The Mutty Professor

23/08/2024

🥳 TRIUMPHANT SNOOT INCOMING 🥳

Toby had an assessment with our team ninja and separation anxiety expert, Hayley, in February!

He started his separation anxiety training in March and is now up to a whopping 2 hours duration of alone time!

Sir Toby Long Snoot Esquire has also had support for over reactions towards dogs, and occasional people too. He’s made massive gains in this department also!

💊 A massive game changer for Toby was starting psychoactive medication in May. From here, his progress really accelerated.

More often than not, we get started on behaviour modification before we consider or raise discussions about the potential addition psychoactive medication with clients and vets.
In many instances, lowering stress with a behaviour modification plan is enough to facilitate positive change.

😣 However, in some instances keeping a dog below threshold in order to lower stress is just not possible or the dog’s physiology is out of balance and lowering stress via behaviour modification alone is not enough to bring things back into balance.

😴 It’s a myth that ALL psychoactive medication sedates dogs or that it changes their personality 😩

Statements such as these demonstrate a naivety as to the differences between medications, how such medications work and what the intention actually is when using them as part of a behaviour modification programme.

💊 Medications are most effective as an adjunct to a behaviour modification programme delivered under the guidance and support of a suitably qualified behaviour professional - who the prescribing veterinarian has referred to.

22/08/2024

Emergency “down” off the chase.

🥎 💨 🦡 💨 ✈️

Trained without aversive tools nor corrections.

21/08/2024

Happy Birthday to our lovely team member Julia! 🎂

We all hope you have a wonderful day!! 💋

Thank you for all that you do! 🥰

Looking forward to Friday's team escape room & laser quest fun!

Julia Dog behaviourist & dog trainer Julia has a degree in Animal Behaviour and a PGCE in Early Years and Primary Education and has worked in both professio

20/08/2024

🗣️ “Stop throwing balanced trainers under the bus”

🗣️ “Stop criticising what others are doing”

🗣️ “Stop telling people what to do”

Unless you spend and equal amount of time saying similar on the content of balanced trainers , how about you stop trying to censor information from adequately qualified professionals because it makes you feel uncomfortable?

It's okay to disagree and I very much welcome fair, educated and diplomatic criticism from someone who is also capable of being self-critical.

Or equally, we can all choose to scroll on (or stop scrolling!) and say nothing - as I tend to do 99% of the time!

Sorry to the dog carpool karaoke fans for the false alarm! It’ll be back soon! 🎤 🎶

20/08/2024

UK BASED DOG OWNERS!
Now is the time to start ramping up efforts in helping your dog cope with a fear of fireworks!

17/08/2024

We are enjoying a sofa day with the dogs after a lovely morning walk with friends.

This moment melted my heart! ❤️

Kanita almost never sleeps this close to the dogs. Due to her past*, albeit 12 years ago now, she has long lasting trauma. She can flash her fangs, spit out a foul mouthed tirade or get up suddenly and move away whilst grumbling if any of her dog companions go to settle next to her.

She can even sometimes struggle to sleep next to me on the sofa, despite coming to sit close to me! Although, she’s got much more tolerant of this the past few years.

We don’t fret over her outbursts. The boys respond passively and perfectly. They know Kanita well enough to know what to expect. They make the choice to give her space or peacefully navigate their way into the spot they mutually want in that moment and negotiate any objections she has.

We ensure all the dogs have plenty of space and choice as to where to go, and give them all plenty of individual attention so to help them take advantage of the space, rather than all huddle around us!

*Kanita was seized with 1000 or so other dogs from the dog meat trade, near the Thai Border to Vietnam. The dogs were all initially held in a small holding space (so this was incredibly cramped conditions) before she was pulled out by Soi Dog and K9 Angels (in 2012).

Therefor, it’s completely understandably why she would struggle to relax and sleep with a dog almost touching her!

16/08/2024

Willow the Sprocker has been making great progress with her Walk N Train sessions with team member Hayley.

I initially assessed Willow for shadow and light chasing behaviours as well as manic, ‘disconnected’ behaviour on walks. She pulled hideously on the lead.

It would be too easy to label these behaviours as breed/type-specific.

Whilst arousal regulation challenges are something working spaniels can absolutely struggle with, Willow’s behaviour problems are in fact strongly linked to her health.

Poor Willow keeps getting Giardia (a gut parasite that’s very resistant to treatment!). There is a strong and clear link between her shadow chasing and her gastro intestinal health problems returning.

It was re-diagnosed after I referred her back to the vets for re-testing, prompted by me reviewing her medical history, considering the information given by her family on the extensive intake form I provide and lastly observing her on the assessment.

Whilst it’s crucial to treat health problems, clients still need behaviour modification strategies to minimise dogs engaging in behaviours problems, as learning can still occur and the problem can remain long after the health issue is resolved.

Willow responds really well to the behaviour modification plan, but regression occurs every time her symptoms flare.

Poorly or not, Willow still has a brain that needs exercising and she still needs to get out the house for physical exercise. However, our focus isn’t on exhausting the spaniel!

Caution must be taken with regards to what we ask her to do!
We need to adapt to how she feels that day, but also be aware that arousing exercises, such as a daily focus on high intensity training games with toys, are not going to be helpful for her gut environment.

Again, this is why behaviour problems should be referred by a veterinarian to qualified professionals who have an adequate knowledge of health problems and who recognise that you can’t train every behaviour problem away. A holistic and adaptive approach is needed.

Over two thirds of our behaviour cases require re-examination and/or medical treatment post-assessment for health problems.
It is highly unlikely that these figures are unique to our cases.

A big shout out to team Willow. I know it’s not easy and she’s very lucky to have you! The fact that she’s not got worse and only briefly regresses before returning to the improvements we’ve made is a testamont to your dedication. ❤️❤️

15/08/2024

Another job well done for Captain Testicles! 🧑‍✈️

Meilla was attacked really badly by a large dog a month or so ago. She’s lucky to have survived.

Allison was already a client and reached out for some support. We gave some initial guidance, which is to keep things quiet for 1-2 weeks to allow for rest and physical and emotional recovery. This means taking them for walks in quiet places and only if they request them.

Then ease back into walks where dogs may be seen in the distance and observe her body language in response to their presence.
From there, we can decide if she’s ready to approach and interact with carefully selected dogs.

To assess her body language up close and provide a positive experience, she came to our field for a social walk with Mohawk and my long standing team member, Emily!

Mohawk is always happy to add another girlfriend to the ever increasing list!

Meilla had a bit of a flirt and then regained her composure, reverting back to first base, they then mooched the field and country lane together ❤️❤️

14/08/2024

🐕 Dog Body Language : is it a playful or defensive growl and bark?

Here’s a video of Amigo and I having blazing row! 😆

When I interact with my dogs up close like this, I am watching them very carefully for changes in body language.

Whilst our relationship is solid, there are differences in dog and human behaviour that make seemingly fun or loving interactions between dogs and their family at risk of going wrong!

Going face to face and eye to eye can be perceived as threatening for dogs, whereas for humans (primates) we can have a bias for decreasing face to face proximity when we are seeking to strengthen social bonds. This is especially the case with children!

Every single dog is capable of biting and most bites happen on someone familiar to the dog. Common places for bites are on the person’s face or hands.

I never take it for granted that my dogs could easily bite me! The speed in which they can deliver a bite can be far faster than I can move away.

Therefore, having awareness of body language in addition to a conflict- free relationship is crucial in preventing bites.

So, what do I see here that makes me think Amigo is largely enjoying this interaction?

✅ Mouth stays relaxed and open and the whiskers do not push excessively forwards (which is a sign of muscles contracting in the muzzle).
You can see his canine tooth is going over the lip, which also shows the muscles in the muzzle are relaxed in addition to the O shape he maintains in his mouth through the interaction.
If the lips repositioned to tuck the teeth away, it would be a potential sign of changing emotional state and preparation!

✅ You can see a slight twist in the tongue. Dogs often do this when they are playing in a goofy/inhibited way.
Drawing in the tongue and closing the mouth can be a sign of preparation to escalate behaviour, perhaps to a growl, muzzle punch, snap or bite!

✅ His eyes mostly stay the same shape! They don’t fixate intensely on me nor harden, where the pupil dilates prior to a reaction.
The tissue around his eyes remains soft.
He diverts his gaze half way through the interaction, and his eye appears to harden momentarily before softening.
This diversion of his gaze is a sensibly strategy for ensuring we both don’t over-do the exchange and him dialling down the intensity!
You can see he blinks a little heavily at the end, which may be a self calming behaviour or a cut-off signal. Fortunately for him, I spotted his head angle away prior to me scanning to the tail and could see it was time to be the bigger person and stop arguing over what is probably a trivial matter 😂

✅ A tail wag doesn’t mean a happy dog! But here we can see that as Amigo wags his tail, his legs are moving with the momentum of the stub! This shows he has minimal tension in his body.

✅ I hear dog laughter at the start! That “ha ha ha” breathing that dogs can do prior to play! You can hear I do it back too, but I make sure my breath does not go in his face (dogs often get really agitated by that!).

✅ The barks are rounded in tone. They are not sharp, deep and sudden, but have a rounded opening (where the pitch goes up and down in a curve).

🧍‍♂️ Bear in mind that my camera is close to him, not my face! I’m leaning in, but not blocking him in!
When I interact with my dogs like this I am softening my behaviour by looking away, diverting my gaze and making sure my verbal tone and facial expressions remain very goofy!

But most importantly, I do not get carried away! I monitor my dogs closely and look to finish the interaction whilst they’re still enjoying it!

Generally these types of interactions are best kept short in duration.

13/08/2024

Dora the Wirehaired Dachshund is enjoying her sessions! ❤️

Dora unfortunately joined the Shouty Sausage Society.

Our team member Hayley has been providing Dora’s lovely guardians with support on how to help Dora migrate over to the Managing Your Emotions Like A Champ Community! 💪

12/08/2024

It's been a couple of years since my (then) shop team and I had fun filming this video.

Our goal was to demonstrate what inappropriate approaches and interactions between unfamiliar dogs on walks may look like.

Disclaimer: I don't advocate for dogs interacting with every unfamiliar dog they come across. However, I do think there's value in dogs having the opportunity to develop or rehearse their small talk skills when SAFE and APPROPRIATE for ALL involved.

When Mohawk's pre frontal cortex turns into one giant testicle (after encountering the scent of a dog who appears in oestrus) he is at risk of being The Pest and getting 'stuck' with a dog.
He can struggle to disengage from the interaction or may follow them for a few metres, which is annoying to a dog if they are now ready to move on.

Not only do I carefully assess which unfamiliar dogs I let my dogs interact with, but I stay close and observant during the few interactions that take place across the week.

This way I am ready to support my dogs if they need it, or guide them into making better choices (move on) if their usual standard of social etiquette isn't bang on that day!

10/08/2024

🗣️”You should use a slip lead”

This appears to be an ever increasing response to footage of a dog wearing a harness, regardless of their behaviour in the video. It would seem that to some, the mere presence of a harness invalidates any perception of training results!

Another common statement is:

🗣️“Harnesses make dogs pull!”

This is a bit of a daft statement.
Dogs do not have a breed identity crisis the moment a harness goes on. I’ve also observed plenty of sled dog breeds/types walking on a loose lead whilst wearing a harness.

More accurately, harnesses make it more comfortable, and thus easier, for dogs who already pull on the lead, to pull!

If a dog pulls on the lead, more reason to protect their delicate neck by using a harness whilst teaching them to walk nicely on the lead - using non-corrective methods!

The harness should simply be there for safety (for e.g., cars/roads!) and protection from pain or even injury in the event of errors (hitting the end of the lead) during the learning process.

Indeed, some dogs may be too strong for their owners whilst wearing a harness during the learning process, in which case looking to select the most comfortable equipment possible (and ensuring the environment supports the dog succeeding!) is advisable.

The focus should be on the training, rather than the equipment.

Note:

There is such a thing as a badly fitted harness!
These specific harnesses are by Haqihana and are Y shaped on the front and H on the back (Link in comments).

I recommend avoiding harnesses that are advertised as 'anti-pull' or that go across the shoulders or which are excessively bulky on the front as these can infringe on a dog's natural range movement, which can cause discomfort or injury over time.

Make sure you can get 3-4 fingers between your dog’s armpit and the harness strap to avoid pinching and matting.

09/08/2024

I received this amazing feedback from Melissa Mabe, all the way over from the USA, the other day.

Since my seminars and webinars this year, I am receiving more messages like this out of the blue and it can really make my day.

If a dog professional has made a big difference to you, be sure to let them know! ❤

"I just wanted to reach out and say THANK YOU for you course on Behavior Vets- The Nuances of Practical Training for Dog-Dog Behavior Problems.

I am a veterinarian but I took the course on a whim to see if there was anything new I could try with one of my own dogs. I won't bore you with all the details but he's struggled with reactivity for years.

Your approach in particular to leash handing and how to manage dogs who are at least somewhat socially motivated really struck a cord with us.

He's come a long way over the years but I've been feeling like we'd hit a plateau/sticking point for a while now.

We've made some adjustments in our approaches to certain situations based on your talk and I have noticed a difference! Even if he's not perfect I feel much more comfortable with what to do with him. And even though I'm not perfect 😅 he seems more comfortable navigating tricky situations with me.

Keep up the good work!”

Here’s a picture of Arlo! 🥰

08/08/2024

JOB OPPORTUNITY! APPLICATIONS CLOSED (enough to go through for now! Thank you x )

After taking back the admin duties for the business two years ago, it's time for me to get some help again. At present, the level of inquiry related admin is about 2 hours a day.

Additionally, the demand in our dog-dog social rehab work has increased and we are now going to be getting people travelling to Bristol for intensive training. So, the ideal scenario is that I have someone who can act as a helper dog assistant for some of our sessions too, so I am able to coach clients more easily.

Lastly, having someone to hand to help with filming tutorials would be very helpful.

Thus, this role would suit someone who is Bristol/North Somerset based (south bristol would involve less travel!) and available Monday-Friday between 9am and 3pm, who is confident around dogs, savvy with computers and eager to learn!

What we can guarantee you is a minimum of 10 hours a week, a decent hourly rate and the opportunity to join our amazing team and learn more about dog behaviour and training.

To apply please use the contact form at the bottom of our website: https://themuttyprofessor.co.uk/

07/08/2024

Oh I do love an EBT!! 😍

Brok and his brother from another mother, Phineas the Mini Dachshund, have been having support from team member Julia. They’ve been working on helping them learn to hang out together calmly indoors and to be respectable and responsive chaps when outdoors!

Brok loves a good ol’ belly flop, stretch and drag. We see this behaviour a lot in highly social individuals.

My interpretation is that in a social context it’s often a self-handicapping signal.

“look at how non-threatening I am in this inhibited position”….. “come on in, the water is warm!” 🤣

It also appears to be an arousal displacement behaviour for some dogs- a way of self calming when excited, again usually in a social context!

It’s also entirely possible that the stretching action and tactile stimulation (usually carpet or grass) to the underside is simply enjoyable!

For some dogs who have a tendency to frequently stretch or sleep like this may suggest tight muscles perhaps!

05/08/2024

“Dude, Drop the squirrel” 🐿️

Resource Guarding & Trade Info! Panicking only makes things worse!

‼️ Trigger warning: dead animal ‼️

When taking Amigo and Kanita for a walk yesterday, no sooner had we stepped out of our garden gate we encountered a dead squirrel on the road.
Before I could recall him away, Amigo lurched and grabbed it!

He clutched onto the squirrel proudly! I wish I’d got my camera out sooner but my immediate and the more sensible response was to get Kanita out the way.

Having another dog present puts more pressure on the dog with the resource (to keep it!) -making them even less likely to let the item go! But it also increases risk of aggression over the resource, especially if the other dog is interested.

So I put Kanita behind our gate. If that weren’t so conveniently close I would have tied her to a fence or a tree.

Amigo attempted a crunch and gulp but this was a large squirrel! By the time I start filming Amigo had placed the squirrel down to assess how best go about eating the poor thing.

Here I have to make some very quick decisions:

🤔 What am I going to use to get him to drop the item?
Food or ball?!

I opt to go with the ball and you can see I bounce it once to increase the stimulus that signals ball chase is on offer, and I then throw it.

📝 Note my verbal interaction is positive!
📝 Also note I move away from him to take the pressure off.
Staying close would make him more anxious that I want the resource.

Backing off may feel counter productive but paired up with staying calm and sounding unbothered, it makes a huge difference. You can see I move in only after he's moved away (poo bag at the ready to pick up the poor Squirrel).

Amigo likes to chomp on the ball, so that kept him busy while I picked it up. If he didn't, then I would have stood my foot over the item and then throw loads of treats away from it.

🗣️ You’ll note that I do not use my ‘drop’ verbal cue. If there’s any doubt it’s going to work then I’m not going to use it!
This squirrel find was novel and the intensity of his hold onto it (amount of tension/pressure in his jaw and 'committment' in his behaviour made me doubt the cue alone would work!).
We have not proofed our training to random dead squirrel level.

🤔 What if the ball hadn’t worked?

I would have scattered a whopping handful of food in his line of sight and orientated them away from the squirrel and then stepped back to take the pressure off.

I always carry high value food on walks. Amigo is an extra stray and LOVES food- but even a scatter of biscuits wouldn’t pay enough for this treasure!

💵 Your dog decides the exchange rate!

🤔 What of food and ball doesn’t work?!

You can see if ramping up anticipation and running helps encourage your dog to chase you! I do this when multiple dogs are simultaneously threatening to roll in fox poo or if a dog is taking their treasure away from me!
I get them excited by saying “ready…..steeeeady… ….GO!!” and then run!

If that doesn’t work we are running out of options!

Previously I have taken Kanita (not toy motivated and wouldn’t trade the rabbit she caught for treats!) by her harness strap (that runs down her back) and gently lifted her just a little (an inch max) so her front paws have come off the ground a little. I’ve then stayed calm, added some relaxed sounded verbal interactions- so to minimise her feeling threatened by me and this highly unusual way of me handling her.

As she would need four paws on the ground to eat prey, after 10 seconds of the sustained slight lift she let go of the rabbit. I could then stand on it, and stay calm until she resigned her resource to me and move on. We do not fight over it!

If your dog doesn’t already have a low threshold for tolerating you near them when you have a resource and if you have a solid relationship and maintain your usual vibe, then my experience is that they tend to tolerate this well and recover with no fall out.
If you panic, act with a sense of urgency or communicate to your dog that they’ve done wrong then they’re more likely going to find this very aversive and that poses a risk in the moment or to generalising to your handling in other contexts.

Not my preferred method as it's clearly forceful - if you think food or toys would work always try these first. But I like to provide all information rather than pretend every dog reaches the end goal of training before we find ourselves in a challenging situation with them. Sometimes, the skills are not yet ready!

However, if we are going to manhandle dogs in this way, which should be for TRUE EMERGENCIES ONLY, the speed, intensity and our overall demeanour can make a big difference to how stressed they feel by our behaviour.

🤔 I think my dog wouldn’t trade for anything and may be at risk of biting me if I took hold of their harness or collar like that!

There are some things that are simply better off letting go of- rather than risk permanent damage to your relationship! Let your dog keep the thing.

Sometimes the above solutions will be more likely to work after your dog has had an opportunity to keep or parade their treasure!
The only sense of urgency should arise if they go to eat what ever it is that they’ve found and even then we should ask ourselves,

🤔 “Is the level of risk for eating the item greater than the risk of damaging our relationship for using a greater level of force?!”

For me, these events almost never happen! If they happen frequently to you and your dog then a super proactive approach is where the focus should be.

This may involve:

✅ Avoid problem areas when possible (for eg cross the road rather than walk past an area with loads of cat poo/litter etc in it!)

✅ Recall, pretty much the same behaviour as ‘leave it’!

✅ Walking close (head up off the ground and focused on you) in areas where your dog may actively look for things to pick up!

✅ Work heavily and creatively on drop and trade.
🚗 Thankfully I live on a very quiet lane and it was early, so extra quiet. Naturally I had checked before throwing the ball.

💥 I’ve seen someone use an e collar for this sort of thing. My concerns with that is that there are so many other cues present that your dog may associate with the stim. They could even pair up/couple cues, such as resources + looking at you, resource + the other dog, a specific sound they’re hearing a certain movement you do and associate these with the stim.
As resources are an everyday part of a dog’s life and are crucial in motivating behaviour than supports us keeping them under control, I do not want to risk them developing anxiety in association with the context of resources.

04/08/2024

Daisy is back and just smashed a session where we focused on loose lead (on a short lead), recall and arousal regulation around toys!

Now she’s socialising with more dogs nicely and is less easily over aroused and frustrated in general, we can ramp up the criteria and ask for more of her. We can also reintroduce toys a little to help increase her motivation.

These skills will help help her learn to manage her expectations and also improve how responsive she is on her walks!

02/08/2024

PUTTING THE FEELERS OUT THERE…. Is there demand for a group Q & A (where an audience can ask me anything about dogs) ?

For example, pay £10 to attend a private group meeting online and submit questions in advance! Questions would then be selected so to cover a broad range of topics.

The meeting could be 1-1.5 hours depending on the number of attendees!

Naturally, there would be limitations as to how much I can advise on ‘my dog’ questions without a full assessment!

01/08/2024

🥵 DOG CRATES & HOT WEATHER! 🥵

Last night this guy had me up twice. He’s not very good at communicating he needs to go out and does displacement behaviours like rolling upside down making a quacking noise, a weird burping noise or pacing up and down the hallway.

Despite having the fan on in the hall and access to a cold, hard floor in different areas, he was too hot!

Dogs often change their position and location multiple times across a sleep/rest period. This is especially the case for thick or double coated breeds or individuals who ‘run hot’.

Amigo and Kanita will stay in their beds in the bedroom all night but sometimes Kanita gets out of her bed to lie on the floor.
(Yes, they sleep in our bedroom! They have the choice to sleep elsewhere, but they want to sleep close as a group).

However, across the evening when we are all hanging in the lounge all three dogs are changing where they rest frequently. With the current heat, despite having a fan on, they are changing positions about 2-3 times each per hour!

One reason dogs change the location or position of where they sleep is to regulate their body temperature.

Another reason is that different sleeping positions may better support different phases of sleep.
Being able to stretch out fully promotes REM sleep- the phase of sleep where memory consolidation and recovery from stressors is at optimum!

Think how about your quality of sleep lying down vs when sat upright! Do you do the nodding dog? 😴 🛌

Taking this species-specific sleeping behaviour and the current hot weather into consideration, it’s important to consider whether your set up for where your dog sleeps is allowing them to regulate their temperature.

Whilst positioning a fan towards a dog who is crated is considerate to them over heating, dogs who aren’t crated can demonstrate a preference to move away after a duration of sitting in front of a fan. 🪭

It’s not uncommon for dogs to suddenly develop an aversion to their crates during hot weather. This may be due to heat, or even due to an increase in audible sounds at night due to open windows 🪟

My preference is that dogs have the freedom to regulate their temperature and stretch out fully by being given more than one option of where they can sleep rather than contained in an area with limited space.

A compromise to providing total free range- where your dog can access multiple sleeping spots in various locations and of various surfaces- may be a dog bed in a room behind a stargate, or a crate with an open door paired up with a large puppy pen. However, be mindful the only padded surface isn’t in a small, contained space or that a hard floor is the only alternative to a thick, cushioned bed! A nice rug or padded mat may provide an in between.

If your dog genuinely loves their crate and considers it to be their consistently comfy bed and safe place - they’ll go inside on their own accord and stay inside even when the door is left open.

31/07/2024

Look at the two cuties from puppy class, Ruby the Irish Terrier and Dolly the Doberman!

We are seeing a lot more Irish Terriers recently! They’re lovely personalities and Ruby is the first female Irish Terrier we’ve had on our books. Apparently females are less numerous than males within the breed!

Dolly is a show line Doberman and my Border Collie Mohawk is a show line dog too (with a bit of agility line in there!).

Personally I think there should be more information on show lines being available in some breeds, such as the Doberman and Border Collie!

People are very quick to associate show lines with poor health, and it’s totally understandable with regards to some breeds of dogs! We cannot deny that there’s a lot of work to be done in reducing grossly exaggerated physical /confirmation traits within many breeds of dog.

However, in working line dogs (especially those from genuine/actively working stock!) we can see exaggerated behaviour traits. It’s important to note that working line dogs can still be vulnerable to health problems.

Adolescence is a tough time for most dogs (and their owners) regardless of their breed or line. However, dogs with strong working heritage can be particularly challenging during this phase.

Unfortunately these working line behaviour traits are commonly too much for many dog owners to handle, especially first time dog owners.

Just like Mohawk, Dolly is still motivated to engage in training but finds it easier to switch off!

This is a nice balance for owners who want a bit of fun with their dog and to explore dog training, without having to try and rapidly develop the skill to handle their dog that has taken many training professional years to refine!