Betsy's Canine Consultations LLC

04/09/2024

It is Bite Prevention Week! 🐶

Here are some helpful tips:

1) This is huge! If you work around or interact with dogs on a consistent basis, please take the time to educate yourself on dog body language and what it means. There are so many awesome resources out there. I will include a link to a book that I recommend.

2) Let the dog come to you and make good associations with food rewards. Do not force yourself or insert yourself into a dog's space. There is truth to the old saying "let sleeping dogs lie."

3) Be mindful of your dog's resources and follow tip #2. I see online videos all the time where people find it amusing to mess with their dog's resources to the point that they growl, agonistic pucker, etc. This is not a good way to bond with your dog. Resources can be food items, toys, beds, spaces, sometimes people. A resource to a dog is really whatever they value. Allow your dog to enjoy these things in peace.

4) Petting rule: Allow the dog to approach you. Begin gently petting if the dog is comfortable. Stop petting after a few seconds. Do they walk away? Let them. Do they lean in for more pets? Go ahead and pet them. ❤

5) Know how to approach and pet a dog: In general, it is better to approach dogs from the side and not head-on. Once you are at their side, pet their sides or chest. Some dogs have a difficult time with pets to the head. A big mistake people make is they approach dogs directly, hover over them, and then get right in their face. Please do not do this. 🛑

6) "It's okay. I'm a dog person! All dogs love me!"

Everyone, please understand that not all dogs are social with other people, dogs, etc. Respect their and their pet parent's space. I took Trudy to TSC this week. I carried her in initially. A friendly woman grabbed her right by the face and gave her a kiss. No hesitation. No asking for permission, or if she was friendly. Just did it. Luckily, Trudy is friendly, but she was not comfortable. I could tell. Can you imagine if we as people did this to other people? Consent is important with dogs too.

7) Start early if possible. If you have a pup, teach them about and make good associations with handling, picking up, petting, interacting with people, other animals, sounds, sights, etc. This does not mean flooding your puppy. Go slow. Respect what your puppy is telling you. If they are scared, do not push them into situations. Do the work to counter condition the fear. Flooding or overwhelming them may work against you in terms of socialization and may actually create negative associations with the things you are attempting to socialize them to. Exposure is not socialization.

8) Teach your children early how to interact appropriately and respect dogs.

9) A dog's behavior will always be exacerbated if they are unable to move away. For example, behavior may be worse on a tie-out, leash, in a cage, small space, etc. When a dog feels unsafe, they have 3 choices. They can run away, freeze, or fight. If we take away their ability to run away, and do not respect what they are communicating, they may react.

10) Respect the growl: Most dogs do not want to bite us. A growl is usually what they communicate to keep this from happening. Do not approach a growling dog.

11) Be prepared: Some dogs do charge or come out of nowhere. I love dogs more than anything else in this world, but sometimes you do need to prevent a bite to you or to your dog. There are products out there that you can carry if such a situation may arise. PetSafe, Halt, and Pet Corrector are some products that may help. I myself have been charged by dogs on walks. I have found it beneficial to toss my dog's high value rewards out and away from my dogs. The charging dogs go for the food and not for my dogs or me. However there have been times where I have had to stand my ground and put myself between the charging dog and my own dogs. Just be prepared and aware of your surroundings.

12) Pet parents, be responsible. Keep your dogs safe and secure. I see so many people just letting their dogs "run amok" so to speak. Utilize a leash, long lead, and my favorite, a physical fence to keep your dogs secure. They should not have the opportunity to charge people in public spaces.

13) Muzzle up! A muzzle does not mean you have a bad dog. It means you are a responsible pet parent. Teach your dog to love their basket muzzle so that you can utilize it in times when it is needed without causing stress to your dog. It is truly one of the kindest things you can do. Visit the Muzzle Up! Project website for valuable information. Fear Free also has some awesome basket muzzle resources.

14) I could talk about this for days, so I am going to try to keep it succinct. Be kind to your dog. We are human and we all have moments of anger or frustration. Luckily our dogs are loving and forgiving. Treat your dog in such a way that they associate humans with wonderful things! Work on their trust in you, so that they trust in others. Do not hit, strike, shock, aggressively correct, etc. All of these things deteriorate your bond with your dog and with others, making a bite statistically more likely to happen.

I think preventing bites begins with treating our dogs as sentient beings and not as objects to do with what we please. Be respectful. Be empathetic. ❤🐾🦴

My favorite book for body language: Canine Body Language: A Photographic Guide: Interpreting the Native Language of the Domestic Dog by Aloff, Brenda (2009)

04/06/2024

Everyone, this is my handsome hound dog, Chomper. He is in the finals of a photo competition and I could really use your help. Please take a moment to click-on and "like" his photo. I would be so grateful! Much love to you all and your dogs! 😘🐾

Chomper

03/03/2024

For those of you that have met with me, you know that I am a big proponent of fulfilling the dog first. What does that mean? If we fulfill the dog as a dog by providing outlets for their normal dog behaviors, we will see a reduction in problematic behaviors and deepen the human/canine bond.

What are the core canine behaviors?

🐾Sniffing
🐾Exploring/Searching
🐾Chasing
🐾Chewing
🐾Digging
🐾Dissecting
🐾Socializing

If we provide the opportunity for our dogs to engage in these behaviors in a desirable way, we will see the behaviors diminish in the undesirable ways that can sometimes cause us humans a lot of stress and frustration.

Today, we did some sniffing in our fenced-in yard. My dogs are using their noses to search through the grass for special treats. (Please excuse our Winter dog yard. ;))

I also prepped their enrichment activities for the week. I use frozen Kongs, Topples, and Lick Mats with canned food. These activities give my dogs the chance to chew and dissect. They also help with the release of dopamine in the brain which is our "feel good" chemical.

With Spring just around the corner, please take the opportunity to reflect on not just your happiness, but the happiness of your canine companions. You both will be glad you did. ❤🐾🦴

*Please note, I work hard to make sure my dogs are cooperative eaters. If you live in a multi-dog household, you may want to do this activity one at a time or individually. Make sure your dogs have their own space. Furthermore, I would not recommend this activity if your dogs have a tendency to eat non-edible things from the ground or have a condition such as Pica.

02/08/2024

I have been doing a lot of thinking and reflecting about what direction I want to take in the future. I know I am not currently taking on new clients, but I am thinking about expanding my online presence to help keep you up-to-date and informed in regards to the latest canine behavioral information.

With that being said, I am trying to make a plan for online content to help educate the pet parents that follow my page.

What content or information would you find the most beneficial? If you have worked with me, what information was the most helpful to you? Please drop a comment for me below. I would love to hear your thoughts.

Please be patient with me. I am very hesitant to have an online presence not because I am not confident in what I do, but my personality is just not conducive with attention and putting myself out there. ;) However, I want to still do the best I can to try to help make the world a better place for dogs. ❤

01/30/2024

Just a friendly reminder that training your dog or puppy does not have to be a big, elaborate process. Use every day situations to teach basic cues, recall, and to work on your bond. Make it fun!

Here are a few examples:

Today, I was in the laundry room folding some clothes. Chomper was in the living room playing with his toys. I said his name and whistled. He came right to me (we have been practicing) and I marked and rewarded him. I let him know that it made me very happy that he came to me. We do this regularly. We also consistently play hide and seek. I will have my husband keep Chomper occupied while I hide in the house. I call his name and whistle. When he finds me, I mark and reward him with food, pets, or play.

I was in the kitchen prepping the dogs Kongs for the week. When Chomper was calm and had all four feet on the floor, I would mark and reward him for that behavior. The more you reward the behavior you want, the more you will see it.

During every day play, we work on the "drop it" cue while playing the trade game with toys. I also wait for calm behavior before instigating play. This helps to work on his impulse control.

There are lots of opportunities to incorporate training and learning into every day situations and scenarios. These opportunities can go a long way in teaching your dog or pup their basic cues and in strengthening the human/animal bond. 🐾

01/27/2024

This is my colleague, Christin! She is amazing! Check-out her story. ♡

Talented certified Service Dog Coach Christin Benoit of Comfy Critters shares her experience training service dogs and what motivated her to offer service dog training
https://cooperativepaws.com/service-dog/featured-graduates/christin-benoit/

01/11/2024

Teaching your dog that a basket muzzle is a GOOD thing and associating lots of great things with the muzzle can make things much less stressful for your dog when he/she needs one. Muzzle training does NOT mean you have a "bad dog." It means you are being a responsible and caring pet parent. ♡ Training your dog in a positive way to accept the basket muzzle is important.

12/23/2023

Great post! This is so important to understand. Please offer your new pup compassion, patience, and positive guidance. ❤🐾

12/15/2023

I have been reflecting a lot over the past couple of weeks about dog behavior and the secret to a successful, loving, and fulfilling relationship with our canine companions.

My own dogs have come from the most terrible situations. Little Foot was seized from the Envigo facility where they were raising thousands of Beagles in horrific conditions for laboratory experimentation. Trudy came from a dog hoarding situation, was adopted, and then was surrendered to a shelter before finding her forever home. I was told Levi was severely neglected, physically abused, and lived his whole life outside on a chain. Many of the dogs that have blessed my life have had very similar stories.

As I watch Levi, Trudy, and Little Foot welcome our newest foster, a fecally incontinent French Bulldog that I have endearingly named Lucifer, I cannot help but humbly wonder, how did I end up with such awesome dogs!?

My dogs do not guard their resources from people or other dogs. My dogs are friendly with visitors. My dogs are trusting and cooperative for medical and husbandry care. They love pets and are cuddly. They are oddly patient and kind with our foster puppy and with each other. Maybe too much so as Lucifer is a little stinker. ;) Despite their quirks and backgrounds, they are sweet, happy, and playful.

I wish I could bottle up whatever the secret is and give it to all of my clients.

I get frustrated with my dogs at times just like all of you, but I have never and would never hurt my dogs. They know they are safe with me and can trust me. I respect my dogs. I "listen" to what they are communicating to me and do my best to respond appropriately. I give them lots of chances to be dogs by providing enrichment, sniff walks, and nose work. I clearly communicate to them when they are doing things well, and I try to help them learn the right thing instead of punishing out the wrong thing.

Overall, I am patient, compassionate, empathetic, and loving with my dogs by far the majority of the time. I make mistakes too. This is not meant to be a self righteous post or me patting my own back, but is coming from an honest and humble place. I have worked in Veterinary Medicine for almost 19 years, have adopted several special needs dogs, and have studied and worked as a Canine Behavioral Consultant with degrees in Psychology and Community Counseling. With all of the experience and education, I truly believe that dogs are a reflection of us. I can honestly say I am a better person because of my dogs and I think my dogs are better because of all the lessons afforded to me over the years by my canine best friends.

Dogs give what they get. What are you giving? 🐾❤🦴