Trainer Tails

Please Don't Call Me a "Dog Trainer"

2011-09-18T14:43:00.005-04:00

After watching the DVD, Patient like the Chipmunks, about Bob & Marion Bailey and hearing them refer to their work as behavior technicians, it clicked that what I was doing as a “dog trainer” or even as a “behavior consultant” was not aptly described by either of those terms as much as the job of working with dogs and owners dictates.

Since seeing Bob Bailey present a two day seminar on animal training it is even more cemented in my mind that what I am doing is not simply “training dogs”. I am entering into the world of changing human behavior and demonstrating how to change dog behavior effectively, reliably and safely.

Dog training is just one aspect of what I do. Surely I can train dogs and build reliable behaviors. However that is only one part of the process. To say that I am simply a “dog trainer” is no longer accurate.

The letters after my name CTC stand for Certificate in Training and Counseling. This certification was obtained at The Academy For Dog Trainers at the SFSPCA.

I consult on behavior in sessions and through email support however there is component to consulting that extends beyond simply explaining what the potential outcomes will be for dogs and humans.

Obtaining reliable dog behavior based on following protocols would be more accurate.

That extra component of criteria based plans is where the technician side of things resides. It is also in many cases more important to address the human’s behavior first as that will in turn change the dog’s behavior.

The main function of the behavior technician is to educate the dog owner and advise on protocols that will reduce stress and increase success. The environment and the dogs’ history are the main factors in determining how to proceed with training.

The majority of the time once a dog’s environment changes for the better in regards to increasing desired behaviors and stopping the harsh stuff, the dynamic is much easier for all involved.

Humans by and large dictate the dog’s environment and the human’s mechanics & timing of rewards and humane consequences create the dog’s history.

By having proper legitimate information about dog behavior based in science, ethology, math and humane behavior modification we can then better understand human behavior as it relates to dog behavior.

This legitimate understanding is a foundation for a truly harmonious relationship with dogs. Plus as I said it is a whole lot less stressful and safe.

Once we fully understand both dog behavior and how human behavior effects dogs we can then proceed with assurance that we are doing right by our dogs and not simply getting results or “breaking” dogs of habits. Many of these “bad habits” are in fact intrinsic to a dog’s truest nature, scavenging, pulling to greet, barking or alerting to sudden environmental contrasts. All this has billions of years of genetic foundation and we’d better learn to work with it and use it to our advantage.

Once we have the legitimate information we are learning and then we are teaching dogs based on the environment, and then dogs are learning not just “obeying”.

Sure, I train dogs and of course I consult on behavior as it relates to the dog human dynamic, but “behavior is both a science and a technology” as Bob Bailey says.

There is science, mechanics, timing, sequences, and of course moods and emotions for both dogs and humans. All this needs to be taken into account and then addressed in a way to reduce stress and increase success.

The companion dog paradigm is a bond unlike any other. The variables are vast and many times unavoidable, it is not a perfect world. Despite that millions of dogs do relatively ok, work it out and maintain a level of profound dignity that us humans would do well modeling for ourselves.

By coming into someone’s life that is seeking help with their dog, the kids, the extended family & friends etc… I consider it an incredible honor and a huge amount of trust placed in me.

So I give the cases I take my all and I make sure that I am not simply training the dog. I make sure I am educating the whole dynamic to have success for the rest of the dog’s life. After all there is no guarantee they’ll call me again, so I strive to set up the dog for the rest of their life with enough proper safe info so that...

1. The people and the dog start having success.
2. So I can sleep well at night.
3. That is how I was educated.

When I say that my job is to first reduce stress and then train dogs it is mainly due to the fact that people are usually not contacting me because all is well and there are no issues.

Usually there is some type of concern ranging from basic manners issues all the way to a proven aggression incident. These issues reside squarely with the humans and how they behave, how they gave behaved and how they will behave in the future.

Reducing stress and having success with dogs is predicated on humans having the proper information for their dynamic, their life style and of course the environments that the dog will be in.

All these aspects are facilitated by human behavior. This is why even though there have been many amazing books written, DVD’s made and TV’s shows, none of these can compare to having a legitimate assessment of dog & human behavior backed by a written plan tailored to you and your dog’s life. That is what you are paying for.

Along the way even when it is serious or may be challenging I encourage fun and patience along with empathy and understanding.

This makes a real difference in the way we view our dog’s behavior or how we react to our dogs and how we interact with them (and other dogs).

By learning how to deal with situations that arise so reliability is achieved and stress is reduced and not perfection or “robot dogs” we truly create bonds and not binds.

Dogs are sentient beings and as our best friends they certainly tolerate many things in life that go against their very nature. It is my goal to help each dog and each owner better understand each other so the bond is never broken and only strengthened, so that the dog human dynamic can live up to it’s full potential.

Dogs are capable of amazing things as long the humans in their life are willing to be open and empathetic to the dog’s intrinsic nature, be patient, learn and make decisions based on humane and non violent approaches.

As Bob Bailey says, “Empower don’t over power”.

This is why I am not simply a “dog trainer”. I am a behavior technician.

Are You Experienced? How human behavior affects dogs & what to ask dog trainers before you hire them

2010-09-03T15:31:00.002-04:00

When a new client sends in a behavior history form or contacts me I feel like a fireman hoping for a “cat in the tree” type scenario. However many times people are getting in touch because the dog’s behavior has reached a point where it cannot be ignored. Its true people rarely call a dog trainer to brush up on some basics. More times than not it is a problem and there is stress involved. Many times I am contacted with a three alarm fire scenario raging in the form of fear, aggression or some type of behavioral scenario that has the family stressed out.

I realized a while ago that my main job for dog owners is to reduce stress. Of course I have to educate and demonstrate for people how to train. Moreover I have to implement a plan that will as soon as possible relieve the house or the dog walks of stress.

This is usually accomplished by having a management plan and reassuring clients that "it is perfectly ok to manage”, in the immortal words of my mentor Janis Bradley. Then a plan to train or modify dog behavior that will achieve results sooner rather than later has to be issued. That plan is based on the three D’s of dog training Distraction, Distance and Duration. As these come into play in all dog behavior scenarios.

Far too many people think that the ill mannered dog has too meet every one that comes to the home, or that they cannot crate train and gate train around kids or other dogs that may have an issue. Additionally many people sequester the dog when what the dog needs to be trained and socialized or engaged in the proper way so the dog learns appropriate responses to social situations.

Far too many people have so much disinformation about dog behavior and training that they are literally in a state of abstention about what to do. This leads to inaction which in many cases will cause unwanted behaviors to increase.
Or it leads to using methods that are iatrogenic, meaning they are making the problems worse by the approach they are taking.

Normalizing dog behavior for people is in many cases the exact thing they need to relieve stress. Once they have a legitimate understanding of why the dog is behaving the way it they can get some perspective and start to reduce the unwanted behavior.

The next step is getting some tools and training in the hands people that will give immediate results. The caveat here is that everyone has different mechanics and timing which are the hall marks of being a good or great dog trainer. However if you have a dog, your already using mechanics and timing to some degree, and once you learn how to improve mechanics and timing you’ll see an improvement in your dogs behavior.

Here are some basic things to consider.

* For the door dashing ill mannered greeting dogs that have jumping as their greeting card, get a gate or barrier up right away. Once you a have management plan to stop the unwanted behavior you will see an immediate decrease. Give your dog a work to eat toy to keep him busy in the crate or behind the gate while you deal with the visitors. If it is planned visit, make sure your dog is hungry, skip a meal and leave 3 – 4 hours of “hungry time” for your dog to be super motivated by the work to eat toy, put some super yummy food in there as well, this helps keep interest,. You’ll see your stress with visitors evaporate right before your eyes.

Then start setting up practice greetings with willing participants. The nano second the dog jumps have the people leave. Do this until the dog can keep 4 on the floor or sit for greetings. Instruct people to be relaxed and stand upright ignoring all jumping.

* For the dog that has aggression with other dogs in the home, get a gate or train your dog to like a crate. You cannot have the dog rehearsing aggression as it will only make matters worse. It may cause irreparable damage to the relationship between the dogs.

* Contact a board certified veterinary behaviorist. This may be the extra step you need. You always want to rule out medical causes and perhaps have the appropriate medication as part of the dog’s protocol.

If there are small kids in the home under the age of 16 you absolutely must consider their safety. When dogs are aggressive it is out of fear, and fear generalizes very well for dogs, kids under 16 do not have the capacity to assess risk.

Adults will want to set up 100% no fail management protocols for everyone when dealing with aggressive dogs. This will help to relive stress for dogs and people almost immediately. Use a visual barrier of needed, a blanket over a baby gate can be a great way to stop unwanted spats between dogs.
Remember aggression’s purpose is to create distance, so create distance for your dog by using gates, crates and visual barriers.
Once you have your management system set up, meaning you have discussed it with the family, the dog walker etc…you then need a proactive and humane approach to reducing the dogs fear and aggression.

This is done with counter conditioning the desensitizing the dog.
It sounds fancy but it’s not brain surgery, but I’ll tell you this; it is precarious and the devil is in the details. Too many slip ups and you can make it worse and the reduction time will be longer.

You don’t want setbacks of the dog rehearsing the fear or aggression.
Knowing what triggers the dogs fear and or aggression will greatly help you and the dog from being in situations where it is rehearsed.

The first step in behavior modification is an outright stoppage of the unwanted behavior or a dramatic decrease by humane means. This is done through management and awareness so it is not triggered and rehearsed.

It is highly advised that you seek out a humane non force dog trainer for all your dog training needs, especially when your dog has fear and aggression problems.

It is sad that we still have the antiquated notion floated by some “trainers” that all unwanted behavior is rooted in some form of the dog being intentionally bad or misbehaving to strive for a high rank. That is like blaming the rain you got wet. It is a ridiculous notion, cannot be proven, and it’s purely the work of misguided uneducated people culpable in the mistreatment of pet dogs by way of spouting unscientific mumbo jumbo.

You’ll get way more mileage out of jolly talk, and reassurance, or padding situations with high value food rewards than by scolding or causing the dog pain. Fear cannot be reinforced with food, but it can be made worse by using fear and force. Fear also generalizes well in dogs, so you may be creating a generalized fear of life for the dog.

Think of it like this, if you are afraid and a friend comforts you and creates distance from the fearful thing/situation you will feel better. Now imagine of you were yelled at and hit while you are afraid. Get the idea?

* For the dog with no behavioral emergencies such as fear, aggression, or anxiety it all boils down to the humans in their life being proactive with a legitimate approach to create a well mannered and attentive dog.

If there was a quick fix or some magic way of having dogs attain 100% perfect behavior all the time every time, it would have been found out by now. It does not exist. Behavior is contextual and humans just have to deal with that, like they deal with gravity or taxes, its part of life, so get used to dealing with the fact human behavior has to change.

Despite the claims of half wits and hacks, there is nothing that replaces kind consistency and leg work to build; yes build a sound and reliable dog. As Jean Donaldson calls it in her book “Oh Behave”, it boils down to owner imprint.

Just what are we humans imprinting on our dogs or dogs in general with our behavior? Human behavior has the largest effect on dog behavior.
Even a onetime meeting with a dog leaves that dog with an impression.

Pam Reid PhD says “learning for dogs is a change in behavior based on experience”. What types of experiences are we subjecting our dogs too, hence what are WE teaching dogs? Dogs are learning all the time, taking in thousands of bits of information mostly through scent. So humans would do much better by looking at their behavior first, and then proceeding with training that is kind and consistent.

Changing human behavior is the hardest part of my work as a pet dog trainer. In most cases I can usually get a dogs behavior to change relatively fast, sometimes right away if it something simple, like say the dog needs to disengage from something that it’s looking at or the dog needs to relax and chew while I speak with the client.

Once I know the issues based on a lengthy behavior history form we have people fill out, it’s either kind consistency or some form of management or teaching the dog a DRI, a Differential Reinforcement of an Incompatible behavior.

This fancy term DRI means teaching the dog an alternate response/behavior to the one they have been doing that you’d like decreased.

- A barking dog cannot bark with a bone in his mouth, or a cream cheese filled Kong.
- A dog that has a rock solid sit or down stay is less likely to jump for greetings.
- A dog that sits and waits at all doors is less likely to door dash.
- A reactive dog that has the appropriate distance (management) and learns to “leave it” or simply gets a high value food reward for not reacting will take the food and focus on the handler more times than not.
- A dog going for an illegal object like a shoe, will stop if you’ve practiced the “leave it” cue and have you good timing in your rewards and consequences.

All of these interactions require the human to change their behavior. This behavior change in the human also reduces the human and the dogs stress.
Even learning to reassure your dog, that “it’s ok” in time when they are frustrated has a calming effect on the human and the dog.

When dogs alert bark around the home or even on a walk, and the human addresses it with “its ok buddy”, the dog will get out one or two barks and then stop. You can reward or redirect the dog at that point.

Time and time again I hear “You are really training us humans”. Or “Wow once we stopped yelling, hitting, jerking etc…it became less stressful and the dog’s behavior improved”.

In the end the goal of pet dog training is to create bonds not binds.

There are some important things dog owners need to ask when considering hiring a dog trainer or joining a class.

1 - What Methodology do you use? What exactly are they going to do to train the dog and educate you? If it is all choke chains, throwing mesh bags of chains and yelling, or dog forbid shock collars, or teaching you to be a “pack leader”, or asserting your dominance, run away and don’t go back. Your already in charge, what you need are practical approaches to reduce unwanted dog behavior. If you need an overhaul of your personality or some confidence building, seek out people with legit qualifications to work on your behavioral issues. That is not the job of a dog trainer, if it can happen through the process, great. But it’s not taught in any dog training school I know of.

If the dog trainer does not explain it in a scientific or verifiable way, by saying they use classical and operant conditioning in humane ways, that is the key here, in humane ways, then stay away.

2 - Do you offer after session support in the form of written reports, email support, class homework and phone consults? If they say no, again question the level of commitment this dog trainer has to you and your dog. No one gets all the information in a one hour or two hour training session.
Responsible dog trainers will have some type of written back up for their clients so that they have a plan to reference so the dog and the client have a better chance at success.

3 - How comprehensive is your service? Many dog trainers will only work with the basics, but can they effectively address the issues under the surface of the problem? For instance, the jumping to greet dog that has a sit stay without distractions needs to be worked at a level the dog will succeed. Far too many people have come to me after seeing two or three “trainers” and the dog is worse or the same. This is because far too many dog “trainers” are one or two trick ponies and have no real education in how to decrease unwanted behaviors and increase behaviors dog owners like. Understanding what is causing the dog to behave in the context is a great asset in setting up a training plan, without it you might as well be blind folded. So if a “trainer” tells you your dog is dominating you or trying to take over or spiteful or jealous, say Thanks you and move on.

Essentially these hack “trainers” are not equipped to educate, instruct and then issue a well written training plan for the family to follow. This leaves people feeling ripped off and more stressed out.

It’s not all fear and pain based dog “trainers” that are letting people down. Sadly I’ve heard of positive pet dog trainers also ill equipped to handle basic issues let alone serious fear and aggression cases.

The main thing for me is to set people up for success by reducing stress. Then educate fully and completely by answering and addressing all questions with verifiable information. Once that has been accomplished in the initial session I deliver written training plans and include email support.

Credentials mean little as quite a few dog training “schools” are little more than camps that do not teach any real legitimate behavior knowledge or skills to their students. There are a few I do recommend.

The now defunct SFSPCA Academy for Dog Trainers, check the alum referral list for trainers in your area.
Karen Pryor’s Academy.
Pat Miller’s Behavior Modification Academy.

The dog trainers from these schools will have a much better understanding than most, and they will not hurt or scare your dog to “train” them. This is what you are looking for.

No matter how great the dog trainer is and how well detailed the training plan is success is based on client compliance.

In the end YOU have to train your dog, no matter how great a dog trainer is they do not live with your dog. It is about how well they can educate you and support you with written materials and how well they instruct you in live sessions.

You have to do the work between sessions and well, for the life of your dog.

I do not recommend you send your dog away to a boot camp. You need to be there when your dog is being trained so you learn how to train. Plus dogs are great discriminators and they may discriminate the training to the facility or to that particular trainer.

The goal is to keep the dog in the house when appropriate, (more on that later in another blog) with as little wear and tear on the family dynamic as possible. Dogs can be a joy to live with, and when they have issues serious, silly or somewhere in between people need humane practical ways to address dog behavior that will achieve results sooner rather than later, that means client compliance to the training plan which translates to a change in human behavior and dog behavior.

This way that joy of living with and caring for a dog stays in place and the bond becomes even stronger, because you’re helping your dog legitimately without creating more problems.

SFSPCA Academy Referal list
http://www.sfspca.org/about-us/press/press-releases/dog-trainer-academy-moves-outside-sfspca

Pat Miller
http://www.peaceablepaws.com/blog/

Karen Pryor Academy
http://www.karenpryoracademy.com/dog-trainer-program

Everyone is a dog trainer

2010-04-27T12:43:00.003-04:00

Everyone is a dog trainer

The information we receive about dogs comes from every imaginable source. I was even told once that “Joe the hot dog guy has some great advice” It seems no matter where you look or who you ask, everyone is a dog trainer. Just ask someone with a dog about something behavior related and more often than not, they’ll have the reason and the why and the how all set go and many times without hesitation recommend their approach to you for your dog. This is not always a bad idea, and it’s not always a good idea either. However considering the layers of variables that exist within dogs and their human counter parts, it would be best to steer clear of advice that comes from sources without any legitimate credentials, and furthermore ask yourself if the advice makes sense. Dogs and their owners are individuals despite the generalizations that we all share, what is usually the best advice is advice paid for and received from someone doing an individual assessment of the dog and the dogs daily dynamic, as well as taking into consideration the dogs reward and consequence history.

If you have a dog or are with a dog you are training the dog. Dogs are influenced by everyone they meet, and especially learning from their owners, whether the owners realize it or not, even if it’s just one time for a few second the dog has learned something. Dogs are masters at discrimination, figure out sequences very well and they only generalize fear well. This is something far too few people understand. The broad based generalizations that people place on dog behavior is one of the many reasons dogs do not receive the proper training they should.

This notion of dogs dominating us, or labeling a dog aggressive when they have no bite history and may just be poor at greetings or leash reactive, has led far too many dogs to death or to lead a life of unsocialized isolation, or perhaps receive the harsh end of the training spectrum. Sadly many too many dogs are euthanized or pain trained into submission.

There are roughly 74 million owned dogs in the USA and at any given time around 5 million dogs in shelters. I’d say the vast majority of dog owners and shelter staff care deeply for dogs and would only want the best for them but would like to see the dogs flourish in their new home. Yet I meet countless dog owners and shelter staff & volunteers that despite their love for dogs have no clue about how to train, what to train or have any legitimate behavior knowledge that could help them decrease most of the dogs unwanted behaviors. It’s all some form of fingers crossed and a magic conversion in the stars. It ain’t magic kids, and if it appears that way, I can bet that there are contextual influences and some intrinsic human mechanics and timing that are leading you to the success you are having or seeing people have with the dogs.

I like the analogy of cars. There is not a legal driver on the road that has not passed a test for driving a vehicle. The driving test does not make you a better driver, but it does set you up for success, and other drivers and pedestrians are made safer by the rules of the road. Yet with dogs, anyone can get a dog and within the span of a few years, in some cases a few minutes many people feel they “know” about dogs.

It may be due to their upbringing and having a dog as a child. How much did you really learn as a kid while your mom and dad took care of the dog?

Aside from tossing a ball and giving the dog affection, food and water, where was the real learning about dog behavior and training? Just as with driving, we all saw our parents do it, they may have even explained it, but we had to take a test in order to actually drive the car legally. Most kids are busy with being kids, then teenagers and mom & dad do the bulk of the work. So the notion of having a dog as a kid is not grounds for dog knowledge. Neither is having had a dog once.

We’ve come a long way in understanding dogs, not only as far as their behavior goes but how our behavior affects them as well. Consider that a dog will remember the scent of everyone it has met, even if for a few seconds. Dogs house millions of scent memories in their brain and their fear center, the amygdale is connected directly to their nose. When you consider this it does shed light on the fact that dogs are basically looking to be safe. After all they are animals, and animals are not burdened with the desires of humans, except for food, fun and sex dogs are not interested in many of the things us humans are. The desires of dogs are on a short list, food, water, shelter, procreation, some form of socializing & fun with dogs or humans and sleep. That’s pretty much it.

The anthropomorphic dressing that is placed on dogs will in many cases lead them to be either treated with disregard for their intrinsic canine behaviors, treated unfairly or inappropriately or on the far end of the unfair spectrum euthanized. Sure we can discuss dogs in an anthropomorphic way at the bar over a few beers, but when we have training and behavior concerns we need to get down to the legit view and help the dog and the people in the dogs life feel better.

Take the dog that is merely frustrated and viewed as aggressive, he may be put down, or if the human(s) in care of the dog are not aware of the difference between barrier frustration and aggression the dog may be kept away from dogs and people and then socialization slips further, or worse the dog is viewed as dominate and now someone applies “training” that is harsh and painful, either making the dog worse, or the dog becomes shut down and lives in a state of learned helplessness or tunes out the human, now the dog is labeled stubborn. The sad thing here is that we’ve got the humane information to address all dog behaviors in a way that can actually help decrease unwanted behaviors.

I have been perplexed for a while now as to why dogs give people a false sense of knowledge, why dogs make people feel like they are gifted? How on earth do people feel compelled to risk a dog’s life based on a patchwork of what they were told at a dog park once, what their grand pa said, and a few websites they visited once. Perhaps it’s the disposable mindset some people have; perhaps it’s just plain old laziness? I often think why do people not leave a major league baseball game and believe they are as good as their idols. Mainly because they cannot replicate the players, and they know it, yet if a dog does something we ask it imbues the human with a sense of accomplishment far beyond the task of hitting a ball, the human just communicated with an animal, and the animal obeyed, it must be magic, right? Maybe, but I’d say it has more to do with reward and consequence history in the context the behavior occurred.

Maybe this sense of knowledge about dogs is because by and large dogs make us feel. They make us feel special, they make us feel accomplished (Look I can get this creature to obey), they make us feel altruistic (I saved this dog).

Dogs can also make humans frustrated, fearful, and stressed out. On the opposite end of the spectrum where the non dog loving humans live people are either ambivalent, slightly concerned because they are caring individuals and do not want to see dogs harmed or they are outright fearful. No matter where you fall dogs usually make us feel something. For dog owners, and people working with dogs, these feelings can be a hindrance or fuel to learn and grow. It all depends on who you are and who you want to be.

It’s in these feelings that the human can lose site of the fact the dogs are feeling right along with us. It is more about what the dogs are feeling and less about the human’s feelings, this is where the experienced and legitimate dog trainers/owners differ from the people that are simply with dogs or have a dog.

I am not taking anything away from anyone’s love for dogs, or their concern for dogs. Love and concern are great foundations, but love and concern do not train dogs or modify dog behavior. That is accomplished through legitimate knowledge of dog behavior (which is not too difficult if you apply yourself) and good old leg work.
It seems people have a hard time admitting they do not know something, or perhaps it’s a belief system that is so firmly in place that the thought of it not being 100% accurate is frightening? Or maybe it’s the “give it to me now” instant gratification conditioning that the 20th and 21st Centuries have plagued humans with.

Yet, when someone says they love dogs and they know dogs and they are incapable of discussing let alone educating others about dogs they do damage to dogs when they dispense false advice or put faulty training methods into practice. There is a ripple effect that goes from one dog to the next to the next…

When I work with dog owners I ask them to fill out an 18 page behavior history form. This tells me allot about the humans behavior as well as the dogs behavior. Context is everything and even having a basic description of the events daily or otherwise can allow me the window in I need to begin to address the situation.

Asking questions and them approaching dog behavior in a way that set’s the dog and human up for success is to my mind, common sense. Having a reasonable expectation is also a major part of success with dogs. Knowing that the dog does not have to be 100% perfect all the time is freeing for people, and think how your dog will feel about not having to be a battery operated machine 24/7.

There are some people out here that have expectations for dogs that are so unreasonable they could not live up to these expectations themselves. So why does the dog have to be a perfect robot, if the human does not. Further more if you are looking to have a “perfect” dog, you’d better get your knowledge base of dog behavior in line with the legit crowd and your training chops better take on rock star status in the way of mechanics, timing and humane methods. Because if your sloppy your dogs training will reflect that.

Knowing that human behavior has to change first, and then dog behavior will follow is tantamount to setting up the dynamic of dogs and humans to be less stressful.

I see where the problem exists and hopefully the knowledge gap will start to close sooner than later.

· Dog training requires that the human be humane, kind and consistent in both rewards and consequences.
· Dog training is all about human mechanics and timing. These mechanics and timing will have to be adjusted based on the dog and the context that you are in. This requires patience and being more observational than emotional.

· Dog behavior is contextual and dogs view the world as safe, unsafe or neutral. By and large humans can help dictate this world view by our actions.

· Don’t make things up to suite your opinion. It’s 2010; there is no shortage of legitimate information about dogs that is founded in humane approaches based in the science of animal learning theory. Reading is fundamental and essential for humans to be educated on anything. It’s ok to play it safe and say ‘I don’t know” then get the right information to help the dog.

· Dogs are sentient beings that have feelings and emotions and most would argue are a big reason why we humans made it through history. If you live with or work with dogs, you owe to them to get the best and most sound advice from trusted legitimate sources.

Everyone is a dog trainer, and it’s about time we took the job as serious as other far less important tasks that are in our lives. This goes for dog owners as well as people in the business of training dogs. It is a gift that we even get to have dogs, think about it.

Dogs in the USA are worshiped and celebrated, not so in many other countries.
Dogs are a large part of the economy that is thriving, the pet care industry is a 48 billion dollar business, and dogs are a huge part of it. So we’d all be wise to take care of our investments and treat dogs with the same respect as we treat our beloved automobiles. You take your car to experts, to people that fix it not “break it”, why? Because you need it to survive, and I’d say it’s high time we thought of dogs the same way. Let’s get them the best so they can be their best.
Want one more reason if that is not enough. Dogs are the source of free, yes free, joy, love, entertainment and health. Dogs are good for us and we owe them the benefit of our intelligent compassion.

So who’s with me? Are you going to be a dog trainer or just someone with a dog?

After all everyone is a dog trainer.

References and some books to consider.

Jean Donaldson - Train your dog like a pro
http://www.amazon.com/Train-Your-Dog-Like-Pro/dp/0470616164/ref=pd_zg_rss_nr_b_5043_8?ie=UTF8&tag=pet-harness-shop-20

Karen Pryor - Don’t Shoot the Dog
http://www.dogwise.com/ItemDetails.cfm?ID=DTB116&AffiliateID=45461&Method=3

Pam Reid - Excel-erated Learning
http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTB500&AffiliateID=45461&Method=3

James O’Heare - The Canine Aggression Workbook 3rd edition
http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTB975&AffiliateID=45461&Method=3

Terry Ryan - Outwitting Dogs
http://www.dogwise.com/itemdetails.cfm?ID=DTB828&AffiliateID=45461&Method=3

Dogs are worshiped, but not protected

2010-03-25T20:26:00.002-04:00

Dogs are worshiped, but not protected.

For a few good years those of us that needed to point out the harsh realities of pain training all had the comfort knowing that we could point to a number of respected groups for back up when discussing it with client’s or friends and family. Recently during a discussion with a high school teacher I realized I could not suggest American Humane as a source for why the DW show is harmful. This then rests in the opinion paradigm, even though it’s not, and there are other sources, American Human is the oldest and they have a TV & Film division. So the impact of their position statement is much stronger.

I was given a cordial dismissal via email by the VP of American Humane a few weeks ago. There was no argument, no disagreements. Essentially all conversations were productive and we shared the same concerns. However, I asked too many difficult questions. I kept getting the circular logic double talk, and standard issue answers, but I kept asking questions. I found it funny, because I was told by Karen Rosa of AH’s TV & Film Div, that she admired my “sustained passion”.

Herein lays the problem with not only this AH symposium but much of dog training. If you ask too many questions either people get mad, or they fall silent, or in CM’s case they get the lawyers to scare you. In the case of dog training on TV that celebrates causing dogs fear and pain and falsely claiming it’s not a problem, but a man’s “gift” is out right negligence. Nat Geo knows full well what is happening. CM and his thugs know there are different ways to train, and they also know it’s a matter of time before they get caught, that’s right caught. American Humane is sincere in their efforts; I am not saying they are shady. However they are playing with one slippery fish, and they’re out matched in the PR game. After all, that is what TV stars do, they reshape themselves into whatever sells and work at avoiding the wrong kind of controversy. If CM and his people wanted him to get an education legitimately they would have him take some time off, go on the down low and study, jeeze if he’s so gifted it should take no time at all.

Instead they are attempting to take a short cut, co op some new language and use some legit terms to make it appear as though he's humane.

The following is the last Q&A I had with American Humane

• American Humane has not retracted our 2006 statement that is critical of Cesar Millan training methods.
Yet it is not on your website. Which sends the wrong message to the entire community of positive reward based dog trainers and concerned dog owners. So in essence you did retract it. Once you put it back on your website it will be a public statement for us to point to when we need back up during counseling and training sessions. How helpful is your statement unless the public can see it?

• The decision to remove our 2006 statement from our website was made in consideration of moving forward with the planning of our Summit.
I get that, it was undoubtedly a condition placed upon you by Millan Inc. You should not have acquiesced to it. It has sent the wrong message to the very people that are out here working towards a more humane profession. You let us down.

• We are not partnering with Cesar Millan in hosting the American Humane National Dog Training Summit.
You keep saying that, and I believe you, however Millan or his people keep pushing the notion you are. There is a PowerPoint floating around the web stating you are “partnered” with him, and his website announcing the symposium conjures up the image that he has been invited and that you are in support of him. When I asked if you were going to move towards getting it taken down, you said that “freedom of speech would protect them”, yet your freedom of speech is not exercised by leaving your statement on your website?

• Neither Cesar Millan nor his affiliates are giving us any funding nor are they influencing the planning of our Summit.
Again I believe you that he and his people are not funding the event, but you cannot expect me to believe that they are not influencing the event, they got you to take down the statement against his show, so they are influencing the event, Millan has a statement at his website making it seem he & AH are copasetic. My question is what Hollywood star has their high powered lawyer behind the scenes making everyone dance to Millan’s tune? That is my question.

• Cesar Millan’s representatives reached out to open a dialogue with us a few weeks ago and we accepted an invitation to that dialogue.
Again, I understand the sequence of events that took place for the meeting and the symposium, yet Millan’s PR team has it twisted that you asked him to be part of the event, when in fact it was them that came to you. I also know that at first you said no thanks, and then went back with the notion of a broader educational possibility. Education for whom? Millan hopefully. You cannot seriously think that Millan will be teaching anyone at the symposium anything, unless you count how to hoodwink and hack train as educational for other people. He's had plenty of opportunity to become educated. It's not AH's job to educate Millan, nor is it anyone else's job, it's his job to educate himself. That is also a slap in the face to every person that has taken it upon themselves to become educated in dog behavior and positive training. We have to work for it, while he gets a private audience with the best and brightest?

• Mr. Millan has expressed interest in attending our Humane Dog Training Summit and has stated that he is open to evolving his training methods and learning from other trainers.
He may have stated that to you in private, however in public and on his website he does not say that he is interested in learning from anyone, he paints a picture of himself being asked to participate, casting himself alongside other humane trainers/behaviorists et al…as an equal, as being accepted, and American Humane’s bungling of the roll out of this event is mainly to blame. You placed no conditions on him or his people about announcing the event on his website until it was all confirmed and set?!?

• Mr. Millan has not yet been invited to our summit, as the date and location have not been determined.
Look at his website it is quite obvious that he is going to the event and again making it look like he has already been invited.
http://www.cesarsway.com/news/humane-dog-training-symposium

• Any formal invitation to Mr. Millan will be issued at the same time that we issue such invitations to all of our other Summit guests.
Yet he is touting that he has been invited. This is like your once public statement that is now private. Looks like he is dictating the way the event will be perceived. After all, his entire PR team is better than yours. In the end that is what you’re dealing with, like it or not. Why else would they jump so readily to announce he’s part of the event? It gets them much needed validation from critics. They did not waste a second did they?

• As yet we have not determined a date, location, venue or final guest list for the Summit and we are only in the very early stages of planning for the event.
In these early stages you have already caused him to be aligned with people who are opposed to him, given the impression that you no longer have a position statement against his show, methods or ideology and let down a vast majority of the humane and positive dog training community.
Why should I or anyone else believe that this event will not be twisted into a photo op for Millan and his people to just use it for a re make of his image? That is already taking shape. Where is the assurance that he will in fact learn anything, other than he can get away with his shenanigans? You have not even confirmed the event or the other guests and he is touting he’s invited. Can you not see what his people are doing and it’s not even a reality yet. They are so desperate for anything resembling an affiliation or an acceptance from the humane legit crowd that they’ll even take the promise of it.

End of Q&A with American Humane.

Some of the people reading this will be asked to attend this event, and may have already. Some of the people reading this will not be asked. Some will just go back and hang their heads and sigh. The last reaction is what Milan Inc. counts on and what has largely been the reason he’s been able to bully his way through dog training culture, oh sorry dog psychology, or is it now that he modifies behavior?

Whatever side you fall on, know this; the reason why this is important is simple. Dogs deserve not just our worship, dogs deserve our protection.

You might ask why the hell I am so adamant about this topic. CM & I share one very singular distinction, dogs are the reason we’ve got anything in life. I would venture a guess that a good majority of the dog trainers reading this would have to agree they too are secure in life due to dogs. The massive difference is that those of us who train humanely, that have dogs as companions and do not cause them fear or pain, are being high jacked by a charlatan. The culture of dog training is in danger, and dogs everywhere are now in jeopardy of being mis diagnosed and then jabbed, kicked, choked and shocked into submission as a way to “train” them. Personally I’m tired of cleaning up this behavioral mess, and I know many others are as well.

Two recent personal events that illustrate this decline in the desire for people to find out the humane way of doing things when it comes to training dogs.

1 - On a recent dog training session my wife Vyolet Michaels CTC was working with a couple that tried CM’s methods based on watching him on TV, and made the dog so fearful, that the dog was a “shaking bag of bones” to quote my wife. After she explained the fall outs of pain and fear based methods the people said they would have “never done that stuff” if they knew the "truth about what could happen". The operative word here is the truth. The good news is that the dog is now on a legit and humane path towards recovery. The warning on CM’s show does not say why not to copy him, it just says don’t do it.

2 – A few weeks ago I was in a meeting with some people discussing a nationwide dog training program for volunteers and employees in shelters. Some guy who claims to be a dog trainer refused to have a conversation about dog training and behavior. He flat out said “I’m not working with you you’re not working with me”.

I had 14 questions that I needed to discuss before I would I feel comfortable getting involved. The guy folded the paper I’d handed him with the questions and stuck it in his pocket. Then chimed in with how he had “no use for science” because his “clients would not understand it anyway, and they had “no use for it”.

I went on to explain that we’d need a common language if we were going to converse about dog behavior for dogs in a shelter, and that there are numerous ways to turn science info into everyday understandable and digestible language.

Plus never assume your audience is dumb.

You might ask, where do I get the nerve to ask someone to discuss their knowledge base? Well I’d ask why I should work with someone claiming to be a dog trainer with zero legit credentials, after all the dogs in the balance here are shelter dogs and dogs in homes that if not dealt with in humane way, may end up in shelters. If I had been able to find any proof that guy claiming to be a dog trainer had some education, some type of credentials in relation to dog training, I would have felt much more comfortable. He had none, and he was not even interested in a dialog.

A week after I met with these folks, I heard through a volunteer at the local shelter this guy in the meeting claiming to be a dog trainer did a play session and a dog killed another dog. One of the questions I wanted to ask and speak to him about is the protocols for dog - dog intros and potential subsequent play sessions.

Ignorance does kill. Education saves lives.

This resistance to learn, this self credentialed validation and the ever popular
“I‘m good with dogs” street degree or “I’ve been doing it for x number of years” is weak. Now bear in mind I have no PhD, no degree from a university, nope. I also know there are brilliant people that simply figured it out and train dogs humanely. I am the poster boy for if I can do it you can too. I freely admit I have no magic, but I do have legit knowledge and I do have solid mechanical/timing skills when it comes to training dogs.

I’m sure there are far too many stories of people trying things on dogs based on faulty info. More stories should be written about dogs that have been subjected to fear and pain based “training”, and the results of these methods, for it needs be exposed. This way perhaps people will learn it is not the way to go. Where you bloggers at? Personally I have tons of files of clients that have tried CM's nonsense and it did not work out for the better.

While re reading the Cass Sunstein paper The Rights of Animals I was reminded about an excerpt from the California Animal Cruelty Laws that I find to be the essence of CM’s show and the way of the pain trainers everywhere.

…imposes criminal liability on negligent as well as intentional overworking, overdriving,or torturing of animals. “Torture” is defined not in its ordinary language sense, but to include any act or omission “whereby unnecessary or unjustifiable physical pain or suffering is caused or permitted.”

This depicts many of the segments on the DW show is it not? CM has a licensed business in California does he not? Just saying…

I am imploring anyone that says they care about dogs that has benefited from them financially through dog training, or media such as books and DVD’s. Please demand justice for dogs, demand the truth from organizations that say they protect dogs, be it your local SPCA or some conglomerate of professionals and experts. Far too many people that have highly credentialed knowledge stay silent, are “too busy” or simply do not have the gumption to confront the lack of enforcement when it comes to dog abuse in the paradigm of training. Please step up and speak up, your voice is needed. We owe it to dogs.

Here are some suggestions for questions and conditions that should be met before this humane dog training symposium takes place. It’s also a good check list for people that claim they have a gift, are a whisperer or some other form of self credentialed “title”.

These questions need to be asked of CM and the conditions based on his answers should be whether or not he can even have a discussion about dogs in a legitimate way with the legit crowd. If he is supposedly attending a symposium on humane dog training and he is touting that he has been invited, as well as he now modifies behavior, that he is an equal; then he should have no problem with these questions. He can post his answers via You Tube without edits, without reading off cue cards just the answers to the questions.

1 – How do dogs learn?
2 – What are the quadrants of operant conditioning? How are they used?
3 – By and large how do dogs view the world?
4 – What do dogs generalize very well?
5 – What are the three D’s of dog training?
6 – In behavior modification what are the four steps that need to be executed?
7 – What is barrier frustration and why does it occur?
8 – In resource guarding tests at what point should the evaluator stop the test?
9 – What is aggression and what is the purpose of aggression for dogs?
10 – What are the levels of the Dunbar bite scale?
11- When doing on leash greetings with two dogs for the first time what is the protocol and what are the variables?
12 – Leash reactivity can be reduced by what human behaviors?
13 – What are the fallouts of using aversive methods such as pain, force, shock, startle & choking?
14 – When introducing dogs for off leash play, what are the three main things we’d like to know?
15 – Define learned helplessness, flooding and conditioned emotional response.
Puppy development pop quiz!
• When should bite inhibition be worked on and what are the protocols
• When does the critical development period end for puppies?
• What are the three main things to work on with puppies?

ANY dog trainer worth a damn should be able to discuss these topics without any effort. This is especially important when these “trainers” are taking money from people or if they have some type of audience or worldwide platform. This is equally important when working in a shelter as a volunteer or paid employee.

I’d also suggest, invited or not to this symposium, all those who care about the future of the profession of pet dog training should simply show up at this event, and respectfully demand they are allowed to witness this event. If CM can say he’s going, even though he’s not officially been invited, then well why can’t we just show up without an invite? I’m not talking about anything in the way of force or violence, please understand this is about asking questions and obtaining answers. Far too many people are being duped into thinking violence against dogs under the guise of training is ok. Training a dog should not act as a loophole to cause dogs fear or pain. In any other context it would be considered abuse.

We have to admit that humans are the greatest variable in a dogs training and behavior; we have the most influence period. So why would anyone claiming to know dogs not be able to answer these questions, or at the very least want to know as much as they could about dogs before they started working with them professionally on the world stage or otherwise.

If people would start hitting the books and stop hitting the dogs we’d have this whole thing cleared up by now.

Until there is a standardized educational system in place for dog training professionals as well as dog owners, dogs might be worshiped but they are not fully protected.

Cass Sunstein’s paper The Rights of Animals
http://d.scribd.com/docs/cc67d04frp7scr59jka.pdf

Mythologies and co modifications of dominion in the Dog Whisperer with Cesar Millan
http://www.criticalanimalstudies.org/JCAS/Journal_Articles_download/issue_9/JCAS%20VII%20Issue%201%20MAY%20ISSUE%20Mythologies%20and%20Commodifications%20pgs%20137-161.pdf

Whitewashing the Whisperer
http://www.dogspelledforward.com/the-blog/

Links to information about what is really happening with Milan

http://abrionline.org/article.php?id=253
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/31/opinion/31derr.html?_r=2
http://www.4pawsu.com/dogpsychology.htm
http://www.4pawsu.com/cesarfans.htm
http://www.esquire.com/features/ESQ1006-ESQ100_20-21.FINAL.rev_1
http://www.urbandawgs.com/divided_profession.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-belzer/first-do-no-harm_b_61755.html
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=204&Itemid=71
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=203&Itemid=71http://www.dogwhispererdvd.com/faq-national_geographic_dog_whisperer.html
http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2006-05-05-dog-whisperer_x.htm
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
http://www.komonews.com/home/video/37440019.html?video=pop&t=a
http://www.livescience.com/animals/091112-dog-training.html
http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/sample/Dog_Whisperer_Cesar_Millan.html
http://www.apbc.org.uk/cesar_milan_tour_concerns

I'm Not Afraid Of Corporate Thugs

2010-03-03T12:03:00.003-05:00

I’m Not Afraid of Corporate Thugs.

When I posted a blog entitled The last days of pain training are upon us at Dog Star Daily, I sincerely meant what I said, about the symposium and the need for a change from the Charlatan Manipulator which is my new name for ah… you know Cesar Millan IE: CM.

It seems that despite my optimism and honest assertions, the TV watching lemmings and supposedly some “good friends” of the TV Star flooded the DSD site and then the corporate thugs became jittery and the Charlatan Manipulator’s team did what they do best, threaten. DSD caved.

1 – I do not wish any harm to DSD, the Dunbar’s are good people who I consider friends and they have always been kind, considerate and helpful to me whenever I asked. I do not blame them at all for acquiescing to the legal threat. People should be free to do what they like or feel they have to do.

2 – I never wished any harm to the Charlatan Manipulator. I wished only that he would meet with the best of the best in dog training and behavior, and learn more than what his grandfather taught him. That is what the focus of the blog on DSD was about. After all is that not what this is all about learning so dogs get legitimate help.

Now I’m calling him out.

It’s not the methods of humane dog trainers that are in question, it’s his and people like him that in many ways are putting dogs at risk by not having legitimate knowledge. The chosen methods of CM have been in question from the very start by the humane and scientific community. Should this not tell us all something? Perhaps his grand pa’s lessons are out of date and can be built upon? Why would the entire humane and positive training community be questioning his methods and his ideology? They can’t all be jealous as his most ardent fans contest, like Pattie Labelle, who in People Magazine says he’s a “miracle man” and people are just “jealous”. She can sing, but she knows nothing about dog behavior, her dog she says was “different”, after CM did his magic that does not mean necessarily mean better.

However it seems that no one, not even the very people the Charlatan Manipulator wants to meet with these days can have a differing opinion about his dog training methods or his ideology.

If so they will be threatened by a gang of corporate thugs wielding legal threats. Even American Humane the organizers of the symposium have taken down their position statement. Why? What has changed? Clearly not CM nor his band of legal thugs.
This sounds like Nazi Germany, or the Mafia, or some neighborhood roughnecks at the very least. It certainly does not sound like honest open communication. In fact the humane orgs have taken down anything that resembles criticism of the Charlatan Manipulator, resorting to the umbrella banner of pain and fear based methods. Which is ok to a point but let’s not lose site of the fact there is a person influencing culture in a big way on TV. This continues these fear and pain based methods. It gives them credence when we should be warning people against them, oh yea there are warnings on the TV show. But not everyone heeds them.

Perhaps this symposium is under the condition that the humane orgs lay off, and then the thugs and the Charlatan will meet with them. American Humane took down their position statement against him, and they are organizing the meeting, sounds suspicious at the very least. How many more conditions have to be met as this meeting is taking shape?

If the Charlatan Manipulator is so free of wrong doing, so magical in his ways with dogs, why then is it seemingly impossible for him to just speak to these people who are beyond reproach in their knowledge of dog training and behavior and simply explain why he is not doing harm? I have had conversations with a few of the organizations and humane dog trainers that question his methods, if I can speak with these people about dog training and behavior why can’t he? If he knows so much and he is so gifted it should be an easy conversation for him. He claims in People Magazine from 07 that he was “upset’ when Dr. Nicholas Dodman said he “set back dog training 20 years”, but a call from Jada Pinkett Smith letting him know he’s “the man” consoled him. With all due respect Mrs. Pinkett Smith knows nothing about dog training or dog behavior. (Great actress though) Why not call Nick Dodman and speak with him, I did. I learned allot in the process as well.

He later says in the interview he knows he’s “helping dogs”, even if he has to go against “unstable people”. Is this an assertion Dr. Dodman is unstable, that American Humane and the IAABC are unstable? If so the stability question should be leveled against CM. Oh that’s right it has, but the corporate thugs shut it down.
When someone cannot answer basic questions to satisfy the humane organizations that protect animals, it reeks of the suspicion that perhaps the TV star is well, more of an actor than a dog trainer, or is it dog psychologist, or a modifier of behavior as he calls himself as of late, the Charlatan Manipulator seems to change his stance on what his title is every few years when the pressure mounts. I like the new title I’ve given him.

What is comical, and sad, is that these humane organizations backed down. Where I come from bullies have two choices, back up or fall down, it’s their choice. I’m not worried.

I live in the United States of America. I pay taxes and I have the freedom to dissent from ANY opinion and freely speak my mind. There are people that believe the earth is 5,000 years old and ignore scientific fact that the earth is billions of years old. That is their right.

Well it is my right and anyone else’s right to challenge someone’s assertions about how dogs learn, what dog behavior actually means and how to humanely train dogs and council dog owners.

In fact that is the battle here. In fact that is the reason why those of us in the humane camps are so concerned. Falsehoods about dog behavior and faulty methods in dog training are being bandied about under the guise of a man’s magic powers. The trickledown effect on dog owners and hack trainers who copy CM is dangerous. It boils down to consumer protection.

I for one am not interested in the Charlatan Manipulators fame or money, I am concerned with the ripple effect that the harmful methods and false information that is spread on TV have on dogs and how it adversely affects dogs and dog owners. I have seen it first hand and I’m not the only one. There are many people concerned about the Charlatan Manipulator’s TV show and its detrimental ripple effect.
There seems to be the good old root of all evil at play here, yep money. Money is the catalyst and the Achilles heel that will drive good hearted people and normally common sense folks right off the deep end into the dangerous zone of looking the other way or worse being duped into thinking the Charlatan Manipulator is sincere.
Sincerity is proven through actions. Not in giving money to help shelters, not in agreeing that puppy mills are bad, or that BSL is wrong. Anyone with a modicum of intelligence can see that those things are in need of addressing. After all is that not what politician’s do to gain some sympathy from the critics, they give a bunch of money and create well meaning foundations? That may be the tactic to alleviate any concerns. Sincerity is also not found in legal threats; those are the actions of corporate thugs protecting a worried man.

The question that begs to be asked is this, why threaten to bring down the very people that are educating the public about humane approaches to dog behavior and training? Why not talk with them without any conditions attached? That is quite a hypocritical stance, and it’s plain to see, unless the Charlatan Manipulator and his corporate thugs can silence everyone. Silencing critics through legal threats plays out as an admission of guilt. Reshaping an image is not the same as an honest desire to learn, grow and change.

What are CM and his people so worried about? Perhaps its concern he is not all what he portends to be. Perhaps it’s the fear that the cash cow will dry up or worse animal cruelty charges leveled? After all there a few dog “trainers” this has happened to. They are not famous though, they have no big legal team to protect them. One of them, a woman in Chicago Aimee Moore, even calls herself a “whisperer”, sadly the ripple was in effect in full force here.

The CPDT (Certified Pet Dog Trainers) has added a Knowledge Assessment certification to their standards. Should the CPDT members threaten a law suit for being asked to do this? Essentially that is what has been happening with the Charlatan Manipulator. Whenever anyone of merit questions his knowledge or skills, he and his corporate thugs get busy with legal threats. How does that look? I mean if Certified Pet Dog Trainers are being asked to show a level of knowledge and competence, why not the TV star?

Here’s a challenge to the Charlatan Manipulator and his band of corporate thugs.
• Anywhere any time, 100% live, no edits, discuss dog training and behavior before an audience of our peers in the field of dog training and behavior.

• Then let the experts in the behavioral and dog training fields evaluate the outcome, via CM’s written plan anyone can follow, this would be for current or future owners of the dog as well as the shelter staff and volunteers.

• Then a “board review” of the dog’s behavior he worked with and its training and the training plan by the best of the best in dog training and behavior. See just how good his observational skills are for behavior. See if his skills match up with the most humane and effective methods for behavior modification and training. I don’t think a basic knowledge test to see if the man understands dog behavior and training is too much to ask. CPDT's are asked this.

• All proceeds or monies derived from this “event” can go to a humane org of his choosing. We can even do it at the symposium everyone is talking about if he’d like.

I’m not worried. I mean let’s put the money where the mouth is. I freely admit I’m not special, gifted or perfect. I do however have a very solid education in dog training and behavior, I council people everyday about how to live with their dogs safely and effectively. I work with all sorts of behavior issues, fear, aggression (proven bite histories), house training, puppies, reactive dogs; separation anxiety, you name it I deal with it, 12 hours a day 365 days a year. So if he wants to have a discussion with me on the down low, get at me.

Let the games begin. We’ll see if the Charlatan Manipulator’s “grand pa education” can match mine or the best of the best in behavioral science and positive dog training. It’ll be quite interesting indeed.

Somehow I have a feeling the Charlatan Manipulator and his corporate thugs will not take me up on the challenge. We all know the moral of the story to the Wizard of Oz, right?

Links of interest
2007 People Magazine Interview with CM
http://www.people.com/people/archive/article/0,,20062474,00.html
Dog Trainer abuse cases
http://njspca.org/njspca-police-blotter_Trainer_Charged.htm
http://www.zootoo.com/petnews/abuseclaimsquestiondogtrainers-1164

http://www.chicagoreader.com/features/stories/dogtraining/

AVSAB Position Statement
http://www.avsabonline.org/avsabonline/images/stories/Position_Statements/Combined_Punishment_Statements.pdf

UPenn Study
http://www.livescience.com/animals/090217-dog-training.html

Jo Jacques CPDT, CPCT & Sandy Myers CDBC
http://www.4pawsu.com/IAABC_Ecollar.pdf

Dr. Karen Overall
http://www.pitbullguru.com/shock.html

http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/sample/Dog_Whisperer_Cesar_Millan.html
http://www.apbc.org.uk/cesar_milan_tour_concerns
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-belzer/first-do-no-harm_b_61755.html
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=204&Itemid=71
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=203&Itemid=71http://www.dogwhispererdvd.com/faq-national_geographic_dog_whisperer.html

Are The Last Days Of Pain Training Upon Us?

2010-03-03T11:44:00.004-05:00

Are the last days of pain training are upon us?

This blog is revised from the original version that appeared on Dog Star Daily which was taken down after DSD was threatened with legal action by the corporate thugs.

On February 12th, 2010 American Humane announced that there will be a symposium on humane dog training and behavior. The impetus for this symposium is that for 6 years the ideology and methodology of Cesar Millan and his show The Dog Whisperer have been under fire by everyone from humane organizations to positive reward based dog trainers as well as aware dog owners.
There was a collective position statement that was brought against Millan and his show in late 09 by a number of humane organizations. This was shut down by his corporate thugs with legal action.

There are even whispers Millan’s show will not be picked up by Nat Geo for new shows after his contract runs out in a few years.

With all this pressure mounting, it’s no wonder that Millan and his people have asked for a sit down with the best of the best in dog training. Remember, he and his people asked for this due to mounting pressure. This is not a joining of forces per say; that remains to be seen. It may be spun by the Millan machine as a meeting of the minds, but in actuality this is in essence a clean up your act or else situation.

There is skepticism in the positive dog training community about the sincerity of Millan’s interest in a different approach to dog training. After all this criticism is not new and he and his people obviously have had access to the same information as the rest of us. So why now is there a desire to meet and learn? Perhaps that cash cow of a TV show is in jeopardy of not returning, and they have nowhere else to turn except to the legitimate humane crowd.
The simple fact that Millan and his people have asked to meet with the people that have been criticizing his show/methods & ideology is an admission that he needs to change his way.

But why would they continually threaten the very people that they are looking to meet with? What do they have to hide? Why are they worried about differing opinions and criticisms from some of the best in dog training and behavior?
Regardless of why it is happening we should all rejoice that it is happening.

Look at it this way...

After the symposium is complete and Millan and his people are educated first hand, it will be hard for him to go back to his fear and pain based methods, simply because he has now been schooled by the best, and he has met with people willing to teach him how to be humane. He is under the spot light and it’s hard to hide when you are on TV. Will it be an education or a photo OP? That remains to be seen.

The jig is up as they say. If he was not doing anything harmful, why would there be such a clamor from everyone from dog owners to behaviorists, humane dog trainers and the humane orgs about his methods and ideology?

Dogs are conduits of the truth and you cannot mess with them for too long without getting caught, it’s that simple. Looks like the truth is out, they’re worried.
This meeting of the minds is the beginning of the acknowledgment by Millan and Nat Geo that indeed his methods and ideology are faulty, harmful and not humane. If they were this symposium would not be happening. Think of this an intervention of sorts.
What has many people concerned is that Millan will do a 180 and become a humane trainer over night. That he will not admit to doing anything wrong or that his show has caused countless dogs to be unfairly harmed under the guise of his training ways/advice.

A new spin on his old show will however not be enough to really satisfy. There will have to be a public admission that he was wrong and that he has now seen the error of his ways, without that it will reek of entertainment people scrambling to save their pay checks. That might be the case no matter what, but as long as he admits he was/is using out dated methods and was under the guise of a faulty ideology who really cares? The goal here is to help dogs and owners get the correct information.
The other reason we need Millan to come out and publicly decry his ideology that dogs are dominating us at every turn and that some of his approaches are harmful is so dog owners and copy cat “trainers” that religiously follow his advice and mimic his methods will stop doing so and seek out legit and humane approaches. This is perhaps the most crucial aspect concerning the outcome of the symposium.
There is also the question of the Dog Whisperer shows that run on Nat Geo, and soon on Fox (where else) that repeatedly show the out dated methods and spew the Dominonsense ideology. This will be a big question and a legal one for Millan, Nat Geo and the American Humane TV & Film unit to hash out.

After all once Millan changes his ways, and he will, what about the old shows? Once he denounces his old ways, why would he want them represented on TV and on DVD? Syndication of his show is a large question to be answered and that has more to do with legal contracts and a whole lotta money at stake than anything else.
This ripple effect that Millan has had to the detriment of dogs, could in one fell swoop begin to reverse that damage by him simply asking his followers to follow the advice of behavioral science and humane organizations and reward based dog trainers and to give up his old ways.

It would be a big step, but it is the necessary step for us to believe he is genuine in his admission that he wants to not only learn about humane dog training but also become a legit and humane dog trainer or modifier of behavior as he calls himself these days. Without a change in his ways, this will be seen as lip service and a photo op.

This is the “educational opportunity” that American Humane speaks of in their announcement of the symposium; the education of Millan and the trickledown effect it can have in culture. The ball is already rolling and the tide is already turning, but is it?

All we need is the Oprah moment of “I’ve seen the light” and it will be complete.

Now; if nothing changes on Millan’s part and he takes a few new ideas and implements them into a watered down version of his show, he’ll look really foolish and no one in the legit dog behavior and training camps will trust him anymore than they do now. I do not think that is what he or his people want out of this. In fact I think what they want is more money, and what a better way to make more money than include all of us legit people. His show needs new life, and what else has he got left?

Making the personal choice to inflict fear and pain on a dog under the guise of training or otherwise can be done only out of ignorance, a lack of understanding or a lack of information, IE: Education. After this meeting of the minds Millan and his people will not be able to claim any of those as excuses any longer. Of course they can’t claim them now in any believable sense, but after this symposium, they’ll really be foolish to continue their ways.

From this symposium relationships will be forged and doors will be opened, so there will be no excuses any longer. All that will be left will be actions, words will not be enough.

America loves a good transformation; and this will certainly be quite a change if indeed Millan does change, and he will because what’s left?
The lemming mind set of the sycophant fans will follow and they’ll make claims of how great he is, how open minded he is, even if the impetus to change may have more to do has with money than a desire to learn. It might be both, we’ll only know if he comes out and tells us. Millan has the chance to fix the damage he has created with his show. He also has the opportunity to get the best help out there in doing so. I hope he takes this opportunity seriously and man up and change his ways.
We should not stop educating people about the harmful effects of pain and fear based training, we should not stop eradicating the dominance nonsense from the dog behavior vernacular, as this will be an ever vigilant job until dogs are protected under the guise of pet dog training by the law and we have uniform education for people about dog behavior that is based in legitimate science and 100% humane approaches.

The larger issue at stake here is the issue of consumer protection in pet dog training. Millan has by and large been the reason why so many people are claiming to be dog trainers and taking money for dog training services yet not doing anything to really help people with their dog’s behavior.
It’s not all dominance, it’s not all force and control, and if it were that easy then there would be no need for anything else. What is being recognized is that these whispery ways are finally come to the end. But why did the Humane Organizations take down their position statements? Legal threats, that’s why. Not really a sign he and his corporate thugs are changing.

Please don’t get this twisted people of the humane and positive training camps, this is not an admission that his ways are legit, it is the realization by Millan and his people that it’s time to change or else. They are looking to clean him up and attempt to side step any admission they have been doing harmful things to dogs.
Even after Millan has a change of ways and he will, because what’s left? However behavior does not change overnight; there will always be a need to stop the spread of ignorance about faulty dog training methods and the need to explain dog behavior in legitimate factual terms. It will be nice to have his help with that, after all people do listen to the man.

We should take some comfort in the fact that this symposium is happening. This is the first step in shining a light on what the real motivation is, though it will not be the last. There are many questions to be answered, especially by Millan.
There is work to do and there will always be work to do. Education is a lifelong pursuit for the person that wants to grow and change and improve as well as a lifelong job for those of us devoted to helping dogs live a better and a more humane life along side us.

It’s hard not to be jaded, we should attempt to have a cautiously optimistic take on this. Let’s try and have some faith in American Humane that they are not swayed by Hollywood. Let’s do our best to have some faith in the human spirit, there is a chance to make a massive change here and it can be done, if the Millan machine is willing to change.

Lastly have faith that dogs are conduits of the truth, and the truth is going to be told very soon in a public forum. Or will it be all glad handing and scripted like all the other Millan events?

Are we are seeing the last days of pain training? Only time will tell.

These are answers to a number of accusations from Millan’s interlopers on Dog Star Daily

To the assertion that I somehow wish Millan harm.

1 - I never said I wished CM any harm, or cared if he was rich and famous. I just want the guy to finally learn about dog behavior and training from some people that are the best in the field with humane dog training; that is what I did. I encourage everyone to do that! I would think consumers would want that in their professional dog trainers. It looks like he’ll get the chance. I’m all for that! My issue is with his ideology and his methodology not his fame. I’m sure he does love dogs and wants to help them, allot of people do, and everyone is motivated by different things. He got the fame now it's time to get some more education, what's wrong with that?

To the assertion I should be careful for risk of slander or liable.

2- As far as slander and liable go, pardon me if I chuckle because I hear my 5 attorneys are laughing. The last time I checked I lived in America and I have the freedom of speech and the freedom to dissent from any opinion, or any ideology and voice my own view of the world and of human behavior and of dog behavior, it seems everyone else can spout their version of reality, why not me? I’m sure CM is not losing any money or being caused hardship due to my actions.

I was sent this slide show that has false information in it, there is no author. So before we start throwing around wrong doing make sure you’re camp is clean.
http://download304.mediafire.com/1mfbjizjy4jg/mynixhnjztj/Cesar+Millan+Fact+V+Fiction.pdf

To the challenge by a “close friend” of Millan that I meet him and speak with him.

3 - If face time is what Millan wants with me, or his close friend on DSD suggests, well CM is in Red Bank, NJ on 2/28/10 he’ll be at the Count Basie Theater. Red bank NJ is where I live and run my business. This is being written on 2/26/10 around 10ish EST, so if you are really interested in having me meet and speak with your friend; hook it up. My websites are listed here in my profile you can either call or email me. I’m free Sat 2/27/10 in the evening after 5pm and all day Sunday the 28th. Make it happen. I’ll answer any question he has, as long as he is willing to do the same for me. I’m down for a dialog. I was not contacted, big surprise.

To the assumption that I’m jealous of Millan

4 - Concerning jealousy, ah that is whole lotta supposition my friends, you assume you know my wants and desires, and we’re not that close. But hey, do what you feel.

To the question of American Humane and their take on the blog.

5 - I spoke with American Humane twice over the past few weeks and I’ve emailed numerous times with the head of the TV & Film dept. She thanked me for this blog, and her colleagues said that they liked it and that I “get it”. So again, I’m not worried.

To the notion that I should get on TV and get a dog training show

6- In the past year and a half I have been approached by numerous production companies about either being part of an existing dog TV show or creating one. In fact earlier this month a TV producer who is represented by CM’s agents contacted me and we’re discussing a dog related training show with opposite methods and ideologies from CM. It’s all very new, nothing concrete. I’m not going to divulge this man’s cell phone or email, but I can substantiate that its real. If it happens; cool, if not whatever. These things take time and I have concerns about entertainment as it relates to dog training and behavior and how it is presented. I’m not in dogs to be famous, not everyone is hell bent on being famous; I did that all that alooong time ago, so I’m cool with that particular chase as it were. I’m an advocate for humane dog training.
I have two simple rules to train dogs and modify behavior, I do not use fear or pain, of any kind, and if a person cannot explain it how can you train it, to others that is, and perhaps how can one train the dog their best in a humane way? Is that not the point? Past those two conditions I’m open to working with anyone for the humane training and behavior modification of dogs.

To the opinion that Millan is some type of gifted genius and it is my skills that are suspect

7- I’m not an “expert", I’m a student of dog behavior and training, and a professional positive reward based dog trainer. I was educated at the SFSPCA’s Academy for Dog Trainers, and I owe my foundational knowledge to their stellar program, period.
The “guru’ in my Pit Bull training website is marketing, simple as that. It’s been a real win – win for the PB community as well. Ask anyone that has trained dogs with me, other trainers or clients. I freely admit I have no gift, I’m not special. I have rocking mechanics, acute timing and a solid understanding of learning theory and legit dog behavior and I’m fully aware of the fall outs from fear and pain that dogs have been subjected to.
CM is 30% mass and 70% water like any other human, meaning he is subject to all the same laws natural and manmade of life on earth just like anyone else is. Like I said if anyone can get him in the room with me make it happen, privately one on one or with an audience. Either way, I’m cool. I have nothing to hide; it's not my methods or ideology that is being called into question by the best in the field of dog training and behavior.

To people that are offended by this blog
8 – I’m not apologizing to anyone for anything in this blog, if you had a chord struck that’s your deal. Perhaps it was struck for a reason. Deal with it, that is what adults do, they deal with it and they grow. I’m not a “cry baby”, or out to get anyone; In fact so many smarter more educated dog training & behavior people have come out and spoken out against the methods and the ideology of the DW show that I’m surprised anyone would think I matter in this debate. I’m actually surprised you all noticed, and frankly thanks for putting in me in such esteemed company as the people professional or otherwise that have spoken out about CM/Whispering. Thanks!

Be well
Drayton Michaels CTC

Links of interest you should check out

http://www.chicagonow.com/blogs/steve-dale-pet-world/2010/02/dog-training-symposium---first-of-its-kind-ever-with-cesar-millan-and-american-humane.html

http://www.americanhumane.org/about-us/newsroom/news-releases/dog-training-symposium.html

http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/31/opinion/31derr.html?_r=2
http://www.4pawsu.com/dogpsychology.htm
http://www.4pawsu.com/cesarfans.htm
http://www.americanhumane.org/about-us/newsroom/news-releases/06-dog-whisperer.html
http://www.esquire.com/features/ESQ1006-ESQ100_20-21.FINAL.rev_1
http://www.urbandawgs.com/divided_profession.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-belzer/first-do-no-harm_b_61755.html
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=204&Itemid=71
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=203&Itemid=71http://www.dogwhispererdvd.com/faq-national_geographic_dog_whisperer.html
http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2006-05-05-dog-whisperer_x.htm
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
http://www.komonews.com/home/video/37440019.html?video=pop&t=a
http://www.livescience.com/animals/091112-dog-training.html
http://www.whole-dog-journal.com/sample/Dog_Whisperer_Cesar_Millan.html
http://www.apbc.org.uk/cesar_Millan_tour_concerns
http://care.dogboston.com/an-alternative-to-cesar-millan/
http://beyondcesarmillan.weebly.com/
http://www.dogloversdigest.com/post.cfm/does-the-milgram-experiment-explain-cesar-millan-s-influence
http://www.facebook.com/home.php?#/pages/Anti-Cesar-Millan/97584126794?ref=nf
http://www.iaabc.org/
http://beyondcesarmillan.weebly.com/iaabc-behaviorists.html
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PBRV2cXC5GA&feature=email (Millan interview with Bill O’Reilly)

Dog Trainer abuse cases
http://njspca.org/njspca-police-blotter_Trainer_Charged.htm
http://www.zootoo.com/petnews/abuseclaimsquestiondogtrainers-1164

http://www.chicagoreader.com/features/stories/dogtraining/

http://www.animalbehaviorassociates.com/pdf/RMN_humane_dog_training.pdf
http://www.fox59.com/news/wxin-dog-trainer-faces-neglect-charges-011810,0,5761579.story

Famous dog Trainer attacked for using science and nature to train her dog!

2009-09-08T11:57:00.002-04:00

Recently I read a blog by one trainer criticizing another for putting a video on You Tube that showed a dog trained to hump on cue. I could see if it was a mild criticism that focused on training methods however the critique turned to a moral outrage usually reserved for legitimate acts of animal cruelty.

Suzanne Clothier is a dog trainer that specializes in “many things” as her web bio states. It’s funny that in all her years she’s never figured out that humping in dogs is a Fixed Action Pattern, and in the family of the four F’s. It’s also surprising that Ms. Clothier would not have put together that dogs have amazing discrimination, and that a dog with a strong FAP to hump would do best with it on cue so it could be rehearsed in the strict context trained humping only. This will create a decrease and possibly eliminate the humping during dog play and with other humans. Then again maybe she does know all this? I don’t know. I do however know the trainer in question, Jean Donaldson, a mentor of mine and I also consider Jean a friend. I do not like it when people attack my friends. Perhaps there is some professional jealousy at work here?

Or is Ms. Clothier a Christian/republican/conservative? I wonder? Care to answer?
I put my female dogs humping FAP on cue and it has greatly reduced it during dog play. In addition my dog is an APBT; she has a strong desire to clutch with her front paws/legs. Most likely somewhere in her lineage her relatives were probably what is known as a “catch dog”. Dogs used to catch hogs and bulls, by the ring on their nose or by grabbing them and holding them down. My female APBT also likes to hang by her front legs onto anything that dangles, a rope affixed to a ball big enough to grasp is one of her favorites, and she sometimes even humps in the hair while she has a tennis ball in her mouth. Is that rope toy now a sex toy!?!?! Oh my!

Chow Chow’s are one of the world’s oldest dogs. They have a long history as guarding and fighting, and hunting dogs. Buffy the dog in the video is a female Chow Chow. Humping is normal. Attacking a trainer for putting it on cue is sad. Especially when there is zero to gain from the attack.

When one trainer levels an accusation of abuse at another trainer they had better be able to back it up with exacting proof that the animal is/was under duress, in pain or feeling fear at the hand of the “trainer”. Not an “opinion”. Ms. Clothier has an opinion. Her opinion it seems is based in her morals, not in the science of animal learning and her blog never explained humping and FAPs/4 F’s. She took shots at Jean for her wardrobe though. Jean is a fashionista for dog’s sake!

For Clothier to lump Jean Donaldson into the Milan/Vick abuse category is ludicrous. Clothier says if Milan had done this people would storm the doors of Nat Geo.” If this were Cesar using humping behavior to prove that any behavior can be trained and put under control, there would probably be a march on National Geographic's headquarters”.
No they wouldn’t. Why? Because people are asleep, that’s why. People watching TV Dog training is the equivalent of 13 year old girls in the front row of the Jonas Bros. People get all tricked by the fancy lights and the music and the pretty dogs.
Millions of People have watched Millan shock, choke, hit, kick and submit dogs into learned helplessness and so far he’s just making more money. Why have you not stormed the headquarters of Nat Geo Ms. Clothier? After all it can be proven that Millan has abused dogs and disseminated misinformation. This disinformation hurts and kills dogs just as much as any physical abuse will, because not understanding dogs is what is killing them.

To lump Donaldson into the Vick/Millan/Abuse category as Clothier does is just downright comical. I agree that there is a line there and the thread runs through both of those idiots. What Clothier lost here was an opportunity to show people that fact in another blog that would have better served the agenda of all people working towards the betterment of dogs. Instead Clothier chose to blast one of the best dog trainers in the world because of her moral opinion, not because Donaldson did anything wrong.

With few to people realizing just how interrelated Vick & Millan are this could have been a blog about that. Those two are connect by their actions whether you want to make the connection or not that’s up to you. Millan has “lost dogs” (had to be euthanized) due to his “methods”. Intellectual laziness is killing dogs every day in shelters, it is also the main cause of why breeds get banned and owners resort to pain and fear. It seems Clothier suffers from this intellectual laziness, or is she just player hating?

Jean Donaldson admits to being a cross over trainer, someone who figured it out. She has worked tirelessly to promote positive training and has educated thousands of dog trainers and owners. Her mission is to help people and dogs. Her books are legendary, her Academy is legendary, and her status in dog culture is also legendary. In fact it is cemented.

Clothier? Ah not so much. Not one of my clients has ever mentioned her to me in 10 years. Not one of her books is on any required reading list I know of to be certified as a dog trainer. She never comes up in any conversation or blog or anything I’ve come across in the past 10 years in my study of dog training.

Jean Donaldson has a sense of humor, something Clothier clearly has lost or never had, or her sense of humor is rooted in some parochial Pollyanna delusion about dogs and humans. Clothier goes on a jag in her blog about APDT and how Donaldson is no longer a member, how she is “only speaking at this year’s conference”. I’m a member of APDT, and you know what, it’s a joke. They have pain trainers in their ranks. The good old shock, jerk n pain crowd flying the APDT logo all over the place. APDT has zero accountability or standards or any type enforcement of positive methods in dog training. Being a member of this organization is no great feat or credential. It’s a logo on a website, period.

Clothier served as a committee member for the American Humane Association's Task Force for the Development of Humane Standards for Dog Training, so why is the profession still such a disaster?There are no standards, why could you not get this job done Ms. Clothier? What happened?

At least Jean Donaldson puts her money where her mouth is and created the Academy for Dog Trainers at the SFSPCA. They do their damnedest to instill in all of the students that dog training is dependent on that state of the dog, if the dog likes what is happening then its ok, if the dog does not like what is happening then back off and rethink your plan. In addition they educate about dog behavior from a humane scientific standpoint.

This seems to be the year of disappointments for me in regards to positive dog trainers. I’ll just add Clothier to the list. Hey I have no issue with the women not wanting to put a strong FAP on cue, but to vehemently attack Donaldson is uncalled for. It makes Clothier and whoever alerted her to the video look like a bunch of jealous bitches. Don’t make it personal unless you want it that way.

All time does is make you old. It does not make you smart, kind, insightful or savvy. It can, but it is not a guarantee. This type of sniping is what we do not need in dog training among people who promote positive dog training.

Just because someone does not understand something does not make it wrong. I was educated by Jean Donaldson to ask questions, observe and base my deductions on legitimate dog behavior and to always consider the emotional state of the dog. As Jean says “Dogs vote with their feet”, if they don’t like it they won’t be willing do it. In all her years in dogs perhaps Clothier never distilled it down to something that efficient. I don’t know I’ve never read her books or attended her seminars, and now I won’t for sure.

How this will play out is as follows, some will be on Clothier’s side and say “humping is bad”. When in fact humping is normal, and it can be reduced or extinguished. If allowed in a specific context it helps the dog get it out of their system. That is what should be the message here. Fortunately Clothier’s blog is not all too popular, so it’ll probably go largely unread.
As Dunbar says “Make sure you touch the dogs goolies”, referring to the dogs private parts. He shout’s this in his puppy training video during a class and everyone compiles and chuckles. No outcry here for Dunbar’s handling exercises! Oh the humanity!

When I bath both of my dogs I have to get rather invasive with their “goolies” as it were. They tough it out and I reward with small food bits. It could be misconstrued as some canine Caligula by idiots or someone with such a moral stick up their behind they can’t see clearly. However those of us who are living on planet earth with even a modicum of legit dog knowledge know that well sometimes that is just a fact of life when you have a dog. So is humping, get over it, and get it on cue! It will be reduced quicker folks!

Clothier says “This is not a beer drinking moron or senseless stoner armed with a video camera and hell bent on demonstrating their dog's willingness to hump a person. This is a prominent, highly regarded award winning trainer/author's video.
Exactly, that is why Clothier should back off and perhaps have just let this one go, or asked Jean herself? Because Jean Donaldson is not a hack trainer. She has earned the respect to be given slack. Maybe Clothier is intimidated, or maybe just intellectually lazy? Either way it’ll all be ok, the world will not fold in itself because there are dogs humping on cue or otherwise. Well maybe Clothier will lose sleep; the rest of us most likely will be able to get past it. What I am miffed at is the disrespect leveled at my friend and mentor.

I’m a fellow blogger on Dog Star Daily with along with Clothier. I could post this at my private blog and accept no comments like she did. However I’m putting this up at DSD. Maybe I’ll get a direct reply? Maybe she can level abuse at me too! I always like a good laugh, so bring it on.

The only thing that will come of all this is that another trainer has just been “found out" to be less than what we thought she was, and it’s clearly not Jean Donaldson.

The video
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5jaA4k4SdTg
The blog
http://flyingdogpress.com/content/view/121/52/

Links to dog humping behavior & FAP’s
http://www.dogstardaily.com/training/down-amp-dirty-humping-sex-status-and-beyond
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fixed_action_pattern

In The Dog House - A new show with outdated info

2009-07-21T14:08:00.005-04:00

It’s always interesting to see what a dog trainer says, and then what they do when training a dog. When they do not match up as in the case in the case of Brad Pattison, I guess the reward is a TV show. This was also the case with the now familiar Cesar Milan. The difference here is Pattison does claim to be a dog trainer, Milan does not.

Saying one thing and doing another seems to be the modus operandi of these two idiots. I know that people will get all miffed and ruffled about me getting a bit mean, oh well too bad. I absolutely abhor people who hurt dogs, period; and if anyone has a problem with my attitude too bad. After all is this not the same attitude these guys use with dogs and owners, so why not toss it back at them? The polite approach has gotten us nowhere. It is time to call these types of methods out and hold the people who use and promote them accountable.

One of the problems with legit dog trainers and legit dog behavior people is they are not tough enough on abuse trainers. Get with it people, these guys get away with it because enough people who know better look the other way and say “oh it is not that bad” or “ Oh wll what can I do”. It’s bad and here is why.

People are attempting these “methods” and they are creating more problems such as aggression, fear and anxiety in dogs. These types of shows create junior versions of the TV trainers, and it’s not a good thing. This force based methodology then gets used by owners as a way of interacting with the dog on a daily basis. This leads to quite a bit of squelching behaviors with harsh verbal’s, varying degrees of physical abuse from both hands and equipment. Not much teaching or training as it were, and well a rather adversarial relationship. Building bonds not binds should be a guiding principal, especially on these shows. They play like it is, but in reality there’s a whole lots of negative associations and fears getting instilled in dogs.

Learned helplessness is not being calm and submissive. Smacking a dog in the face until it submits is not being alpha; it’s being abusive. This has been proven time and again by many scientific findings with verifiable data. But like in the court of law where credible science in relation to dog behavior gets ignored so it seems it gets left out in TV network board rooms and among some people who are self proclaimed “experts”.

So along comes Brad Pattison. A guy with what seems to be zero legit education in dog behavior or training. A guy who it appears is making it up as he goes along by cherry picking ideas and approaches. It makes his views on dogs and training quite contradictory. His beliefs and actions seem miles apart.

Watch this video http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/brad-pattison-gets-annoyed/14534450, or watch his show on Animal Planet Sat at 8pm, In The dog House.
* It seems the video has been taken down since this blog was first published*

Read Pattison’s interview here with Slice dot com
http://www.slice.ca/Shows/AtTheEndOfMyLeash/QAndA.aspx?Title_ID=105200

I always find it amazing that people who say they are helping dogs by hitting, hanging, choking and abusing them are allot like the people who say they love children and abuse them. These are deeply confused and disturbed individuals indeed. Actions do speak louder than words, so those of you who get all mazed out and delirious in the face of a TV or video screen, wake up and pay attention. I say this because I meet people and read blogs where people say “ we don’t like what he does but he’s so fun to watch”. Are these people serious?

It’s great to have people like Pattison & Milan do interviews; I say get these guys talking more! That is the sure fire way to reveal the sheer ignorance of what they do with dogs and how they view dogs. It is obviously not enough to show what they do, TV execs at Animal Planet and Nat Geo obviously could care less about dogs, science is ignored and people much smarter than I have spoken up and so far it’s not helped. It backs the case for people who train dogs with non abusive methods each day when we speak to people about dogs. Past that the real change is yet to come.

I met with an Animal Planet exec; she was dead in the eyes! She is a corporate hack of the highest magnitude. She said “we use operant training on our shows”, that was her big buzz word she used to connect with me, operant. It’s also a loop hole. I know the quadrants lady, don’t play around with me.

I suspect that is also the common denominator with Nat Geo’s execs. The entertainment execs I get, it’s the people who claim they “love dogs” and “work with them” and claim to be an “educator”, but are causing dogs pain and spewing false and unsafe advice to millions of dog owners. Those are the people that don’t make sense to me. All I can think is they are frauds and have a deep disconnect.

It seems Animal Planet wants some of that demographic that Nat Geo has to tune in when the dog owners are not salivating over Milan’s nonsense. I wonder how Ms. Stillwell feels about sharing the AP brand with a guy like Pattison. It must really suck for a very outspoken R+ dog trainer such as herself to work for the same company as this guy Pattison.

She is at least an outspoken critic of Milan and pain based training. Yea her show has flaws; however she has really come around and taken a stance, especially on electronic collars and pain training. I wonder if she will have anything to say about Pattison.

Ok back to Pattison. The guy has/had a show in Canada, now a show on Animal Planet, so it’s no great stretch to see how having TV connections in one country can lead to TV connections in the US.

Let’s dissect Mr. Pattison’s “theories”. These are excerpts from an interview Pattison did with http://www.slice.ca/

“My main objective when training dogs is to empower the owner and help place him/her, and the rest of their family, in a superior position to the dog”…

The problem here is that humans are already the dominant superior species. You can pretty much kill a dog and get away with it. Unless the dog has grabbed you by the throat and has you down on the ground and the dog is killing you; the dog is not dominating a human by displaying behaviors humans do not like. Fear or anxiety based issues and issues of aggression, especially where bites have occurred, need to be addressed with humane, legitimate and carefully calculated behavior modification. If the dog is simply frustrated, and you punish it you’ll be creating aggression.

The use of pain/force based training in the case of fear, aggression and anxiety is detrimental, in the case of obedience and manners’ training it is idiotic. One would think the common agenda would be to explain dog training & leash mechanics, timing of rewards both food and life rewards, and how to implement humane consequences to decrease unwanted behaviors. Along with providing a basic understanding of learning theory most people will do ok.

“One way dogs will try to determine their owner’s status is based on the quickness of their movements. Once a dog has calculated our weaknesses, it begins to assume the alpha position.”

The problem again here is the complete lack of understanding about how dogs learn and what is important to them. Dogs are not concerned with “status” among humans; that is the human thinking the dog is a human, when it is not. That line of thinking is called anthropomorphism. In fact this “theory” is so wacked out that it is hard to believe this guy has ever worked with dogs. Dogs do not “calculate weakness”, they calculate what pays off, food wise, social wise with dogs and human contact, fun things. Dogs view the world as safe or unsafe. Also if being fast with dogs is so great why is it the suggestion of ALL humane organizations that kids and dogs be supervised? Because kids are fast and erratic, and it is a known fact that can make some dogs upset, excited and possibly fearful. IE: Fast erratic movements equal potential danger for dogs.

He goes on to say…
“A critical tool dogs employ when interacting and disciplining other dogs is speed. Remember that a dog can move its mouth seven times faster than the human hand…”

It is true that a dogs mouth is faster than a human hand, so why then would you want to try and out maneuver a dog with your hands or body, wouldn’t it be safer and more effective if you found out what motivated the dog and determine what humane consequence one could place as a deterrent to unwanted behavior? I mean expecting people to be faster than a dog is ridiculous. In the case of fear and aggression, knowing you cannot out maneuver a dog I guess Pattison would be at a loss. Or ramp up the violence? He’s lucky most dogs come with pretty decent bite inhibition, but not all.

“Let me reassure you that I would never put my dogs, or any other dog, in a situation that it couldn’t manage. Usually I find that most dog owners who have issues with their dogs tend to have a low opinion of their animal…”

Watch the video I have attached to the blog – you decide if the dog is in a dangerous position. I guess we’ll see in the weeks to come just how not dangerous the situations he places dogs in really are. http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/brad-pattison-gets-annoyed/14534450
* This video has been taken down since this blog was first published*

Usually I find that most dog owners who have issues with their dogs tend to have a low opinion of their animal, and low expectations of what it can do and handle.

Wow, most owners who have issues with their dogs have a “low opinion of their animal”!?! Geeze, I thought it was just the opposite. It has always been my understanding that most owners have a very high opinion of their dog. This seems to be a direct contradiction to the dominance model, as most “trainers” who use pain/force etc.. Claim people coddle and praise too much. Hmm, quite odd.

The best recommendation I have for dog owners is that they take the time to study and observe their dogs and learn from them.

Ok, I thought that he wanted owners to move fast so the dog does not find the human weakness? Taking time and studying dog behavior usually is not coupled with speedy movements, assessing dogs fast and force based training.

I don’t believe in being either rough or cruel. I am firm and determined to demonstrate to the dog that it is not allowed to attack or bite me. Many people forget that dogs are animals and don’t communicate or show respect and love the same ways that humans do. The dog pack is always defined by who is the Alpha. Discipline is prevalent in the animal kingdom and our ignorance of this fact has cost many dogs their lives.

Ah, ok…this is where the man clearly has no idea what he’s speaking about and he’s just spouting some stuff he read or heard. First off, the point of aggression in dogs is to create distance from the thing it is afraid of as all aggression is rooted in fear. Secondly, he is right dogs are different from humans, but earlier on he does equate dogs and humans in the dominance model he proposes so which one is it? Lastly dominance is not a behavior it is a relationship paramiter.

Protracted warning signs are not an invitation to confront the dogs, rather the dog is saying “hey back off”. The other thing that Pattison has clearly ignored or has not looked into is that dominance among dogs is contextual and can be ever changing, also had he ever read Ray Coppinger or David Meech past 1970; he’d have discovered that dogs are NOT pack animals, they are scavengers and group up for power in numbers and procreation of the species. When dogs are subjected to stupid people doing stupid things it costs many dogs their lives, not a “lack of discipline” as Pattison suggests.

“Dogs do not reward each other with food. This is a behavior humans have created to express their love for the dog, but it is the opposite of what would happen in the real dog world.”

Wow, this is astonishing. Check it out, a puppy that bites too hard on a mother dogs teat will be kicked away off the food, operant conditioning in full effect, a consequence; and the puppy will be rewarded with continuing the milk delivery for a soft mouth, positive reinforcement, so dogs do reward each other for food, right from the start actually. Like I said has this guy ever really even worked with dogs?

In addition anyone who has even taken a basic science class in high school has been taught about rats being rewarded for following a maze by getting food. Food is not the problem, teaching people how to fade and use the food is the challenge. Understanding criteria shifts is something Pattison should be concerned with as well as conditioned emotional responses.

What this interview proves is that this guy is clueless. Now we’ve got two TV “trainers” that are spreading the gospel of dog ignorance.

As far as I can tell Pattison is not backed by Hollywood money like Milan, so he can probably be off the air sooner rather than later. He’ll either have his place as the number two after Milan, or maybe he’ll even ramp it up to do more heroics of harm than Milan, after all he’s just as stupid as Milan when it comes to dog behavior but he seems to have a better ability to speak. That is bad combo. Dumb and talkative is what has gotten many dogs killed. Breeding ignorance is killing dogs, not a “lack of discipline”.

Just watch what he does and read or listen to what he says see if they match up, or watch with the sound off….that is really all you need to do. Now that we’ve got another person practicing cruel and unusual punishment on dogs in the name of “training” on TV, Milan’s people can no longer say we are “picking on him” anymore, nope now it is really about methodology and humane dog training and what side of culture do you side with. This is why Pattison is good for the cause. He is another example that legit dog people can point to as an example of what not to do and how not to counsel the general public or paying clients.

I’ll be keeping an eye on how many clients call me with fear and aggression that are influenced by Pattison’s new show. The really sad part is now there are two shows on the air that promote the hurting of dogs so it’s twice as likely people will be influenced by this abusive approach.

Save the hate posts, save the hate mail. If you like these guys and what they do fine, that’s on your head and you’re conscious of what is happening to these dogs or maybe you’re not aware of it. Either way it is happening; it has a bad ripple effect in dog culture, especially with owners who attempt to copy them and junior hack trainer versions of the TV trainers claiming they are "gifted". If you attempt to copy them, and people do copy these guys, when it goes wrong and your dog bites or has deep fear/anxiety/aggression issues, you’ll only have the humane approach left. Sad thing is it might be too late and your dog could be euthanized or traumatized. Do you really want to take that risk?

Brad Pattison
http://www.endofmyleash.com/
http://www.slice.ca/Shows/AtTheEndOfMyLeash/QAndA.aspx?Title_ID=105200
http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/brad-pattison-gets-annoyed/14534450

Dr. Sphia Yin
http://www.askdryin.com/dominanceindogs.php

AVSAB Position Statement
http://www.blogger.com/

UPenn Study
http://www.blogger.com/

Jo Jacques CPDT, CPCT & Sandy Myers CDBC
http://www.blogger.com/

Dr. Karen Overall
http://www.pitbullguru.com/shock.html
http://www.goodnewsforpets.com/articles.asp?ID=147

AVSAB Position Statement
http://www.blogger.com/

UPenn Study
http://www.blogger.com/

Jo Jacques CPDT, CPCT & Sandy Myers CDBC
http://www.blogger.com/

Dr. Karen Overall
http://www.pitbullguru.com/shock.html
http://www.goodnewsforpets.com/articles.asp?ID=147

Australia SPCA Links about humane training for dogs
http://www.blogger.com/
http://www.blogger.com/
http://www.blogger.com/
http://www.rspca.org.au/resource/science16.pdf

Links to information about what is really happening with Milan
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/31/opinion/31derr.html?_r=2
http://www.4pawsu.com/dogpsychology.htm
http://www.4pawsu.com/cesarfans.htm
http://www.americanhumane.org/about-us/newsroom/news-releases/06-dog-whisperer.html
http://www.esquire.com/features/ESQ1006-ESQ100_20-21.FINAL.rev_1
http://www.urbandawgs.com/divided_profession.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-belzer/first-do-no-harm_b_61755.html
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=204&Itemid=71
http://www.blogger.com/http://www.dogwhispererdvd.com/faq-national_geographic_dog_whisperer.html
http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2006-05-05-dog-whisperer_x.htm
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
http://www.komonews.com/home/video/37440019.html?video=pop&t=a

Dog Trainer abuse cases
http://www.blogger.com/
http://www.blogger.com/
http://www.chicagoreader.com/features/stories/dogtraining/

I’m not worried or how funny is it going to be when you’re on trail for animal abuse?

2009-07-21T13:51:00.002-04:00

There seems to be two trains of thought running concurrently through dog training. There is the positive and the well, the not so positive. As with anything that gets called into question, these old fashioned methods now have to explain themselves. At least the trainers who choose these methods should be able to detail how it will affect the dog’s behavior past the momentary squelching.

There is no shortage of studies on how electronic shock causes pain and elicits fear in dogs. That is well documented in humans, monkeys, rats and dogs. The trouble is there are few too people who know better speaking up. Which leads to unaware dog owners, i.e.; consumers paying for devices that harm and often times on the ill conceived advice from a dog “trainer”?
This leaves quite a few people in the dark about what goes on with not only shock, but other forms of fear eliciting methods to “train” a dog. I always remind people that whether your pro dog anti dog, or somewhere in the middle, we all want safe dogs that have less aggression, less fear and owners attached to dogs that have legitimate skills and an understanding of at least their own dogs. You do not need to know as much about your car as the mechanic, it’ll help but you can do fine driving safe, changing the oil and filling it with the proper fuel. However if you call yourself a dog trainer you’d better be able to back it up with something more than the “good with dogs” credential., which is usually self - credentialed.

I am always amazed when certain people challenge me on training ideas/advice and even become offended, or feel I’m a “know it all”. Wouldn’t you want the most well informed and best credentialed person you could find for yourself in any capacity? Indeed we do, however some people feel as those it is an effrontery to their very self worth if someone else knows more about their dog.

Dogs require and deserve quite a bit more than folk wisdom or the advice from un- credentialed self professed experts. Dog owners in these highly media driven, litigious times with financial down turn concerns would do well by getting the most humane understanding of dogs they can. Why? It’s the right thing to do for you and your dog, it is the most cost effective way to address dog issues, and pretty soon it will be against the law to make your dog feel fear and pain in the name of training. With addition of a third CTC dog trainer my business is on a trend towards working with 800 – 1,000 dogs a year by 2010. In 2008 the dogs we worked with are part of group classes, private training sessions, board and train programs, plus a variety of volunteer work. Every dog that we’ve worked with that has been the recipient of harsh aversives has displayed some kind of fear based behaviors.

In many cases it is fear over seemingly innocuous interactions with people or dogs or a generalized sense of fear to the world. Hand shyness, hesitation of doorways, stairs, approaching strangers, fear of other dogs, and fear of losing resources, i.e. resource guarding, such as food, toys or sleeping locations. Fear is the precursor to aggression.

One large part of legitimate dog training and behavior modification/study is normalizing behaviors for dog owners. When I am speaking with perspective clients I remind them if a “trainer” cannot explain it how they can train it? The days of “I’m great with dogs, they all love me” are coming to a close. The reason being is there is no more room to run for these types.
It really has become a game of either figure it out or get out of the business. Media and the internet have changed the game. Verifiable scientific facts on how animals learn, and learn best are available. The fallouts from using aversive methods are easily obtained. Now it’s just up to those of us who are not afraid to speak up, too speak up.

In email exchanges with Corporal Al Peterson head investigator for the NJ SPCA cruelty division, I found out that the courts do not take an animal’s emotional state into account in cruelty cases. This is dumbfounding. Science proves that animals do have emotional states both positive and negative, called Conditioned Emotional Response. However in the court of law slick defense attorney’s can charge “prove it”. Well we can, the trouble is there are not enough educated people to go around in defense of animals. If a dog “trainer” applies shock or aversives to a dog and there was no sign of aggression prior to that person applying the aversives, is that not a direct correlation to how the dog developed the new aggressive behavior? It sure is. I have seen it many times in varying degrees. In order to claim abuse the dog has to be severely injured or killed. The court will not enter a dog’s emotional state into evidence.

Recently I read about a way to “use punishments and not feel guilty”. Hmm guilt? Is that not an intellectual emotion based on the morality and inner consciousness of one’s self? Isn’t guilt contextual/cultural/religious? Some people feel guilt over things that are harmless, like eating chocolate cake, while others look the other way in the face of elephant sized atrocities grazing in the room. If you’re not doing anything harmful, why should you have to intellectually stuff down or avert guilt?

When a very matter of fact without incrimination time out is issued to a dog for barking after giving a warning cue such as “that’s enough”, it’s not damaging to the dog to lose freedom. P- for those following at home. It’s frustrating, the equivalent to a bummer for us humans. We’re talking parking ticket level bummer. What has happened here is a chain of events, and we know that dogs pick up on sequences really well, especially when they are consistent. If done right you can ask many dogs “That’s enough” or incorporate other basic conversational verbal cues to quite or calm. You have to for a bit get off your duff and do some leg - work and not frighten the dog. Any dog “trainer” who does not clue you into the “secret” that dog training is mechanics and timing and understanding or interpreting dog behavior correctly as well as being kind, is a snake oil salesman.

Let’s flip the script, the person uses some form of violence, hey let’s call it what it is, the dog stops the behavior, and the human feels empowered. Instant success so it seems. The problem is, what do you do when the dog is outside the home in a new context? Once the human ramps up the fear or the pain level the dog will kick into high gear survival mode, this means the dog is not doing well. This is all happening at the hands of in many cases the dog’s owner.
One can always reward the dog for correct responses, and the good behavior we ask for. Not just constantly hammering the dog for all the things people do not want the dog to do. Many of these behaviors dogs display that people don’t want to tolerate are behaviors intrinsic to being a canine! Unfortunately quite a few people only punish or squelch the behaviors they don’t want and rarely reward the good behaviors beyond praise. In addition if you are not consistent and you do not train your dog to increase the probability of the behaviors you want, then what are you doing? You’re busting your dogs chops quite a bit is what you’re doing. Not a fun way to live for dogs or humans.

Trust is essential for dogs and humans to coexist. Once that trust is compromised dogs become fearful, hesitant and possibly aggressive. The worse the pain the worse the fallout, it’s a real easy flow chart. The sad part is people interact with their dogs in fear based ways as a mode of “communicating” quite a bit without any knowledge of how it effects the dogs overall behavior; sounds quite selfish.

I was speaking with Kris Crawford who has trained search & rescue dogs for 20 years. She told me that during the training for S&R dogs, which takes 2 – 3 years, the dogs have to learn to jump from 10 – 12 feet into the handlers arms. That takes trust. Dogs ultimately view the world as safe or unsafe, no matter what you think or want to believe this how quite a few decisions are made by dogs, if not all.

Creating bonds are the goal, not building binds. So make sure that all interactions with a dog are kind, conversational and consistent. One day you’re going to need your dog to trust you, if they don’t it may cost them their lives.

Our society is fascinated with quick fixes and instant gratification. Dogs provide that in the form of being happy to see us, needing little more than some food, water and companionship. However what dogs also teach us if we’re willing to learn, is to slow down for a second and not be self absorbed, dogs will teach us patience, dogs will teach us selflessness, dogs can teach us valuable skills in science and math; If we’re willing to learn from them.
I remember Janis Bradley reminding us upon graduation from the SFSPC’s Academy for dog Trainers, to at least once a day just “be with your dog, don’t require it to do anything, just be with it and be kind”. We demand quite a bit from dogs, and in many cases they are really going against their instincts to please us. Its part of life and it’s not the worst thing as long as we’re being gentle and respectful about it. Results in behavior happen whether you want them or not, so being humane at least ups the odds your dog will be padded somewhat through these frustrating or even fearful circumstances.

I saw a piece recently on Current TV about a program that teaches female inmates in upstate NY to care for and train dogs from 8 weeks to 12 months. The dogs go on to become detection dogs in law enforcement. All the women were literally transformed by the experience. I don’t doubt it. In order to be a really good person “with dogs” you have to remove ego and personal baggage. It’s essential you focus on the dog, not all your feelings about all that is “happening to ME”! Get over yourself and get into your dog.

At the end of an advanced basic training three class two clients were discussing their dogs and one man said to another that he was not sure if he’d ever own this breed gain (pit-bull) , they’re “allot of work” “ allot of “responsibility”, when he asked the other man if he’d own a pit bull again, he said no matter what dog he might have in the future he “learned so much about dogs from his Pit Bull” that he would be prepared for “any type of dog”, and then he gleefully admitted “ yea I would own a Pit Bull again, they’re really great fun dogs”.

Having the perspective that dogs are a gift and a way to enrich your life can really change your daily interactions with dogs. Dogs unlike anything else I’ve seen can unite and connect people from the most varied backgrounds. Dogs however are also caught in the midst of a division. There are factions out there in and out of “dogs” who just don’t understand them. Who are using them for their own ends and in some cases ignoring the intrinsic way dogs learn and how human behavior affects them.

So it boils down to people having to take stock in themselves. The legalities and abuses of dog training methods are not going unnoticed. Each time someone gets busted for abuse in the name of dog training, it just mounts the case that the use of these methods for training dogs are not effective or well liked by the majority of the general public. I have only met one or two people in the past 10 years who actually want to hurt dogs and enjoy being aversive. The rest are willing to give up their archaic ways once they have found a more humane and effective way to address their dog.

Remember squelching behavior with harsh aversive methods in dogs comes with a behavioral price. The momentary short burst of human anger and the resulting canine fear has a cumulative effect, especially with daily repeats. It may also only take one time for your dog to become really undone by it. Is that worth the risks? One day all these pain trainers and dog owners that gravitate towards harsh methods could wake up to law suits or jail time for animal abuse? At least the dogs will be safer and the public more aware and educated. Is that not the point of all this?

References
http://www.goodnewsforpets.com:80/Articles.asp?ID=147
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/29180079/
http://d.scribd.com/docs/cc67d04frp7scr59jka.pdf
http://www.avsabonline.org/avsabonline/images/stories/Position_Statements/dominance%20statement.pdf
http://www.avsabonline.org/avsabonline/images/stories/Position_Statements/Combined_Punishment_Statements.pdf
http://www.ust.is/media/ljosmyndir/dyralif/Trainingdogswithshockcollar.pdf
http://www.komonews.com/home/video/37440019.html?video=pop&t=a
THE DOG WHISPERER, CESAR MILLAN, on THE O'REILLY FACTOR
http://www.nytimes.com/2006/08/31/opinion/31derr.html?_r=2
http://www.4pawsu.com/dogpsychology.htm
http://www.4pawsu.com/cesarfans.htm
http://www.americanhumane.org/about-us/newsroom/news-releases/06-dog-whisperer.html
http://www.esquire.com/features/ESQ1006-ESQ100_20-21.FINAL.rev_1
http://www.urbandawgs.com/divided_profession.html
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/richard-belzer/first-do-no-harm_b_61755.html
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=204&Itemid=71
http://www.stevedalepetworld.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=203&Itemid=71http://www.dogwhispererdvd.com/faq-national_geographic_dog_whisperer.html
http://www.usatoday.com/life/people/2006-05-05-dog-whisperer_x.htm
http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2006/10/15/CMGPHL9D1N1.DTL
(http://www.dailyrecord.com/article/20081129/COMMUNITIES11/811290326/1005/NEWS01#)
http://www.zootoo.com/petnews/abuseclaimsquestiondogtrainers-1164
http://www.chicagoreader.com/features/stories/dogtraining/
UPenn Study
http://www.livescience.com/animals/090217-dog-training.html

Jo Jacques CPDT, CPCT & Sandy Myers CDBC
http://www.4pawsu.com/IAABC_Ecollar.pdf

Dr. Karen Overall
http://www.pitbullguru.com/shock.html

Australia SPCA Links about humane training for dogs
http://www.rspca.org.au/resource/science8.pdf
http://www.rspca.org.au/resource/science9.pdf
http://www.rspca.org.au/resource/science14.pdf
http://www.rspca.org.au/resource/science16.pdf

http://www.endofmyleash.com/
http://www.slice.ca/Shows/AtTheEndOfMyLeash/QAndA.aspx?Title_ID=105200
http://www.mefeedia.com/entry/brad-pattison-gets-annoyed/14534450

It's Just A Dog

2008-03-07T08:02:00.002-05:00

It's Just A Dog

I am sometimes given the answer or solution to a troublesome canine scenario with the following statement “It’s just a dog”. Meaning it is not worthy of any further consideration.

This mindset of a dog as lesser than or unequal to humans is sad. In my own experience nothing that I have ever been involved with has brought as much joy to others as my dog Mojo, notice I said to others, not just myself. The smiles and the joy Mojo conjures up in people is quite a site to see. He is one of only millions of dogs who bring untold happiness to millions of people, other than their owners, simply by existing.

This “it’s just a dog” mindset comes up in discussions about the use of pain or force when training and maintaining dogs. The dog; who some so callously toss aside like dead leaves during yard work has the ability through nothing more than existing, to cause joy.

If mistreated and abused this same dog may become a menace, however when you look closely at the numbers, some 300 million Americans and some 70 million registered dogs – now add up the yearly adversarial fatalities you get less than 20 deaths a year from dogs and less than 200 fatal attacks on humans. Those are big years by the way, it is usually less. It looks that despite all the various factors, dogs and humans are a good match.

All living creatures in our world deserve equality. Dogs are the only animal that has willingly made an alliance towards a better existence with humans. All other animals were and are subjugated to some extent.

I could go on an on about the countless stories that dot the history books about how the dog human dynamic it is not only good for both dogs and humans but it is necessary for both.

In 2007 the world saw the horrendous acts of animal cruelty played out on TV through the Michael Vick case. One of those dogs is Leo and now creating joy is his game. He works as a therapy dog, causing joy by simply existing.

There is perhaps no other aspect of life that can erase political and social differences like dogs. Of course dogs are also the subject, not the cause mind you of intense political and social differences. Being the subject of debate and being the cause of debate are two very different things. People have caused the debate over dogs. Dogs are stuck in the middle with no say at all. Just those glaringly positive numbers they produce each year.

If it is just a dog as some put it, why the worry and the concern over 20 yearly deaths, and that is a bad year by the way. Why the cause for concern over less than 200 fatalities a year?

When I interviewed Jean Donaldson (director of the Academy For Dog Trainers at the SF SPCA) for my documentary film Judging the Innocent she said “when it comes to animals with pointy teeth, it hits something primitive in us, and we do not think about it rationally, she then went on to say “the only way out of this (the troubles we face with dogs) is to think our way out of it rationally”.

Logic and rational are what we need when it comes to dogs and humans. We already get along well with dogs, though we can do better.

In a recent phone conversation with Marthina McClay founder of OUR PACK Inc. (who is now Leo’s owner) she said that she reminds her dog training students that-

“It is the responsible dog trainers and owners who are the executives of the decisions that are made on behalf of dogs” - “don’t let those who do not know about dogs make executive decisions about dogs.”

I am sure there are people out there that “work” with dogs who are not all that fond of them. There are dogs right now in a home with someone or perhaps a number of people in the home do not really like the dog, and the dog is caught up in the human condition.

It all boils down to how each person at all times in the dog’s life treat and interact with that dog. This means ALL people at ALL times. If done correctly and humanly it ensures the dog will make as many positive associations as possible to people and the world around it. This is a tall order.

There will always be a segment of society that does not like dogs or that even down right hates dogs. What these people need to keep in mind more so than the millions of dog lovers, is that dogs are innocent. They are not able to morally construct past, present and future events and conspire and transgress against humans.
Dogs either feel safe or unsafe, it is not always about what we want from our dogs, sometimes the dynamic of humans and dogs requires that the humans simply help the dog, and not judge. This is done best by understanding how they actually learn and what their limited range of expressions may mean. Dogs learn through association & consequence, that’s all folks. There is no other known form of learning that we have scientifically documented for dogs or animals in general.

When we toss dogs aside and do not respect them for who they truly are it is a reflection of our worst human qualities of selfishness, greed and ego.

It says more about the people who blame and hate dogs, than it does about the dogs who get blamed for being dogs.

In order to have a major shift towards treating dogs better in the USA, we need a shift in consciousness. We need the people who actually know and understand dog behavior to put aside petty differences and get education in abundance to the public through the infrastructure of ACC, SPCA’s, Humane Societies and Rescues. In addition these pockets of society will in turn be educated as well.

There are some 70 million registered dogs in the USA, there is no reason why those of us who scientifically know about dogs and their behavior, how to best maintain dogs in our society, cannot put forth a concise educational mailer via email or snail mail to the millions of registered dog owners, which would explain how dogs learn and what the side effects of aversive training or harsh interactions may bring about behaviorally in dogs. We have the infrastructure of government in place, and their job is to get information to people. Let’s use our existing resources.

This is one way to have fewer people saying it’s just a dog, and perhaps have more people saying, “That is a dog, and it needs to be treated with respect”. When people know the truth about dogs and their intrinsic natural qualities, they can make better decisions about their dogs. Especially the people who are afraid of them.

People will catch on if given the proper information. Dogs can either cause joy or misery, simply by existing. It is up to humans to decide which side of the equation dogs will be on. Furthermore which side of the equation will the humans be on? Are we going to keep thinking that “we know dogs” even when we don’t? Or are we going to educate and elevate the consciousness?

Thomas Kuhn famously observed -
Paradigm shifts happen not when the investors in the old paradigm change their minds, but when they die.

Let’s not wait.

How Past Professions Can Help You Be A Better Dog Trainer

2008-03-03T10:14:00.000-05:00

Many people who come into the profession of dog training have diverse backgrounds. I am no exception. I have found that over the past 8 years working with dogs, 5 of those years spent running www.urbandawgs.com an LLC dog training business. My past professions and personal pursuits have laid a good foundation for being a professional dog trainer.

One of the more educational jobs I held in the past was being the CFO of a digital reproduction house in Soho NYC. I held the position until August 2000, some 8 odd years. My job consisted of collecting money, making pay roll which was $10,000 dollars plus a week for the staff of roughly 26 people. In addition I was in essence the number two in charge after the owner. Quite a bit fell into my lap. If I did a poor job, we did not get paid so pressure and being responsible for other peoples general welfare through getting a pay check was with me daily.
Many times when working with a dog training client you carry the responsibility far past the consult, you become connected with the dog and the humans in the exchange. Especially if there is serious behavior modification involved.

Speaking on the phone and listening for key information while collecting debts is an art. I am sure every dog trainer who speaks with clients via telephone knows what I am speaking about. Getting pertinent information in the midst of emotions be it money or dogs is essential to doing a good job.

After 8 years of being a phone detective and chasing down an average of 5 million dollars a year, you get good at knowing when people are telling the truth or not.
The last thing you want when getting to a dog training session is key info left out about the dog and the people. Each component of the dog’s behavior and the human’s life and approach to the dog is necessary for a thorough consult.
From my time working at the digital reproduction house I am able to take my phone skills, my people skills and my managerial skills and apply them in my profession as a dog trainer. In addition running a business that only involves myself and my wife is much easier!

Prior to working at the digital reproduction house, I was a bike messenger in NYC. In fact I got the job at the digital place when I dropped off a package one day.
As a bike messenger you have to be fearless. No matter what else you take with you on the job, you have to be unafraid to ride your bike at a steady clip in the midst of NYC traffic. If you are a bad messenger you can die. Literally each day around the park where we all took breaks bike couriers told stories of someone who was hurt bad or died. So we were all very supportive of each other “out there” as we called it. It was a fraternity I am proud to have been a part of.
Fearlessness had to be combined with excellent timing, impeccable judgment, eye, hand foot and body coordination must be fine tuned. If not you could die or get very badly injured.

I’ve often said it would be good for most everyone to experience something that is interconnected with their monetary survival and their physical well being. It builds character and adds perspective to ones life. After all, if you face death each day how bad can other aspects of your life be?

Many times while working with dogs I see others who are afraid of dogs. Even owners and caretakers of dogs can be afraid of the dogs in their lives. This is not all together a bad thing, as being cautious of a dog can help you from being bitten in some circumstances.
However when working with dogs if you have a fear and the dog is actually not a threat to your well being, it causes disconnect in the approach to training and behavior modification. That trepidation bleeds over into the trainer’s ability to get the job done. I am sure this is one of the many reasons why some trainers do not take aggression cases. I do not blame trainers for not taking aggression cases, they are difficult.

My time on a bike in the midst of traffic presented constant dangers. I faced a life or death situation daily, that has helped tremendously as a dog trainer. It gives me perspective. Along with my personal experience as a bike messenger combined with the education about dog behavior I received at the SFSPCA’s Academy for Dog Trainers I am very comfortable around dogs of all behaviors.

I have said for years even before I was training dogs “I am brave but I am not stupid”. I continue to follow that axiom to this day. Especially as it relates to aggressive dogs, I do not mention this for machismo. Assessing situations as safe or unsafe is part of a dog’s life, and should be part of responsible dog trainer’s skill set. Knowing when to proceed further or stick with the current criteria especially in resource guarding cases and approach phobias are critical to the plan being successful. I tested my own limits on the streets of NYC as a bike messenger; however I always take the well being of the dog and the humans in the dog’s life into consideration, and do not suggest or try anything that might endanger either. I was a cowboy on a bike, but not as a dog trainer.

In some cases where an aggressive or even a highly exuberant dog is in a home with small kids, a dog trainer must have keen awareness of potential hazards and set the home up properly with management and counsel the people in the art of humane and effective management and D&CC.

Dog training is safer than being a bike messenger, and it is much more rewarding all around, however those 5 years I spent on a bike in NYC made me physically strong and gave my mind an acute ability to look at the horizon and make nano second adjustments for my safety, much like you need when walking and working with leash reactive dogs.

I was recently asked, “Are you afraid of being bitten by dogs”. My answer was “no”. This is because dogs are predictable once you understand their actual behavior, especially if it is my dog or a dog I have been working with on in an on going behavior modification. Cab drivers, busses and especially pedestrians are extremely unpredictable. I could go about near death experiences where I came within an inch of my life, but I am still here to tell the tales so I guess I was a good bike messenger.

As dog training has many physical attributes, my practice of working out, martial arts, yoga and leading an all around healthy active life style have also all played a part in my continuing advancement as a dog trainer.

My official training and education in life is in music. I am a graduate of the Musicians Institute. For many years I taught music privately. So the dynamic of transferring skills both verbally and displaying the mechanics of a skill are firmly imbedded in my repertoire as a teacher.
In addition I have no fear of standing on stage and speaking, performing or being stared at as you have to deal with all these scenarios on many occasions as a dog trainer, stage experience comes in handy.

In my musical travels I have been fortunate to know the highs and the lows that you hear about in the music business. The highs include playing the pier in NYC (twice) to 10 thousand + people. I know the thrill of getting fan mail and receiving glowing praise from the press from all over the world.
I have performed with amazing artists such as Green Day, De La Soul – both of whom I opened for. Becoming friends with true geniuses like Jon Brion and Jeff Buckley, both of whom I am friends with (RIP Jeff). I have made records in million dollar studios that failed to see the light of day and I have been lauded for home recordings that cost a few thousand dollars. I have been broke and I have been well off. The ebb and flow of money as a musician is very similar to running a dog training business, as you have to be really savvy at spending and saving and holding steady in times of slow to no business.
I have felt the pain of rejection by my piers, the press and the audience sometimes all in the span of a day or two. In addition you can be a hero to your clients or get the blame when they are looking for a reason to be mad at the dog.

The preparation and the grind of being a musician have striking similarities to being a professional dog trainer. There is an intrinsic mechanical quality to both. What astounds me is that no one would pick up a guitar and start strumming away unless they could do it well, for fear of embarrassment or fear of breaking the guitar! However I see people holding the leash of dogs and “training” who have zero mechanics in the art of walking a dog. Yet they have a dog and feel they “know” what they are doing simply because they have a dog.

Another other parallel quality is the hustle to be known and procure clients or gigs. In both dog training and music you have to market, promote and sell yourself to some degree. Other wise you cannot do what you love effectively. In both cases you need an audience to execute your skills. Also in both cases one can be self contained and get along well, you will find many of the best musicians and the best dog trainers are solo artists at heart.

Music is an art and a science. Dog training is an art and a science. Both require very good eye hand coordination and an understanding of the principals of a theory. Music has a harmonic theory known as music theory and dog training has the theory of animal learning. Musicians who are “hacks” are people who fudge through the music and barley get by, or perhaps have an abundance of charm so they get away with it. In dog training there are also “hacks”. The major difference is if you half ass a song no on gets hurt, if you fudge through dog training with your “charm” you can cause a great deal of harm and stress for both the dog and the humans in the dogs life. In both music and dog training one needs to work on their “chops”, IE: mechanics and theory in combination. In dog training you really have to leave out the emotions and the drama and get down to the theory, music is not that easy. In music you have to hold the emotions at times but not too much, and if the music is all science it might be boring – too mechanical. It is that human element that makes the notes alive.
In dog training that human element can get in the way, especially if that means trying to figure out what the dog is “thinking”. In dog training you can go all science and no emotion and get great results. In fact it is highly suggested from some of the best trainers and behaviorists out there, to stay the course of the dog’s assessment and use the science, be humane at all costs, however, keep your heart free of too much emotion. That has to be saved for when you are through with working with the dog and the clients and you are at home reflecting.

Many times in music especially while in the studio, a musician has to be connected to the emotion of the song yet slightly disconnected so the technical execution is correct, yet retains the human quality needed for the track. This is especially hard for singers; (yes I am a singer), so I know that delicate balance first hand. Dog training has this same delicate balance of disconnect and connection to your subject, IE: the dog.

If anyone reading this has experienced a dog owner who cannot get past the emotions involved with their dog, you know how hard it is to make any progress in the training or behavior modification. In music it is the same thing actually, a lot of the emotion that you see or hear on records is acting. Not that the people do not have a connection to the song, or are insincere etc…but they need a certain amount of disconnect so they can execute the material, and concentrate on the mechanics.

An aspect of being a world class musician is mastering the art of listening to many sounds at once. This is especially true when mixing a recording. A person must learn to differentiate not only different instruments but also different frequencies. The following is a story from a few months ago where my hearing expertise came in very handy while with my own dogs.

One day as I was about to unlock my front door and let my male dog Mojo in the house after his walk, however I heard a sniff. I was not sure if it was Mojo or not as it sounded like it came from the other side of the door. I was busy with the keys and so forth so it was hard to tell.
It was a faint sniff, and with the traffic, the wind, the other ambient sounds, I was not sure exactly where this sniff came from.
I turned to Mojo and he was sitting in expectance of the door opening. I leaned down a little further towards the door and I heard another sniff.
I had left my female dog Keyshia behind a pressurized gate and an Xpen on her side of the house while I was out walking Mojo. So I wondered how she could have gotten over the barriers. Pits are great escape artists, so I knew it was possible somehow.

I tossed some treats away from the front porch and Mojo dutifully took his 6 feet of leash freedom and went for the goodies. I cracked the front door ever so slightly to see Keyshia’s little black snout. I issued some quick jolly talk and praise “good girl” and shut the door.
I put Mojo in the back yard and went in to see how Keyshia got around the barriers.
If I had just opened the door there would have been a nasty dog scuffle. Perhaps Keyshia would have even got loose in the front yard? I would not have been able to get her as I had Mojo on leash. They get along on leash, but under these circumstances who knows? Also traffic is moderate on our street so that was also a potential hazard. It would have been a nightmare to say the least. Mojo and Keyshia do not get along inside, and that is all Mojo’s deal, Keyshia loves pretty much all dogs, once she warms to them. Imagine if I had gone in and let Mojo off his leash only to find Keyshia was upstairs or around the corner it would have been a nasty dog fight indeed. I shudder to think.

Had I not had the ability and the mindset to listen to many frequencies/sounds at the same time from countless hours in front of speakers listening critically, to be aware of anomalies in my audio spectrum I might be writing a different story about now Xpens and gates are not always as safe as we think, or how management fails at some point. I am really thankful for my ears! You never know what skill might get you out of a dog jam.

The next time you are looking to be a better dog trainer or get some new inspiration perhaps something form your past might be the key to taking your skills to the next level. Doing things to improve your eye-hand coordination, breathing etc, can be very helpful in dog training, after all dog training is a mechanical skill based on timing and recognizing behavior.

The difference between knowledge and wisdom is doing. –
Dan Millman – Author of The Way of The Peaceful Warrior.