Is your Dog Stressed out?

Even the most well socialized and polite dogs can get stressed out; can you tell when your pooch has had enough? Here are some tips for identifying stress in your dog.

Dogs can become unreasonably stressed out anywhere. You could be at a local festival with people and dogs everywhere or at home where the distant sound of fireworks can send even the most confident canine over the edge. It’s important to be able to identify stress in your dog and help him/her manage it.

Here are a few signs that many dogs will demonstrate:

1. Your dog won’t eat.

This happens all the time. Fido is happily accepting treats from you or strangers and suddenly he’s full. Well your best friend might actually be too uncomfortable to eat. If your dog was previously eating and stops suddenly it’s best to assume he’s upset and take him out of the situation for a well-deserved break.

2. Your dog is no longer able to perform easy obedience cues such as Sit or Shake A Paw.

If your dog knows a cue like Sit then he/she should be able to do it. Dogs will often stop listening to cues when stressed out or over excited. We all know what over excitement looks like so if your pup is just standing stock still and unable to offer a sit then he’s probably had enough.

3. Your dog is offering appeasement signals such as yawning, looking away, lip licking and blinking. He could even be lying down or showing his tummy (not for a belly rub as often mistaken).

Make sure you are familiar with your dog’s language. If you don’t know how to spot calming signals then please take a look at Sarah Kalnajs’ “The Language of Dogs” DVD or Turid Rugaas “Calming Signals” DVD. It’s very important to be able to identify these things.

4. Your dog has frozen still and won’t move.

This one can be difficult as you need to evacuate your dog out of the situation without making him more fearful. I will often use my happy voice and find the path out with the least amount of traffic. You can try using a hand target to get your dog up again but if they’ve frozen it may not work. Depending on the dog you could try gently touching him/her or picking him/her up. Please note that a fearful dog can be dangerous and to keep your own safety in mind. If you watch body language closely you shouldn’t find yourself at this stage.

Remember that it doesn’t matter where you are. If your dog is in distress then please take him/her out of the situation ASAP this includes dog training classes and dog parks. Bites can be prevented with a little bit of knowledge.

Sometimes Dogs Don't Get Along...

Alright so I'm running into a common misperception a lot lately... for some reason people think that ALL dogs should get along and be friends or simply work it out until one of them is "in charge" and then life will be peaceful. Sadly this is not the case.

In fact many adult dogs don't get along. They might prefer not to be around puppies, or dislike members of the same sex or feel uncomfortable around larger canines. Whatever their preference some will opt to fight or growl or avoid certain dogs. This is normal and you need to respect your dog's feelings on the matter. This is also why dog parks aren't a great idea for all dogs. It's also a good reason to make sure you allow your dog to meet any potential dogs that you might add to your family beforehand.

If two dogs don't get along and are fighting it is never a good idea to simply "let them work it out". Most fights are all noise and show but if they are allowed to continue it can severely damage any chance of the dogs getting along in the long term. They can also escalate where dogs end up with injuries.

But He Knows This! Why dogs forget training and what to do about it.

All the students have arrived at class and we begin working on a sit stay exercise. The students ask their dogs to sit and then tell them to stay. We wait 10 seconds and then reward and release the dogs. Should be fairly easy for an advanced class right? Well not always. Sometimes a dog just doesn’t stay or worse yet seems to have forgotten what sit means! So what’s happening? 

A couple of different scenarios might be going on. My first guess would be that the dog isn’t motivated. Clearly he/she knows what sit means and probably at this point what stay means but is choosing not to perform the expected behaviour. It doesn’t mean the dog has forgotten the commands. Pamela Reid Ph.D. explains this as learning/performance distinction. She states that a “whether or not a behaviour is performed depends on a lot of things: opportunity, motivation, physical abilities, and learning”1. This means that just because a dog doesn’t do what he/she is told doesn’t mean that he/she doesn’t know how to do it. 

A crucial part of training is maintaining a behaviour/command. This means you have to practice, use reinforcers that matter to your dog at that moment in time and you back up any command with getting the desired behaviour. All too often owners expect the dogs to hear sit, sit, sit all day long without reinforcement (or even actually getting the dog to sit at all) which tells the dog that this command doesn’t matter. 

Performing a Sit Stay in class:

• Have you given your dog a chance to respond before double commanding, asking for a sit before you have focus or physically putting your dog in a sit ?
• Why should your dog sit/stay? What’s in it for them? And don’t say because he/she loves me.
• Is my dog injured, sick or anxious? I found out that my dog Tank stopped sitting because of a knee injury, good thing I didn’t jump into punishment mode on him!
• Have I taught my dog how to sit and stay in this environment? Should I go back a few steps?

The same thing can happen with house training. It snows out and the dog suddenly starts peeing in the house. The dog is no longer motivated to go outside since most owners stop rewarding house training fairly quickly by sending their dog outside alone and further more we add some unpleasant conditions .The rug starts to look like an ideal bathroom. Now what do you do? Go back to the basics and head outside with your dog. Occasionally reward them for going outside with praise, petting, treats or games. This will provide the motivation for your dog to go outside (even in the cold), do their business and keep you happy. 

Performing Eliminating Outside:

• Has your dog had the opportunity to go out regularly or did you leave it too long?
• Is your dog motivated to go to the bathroom outside or have you completely stopped rewarding it?
• Is your dog sick?My dog Heidi started peeing in her sleep and we discovered it was from a hormone imbalance. Once she was on Estrogen she no longer peed inside.
• Have you properly trained your dog where to go to the bathroom? Confusion ensues if you switch between indoor bathroom areas/outdoor bathroom areas?

So you can see how regression occurs and why dogs sometimes don’t perform behaviours we previously thought were rock solid. This happens to everyone! Don’t get upset just take a breath and ask yourself why this might be happening? Go through whether you gave the dog the right opportunities to do what you want, is your dog motivated or physically unable to do what you want and have you trained/maintained your dog to continue to do this behaviour?

1 Reid, Pamela J. Ph.D., Excel-erated Learning: Explaining how dogs learn and how best to teach them. James & Kenneth Publishers, 1996. 

5 Reasons Kennel Training is Essential

While out working with clients I often get the question "Do you kennel train your dogs?". Well the answer is of course and for these reasons. 

1. In case of medical emergency. My dog Tank recently had knee surgery and has been on kennel rest for 3 months. I can't image trying to get him comfortable with that if he hadn't already been use to staying in a kennel. 

2. Travel. When on the road I need a place where my dogs can stay comfortably. This means we are more likely to be accepted at friends' homes and hotels. My dogs also get to take their "room" with them and therefore ease some anxiety.

3. Dog shows. Essential for anyone competing in dog sports. My dogs need to be able to hang out quietly in their kennel so I can walk courses, grab lunch and run one dog at a time. 

4. Problem prevention. My dogs are kenneled when I go out. This keeps them from learning/practicing destructive behaviour such as eating garbage or more valuable objects in my home. This especially important with a young dog. They simply don't get the opportunity to learn bad behaviour this way.

5. Practicality. I have 3, sometimes 4 dogs in my home. Kenneling is an excellent way of feeding with ease, giving rest time to my exuberant dogs and giving guests who might not enjoy dogs a chance to visit (important when my infant nephew comes over).

There are so many reasons to kennel train. I highly recommend it and although my dogs spend very little time in their kennels on a day to day basis it's a skill that comes in handy. Even as I write this Tank is lying in his kennel enjoying a bone with the door open. He often chooses to hang out in there.

More Pets Than People...

Managing a multi-pet home can be challenging and I can definitely relate. I share my home with at minimum 3 dogs at a time and generally we will have an extra dog and one or two cats hanging around too. Here's some practical tips on how to live in harmony when the pets outnumber the people... 

The most important first step is making each and every single dog has attended at least 1 obedience class. This allows you to bond one on one with your dog without the other pets competing for attention. It also allows you to create a basic foundation of training with your pet. All dogs should learn their name, sit, down, stay, how to walk on leash and recall. A good obedience class will give you those foundation skills in a rather short order. 

It's also important to realize that training is a lifelong process for dogs. My own dogs attend classes regularly to enhance our bond, practice new skills in a distracting setting and to enjoy dog sports. If you're not a training addict like me that's alright but remember you will still need to spend time polishing your basic skills with each dog individually. 

Karen London, PhD and Patricia McConnell, PhD also recommend giving your dogs a "group" name. This allows you to address your dogs all at once if need be. This comes in handy when you're at the park and need everyone to come at once. It can also be helpful when your dogs start to misbehave and you want their attention. A group name can be something as simple as "puppies" or "kids". I use "aussies" to address my boys. Heidi is rarely in on the action with them and generally just needs her individual name. 

Remember when dealing with a home with dogs of a different breeds, ages, sizes, genders that the rules for one dog might not be the same for another. That's alright! My pint size Schnauzer is definitely allowed to do things that my 60lb Aussies are not.  My puppy also has different rules than my trustworthy adult dogs and that's alright too. He'll have his chance to earn the same privileges. My puppy tends to get more training time and exercise time to make up for his extra rules. Life isn't always fair and that's alright! 

If you're experiencing any aggression type issue with multiple dogs in the house make sure to contact a qualified positive reinforcement trainer to give you some guidance. 

The Urban Dog

Not too long ago I ran into a young woman who had recently purchased a Rottweiler puppy. Of course being me I couldn't help but share some advice and bring my dogs out for some socialization. Her pup was fearful of both dogs and people. The owner had also been struggling to walk her on leash and to eliminate pulling she had tied to the leash around the puppy's waist to create discomfort when she pulled (this confused the puppy and caused anxiety). 

I showed her how to use a balance leash (re: tellington touch) and gave the little one some treats that I always seem to have on hand. She settled down and eventually played with my crew a bit. The owner admitted she didn't know what she was doing and thanked me for my leash advice.

My suggestion that she attend a puppy socialization class was met with utter disbelief on her part. She stated that her previous dogs did not attend training class and were great pets furthermore she didn't have the money since she had already paid for the puppy and a vet exam. 

This kind of thing boggles my mind. Clearly the obvious benefits to puppy socialization classes are not common sense so I thought I would outline them.

We expect dogs today to interact appropriately in a busy urban setting and remain polite and calm around children, bikes, skateboard, joggers, motorcyclists, etc. It's clearly not fair to expect all these things without first giving them a chance to learn. 

Puppy socialization will:

• help your puppy learn that strangers (men, women, children) are friends and at the very least not a threat to be barked at or growled at
• help your puppy learn key dog skills that you can not teach your puppy (the more dogs/puppies the better)
• the window for socialization closes at 4 months so it's important that puppies are safely introduced to a variety of new things before then
• your puppy will learn the beginning of obedience skills that he/she will need throughout their life 
• your puppy will be able to cope with stress a lot better

The urban dog today needs lots of preparation for city living. Please give your puppy a shot at this by ensuring they attend a puppy socialization class that uses positive reinforcement. I'd be more than happy to recommend you to one near you in Calgary and area.