Your puppy is a sweet bundle of fur, full of kisses and just so cute. Three weeks later it is a destructive, aggressive monster. What happened? Two things happen when you bring a puppy home. First, you can shape the puppies behavior. You can teach it how to behave in an urban environment. You can teach it that squirrels are not prey. And, you can teach the puppy that people are to be obeyed. Second,… Continue
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The Handler’s personal agenda is the most frustrating things I encounter when working with clients whose dogs are either fear reactive, or aggressive towards people or dogs. When we have a dog that has reactive problems we need to realize it is no longer about: We want to go for a walk We want to go to the dog park We want our dog to make friends We want our dog to be polite when… Continue
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The problem with dog training and dog behaviorists is that neither industry is regulated. A person can give themselves any title they want and start charging – even if they have a 100% fail rate. In the London Ontario area there are several people who are good, a few who are bad, and one or two who have given themselves a bad reputation. How to find a good behaviorist in the London Ontario area One… Continue
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I think that everyone with a reactive dog wonders if they are part of the problem. Sometimes the answer is, yes. Other times the answer is, no. To answer this question properly we need to explore a lot of factors. What does it mean when a dog is reactive? It means that it reacts in a way that is unacceptable in today’s urban environment. So the German Shepherd who wants to keep all dogs away… Continue
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People tend to have cognitive thoughts and memories. “Why didn’t I buy the red car?” “I should rent the red brick house.” Dogs have more reactive, or recall thoughts and memories. Sights, odors, textures and sounds can all contribute to reactive responses from dogs. In this article, I address anxiety, particularly separation anxiety in dogs, and how we humans create much of the reactionary issues. Most anxiety in dogs is the product of our human… Continue
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