this. You probably didn’t take them on knowing how your life would change and how hard many aspects would be.

You’ve probably changed your expectations about your life as a dog parent, going to the busy park on a sunny day and sitting in a busy pub garden may be off the menu for now. Although this is incredibly hard to adjust to and it’s stressful at times, life with reactive dogs teaches us lessons that will impact on every other dog we ever share our lives with.

As well as working with so many reactive dogs I’ve had 3 of my own so I know all too well what life with them is like and it’s hard, really hard at times but it’s not all negative.

🥇 You learn to celebrate the small victories, you don’t take for granted your dog walking past another dog and staying happy and relaxed- it’s a win that makes your day!

🥷 You find the quiet walks that no one else knows about and where you won’t meet anyone and your super ninja senses mean you see things that other people may miss.

🌈 You don’t just enjoy a walk on a gorgeous sunny day and you find the beauty in a grey, rainy day walk as you know you won’t meet anyone!

🐶 Your understanding of canine behaviour will increase immensely- we’ve had clients who have become as good as the best trainers and whose understanding of the science behind their dog’s behaviour equals that of most behaviourists. They read, they learn, they listen and they take it all onboard and these skills will help every other dog they ever care for.

🥰 You will have such understanding and empathy for other owners of reactive dogs and you may help them in their own journey. Reactive dogs owners are the best at acts of kindness to other owners; long after your reactive dog is gone you will go out of your way to give an onlead dog space and offer a nod or a smile to someone else who is trying their hardest to manage their dog on a walk.

🐕 You will know your dog better than you could have ever imagined; your ability to read their every mood, their subtle changes in posture or that extra wrinkle on their brow would be totally missed my most people but not by a reactive dog owner as they are so in tune with their dogs. I miss my previous reactive dogs each and every day, life wasn’t always easy with them (although they improved so much) and I’m always thankful for the lessons they taught me.

Laura McAuliffe, 2024, Dog Communication. If you like my posts please share them using the share button. Please don’t copy and paste or edit my images. Sharing my posts allows me to reach more people and share the message

24/04/2024

A great morning spent doing what I love- watching great teamwork build through Scentwork. Some great searching and puzzle solving. I just love that Scentwork is such an inclusive activity which all dogs can participate in🙌🏼 and a great photo of a contented dog after a workshop 😴 please get in touch if you’d like to find out about Scentwork.

21/04/2024

A great post….choosing the correct equipment (harness) can be difficult. This post really shows how movement and gate can be impacted.
A well fitting Y fronted harness would be my choice.

16/04/2024

A great post from Dog Communication
Every puppy is different so we need to assess each individual during sensitive periods of learning around socialisation opportunities and really learn to listen to their body language. This can make a huge difference.

BE CAREFUL WITH YOUR VERY CUTE PUPPY..

Or they may grow up to be worried about people..

All puppies are adorable but some seem to get much more attention than others. If they have unusual markings, or are a rare breed or look like a teddy bear or are absolutely tiny, they may get even more attention than your average pup.

Your very cute puppy may get loads of attention from people. You may get groups of kids reaching to touch them, people trying to pick them up etc. it may feel like this is great socialisation for them but it may be too much for some puppies.

I see so many clients with gorgeous dogs and their adult dogs have become reactive to people and may bark or snap if people reach out to touch them. There are many reasons this can develop but a significant one is that cute puppies can sometimes get overwhelmed by well meaning strangers when they are tiny.

Some puppies can find all this attention and the 8 million hands trying to stroke them too much and then you risk them being overwhelmed and becoming worried at a young age.

Socialisation, where we help puppies to feel comfortable to all the things will experience as an adult, can actually result in sensitisation. If puppies are sensitised they grow up to be scared of the things you exposed them to, and in adult dogs, this can result in anxiety that comes out as barking, lunging, growing or snapping at people if they find them scary. Puppies absolutely need exposure to lots of nice people of all different ages and types but it needs to be done sensitively and shouldn’t be a free for all. We need to manage socialisation so that it’s fun and feels safe for our puppies.

It’s a really important skill to be able to judge if your puppy is doing okay during socialisation and an even more important skill to know what to do if they aren’t coping.

When you are out with your puppy observe their body language carefully- are they wagging softly and trying to approach the person who wants to say hi to them? Are they able to eat treats and is their body looking soft and relaxed? If they are backing away, yawning, cowering or their tail is tucked then we need to advocate for pup and say ‘sorry they don’t want to say hi right now’

It’s often easier to see pups body language if they are on the ground and not being held by you. If they are being held it can be hard to tell if they are trying to move away and don’t want to be touched.

Be careful how people interact with them- not too many friendly hands reaching out at once, don’t let them get overwhelmed and don’t let people pick them up if they don’t want to be picked up (most puppies would prefer to stay on the ground). Try and make sure people use 1 hand and not 2 to stroke pup (this avoids hands clamping either side of pups face), ask people to stroke for a few seconds and then stop- if pup has had enough and doesn’t ask for more affection we need to respect that and move away. If your puppy has had enough, get them out of the situation and don’t ever worry about offending people- your puppy’s emotional needs come first.

My first puppy as an adult was my northern inuit Elsa, pictured here. She had striking facial markings and was an unusual breed so people were magnetised to her. Kids would surround her and hands would constantly reach out to touch her wherever we went. I probably oversocialised her and she was most likely overwhelmed by too many friendly people looking back, she was much more sensitive than I first realised. She grew up to not love new people much (she absolutely adored all dogs) and her extensive socialisation may have been part of the reason why.

I never ever made the same mistake again with all the puppies I’ve had since and I advise my clients to tailor the socialisation experience to their own pup. Some confident puppies lap up all the exposure to people you can give them and don’t find any of it overwhelming and some more sensitive puppies need a much more controlled and careful socialisation. If you aren’t sure what your puppy needs, getting professional help before any issues develop can be a good idea to get you off on the right track from the start.

If you’re now in the position of having an adult dog who reacts to people and you think it may be as they were overwhelmed as a puppy, don’t blame yourself. It can be hard to judge and we all do the best we can at the time. There are often many factors that contribute including genetic traits, pain and ill health and very early experiences too. Getting professional help can help sensitive adults to feel happier around people too.

Laura McAuliffe 2024, Dog Communication

03/04/2024

Another year to look forward to knowing my skills and ethics align to meet the ABTC standard.
To meet this standard requires CPD hours which means my knowledge is up to date and I continue to learn to help dogs and their companions have a fulfilled life together.
There are new things in the pipeline this year too, which I am so excited about . It will test my knowledge BUT will be so worth it.
Watch this space 💚