Sirius Dog Training

06/05/2024

Did you know that the senior research scientist David Mech, whose book into hierarchy in wolf packs created the 'alpha theory' idea, then went on to disprove his own work with a later more naturalistic study? 😮

Although wolves and domestic dogs are worlds apart nowadays, David Mech's original book on captive wolves is still used regularly as evidence for alpha-based and dominance training styles. Touting you need to act like a wolf and an alpha and put your dog in their place so they respect you. However, even if domestic dogs and wolves were closer in how they acted than they are, David Mech went on to do further research and instead found that rather than one domineering 'alpha' wolves actually work as a family group with the parents leading the pack. That doesn't sound that far off our human families really does it? In fact, despite what 'alpha theory' states in regards to an 'alpha' wolf always eating first, in reality wolf parents often feed their youngest, most vulnerable offspring first.

The issue with the first study the book used is it was based on captive wolves and not wild wolves and how they behaved in their natural habitat, once David Mech realised his mistakes he did more research, and with new understanding and data he has since gone on to try and repair the damage his original study has done in how we view wolves, and by extension dogs. This is what scientific study is about, updating with the times and the most up to date information. I give huge props to David Mech for instead of trying to save his ego and stick to what he said in his original work, he has followed the science and admitted the flaws of his original study, bringing new knowledge and research forward.

It is a shame that the original idea is still so prevalent in our cultural knowledge and understanding of wolves, whereas the later study is less well known to the masses. I can only hope that will also change over time by us bringing the more up to date information to the forefront. 🐺

You can check out the study mentioned in the graphic for yourself here: https://digitalcommons.unl.edu/cgi/viewcontent.cgi?article=1343&context=usgsnpwrc

03/04/2024

Have you ever heard coyotes at night and thought the sounds they were making meant that they were taking down another animal? That's not what they're doing at all...

Coyotes are social, communicative predators.

Coyotes are known as song dogs. They're famous for their wide array of yips, barks and howls. Some might think that these sounds are their "kill song" and mean the coyote is in the process of killing another animal but that isn't the case. Coyotes do not have kill songs.

Studies have shown that coyotes have eleven vocalizations, several of which are also given by pups. Coyotes use these vocalizations to communicate with each other.

Howling is a basic communication behavior in coyotes, it has several functions. One is to call the pack— a family group—back together again after a period of individual hunting. A second reason that coyotes howl is to advertise their presence to other packs, essentially warning those other family groups against trespassing across territorial boundaries. And, as more coyotes join in, the more intense it becomes.

Coyotes do not "sing" when they're hunting... they're silent. So when you hear the coyotes song at night, it's nothing to fear.

Please consider that we share this world with lots of wildlife. Being terrified doesn’t help the situation as much as being knowledgeable does.

Don’t be afraid. Be educated.

03/01/2024

Management is something of a dirty word in animal training. It is often viewed as a cop-out. It's something you do when you can't "train" an animal well enough. And there are a lot of discussions around how “management fails”, often as a means to discredit the use of management in behavior modification strategies. But the truth of the matter is that management is a key first step to behavior change in any species. This includes humans.

When we are trying to make different choices in our own life; such as eating a more balanced, and nutritious diet, the first thing we do is implement management strategies to facilitate those changes. We make sure to give away the foods that we know don’t serve our new goals, or stop buying them from the store. If we are looking to engage in less screen time we set timers and screen time limits on our devices. If we are hoping to spend more time engaged in exercise to benefit our health, we might sign up for a sport, work out classes, or even designate a gym buddy to go with us to encourage us to develop and maintain those habits. We utilize management in our daily lives to help us make positive changes, or maintain certain necessary behaviors. We pack a lunch the night before, so we don’t spend extra money on eating out. We set a budget to help us save for a rainy day, or a vacation. We set up management strategies in our own lives, and never think twice about it as a form of ‘failing to change behavior.’ We absolutely see it as a necessary and fundamental part of behavior change. Hell we have entire careers dedicated to “management.”

So why do we treat management solutions as a less-than option for animals? Why do we expect dogs, horses, or cats to simply change their behavior with out first modifying their environment to facilitate that change?

In learning the sequence of events is : Antecedent. Behavior. Consequence. This refers to how learning occurs with in the brain. That is that the antecedent of a behavior is everything from a cue (“Sit”) to the environment in which it happens, these proceed the behavior (the dog sits) which then prompts the consequence of that behavior (a reinforcer is given for the dog sitting.) In behavior modification the antecedents are often less about verbal or concrete cues, and more about the environment in which certain behaviors occur. A dog who struggles on leash with other dogs present, who over reacts and becomes reactive or presents with aggressive behavior, our first step to helping them is to stop putting them into situations where those things occur. This is management. We alter the environment (we chose to walk at low traffic times, or in areas with minimal others present etc) to better serve the dog’s learning to manage their emotional overload in a more desirable fashion. If we have a cat who becomes aggressive towards new people in his home, the first thing we do is provide that cat with a quiet , comfortable space away from company that he can be in to avoid perfecting his ninja cat attacks on our visitors. This is managing the environment to avoid rehearsing the undesirable behavior. Management is a vital part of behavior change, using it is not a failure to “Train the animal”, it’s a key component to ensure they are able to learn new behavior patterns.

10/23/2023

10/05/2023

Is mounting or hu***ng a sign of dominance in dogs?

Hu***ng or mounting is a fixed action pattern (FAP), which are innate behaviours. These are behaviours that are common to all members of a species and require no learning. A Fixed Action Pattern (FAP) is a predictable series and stereotypical sequences of complex actions triggered by a cue - www.simplypsychology.org. www.sciencedirect.com.

Hu***ng or mounting is NOT:
Dominance
Controlling you or another dog
Alpha behaviour
Only seen in unsterilised dogs
Only seen in males
Only seen in younger dogs
To cause you embarrassment
To get your attention or get back at you

Hu***ng or mounting by male or female dogs of any age CAN be due to:
Excitement
Sexual rehearsal
Burning off pent up energy
General stimulation...yippee, something’s happening!
Stress/Anxiety/Displacement behaviour
Play
Hyperarousal
A medical issue
Boredom
Frustration
Burning of excessive energy (like zoomies)
Ambivalence about a situation or a dog
Unease
Tiredness

If you are worried:
Make a note of how many times a day this is happening.
Take your dog for a medical check up.
Contact a up to date science-based behaviour consultant to identify the triggers and the emotions to be able to develope a modification plan to improve the emotional state and hence the behaviour.
What to do in the moment - if the dog underneath seems uncomfortable and stressed then please interrupt. It may mean that the 'top dog' is unable to read the body language of the other one. Rather redirect that energy to a toy or chew as opposed to saying off. Give him something mentally stimulating to do instead. If they are having turns and alternating this behaviour with other behaviours like chasing, tumbling, play bows, etc., then leave them be.
Be careful of your dog doing it to random dogs in a park that he does not know. The unknown dog could become aggressive due to not wanting the behaviour.

Note - many Google searches for this behaviour will bring up the word dominance. The behaviour is not due to such a simplistic, misunderstood term. Dogs do it to pillows, toys or furniture - do you think that they are trying to dominate those inanimate objects? Every dog is an individual with unique emotions. The feelings and motivations for the behaviour will differ from dog to dog but it is certainly not about dominance. Don't believe everything you read on Google and check your trainer's/behaviourist's credentials. Let's not label every behaviour beyond our understanding as dominant 🙂

Most guardians rush to sterilize their dogs when this happens...it may not make a difference.

09/25/2023

It's been a while.... but it's time to bring this up again!

THE 3-3-3 RULE OF RE-HOMING

As a regular follower, this topic will be very familiar to you, but I feel there is still a need to continue to flag it up. I know that it is always shared with the best of intentions, but the 3-3-3 rule really has no place in fearful dog groups, which is where I see it most. We have to get the message across loud and clear that all dogs need to feel safe, first and foremost, and to achieve this, it means no expectations, no pressure, and no time parameters.

For those who may not have come across it before, the 3-3-3 rule, in essence, is this:

*It takes three days for a dog in a new home to relax a little.
* It takes three weeks to settle in.
*It takes three months to be fully comfortable.

In this blog, I discuss the topic further:
https://www.trailiepawsforthought.com/post/the-3-3-3-rule-help-or-hindrance

When canine professionals take on clients in need of behavioural work, it is always stressed that a time-frame cannot be given. We work with the dog in front of us. Every dog is an individual. We work at the dog's pace. Why then, do we have such a hard time applying this in the home setting too?

There are so many different scenarios in which dogs are re-homed, some of which may not have involved the experience of living in a home, or having regular contact with humans, and some may have experienced trauma. We need to be prepared to take things at their pace, be patient, and try not to feel disheartened if progress seems slow at times.

The bottom line has to be: don’t be tempted to rush things or try to find shortcuts; TAKE THINGS SLOWLY. FEELING SAFE TAKES AS LONG AS IT TAKES!

I'm very happy for all of my content to be shared, but please do not copy and paste (to avoid sharing from source), screenshot, or download any part of it. THANK YOU! 🐾 🐾

©️ Trailie Paws For Thought
www.trailiepawsforthought.com

09/21/2023

As your dog retrieves the first...second...third...maybe fifth or sixth ball, his muscles start to tire and soon they reach overload, where they no longer can fully control and support your dog's movements. Now, when your dog does those amazing athletic maneuvers to snag the ball, soft tissues like the cranial cruciate ligament, iliopsoas muscle and tendon, and the muscles and ligaments that support the vertebrae are overstretching. Minor tears are occurring. Now the ball is thrown 10, 12 times or more and ultimately your dog lies down, exhausted.

That period between when your dog's muscles are in overload, and when your dog lies down exhausted, is the injury zone (Figure 1). But remember, with all that adrenaline, your dog doesn't feel the injuries happening, so you have no idea that the tissues are being used beyond their capacity.

When this game is repeated day after day, month after month, the small tissue tears become large ones, and suddenly it becomes evident that your dog is in pain and has an injury. Of course, it hasn't been sudden at all-what seemed sudden is just the final result of repeated stress and strain until the tissues gave way.

Chris Zink DVM
Discovering Your Dog

09/14/2023

Do not follow this person or take any training advice he offers.

08/02/2023

12/10/2022

10/11/2022

This is something everyone should see. This xray is of a 2 week old puppy.

When you get your 8/10 week old puppies, please keep this image in mind. Their bones do not even touch yet. They plod around so cutely with big floppy paws and wobbly movement because their joints are entirely made up of muscle, tendons, ligaments with skin covering. Nothing is fitting tightly together or has a true socket yet.

When you run them excessively or don't restrict their exercise to stop them from overdoing it during this period you don't give them a chance to grow properly. Every big jump or excited bouncing run causes impacts between the bones. In reasonable amounts this is not problematic and is the normal wear and tear that every animal will engage in.

But when you're letting puppy jump up and down off the lounge or bed, take them for long walks/hikes, you are damaging that forming joint. When you let the puppy scramble on tile with no traction you are damaging the joint.

You only get the chance to grow them once. A well built body is something that comes from excellent breeding and a great upbringing-BOTH, not just one.

Once grown - around 12-18 months depending on their breed, you will have the rest of their life to spend playing and engaging in higher impact exercise. So keep it calm while they're still little baby puppies and give the gift that can only be given once.

10/09/2022

09/27/2022

How many of these myths about positive reinforcement training did you formerly believe?

09/10/2022

05/23/2022

Just in case….

Quill Myths and Facts:
- Do not trim quills. It is does not make it easier to pull out. It does not deflate the barb. It makes it harder for our team to pull them out.
-Do not soak quills. Softening the quills that are visible makes its easier to break. This means we are more likely to leave barbs or quills under the skin and will increase your pet's risk of abscess formation and buried quills.
- porcupines can not throw or shoot quills at you. You have to touch them/attack them.
- It is an emergency if they are near the eye, in the mouth, and located on the chest. Quills can puncture into the chest cavity and lungs. This can cause a life threatening situation where there is free air around the lungs, making it very hard for your pet to take a breath. This medical condition is called a pneumothorax and can require tubes in the chest and lead to life threatening infections in the chest cavity called a pyothorax.
-Don't let your dog paw at their quills. Breaking the quills can make it harder to pull out. It can also increase their risk of buried quills and long term challenges.
-Ingested quills can puncture the gastrointestinal tract and lead to life threatening illness. Do not allow your pet to paw at the quills in their mouth or bite at the ones they can reach to avoid this problem.
-Do leash walk your dogs at dawn and dusk. The porcupines are out and about. Even an innocent sniff from a dog can lead to significant quills.
-Most quill removals require sedation and can take any where from 45 minutes to 3 hours for full removal and recovery.
-Just because your dog "knows better" doesn't mean they can't change their mind! This is a 12 year old dog who has never bothered a porcupine his WHOLE LIFE but decided that he would check it off his bucket list!