🐾 CASE STUDY: FINLEY
🐶 Handsome Finley struggled with being around and seeing other dogs on walks. He had started barking, growling and then lunging/'going for' other dogs. Finley is a big boy and that meant he was a lot for his guardians to handle in those situations and, of course, he was coming across as quite scary to others.
Reactivity mostly has its roots in fear and so my job is to change Finley's emotional response to other dogs so he no longer feels the need to react when he sees them.
My Behaviour Modification Process is a 3 Stage Programme:
1️⃣ Recovery: This is all about lowering his stress levels - not exposing Finley to the things that worry him (ie other dogs) - so he can reduce those circulating stress hormones. We also look to shift his mood state to a more positive and calm one. This puts him in a great place to learn new ways of doing things as his general view of the world will now be more optimistic. Then...
2️⃣ Retrain: This is where we equip both Finley and his guardians with a great toolkit of behaviours that they can ask Finley to do instead of the old behaviours, behaviours that enable them to move out of trouble quickly and easily. While these are essential and practical, there are further benefits - the act of training helps to repair the bond between guardian and dog, it strengthens the relationship and increases the trust. All of which will help us reach our ultimate goal....
3️⃣ Resolve: Now we have a more optimistic, happier dog who is armed with a great set of skills, we can go and try out our new skills in the real world. This is always done in a careful, controlled way. We are always looking to set Finley up for success and keep him under threshold - under the point where he feels the need to react. With repeated, careful exposure to other dogs, we can start the business of changing his emotional response.
⚠️ WARNING: This stuff does not happen overnight‼️
I started working with Finley at the end o
❤️ TESTIMONIAL❤️
What a lovely way to start the weekend with a testimonial like this 🥰 I don’t have a ‘before’ video but this one ⬇️ is the ‘after’.
Roo, the bouncy, excitable, beautiful Labrador would go berserk as soon as the neighbours’ dogs kicked off in the garden…..
“I contacted Emma about 18 months ago when I was at my wits end. I just didn't know where to turn or what to do about a situation that, to many people, possibly wouldn't be a big deal but I knew it was a big deal for my dog and it also impacted significantly on my home life.
I have two beautiful labradors who are young and bouncy but generally well behaved. The problem was that the youngest was 'reacting' to a neighbour's dogs who very frequently bark and often boundary bark. My 1 year old found this irresistible. She wouldn't bark back but she would run at full pelt towards the fence vaulting a small wall in the process. She would completely zone out to any verbal attempt from me to distract her away from the fence as her excitement levels were off the scale. I knew that her being 'out of control' with excitement was not something that was a good thing. I felt that I could no longer enjoy my garden as I would have no warning when the barking would start and therefore no way of knowing when we could be safely out enjoying the space.
So, I turned to Emma. After completing a comprehensive written assessment Emma came to my house, listened without judgement to the issues I was having, met my dogs and came up with a plan to help my youngest understand that her reacting to the other dogs wasn't something that we wanted. Did I want to do some of the things Emma suggested? Well, if I'm honest, no not really as it meant significant restrictions on us for quite some time, but I do know that behaviour changes with dogs require time, commitment and dedication and do not happen over night. So, we embarked on a programme of gentle training which meant my younge
🐶 Enrichment….
I decided to book Alfie in for a fun swim session at Barkshire Hydrotherapy. The weather has been so rubbish, I felt his walks were becoming a bit same-y and boring and I wanted to give him some extra enjoyment and enrichment. Alfie LOVES swimming in the river during summer so I thought this would be perfect for him ❤️
Emma and Jess who run Barkshire Hydrotherapy in Stoke Row were fab. The whole process prior to the swim (vet referral - yes, even for a fun swim - paperwork, short physical exam) was professional and efficient and their whole approach in the pool itself is just lovely. It’s very much dog-centric, kind, and rewards-based. Which is just as well because for the first 20 minutes of a 25 minute swim, Alfie really wasn’t sure about the whole thing 🙈 There’s me thinking I was doing something lovely for him and he’s looking at me like I’m torturing him 🙈😂 I mean what’s not to like about a pool of warm, clean water??? Oh wait…. it’s warm clean water… not stinky, fishy, weedy river water…..
ANYWAY….. I was close to calling it a day because I really didn’t think he was enjoying it when suddenly something clicked. He looked at the ball (as if it was the first time he’d seen it), stared at it intensely and then looked at me as if to say “Well, are you going to throw it or what?!” And we were off! He suddenly figured it out 😂
After a quick rinse off, shampoo and towel dry we were all done. 👍
So, if you’re looking for some hydrotherapy (either as part of a rehabilitation programme or just for fun) I’d happily recommend Barkshire Hydrotherapy ❤️
🐾 Just a Dog Doing Doggy Things…..
🚶♀️ Did I walk as far as I wanted to? Nope
👟 Did I get my step count in? Nope
💓 Did I get my Heart Rate up? Nope
🤷♀️ Does it matter? NOPE
👃 Did I want to stop Alfie sniffing? Nope
💩 Did I want to stop Alfie rolling in whatever disgusting thing he rolled in? Nope
🐾 Did Alfie have a good walk? YES HE DID! And that’s all that matters.
🐶 Sniffing, exploring, rolling are all perfectly NATURAL DOGGY BEHAVIOURS.
🐶 Let your dog be a dog.
❤️ Love is……
Letting your dog sniff for as long as they want even though it’s getting dark, it’s cold, it’s raining and you really fancy a cuppa… He was having a lovely time so who am I to ruin it?
#sniffari #enrichment #scentwork #nosework
It’s Alfie’s 5th birthday today ❤️ As well as his new Octopus toy 🐙 several treats and some steak, he had a new enrichment feeder tonight.
This is the Snuffle & Seek Ball from The Mindful Pet Owner
Wowzers! What a result - it took him 20 minutes for him to finish his dinner tonight! And as we know, 20 minutes of sniffing and snuffling is the equivalent to about an hour’s walk. This is one happy puppy and one happy owner 🐶 🐾
Canine Enrichment -
DIY enrichment #2........ Treats/kibble sprinkled over a towel which is then rolled up.....
The first few times you might need to help pupper unroll the towel. Use smelly high value treats to make it easy and stay close by to help. If pupper just grabs the towel and shakes it (not an unpopular method😆) that’s fine - he’s just created his own scatter feed.....
Canine Enrichment - Three more DIY ways to get puppies and doggos working for their food coming up....
1) Muffin tins with treats/kibble under balls or scrunched up paper.
This requires some nose work and a bit of problem solving, too. As with all the other enrichment activities, set your dog up for success - use high value treats first before mixing in the kibble and stay close by to help them out and give plenty of praise and encouragement.
This is Inca with her Bob-a-lot food dispenser 🥰 This is another great enrichment toy that makes dinner last a very long time! Inca clearly loves her Bob-a-lot which is more than I can say for my Alfie who barked at it and then walked off in disgust 😆 And, if you want to hire the singer for your next party, it’s Andrew Bell.....