(Part 3) Best dog care books according to redditors
We found 2,373 Reddit comments discussing the best dog care books. We ranked the 490 resulting products by number of redditors who mentioned them. Here are the products ranked 41-60. You can also go back to the previous section.
He's resource guarding, and it looks like he's far more concerned about his toys getting taken away than food. As inappropriate as the behavior is in our human world, please understand that resource guarding is quite natural for dogs. A predator that doesn't have a predisposition to guard its resources probably doesn't last long in the wild.
I second the recommendation for "Mine!" by Jean Donaldson. She explains the concept of resource guarding, the whys and the hows, and outlines some practical exercises that you can use to help your dog understand that you're not a threat to his precious resources.
It really doesn't sound like this is going to be a good environment to raise a healthy, well behaved dog. I think you guys need to put the hard brakes on this decision and reevaluate your choice here...but I somehow doubt your family is going to say no to a puppy so...
Leaving it alone all day will almost certainly create behavioral issues (chewing, self harm, destruction, barking, anxiety, aggression, etc). That's not a nice life for a dog, especially a puppy by itself. I leave my dog 6-8 hours, but he's grown and I know he can handle it thanks to the looong walks we take before and after work, and all the other work I've put into training him and steps I take to prevent separation anxiety. People have to go to work, but look into daycare or at the very least crate training to help. Try to get the family to re-prioritize getting home sooner to let the dog out.
>they're kinda crazy and very yappy / bark a lot.
A dog's behavior is 80% a direct reflection of the owner. Although this can be complicated when the dog has been adopted by various people. Sometimes the current owner is dealing with someone else's mistakes.
If dogs could be BRED to BEHAVE then there would be a lot more "naturally well-behaved" dogs. Breed and other genetic factors can play a part in your dog's personality, but early exposure and training will always be the PRIMARY determining factors of how your dog behaves.
Small dogs and big dogs have the same brains. People try to act like they're almost separate species in order to excuse their bad training. You will see more yappy little dogs because people let them get away with it. A german shepard that angrily barks and lunges at anyone passing by is not going to be around for long.
Dogs are a lot of work, especially the first year of training. You will get what you give with a dog. The dog's energy level matters, this is the 20% inherent personality that you have to shape and influence with your 80% training. Regardless of breed, you can find a low-energy, high-tolerance puppy in most litters...but it sounds like you picked a random pup, so it's luck of the draw for you. Might be the high-energy, reactive pup of the litter, or something in between.
Training a pom can be hard because they are cute and tiny and it's easy to let them get away with very bad behaviors that you would never tolerate from a big dog. I found it helped to always imagine that my tiny fuzz ball would one day be growing up to be a Samoyed. Would I let a Samoyed puppy jump and bark and bite, knowing that behavior would soon becoming from a 100lb dog? No way! So same for a tiny pom.
I read all of Cesar Milan's books, and also Monks of New Skete. There are also some good youtube channels to check out. At the very least watch the "what to do before/the day you bring home a puppy" vids, so you get the crucial first step right! Zach George channel and perhaps most helpful; "are you ready for a dog?"
Cesar is pretty strict with dogs, more about obedience/dominance
The Monks are middle ground
Zach is very positive reinforcement/treats
So check them all out a bit and see what style will realistically work for you and your family (could even do various approaches from different people).
Honestly it seems to me like it's almost the norm for people to impulse buy/adopt dogs, be very lazy about training, and leave them home 8-12 hours a day. You're not doing anything outlandish. However the consequences of these decisions remain. The fact that you clearly care about what happens with this dog should go a long way. All it takes is someone stopping for a minute to consider the dog's needs, rather than only the humans' needs, and you'll be on your way. Feel free to ask questions or PM me.
edit: other random pom-specific advice!
http://www.petpom.com/ -- this website has a lot of info you need! Buying their PDF is worthwhile.
Don't cut or shave the fur, esp in the first year, or the coat will be ruined.
Little dogs need lots of exercise too, multiple daily walks for their mental health. They are tiny so the walks can be sort.
Poms can be quite fragile so be careful. #1 cause of death in poms is being dropped. Be wary of letting strangers hold your dog.
Poms are subject to low blood sugar and seizures, so make sure as a baby it eats often.
Dogs are never too young to be trained. Start from day 1. The first few months are mainly about establishing a relationship and communication though.
Dog health insurance is a good idea, there's a comparison website online for plans in your area
Good dog food is a long term investment for the health of your dog. Cheap food = expensive health problems. You can also google the best brands of foods. I usually go for Acana or Wellness. Human food can also give them the same health problems so avoid it as much as possible!
Patricia McConnell wrote a great little pack leader guide filled with tips on how to lead your dog, but in a-non pushy, aggressive way. Even if you believe this thought to be debunked, it's likely to benefit your dog as it's similar to basic parenting techniques.
> Um no we have studied dogs extensively and very well understand their intelligence. If a dog can't walk a stick between a fence a dog cannot understand a hose...
You should read "How Dogs Love Us" for a more up to date understanding of a dog's intelligence. Knowing the connection between the hose/water and the person's reaction could definitely be something.
Ok. Given the information I have right now, here's how I would handle it.
Think if there's somewhere you can go for a week or two. Best friend's house? Mom's house? If so, calmly let BF know that you are going to stay there for a while in order to give him a break from the dog and work on his behavior. If not, skip this step.
Second, you need to understand fear aggression. Both of you do, but I'll leave it to your judgment when to ask BF to read up. I'd recommend Click to Calm because it's fantastic at real-life solutions.
(we should also talk about management somewhere in here if he's reacting to things he sees/hears inside the house, or reactions are >50% of the time on walks).
Third, you need to work on teaching the basic principles of self control. This can include general training like suddenly settle and it will also include counterconditioning. For example, walking around potential "triggers" at a wide distance, and feeding him treats when he looks at them. (And feeding him ALL OF THE TREATS) when you see him willfully disengage from the "threat" or he can give you a sit. (Click to Calm will teach you much more.) It will be helpful to be able to show BF a gameplan and/or some changes.
Forth, boyfriend needs to learn to relate to Ares in a way that Ares won't find threatening. I'll include some specific suggestions:
If you read this and thought "there is no way in hell my boyfriend is going to do any of this," then, once again, I have to shove unsolicited relationship advice into a dog training thread. Behavior modification is work. It's going to be inconvenient. It's really, really hard to be successful if your partner isn't on your team. At that point, you have to be asking yourself how much you value your relationship with this man, and whether you believe his reaction to the situation to be reasonable or unreasonable.
If I can help any more, for example with developing a specific training plan, please feel free to reply or P.M. I'll want to know whether there's any reaction to things he sees/ hears from inside the house, whether he eats well, how often and intense the reactions are (two or three times on a half hour walk, or is he Kujo for half an hour straight?) and as much detail as you can give me about the interactions between Ares and your BF. I'd also be curious to know more about the trainer. There isn't a whole lot of formal training available for aggression. There are ADPT (general reward-based) trainers I would unhesitatingly, unreservedly trust with my aggressive dog. "I'm not really qualified" may mean that she's not really qualified, or that she identifies the lack of comprehensive training programs in the area and wants to be really honest. If she's got even casual experience treating aggression with reward-based training, she's overwhelmingly more qualified than the vast majority of people who hold themselves up as trainers for aggressive dogs, who often use things like pinch/prong collars and antiquated dominance theories that make the situation worse.
So it sounds like your dog might be barrier reactive or leash reactive. This is a pretty common thing - dogs get super worried if they feel like they're not free to move, but are perfectly fine off leash.
I also want to introduce you to the concept of "trigger stacking" - it's a concept I'm sure you're familiar with in your life all the time! Let's say you're late for work so you're stressed. And then once you get to work, you go to the bathroom and there's no toilet paper. And then Janice accuses you of not doing your job, and by the time you get to the end of the day, one of your nice coworkers comes by with an innocent question and you chew them out.
Trigger stacking - basically, when you get stressed, and another stressful thing happens on top of that, you act way more strongly, and continue to be super, super stressed.
I think this might be happening with your pup.
Here are a few things I might try. Note: not a professional
The class doesn't start until August 1st, but I've heard really good things!
Hopefully that gives you a few ideas on what to try - I think you need to start from a "lets get her calmed down" before you can really work on walks.
Puppies adopted before 8 weeks old are prone to being more nervous so you should work extra hard to socialize her. She needs good experiences with at least 3 new people every day. There are some sidebar links, and I really recommend the book Puppy Start Right.
Lots of treats and patience for now. See if you can get her to jump into your arms for a treat so you don't have to lean over her - or if her bladder will make it (probably it wont) you can let her walk outside for now. She's a teeny baby who is just now at the right age to come home.
CARE for reactive dogs. Keep her under threshold. That (for most dogs) means increasing distance - you want her to notice them, but not be building to the reaction. At that point, you can do a couple of things - look at that (dog looks at the trigger, you mark and reward - you want to transition this very quickly where you mark the dog looking at the trigger, then you and marking for looking back at you, and then eventually just marking ignoring the trigger), look and dismiss (dog looks at the trigger and dismisses to do something else - sniff, play with you, etc), BAT 2.0, or any other protocol.
I like to also do mat work and then take the mat on the road. The mat acts as a high value, known source of confidence which can help with other training. I wouldn't let anyone touch her, be her advocate. Beyond that, it's just time and patience.
Books you may want to read:
The tens of thousands, but they dont keep a count.
Nor is there an accurate count of the number of people that cops kill each year.
http://www.amazon.com/cop-shot-dog-true-stories-ebook/dp/B00ODVQ3JY
It's very common in young herding dogs. And odds are you can get it to go back a bit, and not be such a big deal in his life, but it will take a great deal of work, and he may never be comfortable when on a leash, interacting with other dogs.
Because of that, own it. Once you figure out what his threshold is, and work on it, and improve it as much as you can, don't wake up one day and think he'll be the best dog in the world on a leash. Odds are he won't be and that's ok. It means that when you are in a situation where he is on a leash, and there are other dogs around, you need to 100000% manage him. Teach him to check back with you, to focus on you, to look at the other dog and then to you for a reward.
[This is a pretty good book for dealing with dogs like this] (https://www.amazon.com/dp/B008510I5S/ref=dp-kindle-redirect?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1). You may get some good help from it, as well as a trainer.
But again, own his behavior, and don't decide one day that he's going to be a [one of these] (https://gund.com) when he's not. And again, that's fine.
>We adopted our handsome, loving, cuddly aussie 4 months ago from a breeder.
Small nit: you bought this dog I'm guessing? Money changed hands? And that's fine, that's how many of us here acquire our dogs, but you made a financial decision, getting this dog. That's fine: again, own it.
Aussies are great dogs, and I love them. But many of them are not fond of other dogs, especially when on a leash. And that's ok.
One that should be on your reading list if you haven't read it already: Patricia McConnell's The Other End of the Leash.
I think Decoding Your Dog may be pretty useful, too.
I think you need to find yourself a good behaviorist... an actual behaviorist, not just a trainer.
Have you read any of these books?
Don’t Leave Me! by Nicole Wilde
Treating Separation Anxiety in Dogs, by Malena DeMartini-Price
I’ll Be Home Soon, by Patricia McConnell
Have you tried any long term prescription anxiety medications, like Prozac/Fluoxetine, Amitriptyline or Clomipramine? (These are not the same as short-acting sedatives. They are medications that you give daily.)
Edit to add: I really hope you’re able to find something that works for you and your dog, OP. It sounds like you really care about him a lot.
this book talks about the study of littermate syndrome.
>Will the puppies that come out LOOKING more like the GSD parent MOST LIKELY have most "GSD traits", and the puppies with the physical appearance of the lab have a higher propensity for the "lab traits"? Or is it 100% random?
In by far the most authoritative long-term study ever done, Scott and Fuller experimented with cross breeds and found, for example, that a puppy from Cocker and Basenji parents that looks like a Cocker is not more likely to behave like a Cocker than like a Basenji, but is most likely to show less extreme behavior traits than either breed.
>The results of this experiment are almost completely negative with regard to the hypothesis that coat color, hair length or "somatype" is strongly correlated with temperament and behavior.
About choosing a puppy, there are many puppy temperament tests, and some are pretty complicated. Research has not found a strong predictive value for any of them except some sensitivity tests, like reaction to wheeled objects like carts and bikes, and the "fetch test", and only if the tests are performed several times. For example:
>Fetch is taught entirely by play methods, except that the leash is used to direct the puppy to the tester the first and second week. The leash is also used if the puppy fails to bring the object directly to her. A rubber ball or tennis ball is used in teaching fetch. If the puppy simply goes to the object the first time it is considered satisfactory, but we have many puppies who pick the ball up the first time and come directly back with it. We also have pheasant and duck wings for the puppy who has no interest in a ball. Many shepherds as well as retrievers will bring a wing but will not pick up a ball.
>We have come to the conclusion that what we are testing here is the puppy's willingness to do something for the tester. The desired result is to get the puppy to go merrily to the object, pick it up and bring it back to the tester's hand. The first week we give the puppy three chances to fetch after it has had a chance to smell the ball, see it bounce and roll, and gotten adjusted to the room. The tests start with the first command given; "Puppy, fetch." The second week the puppy has four chances, still on leash. The third week he is given five chances, starting off lead and reverting to the lead if it is necessary to get the puppy to come to the tester with the object. The fourth week the puppy has three chances. The fifth week the puppy has only three chances again. Any puppy who is not bringing the object to the tester off lead in the fifth week is rejected, for it will not make a Guide Dog. Usually such a rejected puppy can be taught to retrieve without much difficulty, but we have found that one who will not learn in the time allotted will not be a willing worker as a Guide Dog. This applies equally to all breeds that we have tested and trained.
http://www.amazon.com/The-Knowledge-Behavior-Dogwise-Classics/dp/1929242042
I found The Wind Book For Rifle Shooters to be a fantastic primer. It is conversational (kind of feels like you're having a chat with a kind uncle), but doesn't shy away from the math... and it just gets you to think about the wind and its effects properly.
I highly recommend it, even if it doesn't seem to get a lot of airtime here.
Yep. Barrier reactivity. You're not alone! It's common with rescues especially because shelter environments tend to cause it. (I don't know if yours is a rescue or not but I'm guessing there's a chance based on his breed.) My rescue bully also has a bit of barrier reactivity that partially developed from the shelter environment he was in, partially developed because of the time we spent at the dog park. Yeah, unfortunately, a dog park can make it worse.
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Let me try to basically explain what's going on. Barrier reactivity happens a lot with dogs that LIKE to play with other dogs because they 1: see a dog they want to say hi to 2: don't get to say hi to dog because of the barrier 3: become frustrated they don't get to go say hi to the dog.
The frustration builds, and in many ways it can make the dog feel fearful because they feel out of control in that situation. And so their brain goes into overload and what started out as a friendly, "I want to go say hi!" turns into fence running, then barking, growling, snarling, snapping at the fence, as the frustration develops into something pretty ugly.
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TLDR: Doggo is frustrated.
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How to fix? Well, it's not an easy fix. Reactivity is HARD, because the dogs develop a pattern of behavior, and you have to retrain that pattern. The big thing with reactivity is being consistent and being patient. Remember the law of reactivity: "He's not giving me a hard time, he's having a hard time."
STEP 1: management. You cannot let this dog practice this behavior any more if you want to stop it. So that means for you, that every time doggy needs to go outside, you leash him and walk him in your backyard. You can't risk him getting that chance to see another dog, run to the fence, and practice that reaction. The more he practices it, the more ingrained the pattern becomes.
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STEP 2: Recondition. You need to recondition your dog's brain to react differently to the same triggers. So, if you're walking your dog in the backyard, and you see a dog at the fence, you back your dog up to the point where he still SEES the other dog, but he hasn't started freaking out yet. It'll be hard to find that sweet spot-- as close as possible but still not freaking out. Once you've learned where that is, you can practice the LAT game, where you give him treats for looking at the dog. That way you retrain his brain to think of the scary thing (the dog on the other side of the fence) as instead as a treat dispenser. "I see dog on other side of fence, I get treats!" With practice and time, he can definitely stop thinking of the fence as a battleground, and instead as a happy thing.
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I also recommend hiring a force free trainer to help you work through this, and reading my favorite book on dealing with dog reactivity, Fired Up, Frantic, and Freaked Out.
I had a rescued shepherd that had major dog aggression issues. She wanted to grab other dogs by the neck. She was also leash reactive. Lovely with people, though.
Biggest piece of advice is don't push the new dog into too many new situations after adopting. Give them at least a month to just get to know your house, your backyard, your schedule. Then expose them to other dogs and people through a structured environment like an obedience class. I could have avoided a lot of problems if I didn't have the attitude of "Oh, I'll train her myself, I don't need a class, I know how to socialize a dog." It's not really about that, so much as they need gradual exposure around people and other dogs behaving predictably, which you cannot get at a public park or other venue. As an added bonus, this method works whether the dog has a great temperament or a bad temperament.
I highly reccomend The Ahimsa Dog Training Manual. Grish is great with reactive dogs and her methods work well with stressed dogs who will not take treats or toys. I couldn't rehab my shepherd well at first because as soon as I took her outside, she would start spitting out treats and she never did play with toys.
She turned out to be a wonderful dog. I could take her hiking on leash, I trialed her in Rally and she won blue ribbons, she was very good in the home and with house guests. If I had focused on her strengths instead of trying to force her to like other dogs, we would have had a much better relationship.
Please, for your dog's sake do NOT rely on Milan techniques. He uses extremely out-dated and sometimes even dangerous and damaging methods.
Here is a fairly well written website explaining a lot about why his methods are not scientifically accurate, and I believe also going into actual dog behavior.
Here's another very well written critique of Millan, with corrections and real dog behavior. More biased, but good information.
Finally, I highly HIGHLY suggest reading "Decoding Your Dog" which is a very in depth explanation of a lot of aspects of dog behaviors, all backed by science and written by veterinary behaviorists.
I hope this is the least bit helpful! I think you'll find you enjoy your dog once more when you let go of the untrue, macho idea that you must "dominate him" at all times. Be his best friend instead!
What a tough situation. I’m sorry this is happening.
Apologies for the length of this response - one of my two dogs has severe separation anxiety, so this is a topic I've given an enormous amount of consideration.
The first thing I’ll say is that there’s a big part of this post that probably belongs more in r/relationships than here. I have a dog with severe separation anxiety, so I can give you some insight into how you might be able to improve your dog’s quality of life… but it’s going to be important to sit down and have an honest conversation with your husband about what is feasible for your family to do in terms of management, and what each of you would consider an acceptable level of resolution to this issue. I’d suggest hopping over to r/relationships for suggestions on how to have that conversation.
Regarding Savage, though. Separation anxiety is a really hard problem because it’s not a well-defined problem like jumping on people or resource guarding high value food. It’s more of a diffuse anxiety disorder that can have an enormous negative impact on a dog’s quality of life.
It sounds like your husband is correct that, right now, Savage is experiencing considerable distress on a daily basis. I agree with him that the current situation is unfair to the dog.
Off the bat you should know that separation anxiety isn’t really something that can be cured per se. You can minimize it with a combination of medication, behavior modification training, and environmental management… but when push comes to shove, when you have a dog with separation anxiety you must realize that there is always a chance of regression, and that it is your responsibility as a responsible pet owner to recognize when regression happens and take steps to mitigate whatever caused it. The odds are overwhelming that, to at least a small degree, this will continue to be a lifelong issue for Savage.
If you are able to take on this challenge, the first step is to find a veterinary behaviorist. There are lots of issues that regular trainers can be really helpful with, but serious separation anxiety is unfortunately a condition that typically requires medication to sort out unless the owner can commit to 6+ months of absolutely positively never leaving the dog alone (which isn’t super realistic for most families).
A behaviorist can help figure out the right cocktail of medications that are appropriate for Savage, and what the steps are in an appropriate behavioral modification plan. For SA dogs, early on the approach to medicating is typically two pronged, involving both a long-term medication for treating the underlying anxiety disorder (often an SSRI like Paxil or Prozac), and short-acting “event medication” that is given on occasions that the dog is left alone.
Historically a lot of vets have prescribed benzodiazepines (e.g., Xanax, Klonopin) as event drugs, but research shows us that it’s really hard to learn while under the influence of these types of drugs – so while they help with reducing panic “in the moment,” they aren’t very effective if you’re trying to use behavior modification to teach the dog skills for coping with being alone. These days behavior specialists are way more likely to prescribe event drugs like Clonidine, which is a blood pressure medication that is a mild sedative and actually prevents panic on a physiological level (it’s pretty hard to panic if your heart can’t race and your blood pressure can’t spike). You start off with a dose that close to knocks the dog out, and wean them off the medication over many months or years.
The medication has to happen in conjunction with a concerted training effort, which a behaviorist can also help you sort out. What exactly this training looks like depends on the specific dog, but it often involves practicing your departures many times a day for many weeks or months, the use of tools that create a calmer environment (pheromone sprays, white noise machines, soothing sound CDs, etc) or that teach the dog how to self-soothe (e.g., puzzle toys like stuffed and frozen Kongs), developing a daily routine and settling the dog into it (many SA dogs thrive on a strict schedule), and potentially the use of remote monitoring equipment (e.g., webcams to check in on him).
Rehoming isn’t typically an option for these dogs. Dropping him off at a shelter would be cruel given his insecurities; privately rehoming is really hard because, as I mentioned in my other comment on this thread… there are loads of dogs without serious behavioral problems that need homes. Dogs like Savage need a high level of care, and it’s a really, really hard sell to convince the rare family capable of providing this care that they want a troubled dog.
At the end of the day, what is most important is that you do not let Savage continue to suffer on a daily basis. There are many courses of action for potentially relieving this suffering, and which you choose is very much a personal decision. A combination of pharmaceutical treatment and behavioral modification under the wing of a veterinary behaviorist is, IMO, the best choice for a next step with this dog. But if, for whatever reason, you are unable to provide proactive daily care and conscientious management for him, I am of the opinion (as the owner of a similar dog) that behavioral euthanasia might be a kinder choice than allowing the panic to continue unabated.
As I mentioned in my other post, dogs don’t understand the concept of death, but they are absolutely capable of experiencing suffering. There are many worse things than a quiet, peaceful end… and in my view, years on end of daily panic qualify as worse.
Again, I'm sorry Savage and your family are experiencing this. There are no easy solutions to this situation.
Here are some resources that might be helpful for you:
Directory of veterinary behaviorists
I’ll Be Home Soon: How to Prevent and Treat Separation Anxiety (a book by Patricia McConnell)
Behavioral euthanasia fact sheet
I love Oogy! That book is so great. There's a book about the Vick dogs too, but be warned, you will cry for days and probably turn into a bitter asshole like me.
I commend you for being so level-headed and objective about your situation. I completely agree that you do not want to punish aggression, as you can potentially make it worse.
Punishment includes the standard things you might expect like hitting, alpha rolls, grabbing by the scruff of the neck, but also includes even verbal punishment (like a stern "no"). Verbal or physical punishment is something to be particularly careful of in the case of growling, as it can further suppress warning signs (dog learns not to growl, and decides to escalate right to biting).
It's great that you have a vet appointment this week - definitely tell your vet exactly what has happened and any other behavior changes you've noticed. Aggression could be a sign of a health issue.
I also have a former street-dog "lab mix" that looks more like a lab, but with a mutt with unknown heritage who was found on the street, who knows what's in his genetic past? Similar to your dog, my dog shows very subtle warning signs, and can go from 0-60 in a blink of an eye.
I used to think he didn't give any warning signs at all, but I've since discovered there's a cornucopia of extremely subtle canine body language that can allow me to take action before he escalates to something overt. I'm no expert but I'm much better able to read his mood than I used to be, even if he can escalate through his subtle warning signs in just seconds.
It's possible that Jed was displaying extremely subtle signs of stress or anxiety while he was playing with your cousin, that if you learn to detect, could help prevent another incident before it occurs.
Along those lines, I found this book helpful (check your local library to see if they have a copy): https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B003URRK44/ref=smi_www_rco2_go_smi_g2609328962?_encoding=UTF8&btkr=1&ie=UTF8
In addition, recording and re-watching his behavior, watching examples online, and working with our veterinary behaviorist also helped tremendously in reading his body language and managing him in general.
By the way, Jed doesn't look anything like most pits as far as I can see.
Looking at the pictures of Jed (who is very handsome, btw), I think the commentators who are blaming this on his possible pit heritage are painting with an overly broad brush.
Good luck, and please come back and give us an update after your vet appointment!
Loved this book. Dr. McConnell had 2 or 3 border collies at the time of that book and has had them her whole adult life. she uses them on her sheep farm as herding dogs. She is also an animal/dog behaviorist.
Stanley Coren has some good ones too like this on on How Dogs Think, this one on How to Speak Dog, and this one on The Intelligence of Dogs.
After my pity party post last week I started reading [this book] (https://www.amazon.com/Bones-Would-Rain-Sky-Relationships/dp/044669634X/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1485359559&sr=1-1&keywords=bones+would+rain+from+the+sky) and am trying to change my mindset a bit. I reminded myself that I sought out a herding bred so I could treat dog training and ownership like a hobby. The training I have to do is a just different from what I pictured. I also took the plunge and signed up for some Fenzi classes! I settled on a class called 'Toys - Developing Cooperation and Play' and 'Engagement.' There was a class available for managing reactive dogs but I wanted to switch things up because my entire life already revolves around managing a reactive dog lol. The classes start next week and I'm so excited.
This might be a fluke but I think Mowgli is reacting significantly less to small dogs. Yesterday a King Charles spaniel passed us in the park while we were playing frisbee and he barely glanced at it. There's also a new frenchie puppy on our block (squeee!!!) and Mowgli's seen it a couple times but only looks mildly interested. Hopefully I didn't just jinx myself by typing that out.
You should head over to /r/dogtraining for some great info. They endorse positive reinforcement training and should be able to point you in the right direction.
Also, please DO NOT use dominance training. It's been disproved and is not very effective, especially in Vs. It could make the matter worse since the dog will then feel MORE threatened.
I had an issue with my Weim guarding food which we've worked through. Although resource guarding is not the same as sleep aggression, I'd still recommend the book Bones Would Rain From The Sky.
make sure you roll her on her back and hold her muzzle lightly and say no.. make sure they know biting is not a game... or it will be a kids face as a game.. and a very bad one at that.. dont ask her to stop biting your hair.. tell her... This is a great book. http://www.amazon.com/How-Raise-Perfect-Dog-Puppyhood/dp/0307461300/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1397524876&sr=1-1&keywords=Cesar+Millan
key note: sometimes you have to be the bad guy to have a good dog. but being the bad guy only lasts a few seconds when your stopping bad behavior.
/u/googoogoojoob had a comment on that in this thread.
To quote for the lazy
> There is strong evidence for littermate syndrome. But I also often see people claiming that littermate syndrome applies to dogs that are not actually littermates, i.e. two puppies from different litters. That is just speculation and is probably not true unless the puppies grew up together from birth. The study that discovered littermate syndrome concluded,
> "Where two littermates are raised together in the same home ... one becomes a successful candidate for Guide Dog work and one fails, even if their aptitude tests were equal. Puppies raised in homes where there are dogs not related to them have never been affected this way by the association with other dogs."
> The same study also found,
> "I cannot remember a single dog who was raised with her mother to adulthood who could be successfully trained for a Guide Dog."
> So besides littermate syndrome, we should also be aware of apron-strings syndrome.
From The New Knowledge of Dog Behavior
Whew, ok, lots to unpack here.
First question: does your dad know you're about to give him a GSD puppy? You're signing him up for a pretty big 2 year commitment here (and that's just the puppy phase), so please make sure he's 100% on board with the idea of raising a landshark demon spawn before bringing it home.
Secondly, breed standard puts an adult GSD somewhere in the neighborhood of 24" tall and 60-80lb. This can vary widlly based on sex, line, and breeding quality. My poorly-bred GSD male is 29" tall and a scrawny 85lb. I've also seen some pretty petite females come through my rescue.
On the subject of lines, do you know what kind of GSD you're getting? There are various working and show lines, and the personality and structure of your GSD can come out all over the map. If you don't know the answer from talking to your breeder, run away, because you're not getting a well-bred dog. Poorly-bred GSDs are health and temperament nightmares.
Thirdly, the breed standard calls for a confident but aloof personality, but again, temperaments may vary depending on lines and breeding quality. GSDs need to be socialized thoroughly but carefully to lock in that confident-but-also-aloof sweet spot. Flooding your puppy with tons of new people and places will create a fearful adult, but so will keeping your dog locked up. I have seen lots of success using a puppy-led gentle exposure technique. Take your dog to lots of places, but don't make the novelty into a big deal. Don't force your puppy to interact with every person and dog you see, and call it a day if your puppy seems overwhelmed or scared. A puppy builds confidence by exploring on its own, you're just there to moderate the experience and make sure it's a positive one. I can't recommend a group obedience class enough for young GSDs...learning to focus in a controlled environment around other dogs is a valuable asset for future life skills. Consider finding a local trainer that does group positive reinforcement based training, or at least very positive-leaning balanced training. Avoid anyone who mentioned "alpha" or "pack leader" because that school of thought is outdated and disproven (but is holding on forever in GSD breed circles for some reason). Also avoid anyone who wants to put a prong or choke collar on your dog without evaluating their behavior first.
Honestly, if I were you I'd stop and do a little more research before bringing home a GSD. They're a little more of a "lifestyle breed" than your average family pet, and will find and exploit any weakness in your dog-owning abilities. Read some books (recommendations here: 1 2 3 4), talk to your dad, take a good look at your breeder, maybe find a local trainer with a good positive puppy class, and try again with a little more information under your belt.
I would like to recommend a couple of books.
The Other End of the Leash by Patricia McConnell. She has a PhD in behaviorism and has worked with a lot of aggressive dogs but she only uses positive reinforcement. Her book talks a lot about the difference between primates and canids (aka dogs) and how those differences create misunderstandings.
Bones Would Rain from the Sky by Suzanne Clothier. Suzanne has tons of experience with all kinds of animals. Her book focuses a lot on what it means to have a trusting, healthy relationship with dogs and I guarantee it will change the way you see your dog.
I also have a reactive border collie. You are on the right track with the hamburger treats while walking, but you need to not get your dog over threshold to the point where she can't focus on you or the treats any more. And more exercise is never a bad thing for a border collie, mental and physical.
Good luck!
We got a pamphlet by Patricia McConnell on leadership
http://amzn.com/189176702X
We were having a lot of similar issues with our 1yo bulldog/lab mix.
One of the things I've started doing is training our dog how great it is to sit quietly on his bed near the couch while we are in the living room. He gets all kinds of treats when he's there, but no attention if he gets up and starts destroying things.
That and general leadership work, paying attention to space, how we engage with the dog, etc, has REALLY helped. We used to crate him all the time when we were home just because we didn't know what to do with this crazy dog.
Also, its easier to tire a dog out mentally than physically, so I find that practicing training, or feeding him out of a toy that requires some work really helps.
This book devotes a few chapters to it and is an interesting read in general regarding dog evolution and behavioral modification.
This one is a hell of page turner and while it makes certain assumptions it's well sourced and you can spend the time looking into the research yourself if you have trouble grasping the threads.
As others have mentioned there are plenty of peer review articles but when it comes to this field I like reading the books for the inspiration. We live in symbiosis with dogs, we ascended one another to a higher evolutionary plateau.
My recommendations - Great for all levels:
Puppy Start Right
Plenty in Life is Free - Kathy Sdao
Click to Calm - Emma Parsons
>but millions of dogs over thousands of years have suffered because people feel it is okay to exercise ownership over other sentient beings.
Dogs don't have a sense of 'ownership' or being owned. If you feel like you aren't ready for that kind of responsbility, that's fine, but that's a moral argument amongst people, not one to be placed on dogs. Dogs don't care. And their suffering is not due to their 'subjugation' it's due to shitty people doing shitty things and not enough resources--the same can be said for people and slavery all over the world. Dogs have a sense of companionship and they know what they like and don't like.
The human-domesticated animal relation is more complex than I think you realize. Dogs have been a domesticated animal that have worked with humans since potentially before the ancient egyptians. Dogs aren't wolves. They DO depend on us, but that's not a BAD thing. They could live without us, but I can promise you they wouldn't be happy about it. If you give a dog a preference to living with or without people, I think they would pick with people every time.
Yes, it means we have a responsibility to take care of them, but there is no perfect 'solution'. We can't just set them free, they would die, miserably. They have evolved along with us, as a permanent relationship and have been bred to be in tune to us and that can't be undone.
In some cases through history, yes, people have depended on their dogs more than the dogs depended on the people--particularly in terms of hunting. The dog could hunt and track for food that a person would rely on their abilities for.
I think if you can get it, you might find this book interesting.
http://www.amazon.com/How-Dogs-Love-Us-Neuroscientist/dp/0544114515/ref=pd_sim_14_63?ie=UTF8&dpID=51uAVHjFtJL&dpSrc=sims&preST=_AC_UL160_SR106%2C160_&refRID=1E7GS92F5KRSG8DCX56G
Dogs: A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior and Evolution
or their new book (haven't read it yet myself):
What Is a Dog?
or...
Genetics and the Social Behavior of the Dog
It seems that the wolves of 15,000 yrs ago participated with humans in domesticating themselves. I suggest Dog Sense by John Bradshaw https://smile.amazon.com/Dog-Sense-Science-Behavior-Better/dp/B0064X82SY?sa-no-redirect=1 as it has a lot on the theories of dog domestication.
Wolves are more social amongst themselves than foxes and their family groups are more like ours. The real leap that made an ancient wolf into a dog was the ability to see understand, communicate and bond with another species, humans. It's quite rare and amazing when you think about it.
Those ancient wolves are not the same as the wolves today. They were probably less fearful of people and the ones least fearful evolved into dogs. In The fox experiment this trait was selected for those that would live and breed.
On the other hand over time humans became a much greater threat to the wild wolves which became selected for by their fear and avoidance of humans. The bold ones most likely to get killed and in the modern age shot from a distance. So Today's wolves are not the ancestors of dogs but their distant cousins. One reason that dog trainers who suggest we treat a dog according to their limited understanding of how modern wolves behave is bunk.
A thing about foxes is that they hunt small game individually and while they may have wanted to have a go at the scraps of human hunts they are far too small to take on ancient wolves who wanted to do so and also lack the pack fighting skills so they kept to themselves.
The dog is so commonplace that we overlook how magnificent they are. When I walk my dog off leash in the country she explores territory at an amazing rate while frequently glancing at me for signs of my interest and intentions. We communicate silently by watching for body language and the what our eyes and her nose is directed at.
In the home she can read my mood and intentions and will look at then glance at a door she wants open then back at me. Those are far more amazing things than we give them credit for being! To say nothing of reading our moods and knowing when we are sick, even being able to predict seizures and the like when trained.
People want a pet fox because it is novel and pretty but that has more to do with getting attention from other people. Owning a fox will lead to many unexpected experiences which is also either fun or infuriating.
What is the purpose of a pet?
For me it is companionship and a connection to a being who is different from me, yet the same. The commonplace boring dog is a far more fascinating animal and friend than these foxes in my opinion.
Hi, first of all I appreciate what you are going through because I am too. There is a 38 pg booklet called I'll Be Home Soon (link) that helped spell out a lot of the small steps that you can take, as well as a rough schedule. Be warned that the book says "most cases can be resolved in 6-8 weeks," but don't go in expecting that because it can take longer with higher severity. The biggest thing with counter conditioning is preventing the panic response from ever happening, so it will take diligent efforts especially during the first few weeks.
My vet and the trainers I reached out to recommended anti-anxiety meds as well as counter conditioning. I have hired a few friends and people to come stay at my house with P while I go into work so she isn't ever really alone, even though the anxiety is the worst if I leave. If you live near school and have friends with opposite schedules of you, I'd recommend taking that route as much as possible.
Awesome, thanks! I'm going to try this for sure!
In the meantime, if I'm not particularly doing this 'exercise' but going for regular walks, how should I react to the triggers?
Because I am going to encounter joggers or kids while doing a regular walk on a short leash. Yesterday I tried to stay calm and assertive myself and before she started barking I tried to divert her attention to a treat and moving a bit away from the trigger, but to no avail. I know I should avoid giving the treat AFTER she barks at all costs, because then I'm basically telling her I love it when she barks at the triggers lol...
I wish I posted here first before buying the Cesar Millan book lol... Oh well, it was only €10.
I found this one in the sidebar instead: https://www.amazon.com/The-Official-Ahimsa-Training-Manual/dp/1478176415/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1360963013&sr=8-1&keywords=ahimsa+dog+training+manual
Anyone has any experience with this one?
I'm very interested in dog psychology to be honest.
http://www.amazon.com/Bones-Would-Rain-Sky-Relationships/dp/044669634X
Hi and thanks for replying. Your information is offering me good insight into what I need. I was looking at these two books: http://www.amazon.com/Leader-Pack-And-have-Your-Love/dp/189176702X/ref=la_B001ILMAOY_1_3?ie=UTF8&qid=1341528918&sr=1-3 and http://www.amazon.com/Before-After-Getting-Your-Puppy/dp/1577314557/ref=la_B001K83EFO_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1341528963&sr=1-1
The puppy and my dog have established their pack order today it seems like. For the most part he was limping or had a cone on the entire week, so my dog was avoiding him. Now that he's had the cone off for a day, she has established dominance with him and they are hunting in my back yard, running in patterns already Lol.
It sounds as if the strategy you employed to teach the bulldog to leave the cats alone worked very well, without the use of anything adversive except some minor shunning which is a great teaching tool IMO that takes advantage of the dog's great desire to be social without causing any pain or fear. You shouldn't be 2nd guessing yourself about it if it worked well. Don't lose your confidence; you're doing great.
While the alpha theory has been debunked, I think some people have gone too far and are erring in the opposite direction. Dogs do recognize leadership, dominance and submission. While your foster pup is most likely not trying to steal food from children out of a desire to dominate them, your training strategy is sound and effective all the same and your instincts seem to be very good.
Please check out Patricia O'Connell's book How to be the Leader of the Pack...And have Your Dog Love You For It. O'Connell is recognized as one of the best dog trainers today. While she doesn't support the alpha theory as put forth by trainers like Cesar Milan, she does believe that dogs need to have their human be the unambiguous leader of the pack and she demonstrates some simple ways to accomplish this. I think you'll find that she supports much of what you're doing.
If you've accomplished something as difficult as teaching an adult dog to be polite to cats, you have a lot going for you as a dog trainer. It's good to listen to new ideas and criticism, but don't deny the evidence of your own experience. You're doing it right.
Turid Rugaas' "On Talking Terms with Dogs: Calming Signals" was especially helpful to me!
If you're hiring a behavior consultant, please take a look here - ccpdt.org. The trainers and consultants here have taken a test and signed an oathe to do no harm and only ever use fear or force as a last resort.
In the meantime, here are some of my favorite resources:
1.) (Free) CARE for Reactive Dogs - careforreactivedogs.com
2.) Grisha Stewart's Behavior Adjustment Training (BAT) - https://www.amazon.com/Behavior\-Adjustment\-Training\-2\-0\-Frustration\-ebook/dp/B01BG05UAW/ref=tmm\_kin\_swatch\_0?\_encoding=UTF8&qid=1525694710&sr=8\-1
3.) (free) Relaxation Protocol - http://championofmyheart.com/relaxation\-protocol\-mp3\-files/
4.) Karen Pryor's Click to Calm - https://www.amazon.com/Click\-Calm\-Healing\-Aggressive\-Dog\-ebook/dp/B008510I5S/ref=pd\_sim\_351\_1?\_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=TYTV68ZND5W25S0ZH1XH
Generally good points, and its a really worthwhile discussion, but point 1 is pretty hotly debated. For example, if you read The Wind Book for Rifle Shooters you will find that they completely disagree, and that wind in the first half is more important.
Aside from that, I think you have done a good job here, and I hope it sparks useful debate.
There's actually no evidence to support the old wives tale that dogs try and form interspecific dominance hierarchies. At least not with humans.
Source: literature by veterinary behaviourists include this book which I recommend if you ever get a dog or puppy.
I think what is going to get you the best bang for your buck will be the bags - there are ways to estimate wind - buy this book - it will help immensely.
Let's talk about your reloading setup what kit are you using to reload? (dies, bullets, powder, trimming etc).
Cesar's Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems
So the food aggression is called resource guarding. It is an extremely common issue and with some training can be quite manageable, some dogs guard food, toys, beds or other places, and sometimes people or other dogs.
My favorite book on this subject is Mine! I've used it to train not one but two of my dogs that it's okay for me to remove items or food from them since they'll always get it back or get a better treat in return. The book covers everything from misconceptions to how to train and manage then for extreme cases or preventative, how to properly utilize a muzzle safely and effectively.
> the PD says the officer isn't responsible for the dog's death.
Here's a whole book full of examples.
https://www.amazon.com/cop-shot-dog-true-stories-ebook/dp/B00ODVQ3JY
Not a single repercussion for the cop in any of those stories. Not one.
You may want to check out and try the exercises in this book: Fired Up Frantic and Freaked Out. I've had some success with it (and I'm still actively working on using the technique to improve Maizy's behavior), but it hasn't been as fast as I'd have hoped. More than the barking, this has given me a tool to take Maizy from super crazy and freaking out to, if not calm, feigning calm. According to the book being in a relaxed/calm position and body posture will eventually turn into true calm down the road. I'm crossing my fingers ;).
> staying unwatched.
So... a book that will stay unread.
https://www.amazon.com/cop-shot-dog-true-stories-ebook/dp/B00ODVQ3JY
As the author goes on to say, the book title is a lie because 101 was an absurdly easy number to reach. There's nearly 200 or so.
Not sure how accurate the information was, but I was referencing someone who commented on the post. Here's the comment:
"The tens of thousands, but they dont keep a count.
Nor is there an accurate count of the number of people that cops kill each year.
http://www.amazon.com/cop-shot-dog-true-stories-ebook/dp/B00ODVQ3JY"
Okay so, I have tons of dog books to recommend. Obviously it isn't an apples to apples translation for horses, but they will help you get a solid understanding of clicker theory, and a lot of the exercises could be applied to horses, with some creative tweaking. You can usually find some inexpensive used options on Amazon that may make it more practical to buy these books, since with the exception of the Karen Pryor book they only cover dogs. If you have questions or want more recommendations let me know!
When Pigs Fly!: Training Success with Impossible Dogs https://www.amazon.com/dp/1929242441/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_41JXBbXWEPN78 This is a good basics of training books that will give you a solid introduction to actually applying clicker training.
Reaching the Animal Mind: Clicker Training and What It Teaches Us About All Animals https://www.amazon.com/dp/0743297776/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_J4JXBb9X374P5 This will get you really in the weeds on the theory and development of clicker training, plus a lot of examples of how Karen has used the methods. It is very readable, not dry and overly academic. I found it light on giving you step by step application instructions for a variety of situations though.
The Official Ahimsa Dog Training Manual: A Practical, Force-Free Guide to Problem Solving and Manners https://www.amazon.com/dp/1478176415/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_G6KXBb7XTZPB3 this one is another really good basics book. The author has another book called Behavior Adjustment Training that uses positive methods to deal with hyper-reactive and problem behavior. It might be a good one just so you can see some of the creative ways that they use positive training to overcome things like food aggression, fear of strangers, etc.
Cesar's Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding & Correcting Common Dog Problems
I read this book called Cat Sense by John Bradshaw, who also published best seller Dog Sense (sorry couldn't find a wiki entry for this one)... and according to the studies on his book a young cat has a window of opportunity to be socialized, by other cats/animals, humans, or all of them. If socialization doesn't happen after the window is over, the kitty goes back to feral mode and basically follow his/her instincts on avoiding human contact (and maybe other cats too!).
It sounds to me like she is guarding those places. You should try reading Mine and check out the wiki for information on Resource Guarding. In the meantime, she should not have access to these things until she is polite about it. That said, you should not ignore your dog's growling. Growling is important communication and you don't want to dissuade her from doing it as dogs that are trained to stop growling as a warning go straight to biting. I would also refrain from picking her up. Dog's don't really like getting picked up anyway, but you can give them a better sense of control by teach limits or the 'off' command.
I would also recommend the book Mine:A Practical Guide to Resource Guarding in Dogs
https://www.amazon.com/Mine-Pratical-Guide-Resource-Guarding-ebook/dp/B06Y2GXSX3/ref=nodl_
That is the heart breaking part. Stay strong. Do lots of socializing during the day. Lots and lots.
Also, don't get in the habit of just saying No! Say the dogs name, then the command. Otherwise it's just a word. i.e. Cap'n: No!
Read this book.
If you're really interested in this, check out The Lost Dogs by Jim Gorant. It's a really great book with a lot of information about the case and the dogs. And it truly shows how incredibly resilient dogs are, regardless of breed.
Source ahead of time: work at a vet clinic and have taken my dog to our state's veterinary school's behaviorist department.
Probably late to the party but okay. Like everyone said: positive reinforcement positive reinforcement positive reinforcement, and a lot of redirection and avoidance of problem. Every time your dog has the opportunity to misbehave, he is reinforced with the idea that this is an acceptable and functional way to go through life.
So for example, my dog has fear-based aggression issues. This means we do not under any circumstances give him the opportunity to be approached by strangers, or to approach a stranger in a circumstance in which he might feel threatened or cornered (and might, thus, make the decision to bite or otherwise behave aggressively). Ninja edit: and we do not discipline or rebuke him, because this only heightens the anxiety and thus the aggression, and can sometimes result in misdirected aggression towards you, the owner, instead.
As others have said, again, you want to give the dog a good behavior to replace the bad. Teach them to sit instead of jump, if they bark remove them to a separate room with a peanut-butter filled kong toy (but be careful about peanut butters, as some have an artificial sweetener that can be harmful to your pup! so ninja-edit two: squeeze/canned cheese is also a great low-cost option!), explore local resources for clicker training or puppy schools (but avoid shock collar trainers IMO), and always be aware of what behaviors you are rewarding either intentionally or accidentally!
(So for example, if the dog is barking, don't throw him a treat; wait until he has stopped barking for ~1-2 seconds and then treat him. This may seem counter-intuitive, but as far as canine cognition goes, he will understand this as a reward for silence, I promise!)
I highly recommend Decoding Your Dog for a lot of great resources on training and otherwise understanding the why of canine behavior. It's not a be-all end-all source, but it's a really great first step towards how to address behavioral issues and combat them in a healthy manner!
I havent seen that but I have read The Lost Dogs, about what happened to mike vicks pit bulls after he was arrested. Most of them, even after being forced to fight, turned out to be perfectly calm and loving animals.
Virtually any dog in the universe can fit the criteria of what you described, but all breeds have their little variations.
For example, my favorite breed is the German Shepherd. And there are German Shepherds that do really well in apartment life, and others that don't. If you go to a breeder for your dog, you're going to want to find a breeder that emphasizes pet quality, safe, sane dogs. The difference between a Labrador from hunting lines and lines bred for therapy and service dog work is night and day. If you go to a shelter to adopt a dog, I would recommend taking a qualified trainer with you that's well-read on selection testing dogs, and most of all, use the resources at your disposal. Talk to the people who run the shelter and/or the rescue. They have the most experience with the dog. They will be able to help you the best.
With the two breeds you mentioned (Golden Retrievers, specifically) keep in mind the shedding issue. Labs shed too, but Golden's are just about as bad as Shepherd's (which are both, very bad.) If you have carpet, be prepared to vacuum everyday. If you intend to let your dog sleep with you on the bed, or chill on the sofa, be ready to clean your furniture daily. Your clothes will be covered in hair if you do not. Your boss will not like you showing up to work wearing your dog.
Also, please, if you haven't already, look into your apartments restrictions for pets and dog breeds, and keep in mind that if you intend on moving, you will be taking your dog with you. I love all breeds of dogs, but apartments do not. Rottweilers, German Shepherd's, Doberman's, Pitbulls (and mixes) come under notorious scrutiny when moving. For your future dogs sake, pick a breed or mixed breed that your landlords are cool with.
Some of my favorite books include:
Dog Training for Dummies which is a very basic introduction to how dogs learn, and explains the different methods available to you in an unbiased manner.
Some of my personal favorite books include:
How To Be Your Dogs Best Friend by the Monks of New Skete.
The Art of Raising A Puppy by the Monks of New Skete
The Divine Canine by the Monks of New Skete
If you haven't already guessed, I'm a huge fan of the Monks of New Skete. The put huge emphasis on calm, structured leadership and positive method obedience that works in real life situations. Plus, they're German Shepherd people. Double points.
Animals in Translation by Temple Grandin.
Dr. Temple Grandin is a high-functioning autistic that teaches at Colorado State University's veterinary science department. I've taken several classes with her, and her understanding of animals is absolutely impossible to challenge. This book is more about genetic theory and science-backed training methods. It's good reading material if you want to know more about animals (she discusses dogs and livestock in detail) but is not a training guide. She also has a lot of technical articles available on her website here.
Inside of a Dog by Alexandra Harowitz. This is a cursory introduction to canine ethology. It is not a guide, but if you want to know about how dogs think (how dogs can "smell time" for example) this is where you start.
How to Speak Dog by Stanley Coren emphasizes communication with dogs, backed in animal biology and evolution.
Canine Body Language: A photographic guide by Brenda Aloff describes in vivid detail what dogs are "saying." It's not a training guide, but will help you understand your dog much better.
Katz on Dogs by Jon Katz, a great common sense training guide to working with dogs in the home, and outdoors.
Soul of a Dog also by Jon Katz, which goes into greater detail on the personal side of working with dogs, with very helpful examples.
Imagine Life With a Well Behaved Dog by Julie Bjelland. Great book on structure and positive method dog training.
Natural Health for Dogs and Cats by Dr. Pitcairn was one of my college textbooks and it's a great start for dog nutrition and chemical-free health care for dogs. This is not a training guide, but nutrition and health are just as important (if not more) than training, so I figured I'd share.
With the exception of the first book on the list, all of these books are fairly detailed. I would highly recommend the Monks of New Skete books before any of the others. But they're all very good.
Additionally, you can read many of the articles on the AKC.org website regarding dog training, and Leerburg has some great comprehensive advice on training the working dog, which can also be applied to training family pets. He also sells a variety of videos and ebooks on the same subject matter.
TL;DR How To Be Your Dogs Best Friend & The Art of Raising A Puppy explain everything you ever need to know about training a dog, ever.
Thank you for your reply. I still have some issues with your line of thinking, although I agree with you on some points.
> It's happened a couple of times over a long, long span. This is not, "never let your dog see another dog ever,' this is, 'train an out command so that when your dog engages in this INCREDIBLY RARE behavior, you can stop it."
At no point does the OP say this is "INCREDIBLY RARE" behaviour. Incredibly rare would suggest to me it happens less than once a year, but this is all conjecture until the OP can clarify exactly what she meant. Neither of us actually know how often this happens. She does say "It's very inconsistent and she rarely does this". But this language is vague and can be interpreted differently. Very inconsistent could be once a week? Once a month? Perhaps she does mean once a year. Who knows. At any rate, we know it is happening often enough for OP to make a post about it and ask for advice on how to resolve the issue. That information alone would suggest to me that we cannot treat the expressions "very inconsistent" and "INCREDIBLY RARE" as equals. But it is really pointless to argue this as neither of us actually know.
The important thing to note is that the dog's behaviour is inconsistent and unpredictable. The OP doesn't know when she is going to act this way and when she is not. Therefore, if she is going to attempt to curtail this behaviour by avoiding these situations, she will have to avoid any situation in which it might happen. She can never be sure when this will be, and this is the reason I felt avoidance alone was untenable.
>A growl is communication, not intent, and not always interpret-able by a lay human observer.
I completely agree that signals such as growls are often misinterpreted, and I commend your attitude towards this. If you are interested in dog body language and signals I recommend Stanley Coren's book How To Speak Dog if you haven't read it already. It is very entertaining and useful.
However, you should not assume blind ignorance on my part and believe that I routinely misinterpret many signals as aggression. I don't think the examples you cite regarding puppy litters and play are relevant here whatsoever. The OP specifically says "Callie will straight up attack them and start a fight. Blood has only been drawn once".
Regardless of the nuances of dog communication I would class this behaviour as unacceptable aggression and I stand by that.
> To tell this woman, whose dog has growled and mouthed another dog on a few occasions that she is dealing with aggression and resource guarding is disingenuous. You are putting big names to a small problem.
If you look at my reply to OP you can see that regarding her first issue I actually suggest the dog is not being dominant or aggressive but rather it may be an issue of overenthusiastic play behaviour.
>Are you sure this isn't simply an instance of overenthusiastic mouthing as a result of excitement/lack of boundaries?
I believe seeing her dog bite at the other dog's neck is a behaviour which could be misinterpreted as aggressive, when in reality it is simply natural dog behaviour which has gone unchecked. I do not suggest that this is necessarily "aggressive" behaviour. But of course I can't say for sure given the limited information OP has given. That is why I suggested contacting a local professional trainer, and I stand by that advice.
Edit - I want to add here, that regardless of whether this is "aggressive" behaviour, it is clearly unwanted behaviour. And there are training methods to address this if the OP chooses to do so.
As for the resource guarding, based on OP's description of the dog's behaviour, I still believe this could legitimately be a case of resource guarding. If that is the case, then it is sensible to address this matter through training. However, it could be another issue entirely, and so I would once again suggest the services of an in-person trainer.
>Avoiding the situation until you can come up with a solution, no matter what that solution is, is ALWAYS the right first step.
Again, I absolutely agree with you. However, my impression was that this was not what you were saying. I didn't feel that you were suggesting the OP avoid these situations until a training solution can be reached. But rather you were saying avoidance was a training solution in and of itself. The biggest issue I have with your statements is this
>train an out command so that when your dog engages in this INCREDIBLY RARE behavior, you can stop it.
The OP specifically describes a situation in which the dog is attacking other dogs and starting a fight. I don't believe that a strong stop and recall command is sufficient to address this. For one thing, if the OP is capable of teaching a strong enough recall command that she can immediately stop and recall the dog to her side when she is in the middle of play, then I believe OP is competent enough to address the root of the issue in the first place and train her dog not to exhibit these behaviours. Secondly, the dog has shown a willingness to instigate fights with other dogs. What if the dog starts a fight with another dog that decides to fight back? In that situation, how does the OP respond? Even if her "out" command is impeccable, that will not have stopped the dog from instigating the behaviour in the first place. And if the other dog decides to retaliate then it won't matter how good the "out" command is. Even if this behaviour is extremely infrequent, it has happened often enough for the OP to seek advice and it is still dangerous. I think the responsible thing to do is seek professional advice and focus on addressing the root of the issue as to why the dog is showing patterns of resource guarding and aggression. Avoiding situations and relying on an "out" command is not sufficient in my opinion. But I will happily discuss this further with you. However, I think this all a little pointless without more information from OP. Neither of us can give a fair assessment of the situation, and that is why my ultimate advice would have to be seeking professional local help if the OP feels it is necessary
Edit - I'm actually sleepy so I won't be responding any more. To reiterate, I believe that the dog is exhibiting unwanted behaviour that can be modified through training. I do not believe avoidance or reliance on an out command is sensible or sufficient to address this, and recommend the OP seek professional training help.
The most common way, at least in my experience (please chime in with other ways/paths that you've taken) is exposure and mentoring.
Exposure is just work with as many dogs as you possible can. For me, I worked at a dog daycare/boarding/training/grooming place as a dog handler (officially Animal Care Technician but whatever.) I thought I knew a lot about dogs before going in. My close family had had several growing up, I'd helped raise for service puppy organizations, etc. I did not. I did not know nearly enough about dogs in general. There's nothing like being in a playroom with 30 dogs every day to rapidly teach you about dog body language, communication, habits, warning signs, the works. I worked there for a couple years and I was constantly learning. The biggest hurdle in getting to be a dog trainer is just exposure to lots and lots of different dogs, different breeds, different temperaments, different learning styles, different stimulus, different everything.
Next usually comes mentoring with an experienced trainer. I lucked out in that the trainer who started working at the daycare facility about year after I did was awesome. Totally positive and we clicked. We became really good friends fast. I officially mentored with her for just over a year. I happened to be in the right place at the right time, and I can't really speak on more arduous methods of finding a mentor.
Read. Find groups like this one and find their recommended literature. Training is important both in theory and practice. My first books were Fired Up, Frantic, and Freaked Out, Ahimsa, and When Pigs Fly and they were the beginning of my positive-only approach as well as my drive to become a trainer. But there are tons and tons of books to really dive into.
Check out the sidebar for info on APDT, and look into getting your CPDT-KA. The training industry isn't really regulated, but this is kind of The Certification.
As far as career, both myself and my training mentor left that facility. We started our own training business together. She works that full time, though her SO has a nice cushy job to fall back on in times of famine, so the two of them do alright. While I might do alright working it fulltime, I am crazy stupid anxious about being totally on commission. I have another full time job (night shift manufacturing. Cog-in-a-machine type work, but it isn't mentally taxing leaving me mostly focused mentally on training. Also benefits are awesome.)
While starting your own business isn't common or uncommon, there's other routes too. You can work in a big box store (think petsmart, petco, etc) as a trainer. Though you'll see on this sub we kind of have a hesitant view on them. It's either hit or miss. You end up with an awesome trainer who is working there on the path to bigger and better things, or.... you don't. You could work at a facility like the dog daycare place I worked. From my experience pay is meh but not terrible. The biggest problem was ideology differences and goal differences (what's best for the dog vs what's best for the business.) Though I tend to have a negative bias about it so take that with a grain of salt. You could work at a training facility that brings together a bunch of trainers. You could work at a humane society. There's a lot of options, some commission, some hourly, some a mix. It all kind of depends on your experience, your connections, and honestly, your luck.
This... kind of rambles on a bit, but feel free to ask away! A lot of my career came just from being in the right place at the right time so I realize that's not much help, but I can try.
How Dogs Love Us. It's very interesting!
Happy to help ! If you want some really good reading material on really effective and great ways to understand, train, and happily live with your dogs, read this
He really is amazing at what he does.
You can tell when by learning more about dog body language. Each dog is a bit different in signs, but they are all similar.
There are almost certainly subtle warning signs your dog is giving you before she guards an item. They can be fast and hard to see, or plain as day.
Understanding Dog Body Language
A great book that can help you learn signs a dog is potentially uncomfortable is Understanding Dog Body Language
More info here
Studying dog body language is not something that will come quickly. It will take practice. The more you learn and then watch and observe the faster you will get it.
Chart showning common dog body postures
Another good article
A common misconception is that dogs will figure it out. While many dogs are good at communicating with other dogs not all dogs are. It is a great idea to help dogs have space in dog dog interactions as well as dog human interactions.
If you are at all uncertain if your dog is unconformable you can always step back an error on the side of giving them space. If your dog seems unconformable when you are giving them pets you can always ask them if they would like more. To do so, simply disengage and see if they come solicit more pets. If they don't then they would rather not have more of whatever you were doing right then.
Few things are cut and dry in dog body language. Reading it is an art as much as a science.
IMO the key to the best relationship with your dog is to try and understand what they are telling you. You can help build communication with your dog by positive training sessions. I highly recommend Kikopup and Zak George on youtube for training videos.
Yeah, that is true. I would argue that you can teach cats to do stuff, though. Sure, not herd sheep or any of that but they still learn the same way other animals do. But you're right, we don't have same the 10,000 years of coexistent history with cats as we do with dogs. I mean, they were there, but we/our species definitely didn't have the same relationship with them as we do with dogs, as in working closely with them and training them and selectively breeding them. Cats are only selectively bred for appearance, whereas dogs have been selectively bred for performance and behaviors.
Argument? I think we're actually agreeing, lol. But that's okay. I had a cat too and although I would classify myself as a "dog person" I still loved him a lot. :)
Also, if you're interested in the history and origin of dogs, you should read this book by Raymond Coppinger. He explores an alternate theory of the origin of dogs, and argues that while they are related to wolves they didn't descend from wolves because it would have taken too much of the energy and resources of humans for us to domesticate wolf pups. Instead, he says dogs descended from, well, dogs. Really interesting, I am currently working my way through it, and find it extremely informative but easy to read for a layperson :)
I am currently reading "How Dogs Love Us" (which is currently free on Kindle Unlimited: http://www.amazon.com/How-Dogs-Love-Us-Neuroscientist/dp/0544114515). It's a research scientist who starts to do MRIs of dog brains to determine how dogs think. It touches on the topics of the science of reinforcements briefly, but it's an overall interesting (and engaging) read.
No problem!
Dropped or pinned ears can mean a few things - it really depends on the rest of her body language. Is she wagging her tail, does her posture look comfortable and welcoming otherwise? Sometimes dropped ears can simply be a way to appear friendly and non-threatening in a social situation. Other times it can indicate nervousness and discomfort. Sometimes a dog can be friendly, nervous and uncomfortable!
Physical affection can be tricky. Tolerance for/enjoyment of physical affection varies by breed, and can also increase/decrease with age. Are we talking about petting? Hugs? What parts of her body are you touching? Lots of people instinctively reach over the top of a dog's head for pets, which most breeds will find fairly intrusive, and they may instinctively duck away. Hugs are also not in a dog's vocabulary - they might tolerate them, but will most likely feel uncomfortable. Obviously, there are exceptions to this, usually in the form of some ridiculously affectionate golden retriever.
My pup grew into enjoying physical affection, but there are still certain things that he doesn't like, so I try to work with him. I offer my hand for pets, or make room on the couch to cuddle, and he can take it or leave it. I try to always give him a heads up before I go in for a scratch, and I do a lot of body handling work where I reinforce physical contact with treats so he's more excited than annoyed when I'm poking his ears or checking his toes. He's 10 months now and his enjoyment of physical affection has skyrocketed in the last 3 months.
Hope that helps! There's also this really awesome little booklet about dog body language that you might like, On Talking Terms With Dogs by Turid Rugaas. I found it incredibly informative and it's really improved how I work with my guy.
http://www.amazon.com/Behavior-Adjustment-Training-Frustration-ebook/dp/B005NIL5MQ
Get a trainer. Folow the book above with his or her's help. There is hope.
Consider muzzling, the kind that allow water consumption but not biting, until you have a very high confidence in your dog's behavior.
Edit: this is also an excellent book: http://www.amazon.com/Click-Calm-Healing-Aggressive-ebook/dp/B008510I5S/ref=pd_sim_kstore_3
Both books are available in paperback, just cost a little more.
Double edit: Have a vet rule out any health concerns. Dogs in pain are often aggressive.
Your skepticism is warranted. The Coppingers in their book do a fairly good job of dispelling the myth that dogs have a pack hierarchy and view humans as "alpha wolves".
I am no expert on the matter nor do I have a comprehensive answer but I may send you in the right direction in finding a satisfying explanation.
I’ve read the book Honden zoals ze echt zijn ( Dogs, how they really are – sorry, its only in Dutch available) by Chris Dusauchoit.
FYI: C. Dusauchoit is a Belgian Journalist specialized in televisions shows on animals. He’s not a biologist, anthropologist or anything alike. Anyway, in one of the chapters he writes about the domestication of wolves and mentions two theories on how this may have happened:
The first one paints a rather romantic image in which an in bearskin dressed caveman stole a little pup from its mothers nest and raised it into an obedient pet. This theory has been refuted since pupnapping isn’t as easy as it may sound. First, To obtain a tame wolf you have to take the pup from its mother and the pack on the twelfth day since it has been born. On this day it opens its eyes and ears, and starts to recognize the pack members and its environment. Stealing a pup in Neolithic times is not only a precarious endeavor but requires the cavemen to know when the pup was born...
If the pupnapping was successful, there is only one week to imprint on the animal or any prospects on banding with the animal will be lost. Secondly, a twelve day old pup needs milk to survive. Breastfeeding a wolf seems implausible.
Thirdly, if you want a pack of domesticated wolves you have to find a male wolf who is willing to breed with your bitch on heat, which only happens once in two years. According to this theory, domesticating wolves by stealing pups is possible but highly unlikely for prescientific times. I don’t have Dusauchoit’s book by the hand so I can’t give you any references or further readings, sorry.
A secondary theory was presented by Raymond and Lorna Coppinger, behavorial ecologist and sled dog racers. They state that wolves were attracted by offal near man’s settlements. The less shy wolves came the closest which led to contact and eventually domestication.
This may give you an idea on how domestication of wolves took place but I suggest you read one of their books; Dogs: A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior and Evolution or What is a dog? to find an exhaustive answer.
As with all dogs, a lot of their behavior comes down to the owner. Look at the dogs who were rescued from Michael Vick. Most of them were rehabilitated and adopted by loving families who say they are excellent dogs. Some were even trained and are excelling at being therapy dogs. Those were very "damaged" animals but with love and training they have much better lives. I suggest checking out the book The Lost Dogs: Michael Vick's Dogs and Their Tale of Rescue and Redemption, it is very compelling.
I have gotten dogs from breeders and I have gotten dogs from shelters and I loved them all. However, the dogs I got from breeder tended to have more health issues and one of then had a lot of behavioral problems. The point is, just because you get a dog from a breeder doesn't mean it won't have problems.
Cesar's Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems
I wasn't working at the time, so I spent a good couple hours (or more) with her a day when she was a puppy. It sounds like you did something similar, that's great! I feel you about getting discouraged, I had many days, for months, where I thought nothing was improving. I read tons of training books and took a bunch of classes and even hired a couple trainers. Of all that, my favorite pieces of advice was that the bond you form with your dog is more important than any training. Basically, you can work on training at any age, but it will go much faster and will be more enjoyable for both of you if you have a strong bond with your dog. I think spending a lot of time with her as a puppy is an amazing way to build the foundation of that bond.
Something I struggled with (and still do) in dog training is the slow incremental increase required. When you say she ignored you when you were outside, that just means you moved up to "difficulty level 10" too fast. If you can add a bunch of steps in between, increasing the distractions while doing the name game, that's supposed to prep them for the Big Outdoors where it's harder for them to focus. Edit: here's an article that I like about recall!
Our girl only has mediocre recall at the park, so I'm still working on building that up. I like to use the command "watch me" for eye contact while we're on walks to help her get used to focusing on and checking in with me. What kind of training do you like? I do a mixture of clicker training and Suzanne Clothier's teaching methods (she's the one who talks about connection and forming a bond). Her book Bones Would Rain from the Sky is a good read about that. I just really love her work, it helped me feel hopeful when I was most discouraged about raising our puppy.
Learning about dogs and animal behaviour has moved on a lot since the 1970s. Unfortunately the Monks of New Skete have not moved on one iota. Please bury that book and get one of these, for instance:
I totally agree that building a good relationship with the dog is important, but then the MoNS recommend forms of physically punishing ('correcting') your dog or manipulating him to do stuff with the leash which would definitely undermine that good relationship.
Tugging on the leash and barking at other dogs are indicators that your dog is stressed on the leash, and this is a common side effect of using the leash to control the dog (pops on the leash, pulling the dog with the leash into position, etc.). To have a pleasant experience of walking the dog, you want the leash to be relaxed at all times. Start by teaching off leash heeling at home, then in a quiet area such as a back yard, then go out into the street. My dog walks much nicer on a harness than on the collar, just an anecdotal tip. See r/dogtraining wiki for loose leash walking training step by step.
Giving your dog lots of time to be comfortable around another dog at a distance is a good way to help with interactions. Keep both dogs on leash and walk in parallel for a bit, say 10 m apart, encouraging them both to sniff around rather than staring at each other. Then walk a bit closer, then a bit closer still, and move apart again and release them both about 10 m apart.
>Persians and Siamese wandered into Near Eastern settlements at the dawn of agriculture. They were looking for food, not friendship. (...)
>The story is quite different from that of other domesticated animals: cattle, sheep, goats, horses -- and dogs, cats' main rivals for human affection.
No it's not. That's exactly how dogs came to be:
Step One. Agriculture causes garbage dumps.
Step Two. Garbage dumps = plentiful food.
Step Three. Wolves who are not quite as scared away by humans, and not quite as aggressive towards them, have more access to that plentiful food.
Step Four. Evolution is a fact. Sorry, Mr. President, but it is.
Step Five. Time passes; generations occur.
Step Six. Dogs.
The common "cavemen bred wolves" idea is fundamentally absurd. See Dogs: A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior and Evolution, by Raymond and Lorna Coppinger, for details.
I rescued a pooch who was very timid about six months ago, and he has really come out of his shell. Any advice I could give would be plagiarized straight from here.
I don't want to sound like a shill, but I really recommend reading this.
Edit: He writes a great deal about walking your dog twice a day, and says that the dog should never be allowed to walk in front of you. I didn't strictly follow the last part, since I allow my dog off leash for most of the walk. Obedience training at PetSmart did help to teach him to walk without pulling on the leash.
This is now the subject of a book by the author of the study, and was recently featured in an article in the NY Times.
Thanks, the 2 books I had recommended by the instructors of Ontario's provincial rifle association were Litz's that you mention and The Wind Book.
>I've read articles from professional shooters, and almost all of it is either voodoo, or cannot be visually modeled easily (such as mirage)
The impression I have got is that it's an acquired skill that is very hard to describe and teach. Voodoo haha, I like to call it black magic.
Everything I read in the results obtained there are also in line with what I found during the research for my book. SWAT raids may be well publicized, but its the "normal" everyday police duties that kill the most number of pet dogs.
http://www.amazon.com/cop-shot-dog-true-stories-ebook/dp/B00ODVQ3JY
>Next up are the statistics related to the involvement of children in puppycides - how often are they in the line of fire when police shoot animals?
I would say "very often". I have a whole chapter dealing with the insane lack of gun safety in dog shootings, with a disturbingly large number of innocent bystanders (including children) and police officers themselves getting shot during a puppycide.
Never found any accountability though. In some cases (such as Lisa Maclin, Cleveland Ohio, 2012) the police are even keeping secret the name of the officer who fired the gun.
As Mayor Calvo pointed out after the raid on his home and deaths of his two pet dogs left nobody accountable, “police can do what they did to us with impunity. There are no consequences, not for them.”
I've decided to wait a bit and see if a book helps at all: Fired Up, Frantic and Freaked out by Laura VanArendonk Baugh. I picked it up yesterday and I'll give it a week to see how it goes.... $7 is a little nicer on the wallet than a bronze course and has the same amount of input lol.
It starts off with touch targeting (which she could do asleep) and shaping mat work. Since we didn't have any luck with the Fenzi shaping course.... well we'll see.
Pretty excited about it though... because of this book, I at least have a good way to explain why my dog turns her brain off if nothing else!
http://www.amazon.com/How-Speak-Dog-Mastering-Communication/dp/074320297X?ie=UTF8&*Version*=1&*entries*=0
Check out these two books and your done:
How to raise the perfect dog
How to housebreak you dog in 7 days
Check out Cesar Millan's book How to Raise the Perfect Dog: Through Puppyhood and Beyond. I've heard of quite a few success stories with it.
try the hardcover!
A few great books to start with:
Weekend Dog by Myrna Milani
http://www.amazon.com/Weekend-Dog-Myrna-M-Milani/dp/0451157311
AKC's Citizen Canine
http://www.amazon.com/Citizen-Canine-American-Kennel-Club/dp/1593786441/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1310420524&sr=1-5
Cesar's Way by Cesar Millan
http://www.amazon.com/Cesars-Way-Everyday-Understanding-Correcting/dp/0307337979/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1310420551&sr=1-2
Upvotes for crate training. IMHO, if you don't crate train your dog, you haven't started training your dog. Dogs should be crated when left home alone and overnight, and this helps establish dominance and reduces stress. Dogs are decended from wolves, and they by default will feel compelled to control and dominate their territory, and when you crate train you are teaching them that their domain is the crate, and the rest belongs to you, and they are happier for it.