Bad dogs to Good dogs

Do you have a dog who is always getting into some sort of mischief? Always finding something chewed up, a new hole dug out in the yard, your neighbor calling you saying your dog is running down the road. How about getting in the trash, or barking at everyone who walks by the window? Here are a few tips that will help give your dog something better to do.

A dog who is always finding trouble is a bored dog. Next time your dog does something bad, ask yourself what have you done to let your dog get out some energy, or to give your dog some mind stimulation? If your answer is nothing, you just expect the dog to be good, you need to think again. If I had as much energy as some of the dogs in this world, with a mind that lives in the now and absolutely nothing to keep me occupied or burn that energy, you bet Id be causing trouble too!

Lets start with energy. Dogs have a lot of built up energy and need ways to burn this energy. Walking your dog is not usually enough, though it certainly helps! Try finding a place where your dog can RUN! Be sure its a safe place and let your dog have at it. If your dog doesnt have a good recall, you might work on that first. An excellent DVD is the Really Reliable Recall - Train Your Dog to Come When Called... No Matter What!.


If its a large, safe, fenced in area, for the first time doing this you might set aside a couple of hours to go down and just let your dog run around, sniff and have a good time. Dont worry about calling your dog to you. Bring a good book or something to do, wait for your dog to return to you. If your dog returns to you periodically give them praise and a favorite treat or toss a toy for them if they like to fetch and bring it back.

When your dog is tired, they will eventually come back to you. The first time doing this, you will probably have to wait the longest. This is new for your dog and they love it, let them enjoy it! If youre having fun, you dont want to go home after only an hour do you? Remember, this needs to be done off leash. Anything that you can do to get your dog running is GREAT for your dog! This goes for small and big dogs.

Not only does your dog need this off leash time to run, but also some interactive play time too. Some things you can do with your dog include, but are not limited to; swimming, running, hiking, biking, four wheeling, and playing fetch. Some other activities you can try out and take classes for are; Agility, Flyball, Hunting, Herding, Schutzhund, Tracking, Search and Rescue, or even training your dog to do service dog tasks.

An excellent toy for dogs who LOVE to play fetch is the Chuckit! Ball Launcher If your interested in biking with your dog, check out the Walky Dog Hands Free Bicycle Leash or theres another one called the Springer Bicycle Jogger. If hiking is more your thing, definitely look into Dog Packs, that one is a little on the spendy side, a lower priced one would be the Dog Backpack Saddle Gear Bag

If your looking to get started in some Agility or just want to have fun with your dog in the back yard, heres a great Kyjen Dog-Agility Starter Kit and a book to get you started The Beginners Guide to Dog Agility.


Next, we need to stimulate that mind! Try working in some obedience training or teaching them some fun Tricks. If you need something to keep your dog busy while you work or clean, fill up some interactive treat toys and let your dog at it! These will keep your dog out of trouble at least for a while.

If you can give your dog the physical and mental exercise they need, behavior problems will start going away on their own. If you want to take this further, sign up for some agility classes and find jobs for your dog to do! Youll have that dream dog in no time!

A great book to help you further in this topic is:


Have fun with this and enjoy the company of your dog! You got them for a reason right? Show them you appreciate them by giving them what they NEED! Exercise, physically AND Mentally!

Thursdays Game of the week is: Find it!

A great game to play with your dog, you can play inside or outside and even get your kids involved if you have any! Play with a favorite toy, dog food, treats, or even kongs filled with some food. Make it easy at first, have your dog stay, put them in a room or crate, or have somebody hold them. Hide their toy, treat or whatever you are using somewhere they can find it, starting out you could hide it in the middle of a room. Let them go and tell them to Find it! Help them if they need it at first. Keep working on this and making it harder and harder to find it. They will soon be a pro at finding it! After they are great at finding different things, you can put names on them or even teach them to find your keys or slippers! Have fun with this! A very useful thing for your dog to know! A Twist on this is to have them find a person, such as Go find Susie! Then reward them for doing so! Enjoy!

Read More..

Dog People And You Thought High School Was Bad

Hey, everyone!


For those of you that are heavily involved in the dog world (and since youre either blogging  and/or reading a dog blog, I assume thats all of you), have you ever noticed the parallel between dog people and your stereotypical high school cliques?

No? Well, darlings, let me enlighten you. Below you will find a convenient guide to identifying these people, including what activities they tend to participate in, and the breeds they usually own. This is by no means a full list, but it does hit on all the major points.

(Note: this is, for the most part, entirely tongue-in-cheek. If marginally snarky humor and honest truths offend you, I suggest skipping this post, or at least not bombarding me with comments lamenting how not everyone fits a stereotype.)

High School and The Dog Enthusiast: A Guide

The Jocks -

Summary: These are the people that live and breathe "hard core" dog sports, the ones that go broke and rearrange their lives around trials that are hours away from them. Sport dogs are to The Jocks as big trucks are to... ehm, small men. 

Often socially inept in real life, they thrive online, tutting behind their screens about those owners who have mere pet dogs. Dont even get them started on those pitiful people that dare to trial with an "off breed". The horror, truly. 

Sports or Activities: Agility, DiscDog, Flyball, occasionally protection sports such as IPO and French Ring.

Breeds Owned: Sport bred Border Collies dominate here, sometimes with a Sheltie or Jack Russell thrown in for good measure. Aussies, Malinois, and the occasional field bred Golden Retriever or Standard Poodle may make an appearance.

Telltale Signs Youve Found A Jock: Abbreviated speech patterns (dont you dare mix up those Qs, NQs, AXJ, MACH, ect or youll be burned at the stake), the need to share every single title the dog has earned whenever they share the dogs name, the flashing of big name kennels, a catty but tight knit community, and a penchant for yoga pants and those creepy as fuck tennis shoes with individual toe spots. 

The Jocks Claim to Fame: Much like real life high school Jocks, dog sports are the Golden Era of the Jocks life.

The Mean Girls -

Summary: Log in to any forum or Facebook, and its easy to spot a Mean Girl. The Mean Girls are the first to jump in with a snarky, high horse comment, which is soon backed up by their hoards of loyal minions. Mean Girls rule the roost, luxuriating in their devout following and power online. Loud, obtuse and vicious online, Mean Girls wouldnt dare look at you cross-eyed in real life. 

Mean Girls are the best at everything, with the best possible dogs, and dont you dare forget it. Just like real life Mean Girls, these people are big on bragging about This Kennel and That Kennel, loving that what theyre wearing owning is the name on everyones lips.

Sports or Activities: Occasionally conformation or any of the Jocks activities, though Mean Girls tend to be "just" dog owners. Because lets be honest here: forget stalking those they feel threatened by (those damn outspoken people who dare not bow before them) and talking behind peoples backs takes a lot of time and effort.

Breeds Owned: Mostly high dollar purebreds, though its possible to get the occasional Mean Girls: Mutt Edition in the mix.

Telltale Signs Youve Found a Mean Girl: A plethora of Me & My Dog selfies, a condescending introduction, lax Facebook privacy settings, excluding conversations amongst other Mean Girls, and plenty of holier than thou attitude. Mean Girls are the quickest to cry fowl if you have a different opinion.

The Mean Girls Claim to Fame: Living the life they wish they had in high school.

The Nerds -

Summary: The Nerds are an interesting sort without too set a mold, though facets of the other groups may be present in certain individuals. The Nerds are a plethora of information, and usually focus on one subject to drown themselves in; food and training are the most common types of Nerds, though everything from breeding to bloodlines to structure to vet care can be a Nerds livelihood. 

The Nerds prides themselves on being up to date -or at least well versed - on their specific subject. Despite their eagerness to contribute, The Nerds often easily quelled into silence and submission by The Jocks and Mean Girls.
There is also the very rare but frightfully obnoxious Know It All Nerd. These are the people that will shove information so far down you throat itll make your eyes water, and refuse to quit.

Sports or Activities: The Nerd may compete in less popular dog sports such a Dock Diving and Nosework, but tend to focus more on trick training or fitness and conditioning.

Breeds Owned: The Nerd does not have a set breed, and mutts are very popular.

Telltale Signs Youve Found a Nerd: The Nerds are an elusive bunch, but are fairly easy to spot if you know what to look for. Tentative but eager to connect, gentle coaxing can get them blathering like a 12 year old girl jacked up on coffee.

The Nerds Claim to Fame: Thinking theyre smarter than most of the population, but are too afraid to show it.

The Goths -

Summary: The Goths are, unsurprisingly, incredibly dramatic and yet incredibly deadpan. They tend to be fanatical in their morbid views, and take great pleasure in informing you that feeding kibble will kill your dog. Or that feeding raw will kill your dog. Or that vaccines will kill your dog. Or no vaccines will kill your dog. Really, they just want you to know that your dog will die unless you follow their views. Theyre like those annoying chain emails or Facebook tags: forward this to or tag 10 others or youll die next Tuesday.

Sports or Activities: None usually, because thats another thing that will kill your dog.

Breeds Owned: Mutts and various bully breeds, primarily. Occasionally a smattering of toy breeds.

Telltale Signs Youve Found a Goth: Watch the posts about questions or experiences, and youre sure to find a Goth. Just watch, and youll see them latch onto any marginally happy topic like a starving baby onto a juicy tit, ready to share some horror story and offer their incredible wisdom on how to prevent such a tragedy.

The Goths Claim to Fame: Striking fear and annoyance into the hearts of dog lovers across the interwebs, depending on the person.

The Potheads -

Summary: The Potheads are a motley crew, and can be split into three main sub-genres. Their common denominator is their more relaxed attitude and less cutthroat nature.

The Hippie Potheads - 
Holistic, natural, organic, alternative. These words are always on the Hippie Potheads tongue, and boy, do they love them. Theyre quick to offer their remedies with a big smile and lots of "helpful" links. Youre dealing with a flea infestation, in the middle of summer, in Florida? Sprinkle some diatomaceous earth down! Struggling with your aging dogs arthritis? Try some coconut oil! Your dog has terminal cancer! Some turmeric will clear that right up!

The Artsy Pothead -
Creative grooming, anyone? These people may also teach completely useless but very flashy tricks, have brightly colored hair themselves, and have a love for dog photography.

The Pothead Pothead -
What happens when you need a blunt just to deal with all the other cliques.

Breeds Owned: Anything and everything! Hound breeds, mutts, and various large and giant breeds are most prevalent.

Telltale Signs Youve Found a Pothead: Theyre actually tolerable, for the most part.

The Potheads Claim to Fame: Making you realize that the only semi-sane person in this discussion - aside from yourself - is a pothead.

The Rebel -

Summary: Ah, the Rebels. Often the most amusing ones to watch, The Rebels tend to be instigators. There are two types of Rebels: the "I dont give a fuck what you think" Rebels, and the "I love drama" Rebels.
Whichever category they fit into, both parties have the same general though process. These are the people that support most types of breeders (show, sport, working, pet, cross), support and/or own outdoor dogs, support and/or own doodles, and have more "outside the box" views on dog ownership.

Sports or Activities: The Rebels dont have a set sport, but may participate in any and all forms.

Breeds Owned: Usually purebred or purposefully bred cross breeds, but again, theres no set type.

Telltale Signs Youve Found a Rebel: That Facebook or forum thread thats blowing up? Odds are, a Rebel is keeping it going. They relish in ruffling the feathers of all the other cliques.

The Rebels Claim to Fame: "I may not have started it, but Ill damn sure finish it!"

Will I have a bit of The Artsy Pothead and The Rebel in me, I am more of the loner type. I dont do cliques, because I have a 0 tolerance for catty bullshit. Raise your glass if youre on of the few sane people sitting back in astonishment that the above kinds of people actually exist.

So there you have it: Dachshund Nolas Guide to Navigating the Dog World! Youre welcome.

Share your favorite, any Ive missed, and your experiences below!

- Dachshund Mommy

P.S. Ive never stepped foot in a high school (homeschooling FTW - and I mean For The Win, not Fuck The World), and had to rely on my guilty pleasure of young adult books and plenty of googling. 

Read More..

The Science Surrounding Children Dogs Part 2 The Bad

I hope you had a Happy Thanksgiving Julie!

(source)

I’m not exactly sure what that means, as we don’t celebrate it in Australia, but I hope you had a great time with your family and friends all the same!

Thanks for all those fantastic resources you included in your last blog post. It was also great to see some extras posted by readers in the comments section. 

(source)

Last time I looked at ‘The Good’ of some the science surrounding children and dogs. This post, it’s time to cover some of the ‘The Bad’. 

What can possibly be bad about children and dogs? Well, dogs don’t live as long as us, for one.

When dogs die

(source)

Having established last time that dogs can benefit kids’ confidence, self-belief, trust, respect and heaps of other positive attitudes and behaviours, I was left wondering how losing a pet dog impacts children. Loss of a companion animal can be a devastating event for people of any age.

Humans don’t all experience grief equally.

Our understanding of death is linked to our developmental state, but young children can still feel pain at the loss of a family dog. For many children, the death of a pet dog will be their first experience with this kind of loss and grief. Pet dogs can be almost-constant companions for children, and have been assigned a role in reflected appraisal similar to that of a best friend.

Psychologists encourage parents/guardians to explain death to kids sensitively and with honesty. Adults should answer questions simply, using clear and accurate information and avoid the desire to ‘protect’ children from death by hiding the truth of a pet’s illness or euthanasia. This is because children with active imaginations may create scenarios about the death that are far worse than reality. 

Adults should allow children to express their grief (through verbal, artistic or written expression; reading stories about the death of pets, etc.), acknowledging the importance of the relationship lost (rather than trivializing the death or running to buy a new puppy) and helping children to understand that grief is a normal and natural emotion that helps us cope with death.

Sometimes bad can be good

(source)

Some psychologists believe that such trauma (with a successful associated recovery) can strengthen our capacity to deal with future stress and adversity. 

This is referred to as psychological resilience and is considered a desirable and healthy process as it enables a person, or in this case a child, to develop coping strategies and support networks (friends, adults, family, etc.) that will serve them in difficult times later in life.

Your dog is a zoo-

Zoo noses? (source)

Its true (when youre using zo/zoo- as a prefix to indicate animals are involved). And its about noses. Not noses-noses, that would be silly. Im talking about Zoonoses. As in diseases that can transfer from animals to people. As in from a dog to a child. Theyre not pretty. 

Research has shown that people can be generally uninformed about some of the most common zoonotic diseases (e.g. common roundworm eggs readily transfer between dogs and people; the worm larvae can decide to live in the back of childrens eyes which can lead to blindness - people should know that!)

(source)

I suggest that if any of your dog-owning friends with children arent aware of the risks of zoonotic diseases, they run an online search for dogs zoonosis [insert country of residence] so they can read up on what parasite control and other measures can be used in their neck of the globe to reduce the risk of zoonoses. 

(source)

Maintaining good child and dog health and hygiene should be a no-brainer. Did you know dogs can catch things from kids too? Thats called reverse zoonosis. 

And to think sharing is something I normally praise my toddler for!

I hope you’ll grit your teeth and stick with me for my third post about the science surrounding children and dogs. 

You’ve seen The Good and now The Bad – next time, Im going to bring out The Ugly. Ill also touch on what science has to say about our childhood experience with dogs influencing us as adults. 

What do you reckon your childhood experiences with Arf contributed to your adult attitudes?

Take care,

Mia

Further reading:

Gerwolls M.K. & Labott S.M. (1994). Adjustment to the Death of a Companion Animal, Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals, 7 (3) 172-187. DOI: 10.2752/089279394787001826

Serpell J.A. (1981). Childhood Pets and their Influence on Adults Attitudes, Psychological Reports, 49 (2) 651-654. DOI: 10.2466/pr0.1981.49.2.651

Davis J.H. (1987). Preadolescent Self-Concept Development and Pet Ownership, Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals, 1 (2) 90-94. DOI: 10.2752/089279388787058614

Van Houtte B.A. & Jarvis P.A. (1995). The role of pets in preadolescent psychosocial development, Journal of Applied Developmental Psychology, 16 (3) 463-479. DOI: 10.1016/0193-3973(95)90030-6

Bryant B.K. (1990). The Richness of the Child-Pet Relationship: A Consideration of Both Benefits and Costs of Pets to Children, Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals, 3 (4) 253-261. DOI: 10.2752/089279390787057469

Kaufman K.R. & Kaufman N.D. (2006). And Then the Dog Died, Death Studies, 30 (1) 61-76. DOI: 10.1080/07481180500348811

Bonanno G.A. (2004). Loss, Trauma, and Human Resilience: Have We Underestimated the Human Capacity to Thrive After Extremely Aversive Events?, American Psychologist, 59 (1) 20-28. DOI: 10.1037/0003-066X.59.1.20

Bingham G.M., Budke C.M. & Slater M.R. (2010). Knowledge and perceptions of dog-associated zoonoses: Brazos County, Texas, USA, Preventive Veterinary Medicine, 93 (2-3) 211-221. DOI: 10.1016/j.prevetmed.2009.09.019

© Mia Cobb 2012

Read More..

Black Dog Syndrome A Bad Rap

Hi Mia & Julie –

Firstly, thanks so much for letting me drop a verse in the rap song of your blog! I feel so awesome being featured. It’s like being Lil Wayne or something. Anyway…

I’m just recently back from ISAZ 2013, where I had a most excellent time chatting with other anthrozoologist-y types. 

As you know, I just graduated from the Anthrozoology Master’s Program at Canisius College, so I was uber-excited to have a chance to share my research with colleagues in the field. ISAZ did not disappoint. 

Pauleen Bennett & Heather at ISAZ 2013

Now I get to share with you two and it just gets better and better! :-)

My master’s thesis research project (advised by the oh-so-awesome Christy Hoffman) looked to answer the question: “Does Black Dog Syndrome Exist?”

Animal welfare folks are probably familiar with the concept of Black Dog Syndrome (BDS) that Julie introduced last week: it’s the idea that dogs with black coats have a harder time than other dogs getting adopted, and as a result, may face higher rates of euthanasia and longer stays in adoption programs. 

Popular media - but is it correct?

A lot of popular media articles focus on this concept (like here, here, here and here) but the research results have been mixed: in a study published earlier this year, participants rated an image of a black dog as significantly less agreeable, less conscientious, and less emotionally stable than a yellow dog (Fratkin & Baker, 2013). Yet research into factors influencing shelter dogs’ lengths of stay (LOS) found that LOS was not significantly correlated with coat color (Brown, Davidson, & Zuefle, 2013; Protopopova, Gilmour, Weiss, Shen, & Wynne, 2012).

To dig deeper into the questions of whether potential adopters discriminate against black dogs in a shelter and whether black dog discrimination is reflected in shelter stats, I conducted a two-part research project:

Shelter Visitor Pilot Study – examined interaction between potential adopters and shelter dogs

Shelter Data Analysis Study – investigated relationships between LOS and coat color, age, sex and breed, as well as the impact of these variables on likelihood of euthanasia

And what I found may surprise you.
There was very little evidence to support the concept of Black Dog Syndrome!

From Heathers ISAZ 2013 poster

I know animal shelter workers are going “WHAT!?” right now – I know because I AM a shelter worker – but the truth is, even if many potential adopters come to the shelter with a negative bias toward black dogs, it’s not resulting in crazy-long shelter stays or greater risk of euthanasia for black dogs. In fact, according to analysis of shelter statistics, black dogs were adopted out faster than average at both shelters in my study. Black dogs were also less likely than expected to be euthanized (good news for black dogs, eh?).

When shelter visitors video-recorded their walk through the adoption area, I found that they spent about equal amounts of time looking at every dog, regardless of coat color. Visitors also rarely made specific comments with regards to coat color, although one guy did say: “I like black. Black dogs are cute.” Interactions like petting or feeding dogs also occurred as frequently between visitors and black dogs compared to dogs of other coat colors.

Still, I can’t deny that a few different studies show that people rate images of black dogs more negatively than other colored dogs. That being so, can I really say there’s no such thing as Black Dog Syndrome? Well, I think there’s evidence for a negative bias against black coats when viewing still images of dogs of different coat colors. However, this bias just isn’t impacting the adoption rates or in-person interactions with black shelter dogs. Granted, my video study sample was very small – it was a pilot study, after all – but the shelter stats were quite clear (and my sample there included 16,000+ individual dogs).

So, yes, I’m saying Black Dog Syndrome ain’t no thang. Like, really, it’s not a thing. 

But I certainly am open to the idea of a Black Dog Bias, and I think that’s the next step for this type of research – teasing out whether preconceptions are truly influencing adoption decisions. 

My head’s swimming with ideas about how to do this and if anyone is working/has worked on this kind of research, I’d love to hear from them!

Thank you ladies for giving me the mic.
Now picture me dropping it on the floor without a care. Svo. Out.

No really, you two are super RAD. Keep doin’ what you’re doin’! 

And thank you for letting me be a part of it.

Heather Svoboda, MSc

Communications & Development Manager, Cat Adoption Team

Infrequent Blogger, Anthrozoologist Real Gosling // Reasons My Cats Are Sleeping

Further reading:

Brown W.P., Davidson J.P. & Zuefle M.E. (2013). Effects of Phenotypic Characteristics on the Length of Stay of Dogs at Two No Kill Animal Shelters, Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science, 16 (1) 2-18. DOI: 10.1080/10888705.2013.740967

Fratkin J.L. & Baker S.C. (2013). The Role of Coat Color and Ear Shape on the Perception of Personality in Dogs, Anthrozoos: A Multidisciplinary Journal of The Interactions of People & Animals, 26 (1) 125-133. DOI: 10.2752/175303713X13534238631632

Protopopova A., Gilmour A.J., Weiss R.H., Shen J.Y. & Wynne C.D.L. (2012). The effects of social training and other factors on adoption success of shelter dogs, Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 142 (1-2) 61-68. DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2012.09.009

Svoboda, H.J. & Hoffman, C. (2013). A novel empirical test of Black Dog Syndrome. Poster. International Society for Anthrozoology (ISAZ) Conference. July 18-19, Chicago, USA.

© 2013 Do You Believe in Dog?

Read More..

Dogs Cats Cats Working Dogs Working Dogs Emotions

Hi Julie!

What a busy week I’ve found myself having! 

Very productive indeed, with a lot of this:

and some more of that:

 Fuelled by a ton of this:

But I did take time to notice that your cat Josh broke something new.  Oh Josh! 

Thanks for telling me about your ISHAR presentation about dogs and cats in the home.  I can definitely relate to the importance of early socialisation = best chance at harmony. Take my dog Elke, for example.

As a pup, she met and spent time around mature cat Bobby (who opted to ignore her for the most part).

Elke grew up around cats and kittens.

Then she helped me raise a bunch of Shelter foster kittens until they were old enough to be adopted.

By the time Tonto came to live with us as permanent family member, she was an old hand in living around cats. And when Caleb later joined us as a young adult dog, Tonto was pretty relaxed around dogs. He tended to be confident in interactions; not running away (importantly, not triggering any chase responses from our new dog).

Elke ably demonstrating in top image that a cat is not worth waking up for.

Gidget and some enthusiastic GDs

This was also true when we brought a new kennel cat into the Training Kennel and Vet Clinic facility I managed at Guide Dogs Victoria (GDV). We selected a kitten from the Shelter who was outgoing and confident around people and dogs. We then set her up in the main foyer of our facility to have a slow and positive introduction to the visiting puppies and dogs that we could control to maximise the positives for all the animals. 

Gidget now plays an important role at GDV helping to desensitise the dogs to cats by reducing their level of interest and distraction. If their key learning experiences about cats with Gidget are boring, they associate future cats with boring and will be less likely to want to chase them. 

Important when you are a working Guide Dog. Or a Police Dog. Or any number of other types of working dogs. Working Dog kennel cats are really common!

(source)

GDV Puppy Class (source)

Gidget also attends the puppy socialisation classes, wearing her harness and lead so puppies can be encouraged at an early age to stay calm around cats. A resident kennel cat also means that a friendly cat is readily available to assess a dog’s level of cat distraction or participate in training sessions to improve Guide Dog-appropriate responses to the presence of a cat.  

Or help out with photo shoots around Valentines Day. You know how it goes!

(source) Gidget loves photo shoots. Even if they arent (supposed to be) about her!

Gidget would spend her downtime in my office, asleep next to my computer monitor. We were good workmates and I miss her jaunty greetings and blissed out purrs! 

My regular desktop view when working at GDV

One thing about not sharing an office with Gidget any more is that it’s giving me more time to analyse all my PhD data about working dogs in kennel facilities. 

I’ve been busy number-crunching this week ahead of the RSPCA Australia Scientific Seminar later this month. My presentation is titled ‘Working Like a Dog – Affectively’. I’ll be talking about how affective states (a.k.a emotions) relate to working dogs, their welfare and performance. What is the affective experience for a working dog?  How can we tell? What things should we be considering to give working dogs a ‘life worth living’ (or better!) while they are working to help us humans?

RSPCA Scientific Seminar 2013

Professor David Mellor will be chairing the seminar and giving a presentation titled ‘Coping, cognition and quality of life improvement’ which I’m looking forward to hearing. Mellor’s based in New Zealand and I’ve enjoyed listening to him at other conferences. I am very interested in the work he’s been involved with in translating animal welfare science into practical animal welfare standards and outcomes in collaboration with the NZ government. It’s going to be a fun day!

Speaking of fun – aren’t you at Science Online’s 2013 event this week? I’m following #scio13 on Twitter and pretending I’m there too!

Mia

Further reading:

Mellor D.J. & Bayvel A.C.D. (2008). New Zealands inclusive science-based system for setting animal welfare standards, Applied Animal Behaviour Science, 113 (4) 313-329. DOI: 10.1016/j.applanim.2008.01.010

Mellor D. (2012). Animal emotions, behaviour and the promotion of positive welfare states, New Zealand Veterinary Journal, 60 (1) 1-8. DOI: 10.1080/00480169.2011.619047

© Mia Cobb 2012

Read More..

Dog Loses Ear at Dog Park and There Was Nothing We Could Do About It

#SPARCS2014 Day 1

Hi Mia!

Looking forward to the upcoming SPARCS conference in June! We’ll be in Newport, Rhode Island from June 20-22, 2014 with the live audience doing the play-by-play (my dad is going to have to give me baseball reporting tips beforehand), but ANYONE on planet Earth can watch the conference live for free!

Each day of the conference is dedicated to one general topic, and thats not something you often see at conferences. Usually, one person gives a keynote, maybe there’s time for Q&A, and that’s the end! This time, multiple experts will weigh in on the same topic. 

#SPARCS2014 Day 1: June 20, 2014 covers "Aggression and Conflict." Expert speakers (bios here) join the day of talks with takeaways like:

• Patricia McConnell: To be able to recognize the visual signs of conflict and agonistic behavior  
• Ray Coppinger: To understand motor patterns when interpreting aggression  
• James Serpell: To draw attention to what we do and don’t know about aggression in dogs 
• Simon Gadbois: To learn the richness of the concept of behavioral and social “rules” 
• Kathryn Lord: To understand how the broader scientific field of animal behavior and comparison to other animals can inform us about dog behavior

Reading about what will be covered, I couldn’t help but think about people who are personally dealing with companion dog aggression or conflict issues -- not the most warm and fuzzy thing to have to deal with. And then I remembered that while many dogs may be dealing with aggression and conflict issues, many people are not necessarily aware that there’s even an issue in their midst!

Let me back up and explain:

Just this month I learned about a paper, Situated activities in a dog park: Identity and conflict in human-animal space, at The Science Dog (Blog / Facebook), a blog maintained by Linda Case, M.S., (author of numerous books on dog behavior, nutrition and training). Case recently reviewed the paper, and you can read her review here.  

Flickr Creative Commons, Justin Beckley

Patrick Jackson, the author of Situated activities in a dog park, is a sociologist at Sonoma State University. At a general level, his paper explores “how people and their dogs do things (activities) together (situated) in the dog park environment.” A ‘situated activity’ is one that bring people together not because they are best best best friends, but because they share a common interest, and in this case, that interest is dogs.

At the dog park, people spend a great deal of time talking about, well, dogs. Jackson describes dog park conversations that we are all familiar with: “Which one is yours?” and “What’s his/her name?”, with follow-up questions about age and habits.

We know that people readily talk to and through their dogs. Over at The Dodo, Alexandra Horowitz recently covered the different types of things we say to dogs (my favorite: “We dont need you to fix everyones problems.”) I’ve discussed our one-sided conversations with animals over at Scientific American: Did You Have A Good Pee, Mr. Rhino? (I swear the post is about dogs).

But back to Jacksons paper: My ears perked up in the section “Control management.” Jackson comments that the dog park can be a hodgepodge of many dogs doing many different things. Meanwhile, dog owners don’t always know whether something ‘should be done’ and if so, what that ‘something’ should look like. Per Jackson, “it is also ambiguous how caretakers are supposed to manage their own and others’ dogs in the dog park. If a dog is about to enter the park and is snarling at yours, should you intercede?”

And because dog parks don’t come equipped with species-specific referees (think on-site social workers, psychologists and animal behaviorists), dog parks can be chaotic, even unsafe. ?
 
Dogs are confusing. People are confusing. Put them together in a public space, and it’s like all the circuses came to town on the same day.?

To add insult to injury, dogs also come with teeth. Again, Jackson:
 
“It is difficult to know, for example, when untoward behavior like aggressiveness is imminent (King & Long, 2004). In the dynamic dog park environment, knowledge about aggression may only be gained through experience.”

Hmm
 
Hmmm
 
Hmmmmmm
 
WHAT?!? 
 
The first sentence I get. 

“It is difficult to know, for example, when untoward behavior like aggressiveness is imminent.”
 
Thats true. People are not innately able to recognize fear and stress behaviors in dogs, even a dog that they live with. And with dogs coming in all shapes, sizes and ‘ways of displaying canid behaviors,’ detecting fear and stress is even more challenging. Many distance-increasing signals can easily go unnoticed. So far, so good, Mr. Jackson.
 
But the second part:
 
“In the dynamic dog park environment, knowledge about aggression may only be gained through experience.”

Makes zero sense. Scratch that. It makes less than zero sense.
 
The field of animal behavior is all about studying what animals do. Some researchers study play in goats, while others might study aggressive displays in chimps, ants, stickleback fish, or even cranes (such as what aggression and its precursors look like in each of these species). As Mugatu from Zoolander might say, “Dogs are so hot right now.” Many are investigating why dogs do what they do, and veterinarians, veterinary behaviorists, trainers, ethologists, comparative psychologists, behavior analysts, and anthrozoologists are hot on the trail.

Aggression and conflict is an area that many animal behavior researchers investigate. Which is to say, people who live with dogs are lucky: science-based resources on dog aggression and conflict exist and are only growing.

For dog owners, "aggression” doesn’t have to be this strange, unknown, out-of-the-blue thing. You don’t have to wait until your hand is bitten to learn about aggression. Heck, we could even argue that we learn less about aggression and conflict through actual experience. Ever hear anybody say: “OOOOoh! Now I get it! I now clearly see all the things that led up to that dog biting that other dog’s ear off. I will certainly not miss it next time”? To an untrained eye, witnessing conflict is usually very upsetting and scary, not something where you walk away with a deeper understanding of what actually went down or how it could have been avoided.

SPARCS website

Here are some free, science-based ways to learn about dog aggression & conflict: 
 
1) #SPARCS2014 Day 1: June 20, 2014 Aggression and Conflict
Anybody in the world can tune in live for this day of research into conflict and aggression. Join Patricia McConnell, Ray Coppinger, James Serpell, Simon Gadbois and Kathryn Lord as they examine this topic from different angles.
 
2) Free Dog Behavior Webinars (watch live or watch the recordings)
For the last few years, The Center for Shelter Dogs (Twitter / Facebook) and ASPCA Professional (Twitter / Facebook) have been holding free Webinars on companion animal behavior, care and sheltering. Many of the Webinars focus on dog behavior, and they are led by trainers, practitioners, veterinarians and researchers who work with dogs from hoarding and fighting cases, as well as companion, street and shelter dogs. These hour-long Webinars are free, archived and available online now!
 
ASPCA Pro Archived Webinars (search by topic, select few below)

• Identifying and Managing Food Guarding 

• Canine Body Language 

• Canine Behavior and Acoustics

• Human Body Language and Dog Behavior

• Defensive Dog Handling

• Canine Communications: Dog Introductions

The Center for Shelter Dogs Archived Webinars (search by date, select few listed below)

• Wondering About Food Aggression in Shelter Dogs?, February 2014

• Fear of People, May 2013

• Optimizing Canine Welfare, February 2013

3) CAAB Chats 
Online CAAB chats are new to the scene. These free monthly talks are hosted by Certified Applied Animal Behaviorists, people with a PhD (or ACAABs with a Masters) in an Animal Behavior field. Learn more about CAABs and ACAABs here. These monthly talks are free to watch live with a small fee for the recording. The initial two talks covered ‘Canine Communication’ and ‘Response Prevention.’ Next up, ‘Social Roles and Relationships in Dogs’ on March 27, 2014. Sign up for updates about future talk topics here.

~~~

You and I know this is not an exhaustive list (we could add books, blogs, websites and more webinars another day — for this I focused on resources that are available and mostly free). Aggression and conflict are not all that straightforward, and hearing about it from another person, especially in the form of a Webinar, can make the topic a lot more manageable.

When #SPARCS2014 Day 1: Aggression and Conflict comes around, I hope people show up open to the idea that there are many ways to learn about aggression and conflict, and that “knowledge about aggression may only be gained through experience” won’t serve anyone, dog or person.

Oh, and why is the post titled, Dog Loses Ear at Dog Park and There Was Nothing We Could Do About It? Check out The Science Dog post Dog Park People for more on those unfortunate details.
 
Hope all’s well! I think theres a meta-analysis on your horizon...
 
Julie


Reference
Jackson P. 2012. Situated activities in a dog park: Identity and conflict in human-animal space. Society and Animals 20, 254-272. DOI: 10.1163/15685306-12341237

Case, L. 2014. Dog Park People. The Science Dog Blog



Copyright Do You Believe in Dog? 2014

Read More..