A guest blog by LuLu the Alaskan Husky.

You may read the following important list to your dog after you light a candle with a scent they prefer for pensive introspection. Good options include Fragrant Rot and Something Dropped On The Floor Here.



1. Dogs come and go.

As you grow older, you’ll come to realize that dog friends come and dog friends go. You’ll be so close to one dog at the dog park one day, hip-checking them and biting their neck and smelling their privates. But then, like fog in the mid-morning sun, they’re gone. You’re back the next day, and they aren’t there. Don’t fret, don’t grieve (you probably won’t anyways, because you’re a dog). Move on. There are other dogs to hump; there are other dogs to run with. Do so.  

2. Every snooze you take has a corresponding anti-snooze.

There is no free lunch, ever. If you take a snooze, you’ll be up and ready for action when it’s over. Plan your snoozes for the times when fun isn’t available to you, or else there is a chance you’ll miss out. It’s just like Newton says: every snooze has an equal and opposite...wait, I think Newton was the dog at the dog park who stopped showing up. I think he moved to Alberta. 

3. People care because they’re people.

People find dogs to be outrageously adorable, and it is absolutely our right to cash in on this. Because let’s face it: we are adorable. And we deserve all the stuff. If people don’t care, then they probably like cats. Or gerbils. Now, we like gerbils too, of course, but in a different way. 

4. Poop when you’re out. Why push your luck?

Although it can sometimes feel like you don’t need to go, why risk it? Why risk this psychic trauma? When you’re outside, let ’er rip. More than once, if you want. You’re a DOG, fam. This is what we do. 

5. Don’t give up on that munchkin one block over.

That munchkin is super shy, so duck your head and show them your butt. Not like in an inviting way, save that for the dog park, man. In a thoughtful way; in a non-threatening way. Go ahead with a little head bob, too. Shy munchkins might be curious about a head bob. 

6. It’s not your job to please anyone.

I love humans as much as the next dog; sure, sure, sure. But they’re all tropical fruit over ‘desire to please’. Repeat this to yourselves daily, my canine compatriots. You don’t have to please anyone but yourself. 

7. Excavate holes and bury unimportant things in them.

Digging itself is just a pleasurable activity, and if you want to live your best life, then you need more of that. But this is a really great way of enriching your human’s existence. Follow my logic closely here: humans won’t understand why you’re doing this (and neither do you, it being a quirk of your domestication). And when humans don’t understand something…humans can’t leave shit ALONE, my canine confederate. They want to know why, why, why. This type of human enrichment will baffle them, which is fun. 

8. You’re not a wolf.

I know you know this, and you know you know this. You’re a dog, not a wolf. Occasionally, some jerkwad relative of your human mom tries to tell her that you’re a wolf and should be treated like a criminal because of it. Stay true to your doggie soul, my fuzzy friend.

9. Lick your paw.

Your paw needs some cleaning, right there, right above the wrist. I think you rolled in something truly egregious on your walk...and it smells heavenly. Get it now before the human comes in. Humans can’t and won’t understand paw-licking and you have to let go of the dream that they will. 

10. You deserve food served in hilariously fun ways.

Humans sometimes default to putting your kibs in a bowl. While this (and any/all provision of anything having even a moderate resemblance to food in any vessel or format) is wonderful, sure...don’t fool yourself, my fluffy fellow. Alimentation through a format designed to frustrate your attempts to manger is fun, plain and simple. 

11. Protect the items in your care, until you don’t.

If another dog of any shape, size, creed, format, or affiliation is attempting to take something from you, protect it. Protect it like you will die if it’s removed, no matter how thin the thread is between your continued existence and this item’s function. Unless and until, of course, you don’t want to. At that point, throw that thing to the side like the useless, worthless garbage that it is. 

12. Tilt your head when the humans make dumb pronouncements.

Humans, as you’ve already guessed, like to make weird rules that have no meaning or purpose. They might try to foist you from a comfortable bed or force you to walk at some ridiculously fast pace past that spot where the Munchkin from One Block Over made a deposit. You have a secret weapon, here, my hirsute honeybunch. Tilt your head to the side and melt their hard, cold human hearts. You love them for reasons which you don’t quite understand, so you might as well work them to get the same in return. A tilty head produces results, and fast. 

13. You don’t speak English.

Beware humans and their garbled human sounds. A beseeching glance can be misinterpreted as comprehension, despite scads of evidence to the contrary. Walk this thin line carefully, my silky sidekick. Humans must never be allowed to fall into the demonstrably false but flamingly human thought pattern that dogs “understand everything I say”. We don’t. We are dogs. 

14. If it doesn’t spark joy, leave it in the hallway. 

If you pick something up and it doesn’t spark joy, head to the hallway and leave it there, where the human will inevitably step on it. If it sparks joy, do the same. Or bury it in a hole, or pile air on top of it after tucking it between the couch cushions.

Or rip it into tiny, delightful, satisfying shreds.

Shock collars are also known as e-collars or remote training collars. They have two metal prongs which rest against a dog’s skin on their neck (typically, although some trainers also place them against other body parts, including stomach or genitalia). These metal prongs deliver electric shock when a button is pressed on a remote control, or when a dog barks, or when a dog crosses a boundary line ‘fence’.

Some trainers use shock collars to train dogs to do stuff using negative reinforcement: sit, recall, retrieve, heel, and so on. In this case, the dogs will be cued, then the electric shock starts. The trainer will only terminate the electric shock when the dog does what the trainer wants. Once the dog is trained, they will do the cued behaviour quickly, in order to avoid being shocked.

Some trainers also use them with dogs who are scared of people or who bark and lunge at other dogs (among other ‘nuisance’ behaviours). Shock collars are used on these dogs to teach them to stop showing these behaviours using positive punishment. In these cases, the shock comes after the behaviour, and teaches the dog to refrain from barking, or lunging, or snarling in the future, in order to avoid getting another shock. This training is used by some trainers despite the fact that stopping these dogs from barking and lunging does not address the dog’s underlying emotional or motivational state. It typically produces a scared dog who is no longer comfortable communicating that they are scared, which is a potentially dangerous outcome.

There are no cases in which positive reinforcement or negative punishment (neither of which use painful or scary consequences) wouldn’t function to train the dogs being shocked, so shock collars are an elective tool. They are illegal in some countries, and I’d put cold, hard cash on shock collars being illegal in my own country in my lifetime. I have used bark collars in the past—much to my regret—before I was a dog trainer. I will never use them again. Shock collars, like all aversive tools and techniques, can cause fearfulness and negatively impact a dog’s welfare.

The people who use shock collars in training are experiencing push-back from the general public, animal welfare advocates, veterinary associations, and dog trainers committed to an approach which does not cause harm to dogs in order to change their behaviour. Due to this increasing push-back, shock collar trainers and manufacturers are finding new ways to describe shock collars, in an attempt to maintain their revenue stream and continue to train dogs using electric shock. They are using phrases and metaphors which obfuscate the way shock collars work. Here is a list of terms which are used to describe how shock collars work, and which are, in my opinion, attempts to hide the truth of the matter: shock collars function by delivering a painful electric shock to a dog’s neck.

1. It’s just a ‘tap’.

The next time you are in line at the post office, tap someone on the shoulder. See how they react. Then, deliver an electric shock to them using a shock collar. See if they react any differently. (N.B. please do not do this as you may get sent to jail, an irony so potent I might weep). If shock collars are just a tap, then they wouldn’t function, certainly, to change a dog’s behaviour. And if they’re just a tap, why not use a tap? Why buy an expensive collar?

2. It’s muscle memory.

The dictionary says that muscle memory is “the ability to reproduce a particular movement without conscious thought, acquired as a result of frequent repetition of that movement.” Back in the Pleistocene, I used to take ballet lessons. My muscle memory was…well I won’t say a perfect picture of beauty and elegance, because we are talking about me here. But I could certainly get through a piece! And never once did my ballet instructors deliver electric shock to my neck. This is such an odd metaphor for shock collar use that I don’t quite know how it came about. I could just as legitimately say “It’s seizure” or “It’s rock crushing”. If shock collars were required for muscle memory, how are so many dog trainers getting the same results without them?

3. It’s a TENS unit.

“Transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation (TENS) is a therapy that uses low-voltage electrical current for pain relief” (source). When people use TENS units they often turn the dial themselves and select a comfort level that isn’t unpleasant. And further, even when it is uncomfortable, people use TENS to reduce pain. Shock collars are used to change a dog’s behaviour by causing pain or discomfort. You don’t see a vet recommending you place a shock collar on an arthritic dog…because they are not used on dogs to reduce pain and suffering. This is an analogous metaphor to saying ‘well, yes, I just slapped you, but a sharp slap is the same as a massage, because both involve contact between a hand and person’.

4. It’s communication.

I communicate with my dogs verbally, like when I ask them to do a recall. I also communicate with my own body language and with various hand signals. They communicate with me through barking, body language, and behaviour. We are (I don’t mean to brag) pretty good communicators, all of us…better than I was at ballet, anyway. I do not communicate with my dogs by shocking their necks, even when I’m training them to refrain from—for example—brawling because two of them decided to go through the door at the same time (fun point: they now are able to walk through the door gleefully together! Chalk up yet another yet another yet another yet another win to positive reinforcement). If you communicate with your children, spouse, friends, boss, teacher, subordinates, or random strangers on the bus, consider whether shocking their necks would be a good replacement to words, sounds, or body language. Is it really just communication, then?

5. “It’s a gentle vibration”.

Vibrating collars vibrate, and feel (I assume) like your phone on vibrate—in fact, the vibrating phone analogy is sometimes used by shock collar trainers. However, your phone does not shock you, and if it did, you would take it back to the store and demand a replacement (and maybe even threaten litigation…imagine if dogs could do that?). Often, a dog trainer will hear that a dog doesn’t even need to be shocked anymore, as the vibration (or just ‘holding the collar up’) is enough to alter behaviour. Although using just the vibration warning feels like a more gentle solution here, the vibration only works because the dog has learned that a shock is next. I can make you behave in certain ways with “just” the threat of bodily harm, too…does me aiming a gun at you or your dog to change your behaviour feel ok?

If you do not feel convinced that vibration is not the same sensation as electric shock, I would encourage you to wrap your hands around the prongs on two shock collars, one set on vibrate and one set on shock. See if you can tell which is which.

6. It is only used to get their attention.

When I need my dog’s attention, I say their name or I ask for a recall. Since my dogs have a wondrous reinforcement history with recalls, they pay attention to recall cues, and quick like a bunny. (Yes, even when they are chasing an actual bunny…the power of good training!) In the same way, my spouse gets my attention by saying “come look at how cute Timber is” or if we’re across the farm from each other, with a text message. Probably something along the lines of “come look @ how cute Timber is, I’m at the barn”. I can also get my dog’s attention by patting another dog, crinkling a treat bag, cawing like a loon, happy talk, or thinking “I suspect it is time to walk the dogs”, without moving a single muscle. With all these relatively quick and easy ways to get my dog’s attention, it stretches belief that shocking their necks needs to be on the list.

7. It is stimulation/It is low frequency.

Stimulation has many good associations in our language, which is why it is co-opted in this way, I believe. We stimulate our minds (and encourage dog owners to stimulate their dogs’ minds with enrichment), and we find clever conversationalists stimulating. But in the end, it doesn’t matter if we say the shock collar has low frequency, low current, low voltage, low snortage, low alien-power, or low pumpkins. If it didn’t hurt or cause discomfort, it wouldn’t change behaviour. It changes behaviour, therefore it hurts. Imagine a child educator talking about strapping kids in these terms: “well yes, I strapped your child, but only with low frequency and duration.” Or a husband beating his wife. “I hit her with a rod, but it was a very thin rod.” If it worked to change the child’s, or the dog’s, or the wife’s behaviour…it hurt.

8. It’s just asking the dog for a connection.

Imagine if your colleague (or child, or your boss for that matter) asked to connect with you by shocking your neck when you didn’t behave exactly as they wanted. They asked for a reply on an email and you didn’t comply, or you didn’t comply quickly enough. Is it someone else’s right to mould your behaviour in this way?

9. It’s E-Stim.

This is another TENS Unit argument. “E-stim sends mild electrical pulses through the skin to help stimulate injured muscles or manipulate nerves to reduce pain…for many people this painless procedure is accelerating recovery and providing relief from painful or uncomfortable symptoms” (source). If E-Stim is painless, then it is not a shock collar, which functions by causing a painful or uncomfortable electric shock. And if it reduces pain, then it is absolutely not a shock collar. The only time ‘relief’ comes into play with shock collars is after a long-duration shock ends when the dog being trained does what the trainer wants, which is what negative reinforcement is.

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If you are seeking dog training help or have sought dog training help and someone recommended a shock collar under any name, I apologize on behalf of my scattered, balkanized, and unregulated profession. If your dog is currently wearing a shock collar to help you handle their behaviour, and you’d like to try something new, I firstly thank you from the bottom of my heart, and then point you to this list of trainers who are willing to help and who have the skills and knowledge to do so. You’ve been wronged, but it is never too late to start a new, pain-free journey. If you’re not ready yet, let it percolate for a while: we’re here when you are. You can find a trainer who will be as caring with you as they are with your dog.

I am not allowing comments on this post, as trainers who use shock collars are feeling cornered by the humane training movement and tend to react strongly to articles like this. For the same reason, I will not respond to pro-shock e-mails.

A while ago, I promised to write reviews about audiobooks I would recommend for my fellow dog-lovers, books to accompany you on your lovely meandering walks with dogs. Books that were enlightening about at least some of my fave four topics for dog owners: dogs, humans, learning, and science. If you’re keen to join me in my audiobook journey, my first selection is a doozy in the best way possible…so head on over to your library or audiobook service and find "How to Invent Everything: A survival guide for the stranded time-traveler” by Ryan North.

This book is a repair guide. It’s a repair guide for a time machine - the FC3000™ - sent back to our world from the distant future. We know it’s from at least the year 2045 CE. We know it’s a rental-market time machine, loaned out to members of the general public. (From the book’s website)

Although the premise of the book is a bit circuitous, the execution is pure clever perfection. The author, Ryan North (…or some future iteration of Ryan North, we presume), manages to make us laugh and learn in equal measure. He reads the audiobook himself, but don’t let that sway you: although normally author-read audiobooks are a bit painful, North comes across like someone who you’ll just really want to be friends with. The kind of friend, in fact, who makes you laugh so hard you snort. In other words, the best kind.

The book is, as promised, a how-to guide to reinvent civilization if you’re stranded in the past. You’ll learn how to mine iron ore and smelt it, what logic is, and how to create the musical note “A” using just a wheel and some paper (you’ll learn how to invent that, too), among hundreds of other building blocks of civilization.

dogs

Although there is nary a peep about dog training, this book will open your eyes to the process which brought dogs into our lives: domestication in general, and dog domestication specifically. Dogs’ bodies and brains changed in important ways during domestication, and understanding the process can help us understand our own canine companions. North’s obvious love of dogs is—of course—endearing as well, and the Socratic conversation between a windmill apologist dog (getting a belly rub) and a waterwheel supporter was at least the hundredth time this book made me laugh like a hyena whilst out by myself, walking dogs.

humans

Humans are humans almost wholly because of culture, both social and material. A human without language and…well, stuff is a very different beastie than the person you look at in the mirror every day. North manages to make what might be a rather dry dissertation about modern human evolution into something fast-paced, groan-worthy, and at the same time, really full of wonder. He comes down pretty hard on people (and why did it take us so long to figure out buttons, anyways?) which might get a bit tiresome if self-effacing humour isn’t your thing, but the straight-up amazing achievement of humans will boggle your mind. Humans wrest metals from rocks using fire that we’ve tamed and a bit of clay. We sit around and ponder philosophy. And over a relatively short period of time, we took a grassy weed and made wheat out of it, and then bread, and then pizza and beer. We’re pretty cool.

n.b. if self-effacing humour is your thing, you’re in for a treat. Also, we can be friends.

learning

Dear Ryan,

If you write a companion book, please consider adding something about pedagogy. And thimbles. Why aren’t thimbles included? You try sewing something out of poorly-tanned animal hide and tell me how you feel.

I remain,

Your humble servant,

Kristi Benson

science

The scientific method has been such a boon to humans (and dogs) that its importance simply can’t be overstated. Despite the absolute fact that humans and canines alike would be living hungrier, sadder, and more meager lives without science, there remains pockets of push-back against it. North describes the scientific method clearly and invitingly, and it’s…just plum golden. The next time you’re pondering a new dog training technique or nutritional supplement, the framework of the scientific method will help you to understand if there is real support for it.

cons

Photo by William Iven on Unsplash.

In any book that covers a vast array of topics in many disciplines…and aims for factual treatment thereof…there are necessarily going to be some errors. With the advance of science in the last few centuries (see ‘scientific method’, above), no one human can be a jack-of-all-trades and get it all right, all the time. Some of the information presented as fact may change as science marches on, or might be a particular interpretation of the knowledge base as it currently stands. Sadly, we must not rely on the presumption that the book truly was written in 2045 and all the questions have been settled, although North does a good job of highlighting the evolving nature of scientific knowledge using his editorial end notes.

Go ahead and fast forward through the discussion of NAND gates and other logic gates too, if you want. If you are indeed a stranded time-traveller, you can always come back to it when you need it. It, uh, won’t be soon.

To sum: This book brought me pure joy and bountiful guffaws. We need more joy and guffaws in our lives, just as our dogs do. Four paws up.

How to Invent Everything: A survival guide for the stranded time-traveler is 12 hours and 55 minutes long. It was published by Penguin Audio and released on September 18, 2018. It is available in English. Cover photo used with permission.

In many places, physical fences are prohibited, or property owners have certain constraints they must work within when it comes to fencing. This leaves those of us who have canine family members in a bit of a quandary: how can we keep our dogs safely contained? Electronic fences can seem to be a good option, after a cursory view. These fences include two components: there is a collar for the dog with prongs that sit against the dog’s skin and deliver an electric shock when the dog crosses a perimeter. The perimeter is the second component. It might be a physical wire set underground or it might be wireless. Although the manufacturers use all kinds of language and photographs to make these fences look safe and the dogs who are ‘contained’ by them joyful, there are known issues with the use of electric shock to change a dog’s behaviour. Electric shock has side effects which can include fearfulness and aggression. In addition, there are problems with e-fencing specifically (a bevvy of good dog science and the issues with both painful dog training and shock-collar fencing can be found here). Modern dog trainers draw a line in the sand about the use of electric shock: it’s a no-go zone. Sadly, almost all of us have stories about dogs who were made fearful and aggressive due to the use of electric shock.

But what’s a home-owner to do? If physical fencing—which is absolutely the best, safest, and most humane way to contain dogs—is prohibited or otherwise unwanted, dogs might not have access to their yards. And isn’t that a welfare concern for dogs? Luckily, there are a lot of nice work-arounds that do not carry the potential side-effects of shock. I’ve polled my friends and colleagues, and here are some of the creative ways that we can keep our dogs safe both physically and emotionally.

1. Casey McGee of Upward Hound likes to set her clients up for success:
   “Rocket recalls so they can go dog-parking or hiking or swimming with lots of freedom, to augment leash walks around the neighborhood.” Giving her clients options to tire dogs out safely allows them to be comfortable and easy-peasy as they snooze on the couch.

2. Megan O’Hara of Fetch the Leash uses tie-outs.
   “Well-anchored long line tie-outs can work for some dogs.” But she recommends that people get creative, too. “Also, asking a friend or neighbor with a fenced yard if they'd be willing to let your dog come over to get their sillies out on a regular basis. In exchange for baked goods, naturally… Also, there are a bazillion ways to supplement leash walks with indoor or small-space activities like tug, flirt pole, fetch up and down the hall or stairs, etc.”

3. Karolin Klinck of Team K-9 Dog Training works with her clients to get the dogs comfortable on a long line or long leash.
   “[L]ove the long line sniff walks...that's what I recommend a lot. Digging, sniffing, maybe ball play or whatever. …Nose games are a favorite too and easy to do. Then to get the heart rate going some tug or playing chasing something like the ball.”

4. Jane Wolff of Good Wolff Dog Training likes to give clients a break for those early mornings.
   “I also recommend a small fenced potty yard if that's possible. Something to give people a break at 6am. Farm fencing at a place like Home Depot is super cheap and easy to install.”

5. Kate LaSala of Rescued By Training likes cable tie-outs too, and likes adding extra space with a trolley/zip-line system:
   “Overhead cable line to create a run line between trees.”

6. Lori Nanan has found that shorter fencing can be an issue for athletic dogs.
   “I have a client who can't have more than 4' chain link or pasture fencing (they have chain link). I recommended the bamboo sheets to cover it. It'll be taller, the dog won't be able to see through it and it will be easily removable if there are any complaints.” Coyote rollers, which can be do-it-yourself, or ‘stand-ins’ can be added to existing fences as well, to make them more dog-proof.

7. Jessica Ring of My Fantastic Friend also recommends that her clients consider smaller-zone fencing.
   “Something like Pet Playgrounds fencing might an option for some. It's easier to install and less expensive than other physical fencing, and can handle changes in topography. If the size of the area is the issue, I recommend fencing just a portion of the yard. There are lots of options for tiring dogs out in smaller spaces, too — tug, fetch (even if your dog doesn't bring the object back, have a stockpile that you continue to throw for your dog to chase), flirt pole, puzzle toys, fun training games, hide & seek, sniff walks, doggie play dates or day care…”

8. Lizzy Flanagan of Lizzy and the Good Dog People also loves Pet Playgrounds.
   “When I bought a home on land with forest and rock walls, I researched affordable fencing that would work with the funky topography. Installing an invisible fence and using electric shock on my dogs wasn't an option, so I was relieved when I found Pet Playgrounds! It's safe and can be installed just about anywhere. Even with professional installation, it costs 25% less on average than chain link fence. The fence disappears into the landscape so we can enjoy a view of the woods while the dogs have a ball climbing rock walls and barking at the deer!” Lizzy has a pin board of humane fencing options as well.

9. Suzanne Bryner of Lucky Fido also recommends considering a variety of fencing options.
   “Where I live, impact on scenery and view are often cited as reasons for using electric fences. Critter Fence offers affordable options with very little visual interruption.”

10. Nickala Squire, of Carefree Canine, also coaches creativity. “When the need arises, as it often does, I encourage getting creative with fencing options. For larger properties I love the idea of installing fencing in chunks as finances and weather permit. For an area to run around before the whole thing is complete you can use temporary fencing or lower cost fencing to fill the gap. I've even hooked up ex pens to fill smaller gaps temporarily. It may not be pretty, but it is a dog friendly option that doesn't compromise welfare or risk life altering fear and aggression problems.”

If you have a large acreage and feel like an e-fence will give your outside dog the freedom they want, I would love to pitch a whole new idea: dogs don’t need space nearly as much as they need your time. I have written about this here.

Cover photo credit: Karolin Klinck of Team K-9 Dog Training.

Being a run-of-the-mill friendly neighbourhood dog trainer, I often hear from my clients that their dogs need discipline. I do love sitting across the kitchen table from my clients, who are just about my favourite people in the whole world: people who love their dogs enough to call in outside help, and at no small expense and bother. But the word ‘discipline’ always gives me pause—it’s a word that brings up a wheelbarrow full of feelings. Because this is the flat and bald truth of the matter: discipline and dogs just don’t go together.

Photo: Natali572 | © Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images

To wit: the Merriam-Webster definition of discipline includes “punishment inflicted by way of correction and training”. For dogs, this would include outdated and outmoded techniques such as shock collars, striking dogs, choke chains, and the like: harming dogs in order to change their behaviour. Luckily for dogs and luckily for my heart, these techniques are becoming both less common and less acceptable to the general public than they used to be, and a future without them is now in sight. They simply aren’t needed—everything we want to train dogs to do can be accomplished using rewards-based training (yes, even if your Uncle Ralph disagrees and tosses out phrases like ‘red flag dog’…he’s just wrong).

But the definition also includes “the rigor or training effect of experience, adversity” and “training to act in accordance with rules”. For humans, with our complex human societies made up of complex human families, being disciplined about our paid and unpaid work has real value. Discipline is tied up with our concept of morality, and allows us to function and thrive. It’s a part of what keeps us fed, friendly, and free from harm.

So in some of its senses at least, discipline matters to humans. But does it matter to dogs? As much as we share with our dogs—we’re both tetrapods, we both love food and fun, we live in social groups, and we both learn through operant and classical conditioning—we don’t share human morality. Dogs are not moral creatures. They are just as centuries of selective breeding and millennia of evolution has made them: perfect, wonderful, furry, carnivorous, …canines. Expecting them to interpret their worlds in human ways is to deny them who and what they are.

Imposing ‘discipline’ on dogs, either in the form of corrective punishment or by thinking we must impose some regimen on them to counter their alleged moral decrepitude, is, well, plum wrongheaded. Dogs are adult organisms. They do as adult organisms do: they make a living in the world, they learn to navigate their environments, they seek things they enjoy and they avoid things they don’t. Luckily for dogs and luckily for my heart, training dogs to behave in ways that makes them easier to be around for us humans is healthy and fun for both us and our dogs, if done right (I promise). It’s enriching and it’s enjoyable and dogs, given the choice, will participate with glee. But we aren’t creating discipline, nor are we creating disciplined animals. We’re simply benefitting from their natural abilities to learn and their natural motivations.

Much to my relief, usually when I hear the word discipline uttered by my clients it’s followed quickly with the phrase (and accompanied by a guilty sidelong glance), “I’m not a very good disciplinarian.”

Well thank goodness for that, I inevitably reply. That’s a beautiful place to start.

I would bet a large stack of cool, hard cash that you’ve met a dog who is a friendly neighbourhood “watchdog barker”. These dogs love people: they are immediately friendly with strangers at home and on the street...their feet all tippy-tappy and their tails all wiggley-waggley. But seemingly at odds with their love of all humans, watchdog barkers announce people with a ready helping of real noise: when the doorbell rings, or if someone moseys by the living room window, these dogs bark. If the person comes inside, the barking ends as the friendly neighbourhood watchdog barker completes their standard greeting ritual. This probably involves leaning in for ear scratches or jumping around like a gleeful if bumbling jumping bean (you know the routine). And if the human at the door or on the sidewalk outside walks away, the barking abates on its own, after a time.

Rewards Required?

Many dog behaviours need to be reinforced if we’d like to see them again in the future: sits, downs, stays, coming when called, acrobatic dance routines...when your dog does any of these, they need the paycheque of a treat, or they’ll blandly resign from your proffered job and find another, more lucrative, position (see “gettin’ in that trash can again”, below). There is a subset of behaviours, though, that dogs do even without our reinforcement. In some cases it’s because there is already food reinforcement involved, even if it doesn’t come from our hands: dogs will readily perform the behaviour of “gettin’ in that trash can again”, for example. But food, or any other external reward, isn’t always the end goal. Dogs will gleefully, and with no need for reinforcement, play with us and other dogs, dig with abandon, chase balls and bicycles, and howl in unison with their canine compatriots or ambulances alike. They’ll snooze, they’ll walk, they’ll run, they’ll sniff the cat, and they’ll...ahem…‘empty’... on the lawn. If there is no outside reward or threat making the behaviour happen, the stuff that dogs naturally do can be seen as simply enjoyable for them.

So, I suspect you are probably starting to pick up what I am laying down here, my friends. That gleeful if piercing bark that friendly, social dogs perform with abandon when they see people or dogs...that behaviour needs no reinforcement. Just like you need no reinforcement to stretch languorously in the spring-time sun, watchdog barkers need no reinforcement at all: they just bark. And just like it feels good for you to yawn and stretch in the sun, friendly but barky dogs probably just find the behaviour...you know. Kind of glorious.

Is It All About Us?

A while ago a client was wrapping his head around his dog’s “watchdog barking”. He had set up some training sessions with me and we were working to reduce the amount of time his lovely dog would bark when people approached. (This is not a hard job for a good trainer, and uses nothing even close to old-time corrections). But as we worked together, I kept feeling like I was missing the mark with my explanations of what was going on. My client kept saying that his barking dog was “alerting” his humans. That his dog was “letting them know”. Or, “doing her duty to them”.

Photo credit Nickala Squire from Carefree Canine.

But wait. Is that what they’re doing? Is it really all about us? If it were, our dogs wouldn’t bark when we’re not home. Any number of nanny-cam scenarios and complaining neighbours can prove false that fable: watchdog barkers bark, no matter if someone is there to listen. And they wouldn’t bark at us when we pull up in the driveway, which pret’near all of my own dogs do. We don’t need to be told that we’ve arrived home ourselves, after all.

When you walk out into the spring sun and stretch, languorously, are you doing it for someone else? Are you signalling to your spouse that spring has sprung, and the grass is riz? Or are you just doing something that naturally feels good? Now sure, it’s possibly the case that during domestication, humans selected dogs to be avid watchdog barkers, in the same way that we selected dogs to have floppy ears, cute faces, and chocolate brown eyes. Watchdog barking is and was a useful trait, alerting us to intruders. But to say they’re doing any of those things for us is...well that doesn’t make sense, does it? They aren’t floppy-eared for us. They don’t wake up every morning looking like a donkey and quickly head to the bathroom mirror to tame their ears into a perfect flop, anxious that we might see them in their natural state. Their ears just flop. And when they see people or dogs, it’s the same thing. They just bark.

Our dogs are absolutely bonded with us. They’re a part of our family, as furry and fuzzy and floppy as they are. We share our homes and our hearts and heck even our couches with them. But they’re also their own little beasties. They are adult organisms and have their own motivations. Seeing dogs as they really are involves a bit of a switch in our thinking. And I’ll be honest: it might feel like we are losing something special. Dogs are so perfectly suited to be our companions that we can easily fall into the trap of thinking that they exist and behave just to meet our needs. But we gain something much more special in the exchange. We gain insight into how dogs actually work, and the door opens to real curiosity about, and real admiration of, our dogs’ behaviour. But the best thing we gain by seeing them as they really are is the wondrous knowledge that even though they don’t choose to hop up on the couch next to us to please us, they choose to hop up next to us to please themselves. And isn’t that so much better?

Kids these days.

Young people are exposed to a lot of information on their devices, aren’t they? A whole world of bits and bytes, right at their fingertips. And let’s face it: not all of it is good. No one is vetting the information on the internet, and popularity does not equate with truth. Now, I don’t want to alarm you, dear parent. So gird thine loins: there is a good chance that your offspring of the human variety will, at some point in their tender years, come across positive reinforcement training.

OK, OK, hold on. Take a deep breath. There is no need to go log in to your parental control panel on the ol’ smartphone in a panic. Just wait. You need to arm your kids with the truth, so they can face this issue standing on their own two feet, like the curious juvenile bipeds you know them to be.

Here’s how.

You need to sit down with your child and gently, but directly, tell them the truth about positive reinforcement training. Answer their questions fully and without judgement—it will likely not be the first time they have heard the phrases lure-reward, or conditioned emotional response, or even…and I hope the censors don’t bar me for this one…clicker.

You need to tell your kids that positive reinforcement training works to change a dog’s behaviour, and it does so using only things that dogs enjoy, like food treats and tennis balls. You need to tell your kids that dogs who are trained using positive reinforcement training will come to enjoy the training, and come to enjoy other things too, that come along for the ride: the trainer, the training location, the treat bag used, and so on. You need to tell your kids that it is absolutely true that positive reinforcement training works to train any behaviour.

Yes, any behaviour.

And you need to tell your kids that it’s OK that they’ll love positive reinforcement training just as much as the dog. It’s completely natural, and not embarrassing in any way, that they’ll want to give their dog more and more treats. It’s fine that they enjoy having a well-trained dog. There is nothing shameful about generosity and behaviour change.

Do this soon, I urge you. Very soon. Because, my baffled readers, we need to face this thing head-on.

If you don’t talk to your kids about positive reinforcement training, who will?

Cover photo: Jolka100 | © Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images

Photo: Enjoylife25 | © Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images

I listen to audiobooks as I walk with my dogs. I put in one ear bud only, leaving my other ear available to catch any of the things I want to be sure to hear during a walk. Like the gleeful bark of a dog who has found a skunk, or the gleeful bark of a dog who has found a beaver, or the gleeful bark of a dog who has found...well, you get the picture. I walk my motley crew of dogs loose, generally out to the lake on the north end of our property for a nice exploration of the lake edge environs (this is a nice short walk for those lazy days), or in a loop around our farm, starting at the lake edge and continuing west on cattle trails ducking through the aspen and willow, up and over the small spruce-covered hillocks in the centre of our farm, then on to the slow, muddy, meandering creek that makes its way across the southern pasture. In the summer it’s a verdant rich parkland with lady slippers and towering aspens and secret tiny meadows. In the winter, it’s monochrome and quiet and due to my post-workday walk scheduling, perpetually twilight. 

In other words, it’s a beautiful, enchanting place. But the soundscape? It’s pretty monotonous, if you encounter it day after day after day. And if you enjoy stories and learning (and who doesn’t?), then an audiobook adds oh-so-much joy to what might be a lovely, but in the way of things, eventually kinda boring, chore. 

You might reasonably expect me to listen to dog training books. I am a dog trainer, and my life is pretty gloriously overrun with all things canine. But I’m going to let you in on a secret and I hope it doesn’t make you run from me screaming: I abhor many dog training books. Dog training books are typically so chockablock full of bad information that I can’t make myself stick around for the good tidbits and hidden jewels. I can’t help but imagine every other poor dog owner swimming through the terrible information page by page, struggling to understand and change their dog’s behaviour. I became a dog trainer as a second career after more than a decade as a (dog-owning, but not dog-training) anthropologist, so I actually know how it feels to read a million dog training books and still be bereft of good information to help my real actual dog.

(See a list of dog training books I do recommend below.)

I do like many of the popular science books about dogs…so much so that I seem to have listened to the audiobooks already, at least once. And although I’m absolutely risking further shock and dismay here, I don’t love most of the books about canine ‘cognition’. Sure, it’s fascinating and glorious stuff. But…those books, too, make me imagine every poor dog owner swimming in not terrible but terribly arcane information, struggling to understand and change their dog’s behaviour. Amygdalas and wolf/pointing studies won’t help anyone with their dog who pulls on leash or jumps up at the door. No, they won’t. Nope. 

So what do I “read” as I walk with my dogs? I love both novels (murder mysteries and spy thrillers...please don’t judge), and non-fiction. I particularly love non-fiction books which give me insight into my world, filled with fascinating creatures of both the two-legged and four-legged variety. Since the readers of my blogs are also dog lovers, I have decided to start a new series of articles, to share my favourite non-fiction audiobooks to listen to whilst walking dogs, highlighting how they shed light on the four most important things, in my opinion, to understanding dogs: dogs, humans, learning, and science. 

Here is my invitation: if it is safe for you to enjoy a story as you plod with your dogs, open your library’s app on your phone and get ready to join me! I’ll post my first book recommendation and review over next few weeks. The first book on the list is both clever and hilarious, because what is the point of having a dog if you can’t laugh with them as they frolic?

Dog training and popular science-type books I recommend include all the books written by Jean Donaldson and John Bradshaw. Watch Companion Animal Psychology’s page to pick up a copy of Zazie Todd’s new book when it is published, as well.

Photos: Cover—Tomasznajder | © Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images; Lower—Cynoclub | © Dreamstime Stock Photos & Stock Free Images

Dogs need enrichment, and that’s a fact. ‘Enrichment’ refers to opportunities for an animal to practice their natural behaviours, to give their brains and bodies a workout. Dog enrichment typically includes food puzzles, scent games, sniffari-style walks, and other things that dogs love and that, frankly, everyone and their dog already does. You want to be different? You want to be better? Well, join me, one and all. Here are five ways to enrich your dog’s life through abject lazitude on your part.

n.b.: only do these activities if they are safe and reasonable for your dog. obvo.

One: Laundry Scent Games

Did you pull weeds in the garden for a good hour today? (Or maybe was it just half an hour? Ok fine, ten minutes.) It’s likely the case that your pants will be dirty from sitting and kneeling in the garden, to say nothing of that large root-beer stain. Technically, you should march those pantaloons right to the laundry facilities, right? Wrong! Hold your horses there, tidy one. Don’t you care about enrichment? If yes, well then those pants, (and perhaps all your other really dirty clothing items), are best left on the floor. Your dog needs to seek and find them, to experience the joy of the novel scents, and then finally, enriched and delighted, make a bed in them, circling and pawing until everything is just perfect.

Two: Hunt for MY Dinner

This dish was actually delish, but the picture fit.

Did your spouse give you an extra helping of Nanna’s Blandest Recipe Ever and you don’t want to get in trouble by dumping those dumplings in the trash? Wait until your spouse’s attention is diverted as you’re stacking dishes in the kitchen (or better yet, divert it yourself: a kitten video is almost always a good option), and then toss a few of those (…what are those things?) on the floor for your dog to eat. Aim somewhere out of your spouse’s line of sight, of course. Although some may interpret this as throwing food on the floor, you and I know that you’re meeting your dog’s need to scavenge and/or hunt. Brava, you!

Three: Reduce, Reuse, Recycle

Did you finish the last of the yogurt, eating it directly out of the container whilst standing at the fridge? Normally you’d rinse the container out carefully and set it to dry, ready to recycle.*** And when I say ‘normally you’d do that’, I was referring to those people who want their dogs to suffer. You, as someone oriented towards your dog’s enrichment needs, will immediately provide the yogurt container for your dog to clean out. They’ll lick up all that delicious dairy and perhaps even bury the container in your dirty laundry for good measure, nosing root-beer stained jeans carefully on top. Now we’re looking at a happy, enriched dog: instant food toy, plus opportunity to ‘cache’ and bury.

***HA! normally, you’d stack with the other dishes at the sink waiting to be washed.

Four: The Gift Of Time

You’re out on a walk and your dog perks up and wants to investigate that thing, that thing that is oh-so-important to dogs. It’s a [candy wrapper|mystery stain|biological waste|possibly a crime scene|obviously totally gross]. Normally, you’d put your Basic Obedience Class Grad training to the test here, with a nice ‘leave it!’ or a short stint of ‘watch me’ or something else useful that you’ve trained. But not today, my lazy friends. Today is not the day for blind obedience. Today is the day for enrichment. You pull out your phone and open your favourite thing to do and let your dog sniff, sniff, sniff, sniff, sniff, sniff to their heart’s content. “Who am I to judge another creature’s joy?” you can say, rather stridently, to the man who walks past you with a questioning look.

Five: Dog TV

Your dog gets up on the back of the couch to look out the window and take life in (honest and slightly cringe-inducing truth here: in my house, this is sometimes the kitchen table.) Another person might say ‘hm, time to re-arrange the furniture, do some training, or close the drapes’. Another person who wants to deprive their dog, that is. What you—the lazy enricher—will do is sit back and enjoy your dog’s own enjoyment. You won’t re-arrange the furniture, nor will you get up and close the drapes (who has the time for that?) so nothing is acting as a magnet pulling your dog up on the couch. If you do anything at all, you’ll put a nice cushy blanket on the back of the couch so your dog’s perch is extra comfortable and you don’t have to spend all that effort vacuuming the couch later.

Enrichment matters, friends. And since it must work for your dog, it may as well work for you.