Thoughts of a Dog

This page is dedicated to any thoughts, articles, pieces, news, etc... that were written by myself and other Canine Consultants/Behaviorists throughtout the world.

If there is a topic or situation you would like to hear about or see addressed, you can email me and I'll will do my best to see that it is written about and posted.

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The employment rate is too high

I was recently asked to come and help with a Belgium Shepherd who was suffering a number of issues.  Halfway into the consultation the owners said that the breeder she came from was breeding with the goal that the puppies will go on to be involved in various services such as: guide dogs, police dogs, therapy etc…  They then asked if their dog’s behavioral issues were because they weren’t stimulating her mind enough and if she needed a job to do, should they get her involved in doing something to resolve the problems they were dealing with.

So many people are under this idea because, again, society has pounded it into our heads that because they’re a lab they need to be involved in hunting, or if they’re collies they need to do herding otherwise they’re going to go stir crazy and destroy your home, and the list goes on and on.  Firstly I don’t want to discourage the people that are involved in these various activities or services as again this is a perfect example of the many services that dogs can offer us to help make our lives easier and better.  It’s also a great display of how, through the domestication of the dog, we’ve been able to take advantage of the various behaviors that originally belonged to wolves and use them for our benefit.  However, as I told my clients, the problem was not that she needed to be given a job, rather she already had too much of a job to do. 

If a dog is in its natural environment then it’s able to understand the world around it and, if needed, can take on the job of the leader and handle it just fine.  But as soon as they enter the human world, they’re in a world they don’t understand (as displayed in the video of a very confused border collie) and aren’t able to handle that job of being the decision maker.  However, someone has to take on the job and if they don’t see their human companions acting as a leader (their definition of what makes a leader) then it’s up to them.  So all of the dog’s behavioral issues stem from the dog desperately trying to take on that job and do it to the best of their abilities.  Something else to think of is that when the dog no longer is distracted by trying to do the job of leader then they’re able to focus that much more on doing any of the service jobs that they are asked to take on. 

What’s in a name?

Something that’s such common problem, in my opinion it’s a pandemic, regarding the canine world is stereotyping the breed.  A friend of mine with the Utah Friends of Basset Hounds rescue a while back has actually asked me to address this topic because of the stereotype that Bassets get of being too stubborn or stupid to be taught.  I’ve actually had the pleasure of working with a couple of the fosters within this rescue organization and on both occasions had everyone tell me beforehand “good luck with that, you’re going to want to pull your hair out by the end,” and ended with the joy of having four or more bassets flat on their sides, completely calm, responding really well and all of their own free will.  Are bassets too stubborn or too stupid to be worked with, not at all, especially if you know the answers to the questions that they’re asking. 

There are often so many people that really fall in love with the look of a particular breed but never get it because as soon as they reveal the attachment to a particular breed they almost always hear the phrase, “oh you should never get that kind because of ………!”  and the reasons are endless from they’re all off the wall hyper, aggressive, headstrong, stubborn, stupid, etc… the list goes on and on.  Many breeds are being banned one by one from cities, even countries, all over the world for being aggressive.  The breed focus seems to shift every decade or so, at one point it was German Shepherds, then Dobermans, then Rottweilers, now it’s any dog that resembles a Pit Bull.  Ironically Shepherds are now commonly used in the police force and army, celebrated for their service whereas around World War 2 it was Pit Bulls who were most recognized and celebrated for their service with the war.  Ironically the Labrador Retriever and the Border Collie are at the top of the biter list, not because they are more aggressive than another breed but because they’re two of the most popular breeds, so there’s more of them.  I do have to say that I hate the term bully breed that everyone uses, even the people who are against breed stereotypes use it, the term bully breed in itself is a stereotype.  I would love to see people abandon “bully breed” because what are people going to immediately think that aren’t very experienced with canine behavior.

I’m here to say that to say every dog that happens to fall under a particular breed will act in a particular way is no different than going around saying how if you’re Canadian you must be obsessed with hockey, if you’re British you clearly have bad teeth, Chinese people are all really smart, every Irish is drunk more than sober, every American is obese and arrogant (sorry guys this is a common stereotype for us throughout the world); it’s absolute nonsense!!!  What do you go off of when you have such a mixed breed that you don’t know what breeds they have in them.  How a dog behaves comes down really to two factors: their individual personality and if they’ve been given the stressful job of decision-maker and of course their personality determines how they respond with that stress. 

It’s not rocket science


I recently had a conversation with someone who said to me, “I hear you’re a miracle worker when it comes to dogs, great reviews from others that you’ve helped.”  To which my response had to be, “I’m not a miracle worker, I just understand what the dogs are trying to say and what they need, so I teach other people to understand it too.”  Now I say that I had to respond that way, that’s because as flattering as it was to hear the compliment, to just say thank you and accept it would mean that it takes miracles to resolve a dog’s behavioral issues, which it doesn’t.

It reminds me of a conversation I once had with my brother a few years ago when I was just beginning my work as a dog listener.  At one point he said to me, “I just don’t understand why everyone seems to think that in order to be a good owner, you need to use all these gadgets such as shock collars, clickers, gentle leaders, choke chains, etc… that have come out over the last 40 or so years.  Humans apparently have managed just fine without them for thousands of years.”  What impressed me was that this boy at the age of 16 years, had hit on a key point that hundreds of millions of people seem to miss and forget.

There are many high profile trainers and behaviorists on TV these days, one in particular comes to mind and how they say how they’ve been born with the knowledge they have regarding dogs, and also have a disclaimer saying how the show is educational but none of this should be attempted at home without the help of a professional.  I hear these things and think of how intimidated and unqualified to own a dog so many people must feel by seeing all this.

Christmas Surprise

All over the world, it's a very common occurance for the family to come down Christmas morning to see what Santa had brought them, to be surprised and delighted by a young, furry, playful addition to the family.  It's a fun and exciting thing to experience, but it's also a chaotic and confusing thing for the dog, and when not given the right information and environment, the dog commonly takes on the role of decision maker and develops behavioural problems and tragically many people end up returning or disposing the dog when problems arise or that cute little puppy, suddenly grows up to be an 80 lb adult dog. 

Ideally, the appropriate way to handle this, is to look to a reputable breeder, or even better a reputable rescue that will allow you to purchase the dog, allow the family to come see it the day before or after Christmas, but hold it until after the holidays have passed and the chaos has calmed, but often times this is not what happens.  So the following is a piece written by my friend and fellow Canine Consultant Carmen Cole, from Kent, UK; regarding how to properly introduce a new addition into the home, helping it to settle in comfortably, while understanding how the dog is seeing all these new changes.

Settling In

At the best of times bringing a rescue dog into your home for the first time is a HUGE upheaval for the dogs. Where am I? Where do I stand? Who is the leader of this pack? Can I trust these humans? Am I staying?

Aren’t these the sort of questions YOU would be asking? Well…. Your new dog is!

Dogs are Pack animals with a very strong survival instinct, and the key to this survival is either to be led, or to lead. That’s it, their lives depend on it and when they arrive they will be looking for clear leadership otherwise they will take on the job themselves. If your new dog doesn’t get clear signals in a way THEY understand that it is you not they who are Leaders of the Pack, then they will take on the job. That’s when problems arise that are perceived as ‘bad behaviour’ when actually all your dog is trying to do is a job to the best of their ability in a world they don’t understand!

As animal lovers the first thing we want to do is hold them close, comfort them and say ‘you’ll never be hurt or hungry again’, to shower them with affection and try to make up for all the bad things that must have happened in their past. To invite all your friends and relatives to meet your new addition and show them how wonderful they are.

Ok.. How would you like it if you arrived at a strange place with strange people and everyone stared at you and tried to hug and cuddle you! I know I’d freak out.

Don’t bring them straight into your home, bring them into the garden and wait for them to toilet, then praise them and you’ve started on a positive note. Let them find their way around the house and don’t shout if they get something they’re not meant to have, call them gently and offer them something better (mmm chicken). If you have a very large house it can be a little overwhelming all that space so limit it for your new dog initially and then slowly allow them into the areas which are ok to be in. Don’t approach your new dog, call them to you and if they choose not to come then leave them be, they’re not ready yet.

Give your new dog space, give it time, don’t smother them, they need time to make up their minds that you are in fact not a threat and a good thing to have in their lives. Keep to your normal routine, if you take a couple of weeks off then its going to be a huge change for them when you suddenly go back to work. Practice leaving and don’t say ‘goodbye’ to them when you do, simply leave the house for 2 minutes then walk back in and don’t pay any attention to them till they leave you alone. THEN wait for five minutes and allow them to relax then call them over with a nice treat. Practice this as often as you can during the day extending the time you leave the house. A nice easy way to remember this is ‘don’t say goodbye and don’t say hello’

Eat first, pack leaders ALWAYS eat first but that doesn’t mean you have to eat a full meal before you feed your dog. Simply prepare their food and leave it up on the counter, then eat a biscuit or a cracker or a piece of fruit, just something small before you put their food down. NO teasing just quietly eat what you’ve got then put their food down and walk away. Leave them in peace to eat and when they walk away from their bowls pick it up, even if there is food left in it and then nothing till next meal. Don’t pretend to eat! they know when you’re trying to fool them because they can smell it! And you don’t have to pretend to eat from their bowls either, they just need to see you eat first!

Trust is earned and if you allow them to decide for themselves when the time is right, you have a friend for life!

Carmen Cole -

                      http://www.havoc-to-harmony.co.uk/