Barking Up The Right Tree

28/06/2024

Did you know that a 2020 study found that using e-collars for training recall, amongst other behaviours, showed no significant increase in efficacy vs reward-based training? In fact the only times there was a significant difference was to show that reward-based training worked better! 😲

Not only is there no real evidence that shock collars are beneficial in training, there is evidence of the damage they can do. According to the British veterinary association 'research has shown that the application of an electric shock to dogs or cats, even at a low level, can cause physiological and behavioural responses associated with stress, pain, and fear.' and they are 'concerned that the use of electric shock collars to punish or control dogs or cats is open to abuse and can cause welfare and training problems. '. .

Shock collars have actually been banned in multiple places across the world, due to the risk they pose to animal welfare, including Sweden, Germany, Finland, and even Wales. Unfortunately, they are still currently legal in other areas of the UK such as England, Scotland, and Northern Ireland. But, because of all of these above reasons, we, along-side other force-free dog trainers, support a ban of aversive tools such as shock collars in the rest of the UK.

So, if a trainer ever says to you you NEED to use a shock collar to get training results, there is scientific proof they are lying, and immediately find yourself a new trainer qualified with up-to-date and proven reward-based methods. ✅

You can check out the study mentioned in the graphic for yourself here: https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/veterinary-science/articles/10.3389/fvets.2020.00508/full

And the British Veterinary Associations full stance here: https://www.bva.co.uk/take-action/our-policies/electric-shock-collars-and-training-aids/

09/04/2024

And now, back to regular scheduled programming.

07/01/2024

Use code Barking for 10% off all orders

18/10/2023

When it comes to training our canine companions, understanding the roles of the neurotransmitter dopamine and the hormone cortisol is essential. These two chemicals are key players in the learning process, and how they interact with each other can have an impact on the effectiveness of training. Let...

17/10/2023

https://avsab.ftlbcdn.net/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/AVSAB-Humane-Dog-Training-Position-Statement-2021.pdf

12/10/2023

https://petsandtheirpeople.education/articles/fallout-is-not-good-for-you-or-your-pet-part-one/?dp_action=dfg_popup_fetch&popup_template=default&popup_link_target=none&_wpnonce=3c3921c62a&fbclid=IwAR1itG8KL5JyqkNjqHMqh2qYoSm4vsSceMgFhjZ8S6alFW1NjUZMaT9hPkw

Recently, trainers who use aversive methods and equipment began sugarcoating what they do, calling it “balanced” training.

08/10/2023

Here at Dog Nerd Training we know it is important to train our dogs force-free, but why? ❓

Imagine you have been pulled aside by a security guard at a foreign airport, they are yelling angrily at you in a language you don't understand to do something. You think they may want your papers so you hurry to get them out, but they only gets more and more irate and aggressive. You try something else and it just gets worse, you are worried about what might happen if you don't figure out what they want, will you miss your flight? Or worse will you be arrested for some reason you don't know? 😰

Now obviously if you knew what to do you would just do it, it isn't your fault you don't understand, and yelling at you isn't going to make you figure it out any quicker, nor will scary consequences hanging over your head, particularly with a language barrier there.

This is what it is like for our dogs, they aren't being disobedient they just don't understand what we want. It is fundamentally unfair to punish them for things they had no clue about in the first place.

But this isn't the only reason punishment should be avoided and force-free training should be encouraged...

🐶 You can damage your training relationship with your dog (and their attachment), and make them more wary of people in general through using punishment.

🐶 Your dog will be more hesitant in training to try new behaviours, as they will worry the consequence of getting it wrong, rather than being excited to figure out what you want.

🐶 You can inadvertently make a negative association with something outside what you are training, such as a child passes when the dog pulls, and the dog receives a 'correction' the dog may associate this with the presence of the child rather than the behaviour.

🐶 Punishment can also change the dog's temperament, so they become more withdrawn and less playful.

There are also many more reasons on top of the ones mentioned above, and in the quoted study, that show training force-free is the better, and more ethical, option for us and our dogs.

You can find out more about the study mentioned in the graphic here: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0168159111000876?via%3Dihub&fbclid=IwAR3SHRlkFHEhN6etg3H52xuz26XTUcSrSa_IT2wxsh3g1rzN1hLtd87JKJs

08/10/2023

By Niamh Lynch, Polite Paws Dog Training and Walking (https://www.politepaws.ie/) Separation-related behaviours are generally behaviours we see each time we leave our dog alone, either separated from all their people or specific individuals. They might even demonstrate some excitable or big intense....

06/10/2023

A few weeks ago I posted about calling a halt to a session with handsome Nevis when he became so anxious that keeping going would have been both unethical & unproductive.

Someone commented on that post to say that by letting him leave the situation we were ‘reinforcing his fear’ and that all he would learn was to avoid the situation in future.

Yet, here we are less than 3 weeks later and Nevis can now play within earshot of traffic (he couldn’t before) and can sit & watch traffic passing in much closer proximity (which he also couldn’t do before). His record so far is watching 12 cars pass in a row…previously he’d get agitated as he approached the road regardless of whether there was traffic there or not.

We don’t need to force dogs ‘face their fears’ in order to address those fears. We don’t need to flood them & overwhelm them & ignore their feelings in order to teach them. You won’t ‘reinforce fear’ by offering comfort & respite from a scary situation.

Instead, gradual, gentle steps which build the dog’s confidence in themselves, and their trust in us, will get us where we need to be without the need for force or fear.

Beautiful work from Team Nevis.

25/09/2023

18/09/2023

There is a lingering misconception that using force free and fear free methods consists of just ignoring any 'bad' behaviour and giving a dog food. The reality is that force free training is so much more than that.

It requires an understanding of the history of dogs, why they do the things that they do and how to change their behaviour. Of how to manage the dog's environment so they don't get to practice the behaviour we don't want to see while reinforcing the behaviours we do want - dogs do what works for them so reinforcing alternative behaviours makes the original behaviour much less likely to repeat.

Most of all it means having an understanding of the dog in front of us, their needs, likes and dislikes, so that we can help them with their fears or show them the behaviours their humans would like without danger of fear and pain, or of the dog becoming frustrated or scared.

15/09/2023

"For aggressive dogs, aversive methods often mean putting a prong collar on them and jerking on it whenever they react. For some dogs at some times, this will subdue them. They may shut down and offer very little behavior at all. This is another known result of aversive methods: the reduction of all behavior. To the untrained eye, such dogs may appear calm. But some education about dog body language will show us that such dogs are generally petrified. They have “left the building” in their heads. Unfortunately, that outcome is fine with some aversive trainers. Shutting the dog down is the goal."

https://eileenanddogs.com/blog/2019/10/21/why-red-zone-dogs-need-positive-reinforcement-training/?fbclid=IwAR0oMhVKaXYF_oGnR2QcdyEzmRXZHztA1aXGhB4YuU5LMNtG2kA0z-W-sNE

Red Zone Dog is a term made up by a television reality show personality. Is it really a thing, and do such dogs really need a different kind of training?

14/09/2023

14/08/2023

Dr. Catherine Rowan-Collier provides 13 ways to tell if your dog is happy.

14/07/2023

Are you struggling to help your dog cope with their anxiety or nervous behaviors? Here are 10 medications that your vet may prescribe to help ease your dog’s anxiety.

09/06/2023

This one is for you

20/05/2023

Does wearing trainers make me run? No.

If I choose to run trainers support my feet and protect me from injury. But they're not the reason I run. If I run it's because of how running makes me feel.

Does wearing a harness make my dog pull? No.

If my dog chooses to pull a harness protects his neck from injury*. But it's not the reason he pulls. If he pulls it's because of what pulling achieves for him...getting somewhere more quickly or moving you in a direction he wants to go.

Consequences drive behaviour. Not equipment. Harnesses don't make a dog pull any more than my trainers make me run. But they do make it safer.

* 𝘚𝘰𝘮𝘦 𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘴 𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘭𝘭 𝘮𝘢𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘢𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘱𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘥𝘰𝘦𝘴 𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘱𝘩𝘺𝘴𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘭 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘮. 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘤𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘪𝘧𝘪𝘤 𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘤𝘩 𝘤𝘭𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘩𝘰𝘸𝘴 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘸𝘪𝘴𝘦...

𝘊𝘢𝘯𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘳𝘴: 𝘢𝘯 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘨𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘺𝘱𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘤𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘴𝘪𝘮𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘥 𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘮𝘰𝘥𝘦𝘭. 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘈𝘯𝘯𝘦 𝘑., 𝘋𝘰𝘯𝘢𝘭 𝘚. 𝘔𝘤𝘕𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺, 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘙𝘰𝘴𝘩𝘪𝘦𝘳, 𝘈𝘮𝘢𝘯𝘥𝘢 𝘓., 𝘝𝘦𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘪𝘯𝘢𝘳𝘺 𝘙𝘦𝘤𝘰𝘳𝘥 (2020)

𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘳'𝘴 𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘦: 𝘈𝘷𝘰𝘪𝘥𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘯𝘦𝘤𝘬, 𝘴𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘰𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳 𝘪𝘯𝘫𝘶𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘴. 𝘒𝘢𝘶𝘧𝘮𝘢𝘯, 𝘑. (2007). 𝘛𝘩𝘦 𝘙𝘦𝘵𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘷𝘦𝘳: 𝘓𝘢𝘣𝘳𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘳 𝘌𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘙𝘦𝘴𝘤𝘶𝘦 𝘕𝘦𝘵𝘸𝘰𝘳𝘬'𝘴 𝘕𝘦𝘸𝘴𝘭𝘦𝘵𝘵𝘦𝘳, 𝘕𝘰𝘷𝘦𝘮𝘣𝘦𝘳 2–5.

𝘌𝘧𝘧𝘦𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘈𝘱𝘱𝘭𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘰𝘯 𝘰𝘧 𝘕𝘦𝘤𝘬 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘣𝘺 𝘢 𝘊𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘰𝘳 𝘏𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘰𝘯 𝘐𝘯𝘵𝘳𝘢𝘰𝘤𝘶𝘭𝘢𝘳 𝘗𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘶𝘳𝘦 𝘪𝘯 𝘋𝘰𝘨𝘴. 𝘈𝘮𝘺 𝘔. 𝘗𝘢𝘶𝘭𝘪, 𝘋𝘝𝘔; 𝘌𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘉𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘭𝘦𝘺, 𝘋𝘝𝘔, 𝘋𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘈𝘊𝘝𝘖; 𝘒𝘢𝘵𝘩𝘳𝘺𝘯 𝘈. 𝘋𝘪𝘦𝘩𝘭, 𝘋𝘝𝘔, 𝘔𝘚, 𝘋𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘈𝘊𝘝𝘖; 𝘗𝘢𝘶𝘭 𝘌. 𝘔𝘪𝘭𝘭𝘦𝘳, 𝘋𝘝𝘔, 𝘔𝘚, 𝘋𝘪𝘱𝘭𝘰𝘮𝘢𝘵𝘦 𝘈𝘊𝘝𝘖. 𝘑 𝘈𝘮 𝘈𝘯𝘪𝘮 𝘏𝘰𝘴𝘱 𝘈𝘴𝘴𝘰𝘤 (2006) 42 (3): 207–211.

26/03/2023

David Mech’s best-selling book “The Wolf,” first published in 1970, laid out a hierarchy of pack order using the terms “alpha” and “beta.” But, in the years since, Mech has requested his publisher stop printing the book. “It turned out all that stuff was mostly wrong,” he says. Read the full story of the alpha myth: http://nyer.cm/o30BGQL

06/03/2023

A reward-based approach is the best way to deal with behaviour issues in dogs. The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior recommends the use of reward-based methods for behaviour issues as well as for basic manners. In their position statement on humane dog training, they review the evidence and explain why reward-based methods are best. They say, "Reward-based learning offers the most advantages and least harm to the learner's welfare. Research supports the efficacy of reward-based training to address unwanted and challenging behaviours. There is no evidence that aversive training is necessary for dog training or behavior modification." You can download their full statement on their website:https://avsab.org/wp-content/uploads/2021/08/AVSAB-Humane-Dog-Training-Position-Statement-2021.pdf

05/03/2023

Suzi Walsh looks at the emotional makeup of dogs and offers some advice on how best to read their behaviour.

04/03/2023

CAN WE STOP SAYING SHOCK COLLARS WORK BUT...

I've seen a handful of posts recently saying 'shock collars work but they simply suppress behaviour' or other things along these lines.

I take real issue with that for a number of reasons.

First up: not everyone sees past the but. When we say 'shock collars' (or prong or choke chains) work BUT... some people don't hear past 'shock collars work'.

What we're doing is validating their effectiveness.

Let's be clear. They DON'T work. Or, they work in such a hit-and-miss way that you might as well place a bet on a lottery.

Let's take one example: anti-bark collars. One study in Europe in 2018 put their success at 24%. Let's not talk about whether or not they're expensive, whether they were used wrongly, whether they had fallout. 24% of people who used bark collars said they worked. I mean those are people who bought them and use them. This wasn't scientists trying to prove a point that they're bad. This was the people who buy them and use them.

That's an absolutely crap rate of return. On a scale of 'absolutely won't work' through to 'will work', I'm at 'probably won't work anyway... and you've spent your cash on a s**t bit of plastic and metal when you could have spent it on cake.'

It's not even 'may' work if it's 24%, is it?

It's 'yeah, probably not...'

And I can all but guarantee that the dogs on whom it did work would probably have stopped barking by other methods anyway.

I've lived with shepherds for the last eleven years. I know dogs who love a good bark. Do you know what stopped them? My alert and alarm barking protocol. I've just spent four months (count em!) videoing content for my courses - a couple of hours of video every day. Plus I do online consultations and lessons. I'm probably in contact with people 7 days a week for around 5-7 hours a day by video. Please feel free to let me know if you've EVER heard any of my shepherds bark in that content? I mean that's practically what shepherds are made for isn't it? Noise police... Fun police... Large tractor police... Speed awareness police... Intruder alert... Fanfare as you enter the garden... One of my neighbours didn't believe I actually had dogs recently!

So you're thinking an invisible perimeter fence might also work? 44% for those in one 2017 study. Worse than any other method.

Punishment will never trump intrinsic motivation, and the only people telling you it will are people selling them.

So do us all a favour... if you're criticising punishment, let's stop sharing the idea that it'll work but it's unethical, but it only suppresses behaviour.

Let's watch the language we're using. Shock collars *might* or *could perhaps* work.... if your dog isn't that driven to perform the behaviour in the first place. In which case, I've probably got things that will work for you and don't involve you having to shell out for a crappy bit of plastic you'll put in the bin.

And if you've got money to spare that you're throwing away, could I ask you to send it to your local independent shelter? They're picking up all the dogs who escaped or who annoyed the neighbours by barking, so they could do with the cash. Might as well give it to them directly.

I'm also happy to take your cash if you're one of those fools who's easily parted from their money. You can just send it straight to me and we can cut out zapping our dogs instead of trying to understand what's causing their behaviour. You feel lighter in the pocket, the dog avoids having a ridiculous implement around its neck and I get rich. Win-win all round. Your dog will still be barking and escaping, but at least they won't think you're a tw*t.

At what point are we simply going to say 'shock doesn't work' or, if you want shades of grey, 'shock collars probably won't work - and that's from the people that use them.'

At least then we're not colluding with shock collar manufacturers laughing all the way to the bank.

18/01/2023

Sounds like the perfect solution... kids itching to walk their new dog + over-stretched parents thrilled that their children are taking responsibility and lightening the workload! What's not to love?

Actually quite a LOT.

I can't tell you how many disappointed faces I see when I try to explain why a child walking a dog ALONE *might NOT be* the best idea for anyone!!?

And I get totally it.

If this is your first family dog, a quick spin around the block may look harmless enough - until you consider ALL of the things that can (and DO) go wrong.

Even (mentally and physically) FULLY-GROWN ADULTS get pulled down to the ground, or dragged over to squirrels, skateboards and the neighborhood cat. They accidentally drop leashes, or watch helplessly as their pup slips their collar. They struggle to control their dog around other dogs, or conversely, they panic or freeze when an off-leash dog comes sprinting full-speed towards them (friendly or not friendly.. who knows? They’ll likely find out when it’s too late!)

And this is ONLY a handful of the things that can happen to GROWN UPS… so for kids the stakes are simply exponentially higher.

As a trainer, I’m pretty calculated about where I go, and when I walk my dogs my radar is always activated. Even still, I’ve personally had to dash after my loose dog, I’ve been bitten by a dog who was attacking mine, I’ve seen a dog run over in a school parking lot, and watched a child be literally dragged for 50ft against her will!

So, I hope by sharing the potential risks with you, you can make informed choices about your family dog walking situation:

Here’s my hotlist of things to consider:

Size - of child and dog
Strength - of child and dog
Maturity - of child and dog
Training - of child and dog
Temperament - of child and dog

Then download, print and share our poster.
THESE are my questions to help families size up the COMBINATION of their dog and child to see whether WALKING ALONE together is a SMART call.

For more info for kids, dogs and making EVERYONE'S life SAFE and HAPPY - go to thefamilydog.com/families

31/12/2022

I...I didn't know there were other options!