Agentic Paws

15/08/2022

Do you have a dog who displays reactive or aggressive behaviours? Could you spare 30 minutes to complete an online survey?

Our Project Dog Research Programme is a series of studies aimed at improving the bond between humans and their companions dogs. As such, we have a series of surveys aimed at gaining insight into people's experiences, perceptions and expectations of dog behaviours.

For this particular survey, you'll be asked some questions about yourself, you experiences with your dogs as well as you perceptions around reactivity.

Please see link in stories/bio for more 🐾🙌

(ID: image is of a red box with 'call for participants' written on it. It asks people if their dog displays reactive or aggressive behaviours).

15/08/2022

Have a spare 30 minutes?
Here at the Project Dog Research Programme, we are seeking participants for three online surveys considering dog behaviour.

Dog Owners and Guardians:

Do you have a dog who displays reactive or aggressive behaviour? Please consider taking part in our short, open-ended survey. You will be asked to share a little about the types of behaviour your dog(s) display, as well as your general experience living with them. Click the link for further information: https://glos.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/project-dog-survey-4


Dog Rehoming or Adoption Centre Staff:

Do you work in a dog rehoming or adoption centre? Please consider taking part in our short, open-ended survey around dog behaviour, adoption and relinquishment. Click the link for further information: https://glos.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/project-dog-survey-3


Dog Trainers of Behaviour Specialists:

Are you a dog trainer, or behaviourist (canine, clinical or veterinary)? Please consider taking part in our short, open-ended survey. You will be asked to share some professional insights around canine behaviour as well as some experiences working with dogs and their guardians. Click the link for further information: https://glos.onlinesurveys.ac.uk/project-dog-survey-2

Online survey BOS

22/06/2022

Reminder.... The best thing you can do for your dog, is to learn their language! 🐾🙌

Check out the bio for a free webinar introducing canine body language.

(Image description: a dog (grey, with speckled black spots). Looks up at the camera. A notification reminder is in the centre with the above message)

20/06/2022

Five Tips for building confidence in your dogs...

1. Offer choices daily... One of the easiest and simplest ways to empower your dog is by providing opportunities for them to make choices. Whether it's choices on what bed and where they'd like to sleep, which treat they'd like or even respecting them when they opt out of a training session. These small opportunity can lead to big gains.

2. Practice well known skills... Across different environments and situations. Preferably skills they love. This should be done slowly and steadily though. No point asking a nervous dog who's being exposed to an array of new things to start performing tricks... This will only add to their anxiety. But gradually asking for these across different settings, can give our pups a great boost.

3. Try Doggy Parkour... It doesn't need to be all singing and dancing. Simply asking for some paws up on a bench can be great to get that confidence building started.

4. Offer outlets for predatory behaviours.... Just the movement of these can result in all sorts of feel good chemicals being released in your pups brain. If they like to chase, get a flirt pole, if they like to stalk, set up a hunt in the garden.

5. Go world watching... Probably one of our favourites. Simply pick a spot, settle down in a safe space and watch the world go by. Watch those pesky cyclists or skateboarders, those kids playing in the park or even just watch the traffic go by, all while pairing the viewing with some high value goodies.

What are your favourite confidence building activities to do with your pups?

(Image description: grey gradient square with 5 slots for 5 tips as detailed about. To the top right hand side is a logo for Agentic Paws. At the bottom right hand side is some grey paws).

09/06/2022

Struggle with loose lead walking....? Have a pup who likes to drag you from one scent to the next? Or maybe you feel you're relying on tools to keep them by your side rather than them wanting to be with you?

We've put together a webinar on how to best work with your dog in teaching them to stick with you rather than work against you. In this free webinar you'll hear about best walking gear as well as a couple of steps to get you started on your loose lead walking journey. 🐾

Check out our Free Webinar here!
https://www.agenticpaws.com/training-videos

09/06/2022

A snippet of our cooperative training walks..

🐾 Meet those needs. When first going out on a walk, our expectations can be pretty high whilst our dogs just wish to sniff, explore and... Well, toilet! So we always start these walks with some time to meet those needs. During this time, he chooses the direction of the walk, I match his speed and essentially follow his lead.

🐾 Practice those behaviour. Once those needs are met, we then start working on some of behaviours we'd like to see from a human perspective. He matches my pace (although perfectly able to sniff those interesting spots) practicing loose lead walking and focusing more on me around distractions. We work on counter-conditioning and desensitisation with certain triggers (i e. Follow triggers while working within his threshold).

🐾 Settle work. I'd always recommend settle work. Supporting our dogs to settle in different environments and around different distractions is sure fire way to support their self-regulatory skills. Start small, in duration and distraction... And steadily build up. Always taking care to work within their limits. For those more energised dogs, this can take some time and repetition.

🐾 And Decompress. Always end on a positive. This provides an opportunity to lower those arousal levels after potential triggers as well as feeding directly back into those all essential needs of theirs.

All keeping in mind their choices and threshold. Some days... Sniffing and bambling along is enough.

(Video: clips of a St Bernard in different environments. The first is of them sniffing on a green reserve, then walking loosely on a pavement, checking in with his guardian. Followed by a clip of him laying settled next to a road and some construction work. Finally, he returns to some time sniffing in some bushes)

04/06/2022

Keep tricks and training sessions:

💚 Fun....
When learning new things, your pup should be engaged, happy and enjoying the process. Learning, particularly when learning a new cue or activity, can sometimes cause frustration. Keeping training sessions short, upbeat and simple can ensure you set your pup up for success, building enthusiasm and motivation for future learning!

💚 Cooperative....
Training is a human requirement. The only reason we do it is to ensure our pups are able to cope with our modern way of life and behave 'appropriately' in line with societal and our expectations. And when it comes to tricks, often, these are purely for fun or enrichment purposes. So keep the sessions cooperative. If they opt out, listen. A dog who knows that they'll be listened to if they're not feeling 100 into it, will be far more likely to engage in future sessions.

💚 Fear Free....
There's a huge evidence base for fear free training methods. Not only do they strengthen bonds, they increase your pups mood, general well-being and learning potential (among many other things).

What are some of your pups favourite tricks?

(Accessibility: Bungle, a red and white St Bernard, is in the garden with his guardian, a white woman with salt and pepper hair. He's doing some tricks including a middle, some spins and touches. Each one he does with big enthusiasm)

04/06/2022

Top tips for safe child-dog interactions....

🐾 Teach kids some common stress signals to look out for, and how these are requests for space. Yawns, nose or lip licks, turning away or even whale eye are common signals our pups can offer when they'd prefer some space from the little humans.

🐾 Supervise all interactions. Yes, some dogs are naturally more intuitive when it comes to children and can be far more tolerant. But at the end of the day, they are dogs and our little humans can be pretty testing.

🐾 Teach and practice consent testing. A simple and oh so effective way of determining if a dog is wanting the fuss on offer. Pet, pet, pause.....if they don't move or move away... Leave them be. If they orient towards us or paw, n**e etc... Keep offering the pets.

Some simple steps to keep everyone safe & sound 💚

(Accessibility: Bungle, a red and white St Bernard, lays on his back asking for belly rubs from a young girl. She offers them and then gives him space. He turn, reaches out to her asking for more pets)

18/05/2022

Teaching Kids and Bite Prevention

Probably one of the most important things to do is teach kids how to interact with dogs. Here's a couple of tips on how to support a budding and safe relationship:

- Teach kids the consent test and how to listen. Pet the pup for 3 seconds or so and then pause. Pup comes back for fuss... Keep petting. No interaction.... Stop pets and give them space.

- Better still, teach kids how to offer fuss rather than forcing it on dogs. Rather than going up and just starting to pet, show them how to offer the fuss and let the dog come to them.

- and fundamentally... Teach kids how our relationships with dogs are build on trust and respect. This includes cooperation, listening to their needs and respecting their space.

Such simple things to teach to ensure everyone is safe and sound!

(Who's the beast and who's doing the taming? 😉🤣)

(Video : Bungle, a white and red St Bernard, and a young girl with dark blond hair and pink PJs are in the clips. They start with the girl petting Bungle and pausing to see if he wants more. He paws as a request for more. Then it goes to the young girl standing and offering her arms out for fuss. Bungle then goes over happily for cuddles. Finally the young girl is on the sofa with bungle upside down on her lap (well his head))

30/03/2022

What should you do when your pup clearly wants to give something a go but is too unsure to take the plunge?

Don't try forcing them or inadvertently applying pressure through lots of encouragement. Rather, be their safe base. Dogs are great observational learners. That on top of their bond and trust in you can be powerful in lifting that courage one extra notch.... Empowering them to take that leap themselves.

In the clip, for example, you see Sid showing lots of interest in the stream but not quite having the confidence to pop into it, even though Bungle is pottering around in it beside him. So what does his guardian do... Without a word to him, she simply stood in the stream to show Sid that all was well. No pressure, no explicit encouragement, simply showing him there was nothing to be worried about.

This is a perfect illustration of how having such a strong bond with your dog, built on trust and respect, feeds into so many other areas of your dogs behaviour and training.

(Video Sid, a white, grey and tan fox terrier, is on the edge of a stream. He's looking intently at it, crouching forward repeatedly but not quite confident enough to take the step into the water. Then the clip moves to another with his Guardian, a blond woman, who simply stands in the stream silently. Sid finally gets the confidence to take that step)

29/03/2022

What's a positive interrupter?
Basically, it's a word or phrase that has such a positive association, it results in immediate attention from your dog.

Why is it useful?
Sometimes, our pups might be getting into a little 'mischief' and while it's easy to tell them 'no', for dogs 'no' often has no clear behaviour or cue associated with it. This vague information can often result in negative affect and a dog becoming frustrated. Instead, conditioning a positive interrupter can actually enable us to manage the situation more productively, preventing or stopping unwanted behaviours.

Take this example, Bungle can sometimes try and get to the mud under the tarp (he likes an occasional dig and roll)... To prevent this even starting, I use the positive interrupter to refocus his attention back onto me and ask him for more desirable behaviours. Note his body language.... It's far more exciting to respond to that interrupter than engage in some good old digging.

(Video Bungle, a red and white St Bernard, is standing on top of a tarp with mud underneath it. Just as he's nosing, someone off screen says 'what's This'. He whiplash turns and comes running happily with a wagging tail... Completely forgetting the potential digging pit).

28/03/2022

Why muzzle train your pup?

Check out our latest blog for why muzzle conditioning should be high on all training plans..... Including a free 5 stage protocol for conditioning a muzzle. 💚🐾

https://www.agenticpaws.com/post/proactive-vs-reactive-why-muzzle-train

A muzzle is a safety 'tool' that covers a dog's mouth to stop them from being able to bite at things. There are numerous styles and shapes, and they can often come in plastic, leather and wire materials. But this post is not about what muzzles are. It's about why we at Agentic Paws think every guard...

23/03/2022

Yeah, so yesterday I decided to take Bungle down for a paddle and misjudged the firmness of the bank. Turned out that the mud was so sludgy it was like an ice-rink and so I ended up in the river with him. 🤦🏻‍♀️

Bungle is a water dog and loves paddling but he's not really got the confidence to swim, so rather than panic and get out as quickly as I could, I decided to use it as an opportunity to build some of his confidence. This is the deepest he's ever gone and while he didn't quite have the courage to swim properly, he was intrigued. I can see he wants to give it a go but the next step is just too unknown. So, this summer.... We'll be building his confidence in the water.

If anyone has lifejacket recommendations, please send them our way (bearing in mind he's the size of a small pony 😅).

(Video : video starts with Bungle, a white and red St Bernard in a river with water up to his shoulders. It scans to a river bank of mud with a slide line down it and then to a muddy hand from someone trying to stop their fall. It then goes back to Bungle who is walking towards the videographer getting deeper, concentrating hard on where his feet are. Then it goes to him standing looking at his guardian (who is behind the camera). He paws at the water and then finally he move to exit the river and his guardian follows).

21/03/2022

Confidence building on walks can simply mean adding in some activities using the environment. It's easy to fall into the mundane process of just walking or jogging or so on. But what about interacting with the environment... Get your pup jumping over small jumps, maybe ask them for a paws up on a bench or to try and balance. Even get them up and sitting on benches. Simple things that ask your dog to interact with different objects, textures, surfaces and sounds can result in big confidence boosts!

(Video : Bungle, a white and red St Bernard, is walking on a harness and lead with his guardian, Dani. She's wearing a blue top that says keep back and give us space on it. The clip starts with them walking and then moves to Dani and Bungle both hoping over a small fence. It then moves to them both walking and Bungle jumping up to touch Dani's hand. And then the final clip shows Bungle trying to get up onto a bench... Balancing but a little unsteady.).

13/03/2022

In need of some quick and simple enrichment ideas....

Try the Pup-A-Cup...
1. Get some cupcake holders (paper ones are cheap and easily recyclable too)
2. Hide some treats only under half of the holders...
3. Let your pup get to work, using their nose to sniff out the good stuff!

This was one of the first enrichment activities we did with Bungle when he arrived as a young lad... And helped so much with building his confidence, as well as spending some extra mental energy! 😅

(Video : bungle, a white and red St Bernard is walking around a tiled floor with his head low to the ground. He's attempting to sniff out treats hidden beneath paper cupcake holders that have been placed out around the floor.)

03/03/2022

When he first arrived, Bungle lunged at joggers... He once terrified a woman who was stopped on her bike after he lunged at her in response to her staring at him. He barked and barked at a couple who tried to ask me his name and I'll always remember one occasion when a woman jumped a wall all excited to say hi while we were in a carpark to be met by a very unhappy Bungle (and on that note, try not to approach people and their dogs without prior warning 😅).

And here we are 19 months of later. A jogger suddenly appeared from behind us (neither of us were aware until he was there). Bungle didn't bat an eye!

The route to true behaviour change really doesn't reside in suppressing unwanted behaviours... It's in understanding the underpinning emotions resulting in that behaviour and working to transform those into something more positive.... all while teaching our pups skills for navigating the world and regulating themselves in uncertain situations. Don't get me wrong, he's still aloof with some strangers, but he's now equipped to tolerate and manage himself in their presence.

[Video
Bungle, a red and white St Bernard, is walking loosely on a lead next to his guardian, a white woman with grey hair, an orange top on and green patterned leggings. They're walking alongside a road on a pavement when a jogger suddenly runs past. Bungle looks to his guardian and continues walking loosely on the lead]

22/02/2022

Want to change your dogs behaviour long term? My work developing human behaviour change interventions got me thinking of the following..

Capability: is your dog capable of behaviour change in a given moment. Do they need support physically? Are all their needs being met? Are their stress levels suitable? Do they actually have the skillset needed for more appropriate behaviours? Before even getting started on changing their behaviour, they need to be physically and psychologically capable....

Opportunity: what about environmental management? Is the home suitable for lowering exposures to triggers? Can you accurately assess their threshold and adjust to support them? Have you got access to controlled set ups so you can set them up for opportunity to practice new skills successfully and condition new emotions?

Motivation: are they motivated at that point in time? Do they feel cable or are they too stressed? Do they feel motivated given the environment? Have you chosen the best reinforcers?

This isn't plucked from thin air. Adapted from the COM-B model for promoting human behaviour change, understanding our dogs capabilities, creating appropriate opportunities and working with best reinforcers can all equip us and them with the knowledge and skills to support long term changes in their behaviours 💚

[ video starts with a clip of Bungle, a red and white St Bernard, stressed while in a new environment. He's wearing a muzzle and panting while turning to his guardian for comfort. The clip then moves to Bungle in a field with a black lab. Both are relaxed, sniffing and exploring]

21/02/2022

For some dogs, Muzzles can open up so much.... 💚

20/02/2022

Just a little reminder that....... It's ok to rest! 🐾🙌
We all need decompression and recharge days and that should be completely normalised into our routines 💚

post with grey fill and the text says: Reminder, it's ok to rest.

16/02/2022

As with all body language signals, context and your dog's individual expressions must be taken into account (learn your dog's norm and work from there)....

Let's look at some of the reasons why our pups may suddenly freeze or become still:

🐾 Information gathering: it could be that your dog is merely gaining some information about something in the environment... Not necessarily linked with fear or caution, just simply assessing.

🐾 Caution/Fearfulness: Maybe there's something a little unusual in the environment. Your dog may brace themselves, remaining still but still interested in whatever is causing the concern. Or maybe something has made them feel a bit fearful. Fear can result in freezing in a dog before they quickly remove themselves from a situation.

🐾 A Warning: extreme, deliberate stillness with tension and a hard stare can be a clear warning. This can be a precursor to more concerning warnings like growling/snapping/biting. Something we see a lot in resource guarding.

These are just a few reasons for why your dog may freeze suddenly but being aware of the full picture and context can really set you up in offering the best support for them, whether that's time and patience, encouragement and/or distance.

[Video
Bungle, a red and white St bernard starts off in a clip on a field. He runs after a treat and then sees some dogs in the distance. He stops and stares with loose body language and a relaxed curled tail. Then the clip moves to him again standing and staring into the distance. This time he is hunched in the back and has a lowered nervous tail. Finally, is a clip of him and his guardian. In front of them is a black Labrador stuffed teddy and as his guardian moves the teddy, Bungle stops, freezes with braced position. He stares hard at the teddy]

14/02/2022

Often, we can expect dogs to just meet and get on in a flash. However, for some dogs, it can take a far slower approach for them to learn to trust and a new dog...

But there are some things you can do to help them in the process...

🐾 Start of with distanced walks where the dogs can get to know each others scent. Keep at a comfortable distance where your pup is displaying happy body language but is able to see the other.
🐾 Gradually get closer (watching body language closely) and have a couple of sessions of walking parallel but without pressure for interaction.
🐾 Keep sessions short and as positive as possible. Sometimes less is more, particularly if your dog can get trigger stacked easily.
🐾 When starting to interact, use fences. This can alleviate pressure while allowing safe introductions.
🐾 It's important to never force your dog to interact.. Let them choose when they want to take it to the next level.... And support them when they do. Likewise, if they choose not to, be ok with that.

For some dogs, it can be as quick as one, two, three but for others.... Slow and steady wins the race. 💚

[Video : a series of videos of a white and red St Bernard and a black lab. The clips move throw from a walk with great distance between the dogs on a field, to a clip of them walking parallel to one another and eventually next to each other with a fence between them. The final sets of clips show the St Bernard walking first by the side of their guardian, a little shy of the Labrador but eventually gaining confidence to approach the lab and finally go exploring with him comfortably.]

12/02/2022

So many benefits 💚

07/02/2022

Muzzle Up Pup...

Spice up your conditioning process and add in some games to further strengthen that positive emotional response. We love....

🐾 Boop (in the video and one to be careful with if you have a brute like Mr B)
🐾 Touch
🐾 Hide and Seek

How do you make muzzle time fun?

[Video : video of a white and red St Bernard, Bungle, standing with his guardian, a Caucasian woman dressed in a grey top and tree print leggings. There is a large basked muzzle in the middle of the floor. Bungles guardian asks him to 'Boop' the muzzle and he goes, hits it with his paw and then returns to here, wagging his tail proudly]

06/02/2022

Want to strengthen your cooperative relationship with your dog?

💚 Keep things positive even when they say no: Think operant (skills) as well as classical (emotions) conditioning. If your dog doesn’t offer a skill they know well, it’s most likely their reluctance to offer it is underpinned by some emotional response. Whether or not they offer a behaviour, it is important to keep the session as positive as possible. Plus, this positive interaction will strengthen the likelihood of them offering the behaviour in future.

💚 Keep in mind tolerance: Your dog will most likely tolerate some interactions better than others. Adjust your approach based on this. While a dog may tolerate paw handling well, their tolerance for tools might be far lower (note how Bungle starts to turn away from the nail clippers in the clip – this tells me he’s reached his tolerance level). The aim is to build up their tolerance slow and steadily.

💚 Observe Body Language: This is fundamental, particularly for dogs who have been forced or coerced into behaviours previously. Remaining in place isn’t always a good thing. We have to be active in observing their body language and determining if they’re still ok with the interaction.

💚 End the session: Following from the above, if you’re not certain they’re feeling the session, cut it short. This might mean lots of short intervals when you start out, but over time, you’ll begin to see heightened tolerance, more relaxed body language as well as increased opt-ins.

[Video Description: The video goes through a couple of clips of Bungle, a red and white St Bernard, having his paws handled and nail clippers presented. Bungle sits on the right and his guardian, a Caucasian woman called Dani, sits on the left. The first clip shows Dani asking Bungle for a paw but he declines. She says ok and treats him. She then asks for the other paw and he offers happily. Then comes a second clip where Dani holds up a pair of nail clippers but Bungle looks the other way, avoiding them. Then we see a slowed down version of Dani pairing Bungle’s paw with the clippers but Bungle flinches his paw and offers a tongue flick. Then the final clip shows Dani telling Bungle ‘all done’ and he gets up and nuzzles his head into her].