The APDT - Caniscool

Transcription

The APDT
CHRONICLE
July/August 2009
of the Dog
Leader of the Peck: Clickin’ a Chicken
by Terry Ryan
Trained Dogs Comfort Abused Children
by Ellen O’Neill Stephens, JD &
Celeste Walsen, DVM
The Research Behind the
MannersMinder™ Dog Training System
by Sophia Yin, DVM
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Table of Contents
The Association of Pet Dog Trainers
150 Executive Center Drive, Box 35
Greenville, SC 29615
1-800-PET-DOGS
information@APDT.com
www.APDT.com
APDT Vision Statement:
All dogs are effectively trained through dog-friendly
techniques, and, therefore, are lifelong companions in
a relationship based on mutual trust and respect.
APDT Mission Statement:
Promoting caring relationships between dogs and
people by educating trainers in canine behavior and
emphasizing professionalism and reward-based
training.
Communications Director/Editor-in-Chief
Mychelle Blake, MSW, CDBC
Contributing Editors
Veronica Boutelle, MA, CTC; Terry Long, CPDT; Susan
Smith, CPDT, CDBC; Nicole Wilde, CPDT
Editors-At-Large
Teoti Anderson, CPDT; Kellyann Conway, CABC
APDT Founder - Ian Dunbar, PhD, MRCVS, CPDT
President - Barbara Long, CPDT
Vice President - Michelle Douglas, CPDT, CDBC
Secretary - Jackie Loeser, CPDT
Treasurer - Mel Bussey, CPDT, CDBC
Executive Director - Richard Spencer
Manager of Operations - Rene McKeel
Member Relations Coordinator - Megan Crosby
The APDT Chronicle of the Dog is a bimonthly educational publication for the APDT’s members. Articles that support the APDT’s mission
of enhancing the human-dog relationship and advocating dog-friendly
training are encouraged. Letters or articles that do not support the
Mission Statement and/or Code of Ethics of the APDT may not be
printed at the discretion of the Editor.
Submissions
The APDT Chronicle of the Dog encourages the submission
of original written materials. Please query the Editor-in-Chief for
contributor guidelines prior to sending manuscripts. Instructions for
contributors can be found on the APDT Web site or by e-mailing
chronicleofthedog@apdt.com.
Memberships and Subscriptions
Please call the APDT business office at 1-800-PET-DOGS or go to
www.apdt.com.
July/August 2009
Features
An Interview with Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz - Mychelle Blake, MSW,
CDBC 47
A Training Format Way Outside of the Box - Introduction to
Levels vs. Traditional Class Formatting: Part One - Joan B. Guertin
27
Leader of the Peck: Clickin’ a Chicken - Terry Ryan 18
The Research Behind the MannersMinder™ Dog Training
System - Sophia Yin, DVM 13
Trained Dogs Comfort Abused Children - Ellen O’Neill Stephens, JD &
Celeste Walsen, DVM 24
2010 APDT Board of Directors Election Information &
Candidate Statements 50
Columns
A Learning Theory Primer Punishment - Susan Smith, CPDT, CDBC
45
A Message from the President - Barbara Long, CPDT 4
Dog Fights Choosing Your Battles in the Canine Wars - Mary
Zoller, MPA, CDBC 43
From the Business End of the Leash Policies - Veronica Boutelle,
MA, CTC 6
Member Profile: Mira Jones, CPDT, CDBC 8
Letters to the Editor
To comment on authors’ work, or to let us know what topics you would
like to see more of, contact our Editor-in-Chief via e-mail at chronicleofthedog@apdt.com and attach your letter as a Microsoft Word or
RTF file. Please put “APDT Pick of the Letter” in the subject line of your
e-mail. Please limit your letter to 250 words or less. Please note, the
editor reserves the right to edit for length, grammar, and clarity.
CDBC 36
Reprints
Articles in this publication may not be reprinted without written permission from the APDT. Please contact the Editor-in-Chief in writing with
your request. Copyright 2009 by the APDT. All rights reserved.
Teaching Classes The Return of the Small Dog - Vicki Ronchette,
CPDT, CAP2 41
Advertising
Please contact the Editor-in-Chief to obtain a copy of rates, ad specifications, format requirements, and deadlines. Advertising information is
also available on the the APDT Web site. The APDT does not endorse
or guarantee any products, services, or vendors mentioned in The
APDT Chronicle of the Dog, nor can it be responsible for problems
with vendors or their products and services. The APDT reserves the
right to reject, at its discretion, any advertising.
The APDT is a USA-based organization and not affiliated with other
international APDTs.
www.APDT.com
On Behavior Case Study: Let’s Settle This! - Barbara Davis, CPDT,
Rally Team Spotlight Mary Horne, CPDT, CTC and Pepper 10
Photo Credits:
All Agency: Dreamstime.com: Cover Photo © Photographer: Mefanti | p. 6: © Photographer: Amaxim |
p. 16: © Photographer: Castrothecigar | p. 27: © Photographer: Julia Lutgendorf | p. 43: © Photographer:
Joop Snijder | p. 45: © Photographer: Sivanagk | All Agency: BigStockPhoto.com: p. 22 © Photographer:
graphicphoto All Agency: iStockPhoto.com: p. 50 © Photographer: J Tyler | Other Photos: p. 4 courtesy
of Barbara Long; p. 8 courtesy of Mira Jones; p. 10 courtesy of Mary Horne; p. 12-14 courtesy of Sophia Yin; p.
18-21 courtesy of Terry Ryan; p. 24 courtesy of Jack Stephens; p. 41 courtesy of Vicki Ronchette; p. 47 courtesy
of Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz; p. 50 courtesy of Carol Comer; p. 52 courtesy of Ian Dunbar; p. 54 courtesy of Trish
McMillan; p. 56 courtesy of Lisa Tudor; p. 58 courtesy of Laurie Williams.
Editor’s Note: In the May/June 2009 issue of The APDT Chronicle of the Dog, we inadvertantly omitted the
photo credit for page 53. The photo is courtesy of Lisa Hartman.
July/August 2009 w The APDT Chronicle of the Dog w 3
A Message From the President ...
Barbara Long, CPDT
President, APDT Board of Directors
E
very fall two events occur that are vital to the mission
of the APDT—our annual Conference and the Board
of Directors election. The planning for both of them
has been going on for a long time.
If you have been to our conference, you know that it is
a huge undertaking. Our event planner, Details Details,
starts years in advance soliciting bids for locations for the
conference. It is not easy finding a hotel that meets our
needs for enough general meeting space, break out meeting
space, exhibit hall and networking space at a price we can
afford. Members always ask us to hold a conference in the
Northeast. We would like to, but no one wants to pay $250
per night for a hotel room and we haven’t been able to
find a place to meet all our requirements and that is also
affordable for our members.
The Marriott City Center in Oakland will provide us
with lots of space for all our activities. The exhibit hall is
spacious. There will be room for all our vendors as well as
space for demonstrations. You will be able to watch APDT
Rally along with Canine Freestyle and Teacup Agility.
Once the site has been selected and a contract negotiated
we begin planning the schedule. As in the past, speaker
selection for this year’s conference was held the day after
the Louisville conference ended. The committee sifts
through over a hundred proposals trying to find the best
mix of topics and speakers to present. We try to balance the
needs of veteran trainers with those of you just starting out
in the field.
Based on the very positive evaluations of last year’s Play
Symposium we will again devote a full day to one topic:
Fear and Anxiety Behaviors. Not as fun as play, but one
that is vital in training dogs. We have a terrific line-up of
speakers to bring you the best education possible. You will
have an opportunity to hear new speakers, as well as some
of the “stars” in our field. If you want to brush up on your
foundation skills, there will be talks to help you with that.
If you want to develop your scientific knowledge of dog
training, you can do that at the conference, too.
We look at every single evaluation that you fill out to
help improve future conferences. People always ask for
more hands-on work. To meet that need the Conference
Committee has arranged for several sessions of chicken
training, a shelter training session and a field trip to the
Oakland Zoo. If you don’t want to sit in lectures all day,
sign up for one of the workshops.
Barbara and Niamh
you arrive in Oakland, your day will be filled from early in
the morning to late at night.
If you haven’t done so yet, please visit the conference
Web site at www.apdt.com/conf for the complete schedule
of activities and descriptions of the session and speaker
bios. You will see that our five days in Oakland have something for everyone. Keep checking back on the conference
blog for the latest information about speakers, vendors and
events. The Board and the Conference Committee realize
that attending the conference in these tough economic
times may be difficult. We have worked hard to make it
worth your while to come to Oakland.
The other important APDT event is our annual Board of
Directors Election. Our Board is made up of nine members,
each with three-year terms. That means that every year
three seats are available. It is your job as members to vote for
the three candidates that you feel will best serve the APDT.
The Board sets the direction and policy for the association
so your votes will have an effect on what the APDT does for
you in the next three years.
You will find the biographies of the candidates and their
answers to a number of questions in this issue beginning
on page 50. Please take the time to read the information
that the candidates have provided. To help you make an
informed decision, you will also have an opportunity to
submit questions to the candidates on the Barkboard, our
online forum located in the Members Only section of the
APDT Web site. Beginning August 15, you will be able
to post questions on the forum that the candidates will
answer at the end of the month. If you haven’t registered
for the forum, please do so in order to participate in the
election forum.
I want to thank the candidates for volunteering to run for
our Board. Board service is time consuming but rewarding.
I hope all the members will participate in the election and I
look forward to seeing you in Oakland.
The Conference Committee has been working with
Oakland APDT members to find nearby restaurants and
attractions. They’ve also been arranging networking
activities and social events. All of this means that, when
4 w The APDT Chronicle of the Dog w July/August 2009
www.APDT.com
APDT Rally 2008 National Rankings
Top 20 APDT Rally Teams Overall US/Canada
Name
Breed
Points
Porter/Marcie Ridgway, Savoy, IL
Flat-Coated Retriever2859
Franklin Hill’s Jumpin Jazz/Peg Munves, New York, NY
Labrador Retriever2300
Tesla’s I B Electrifying/Linda Sorak, Normal, IL
Airedale Terrier1437
Ravenmasque Flying Miss Lacey CD NA NAJ/Marsha Kruse, Bartlett, IL
Belgian Tervuren1026
Ringo/Megan Keister, Washington, DC
All American961
Sailor/Patricia Murphy, Croton-on-Hudson, NY
Belgian Tervuren887
Mike/Carole Daggett, Parsippany, NJ
Border Collie886
Ferrinsong Five Star Performance NA NAP NJP/Marsha Kruse, Bartlett, IL Belgian Tervuren885
Hearst/Patricia Murphy, Croton-on-Hudson, NY
All American758
Milo Wales Murphy/Annette Murphy, Lansdale, PA
Border Terrier716
3bf’s K2’s Calamity Jane/Annette Murphy, Lansdale, PA
Rat Terrier709
Ginger/Kathryn I. Martens, Crystal Lake, IL
Poodle707
Brijas Top Gun V Sharjets/Traci Isabella, Willow Grove, PA
Doberman Pinscher674
Ivy/Susan Nagle, Geneva, IL
Labrador Retriever662
Sammy Kurtz/Linda F. Kurtz, Ann Arbor, MI
All American656
Hollywood Marilyn Nakita/Pamela Rice, Bloomington, IL
All American648
Adelaide/Gary Vierck, Elgin, IL
Border Collie619
Phoebe/Jennifer Lyon, Worthington, OH
Welsh Pembroke Corgi619
Olive’s Grove Sweet Jasmine/Stephen Miller, Montclair, NJ Shih Tzu613
Cobell’s Star Struck/Ingrid Butt, North Brunswick, NJ
Fox Terrier600
Wagontale’s Nordic Last Call/Brenda Sanders Stacy Temples, Rockton, IL Bernese Mountain Dog600
Congratulations on your success!
The APDT thanks our APDT Rally trial hosts and exhibitors for their efforts in 2008! It was a
record year with 319 trials held and 1549 titles earned!!!
Arizona
Paws for Reflection, Scottsdale
Maine
Wag It Training Center, Lincolnville
Alaska
Capital Kennel Club of Juneau, Juneau
Maryland
Breakaway Action Dogs, Frederick
California
Goleta Valley Dog Club, Goleta
Michigan
Canine Coaches & Northfield DTC, Ann Arbor
Wolverine DTC & Northfield DTC, Ann Arbor
Canada
Sit Happens, Calgary Alberta
Rose County Canine Association, Edmonton,
Alberta
Florida
Performance Pups, Plantation
Illinois
Kay 9 Petiquette, Elburn
For Your Canine, Schiller Park
Rally Club of Champaign Urbana, Urbana
RPM, Crystal Lake
Blitzen Canine Academy, Frankfort
Town & Country Kennel Club, Bloomington
Flying Paws, Cary
Indiana
Trail Creek Dog Training Club, LaPorte
Paw Power Blues Dog Club, Lowell
Tippecanoe & Rally Too, Lafayette
www.APDT.com
Minnesota
Minnesota Mixed Breed Dog Club, Hugo
Nebraska
Bonafide Dog Academy, Omaha
New Hampshire
Monadnock Canine Academy, West Swanzey
New Jersey
St. Huberts DSC, Madison
Positive Motivation Dog Training, Belvidere
Pawsable K9 Events, Millstone
Metro Shetland Sheepdog Club, Andover
Golden Rule School for Dogs, Andover
New York
Hudson Valley Dog Club, Middletown
Port Chester Rally Enthusiasts, White Plains
K9 Crazy Playskool, Stone Ridge
Garden State Beardie Collie Clan, Staten Island
Suffolk Tailwaggers, Kings Park
Staten Island DTC, Staten Island
North Carolina
Carolina Pet & Performance, Durham
Ohio
Medina Swarm, Wadsworth
Four Seasons K9 Athlete Center, Washingtonville
Wild Weavers of Ohio, Gahanna
Bud Houston’s Country Dream, Waterford
Pennsylvania
Delaware Valley Golden Retriever Rescue,
Reinholds
Bella Vista Training Center, Lewisberry
Obedience Training Class of Harrisburg,
Harrisburg
Dog Training Club of Chester County, Exton
Y2K9s, Wyndmoor
Virginia
Pup N Iron, Fredericksburg
R
Policies
unning a business without effective policies is like
driving a car without oil. The car—or your business—
runs less and less effectively until, finally, it breaks
down. To avoid spending time on the side of the road, here
are some tips to tune up your policies.
The Business
End
of the
Scheduling Policy
Set your schedule up for success. “What time is good
for you?” is a question to avoid at all costs. Though your
intent may be to be accommodating and customer-centric,
inviting clients to dictate your schedule leads to an
inefficient, unpredictable calendar. Appointments often
end up scattered throughout the day, with small batches
of time in between that are difficult to use productively.
Instead, cluster your appointments to leave larger blocks
of time open for business development and marketing—for
working on the business—and for your own personal use.
Asking clients what time is good for them also implies
that your schedule is wide open, carrying the subtle implication that your business is slow. Consciously or subconsciously, most consumers are drawn to businesses that are
already successful—don’t inadvertently signal that yours is
otherwise.
Finally, one key to successful training is building a
strong, effective client-trainer relationship in which the
client acknowledges the trainer’s expertise and status
as a professional. Without this it is difficult to gain client
trust and compliance regarding methodology and specific
training advice. There are many small moments in which
we build or erode this relationship. Scheduling is one of
them. Giving clients set appointment times to choose from
not only stabilizes your schedule, it conveys the value of
your time as a professional service provider.
Lest I be misunderstood, respecting clients and providing excellent, top-notch, sincere customer service is of
utmost value to your business and your professionalism.
But there are many ways to do this without compromising
your ability to run your business while also having time to
actively grow it and to attend to your life outside of work.
Good client service does not mean being accommodating
to the point of inefficiency or inadvertently undermining
your professional status.
Payment Policy
Most trainers require payment up front and in general
that’s good practice. Taking credit cards, particularly if you
offer private training packages, can make your services
more easily available to clients when they need them. Payment plans can also help when used carefully. Here are a
few rules to offer help without getting burned:
1. Require a credit card for payment plans.
2. Work with your client to pre-set the dates and payment
Leash
Veronica Boutelle, MA, CTC
amounts, and build an authorization into your contract
so that you can automatically make the deductions on
the agreed-upon dates. This saves you and your client
multiple collections conversations, keeps the focus on
the training, and ensures you’re paid on time.
3. Your contract should stipulate clearly—and be sure to
cover this verbally, too—that the client is committing
to the entire training plan. This discourages the client,
experiencing improvement in their dog’s behavior part
way into the training process, from deciding to wrap up
early. It’s not only in your business interest to avoid this,
but serves the client and dog as well—an uncompleted
training plan rarely delivers lasting results.
Cancellation Policy
Trainers often operate with no cancellation policy, or with
one that stipulates a certain amount of notice required for
calling off an appointment. But when a client’s week starts to
feel too busy and they look around for something to jettison
from their schedule, it shouldn’t be dog training. Training
requires consistency and commitment. Your cancellation
policy should not imply that it’s okay to put training off
if you just call ahead. If you put a package together for a
client, deciding that their goals required six sessions, for
example, then everyone loses if only five sessions occur.
You also need to protect your finances. You have a limited
number of paid hours in your schedule—if you take, for
example, 10 clients a week, a single cancellation represents
10% of your income.
In order to keep your income intact and to help clients
create the consistency they need to achieve their training
goals, consider a no-cancellation policy in which cancellations are automatically charged (this should be in your
contract and explained to clients) and then rescheduled.
This way clients get the full complement of sessions, dogs
benefit from the completion of a training plan, and you
enjoy the satisfaction a job completed, as well as your full
income potential. >
www.APDT.com
A final rule of thumb—create policies you can grow into.
If you’re not currently as busy as you intend to be, your
policies don’t need to reflect this. Design them to take care
of you when you are busy. In the meantime, strong policies
will save you money and time. And if you learn to use and
enforce them now you’ll be ahead of the game when your
schedule is full.
Veronica Boutelle, MA, CTC is the author of How to Run a
Dog Business: Putting Your Career Where Your Heart Is.
She founded and runs dogTEC, whose business is to help yours
succeed. If you’d like help reworking your policies e-mail info@
dogtec.org or visit www.dogtec.org.
DO G ST�R DAILY
®
Free Online Multimedia
Puppy & Dog Training Guide
Articles, Blogs, Photos & Hours of Audio & Video
Class Textbook for Student Homework
Customizable Handouts & Free Book Downloads
www.dogstardaily.com
DR. IAN DUNBAR SEMINARS
Chicago IL
Boston MA
Austin TX
Orlando FL
San Francisco CA
Washington DC
Seattle WA
New York NY
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Attention APDT Members! Dogwise gives
active APDT members a discount. Go to
www.dogwise.com for more details!
Keep up to date on new books, DVDs,
and toys with the Dogwise.com enewsletter. Click on “Dogwise e-mail”
to sign up at www.dogwise.com.
www.jamesandkenneth.com
Great reads from Dogwise Publishing
OH BEHAVE!
Dogs from Pavlov to
Primack to Pinker
Jean Donaldson
Jean Donaldson brings
her considerable
wisdom—and wit—to
a wide variety of
interesting topics for
dog trainers and enthusiasts. Winner
of the DWAA Maxwell Award for 2008
Best Dog Training and Behavior Book.
FOCUS NOT FEAR
Training Insights
from a Reactive Dog
Class
Ali Brown
Using innovative
techniques, Ali
Brown details her
successful methods
for professional dog trainers ready to
take on the challenge of rehabilitating
reactive dogs.
CHANGING PEOPLE,
CHANGING DOGS
Positive Solutions for
Difficult Dogs
Dee Ganley
RIGHT ON TARGET!
Taking Dog Training
to a New Level
Mandy Book & Cheryl
Smith
Revised Edition with new
Learn how to train
exercises and photos!
your dog to target
Filled with easy-to-read
your hand, a contact
and implement strategies, techniques,
disk or a target stick,
exercises and games, Dee walks the
then utilize targets to build complex
reader through over fifty methods of
behaviors. Detailed instructions will
addressing canine fear and aggression.
deliver outstanding results.
REALLY RELIABLE
RECALL DVD
Train Your Dog to
Come When Called...
No Matter What!
Leslie Nelson
Easy to follow steps to
train your dog to come
when it really counts—
in an emergency. Contains chapters for
difficult to train breeds and for trainers
to use in class.
CANINE BODY
LANGUAGE
A Photographic
Guide
Brenda Aloff
Hundreds of images
in this almost 400
page book illustrate
the incredible variety
of postures, behaviors and situations
that the typical dog either manifests
or encounters in his day-to-day life.
Order online at www.dogwise.com or call 800-776-2665
www.APDT.com
The Business End of the Leash
Policies for Now and Later
Member Profile
Editor Nicole Wilde, CPDT
Mira Jones,
CPDT, CDBC
Business Name: TailLights Dogs, LLC
Location: Greenville, SC
Phone: 864-384-6570
E-mail: mira@TailLightsDogs.com
Web Site: www.TailLightsDogs.com
Years in Business: 12
Personal Training Philosophy: Dogs and people:
We are each other’s teachers, and we are each
other’s students.
Mira and Raffi
How long have you been in business and what types of
services do you provide?
TailLights Dogs began 12 years ago as TailLights Ranch
in Dallas, Texas. Now that we are in South Carolina, most
of my business is individual behavior work. I also set up
small classes for private clients and their dogs to practice
new skills and socialize.
How did you get started?
In the early 90’s, I spent much of my time with horses,
riding and competing. I was around lots of barn dogs, all
well-behaved, all off-leash, none aggressive, all responsive
to their owners’ requests, and not a single one trained in the
formal sense. One day my two dogs were with me when I
stopped to get fuel. I went in to pay, mindlessly leaving a
car door open. When I came back, a woman was standing
by my car with her jaw open and asked “how did you do
that?” “Do what?” I replied. “Get your dogs to stay in the
car. Mine would have been out of here.” That encounter was
the beginning of my journey to learn why dogs do what
they do, and how we influence and interact with them. My
bachelor’s is in music/psychology. I later learned the fundamentals of applied behavior analysis at the University of
North Texas. I enjoy exploring training and behavior from
varying perspectives, connecting threads of thought, and
then finding practical ways to incorporate those threads for
use in the real world.
How do you get your business?
Veterinarian referrals, Internet searches, and client
referrals. Also referrals from doggie day care and boarding
and grooming businesses.
What do you believe are the three most important things
to teach a dog?
Whatever three things are most important to the dog’s
owner and family. I actually ask this question on my intake,
and it’s interesting that very few people answer with a
specific behavior like “sit” or “down.” For the most part,
people want their dogs to come when called, to be calm,
and always be friendly with all people and all dogs. Simple,
but not easy! Ultimately, I think the most important thing is
to teach people to nurture a trusting bond. Understanding
what their dog needs to willingly give that trust makes the
training part flow.
What types of cases do you find most challenging and
why? What techniques or philosophies have you found
helpful in dealing with those cases?
My most challenging cases are those in which the person
is resistant to making a “thinking change” regarding how
they see their dog’s behavior. Sometimes, these are the
clients who call me and have in mind that I can “fix” their
dog. I can teach them to get and reward desirable behaviors,
and I can educate them about why we humans have a long
history with canines. However, for real success, I feel there
has to be some resonance within the client about how they
play a part in their dog’s behavior. What I have found
helpful personally in these cases is to accept that I may not
have a role in how it all plays out, and to keep doing the best
I can.
What advice would you give other trainers about working
with dogs and their owners?
To have faith that there is a reason you’ve encountered
the people and dogs that you have. When I’ve been able to
discover and examine the reason, or even muse about what
the reason might be, I feel I’m a better person for the next
client.
Can you offer a specific tip or trick for working with dogs
or owners that other trainers might find helpful?
Before interacting with a dog, especially in any kind of
training scenario, slow down. Take a deep breath or two,
get conscious, set your intention. Dogs notice.
What was your scariest moment with a dog (or a client)?
It’s vital to get a good history and set up the lesson or
consult so that “scary” doesn’t come into the picture for
anyone involved. One case that illuminated this for me >
www.APDT.com
Comfort Trainer Head Halter
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Can you share a favorite moment you’ve had with a dog
or a client?
Some of my happiest moments are as an observer of
intimate exchanges between person and dog. Hard to
describe, but you know it when you see it. I was recently
on a walk in the woods with my dogs and a friend and
her 12-week-old lurcher, Hubie. Hubie was having a blast,
running up and down the trail when he suddenly stopped
and stuck his snout deep inside a pile of leaves. He brought
his nose out of the pile and sought his person’s face. She
was right there for him, acknowledging and commenting
on the wonder of his discovery. Hubie seemed ecstatic that
the most important person in the world to him found the
odor interesting too! Then off he went to find my crew and
uncover more trail treasures. It was pure joy to witness that
special moment between them.
Professional United Pet Sitters
What would you say are the top three things you have
personally learned as a trainer?
To appreciate the depth of the human-canine bond, to
accept the paradox that as individuals we are unique and
yet the same, and to understand that we, along with our
animals, are not at some end-point, rather we continue to
evolve.
What was the last training-related seminar you attended?
If you haven’t attended a seminar lately, what was the
last dog-related book or DVD you read/viewed?
Adam Miklosi’s Dog Behaviour, Evolution and Cognition
is the latest book on my nightstand. It’s a must-have for
reference and for reflecting on relevant research.
“Member Profile” editor Nicole Wilde, CPDT, is the author of
eight books including So You Want to be a Dog Trainer, Help
for Your Fearful Dog, Getting a Grip on Aggression Cases,
and the 2009 release Energy Healing for Dogs (all available at
www.phantompub.com). Nicole presents seminars domestically
and internationally, and is on the faculty and advisory board of
the Companion Animal Sciences Institute. She is a columnist for
Modern Dog Magazine, a regular contributor to Dog Star Daily
(www.dogstardaily.com), and the owner of Gentle Guidance Dog
Training in southern California.
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Member Profile
was a dog who had two owners—sisters—who lived in
different houses on the same block and shared the dog. This
lovely, but troubled, shepherd mix guarded both sisters and
the two homes—what a terribly difficult job this dog had
assigned herself! Compounding this dog’s distress was the
sisters’ opposing views on how to relate to the dog. When
I saw them, the sisters positioned themselves on opposite
sides of the room creating a situation that rendered the
dog as vigilant and on edge as a dog could be. It took all
my acting and body language skills to not set that dog off
before working it through.
Rally Team Spotlight
Mary Horne, CPDT, CTC
and Pepper
Editor Linda Sperco
the new Veteran’s class later in September and we’re really
excited. He’s a bit stiff these days but still really enjoys
working, so Veteran’s will be perfect for us. Tell us a little bit about yourself and about your dog. What makes APDT Rally special? I have a dog-loving husband (a converted “cat person”)
and four terrific dogs—two purebred Labs and two rescue
Labs of somewhat questionable lineage—ages 10, 11, and
12 years, and nine months. The youngster, Pepper, who
earned the Rally Puppy Level, is a fun-loving, at times wild,
but wonderful female black Lab who keeps me laughing,
thinking and learning every single day! Three of the four
dogs have competed in and love APDT Rally. There are many things. Mixed breed dogs are welcome. It’s a great introduction to the ring for young dogs like
Pepper. It’s terrific for older dogs and dogs with disabilities
who have physical limitations that would exclude them
from other venues. I love that one can praise one’s dog
for a job well done as the dog is doing the job; I think that
aspect makes for good long-term training and helps both
dog and human relax and enjoy the moment. One can also
give a treat after certain exercises, which can help a team
get through what can be a long series of exercises. Having
said all that, the exercises at the upper levels can be quite
challenging, making them fun and interesting to train and
execute for both handler and dog. Finally, in my experience,
the APDT Rally trial atmosphere is amazingly warm and
collegial, showing a genuine emphasis on enjoyment of
one’s time with one’s dogs. How old was your dog when you earned the Puppy/
Veteran titles? How has APDT Rally made your special relationship
with your dog even more special? Pepper was seven-months-old. She was six months and
a couple of days when we went to our first trials, and she
earned blue ribbons in each. Of course, it helped that she was
the only puppy in those classes! The last class had several
terrific pups and handlers in it, and we were so excited to
see that the Puppy level classes are really catching on.
Competing in Rally has deepened my relationships with
my dogs in so many ways. With young Pepper, Rally is
giving us a solid start to dog sports in a supportive and upbeat atmosphere. With my older dogs, it gives us continued
motivation to “noodle” around in training and from time
to time go away for a day or weekend together and strut
our stuff. I think anyone who trains for any kind of formal
work with their dogs will agree that the moments when
you feel seamlessly connected with your dog as a team are
both wondrous and priceless.
I am a lifelong dog-lover who, after many years in
corporate and financial work, caught the bug of positive
training about 10 years ago and jumped in with both feet. I
own my own training business in Connecticut, which
is mainly focused on new puppy guidance and behavior
problem prevention. When did you first become involved with APDT Rally? My now 11-year-old female Lab Honey (Falcon’s Nest
Honey) and I showed in the very first APDT Rally trial
in 2001 in Ellenville, NY. It was my first “dog show” ever,
and it really got me hooked. Honey and I barely qualified
but I was so proud and we had a wonderful time.
Why did you become involved with APDT Rally? A gifted local positive trainer who was planning to take
her dog to that first Rally trial encouraged Honey and me to
try it. We practiced a bit together and it was so much fun! I
loved the fact that you could train to a high level of precision
and would be scored for it, and yet the rules were so dogand people friendly. What other APDT Rally titles have you earned with this
dog or with other dogs? Honey (11) has her RL1 and RL2 (MCL) titles.
Lance (12) has his ARCHX and RL1X, RL2X and RL3X, all
with Awards of Excellence. Lance and I are planning to try
What was your proudest APDT Rally moment? I have been so proud of all my Rally dogs, but one of the
best days for me was when Lance, at age 11, earned perfect
210 scores in all three levels in a single day. He was beaming
with pride, also! Lance, a former stray whom I adopted at
age five when I was a student at the San Francisc SPCA, has
taught me to never underestimate the possibilities whatever
the outward odds. He is just amazing.
What advice would you give to someone who might be
thinking about participating in APDT Rally? Do it! If you enjoy taking time out to work with your
own dog (and what trainer doesn’t?), you will likely love it
... and your dog probably will, too! Linda Sperco serves as the National Coordinator for APDT
Rally. She can be reached at rallyo@apdt.com.
www.APDT.com
Considering Becoming an APDT
Rally Sanctioned Judge?
Attend an APDT Rally Sanctioned Judge’s Seminar
at the 2009 APDT Educational Conference
and Trade Show in Oakland, CA!
Friday, October 23
1:30 – 5:00 pm
This seminar is open to everyone! APDT Rally scoring guidelines, course design and
general rules and guidelines will be covered in-depth. “How would you score this?”
will use video clips for what will surely be a lively discussion on how to score errors as
they occur! There will be ample time for questions and answers. This seminar fulfills the
continuing education requirement for trial officials. Exhibitors and the general public
are invited to attend. Cost: $25.00
To register: Registrations must be sent directly to the APDT Rally office. Please go to the
APDT Web site and go to the Rally section (www.apdt.com/po/rally/default.aspx) and
click on the Sanctioned Seminar Registration link.
Please note: registering only for the judge’s seminar will not be considered registering
for any additional conference activities. Additional conference activities must be
registered through the conference registration office or through the online conference
registration system on the APDT Web site.
www.APDT.com
The Research Behind the
MannersMinder™ Dog
Training System
Sophia Yin, DVM
I
s it faster to train a verbal cue alone or when paired with
a visual cue? Does tossing treats to a barking dog teach
him to be more aggressive or will his behavior improve?
Why does treat delivery speed or location matter if you’re
using a clicker? Is positive reinforcement alone effective in
real life situations or is something else needed?
Seven years ago, out of the blue, I started working on a
research project to train unruly dogs to remain quiet and
calm when visitors came to the door. Little did I know that
this quest to set a standard for testing training protocols
would reveal so many interesting and sometimes unexpected answers to common training questions.
History
It all started in July of 2003, when I received a message
from The Sharper Image, a now defunct San Francisco-based
gadget company. “We want to develop an “electronic mood
translation device,” they said. “One that really works.”
This message seems odd, but I knew exactly what they
meant because I knew that the Bowlingual Bark Translator,
a toy proported to translate dog barks into statements
depicting the dog’s emotions, was just about to hit the
U.S market. Because my research field was barking as
communication in dogs I’d been asked to test the Bowlingual
for a local news station and I had found that it didn’t work.
This finding was no surprise. While dogs have different
barks in different contexts, the task of developing a device
that could correlate an individual dog’s bark with a large
number of contexts would be nearly impossible, and also of
not much use since it’s better to learn to translate your dog’s
barks yourself.
With this in mind, when I received the Sharper Image’s
message, I basically replied, “Such a device won’t work, but
feel free to contact me for specifics on why.” To my surprise,
they did contact me, and this time, unable to resist the idea
of working with a company that could probably make any
animal training device I conjured up, I changed my answer.
“No, that product won’t work ... but how about these ones
instead?” I asked.
“You’re interested in barking—excessive barking is a
huge problem for dog owners, with up to 33% of dog owners
complaining that their dog barks excessively, and the only
products for excessive barking rely on punishment—loud
sounds, shock, or irritating sprays—to stop the behavior.
How about making a device that addresses the issue by
rewarding quiet behavior and that’s backed by the research
to prove that it works?”
Why Address Barking at the Door First?
After presenting ideas to the company their reply was
“Yes! We’re interested in something that works and is
backed by research.” So I got on it immediately.
Among the several ideas I proposed, I chose the
system for training unruly dogs at the door as the one to
develop first, for several reasons. >
www.APDT.com
Why a Complicated Remote-Controlled Gadget?
One problem with barking is that in order to get good
behavior, you need to reward an alternate quiet behavior.
This can be difficult if you don’t have treats readily available
or the dog is a distance away. Furthermore, if you need to
answer the door while preventing your dog from jumping
and want to give the guest room to enter, it’s easiest to
reward the dog for a sit or down-stay away from the door
without having to walk back and forth between the guest
and the dog to reward the dog for continuing to stay.
That’s where the techno-gadget—a remote-controlled
kibble-dispensing machine—comes in. The gadget comes
with a remote control and once pressed, it causes the
machine to emit a tone and immediately release a treat.
Consequently the owner can reward the dog at a distance
when the dog’s performing the correct behavior. The key
is the timing—owners can now time the reward right as
their dog performs the correct behavior without having to
fumble for the food or run up to Dozer to deliver the treat.
As a result, the dog knows exactly what he’s doing right.
This provides an advantage of clicker training in which the
human delivers the treat, in that the treat is consistently
doled out within a second after the tone; whereas humans
may take up to several seconds to provide the reward.
Interestingly, many Treat & Train™ users have commented
that their dogs are much more focused on the machine
than they are with regular clicker training. And the reason
is that it is important that the treat still come quickly even
with a click or tone as a bridging stimulus.
One additional feature of having a remote controlled
food dispenser is that this particular machine can be set to
give treats at regular intervals and to jackpot. That way the
machine can help owners raise the criteria for behavior in a
systematic manner.
Why a Stepwise Protocol?
Realistically, for some dogs, simply distracting them
from the door by doling out food from a machine works
well enough. And in this case the machine simply needs to
release treats when the remote is pressed. But those are the
easy cases. For the challenging cases a more systematic protocol needed to be devised. One for training dogs to run to
a rug and lie down quietly on cue even in the face of major
distractions such as repeated doorbell ringing or knocking,
loud shouting, people running around, or people trying to
www.APDT.com
eat a peaceful dinner. And it had to be tested in a scientific
and repeatable manner so that we felt comfortable making
the claim that it would work even for the tough cases.
What it Takes
Realize that, when you’re developing a protocol for
owners who do not have trainers coaching them at every
step, the protocol must meet three criteria. First, it has to be
easy enough for the average dog owner to follow. Basically
if someone reads the protocol and watches the video, they
should be able to reproduce the steps without needing
someone present to watch and correct them. Second, each
step must be quick so that the owners make continued
improvement. My criteria of quick was that the owner get
through the step in about 10 repetitions or trials with
over 90% of the trials resulting in a correct response by
the dog. Third, it had to require relatively little movement
on the part of the owners. The more I expected owners to
move the more likely they would be to make an incorrect
move. Fourth, it had to use the Treat & Train™ and avoid
giving any treats by hand. Again, the more people have to
move, even to deliver the treats by hand, the more likely
the timing and movements are to be off. And all this had to
get done within my window of availability and on a tight
money budget.
The Pilot Study
The research was designed and carried out in three
stages. I started with pilot testing using 10 dogs to look
at different variations of techniques I had already used.
This is where I hit my first snag. The behaviors I thought
would only take several days based on my experience with
many other dogs in the past, took much longer and was
much more complicated. I solicited suggestions from Bob
Bailey, former general manager of the Animal Behavior
Enterprises (the largest animal training company based
on scientific methods that has ever existed), Karen Pryor,
author of Don’t Shoot the Dog, and Eduardo Fernandez, one
of my research collaborators. Even with their help, many
questions came up. And once I started implementing their
ideas several things quickly came true.
I quickly learned that the dog’s past experience can
make a huge difference in how quickly dogs learned the
protocol. For instance, because my dogs had so much
experience targeting to objects with their nose it was easy
to train them to place by using a nose target placed on the
ground. For an untrained dog, targeting is not difficult to
learn, but teaching many dogs to touch a stationary target
on the ground required many more shaping steps and
repetitions.
Similarly for savvy clicker-trained dogs and experienced
handlers, free shaping might work, but for the average
person, recognizing the individual shaping steps (which
may vary by animal) and clicking and treating at the right
time would be nearly impossible. Or at least it would be
something I could not guarantee. Basically I assumed that
if the owner did not have success within 5-10 trials, they
would give up. [continued on next page]
The Research Behind the MannersMinder™ Dog Training System
First, according to a Web-based survey of over 1,000 dogs,
excessive barking at the door is one of the most common
barking-related complaints. Second, I knew that a protocol
to address barking at the door would also address the other
hyperactive and unruly behaviors that bother people when
guests come to the door, as well as barking and jumping
behaviors in the house at other times. Third, an automated
system to reliably reduce barking in the owner’s absence
would need a series of research studies, spanning several
years rather than just two studies that could be performed
within six to eight months.
And here’s the biggest revelation for me—when trainers
are training dogs, we make many little subconscious adjustments to our body postures, movements and techniques
based on how the dog is responding. For instance, if the
dog starts to get up from lying down on a rug, we may subconsciously lean our body weight or step in one direction to
block the dog’s path whereas the dog’s owner would stand
stationary or try to command the dog verbally and the dog
would still get up. For my protocol to work, all movement
would need to be described in the protocol and the protocol
would need to be very similar across dogs. That is, I had to
have a protocol that worked for everyone—not one that had
different instructions for every dog.
What’s the Fastest Way
After 21 days straight of testing I finally had a protocol,
one that took me about six days to complete per dog. It was
broken into five stages:
Stage 1: The dog learns that the tone from the machine
means a treat is going to dispense. So the tone becomes a
bridging stimulus. This five-step stage started with dogs
just eating out of the food dispenser and ended with dogs
being able to look at their owners and then orienting
towards the tone from five feet away and running to the
machine to get the treat.
Stage 2: The dog learns to run to and touch a target
with his nose. This started with the dog being able to touch
the target while just reaching with an outstretched neck.
By step five the dog was able to run five steps to touch the
target on verbal cue.
The purpose of this step was to be able to later get the
dogs away from the machine during the later down-stay
stages of training. Some dogs were so attached to the
machine that it was difficult to get them away without targeting. We could have used a “come when called” for this
purpose but then we would have had to train this exercise.
We would have also had to address the issue of dogs that
were more motivated to come rather than learn a rock-solid
down-stay in stage three of training. Targeting also gave
the dogs practice running to the Treat & Train™, which
turns out to be important for stage four of the program.
One other interesting point about the targeting stage
had to do with adding the verbal cue. I decided to add the
cue word “target” after full targeting behavior had been
learned. Because my criteria was that dogs learn each step
within 10 trials, it quickly became apparent that the timing
of the cue was important. The cue word must be stated
immediately before the target is presented so that it comes
to predict the appearance of the visual cue. If the dog sees
a visual cue that he already knows and a new verbal cue at
the same time, there is no need for him to pay attention to
the new verbal cue. Consequently it may take him a long
time to learn the visual cue. This is a scientific principle
called blocking. The learning of one cue blocks the learning
of a second cue presented simultaneously with the cue that
was already learned.
You might think you could get around this by presenting
both a visual and verbal cue at the same time; however,
when I tried this, the dog just learned the most salient one,
the visual cue. It might take 50 trials or more for him to
learn the verbal one too. This phenomenon is called overshadowing.
I’d known about these principles, but their importance
and application only hit me when I was pushed to
develop steps that the dogs could learn within 10 trials.
Stage 3: Down-stay. Here we taught dogs to lie on their
rug with the Treat & Train™ in front of it. In step one the treats were coming every three seconds. By the last step
treats were coming only once a minute. And by the last step
the handlers was standing or sitting farther away. In earlier
renditions I had tried placing the machine in different locations, for instance having the dog lie own on the rug and >
Step 5: Down-stay with distractions.
www.APDT.com
Stage 4: Place: Here we taught the dogs to actually run
to the rug and lie down on cue. Without this step the dogs
might like to lie on the rug if you walk them up to it but
wouldn’t reliably go to the rug. Interestingly although
treats were coming from the machine, all dogs tended to
want to face the owners when they ran to the machine.
Stage 5: Down-stay with distractions: Here’s where the
dog would learn to remain lying down even with distractions—such as people walking or running, shouting, door
knocking, toys bouncing. Treats would come out at three
second intervals for a minute while distractions were timed
to occur right while the dog was eating. The goal is that the
distraction was presented at a low level and systematically
increased such that the dog always remained focused on the
food rather than the distraction. In this manner you could
get the dog who was very reactive, for instance to door
knocking, to be completely engrossed in the food, after just
several one minutes trials. Then the interval between treats
increased until they were just coming every one minute.
That was the protocol, now it was time to actually test
it in a lab situation to see whether the protocol was indeed
easy in that it could be performed with minimal errors.
The First Experiment: Examining the Protocol
In January of 2004, my assistants and I carried out the
first research experiment at The Canine Connection Dog
Training facility owned by Dr. Sarah Richardson, in Chico,
California.
A call for dogs who were unruly at the door resulted
in 18 applicants. After baseline measures of their unruly
behavior and the behaviors they already knew, six dogs
were found to be unruly enough and comfortable in the
laboratory setting. We took these six unruly dogs and
worked them through each step of the protocol. Each time
we performed a repetition or trial, we recorded correct and
incorrect responses. Then we followed strict criteria. 9 out
of 10 correct trials in a row and go to the next step. Miss
more than 2 out of 10 and repeat the step. Miss 5 or more
out of 10 and go back a step.
Despite having dogs with different temperaments and
breeds and a number of setbacks—including having to
acclimate dogs to being in the training facility without their
owners, all of the dogs made it through the protocol in eight
days and the steps were easy enough that dogs performed
each trial correctly over 90% of the time. That means they
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made mistakes less than 10% of the time. However, for two
dogs who were very distracted and variably food motivated,
we had several 10 minute sessions where we trained them
to sit calmly to be petted. After these sessions they were
finally able to focus on the training.
Now we had a protocol that we knew was easy to carry
out.
The Second Experiment: Clinical Trial
The third step was to carry out a clinical trial to see
whether the protocol worked in real homes. We called for
the most poorly behaved door-greeting dogs we could find
and made owners prove their dogs were unruly enough.
Owners had to videotape their dogs at the door so we could
quantify the bad behaviors. We got what we asked for—15
naughty dogs. We got dogs that barked up to 50 times and
jumped over 20 times a minute. Dogs that stuck their noses
in people’s crotches, gnawed on visitors’ arms, scared visitors away on a regular basis and even one who lunged so
hard to get out the door that he once dislocated his owner’s
shoulder. Some owners were skeptical about whether the
program would work, but all wanted a better-behaved dog.
So, armed with an instruction manual, a rough instructional video, and the Treat & Train™ prototype, the owners
diligently worked through the program just as a regular
person might. That is, instead of practicing every day as
they were directed, they took days off, skipped many days
in a row, took long vacations, or accidentally skipped steps,
which meant we had to check on them regularly to ensure
they were staying on track.
Addition of the Learn to Earn Protocol
The protocol was the same as the one in the laboratory
study except that there was the added distraction of visitors
coming to the door. We also gave owners the option of
adding a “learn to earn” protocol if their dog had a low
attention span or owners thought their dog would have
difficulty in the last stage of training. With this protocol
the dogs had to automatically sit to go out the door, to get
treats, to be petted, and to have a toy tossed, and they had
to remain sitting until their owner gave the okay. The goal
was to teach the most excitable dogs that the only way they
could get what they wanted was by controlling themselves.
The reward would be withheld or removed until they
performed the correct behavior.
To our surprise, most owners had to take their dogs
through this ancillary set of exercises in order to get through
the final stage of training when visitors came to the door.
While positive reinforcement alone worked for getting dogs
through the down-stay with distractions stage of training,
because the level of stimulation caused by visitors coming
to the house could not be carefully controlled, positive
reinforcement alone was not good enough. It had to be
combined with negative punishment. That is, the dogs
needed to learn that they would not be able to get the final
reward of reaching the person at the door. After taking
dogs through the “learn to earn” [continued on next page]
then tone/treats at the end of an interval. The problem is that
dogs want to go where the food is. So they would tend to
inch towards the food. Plus because their final reward is for
going to get the treats, they didn’t stay as well as when they
were rewarded in place while they were still performing the
correct behavior. By receiving lots of rewards in the downstay on the rug they were being classically conditioned to
love lying down on the rug and, we found, also to just love
lying down. They associate the position with treats. So this
step revealed both the importance of reward location and
the importance of classical conditioning in training.
program, owners were able to block the dog from getting to
the door. When the dog realized that it would have to sit to
get to the person behind them, they invariably chose to just
run back to their rug.
Final Results
In spite of the setbacks, all dogs metamorphosed into
polite door greeters within 2 to 16 weeks with the average
being 4 weeks. Barking decreased from 19.3 barks/minute
before training to 0.9 times after. Jumping went from 8.2
before to 0 after. And whereas the dogs spent about 75% of
their time crowding the door prior to training, they spent
99.9% of their time on the rug after training.
The Instructional Program
At this point I had a training program that I knew worked
even when owners did the training with their own dogs.
Unfortunately, developing an effective training program is
only half the work and I knew that there were some major
pitfalls we had to avoid. That is, creating instructional
materials that would compel owners to perform the steps
correctly would be the key to success. This sounds simple
until you realize that animal training is a technical skill, a
sport, just like tennis or golf. If your timing is off or you do
something a little bit different, you don’t get the results you
want.
When observing owners we found the two main reasons
why people didn’t follow the protocol carefully is that they
didn’t see the importance of performing all of the steps
and that they didn’t notice they were performing the steps
incorrectly. I attempted to remedy this with the instructional
DVD by adding tips from clinical trial participants as well
as showing what happened when steps were skipped and
showing owners how to body condition score their pet so
they could tell their pet was not too thin and create video
that made dumping food in the bowl look lazy compared to
earning food in training.
I also had to break down exercises into parts, use slow
motion and show owners what dogs looked like while they
were learning so that we could show common mistakes.
With this in mind I designed an instructional DVD
using dogs in different stages of the learning process
so that viewers could see how dogs look while they’re
learning the exercises as well as how they look once they
know the exercises. Most steps are illustrated using several
dogs, each step is illustrated several times, and the finer
points are highlighted with close-ups and slow motion.
Additionally, while the DVD features me demonstrating
techniques correctly, it also features owners demonstrating
the mistakes they have made and special “nerd alerts” that
humorously illustrate additional errors you should avoid.
We also show how to deal with most of the pitfalls owners
might come across.
Overall as my friend kept telling me, this is a great
learning experience. Now I see the value. At the time I just
though I didn’t want to learn any more.
The Final Product
The final product came out in 2004 to rave reviews by
veterinary behaviorists and applied animal behaviorists.
Unfortunately the Sharper Image turned upside down and
went out of business shortly thereafter. But now the product
is finally out again and being sold by Premier Pet as the
MannersMinder™. Overall I am happy with the product.
It’s made my life much easier in that I and many others have
found great ways to use it for rewarding dogs at a distance,
including for agility contact, separation anxiety, or even
simple things like just lying calmly instead of barking at
little sounds outside. But most of all I gained about 20 years
of experience on understanding the intricacies of training
dogs and teaching humans to learn in just over one year.
Dr. Sophia Yin, a 1993 graduate of the UC Davis School of
Veterinary Medicine, is the author of three books: The Small
Animal Veterinary Nerdbook®, a best-selling textbook for
veterinarians, How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves, and
her newest textbook Low Stress Handling, Restraint, and
Behavior Modification in Cats and Dogs. She earned her
Master’s in Animal Science in 2001 from UC Davis where she
studied vocal communication in dogs and worked on behavior
modification in horses, giraffes, ostriches, and chickens. During
this time she was also the award-winning pet columnist for the
San Francisco Chronicle. Upon receiving her degree focused on
animal behavior, Dr. Yin served for five years as a lecturer in the
UC Davis Animal Science Department. She taught three upper
division undergraduate courses in domestic animal behavior
and supervised students in various animal training and behavior
research projects. She also developed the MannersMinder positive reinforcement dog training system currently being sold by
Premier Pet. Dr. Yin currently sees behavior housecalls, works
at San Francisco Veterinary Specialists (www.SFVS.net), writes
for several veterinary and popular magazines, has consulted for
the Santa Barbara Zoo, and lectures internationally on animal
behavior. She is also on the executive board for the AVSAB. For
more information visit her Web site at www.AskDrYin.com.
Web Extra!
Visit The APDT Chronicle of the Dog page in the
Members Only section of the APDT Web site to
find links to video to accompany Dr. Yin’s article.
Then we tested the DVD via focus group viewing in
which I asked viewers to perform the techniques that they
just observed so that I could evaluate their interpretation.
www.APDT.com
E
very once in awhile the subject of dog trainers who
are addicted to training chickens comes up. If you’re
new to this concept, you might think it strange. In
fact, it is! It’s one of those, “Yes, but …” things.
What’s the connection between dog training and chicken
training? What are the benefits to the average dog trainer?
I have two answers:
My short answer is: Chicken training improves a person’s
eye-hand coordination and ability to make effective training
decisions—excuse the pun—on the fly. Good timing and
appropriate criteria selection are skills greatly prized by
dog trainers of all persuasions. Chicken training allows
people to be more open minded to instruction because
they’re not hampered by prior chicken-training experience.
In the shaded boxes throughout this article you will find
words of wisdom quoted from chicken trainers around the
world.
My long answer is the basis for this article.
The History of Legacy’s Chicken Training Camps
Legacy has been hosting dog training camps since the
1980’s. In the “old days” there weren’t many options if you
wanted to go to dog camp, so we always had high attendance. We cut the registration off at 120 participants and
rented fairgrounds. Students were divided into groups,
rotating throughout the day among several instructors
teaching different exercises.
Leader of the Peck:
Clickin’ a Chicken
Since some campers came from overseas, I decided to
provide a convenient on-site training model for those
unable to bring their dogs and thus “dog and rat camp”
was born. For several years Legacy campers trained rats in
operant conditioning chambers, aka Skinner boxes.1 Our
family’s and friends’ pet rats were pressed into service. I
had an “in” with the local university’s psychology department and found that there were lots of bored Skinner boxes
on campus during the summer break. Later, Legacy made
a series of plastic, stackable operant conditioning chambers
for rats. Each was decorated according to a box theme. We
had flower boxes, bread boxes, glove boxes, sand boxes, tool
boxes, mail boxes and male boxes. Oh yes and, of course,
Skinner boxes—decorated with fake fur!
exercises consisted of capturing or shaping a behavior
of choice. We had dancing chickens, search and rescue
chickens, and chickens that did radio interviews. Truth be
told, it was more of a creativity and lateral thinking exercise
for humans than a proper animal training exercise.
In the early 90’s Ingrid Kang Shallenberger moved from
Hawaii to Washington State. Ingrid, a delightful Swedish
woman, worked for years with Karen Pryor as a marine
mammal trainer at Sea Life Park on Oahu. She came to
camp that year as a student hoping to make new friends. I
quickly sweet-talked and arm-twisted Ingrid into teaching
Legacy’s rat training experience at our next camp. At some
point we decided to try something other than rats. Ingrid
had a backyard full of Bantam chickens. I had lots of clickers
and plastic cups. Chicken camp, as I knew it then, was
born! The chicken rotation at Legacy camps became legendary. We had tons of fun, including the cage name plate
decorating contest. The Mayor of our town was the judge!
We did the chicken dance, chicken BINGO and many other
unusual chicken-oriented activities. The actual training
I counted to ten slowly and assured her in a calm voice
that I had.
Terry Ryan
One day I got a call from a friend who said, “Hey chicken
lady, do you know Bob Bailey?” “
No,” I replied.
“Have you heard of the Brelands”?
“No.”
“Have you heard of B. F. Skinner”?
“Then you must know the Brelands!”
“Okay.”
“I’m surprised you haven’t recruited Bob Bailey and
his wife Marian Breland-Bailey to help with your chicken
camps.”
When we hung up I took one of my old textbooks,
Psychology of Learning and Behavior by Schwartz, off the
shelf. Keller and Marian Breland’s work was right there,
highlighted in yellow marker by myself years ago. Instinctive drift, the Breland effect2—I never did have a knack >
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• You get what you reinforce, not what you want.
• Order of events: Think, Plan, Do.
• Trainers, change your behavior.
• You are bigger, you are stronger, you
are smarter than your chicken.
• Reinforcement is a process, not an event.
• Training is a mechanical skill.
• Are you reinforcing behavior you don’t want?
• Criteria: Be a splitter, not a lumper.
• Training is simple, but not easy.
• Training is all about timing, criteria
selection and rate of reinforcement
for remembering names! The Brelands were Dr. Skinner’s
graduate students back in the day. I contacted Bob and
Marian. They were both warm and friendly but firmly told
me that they were retired from chicken training. They had
sold their business, Animal Behavior Enterprises (ABE),
which trained a wide variety of animals for carnivals,
movies, TV commercials and national defense purposes.3
ABE taught their employees animal training by first having
them train chickens. “Keep up the good work,” the Baileys
encouraged me, “Chickens are an excellent training model
for dog trainers.”
I campaigned, sweet-talked and bribed Bob and Marian
out of “retirement” to take over the chicken training portion of Legacy’s camps. That’s when I really learned what
chicken training was all about. I am indebted to Marian
and Bob for everything they have taught me about training.
And thus in 1994 Legacy campers were introduced to a
different chicken training experience with emphasis on
mechanical skills, the science behind training and a more
result-oriented lesson plan. The Baileys taught at Legacy
camp for many years, then began chicken-only training
courses in their home-town of Hot Springs, Arkansas. Several Legacy trainers made the cross-country pilgrimage to
be students of the Bailey’s, meeting animal trainers from all
over the world. Chickens were our common denominator
and we all improved our skills.
What’s Happening Now
A few years after Marian’s death, Bob formally announced his retirement from chicken training. Legacy continued to offer chicken training classes, the most popular
being our one-day “Poultry in Motion” course. Daily
chicken training units are included in Legacy’s instructor’s
courses, “Coaching People to Train Their Dogs.”
In 2006 Legacy bought some property and custom-built
a training center with both dog and chicken training in
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mind. Legacy’s flock would have a new state-of-the-art hen
house and chicken yard! Bob came out of retirement (again)
and for three years, assisted by Legacy instructors, taught
the Bailey and Bailey chicken courses, ala Hot Springs,
in Sequim, Washington. Last fall at the conclusion of his
last course, we had his official retirement party. I think he
means it this time!
With Bob’s encouragement, Legacy has expanded its
chicken courses to include a series of five four-day chickenonly workshops. Each course focuses on different principles
of classical and operant conditioning. The lower levels are
the prerequisite for the upper level courses, ensuring a
successful flow of basic to more advanced skills and concepts. Although we don’t train dogs at these events, about
15 percent of the course work, supported by handouts and
demonstrations, is designed to make a step-by-step application to dog training.
Our chickens, standard Leghorn hens, reside in their
roomy indoor-outdoor habitat until it’s time for camp.
On a side note, our dog training clients are in the habit of
bringing empty egg cartons to class—our classes are valueadded! Shortly before each camp we put the chickens we
need into individual cages similar to dog crates. The cages
are kept in a fully enclosed patio off the end of our main
training room. The chickens are given a couple of days
to get used to their change in environment. They’re a bit
messy straight from the barnyard, so during that time we
wash and blow dry them. They’re beautiful--big, fluffy and
shockingly white.
Benefits of Chicken Training
Our courses are designed for people with an aboveaverage interest in training. In fact, above-average interest
is the only prerequisite for registration in Camp I. The
majority of our clients are dog-oriented, but we have a fair
representation of zoo keepers, bird [continued on next page]
“Bailey-isms”
trainers and people trainers. We’ve had bank management
personnel in our courses and have done specialized team
building camps for corporations. Our most unusual client
to date is the crew from a commercial fishing vessel.
The playing field is equal at a chicken training class.
The students have no rank and are pretty much equal as
far as their chicken training experience. There are no experts except for the chickens themselves, so egos and prior
methodology biases can be left at home. Students do not
have a library full of chicken training books and DVDs to
influence them, much less televisions shows on chicken
training. Students find they have to pay attention to what
the teachers—the chickens--have to say about training. Because partners take turns training and coaching, effective
interpersonal communication is practiced.
Chickens are faster than most dogs. This helps trainers
with good attention and quick reaction time. It’s impossible
to force a chicken to do anything. They will freeze, fly away,
or get diarrhea—so students willingly rely on reward-based
training methods. Chickens get frustrated easily and go
into annoying displacement behaviors such as scratching
the table. Students thus willingly rely on high rates of reinforcement to keep the chicken in the game. Unlike dogs,
you will know immediately if you are taking advantage of
a chicken or pushing too hard or too fast. Chickens don’t
give their trainers a second chance as often as our dogs do.
Currently our hen house contains about three age
groups of chickens. Each camper is given two chickens to
train—one is a bit more experienced than the other. When a
new group of chickens is brought into our flock, we spend
time taking them inside the training room to feed them,
one by one, on a training table. This gets them used to handling and happy about being inside on a table. These new
“kindergarten hens” often surprise the students by being
their “best” bird. Like adopting a dog from the shelter, the
chickens that have been to camp before have had a variety of
training experiences. Depending on the skill of the former
trainers, these birds sometimes come to new students with
behaviors that need to be changed before progressing with
the exercise of the day. That, plus the fact that the exercises
are different from camp to camp, makes the experienced
birds a challenge for their new trainers. Having the responsibility of training two different chickens helps trainers
make the mental shift from one subject to another. Trainers
must change their own behavior according to the animal’s
individual needs. With two chickens to train, the advantages of record keeping, time allocation and efficiency are
apparent. Not bad ideas for dog training either!
The reinforcement used is their standard daily ration of
pellets, delivered in a plastic measuring cup with a clicker
glued to the handle. Wielding the clicker cup is an art in
itself. This mechanical skill is taught first without chickens
present. Just like good dog training, the skill is broken
down into tiny elements and then brought together as the
elements are mastered.
>
For example:
“On-the-job experience is often the first means of
education for animal trainers: Learning and training
simultaneously has the potential to weaken the
effectiveness of both. There are better ways.” The late
Marian Breland-Bailey
“If you’re technically proficient, the chicken gets trained
every time. This sure undermines any whining about
difficult dog breeds.” Jean Donaldson, San Francisco,
CA
“Training a chicken is an invaluable experience for dog
trainers. It lets you experience the universality of the
laws of learning in a visceral, rather than academic, way.
And it dispels many superstitions that can develop if
you’ve trained only one species.” Kathy Sdao, Tacoma,
WA
“One of the many things that I took away from chicken
camp was that I could train my dogs more effectively
in less time by using time management techniques (i.e.
very short but extremely focused training sessions) and
record keeping. Pat Charlton, Victorville, CA
Terry Ryan training a chicken.
“I think the biggest lesson the chickens taught me is
the effect my behavior has on the learner, if whatever I
think I’m training is not working, I need to change my
behavior. It could be some thing as simple as being still,
which I found out is not easy.” Karen Kaua, Murphys,
CA
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“One “aha moment” was seeing the difference it made
in the end result to up the criteria as soon as the chicken
had the concept at an 80% correct rate. My tendency was
to stay at a stage and solidify it. But the trainers that did
this with their chickens actually slowed their learning
and had a weaker behavior in the end than those that
continue to raise the criteria and challenge their chicken.
This has become integral in my dog training now and I
get faster and better results.” Barb Davis, Spokane, WA
Class participants training a chicken to walk over an A-frame.
“Let’s begin.”
Chicken Camp I
“Get your cup from home position to the table and back
home in good form.”
Camp I has no prerequisite and includes the finer details
of shaping. We work on a three-to-five element discrimination. An example of this would be asking the chicken to
indicate a red disc from among a line of otherwise identical
red, blue, green, yellow and white discs. We conduct extinction exercises--the hen learns there is no longer a reward in
a particular behavior.
“Looks good, now let’s add the click before the delivery.”
“Good job, your bodies are still and quiet.”
“Now let’s add speed … just a little.”
“Are you up for adding food to the cup?”
And only at the very end, “Let’s add the chicken!”
Some people have never touched a chicken. Time is
spent observing the hens and recording their behaviors on
a chicken ethogram. Chickens are then assigned to trainers
and a few basic chicken handling exercises are conducted.
A typical day at camp involves about 50% hands-on
training with chickens. Interactive exercises without
chickens, demonstrations, Powerpoint lectures, videos,
show and tell and problem solving is also included.
Lunches are catered and served around a big table in our
library. This makes for a great networking environment.
After completing a course students are invited to join our
Internet list “Poultry in Motion,” where the networking is
on-going. Much can be learned from fellow students. Participants come from all over. Several foreign countries are
often represented.
Chicken Training – Exercises and Format
Poultry in Motion
This course stands alone as a one-day introductory
course. It involves capturing a naturally occurring behavior (such as pecking at an object). Shaping, targeting
and discrimination exercises give practical experience in a
condensed package for those unable to make the full camp
commitment.
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Chicken Camp II
Those completing Camp I are eligible for the second
level camp which delves into making quick decisions based
on rapidly changing behavioral criteria. Campers explore a
variety of effective cueing strategies. With a laser operated
panel, students practice efficient timing for the introduction of cues.
Chicken Camp III
In the third level we work on task analysis. By observation we determine what little pieces of behavior make up
the goal. Then we make a plan to mark and reinforce those
steps. We cover the intricacies of latency (response time)
and fluency (the ability to perform under a variety of conditions).
Chicken Camp IV
Camp IV focuses on chaining. The chickens are taught
to perform a chain of behaviors executed on complicated
apparatus including ladders, platforms and a balance
beam. Trainers can then be creative when selecting behaviors for additional links of the chain. Chicken Camp V
The exercises in Camp V include instructional formatting and teaching skills. Students learn how to give clear,
effective and user-friendly instructions to their partner
who will then, with their coaching, [continued on next page]
“In my opinion, the greatest benefit to dog trainers is the
opportunity to have no choice but to focus on the fundamentals: timing, criteria and rate of reinforcement. Dogs
often let us get away with sloppy training. The chickens
don’t.” Stephanie Colman, Los Angeles, CA
teach chickens to navigate an agility-like obstacle course.
Are you tempted to join the growing fraternity of
chicken trainers? Chickens will keep you honest. Chickens
don’t have big brown eyes, therefore you are free to use
your brain as well as your heart while training. Chickens
don’t respond well to punishment or domination but are
successful when positive reinforcement is used. Reputations are not at stake. Trainers will not be competing with
their chickens at the next performance event, nor will the
chicken even go home with the trainer. There is no pressure
on what will happen in the future—just a safe, friendly
learning environment.
References
1. Skinner Box information can be found at http://
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Operant_conditioning_chamber or
www.wadsworth.com/psychology_d/templates/student_
resources/0534633609_sniffy2/sniffy/download.htm
2. The Misbehavior of Organisms site: http://psychclassics.
yorku.ca/Breland/misbehavior.htm
3. Patient Like the Chipmunks: http://legacycanine.com/
store/index.html
“Training chickens has helped me as a dog trainer
to understand how important the mechanics are
in training. It is so easy to help our dogs when
developing behaviors using extraneous cues not
even realizing that we are helping them to do a
desired behavior and then find that the dog has little
understanding of the behavior on its own.” Sharon
Freilich, Martinez, CA
“Training a chicken made me appreciate how
forgiving dogs are for trainer errors in timing and
reinforcement delivery.” Teoti Anderson, Lexington,
SC
“Chicken training taught me to be objective about the
results I was getting, to stop rationalizing why my
animal made an error. It was an error—no big deal.
Just do it until they get it right, no excuses.” Melissa
Alexander, Seattle, WA
Web Extra!
Visit The APDT Chronicle of the Dog page in the
Members Only section of the APDT Web site
to find video of chicken training in action.
Terry Ryan has been training dogs since the 1970’s and instructing almost as long. Her school, Legacy Canine Behavior
and Training uses reward-based methods. She conducts workshops all over the world. PO Box 3909, Sequim, WA 98382,
360-683-1522, www.legacycanine.com. Terry will be presenting
her chicken training workshops at the 2009 APDT Annual Educational Conference and Trade Show in Oakland/San Francisco in
October 2009.
www.APDT.com
www.APDT.com
S
Ellen O’Neill Stephens, JD & Celeste Walsen, DVM
even-year-old Sarah enjoyed going over to her aunt’s
home after school while she waited for her mother
Peggy to return from work. Sarah and her 13-yearold cousin Paul often played video games in the basement
recreation room. This week, Sarah was on a winning streak
and was looking forward to resuming the contest on a rainy
afternoon. When she won again, her cousin Paul pinned her
to the floor and began wrestling with her. Within minutes
Paul began sexually abusing her. As Sarah started to cry
Paul stopped and told her not to tell anyone, or he would
hurt her even more the next time.
Sarah went home that afternoon and Peggy noticed
that she was quiet and withdrawn. Sarah explained that
she was only tired and went to her room. One night Peggy
woke up to hear Sarah sobbing. With a little encouragement
Sarah told her mom what Paul had done to her.
Sarah’s mother was shocked to hear what had happened.
While comforting her daughter, Peggy’s mind was reeling.
It was so hard to believe that this had happened. Her sister
would be devastated, but Sarah needed to be protected from
Paul. The next morning Peggy called a friend who was a
social worker. She was told that protecting and providing
counseling for Sarah was paramount. Peggy grimly dialed
911.
The police came, took a report and escorted Peggy and
Sarah to the Child Advocacy Center so that Sarah could
describe what had happened to a forensic interviewer.
While driving over, Sarah felt ashamed and guilty that her
mom was upset. How would both of them get through
the next few hours? Sarah started to feel anxious and felt a
tremendous pressure on her chest.
As they walked into the office Sarah saw a Corgi named
Chloe lying on the lobby floor happily chewing on a dog
toy. Sarah hadn’t expected this. Sarah smiled; although she
loved dogs, they couldn’t have one because they lived in an
apartment. Chloe looked up at Sarah with interest, and she
and her handler Carrie walked over to greet them.
Carrie asked Sarah if she would like to play with Chloe
and watch her perform some tricks. Peggy took a seat, and
watched her daughter and Chloe play and cuddle for the
next twenty minutes. While doing so, her mind stopped
racing and she felt more relaxed. An office door connected
to the lobby opened. Peggy and Sarah looked up at a young
woman who invited them in to speak with her. Sarah’s
feeling of dread momentarily returned but diminished
when Carrie told Sarah that after they were done with the
interview, Chloe would be waiting for her.
What is a Child Advocacy Center?
The mission of a Child Advocacy Center (CAC) is to provide the community with a coordinated, multi-disciplinary
approach to the problem of child abuse. This is accomplished by bringing together the professionals involved in
the investigation and the prosecution of child abuse cases
at one office location where they are able to work together
as a team and focus on the specific needs of each child.
This collaboration reduces the trauma experienced by
victims of abuse by providing a child-friendly, neutral
location and professional staff who support the child and
families as they enter the criminal justice system. The
center may offer forensic interviews, counseling, medical
exams, education, and other services for children and their
families.
When a family first comes to a Child Advocacy Center,
it is for the purpose of determining if a crime has been
committed. Children are often accompanied to the center
by one or both parents and siblings. As a result, the lobby
of a CAC is a busy, stressful place. Overworked staff
members try their best to meet everyone’s needs, but it is
often impossible to give one-on-one attention to all family
members.
Dogs at a Child Advocacy Center
The presence of calm gentle dogs can make a huge
difference in the experience of the children and their parents
visiting the center. The dogs not only reduce stress, but can
actually make the children look forward to returning to the
center, rather than dreading another visit.
Pet Partner Team Christie Dudzik and Teddy with four-year-old
Lydia.
When therapy dogs are used in a criminal justice facility,
it is better to call them “Visiting Dogs” rather than “therapy>
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You should also be aware that some CACs have
professionally trained Facility Dogs on their staff. These
dogs, usually obtained from an accredited member of
Assistance Dogs International, work in forensic interviews,
defense interviews, and in the courtroom. Facility Dogs are
handled by one or two of the professional staff members at
the CAC, typically forensic interviewers or victim advocates,
and are used in the areas of the CAC where a confidential
relationship with the child is needed, precluding the usage
of a volunteer with a dog.
Start a Visiting Dog Program at Your Local Child
Advocacy Center
It would be ideal if dog trainers took the initiative of
starting Visiting Dog programs at their local CACs. You
can locate your local CAC by consulting the directories
maintained by the National Child Advocacy Center or the
National Child Alliance. Both of these organizations have
listings of local CACs on their Web sites. Alternatively, call
the office of your local prosecuting attorney (or district
attorney) and ask that office about how to contact your local
CAC. The facility may be called by another name, such as a
Safe House or a Multi-Disciplinary Interview Center. With
a little persistence, you will be able to find a local facility
that serves the needs of children who have been the victims
of sexual abuse or serious domestic trauma.
The person that you want to contact at your local CAC
is the director. When you talk to the director of your local
center, you may find that she is already aware of the benefits
of a dog program, and welcomes you with open arms. Or
you may run into significant resistance from a director who
is not familiar with the concept of Visiting Dogs in this
situation. If this case, it could be helpful to compare it to a
hospital therapy dog program. Another persuasive option
would be to visit the director one day with your extremely
well behaved dog so that she can familiarize herself with
the skills of a trained dog. Visit the Courthouse Dogs Web
site, www.courthousedogs.com, for information about
successful Visiting Dog programs and other material about
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well-trained dogs working in the criminal justice system.
Most CAC directors will want to know about the details
of insurance coverage of the Visiting Dog teams, and will
need to perform criminal background checks on anyone
volunteering at the CAC.
Many CACs do not have a volunteer coordinator; as the
trainer, you will have a great deal of leeway in designing
a program to work with your local center. Organization
and scheduling will work most smoothly if the Visiting
Dog group has one lead person (ideally the trainer) who
coordinates with the CAC staff contact.
Trainers interested in starting a Visiting Dog program
at a CAC may be able to use a “back door” method to get
the director or staff interested in the program. Often, the
best way to get started is to locate a friend or acquaintance
who is involved in the criminal justice system and who is
already a dog enthusiast. Retired police officers, attorneys,
and judges have initiated successful programs in the US.
Provide Specialized Training for Visiting Dog Teams
An experienced therapy dog class instructor will need
to create a special class in order to prepare Visiting Dog
teams for the environment at a Child Advocacy Center.
You will find that a large number of people are interested
in this type of work; a surprisingly large percentage of the
population has been touched by the tragedy of child abuse
or sexual assault.
Handlers who want to volunteer at a Child Advocacy
Center will need to be prepared to meet families who are
undergoing an extremely stressful time in their lives and
children who may have behavior issues due to maltreatment. This would not be a good placement for dogs that
need a well-controlled environment, as children of all ages
will be present and may be active. Teams will need experience working first in a more predictable environment, and
dogs will need to have had significant positive contact with
children of all ages prior to working in an a CAC.
One important point to stress to handlers is the need for
strict confidentiality in this line of work. While therapy dog
handlers are always expected not to talk about the people
that they visit in a medical facility, at a CAC this is even
more important. The families come to the CAC because of
a report that a child in the family has been the victim of
abuse or neglect, or has witnessed a violent act. Shame and
fear keep victims and witnesses from coming forward to
testify about crimes against children, especially those of a
sexual nature. It will be necessary for handlers to realize
the need to never mention the names of the children or
parents that they serve while visiting at a CAC.
In addition to their usual therapy dog training, dogs
who are successful in a Child Advocacy Center will be
calm and focused even when confronted with:
• Law enforcement officers in bulky jackets and hats, and
who may carry guns.
• Entrance through a metal detector if [continued on next page]
dogs.” Registered therapy dogs working in the lobby of a
Child Advocacy Center are there to provide animal-assisted
activities, not animal-assisted therapy. That is, they are not
providing any type of goal-directed therapy. Although the
term “therapy dog” has come to be widely applied to dogs
in this type of situation, in criminal justice facilities such
as a CAC, it is better to refer to the dogs as “Visiting Dogs.”
There is a legal reason for this. When the victim of a violent
crime is called as a witness in a trial, it is important not
to assume that a crime has taken place; that is what the
jury will determine. If a “therapy dog” were to be used in
the hallway outside of the courtroom to comfort the child,
and was referred to in the trial proceedings as a “therapy
dog,” the defense attorney could argue that the prosecutor
had already decided that the child was a victim and was
providing services to her. This could result in a mistrial.
For this reason, we strongly suggest that registered therapy
dogs being utilized in a criminal justice facility be referred
to by the neutral term “Visiting Dogs.”
the CAC is located in the courthouse.
• Crying babies, running toddlers, inquisitive preschoolers,
bored children, and emotionally shut down teenagers.
• Snack food and drinks on the floor or in the children’s
hands.
An orientation session at the facility will be a helpful
part of the training class. Handlers will need to become
familiar with the areas in the CAC where the dogs are welcome, meet the staff members, be shown where the dogs
may eliminate, and have some introduction to the work flow
at the center. The volunteer coordinator or other assigned
staff member may want to arrange monthly meetings with
active handlers in order to discuss upcoming events and
go over what is working and what can be improved in the
visiting dog program.
The popular dog “baseball type” cards are especially
useful with the population at a CAC. A child often takes
“his” dog’s card home and displays it in a prominent place
in his room.
As in all facilities, handlers will need to be alert and
responsive to parents who have children with dog allergies
and to families who prefer for cultural or religious
reasons not to be near a dog. In some centers, there may
be a significant percentage of the population whose main
interaction with dogs has been with aggressive dogs,
even fighting dogs. These people will require some initial
space and persuasion to accept interaction with a gentle
Visiting Dog and some may not want to ever be near the
dogs. In addition, other people will be worried that the
Visiting Dogs are in fact police or narcotic detection dogs,
so clear identification will be necessary. A photo with an
explanation about Visiting Dogs by the reception desk will
be helpful. In addition, a photo gallery of all the visiting
teams will be a point of attraction for children at the center,
especially if the photos are hung at children’s-eye level
A regular schedule of team visitation will allow families
to look forward to seeing the same dog and handler on
return visits. A handler who is comfortable with adolescents
might offer to participate in group counseling sessions
which are sometimes scheduled for teenagers. Because of
the age range served, many Child Advocacy Centers are
busy all day on weekdays; most visits would need to take
place during business hours.
Tips For Working with Child Victims
A child who has been victimized by crime will not
always respond in the ways expected for a child of her age;
flexibility will be needed when dealing with each child.
Here are some suggestions that have proved helpful in
these situations:
If the lobby of the CAC is small, enter at first without
your dog and talk to the families present. Ask if they like
dogs and if the children would like to meet your dog. Then
return with your dog on leash.
Sit on the floor at the children’s level when talking to
them. Let a new child approach your dog at her own speed.
Remember that many of these children may have had
negative experiences with dogs in the past.
Bring a short second leash for your dog so that a young
child can “help” you walk your dog. One experienced
handler makes these out of colored ribbon, and encourages
the child to choose their favorite color. These children often
have no control over what is happening to them, and the
opportunity to be in control of a dog is an empowering
experience for them.
While you cannot accompany the child into interviews
or court hearings, it is often extremely helpful to the child
to know that you will be waiting outside the door to greet
him when he comes out. The anticipation of a playtime
with a favorite dog makes an unpleasant interview or court
hearing more bearable. However it is extremely important
that you do not tell the child that if he or she says the right
thing that the child can play with the dog afterwards.
There should be no suggestion that the child was bribed
to say a particular thing by offering the dog to play with
afterwards.
Conclusion
Developing Visiting Dog teams to work in the criminal
justice system will require some special training in addition
to the standard therapy dog classes. The potential for anger,
tension, and conflict are much greater than that found in a
health care or educational facility. Many facilities will need
to perform their own background checks on all handlers,
and may want a demonstration of each dog’s aptitude and
skills before clearing them to work in the facility. As part of
the training, a visit to each facility will be a necessity. There
may be a metal detector to learn to navigate, areas that need
to be demarcated as off limits to the dogs and handlers, and
rules of conduct to explain in detail, such as not speaking to
jurors wearing clearly marked badges.
The rewards for the handlers working in a CAC are
great, in knowing that they have contributed to improving
the lives of the most vulnerable victims of crime as they
enter and pass through the criminal justice system.
We would like to thank Christie Dudzik of Healing Paws, Inc.
(www.healingpaws.com) and Carolyn Corbett of CARES (www.
k9cares.org) for their generous assistance.
Courthouse Dogs LLC (www.courthousedogs.com) was
founded in 2008 in Bellevue, WA by Ellen O’Neill-Stephens, a senior deputy prosecuting attorney, and Celeste Walsen DVM. The
mission of Courthouse Dogs is to promote justice through the
use of well-trained dogs that provide emotional support to all in
the criminal justice system. Our backgrounds make us uniquely
qualified to provide support services and education in the area
of using dogs in the criminal justice system. Please contact us at
celeste@courthousedogs.com.
Copyright 2009 Ellen O’Neill-Stephens and Celeste Walsen.
WEB EXTRA: A copy of the Courthouse Dogs “Best
Practices” is available on The APDT Chronicle of the Dog
page in the Members Only section of the APDT Web site.
www.APDT.com
A Training Format Way Outside of the Box
Introduction to Levels vs. Traditional Class Formatting
Part One
rule. But that didn’t kill my love. Of course, my first love
was horses, but they weren’t following me through the city
to my home. This was not a problem, as dogs were the next
best thing. And I always knew I’d have more than one when
I grew up!
The first family dogs were German Shepherds. Then we
had a terrier and a chow/terrier mix. I went off to college for
a year and then joined the army. It was while I was in basic
training that I bought my own, very first German Shepherd. Kadee was with us for 10 years before cancer took
her. She was the one I took to training classes for fun when
she was four-years-old. With my two-year-old daughter in
tow and with my son hanging on for dear life in the womb,
I waddled around the training field in the late fall of 1958.
Joan B. Guertin
I
have a suggestion for those who are bored and have
nothing to do. Maybe, on the next rainy day, call up a
few friends/fellow trainers and ask them to share their
guidelines for success in their business. Chances are
every one will have different guidelines for the success
quotient. It may be based on money in the bank. Or, it may
be contingent upon the size of their classes. It really isn’t
important other than in terms of determining that we are
all motivated by different views of what success really is.
For me, it has become a combination of things. First,
being able to help people so that problem dogs can stay
in the home. Over the years I’ve looked for ways to help
people move beyond the mentality that dogs are meant only
for the yard so they can do their guard dog duty. Finally, I
moved into the mind set that teaching the people was way
more important than teaching the dog. If the people don’t
have the skills, the poor dog may never have a chance to
succeed.
Upon graduation, the class instructor/training director
for the Grand Canyon German Shepherd Dog Club invited
me to join their training team after I had the baby. I thought
he was kidding and laughed uproariously as I knew how
bizarre I looked waddling around the park. But they were
serious and that, as they say, was that, and the rest is
history!
The only problem with training back in those days was
that the methods were harsher than I was comfortable with
and I vowed that I would work toward developing gentler
methods. Thus, when I lived in Sacramento, California
and attended some of Dr. Ian Dunbar’s seminars in the late
1980’s, it was a true validation that I was okay being the
“odd ball” trainer who didn’t use choke chains and trained
quietly.
It was that philosophy alone that, I am sure, kept clients
coming back and referring their friends and acquaintances.
We did keep busy, training in several area parks for the
parks district and some area feed stores. Clients were
happy, as was my banker! We were successful, but it just
wasn’t where I wanted to be. There were still too many
things that I still felt were lacking in the program
As a result, over the years I’ve periodically reinvented
myself, making changes to how and what I teach in the
process of getting dogs and owners on the same page. By
the mid-1990’s, following a trip back to the midwest and a
visit to my daughter’s training class in tiny Branson, MO, I
chanced upon a new format for classes that revitalized my
enthusiasm and led to a major, dramatic change in how I
viewed my mission and taught my classes. This was much
to the consternation of my faithful training team!
For one thing, the drop-out rate was much higher than I
would like. For every dog that didn’t complete the classes,
I ached, fearing that they would end up tied or fenced in
the yard and not be valued family members. Or worse, they
would escape and become roadkill or be relinquished to
local shelters.
In the Beginning
Then there was the “payday” problem. Students paid at
the beginning of a course and it meant that paydays were
spaced pretty far apart.
Just a brief review here of the author, Joan Guertin, the
dog trainer/behavior consultant. My biography describes
myself as the kid who dogs followed home. I was never
allowed to keep any as the family had a “one dog only”
www.APDT.com
Another issue was absences. Missing a class put people
behind, made it difficult to catch up, and often was the
reason students dropped out.
Put it all together and it was feeding my frustration. I
just wasn’t meeting the needs of the [continued on page 34]
Conference Program
Trainer Development Track – Designed for pet professionals
who would like to brush up on foundation skills and DGG
more positive methods to their training, and for anyone
preparing to take the CPDT Exam or those new to the field
Intermediate Track – Provides continuing education to pet
professionals with practical experience in the industry. Indepth discussions, demonstrations, and application is provided.
Knowledge of basic concepts by the attendees is assumed.
Science Track – Provides advanced theoretical and empirically
grounded education into the basis of training and understanding
the context of animal behavior research.
Tentative Agenda
Wednesday, October 21
9:00am - 11:30am
General Sessions
Keynote Speaker
Ruth E. Foster Lectureship Sponsored by Premier Pet Products
The Evolution of the Cognitive Dog
The 2009 Association of
Pet Dog Trainers Annual Educational
Conference and Trade Show
Oakland/San Francisco
October 21- 25, 2009
Brian Hare, PhD
Dr. Brian Hare will share his research oQchimpanzee and
bonobo behavior in Africa, and his new studies on the evolution
of the cognitive dog. Brian shares an experience with many
of the conference attendees as he runs a doggy day care at
his new Duke Canine Cognition Center (DCCC). To find out
what makes us human, Brian Hare asks our closest relatives,
chimpanzees and bonobos, and our best friends, our dogs
APDT 2009 Awards Ceremony
1:00pm - 4:30pm
General Sessions
Coping with Life
Register On-line at www.APDT.com
For conference program questions call 866-570-9967
or apdt@details2.com
For registration questions call 800-Pet Dogs (738-3647)
or conference@apdt.com
Register by
September 8 and save!
Turid Rugaas
Like us, our dogs can and do have difficulties coping with the
stresses of life. In order to reduce our dogs’ stress, we not only
need to understand it, but give the dogs mechanisms to cope
with life’s hurdles. Building up a dog’s self-confidence increases
his ability to cope and makes the calamities of life less
stressful. This course will show you some real life experiences
teaching dogs to cope with life, and by extension, leaving your
pet with a higher quality of life.
“A Conversation with Bob and Jean”
Bob Bailey & Jean Donaldson
Ever wish you could sit in and listen to a thought-provoking
discussion between two of our most esteemed figures in the dog
training world? Come be a “fly on the wall” when Bob Bailey
and Jean Donaldson get together to share some of their video
clips and thoughts on the latest in training, research, and where
Agenda, Speaker, and Registration information available at www.apdt.com
www.APDT.com
they see our profession going. You won’t want to miss this
conversation between these two respected “giants” in the dog
training profession.
4:30pm – 5:15pm
APDT Annual Membership Meeting
5:30pm - 6:00pm
Puppy Orientation
Barbara Long, CPDT
If this is the first time you have attended an APDT conference
then you are a “Conference Puppy.” Join us for a short
conference orientation; we will discuss all the conference
publications, how to choose sessions, special conference
activities, CEU’s and how to get help.
Thursday, October 22
Symposium on Fear & Anxiety Behaviors
11:15am - 12:15pm
What’s that I Fear? Identifying Triggers and Resolving
the Problem
Kathy Sdao, MA, CAAB
Fear can both create and complicate behavior problems in
dogs. Resolution of these problems requires that the consultant
understand the basic tenets of desensitization, classical
counter-conditioning and differential reinforcement techniques.
We’ll review the scientific terminology, compare operant- and
classical-conditioning approaches and list some practical tips.
1:30pm - 2:15pm
Working with Fearful Dogs in Private Lessons and
Group Classes
Nicole Wilde, CPDT
How can you work with a dog in a client’s home if the dog is
too frightened to participate or even approach you? What can
you do to make your group classes less stressful for shy, anxious
or fearful canine students? Through a combination of discussion
and video footage you will get, practical ideas for putting
fearful dogs at ease in both private and group environments.
9:00am - 9:15am
Introduction to Symposium on Fear and Anxiety Behaviors
2:15pm - 3:00pm
Mary Lee Nitschke, PhD, CPDT, CAAB
Client Buy In
Many behavior issues that disrupt relationships between
Trish King, CPDT, CDBC
people and their pets involve fear and/or anxiety behaviors.
Clients go through several stages when they have a fearful or
We will travel through these issues, from the root causes, the
anxious dog. First, the client must accept that the dog is not
physiology and pharmacology, treatment modalities, designs for
trying to be the “alpha;” understand that, although behavior
preventative strategies, and view a video ethogram illustrating
modification can be successful, her dog is unique; and buy
their topography. Behavior components of these relationships
into the type of modification recommended--and then actually
are illustrated. This symposium will give you useful resources
follow through. In this session, we’ll discuss all the stages and
to understand and manage fear behaviors.
how to get commitment on each one.
9:15am - 10:15am
3:15pm - 4:00pm
Anxiety and Fear: Physiology and Behavior
Alternative Medicine for Fear and Anxiety:
Emily Levine, DAVCB, DVM, MRCVS
Nutrition and Flowers and Herbs, OH MY!
This talk will focus on the underlying physiology of the
Doug Knueven, DVM, CAC, CVA, CVCH
fear-anxiety spectrum and both internal and external factors
The world of alternative medicine offers gentle, natural means
involved in the acquisition of fear. We will present relevant
to alleviate fear and anxiety in pets. For example, nutrition and
information regarding the use of psychoactive medication-supplements play a role in brain development which affects
information that trainers should know to give consistent and
behavior. Herbs have ingredients that can modulate brain
appropriate information to the client. In addition, we will
chemistry. Bach flower remedies have been used for decades
examine how cooperation between trainers and veterinary
to assist with behavior problems. Learn how the use of such
behaviorists can maximize success with dogs that exhibit
therapies helps pets successfully respond to training procedures.
fearful and anxious behaviors. A brief non–pharmacological
approach to fear and anxiety will be addressed.
4:00pm - 4:45pm
Fear and Loathing & Separation Fun
10:15am - 11:00am
Ian Dunbar, PhD, MRCVS, CPDT
A Video Ethogram of Fear and Anxiety
Home-alone problems are often assumed to be fueled by
Sue Sternberg
separation anxiety and dominance is invariably cited as the
There is more to fear than the classic “tucked tail, quivering”
cause for aggression and leash-reactivity. In reality, most homedog. Sue will present the ways fear and anxiety present in the
alone problems are owner-created by a misuse of punishment
form of archival footage of all the small behaviors that dogs
enabling dogs to learn times when they cannot be punished.
exhibit. She will cover the differences between “fearfulness”
Perhaps “Separation Fun” would be a more descriptive and
and “submissiveness” as well as fear of people versus noises and
accurate term. Most aggression towards people and other
novel objects. Examples of confident dogs and feral dogs will
dogs appears to be fear-based, stemming from inadequate
also be shown for comparison.
socialization, classical conditioning and misuse of punishment.
www.APDT.com
4:45pm - 5:15pm
Speakers Panel Q & A
Dr. Ian Dunbar, Trish King, Dr. Doug Knueven, Dr. Emily
Levine, Kathy Sdao, Sue Sternberg, Nicole Wilde
Moderator: Dr. Mary Lee Nitschke
Friday, October 23
9:00am - 12:00pm
Concurrent Sessions
Pet Dog Training — the Absolute Basics (TD)
Training dogs is hardly rocket science;
but the owner-variable can make pet dog
training challenging. What is second
nature for trainers can be difficult for
owners. We must advocate techniques
that are easy and effective to produce
reliable performance. This Back-to-Basics lecture describes ways
to produce effective results via classical conditioning, progressive
desensitization, prevention, management, auto-shaping, allor-none reward training and off-leash, lure/reward training,
“Dominance” and punishment that owners need to know.
Beyond “Pop” Ethology (SCI)
Friday Morning Field Study and Hands-On Workshop
8:30am – 12:00pm
Hands-On Workshop: Click a Chick
Terry Ryan
Think outside the dog. Come trade fur for feathers and
wrangle a chicken to become a better dog trainer. Here is your
opportunity to “Click a Chick” and learn the basics: timing,
criteria and the rate of reinforcement. Space is limited so
register early to reserve your spot!
Pre-Registration Required Transportation Provided
Cost: Handlers - $75.00 (limit 30) Observers - $40.00 (limit 8)
9:00am – 1:00pm
Field Study: Team Training the Perfect Marriage of Dog and
Exotic Animal Training
Lisa Clifton-Bumpass, CTC, CPDT, CDBC, CAP
Margaret Rousser, AB, DA
The laws of learning apply to everyone,
whether they have feathers or fur, two
legs or four. Zoos have a long history of
employing the “Team Training” concept
for behavior modification of large
animals. Join us for a trainer’s behindthe-scenes tour and enjoy the opportunity
to practice team training on site with our Children’s Zoo pigmy
goats. Learn how the Zoo’s highly specialized training can
improve your dog training.
Suzanne Hetts, PhD
Rather than listening to lectures about scientific research,
Cost: $50.00 (limit 50)
participate in the process. Attendees will experience how
scientific knowledge is acquired by having the opportunity to
1:30pm - 3:00pm
formulate research questions and collect data. Using videos,
Concurrent Sessions
group exercises, and, if possible, observing live dogs, attendees
will learn the differences between watching and observing, and
Puppy Training in Classes (TD)
observation and interpretation. By participating in this process,
attendees will leave with a richer appreciation for what it takes to
The divergence of pet dog training from competition training
acquire scientific knowledge.
has caused training to become more user- and dog-friendly. But
speed of acquisition, precision and ultimate response-reliability
Through a Dog’s Ear: The Effect of Human Soundscape on
have all taken a nose-dive. When training doesn’t work well,
Animals… and their people!
dog owners either blame the dog or seek help elsewhere. This
Joshua Leeds & Lisa Spector
talk describes an analysis of the effectiveness of puppy classes
Sensory integration--how we employ sensory data is well studied
the purpose of which was to establish a benchmark for dogs,
in humans, but less in animals. In “Through a Dog’s Ears,” we
owners and trainers to succeed in subsequent classes.
consider the five sense domains and the effect of sympathetic
overdrive, sensory confusion, and canine orienting responses. An
The Nuts and Bolts of Research (SCI)
overwhelmed nervous system contributes to diminished immune
Brian Hare, PhD and Vanessa Woods
function. We will examine what can be done.
Brian Hare and his wife, Vanessa Woods, will share their
research, methods, and great stories about their research in
Basic Clicker Training (INT)
Africa and in their research center at Duke University, at the
Duke Canine Cognitive Center (DCCC).
“Clicker training” is an animal training method based on
behavioral psychology. Using a precise event marker to pinpoint
an animal’s desirable behaviors. This marker is followed by
a reward such as a treat or a toy. Clicker training minimizes
the use of force, physical prompting and punishment while
encouraging active participation of the animal. It focuses on
creating and building behaviors, not suppressing and stopping
them.
www.APDT.com
The Good, the Bad, the Ugly (TD)
Sarah Whitehead, BA (Hons), MSc
Running puppy classes is both a joy and a challenge. It’s the
ultimate variable schedule of reinforcement and will soon have
you addicted—and frustrated! This presentation is designed as
a sanity saver, featuring everything I wish I’d known when I
first started running puppy classes fifteen years ago.
Scentsational (INT)
Tellington TTouch in the Canine Classroom: Applications for
a Calmer, Gentler Training Environment
Jenn Merritt, CPDT
Would you like to learn how to calm the barking, overly
aroused or anxious dog during your classes? This talk will
focus on simple, useful techniques from TTouch that can reduce
arousal, increase focus and attention, and boost confidence, not
only in your classroom dogs but also in their handlers.
Steve White, CPDT
Dogs live in a world filled with scents and foul funk. We will
Friday Afternoon Hands-On Workshop
show why scent propels dog behavior, and how to turn that to
your advantage. Learn fun scent games and how some scent
1:15pm - 5:00pm
training methods can interfere with efforts to train a scent work
dog. Learn how to enhance your relationship with your dog as
Terry Ryan
you both explore the “scentsational” world around you.
See description page 9 top left.
1:30pm - 5:00pm
APDT Rally Sanctioned Judge’s Seminar
Linda Sperco
This seminar is open to everyone including exhibitors and the
general public. APDT Rally scoring guidelines, course design,
general rules and guidelines will be covered. “How would you
score this?” will use video for a lively discussion on how to
score errors as they occur! Plus, time for Q&A. This seminar
fulfills the continuing education requirement for trial officials.
Pre-Registration Required
Cost: $25.00
Registrations must be sent directly to the APDT Rally office. Go to
www.apdt.com/po/rally/seminar.aspx for registration information.
Registering for this seminar will not be considered registering for
conference activities—conference activities require registration through
the conference registration office.
3:30pm - 5:00pm
Concurrent Sessions
Puppy Training in the Home (TD)
Teoti Anderson, CPDT
When puppies are in class, you’re right there to help keep them
on track for adult success. But what happens when they go
home? This session will cover helpful puppy raising techniques
to send home with your clients. We’ll also explore ways to help
your clients understand and maintain your training in the home.
Training a Thinking Dog: The Advantages of Marker
Training (INT)
Gail Fisher
A “thinking dog”— one that considers
and chooses good behavior because it is
both right for both dog and owner— is
a joy to live with. Training a thinking
dog is not as hard as it seems. It is easily
achieved when owners understand
principle-based training rather than following an exercise
and mechanics-based method. This presentation explores and
explains the differences… because a dog’s mind is a terrible
thing to waste.
www.APDT.com
Cost: Handlers - $75.00 (limit 30)
Observers - $40.00 (limit 8)
Saturday, October 24
9:00am - 12:00pm
Concurrent Sessions
Challenging Adolescents (TD)
Trish King, CPDT, CDBC
Many of our clients acquire their dogs
when they’re adolescents and think they
don’t have to train them until they’re older
or think they remember how to train them themselves! This
session is about those untrained, overly-excitable, fearful, or
shy adolescent dogs—and how to help owners teach them to be
compliant, happy companions. The session describes practical
tips, from improving management, to choosing exercises best
for those teenage dogs.
Evaluation of Constructional Aggression Treatment (CAT) for
Use in Inter-Dog Aggression (SCI)
Denise Mullenix, CPDT
A new aggression protocol, Constructional Aggression
Treatment (CAT) is gaining in popularity in training
and behavior circles. The technique, which uses negative
reinforcement to shape behavior, is drawing as much attention
as it is controversy. Case studies of dogs that were treated using
the CAT protocol will be presented and analyzed. We will have
video documentation as well as other data from our studies.
Five Easy Pieces--A Problem-Solving Model for the
Real World (INT)
Steve White, CPDT
Have all the neat scientific theories fallen short when it comes
to making life better for you and your dog? That’s because the
real world is not a lab; you can’t control all the variables. This
session introduces the five-step DIP-IT problem solving model.
You’ll learn how to differentiate between problems and their
symptoms, and how to painlessly “proof” problem-solving
efforts. You’ll get tips on how to recognize precursor behaviors
and assess trigger thresholds.
Top 5 Integrative Medicine Pearls of Wisdom for
Healthy Dogs
Doug Knueven, DVM, CAC, CVA, CVCH
There are things that every pet guardian should know to help
their dogs live long, healthy lives. Top on the list is proper
nutrition. We will look closely at what constitutes a healthy
diet; does your food measure up? What about vaccines? What is
really needed? You will discover the answers to these questions
and more as we delve into the research that shows what makes
dogs tick and what makes them sick.
Saturday Morning Hands-On Workshops
8:30am – 12:00pm
Terry Ryan
Transportation Provided
9:00am - 12:30pm
Hands-On Workshop: Train to Adopt
Sue Sternberg
Here’s the riddle: how do you train a dog in a shelter to behave
well for a perfect stranger, one you’ll never meet. Come to this
hands-on workshop at the East Bay SPCA and learn techniques
from Sue’s Train to Adopt TM program which shows how to
quickly and effectively make shelter dogs perform for complete
strangers who have no background in dog training (i.e. average
adopters) using reward-based techniques.
Cost: Handlers $50.00 Limit: 50 persons
1:30pm - 3:00pm
Concurrent Sessions
Training the Behaviors Students Want Most: Calmness,
Relaxation and Self Control (TD)
Gail Fisher
A beginner’s class starts with unruly dogs lunging, pulling and
barking. Using positive reinforcement, in one hour, students
have calmer, focused, relaxed dogs. Within five weeks, dogs
relax lying down, greet politely, walk calmly past other
dogs—all achieved without punishment—and without the use
of cues.
The Nuts and Bolts of Handling Aggression Cases (INT)
Nicole Wilde, CPDT
There is more to working with aggression cases than mastering
methods and techniques. In this seminar you will learn how to
keep yourself safe both physically and legally, how to handle
reactivity in the home and in class, how to discuss re-homing
and euthanasia, and more.
Sex, Lies, Videotapes (INT)
Sarah Whitehead, BA (Hons), MSc
This presentation will explore how understanding a dog’s
emotional state, mood and learning style affects its behavior.
We can alter these factors for better communication and,
contentment. Extensive use of video footage will explore some
now controversial areas of canine behavior and will question
whether previous interpretations of motivation and body
language are really as sound as they initially appeared to be.
1:30pm - 5:00pm
Ready, Set, Rally
Linda Sperco
Learn how to develop/improve a Rally program, market it,
effectively teach it and motivate your students to success.
Judging guidelines and exercises will also be presented, along
with how to design courses, become a trial official, organize
and host financially feasible APDT Rally trials and more. This
seminar will leave everyone ready to Rally!
3:30pm - 5:00pm
Concurrent Sessions
Trainers’ Untrained Dogs--The Cobblers’ Kids with
No Shoes (INT)
Steve White, CPDT
We’ve seen them—skilled trainers with
untrained dogs. How is that possible?
Using real life examples, this session
examines the phenomenon, its causes and
possible solutions. We will look at a stepby-step approach to keeping up with your
training or supporting a fellow trainer through the process. The
best part is you’ll get a dog that knows a lot of “stuff,” as well as
one with which you’ll enjoy mutual camaraderie.
It Appears to be Behavioral but Could it be Medical? (SCI)
Ellen Lindell, VMD, DACVB
To be successfully trained, a dog must be healthy. Medical
disorders and behavioral disorders are not mutually exclusive.
Medical problems can cause or exacerbate behavioral changes.
This presentation will offer guidelines for identifying dogs
that are in need of medical attention prior, to or along, with
behavioral therapy. Case studies will be used to illustrate
examples.
Is Good Help Hard to Find? (INT)
Your class assistants are ambassadors for your training
program. A good assistant will leave a great impression with
our students. A poor assistant could lose you business! Get tips
on finding, developing and keeping quality assistants. Learn
how to make the most of their talents so your classes get rave
reviews.
www.APDT.com
Saturday Afternoon Hands-On Workshop
1:15pm – 5:00pm
Terry Ryan
Transportation Provided
Sunday, October 25
9:00am - 10:30am
Concurrent Sessions
The Best Classes in Town: Yours! (TD)
Veronica Boutelle, VMD, DACVB
Gina Phairas, Bsc Comms, CTC
A good curriculum serves all students and dogs; it prepares your
clients for real-world success outside the classroom. Learn to
successfully handle disparate skill and experience levels (human
and canine!), create a calm and focused learning environment,
and keep students coming back through graduation and into the
next class. This presentation will provide a comprehensive notion
of what curriculum truly is, and guidelines for how to build it.
Get Smart (INT)
Training Canine Companions for Lifelong Partnership with
Autistic Children (INT)
Jenn Merritt, CPDT
Working with dogs and children can be a challenge for any
trainer. Working with autistic children can present even more
challenges, but provides a trainer with the unique opportunity
to positively impact not only the lives of the families, but
entire communities. This talk examines unique challenges
faced when preparing a puppy to become a companion for
five year-old triplets, two of whom are autistic. By integrating
relationship and reward based training with elements
of service dog training, the stage was set for successful
partnerships between the puppy and the family.
Anticipation: Harnessing Its Power to Attain Exquisite
Control & Reliability (INT)
Jennifer White
Ever wished you could bottle up a dog’s energy and save it
for later? Wanted that zeal Fido has for chasing squirrels to
invigorate trained behaviors? Learn a few simple techniques
that increase impulse control and refinement in the lively dog
while giving some zip to the pokey pup.
Sunday Morning Hands-On Workshop
8:30am – 12:00pm
Terry Ryan
SMART stands for “See, Mark and Reward Training” and it
summarizes the fundamental sequence of behaviors a trainer
performs when using reinforcement effectively. We’ll discuss
each of these core skills–observation of the animal’s behaviors,
pinpointing the desired behavior with a meaningful marker signal, 1:00pm - 2:30pm
and providing powerful rewards. We’ll use visual “brain teasers”
Closing Session
and also video clips of dogs. Investing time over the course of our
careers in developing observation skills will improve the timing of
Calling All Dog Trainers and Pet Dog Professionals:
our marker signals an essential component of effective training.
No More Homeless Pets
Sherry Woodard, CPDT
Inspiring Dog Owners into Dog Sports Instead of
Best Friends Animal Society’s mission is to create a time
Dog Parks (INT)
when there are No More Homeless Pets. As dog trainers
Sue Sternberg
know, the most common issue that results in owner
How do you keep Basic Manners class graduates enrolled in
relinquishment are behavior issues. Professional dog trainers
training? Inspiring owners to get involved with their dogs can
have the power to reduce the number
keep them in training--for life. This workshop will introduce
of dogs entering shelters and increase
trainers to a variety of accessible dog sports that can be tried by
adoptions by educating the public
just about anyone, and then used to tantalize pet owners into an
about dog training. We will share,
ongoing partnership with their dogs.
through video shorts and stories, our
experiences and present opportunities
10:45am - 12:00pm
for you to participate.
Concurrent Sessions
Training Small Dogs (TD)
How would you view the world if you were less than a foot tall?
What would it be like if you were tiny, but thought of yourself as
a giant? This session will cover the special challenges of training
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home, in the community and in your classes.
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A Training Format Way Outside the Box
[continued from page 27] students according to my standards.
Fast Forward to 1995
That year the APDT Conference was in Chicago, IL. It
didn’t take me long to figure out that I could attend the conference and kill several birds at the same time. My daughter
lived in Branson, MO and it would be a good time for a visit.
In addition, there was a major dog show weekend in Tulsa,
OK, before Chicago. I could show, then drop off my show
dogs at my daughter’s and visit a couple of days before I had
to be at the conference. An added bonus was a brother who
lived in Chicago, so a nice visit with him, too. On the way
back I’d enjoy Thanksgiving with my daughter, attend her
weekend training class as she had suggested, pick up the
dogs and head west, stopping for another show weekend
in Pueblo, CO. Then, on home to California!
That trip will always remain the most life-changing
experience in my dog training career. The class I visited in
Branson with my daughter affected me profoundly and I
knew that I had to, once again, reinvent myself. The format
her trainer followed was like nothing I had ever imagined.
All I could see was taking it home and revamping my entire
format!
I did follow my plan for the return, armed with the
knowledge gleaned from my daughter’s trainer, his
training manual and his blessings. I still have a hard time
remembering many details of the rest of the trip. All I really
wanted to do was figure out how to transition from the
traditional week-to-week class format set in a prescribed
number of weeks, to the more exciting format of training
level to level. The possibilities were endless.
Home Again and Making Changes
Upon returning home the first order of business was getting my head around this latest reinvention of self. It was
going to be tough explaining things to the team if I didn’t
have it all straight in my own head. In many ways it was
like building a house from the ground up. I was having
to retrain my own mind to think in terms of the new class
structure, one diametrically in opposition to what I had
been doing since late 1958.
Then, of course, it was important to be able to recruit
new students and sell them on the new format which I
would do as a Saturday training program. We had ongoing
traditional classes that had to be finished, then launch the
new program. To start with we would just do the adult
program using Levels. The Puppy program would remain
a traditional format, a six-week hourly class.
The team was less than enamored at making changes,
but I knew that once they realized the advantages they’d be
as excited as I was. It took us a month and a half to close out
the old classes, promote the new and launch out first Levels
sessions on a Saturday morning.
It didn’t take long to hook the team. They could see the
differences with their own eyes. The advantages quickly
became obvious and by the end of the first six months, they
were as sold as I had been.
The reception of the format by former students was
extremely positive. They constantly were praising the
advantages and many said they would never go back to
a traditional week-to-week format. Even the team was
excited about the advantages and the level of competence
they were achieving with their dogs.
Others praised the opportunity to work within a format
that went so far beyond traditional training that they found
themselves developing stronger relationships with their
dogs than they had been able to accomplish in the past with
traditional formatting.
The Differences that Make Levels So Powerful!
We all understand the week-to-week format we have
labored under for years. Dogs and owners attend a weekly
session, generally an hour per week.
Each class after the first generally consists of a brief
review of the previous week’s lessons and then a new
lesson is presented.
The major problem has always been the material that
isn’t absorbed each week or the way it is interpreted once
the team goes home. If they have heard it the way it was
presented, observed all of the nuances of the attendant
demonstrations and read their supporting handouts, they
may actually come to class prepared to get the next lesson.
In reality, it seldom plays out that way!
And, if they miss class? Well, all the catch up in the
world is seldom enough. Frustrated owners drop out!
With the Levels format we are teaching in blocks of time
rather than week to week. Each block is taught at a different
time slot and each time slot always consists of a prescribed
set of lessons.
Each student enrolls and progresses through each of the
blocks according to their readiness to move on the the next
block or level of training.
For example: I would teach Level One at 9 a.m. on Saturday morning. The content consisted of three basics: Focus
and Attention (Using the Food Lure), Correcting Jumping
and Teaching Recall Games. At the end of the class, most
dogs were fairly responsive and the people went away
delighted and generally amazed.
When they returned the next week they returned to
the same time slot for their second exposure to the same
material. I taught it exactly the way I did the week before
as generally I would have one or two new students in Level
One.
The students who had attended the previous week
were good demonstrators as they had been working
with the exercises for a week. The new students had
my instruction, and the examples of the dogs who had
been there the previous week. Since I taught it the >
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Remember, we tell our students that the key to learning
is Repetition, Repetition, Repetition! And yet in the past we
would present it one time to them, send them home and
assume they had heard everything we had to say to that
class. In other words, the previous week’s students were
hearing the material again and maybe heard something
they had missed the first time.
If a week two level student showed proficiency I was
comfortable in moving them on to the next level which they
would attend the next week at the 10:15 time slot for Level
Two. If a student was having difficulties, awkwardness or
the dog was not grasping the exercises for some reason,
maybe simply the distraction of new dogs, I would hold
them over in Level One until they were ready to move on.
And, that, in a nutshell, is how each level worked. I
taught to the new students, and the previous week’s students heard it again and stayed at that level until their
proficiency allowed them to move on to the next level for
new exercises.
In the beginning I put a time limit on proceeding
through the six levels as was mapped out by the trainer I
obtained the materials from. However, I quickly discovered
that his format didn’t work as well for our purposes and I
made changes. Today when I do Levels it is open ended.
The student can progress through the four levels I offer at
their own pace. If they are absent they never have to catch
up, they simply return to the level they were at from the
previous class. Or, if there was an illness or a vacation
planned, they didn’t miss anything, they simply returned
to their last level!
regular level or in place of it. Not a problem!
• There is less stress all the way around because there is
less pressure on the students due to their not having to
keep up.
Of course, no system in the world is perfect and I will
present some of the drawbacks in the next installment
along with problems presented by the logistics of record
keeping and the presentation of Levels as a single trainer
and the advantages of operating with a team. I will also
discuss dealing with problem dogs in the levels format.
Joan B. Guertin trains in rural East Texas as Common Sense
Dog Training and Behavior Solutions. A charter member of the
APDT, she is proud of her #46 membership number. “At my
age, I do smaller classes, lots of privates and house calls,” she
explains. The pace is slower and I still have plenty of energy left
to show the Pembroke Welsh Corgis, and write articles for a few,
select publications. And she occasionally offers consultation
sessions for trainers in need of help. In other words, I’m doing
what I want to do and enjoying every minute of it!
Are You Receiving Your
Member News Bulletins?
At least once a month a Member News Bulletin is
mailed out via e-mail to all of our active members. If
you have not been receiving your Member News Bulletins, please check your contact e-mail listed on your
account information in the Members Only section of
the APDT Web site.
You should also check your spam filters. The APDT
asks that all members add “support@apdt.com” and
“information@apdt.com” to your trusted senders email list. You should also contact the APDT office at
information@apdt.com or 1-800-PET-Dogs (738-3647)
if you still are not receiving Member News Bulletins
after taking the above mentioned steps.
Primary Benefits of Levels Format
• No one has to wait to start a class.
They can enroll and begin when
they are ready as a Level One
student can start each week!
• You now can have a payday each
week. It may be that you have
several returnees for their second
week of Levels and one or two new
students. Either way, you teach to
the new students enrolling.
• The frustration of absences is gone
as students return to the Level they
were at prior to the absence.
• As the teams progress, should you
find a team that is experiencing
difficulty relative to an exercise or
skill that was taught in a previous
level, I invite them to drop back and
work at that level to perfect the skill.
They can do it in addition to their
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A Training Format Way Outside the Box
same way as before, the more experienced students
heard the material a second time and often caught
something they might have missed the week before!
On B ehavior
O
Editor Terry Long, CPDT
Case Study: Let’s Settle This!
Barbara Davis, CPDT, CDBC
Behavioral History
Case Information
Subject: Boomer
DOB: 1/15/02
Species: Canine
Breed: Australian Cattle Dog mix
Sex: Neutered Male
History:
Operations: Neutered at one year, small growth
removed from eyelid at 4.5 years
Prior illnesses: Occasional bouts of bloody diarrhea,
thought to be colitis, no conclusive diagnosis,
treated with bland diet
Medications: None
Environmental history: Lives indoors, infrequent
play time in yard, daily walks
Diet: Wellness Lamb & Rice kibble with Merrick
canned mixed in, Buddy Biscuits and diced apple
for treats. Boomer eats all quickly as soon as he’s
served
Subject: Puff
DOB: 2/1/08
Species: Canine
Breed: Miniature Poodle mix
Sex: Spayed Female
History:
Operations: Spayed at age 10 months
Prior illnesses: pregnancy/whelped at 8 months
Medications: none
Environmental history: Lives indoors, infrequent
play time in yard, daily walks
Diet: Wellness Lamb & Rice kibble with Merrick
canned mixed in, Buddy Biscuits and diced apple
for treats. Puff generally finishes all her food in
five minutes or less, but may take a bit longer
Chief Behavioral Complaint:
Dog-dog aggression
Boomer was acquired at age three-and-a-half years from
a prior owner who’d raised him from age five weeks. Not
much is known about his experience with the first owner
except that Boomer was not allowed in the house and didn’t
leave the yard frequently. His current owner, Dory, stated
that during the first six months Boomer lived with her, he
was withdrawn, startled easily and reacted fearfully to new
things. He was fearful of strangers and novel items they
encountered on their walks, pulled on leash and lunged
away from things that startled him.
Boomer’s exercise regimen consisted of one 30-minute
leash walk around the neighborhood daily; on particularly
nice days, there could be two walks. The walks could be
problematic if Boomer encountered other leashed dogs,
strangers or became startled by something unexpected.
Boomer and Dory would also enjoy play sessions in the
yard, including fetch and some Frisbee.
Over time, Boomer’s overall demeanor became more
relaxed, although he was still fearful of strangers and
suspicious of new things. Although he hadn’t barked at all
during the first six months in his new home, he suddenly
“found his voice,” and his startle responses were now
accompanied by long bursts of sharp, staccato barking.
Dory’s friends told her that Boomer would benefit
from attending a training class, so she enrolled in a group
program with him, but they were asked to leave during the
first session because Boomer’s barking and lunging were so
disruptive. Dory subsequently signed up for some private
agility lessons with Boomer, but he behaved fearfully
around the obstacles and was unable to focus sufficiently
to complete any of the exercises. By the end of the second
session, the trainer and Dory agreed to abandon the agility
lessons. The trainer did fit Boomer with a front-clip harness
and taught Dory how to use it properly, which was effective
in reducing Boomer’s pulling and lunging on leash making
their daily walks more pleasant and less stressful.
Because Dory was self-employed and home-officed, she
was able spend a lot of time with Boomer. However, her
work duties were changing, requiring her to leave home
several hours a day. The increasing frequency and duration
of Dory’s absences were a source of distress for Boomer,
who barked and paced for at least 20-30 minutes after she’d
leave. Dory felt that getting Boomer a companion would be
a good solution. Although Boomer could be reactive with
unknown dogs on walks, he was successfully introduced
to several dogs belonging to friends and relatives and had
“made friends” with them, so Dory was hopeful a compatible companion could be found.
Puff was a stray dog impounded at a local animal >
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Although she’d recently had a litter, Puff was still
all puppy. She was continually in motion; in her cage or
enclosure, she would jump up and down, and race back and
forth, pouncing on each side of the enclosure as she reached
it. Out on walks, Puff would run in circles, or lunge back
and forth, jumping up and down. Although she was highly
adoptable, most adopters considered her too “hyper,” and
she was passed over many times by qualified homes.
Dory had been volunteering several times a week at the
rescue center, cleaning enclosures, feeding, walking and
socializing the dogs. She was immediately drawn to Puff,
as she’d always wanted a little white dog and Puff’s clowny
personality made Dory believe that Puff would be a good
balance for Boomer. Puff always greeted Dory happily
when she came to the rescue center, so Dory took this as a
“sign” that Puff was a good choice, and made arrangements
to become a foster home.
The Intros
Dory decided to do the introductions slowly and
brought Puff home one day for the afternoon, intending
to bring her back to the rescue center in the evening. She
hoped that by having Puff home a little more each day,
Boomer would gradually get used to her and Dory could
complete the adoption formalities. Dory carried Puff into
the house in a small airline crate. Boomer ran to the door
to greet her in his usual way, but stopped short a few
feet off and stiffened, staring at the crate in Dory’s hand.
Boomer started barking loudly, and Puff started barking
as well. Dory tried unsuccessfully to calm and quiet both
dogs for about an hour, but the vocalizing only escalated.
When Boomer started lunging at the crate, Dory became
concerned and decided to bring Puff back to the rescue
center early.
Dory thought the intros would be eased if Boomer could
get used to Puff’s crate first, so Dory brought home the
empty crate with some bedding that Puff had used. With
Boomer confined to the bedroom Dory set the crate out in
the living room in a conspicuous place and then released
Boomer into the room. He entered the room normally but
as soon as he noticed the crate, he froze, stiffened and began
staring at the crate. After a few moments, he began quickly
approaching the crate in a crouched posture, and when
he got a few feet from the crate, he began barking loudly
and suddenly lunged and hit the crate repeatedly with his
muzzle. Dory managed to pull Boomer off the crate and
walked him a few feet away; after a few minutes, she was
able to get him to “down” and “stay” while she consoled
him. This activity was repeated several times a day, with
Boomer given free access to the crate, and after a few days
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Boomer stopped reacting to the crate altogether.
Dory felt she’d made progress, and the following day
brought Puff home in the crate, and set it up in the living
room in the spot it had been set up all week. Once Puff had
settled down, Boomer was released into the room and he
paid no attention to the crate at first. But when Puff saw
Boomer, she began barking and bouncing around; Boomer
reacted by barking and lunging repeatedly at the crate.
Dory brought Puff back to the rescue center.
Dory was still committed to the process of introducing
the dogs successfully, mostly because she had grown very
attached to Puff at the rescue center over the prior two
months and had her heart set on making her a part of the
household. She decided to call for help.
The Assessment
When I arrived for the first session, Puff was crated in
the office with the office door closed and Boomer was loose
in the house. When I entered, Boomer stood about 10 feet
away from me, barking. His posture was partially crouched,
backward leaning, head slightly averted, but with no threat
displays.
Dory and I took seats in the living room, and Boomer
hid behind the sofa, avoiding me, but periodically came to
the edge of the sofa to look at me cautiously. When I looked
at him, Boomer began barking and then retreated behind
the sofa.
On Boomer’s next attempt to “peek” at me around the
corner of the sofa, I tossed a chunk of salmon jerky in his
direction. He startled a bit and backed off. Dory and I
ignored him and continued the history-taking, and after
a few minutes, Boomer approached the treat cautiously,
sniffed it gingerly and then picked it up, darting back
behind the sofa. After a few minutes, Boomer was peering
around the corner of the sofa, and without looking up, I
tossed another chunk of jerky towards him. He darted
backwards a bit, but quickly approached it, picked it up and
ate it where he stood. When he turned to look at me again,
I tossed more jerky. We repeated this game for about 20
minutes, until Boomer was sitting next to Dory, reasonably
calm, waiting for me to toss him a treat. Dory also paid him
with small bits of jerky as he sat quietly next to her.
At one point, I stretched out my right leg to relieve a
cramp; this movement startled Boomer, who ran behind the
sofa again, but within 10 minutes, he returned to sit next to
Dory. I then asked Dory to confine Boomer somewhere else
in the house so we could bring out Puff. Boomer was shut
in the guest bedroom.
Puff was carried out in Dory’s arms; she was extremely
active and struggled to get free. She was put in a 24” wire
crate that had been set up in the living room. As soon as Puff
was loose in the crate, she began running back and forth;
as she reached each side, she jumped up and “punched”
the side of the crate with her front paws. This continued for
[continued on next page]
several minutes.
On Behavior
shelter. Shortly after she was impounded, Puff whelped a
litter of pups; she and her litter were adopted from the shelter
by a local rescue who brought them to their rescue center
so Puff could raise her family in better circumstances. Once
the pups were about six weeks, Puff was given her own
crate and enclosure so that she didn’t have to share space
with the pups, and she was made available for fostering.
On Behavior
I started dropping small bits of jerky in the crate every
few seconds. Initially, Puff didn’t seem to notice, but after a
minute or so, she stopped long enough to eat a few bits, and
then continue bouncing back and forth. I continued dropping treats in from the top of the crate, and after a few more
seconds, Puff stopped to gobble her treats, except this time,
she remained relatively still waiting for me to drop the next
bit. After a few minutes, I was able to coax Puff into a sitting position by holding a bit of jerky over her head; as she
sat I dropped the treat into the crate. After demonstrating
the “sit” behavior to her only three times, she began volunteering the behavior freely in order to get me to pay off.
We continued in this manner, gradually coaxing Puff
into lying down, and then reinforcing her for longer and
longer periods of laying still. After about 15 minutes, Puff
rolled over on one hip, sighed and laid her head down on
her front paws.
After reviewing the results of our evaluation, Dory
decided she wanted to go ahead with behavior modification with the goal of successfully integrating Puff into the
household.
At this point, I asked Dory to bring Boomer out on his
front-clip harness and leash, and take a seat in the dining
area about 20 feet from where Puff and I were stationed.
Dory was instructed to concentrate only on Boomer; if he
showed any sign of reacting (stiffening, staring, etc), she
would get up calmly and walk him out of the room. If
Boomer stayed calm, Dory would feed him bits of salmon
jerky. Meanwhile, I would continue reinforcing Puff for
lying quietly in the presence of Boomer.
Dory did as requested, bringing Boomer out on his leash
and harness, and they took up position in the dining area.
Soon, Boomer noticed the crated poodle, but was easily
distracted by Dory and the treats. Within a few minutes, he
was sitting quietly in front of Dory waiting for his next treat.
Over the next 15 minutes, Dory was able to move gradually
into the living room and take her old seat about six feet
from where Puff and I were stationed, with Boomer sitting
calmly in front of her. Puff continued to recline quietly in
the crate, even when I discontinued feeding her. After a few
more minutes, I asked Dory to return Boomer to the other
room.
Puff is a highly active youngster, with little self-control
and no ability to settle. Boomer is a reactive herding dog,
a neophobe who’s also got some impulse control issues. If
we’re going to successfully socialize these two, we’ll need
to slow Puff down so her activity doesn’t trigger Boomer.
We’ll also want to reduce Boomer’s reactivity to minimize
his startle and lunges if Puff moves quickly. Once we can
do that, we have a better chance of politely introducing the
two.
Positive indications:
• Both Boomer and Puff work well for food treats under
the conditions we need to work
• Both dogs appear to be receptive to training and
behavior modification
• Boomer has been successfully socialized with other
dogs
• Owner’s commitment to a successful outcome
Negative indications:
• Both dogs are reactive and have poor impulse control
• Boomer’s tendency to engage in breed-specific behaviors
(darting, nipping, lunging)
• Puff’s resemblance to a small prey animal
• Boomer has no previous positive history with small,
fast-moving dogs
• Previous attempts
unsuccessful
to
introduce
the
dogs
were
The Treatment Plan
Our plan would focus on two main areas: improving
each dog’s impulse control, and creating a strong positive
association for each dog with the other. Management controls needed to be put in place to ensure the dogs did not
have access to each other until we’d progressed a bit further
in the program; any negative encounters could set back our
progress.
Dory had expressed the desire to try clicker training:
we did a brief clicker intro so she was familiar with the
basics. Her technique and timing were good.
We worked on shaping relaxed behavior for Puff,
similar to the technique I used initially. Dory can practice
this exercise with Boomer as well.
We also reviewed a variation of the “Dog Zen” exercise,
which involves placing a bit of food on the ground near
the dog, and snatching it back up if the dog makes any
attempt to acquire it. If the dog is able to control the urge to
lunge and grab, the handler picks up the food and hands
it to the dog. Eventually, the dog learns that grabbing for
the food makes the food go away, but controlling his own
impulsivity and waiting results in the food being delivered
to him. Dory will practice this exercise with each dog,
gradually increasing the wait interval until both dogs can
wait calmly for one minute.
Boomer is not crate-trained; prior attempts at cratetraining were very unpleasant for him. Puff enjoys her
crate time, so we decided to use that to help her learn more
relaxed behavior. A divider will be installed in Puff’s crate to
reduce the size, limiting her opportunity to bounce around
and engage in wild adrenalizing behavior. When crated,
Puff will have a bully stick, cow ear or stuffed Kong® to
work on, providing her with something to focus on quietly.
Puff will enjoy two to three two-hour crate “naps” each day
to help instill more relaxed behavior.
Our second session occured one week later. Boomer’s
greeting was similar to that of the last meeting, but he
doesn’t bark at me. Both dogs are able to successfully complete one-minute intervals in their “dog zen” exercise. >
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In the initial interview, Dory listed a tug-o-war game
as one of Puff’s “favorites.” This game, with some changes,
will be helpful to teach Puff to calm herself after short
periods of arousal. We modified the tug-o-war game so it
was more structured. Puff must be sitting before the game
begins; Dory offers the toy and plays tug until Puff is mildly
aroused, at which point the tugging stops. Puff releases the
tug toy when Dory passes a bit of dog food by the dog’s
nose. Dory pairs Puff’s release of the tug toy with the cue
“drop it”; once this is reasonably well-trained, we can gauge
Puff’s level of arousal by her ability to respond to the “drop
it” cue. After Puff drops the tug toy, she must sit to restart
the tug game. As Puff progresses, the tugging part of the
game can get longer and more intense, she acquires the
ability to relax after escalating periods of arousal.
Boomer is taught simple “targeting” exercises; in
targeting, the dog learns to interact with an object using
a specific body part. Initially, we use Dory’s hand as the
target object. Mastering this skill will improve Boomer’s
confidence, as well as providing him a foundation for skills
to be learned in the next session. Before we’re done, Boomer
can successfully target Dory’s hand with his nose or his
paw. Dory was taught how to transfer the “touch” to other
objects. Dory may be able to use hand-targeting on walks
to keep Boomer’s focus off potentially scary things, and it
may also come in handy later as we get into our dog-dog
introductions with Puff.
Our third session is scheduled for five days later. When
I arrived, Boomer was confined to the bedroom and Puff
was lying quietly in her wire crate. Dory describes good
progress with Puff’s tug game, and they played the game
briefly to demonstrate. Puff successfully released the tug
toy in five out of five attempts, and also sat automatically at
the end of each repetition. Puff went back into her crate and
laid down; we covered the crate completely with a blanket,
and Dory brought Boomer out of the bedroom. Boomer ran
up to me briefly, sniffed at my shoes for about a minute,
and then walked over to where Dory sat. Boomer and Dory
did a brief demo of Boomer’s new targeting skills; he was
successfully able to target three different objects with his
nose and paws.
Dory had put Boomer’s harness on before I arrived; she
attached his leash to the harness so she could maintain
control as we worked through the next exercise.
Dory sat quietly with Boomer on leash about eight feet
away from Puff’s crate; she was ready with her clicker and
treats. I slowly uncovered the side of Puff’s crate so the
little dog was visible; she was still quiet and relaxed. Dory
was instructed to watch Boomer, and “click” each time he
glanced in Puff’s direction. Boomer caught on very quickly,
and soon Dory was able to alter her criteria so that she
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was clicking for longer and longer looks. With each click,
Boomer became more relaxed and after about 15 minutes,
he laid down as the exercise continued. Dory brought
Boomer back to the bedroom to rest.
We brought Puff back out to work on another selfcontrol exercise, a variation of “go wild and freeze.” We
attached a stuffed snake toy to the end of a lightweight
leash; Dory shuffled back and forth quickly, pulling and
jerking the snake along by the leash. Puff chased the toy
back and forth, running and pouncing. Once Puff was
mildly aroused, Dory would stop all activity and stand
still; once Puff turned her attention to Dory, Dory lured her
into a sit, and marked the sit with a click and treat. She
immediately resumed the game. It took about 20 repetitions
before Puff offered a sit automatically when Dory stopped
moving. Dory decided to mark and label the behavior of
stopping play and sitting with the cue word “chill.” As Puff
progresses, the dance can get longer and more exciting, as
Puff acquires more and more self-control.
Dory continued working with the dogs on her own. In
a follow-up call about a week later, Dory reported she has
been successful in working Boomer closer and closer to
Puff’s crate, while Puff sat quietly inside. Boomer learned
to nose-target Puff’s crate with Puff inside; Puff responds
by pushing her own nose back towards Boomer’s. Dory’s
adult son was in town staying at her home, and with his
help they were able to make controlled introductions with
the dogs on leash indoors. They’re continuing to practice
their targeting and self-control exercises with Puff outside
the crate, working the dogs side by side.
We spoke again one month later. The dogs are now
moving freely around the house together when Dory is
home to supervise. Dory has decided to let them drag light
leashes so she feels comfortable she can regain control if
necessary, but she hasn’t had to use them. The dogs settle
quickly when Dory cues “chill.” Puff is crated for safety
when Dory’s busy with work or has to leave the house.
Boomer and Puff nap together on the same dog bed in
Dory’s office while Dory works or talks on the phone.
Dory plans to finalize Puff’s adoption now that she feels
comfortable that Puff’s integration into the household can
be completed successfully.
Case Summary
Although Dory’s initial concern was aggressive
behavior from Boomer, the problem is that she was trying
to introduce two dogs with poor dog-social skills and
almost no self-control. Puff’s issue expressed itself in almost
manic displays of physical behavior, which unfortunately
were exactly the type of stimuli that predictably provoked
Boomer’s reactive barking and lunging, which ensured
Puff’s wild behavior would continue and escalate. For these
two to be successful together, we needed to teach both some
self-control, help Puff to feel gratified for sitting still and to
teach Boomer to feel good about interacting calmly with
Puff. Additionally, the owner’s ability to manage the dog’s
behavior throughout the training plan, [continued on next page]
On Behavior
Puff sits or lies down quietly in her crate and I don’t see her
perform any manic behavior. Dory also reports she’s been
successful in keeping the dogs out of each other’s sight,
walking them separately and spending social time with
each outside of the other’s presence. Since Dory’s made
good progress, we’re ready to move on.
On Behavior
remain in control and stay calm herself was a cornerstone
of the program. Dory’s newly-acquired knowledge of her
dogs’ behavior and behavior modification techniques
gave her the ability and a plan to use tools such as crates,
the harness and leash, draglines and closed doors. Dory
was able to proceed confidently and quickly through her
training plan and achieve the desired outcome.
Resources:
“Dog Zen,” Sue Ailsby - www.dragonflyllama.com/
DOGS/Levels/LevelBehaviours/TL26Zen.html.
“Look At That,” from Control Unleashed by Leslie McDevitt (2007, Clean Run Productions).
“Protocol for Relaxation,” Karen Overall - www.baddogsinc.com/helpfulhandouts.html.
Barbara Davis, CPDT, CDBC is a dog trainer and behavior
consultant in Corona, CA. Barbara owns and operates BADDogsInc, specializing in the family pet practice and rescue dog
rehabilitation. Barbara is a member of the APDT Think Tank, has
been certified as a dog behavior consultant by IAABC, where
she is a founding member, and currently serves as President of
the Golden Retriever Club of Greater Los Angeles Rescue, one of
the largest canine rescues in the region. Barbara can be reached
through her Web site at www.baddogsinc.com.
“On Behavior” editor Terry Long, CPDT, is a professional
writer, dog trainer, and behavior counselor in Long Beach, CA.
She provides private and group classes for pet manners, agility,
and behavior modification, specializing in clicker training and
other reward-based techniques. She is the former Managing
Editor of The APDT Chronicle of the Dog. In 2006 her article
for the Chronicle, “Shape for Confidence” (Mar/Apr), won a
coveted 1st-place Maxwell Award for Best Feature in a canine
newspaper or newsletter (non-healthcare topic) from the Dog
Writers Association of America (DWAA.org). She also authors
Dog World magazine’s “About Agility” column, nominated
for Best Magazine Column of 2006 by the DWAA. She can be
reached through her Web site at www.dogpact.com.
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Teaching Classes
The Return of the
Small Dog
Vicki Ronchette, CPDT, CAP2
I
can remember just a few years ago when big dogs were
all the rage. My classes were filled with large breed dogs. Mu Shu, a Pekingese learning to touch a target stick.
Of course, we still see a lot of big dogs, but the smaller
classes was skyrocketing, I decided to offer a Small Dog
breeds, particularly the toy breeds, have made a huge comeBeginning class. It has ended up being one of my most
back. Whether it is Paris Hilton with her tiny Chihuahuas
successful classes. Each session of the Small Dog Class
being carried around almost as accessories, or maybe that
is filled with dogs that are 25 pounds or under, many of
smaller dogs are easier to rent a home with—small dogs
them weighing less than 10 pounds. I enjoy teaching the
have definitely been showing up more often. As a small dog
Small Dog Class and I think that the students benefit from
owner and lover, I am thrilled about this. I enjoy working
it. Small dog and toy dog classes are a great idea, but there
with small breeds and love teaching people that their toy
are some things trainers need to think about when working
breeds are every bit as capable of learning as other breeds.
with small dogs.
There is a huge misconception among average dog
One of the reasons that a small dog class can be so
owners that small dogs are somehow incapable of learning.
successful is that there are sometimes differences in how
They are frequently labeled “stubborn” or “willful” by
we get the behaviors when working with toy dogs. For
owners who have never lived with a toy breed before.
instance, in beginning class we teach the dog to lie down
Clients sometimes seem astonished at what their toy dogs
by using a food lure. It is typically much less challenging to
are capable of learning. Of course, little dogs can learn, but
lure a large dog into a down than a small dog because the
there are some differences in the learning style of some of
small dog is already low enough to reach the lure! If a class
the smaller dogs. Toy breeds were bred to be companions
is full of all large dogs and only one or two small dogs, the
and were meant to be good house dogs. In a nutshell, the
small dog owners may feel like they are doing something
majority of toy breeds were bred to be small and pleasant to
wrong or aren’t as good because their dogs aren’t doing
look at. Unlike some of the working dog breeds where the
what the larger dogs are doing as quickly. The small dog
better dogs were kept for breeding programs, a toy dog’s
class allows the small dog owners to feel more comfortable
ancestors didn’t have to meet that criterion. This doesn’t
because everyone around them is facing the same issues.
mean that they aren’t intelligent; it just means that you
It also allows me to teach the whole class methods that
need to be aware of what they were bred for and sometimes
will benefit the smaller dogs. Despite the skill level of the
modify your training plan to meet their needs. Training a
owner, all of the dogs in the class are able to progress at a
Pekingese is not going to be the same experience as training
fairly consistent pace.
an Australian Cattle Dog, at least in most cases. I say this
It’s not only the small dogs that need extra considerbecause I live with and train both of these breeds and they
ation, their owners do too. Many people who train their
are like comparing chalk and cheese.
small dogs tend to bend over almost constantly when
That being said, good trainers realize that learning
training. This of course can become an additional cue to
theory doesn’t change from breed to breed. All of the rules
the dog that needs to be faded out. An example would be an
of operant conditioning are the same across the board, but
owner bending down and saying “sit”—the owner bending
how you go about getting the behaviors may need some
becomes part of the cue for the dog and the owners need to
tweaking for the little guns. As an avid clicker trainer,
be aware of this. Another common issue is with teaching
it’s my method of choice with all the animals I train. I am
recalls. Many small dogs will stop just out of reach of their
impressed with the results I get from it, so it’s the first thing
owners. This is often due to the owner facing the dog head
I reach for. I think that clicker training is particularly useful
on and leaning down towards the tiny dog which can look
when training toy dogs. I have seen so many small dogs
intimidating and threatening. When the owners are taught
shut down from forceful training or too much pressure.
to turn their body sideways or even bend down when their
Allowing them to pace themselves and figure out how to
small dogs come into them, this can help the little guys feel
get rewarded works well for them.
more comfortable.
The Small Dog Beginning Class
When I realized that the number of small dogs in my
www.APDT.com
Another thing to consider when teaching small dogs is
equipment. I discourage the use of back clip harnesses for
large dogs that pull in my classes and [continued on next page]
Teaching Classes
Ribbon, a longhair Dachshund demonstrating a method sometimes used to lure small dogs into a down.
instead recommend a regular buckle collar or a front-clip
no-pull harness. However, in my small dog class I don’t
mind if people want to use a back clip harness, in fact, I
sometimes encourage it. I train my own toy dogs (which
include a Pomeranian, two Pekingese and a miniature
Dachshund—not a toy but still less than 10 pounds) in
regular collars, but I walk them on harnesses. This is
because they are small and fragile (my Pom is a mere five
pounds dripping wet) and I want to be able to quickly pick
them up if I see a large off-leash dog running up or a small
child running at them. A harness allows me to snatch him
up quickly if I need to. Another plus to the harness is that it
doesn’t put pressure on the dog’s trachea, which can be an
issue in some toy breeds.
Small dogs can be a bit more challenging to motivate
as well. Many of the toy and small dogs I work with are
not interested in regular store-bought dog treats. Of course,
any dog can be particular about what he likes to eat, but
with the toy dogs it seems to be more of an issue. They
tend to do best when trained a bit hungry (before dinner)
and when you use a higher value reward such as cheese,
chicken, beef or roll dog food. This in no way means that
they can’t be motivated, it just means that you may have to
be a bit more thoughtful and creative when choosing your
reinforcements.
Another consideration is that small dogs (under 10
pounds) are more susceptible to hypoglycemia which can
happen when the dog isn’t eating enough. It’s important to
make sure that little dogs are getting enough food. I am a
believer in a Nothing in Life Is Free lifestyle and I promote
this in my classes. My dogs are asked to sit, or do some
other behavior before being fed, or given a treat, or having
the leash put on. I stick to this plan with my small dogs as
well as my bigger dogs, but I do offer meals more frequently
if they don’t eat their meals. I am still feeding meals, but if
they skip one, it is offered again sooner than I would for a
bigger dog.
Sonic, a Pomeranian learning the two legs on-two legs off for agility
training.
Size Differences and Play Groups
Trainers should also be thoughtful about size differences
in their puppy classes. My puppy class play sessions are split
up to protect the smaller puppies. Very small puppies are
not let off-leash to play when bigger puppies are off-leash.
There is just too much risk of injury and/or a frightening
experience when the puppies are not close enough in size.
We allow our small puppies to interact with the larger
puppies by putting our larger puppies on-leash while the
smaller puppies are playing off-leash and monitoring them
closely. This way they are allowed to interact and meet
larger pups while still being kept safe.
Since our small dog classes were so successful, I added a
small dog playgroup as well. This has been a huge success.
Many people with small dogs have a hard time finding
safe, controlled places to allow their small dogs to play and
socialize. For the dogs that are not sure that they want to
socialize just yet, we use barriers to give them a safety zone
when they start out. We might start them in a smaller area
with just one of our regulars who plays well with everyone
and then ease them into the group as they become comfortable. It is much safer and relaxing to the dog when their
comfort level is respected and they are allowed to set the
pace.
One of the most important things I want to get across
in my small dog classes is that dogs, including toy dogs,
are not accessories. They are intelligent, thinking, living
beings and they deserve to be treated as such. This doesn’t
mean that many of the little dogs don’t show up in sweaters
and little coats, but their owners learn that their small dogs
are still dogs and that they are capable of being trained just
like any other breed.
Vicki Ronchette is a Certified Pet Dog Trainer and the owner
of Braveheart Dog Training in San Leandro, CA. Vicki is involved
in Dachshund and Cattle Dog rescue and competes with her
dogs in conformation, Earthdog, field trials, obedience, and
Rally and also handles show dogs for other people. Her first
published book, Positive Training for Show Dogs - Building
a Relationship for Success was published by Dogwise Publishing in 2007. Vicki lives with her husband Rick and their five
Dachshunds and two cattle dogs in San Leandro, CA.
www.APDT.com
A
ll of us in the APDT are rooted in our love of dogs.
As dog lovers we are often drawn to dog-related
causes that take us into the world of canine politics.
Depending on our personal politics, we may be moved to
work on a wide variety of issues and causes, be it rescue,
defending our rights as dog owners against restrictive laws,
or supporting research to alleviate the burden of canine
diseases.
Yet no matter which canine issue has special poignancy
for us, we need to remember we are not simply dog lovers
but professional trainers. This role puts us in a position
of responsibility and gives us the ability to contribute to
creating a brighter future for dogs in a way most other
advocates cannot. We have knowledge and expertise in
learning theory, behavior and training methods that can
inform public policy makers and educate consumers. Many
of us can capably and critically evaluate data and research
and apply our understanding to advocacy efforts. Like
veterinarians, we can offer a valuable neutral, objective,
experience-based perspective that has not often been heard
by policy makers.
Among the many possible issues of interest and concern
to us involving dogs, how do we as trainers choose the issues with which we will become involved? Which ones will
enable us to use our knowledge, abilities and skills in a way
that makes a truly meaningful contribution and builds our
reputation and that of our association? Which ones offer
the best returns on our investment of time, energy and
resources and promise some measure of success? Which issues are most conducive to using our power and influence
wisely?
To answer these questions I surveyed some of the
major issues and the players in the world of canine politics
who dedicate resources to legislative and administrative
change. I examined the “dog fights” that are ensuing,
particularly those that appear to be part of larger national
trends, looking for issues that are in sync with the APDT’s
positions, and opportunities for broad-based partnerships.
Only one issue clearly emerged: the fight against breedspecific legislation.
Associations of animal welfare advocates, breed fanciers,
sportsmen, dog owners and veterinarians all oppose breed
bans. Though it would be difficult to get consensus from
APDT members in supporting the legislative agenda of any
one of these associations in their entirety, this issue is one
we can all rally around. We could cut our teeth, so to speak,
on this issue, stepping out into the world of political influence and form alliances with other state, local and national
associations.
In “Canine Profiling and the Important Role of Dog
Trainers,” an article published in The Dog Trainer’s Resource
2, I described some ways APDT members could advocate effectively for sensible approaches to dealing with dangerous
dogs and educate policy makers about the shortcomings
of breed bans. One of the ways the APDT could step up
onto the advocacy stage is to identify and enlist allies in
this work. Now that the APDT is coming of age as an aswww.APDT.com
Playing Politics:
Dog Fights: Choosing Your
Battles in the Canine Wars
Mary Zoller, MPA, CDBC
sociation, it may be time to actively become involved in developing alliances to combat canine profiling and redirect
legislators to a more effective, comprehensive approach,
like the APDT’s model dangerous dog law. Given we do not
have the staff to lobby, partnering gives us the ability to
expand our resources. Lobbyists from a wide spectrum of
canine political camps offer us advice on how to best to use
our influence.
The rich and powerful Humane Society of the United
States (HSUS), with paid lobbyists in most states, is targeting
puppy mills, ownership of intact animals and “too many”
dogs this year, but does oppose breed bans when they arise.
Nancy Perry, Vice President of Governmental Affairs, says
there is a high learning curve for policy makers when it
comes to breed characteristics and behavior, so the APDT
could be helpful in educating legislators in this area. Elected
officials typically have a knee jerk reaction when there is a
gruesome case involving a dog attack in their communities.
Wanting to do something to quell the public outrage, the
proposal for banning the breed of the perpetrator can be
the result.
Cindy Cooke, Legislative Specialist at the UKC, suggests that APDT develop a bigger media presence so we
are better known to the public, policy makers and other
advocacy groups. She suggested that we develop coalitions
with advocacy groups to bring this issue higher up on their
list of issues to address. Cooke believes that APDT members in states where breed bans are [continued on next page]
Dog Fights: Choosing Your Battles in the Canine Wars
being considered could serve as expert witnesses, drawing
on case studies and research that demonstrate that this
approach is not effective. At the same time, members can
present their own positive stories about how socialization,
training, behavior management and modification create
responsible dog owners and well-behaved canine citizens.
Sarah Sprouse, Manager of Government Relations for
the AKC, adds that APDT could even propose training as
a mandatory punishment for owners with dogs who have
attacked and been allowed to run loose.
Patti Strand, National Director and Chairman of National Animal Interest Alliance (NAIA), says the APDT
could be an asset in describing to legislators how dog bites
can be prevented and how to encourage responsible dog
ownership. This approach is promoted by the American
Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) as well.
Of course, in the case of breed-specific ban proposals,
there may be no warning they are coming and groups who
oppose them must be prepared to act fast. To play an effective defense game, one needs to know where legislation is
being introduced, and how and when to act, so partnering
with other organizations that monitor bills is important.
Betsy Dribben, the American Society for the Protection
of Animals (ASPCA) Vice President of Government Relations, said APDT members could stay informed by joining
their e-mail alert lists to find out where breed-specific
legislation is brewing. They could also use Web sites like
the ASPCA’s, which have contact information for legislators
and links to other like-minded advocates.
In fact, all of the organizations mentioned herein have
legislative alerts that members can sign up for, depending
on the flavor of your personal politics. The NAIA also has
an easy-to-use map indicating the types of legislation introduced in states across the country.
Government and universities may also serve as a
partner. The Michigan State University School of Law has
an Animal Legal and Historical Center with legal cases and
arguments related to breed bans. David Favre, Professor
and Editor and Chief at the center, suggests that breed
bans are often triggered by events that are more likely to
be taken up by local governments than at the state level.
Thus, it is important to become educated before an event
occurs and have a system in place to share information.
Since dog trainers are not often organized by city or region,
the APDT Web site could be used to house and distribute
information members can use in lobbying. He also suggested that members identify other organizations that may
be allies and reach out to them, such as local affiliates of
state and national organizations. Finally, Dr. Favre suggests
that those involved in combating breed bans stay abreast of
court decisions to help advocates in strategizing to make
their case. These decisions will also be of interest to the
many lawyers who typically make up the majority of state
legislatures. In addition, public health agencies are a potentially
powerful partner in the fight, as they have a stake in pre44 w The APDT Chronicle of the Dog w July/August 2009
venting dog bites and attacks. By enlisting them to conduct
comprehensive surveillance of dog bites, as they do to
identify the disease outbreaks, quantitative and qualitative
data can begin to be collected that will shed bright light on
the problem. If the Centers for Disease Control and state
health agencies go beyond collecting simply the type of
breed, gender and intact status of the dog, to gathering information on the location and circumstances under which
the bites occur, effective interventions can be designed to
address the root problems underlying bites and attacks. A
targeted, cost-conscious approach will likely be welcomed
by local governments, who are given the difficult task of
implementing breed bans, often with few if any resources.
While it may be difficult for us to break out of our routine as dog trainers and enter into a political realm that is
foreign to us, I am convinced that if we do, we can contribute a great deal to the policy debate on breed bans. By
raising our voices, as voters and professionals, and joining
arms with our new partners in city hall and in the halls of
state legislatures, we can contribute a point of view that is
unique, positive and substantive. Moreover, by becoming
advocates and responsibly shaping public policy, we can
add value to our business and association, while bettering
the lives of dogs, their owners and our communities.
Resources
AKC - www.akc.org/news/sections/legislative_alerts.cfm
Animal Legal and Historical Center - www.animallaw.
info/articles/qvusbreedpspecific.htm
APDT Position Statement on BSL - www.apdt.com/about/
ps/breed_specific_legis.aspx
APDT Model Dog Law - www.apdt.com/about/ps/
model_dog_law.aspx
ASPCA - www.aspca.org/fight-animal-cruelty/dogfighting/breed-specific-legislation.html
AVMA - www.avma.org/advocacy/state/default.asp
HSUS - www.hsus.org/pets/issues_affecting_our_pets/
dangerous_dogs.html
UKC - www.ukcdogs.com/WebSite.nsf/WebPages/
ComDogOwnerRights
NAIA - www.naiaonline.org/resources/brochures.
htm; www.naiatrust.org/gov/leg_by_state.html
Mary Zoller, MPA, CDBC, is makes her living as a senior
policy analyst in Virginia government and is a part-time trainer
and behavior consultant. Over the last 25 years of her career
she served as a legislative assistant in the house and senate,
a lobbyist, a special assistant in the Governor’s cabinet and an
agency liaison to the General Assembly. She is a member of
APDT’s Legislative Affairs committee and her business, Whole
Dog Training and Behavior Consulting, can be found at www.
wdtbc.com. Her email address is mary.zoller@comcast.net.
www.APDT.com
A Learning Theory Primer
Susan Smith, CPDT, CDBC
Punishment
F
irst, we need to take the emotional baggage out of the
word “punishment.” Punishment is simply the procedure of providing consequences for a behavior that
reduce the strength of that behavior. (Chance, Learning &
Behavior, 5th ed., pg 454.) As we become more fluent in the
use of behavioral terminology, these words become less
emotionally laden and more useful. We may choose not to
use the terms with our clients, but there is no reason not to
use them with our peers.
Just as reinforcement is necessary for our survival, so is
punishment. When we do something which has the potential to cause us harm, we need to get feedback so we will be
less likely to do that behavior in the future.
As with reinforcement, the process of punishment
will involve either adding or removing something from the
environment. So, if something is added to the environment
which reduces behavior it is considered positive punishment, and if something is removed from the environment
which reduces behavior, it is considered negative punishment. The process is the adding or removing of stimuli and
the effect is the decrease in likelihood of a future behavior.
In the article on Operant Learning we discussed the operant matrix and the process and effect of stimuli, as well as
the humane hierarchy. Here is a quick reminder as it relates
to punishment:
• Positive Punishment (P+) – The dog is spanked for getting in the garbage; the dog’s frequency of getting in the
www.APDT.com
garbage decreases
• Pain was added (positive) to the environment and
the scavenging behavior decreased (punishment)
• Negative Punishment (P-) – The dog paws at the owner
and the owner gets up and walks out of the room; the
dog’s pawing behavior decreases
• The owner was removed (negative) from the environment and the dog’s pawing behavior decreased
(punishment)
Negative punishment falls in the second-to-last tier of
the humane hierarch and positive punishment falls at the
very last tier of the hierarchy. Most reinforcement-based
trainers do use some negative punishment in the form of
time outs. Positive reinforcement and negative punishment
in combination can be quite effective; however, as we grow
in our understanding of behavior and learning, we should
try to replace negative punishment operations with positive reinforcement operations and we’ll discuss some ways
to do this in a future article.
The use of punishment is a tricky proposition. This is
going to get a bit complicated, so please take the time to
follow the logic. Here’s what we know:
• Punishment can reduce behavior quickly
• Reinforcers maintain behavior
[continued on next page]
schedules
create
stronger
• Variable reinforcement schedules create behaviors that
are resistant to extinction
Let’s apply this knowledge to the use of punishment.
Punishment can reduce behavior very quickly; therefore, it
is reinforcing to the punisher. So, if we are reinforced for
punishing, we are likely to continue punishing. However,
if we don’t replace the function (or reinforcer) of the behavior we are punishing, it’s likely that the behavior will
recur. It will probably come back and, because we were reinforced for punishing that behavior originally (it stopped
at the time it was punished), we will punish it again. If the
consequences of using punishment are on a variable reinforcement schedule (i.e., sometimes it works, sometimes
it doesn’t), that may actually create a stronger behavior of
punishing.
So why do we care? Why does it matter whether or
not we use punishment? Well, we care because research
has shown that there can be unintended consequences that
may be detrimental to the animal’s well-being. There has
been extensive research on punishment and the potential
problems are escape, aggression, apathy, abuse and imitation of the punisher (Sidman, 1989b). We cannot predict how
an animal will react to punishment—every animal behaves
according to their prior learning history and genetic make
up. Therefore, it behooves us and the animals we are responsible for helping to err on the side of caution. If we can
use positive reinforcement, we should. And, as we grow
in our understanding of behavior and learning, we should
try to replace punishment-based operations with positive
reinforcement-based operations; we’ll discuss some ways
to do this in a future article.
As with reinforcement procedures, there are variables
that can affect punishment procedures. These variables
are:
• Contingency – the punishment must have a relationship
to the behavior and the animal must associate the two
events.
• Contiguity – the closer in time between the behavior and
the punishment, the more likely the animal is to relate
the punishment to the behavior. The exception to this is
taste aversion, where the reaction to what was ingested
can happen quite some time after it was actually eaten
– and if we look at this from a survival point of view, it
makes sense.
• Intensity – the more intense the punishment, the more
effect it will have on the behavior. This can be very
important when the behavior is first punished. Humans
have a tendency to start with a mild punishment and then
increase the intensity when we don’t get the results we
want. However, this can result in what Jean Donaldson
calls a “punishment callous,” where the animal develops
a resistance to the punishment.
• Reinforcement qualities of the behavior – the punish46 w The APDT Chronicle of the Dog w July/August 2009
ment must be more punishing than the reinforcement the
animal receives for performing the behavior. Remember
that behavior is maintained through reinforcement, so
whatever behavior is being punished must have some
reinforcer maintaining the behavior.
• Alternative means of being reinforced – this is similar to
the above condition in that, if the animal can find another
way to receive the reinforcement it has been receiving
for the behavior being punished, it is likely to take that
alternative reinforcer.
• Deprivation level – if the animal is deprived of the reinforcer maintaining the behavior, the punishment will
not be as effective. I.e., if an animal is very hungry, but
is being shocked for accessing available food, he’s more
likely to ignore the shock than when he is not hungry.
These are the main points we, as consultants, should
know about punishment. The biggest take-away from all
this is that there is the potential to do harm through the
use of punishment. Therefore, as responsible trainers and
consultants, we should learn how to use positive reinforcement to replace undesired behaviors rather than relying on
punishment to decrease undesired behaviors.
Susan Smith’s business, Raising Canine, www.raisingcanine.
com, provides remote education opportunities for animal behavior consultants, as well as business and marketing products
to help their businesses. Sue is also the co-author of the book
Positive Gun Dogs: Clicker Training for Sporting Breeds.
Sue is certified through CCPDT, IAABC and the SFSPCA. She
is on the CCPDT Board, a professional member of the APDT,
former Chair of the APDT Member Relations & Communications
Committee, moderates the APDT list discussion group, and was
named APDT Member of the Year in 2004.
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An Interview with Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz
A
PDT member Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz has recently
found herself in the news due to working with some
new clients who happen to live at 1600 Pennsylvania
Avenue. We spoke with Dawn to find out more about her
history and involvement in dog friendly training.
How did you get started in dog training?
I grew up in a family that always had dogs, cats and
birds. Our family dogs were mixed breeds. When I was
a teenager I got my first purebred dog because I wanted
to start showing. I did do a little showing but, of course,
being a teenager led to other things getting in the way. I
eventually left Florida and got married. During this time
I had Boston Terriers, Lhasa Apsos, and Pomeranians. I
became involved in confirmation with my Boston Terriers
and I found that I really liked it. Then I moved over to
participating in obedience competitions and found that I
did better in this area. I participated in a lot of matches/
shows using traditional training but it wasn’t until I started
having children where I completely moved over to using
positive reinforcement.
My first positive reinforcement book that I read was by
Ian Dunbar, and I was torn because basically all I could find
in my area was traditional training. I respect traditional
trainers but I felt that, for me, it wasn’t a good fit, and I was
tired of attending these classes having to hide my food, or
defend the method I chose to use, so it was very hard to
find an organization locally where food was accepted in
training with positive reinforcement. I knew it was out
there from reading Ian’s book but it was just hard to find.
My journey into using positive reinforcement training just
escalated from there.
W hat is your pe rsonal t raining philosophy and
methodology, and why?
My philosophy is “Shaping your dog’s future, learning
to view life through the eyes of a dog.” Start them young or
when they first enter the home and everyone in the family
should be involved in training. I specialize in working with
families with children and because of this I think it’s very
important that children be involved. Everyone has to work
together as a team using dog-friendly, people-friendly, and
kid-friendly techniques.
I also believe training should start as early as possible.
I had dogs before I had children and I learned to “weave”
my kids in with the dogs. My children were raised with the
philosophy that training is play and vice versa. There were
also lots of rules to follow—my kids never rolled around on
the floor with the dogs. They were taught how to interact
properly with the dogs from a very early age. I worked with
my own children as soon as they were able to sit up on
hand-feeding the puppies. I never kept my children away
from the dog’s crates, or food bowls, they were taught to alwww.APDT.com
Mychelle Blake, MSW, CDBC
ways keep things positive,
I helped them fill water
bowls, and food bowls, I
always supervised.
My children learned
dog training through modeling my behavior as they
watched how I interacted
with dogs, and incorporated training in our daily
life. When my dogs went
to puppy classes my kids
were with me and they
had fun because they
were empowered with the
use of positive reinforcement and, through my
supervision, they were
able to have a wonderful
relationship with my dogs
because they understood
the dogs’ “language.”
Dawn and Saxon
The dogs went with me to all of my children’s Show and
Tell and Career Days. I was much more fun at Career Day
with my dogs than my now ex-husband, who is a dentist.
You’ve been in business since the 80’s. What sort of
changes, good and/or bad, have you seen in the business
of dog training?
I’ve been in the world of dogs a long time. I continued
training, competing in dog sports, and raising my children
as a “stay at home working mom.” My primary focus has
always been families and children and that’s become my
niche. I love kids and I can get right in there and start
working with children and dogs.
The profession has changed a lot. More and more people
are incorporating positive reinforcement into their training
and more people are allowing children to get involved in
the training. I’m hoping that long gone are the days that
“only one person must be in charge of training” and “I
will only work with children older than 10.” I think that’s
ridiculous and I do see it changing. I think also that more
people are attending puppy classes and realizing how
important they are. I also see more people are getting help
from trainers at the beginning, before they have gotten a
dog. I’ve helped numerous people find the right dog for
them. I believe that if you have a committed owner with
the right intentions but who doesn’t know what kind of dog
to get—that’s where a positive reinforcement trainer comes
in. A trainer should either contact or go to a breeder or to
the shelter/ rescue groups with the owner-to-be and test
the dogs trying to find the right “fit” for both. You need to
educate potential owners on the care, [continued on next page]
An Interivew with Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz
training, management, grooming, vet care, and the
importance of this life-long commitment because dogs
are not disposable. I’m pleased that I am seeing more
trainers willing to work with owners before they get a
dog. It’s still not as much as I’d like to see but I see a light
at the end of the tunnel, and this will lead to reducing
the probability of problems coming up later, and fewer
dogs being returned, or bounced around to different
home, not good for the children involved or the dog.
You enjoy working with children and dogs as well as
integrating raising children and dogs together. Since
many trainers find working with children challenging,
what are your personal tips for working with children in
the home and during group classes?
First, having a natural affinity for children is a plus. I
think that is something that I’ve been blessed with. I’ve
always been around children even when I was younger
through being a mother’s helper, a babysitter, etc. So
working with children has always been easy for me. If you
don’t have children, I would strongly suggest talking to
your friends who have children, hang around your friends
with kids, go places with them—even have a sleepover with
your friends that have children. You want to experience
as much as you can from children and get down on their
level and try to think and see the way they view things.
Just as you would try to see things the way a dog would,
do the same with children. Children will be the best at
teaching you “childrenese.” In training when you see that
the children are “on” you’ve got their attention, run with
it, but keep it short. Make sure that your training is ageappropriate. Bring coloring books with you for the children
that are dog-related and age appropriate. I’ve done board
puzzles and made up stories related to dog care and put
them together for very young children. These stories explain simple things about a dog such as ears, eyes, teeth,
letting them feel the ‘heartbeat’ of the dog—show them that
a dog is not that different from us, they have “needs” too,
and they’re not little machines or battery operated toys.
I would also add that you should always dress kidfriendly and dog-friendly for appointments. I never dress
in a way where I appear to be untouchable or unreachable. I
don’t want someone to be afraid of having their child sneeze
on me or mess my clothes. You should dress professionally
but also look friendly and approachable. And I give lots
and lots of hugs and positive reinforcement for the kids as
well as the dogs.
Could you please explain a bit more about your P.I.P.
method. What is it and how did you develop it?
Positive Interactive Play (PIP) was a way for me to put
into my brochures and literature the idea that we can get
kids involved in training if it’s positive and if they’re interacting through a play scenario. In PIP you can teach dogs,
and kids little games using food and toys incorporating
them into the program. You teach kids (for example) to play
“student teacher, T-ball, hide and seek” with their dogs, the
list is endless. This is something I simply learned to do by
raising kids and dogs together.
You have experience in a number of areas: competition,
therapy work, herding, tracking, lectures, boarding,
field training, breeding, puppy day care, teaching group
classes, and private behavior modification. Which one or
ones do you enjoy the most and why?
I’ve enjoyed all of them and I did most of them for my
own enjoyment and the enjoyment of my dogs. I don’t have
titles in all those areas but I did them purely for my own
and my dogs’ benefit. The most rewarding was the therapy
work with the elderly and teaching group classes that
involved children. That was the most enjoyable because I
enjoy working with the elderly and with very young children.
You also provide board and train services. What skills
and resources do you think a professional trainer would
need to run a successful board and train program?
I’m very careful about the board and train clients I take
and I don’t do a lot of them. I don’t want someone coming to
me as a last ditch effort—“you train my dog or else!” When I
hear that I pick up very clearly that this person may not be
someone I can work with, I may do a consultation first, and/
or refer them to someone else I trust. I feel there’s a lot of
pressure and stress when you do board & train, you must
have a high level of commitment from the owner. I can get
the dog to do just about anything myself given the baggage
they may come with, but when they leave my home, the
owner literally has to “become” me and live with that dog
the way I did. If they take that dog home and resort to the
lifestyle they had when the problems occurred, the dog can
possibly revert back. A dog only changes when the owner
changes, and it has to be a cooperative effort on both sides. I
think some people put too much pressure and expectations
on their dogs and they forget that this is an animal subject
to changes in the family, the household environment,
comparing them to dogs they had in the past, not realizing
that they are all different regardless of the breed. Another
factor with my board and train services is that I use positive
reinforcement and food and I have to make sure that I and
the owners are on the same page.
Could you tell us about some of your personal dogs
and about one or two in particular that you found
challenging?
I’ve owned Lhasa Apsos, Boston Terriers, Pomeranians,
Portuguese Water Dog, Irish Water Spaniel, Border Collies,
Giant Schnauzer, Ibizan Hound, and from clients’ unable
to keep their dogs I’ve taken in Border Collies, Beagles,
Maltese mix, Lab mixes, and a German Shepherd. I’ve
shown, and bred Boston Terriers, that was my main breed
when I caught the bug to show my Portuguese Water Dog,
Irish Water Spaniel, Flat Coated Retriever, Giant Schnauzer,
and my Ibizin Hound, the main focus was to have fun,
and learn more about their original purpose, not earning titles. The most challenging to live with was Merit, my >
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With my Border Collie Jock, he wanted to go out and bite
my kids every time they moved. I redirected this behavior
into chasing tennis balls, lots of retrieving and settle
downs. Both dogs’ including my Portuguese Water Dog,
Ebony, were every child’s bathroom buddy when they were
afraid of the dark. My business was named after Merit. He
gave me a run for my money, and it worked out in the end.
Unfortunately he passed away just short of his 10th birthday.
I believe, regardless of what you’re going to do when
looking for a dog, do research, research and more research.
With my Flat Coated Retriever I went way out and found
people with Flat Coated Retrievers and invited myself to
their homes. I wanted to see the adult dogs and their energy
level. We can all fall in love with a puppy but ultimately it’s
the adult dog you are going to live with. I found a breeder
and was on a waiting list for a year.
I’ve been very blessed with the breeds that I’ve owned
and having the ability to live with kids and dogs together
where many people would go nuts.
You deal with a lot of “high profile” clients due to your
proximity to Washington D.C. Do you find those clients
are different from your “everyday” clients?
No, actually, because many of my clients are high profile
and often times I don’t find out the extent of their profession
until later because I’m all about the dog. They come to me
with a high commitment level and I work with that. Later on
I may find out that they’re high profile. All of my clients are
highly dedicated to their animals and perhaps there may
be a part of me that “feels” how committed they are, I do a
lot of talking on the phone—I probably spend more time on
the phone than I should but I’m getting a feel for the kind
of person that I might work with. I may talk with them for
several days and weeks in a row so I can see that there’s a
great owner with high commitment that’s really dedicated
to doing the right things for the dog. Then I take them on as
a client because I know it’s going to work. It’s a very happy
relationship when they buy my services because they get
me for life. I have many repeat clients that I’ve had for over
15 years who come back to me as they get each dog during
their life, and their children come to me as adults with a
dog in their family.
www.APDT.com
Now that one of your most recent clients is in the news,
how have you been dealing personally with the media
attention on you and your business?
I would say cautiously—very cautiously. The calls have
settled down and right now I’m inundated with e-mails
from a variety of people, including some very talented dog
trainers that I love, and admire, and have known a long
time and have enjoyed their recent contact. But I’ve been
very careful because I’ve been misquoted and I’ve found
that much gets dropped on the editing floor. I was sort of
a “babe in the woods.” I’ve been interviewed, and written
articles for various publications but this time it has been
about a particular dog, and family, that’s changed the dynamics. I’ve gotten more cautious about whom I talk to and
more careful about how I word things. It’s difficult trying to
convey what you want to say in as simple a way as possible
without hurting feelings, and protecting my clients’ privacy, which is paramount. I’ve never been a “fame seeker”
but if it comes my way I feel blessed, and I try to handle it
in the most ethical, and professional way I can.
You were recently quoted as saying you had a preference
for purebreds over shelter dogs. You’d like to clarify this
remark.
Yes, it was in Us Magazine where I was quoted as saying
that “with a shelter dog, you don’t know what you’re
getting” and this is why my clients went with a purebred.
I would like to say that I said this only because of my own
background with my children. I want people to understand
that in situations with children and allergies I want to be
very cautious with the dog that is chosen.
I grew up with mixed breed dogs and have had some
great mixed breeds in my classes, many where I’d say,
“wow, I’d take this dog, he’s great.” But due to my situation
and my children, I found that I needed to know a dog’s
background. I have also worked with many clients to find
shelter dogs and have gone with them to the shelter to help
them pick.
Also for myself, whenever I get a dog, I do a lot of
research, and in the back of mind always the question
remains that I may want to do something with this dog.
Until recently the AKC didn’t register mixed breeds and I
like to engage in competition, so this made getting a mixed
breed an issue. I’m pleased that this is finally changing.
In closing, would you like to say anything about your
current highest profile client?
No, there has been enough publicity in the media to
satisfy the answer to this question.
Mychelle Blake, MSW, CDBC, is the Editor-in-Chief of The
APDT Chronicle of the Dog and Communications Director for
the APDT. She lives in Las Vegas, NV with her husband, her
two dogs Buzz and Nikita, and two budgies. She is an active
volunteer with The Animal Foundation in Las Vegas.
An Interview with Dawn Sylvia-Stasiewicz
Flat Coated Retriever, and Jock my Border Collie. Merit was
a competitive dog and very high energy. He was a 15 on
a scale of 1 to 10. On top of that, I was showing him so
I had to keep him intact. He was the ultimate “top dog”
over all other dogs, not by any means towards people,
although some would prefer to use “dominate” I tend to
stay away from labels on dogs if I can, some trainers, and
the public tend to focus on those terms in a negative way,
and could pre-maturely determine a dog’s unfortunate
fate. Merit was safe to be around and I could take him
anywhere. He had a lot of energy and I had young kids
at the time, so that’s where I got involved in teaching him
some field work, as I did sheepherding for my Border Collie,
all for fun! For me it was taking their energy and putting
it in the right direction, channeling and controlling it.
2010 APDT Board of Directors
Election Information & Candidate Statements
Please be sure to acquaint yourself with the
process and timeline for this year’s election.
Electronic Election Process
•Members will receive an Election Member News Bulletin to be sent at
Midnight, EST, September 13, 2009 explaining the process and providing
you with your member number and a special election password to use. You
will also be provided with a link to the election site where it will take only
a minute to vote for the candidates of your choice or write-in a vote for a
member who meets the criteria of a candidate for the Board.
•The election will run online from 12:01 AM, EST, September 13, 2009 to 5
PM EST, October 9, 2009 at which time the voting Web site will be closed. No
votes will be transmitted after that time.
Candidate Information
•The candidate biographies and answers to the candidate questions are contained in this issue on pages 50 to 59. All of
the text has not been edited and has been presented as submitted to us by the candidates.
• A candidate forum will be opened on the APDT BarkBoard in the Members Only section of the APDT Web site. The
forum will open on August 15th and members can post questions to the candidates here. The forum will close on August
30th. A transcript of the questions and answers will be added to the APDT Web site after August 30th. A Member News
Bulletin with more information on the location of the transcript will be sent out on September 1st.
Election Report Process
•The final tally will be sent to the Board on October 19, 2009. The Board will vote to accept the results at the October 20,
2009 Board meeting in Oakland, CA. Results will be announced at the APDT General Meeting on Wednesday afternoon,
October 21, 2009. An Election MNB will be emailed to members on the evening of October 21, 2009 to announce new
Board members.
Candidate: Carol Comer
Biography
My education includes a BA degree in Business Administration from the University of Tampa. Also, I have extensive
training from Verizon, a telecommunications company I was
employed at for 30 years.
My first professional pet training was at Petsmart which
focused on lure reward based training, how to conduct a class,
learning theory and ethology. I worked to sell classes, help
customers and conduct Pet Training Classes both group and
private. My private classes included working with dogs that
were cited by the county as dangerous and this required a
great deal of care and skill to implement.
I joined APDT and attended my first Conference in Orlando,
plus many other conferences given by Ian Dunbar in Florida.
Then I decided to pursue my C.P.D.T. which I have had maintained for a number of years. Plus I have learned a great deal
on my own by
viewing DVD’s
and Videos and
reading
Books
from Dogwise by
the top trainers.
I have had
several of my
own dogs that I
trained over the
years and during the early 90’s I was a volunteer for Southeastern Guide Dogs and raised a Lab Puppy to be a service
dog. Unfortunately, only old school training methods were
available so learning positive methods to train my dogs was
wonderful for me. I currently have 6 dogs, two hounds, two
herding breed mixes and two Lab mixes that were trained
using dog friendly methods.
www.APDT.com
My volunteer work includes 10 years with the Humane
Society of Tampa Bay. Currently I am a volunteer with Pasco
County Animal Services as a Lead Volunteer. I am also, a
volunteer with Labrador Retriever Rescue of Florida and Spay
Pasco(where I am the Vice President on the Board of Directors).
As a member of A.P.D.T. my experience level may not be as
extensive in years of training as some but I certainly find that
my diverse background has been and is beneficial in working
with dogs and people.
1. Why do you want to serve on the Association of Pet Dog
Trainers’ Board of Directors?
I want to serve on the Board of Directors for A.P.D.T. to
become more involved in the group. I have been a member
since 2002 and I have been proud of it. I have learned so much
from the A.P.D.T.Conference, DVD’s, books, videos, etc. about
training and now I want to give something back by trying to
help shape the future of the organization.
2. How do you support the APDT Mission and Vision Statements and the Code of Professional Conduct and Responsibility in your business?
I support the Mission and Vision statements by using only
‘dog friendly’ techniques to train. For me that means using
only equipment in training like Gentle Leaders, Easy Walk
Harnesses, Halti’s, etc. I teach the owner and dog through
lure reward, catching and shaping methods that are backed
up by the science of Learning Theory and Animal Behavior. I
encourage people to form good relationships with their dogs
based on trust and not fear and punishment.
I don’t think I know everything but at this point I think I
know a great deal. Having worked with hundreds of dogs I
have a good experience level, however, I don’t try to exceed my
limits, if I find a dog that is beyond my level of experience I am
willing to refer to the dog to another trainer. I don’t let my ego
get in the way after all it is the owner and dog that are the most
critical factors.
I support the Code of Professional Conduct and Responsibility by providing professional services for both the owner
and the dog to the best of my ability. I want to offer my clients
the best I can and in order to do this I constantly try to improve
my skills in training. Continuing my education is important to
me not only to maintain my C.P.D.T. but to continue to better
myself. I never give anyone a guarantee regarding training
because there are too many elements that are beyond my control. I do encourage the owners to develop good relationships
with their dogs and spend time with them. If the owner is
having fun the dog will too.
3. What is your dog training philosophy?
My philosophy is to Do No Harm. I see enough dogs that
have been abused and neglected from puppy mills, shelter
dogs, stray dogs and just dogs that have been trained using
poor methods. It is much harder to turn them around at times
and get the dogs to trust people again and some times it is just
a situation of life long management.
www.APDT.com
I think it is my job to act as an advocate and mediator for
the dogs. Also, it is my job to interact with the owners to
show and explain to them the best solutions for their problems. After all we are supposed to be smarter than the dog so
isn’t important to be able to use your brain and not force and
aversive techniques. If you are interested in training then you
should be interested in doing what is best for the owner and
dog.
4. What is your personal vision for the future of the APDT?
My personal vision is to see A.P.D.T. offer more than just a
yearly conference for trainers to attend. I would like to see a
mentor program for members that are seeking to follow the
guidelines of our group. We can’t expect people to change
if we aren’t willing to provide them with an example. The
conference is great but we have members joining all the time
and I would like to see some type of training offered to them
that they must complete before becoming a member. We
have C.P.D.T but not all are able to afford that and what I am
talking about would be taking their dog to a Group Class offered by one of our members that has a Professional Status. A
member that would be willing to take some time with them
to show them ‘dog friendly’ training techniques. Just joining
the group is not going to change anyone’s mind. Plus I find
that some people join just to get business and while that is
good for them it does nothing for the membership if they are
misrepresenting the group. We need to offer them knowledge,
the most powerful tool they can have.
5. What is your current involvement in dog training?
I currently own a pet training business and I offer Group,
Private and In Home Training. I teach Basic, Puppy, Advanced,
Agility and Trick Classes. I am also a CGC evaluator and have
been for several years. My business is located in a very nice
country setting and people seem to enjoy getting out and away
from the city to attend classes.
In addition, I work with behavior issues and help the
owners to find ways to manage difficult problems with their
dogs. I have been very successful in working with aggressive
and fearful dogs and exacting change in their behavior and
the behavior of the owner in relation to the dog. I have had
numerous people say that if I had not helped them to understand and alter the situation they were considering putting the
dog down.
Plus I volunteer with Pasco County Animal Services in
Florida as a Lead Volunteer Coordinator. I help to exercise
and train the dogs at the shelter. I am working with the shelter
at this time to establish a training program for the dogs. So I
am hopeful that will come to pass in the near future.
6. Please list which non-dog-training experience you have
that you feel would be of benefit to your position on the
Board (example: public relations, volunteer management,
legislative experience, etc.)
I have 30 years of experience working at a large telecommunications company where I worked the last 10 years in Data
Services. I was a Business Analyst and provided information
to internal and external customers. I was a liaison between
2010 APDT Board of Directors Candidates
Candidate: Carol Comer (continued)
Candidate: Carol Comer (continued)
the customer and technical persons at times so I needed
good customer skills. I updated and created documentation
which required good written skills. I tested software data for
functionality which involved being very analytical. I took
requirements from customers for a project and put them in a
document which needed a very organized and detail oriented
person. I worked on many large projects that required team
work and creativity. This coupled with my Business Degree
has helped me to be successful.
I currently run and own my business where I am everything from the owner, trainer, accountant, public relations and
advertising person. So I have to stay focused and organized in
keep things going.
Currently as a Lead Volunteer Coordinator along with
another volunteer at the local animal shelter it is our job to
train new volunteers, interview them and answer questions
they may have concerning the shelter. This requires a lot of
patience and the ability to motivate others. Since this program
has started it has been very successful. The volunteers now
have a go to person and the return rate has improved greatly.
7. Serving on the Board of Directors means you will have to
work closely as a team, with people who many not always
share your personal opinion. Give an example of how you
have successfully worked with others who disagreed with
you through a difficult project or decision.
After being trained and given a store to work in at Petsmart
I found out that I was replacing a person that was being fired.
This did not make me very popular when I first came to work
at the store. I had conflict from the former trainer who told
me I would not be successful. I had pushback from the other
two trainers and no support from the management. I learned
in training to ignore bad behavior which is what I did. I set
my sights on making the pet training business in this store
successful. The former person was not interested in this and
the business had fallen off to near nothing. I reorganized the
training area, the paperwork and the schedule. I sold classes,
helped customers and trained in group classes.
Even though I was surrounded by apathy and negativity I kept
going and focusing on what needed to be done. In six months the
business was going great, the management was happy and there
were many classes going on now. The customers were happy and
store was being recognized for training.
I faced many issues with this job but I stayed fixed on what
needed to be done. I am very assertive and determined person.
In this case it paid off. It was a win win for everyone. It is not
always what you say in a tough situation it’s what you do and
how you treat other people.
8. Is there a past decision by the APDT Board of Directors that
you would change, and if so why?
None that I can think of at this time.
Candidate: Ian Dunbar
Biography
Veterinarian, animal behaviorist, and dog trainer, Dr. Ian
Dunbar received his veterinary degree and a Special Honors
degree in Physiology & Biochemistry from the Royal Veterinary College (London University) plus a doctorate in animal
behavior from the Psychology Department at UC Berkeley,
where he researched olfactory preferences and the development of aggression in domestic dogs. Dr. Dunbar has authored
numerous books and DVDs about puppy/dog behavior and
training, including Dog Behavior, How To Teach A New Dog
Old Tricks and the SIRIUS® Puppy Training video. In 1982,
Dr. Dunbar designed and taught the world’s very first off-leash
puppy socialization and training classes — SIRIUS® Puppy
Training. Subsequently, he created and developed the San
Francisco SPCA’s Animal Behavior Department, the American
Kennel Club’s Gazette “Behavior” column, which he wrote
for seven years, and the K9 GAMES®, which was first held
in San Francisco in 1993 and continues as an annual event in
Japan and Europe. He hosted the popular UK television series
Dogs With Dunbar for five seasons and he has appeared on
numerous radio and television programs, including the Today
Show (US) and Dash Village (Japan). Additionally, Dr. Dunbar
has consulted on a variety of movies — full-length features,
documentaries and animation, including Pixar’s new release,
UP. Over the past 35 years, Dr. Dunbar has given nearly 900
one-day seminars and workshops for dog trainers and veterinarians in an effort to popularize off-leash puppy socialization
classes, temperament
modification, and owner-friendly and dogfriendly dog training.
After he founded the
Association of Pet Dog
Trainers in 1993, Dr.
Dunbar was inducted
into the Dog Fancy
Hall of Fame along
with four of his heroes,
James Herriot, Konrad
Lorenz, Lassie, and
Balto. Currently, Dr. Dunbar serves on the APDT Board of
Directors, plus he is CEO of the Center for Applied Animal
Behavior and Scientific Director for www.dogstardaily.com —
a free online, multi-media educational website for puppy and
dog owners.
The APDT is very dear to me and I believe in all that it
stands for and is trying to accomplish. The APDT has literally
been my life since 1986. It took seven years to reach critical
mass. Back then there were only one or two science-based
trainers per state. First whelped as the APT, the APDT was officially named in the Bahamas in 1992, founded in San Mateo
in 1993, had its first AGM at the APT Conference in Orlando in
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1994 and held its first Annual Conference in Chicago in 1995. I
have attended every APDT Annual Conference. I was closely
involved with most aspects of the APDT until the San Diego
Conference, when I stepped back because I wanted the course
and direction of the APDT to reflect the views of the membership (via elected Directors). A couple of years ago, I felt the
time was right to get involved again and so, I ran for the Board.
Since then, I have seen many exciting proposals. I would like
to run for another three-year term, to ensure that all these
proposed projects come to fruition. The APDT exists because
of its members. Membership dues and conference registration
fees have given the APDT a solid financial base. I would like to
ensure that the APDT now works for its members. Specifically,
I would like to vastly expand member benefits, especially in
terms of education and promotion. I would like the APDT to
become the #1 go-to source for comprehensive science-based
dog training education, theoretical and practical, from entrylevel trainers to a true scientific schooling. At the moment,
most education is focused around the Annual Conference
and the APDT Chronicle of the Dog. Additionally I would like
the APDT to go to devote a large slice of its budget and go to
considerable lengths to promote and advertise its membership
to the dog owning public, the veterinary profession and other
dog-related professions.
Obviously, I fully endorse the APDT Mission and Vision
Statements and Code of Professional Conduct and Responsibility. How can any thinking and breathing trainer not do so?
I first coined the term “dog-friendly dog training” in the late
80s. I love the term. Without definition, everyone knows what
it means in their hearts: to teach dogs, rather than bully them.
For my entire working career, ever since proposing animal behavior programs for veterinary colleges in 1967, I have strived
to promote and popularize animal-friendly, science-based
training and behavior modification. Specifically, I have tried to
reduce the number of punishments of any kind, to eliminate
the use of punishments that cause pain or fear and especially,
to eliminate the use of painful procedures that are used under
the guise of punishment, yet have no punishing effect (no
reduction in behavior frequency). Hence the need for quantification of time and trials to criterion, i.e., Games Classes. Since
1986, my company, the Center for Applied Animal Behavior
Inc., has hosted several hundred multi-day seminars and
workshops to promote dog-friendly dog training. Our publishing sector has given away over 35,000 books and DVDs to
humane societies, rescue groups, veterinary clinics, dog clubs,
the Open Paw program, prison dog programs, assistance dog
programs, etc. We seldom donate books any more (mailing
costs were prohibitive) but we now allow new puppy owners
and dog trainers to download our two puppy raising books for
free. I have run the dog training side of the business for nearly
30 years. From the outset, we promoted early socialization and
efficient and effective science-based training, with the liberal
use of food and toy lures and rewards, plus lots of fun and
games. All of our trainers must be APDT members, pursue
CCPDT certification and abide by the APDT Code of Conduct.
We provide free educational seminars and workshops to our
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trainers but encourage them to also seek CEUs elsewhere.
My overall aim is to teach people how to train their puppies/dogs as early, easily quickly, and enjoyably as possible.
Efficiency, simplicity and enjoyment are essential for owners
to succeed. I try to teach good behaviors from the outset so
they become habitual. (Good habits are just as hard to break
as bad habits.) Lure-reward training is my first-choice technique for puppies (lures make cue-training super fast) and
all-or-none reward training is my first choice for adolescent
dogs (easy, calm techniques). I have never used a metal collar.
In fact, I don’t use any collar, halter, or harness as a prompt
or punishment in training because they so easily become
crutches (difficult to phase out). I train primarily off-leash so
that owners cannot use physical prompts. (Physical prompts
would substantially lengthen the process.) And of course
off-leash training prevents physical punishment. Physical
punishment is simply not on. Period. I have never used an
electric shock collar. I have a three-step dog training process.
1. To phase out lures (after 6-12 trials) once we have tested for
prompt cued-reliability. 2. To phase out food rewards and
motivate the dog to WANT to comply happily and willingly
by integrating numerous short training interludes into walks
and play. (We continue using food for classical conditioning
especially to prevent adolescent regression). 3. To calmly and
patiently insist on cued-reliability, using only verbal feedback.
This is the hardest skill to teach — that harsh tones and loud
voices and any physical means of enforcement are simply unnecessary to achieve response-reliability. I play lots of training
games to motivate owners and dogs, to increase owner attention and compliance, and for quantification. I try to instill in
owners a “can-do attitude.” Via ongoing Test-Train-Test games
sequences, I prove to the owners, that they can control their
dogs using voice-only cues and feedback.
For dog trainers, I would like the APDT to become an absolutely comprehensive source for dog training education and
for dog owners, I would like the APDT to be the best source
for learning how to find and select a trainer that suits their
needs. I very much want to see the APDT proactively promote
its membership to the general public and dog-related professions, especially the veterinary profession. Presently much
of APDT trainer-education is periodical (Annual Conference
and Chronicle) I would love to see the APDT offer a fully
comprehensive course for dog trainers — in all states and on
an ongoing basis. (Similar educational model for veterinary
technicians.) The course should start at the entry level, with
an emphasis on practical work but including all aspects of dog
training, such as promotion and business skills. Additionally
there would be CEU electives in a wide variety of dog training
specialties, for example, adolescent training, shelter training,
search, assistant dog training, etc., plus (truly) new, unique
and advanced CEU courses for experienced trainers, primarily
comprising practical or DVD demonstration (as opposed to
talk) plus some hard-core, yet very basic science. I would like to
see the APDT pioneer research into dog training and behavior
counseling by encouraging trainers to conduct their own research studies as they train. Equally as important I would like
Candidate: Ian Dunbar (continued)
Candidate: Ian Dunbar (continued)
to see to see the APDT relentlessly promote APDT Members
to the general public and to all other dog–related professions.
The APDT now has the financial means to increase public
awareness regarding all the many fun ways to train dogs and
hence, to change people’s attitudes about dog training. Promotion should be proactive and ongoing. Ruthlessly promoting
science-based, lure/reward- and reward-training is essential
for improving the quality of life for dogs and their owners.
For fifteen years I taught nine puppy training classes per
week. I stopped teaching classes on a regular basis because
commuting to film my UK television series plus seminar/
workshop-travel meant that there were too many breaks.
These days, apart from (very occasionally) training my own
dogs, I only seem to train dogs when cameras are rolling,
when giving workshops, or with the occasional behavior case.
In the past couple of years, I have developed three new class
training curricula (for puppies, adults and a games class) and
I taught trial classes when demonstrating new curricula to our
trainers. I am currently teaching the new K9 GAMES® Class.
Being a veterinarian, psychologist and dog trainer, I can
offer insights from the other two professions vying for a slice
of the dog-training-and-behavior-counseling pie. Recognizing
the strengths and weaknesses of each profession, it is easy for
me to recommend certain tasks or cases to the appropriate
profession. For example, a position statement on early socialization & disease risk is best left to veterinarians. However,
most of the time I am emphasizing that the issue at hand is
a basic training matter and that veterinary practitioners are
simply not qualified —dog training is not in their curriculum.
Certainly my biggest strength is as a promoter — an ambassador for dog-friendly dog training. In the past I have given
the APDT a gazillion plugs in the print, radio and television
media. I still do lots and lots of training on television to showcase quick and easy, lure/reward, fun training. In the past 12
months I have appeared on numerous radio and television
talk shows (e.g., Today Show), twice lectured at the prestigious
“eg Conference,” consulted on half a dozen television shows
and movies, plus I have short weekly training spots on two
local television channels (KPIX and KOFY). Last December, I
did a two-hour special for Dash Village (NHK) and it was one
of the most watched programs in Japan with nearly 18 million
viewers. Additionally, I am very familiar with the history of
the APDT. I know the things that have been tried and those
that haven’t. I know what has worked well and what hasn’t.
It is important for a Board to have a permanent historical
thread, so that new Boards do not try to reinvent the wheel.
Each Board must have an absolutely crystal clear view of immediate priorities — improved education and promotion of its
members.
When we formed the APDT in 1993, we acknowledged that
dog training is an absolutely unique profession in terms of the
wide variety of techniques and that we must all absolutely
agree to disagree. I simply don’t see the point in arguing. Of
course, everybody has differing views. In my own business, I
prefer to carefully consider the pros and cons of every point
of view, make a decision and then act on it the same day. And
so… serving on the Board has certainly been an education for
me — learning how decisions are made by groups. But I think
I learned pretty quickly. I learned to be a much better listener.
Now in Board meetings I tend to listen more than I talk. I
seldom comment at all on the more routine decisions. I only
voice an opinion about what I consider the more important
issues, and I usually continue voicing my opinion on what I
consider to be important issues until it’s time to vote. Once the
vote has taken place, I acknowledge and accept the vote.
8. Is there a past decision by the APDT Board of Directors
that you would change, and if so why?
In a word, No. There may have been one or two minor
Board decisions that went against my own personal opinions
or preferences. But that’s the whole point of having a Board
— that hopefully the decision reflects the views and best
interest of the entire membership, rather than the opinion of
one individual. However, if I had ever been at odds with any
major Board decision, or thought that the Board and hence the
APDT were missing the big picture and going off-track, the
membership would have known about it already — I would
have written to the APDT Chronicle of the Dog. Nonetheless,
I would like to see greater membership participation in twiceyearly online surveys. Although not entirely democratic,
having an elected Board of Directors is pretty democratic. On
the plus side, Board governance enables majority-favored decisions to be made and programs to be enacted fairly efficiently.
However, the Board can only base decisions and act for the
membership if members collectively and regularly voice their
opinions.
Candidate: Trish McMillan
Biography
I trained my first dog in 1976 and have been an APDT
member since 2000. I hold a Master of Science degree in animal
behavior from the University of Exeter in England and am a
2001 CTC graduate of the SFSPCA’s Academy for Dog Trainers.
Over the last decade, my professional experience has included
managing dog daycares, teaching private and group lessons,
and offering board-and-train services. I am a supporter of
LIMA-first (least invasive, minimally aversive) techniques. I
have been working with shelter dogs since 1996, and they have
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always been my best teachers. In 1997, I started a volunteer program at Vancouver Animal Control, which focused on training
and enriching the shelter dogs and preventing the euthanasia
of adoptable animals. After joining the ASPCA in 2005, I spent
several years as director of their shelter’s behavior department
in Manhattan. Since March of this year, I have been working
for Dr. Pam Reid at the ASPCA’s Animal Behavior Center in
Urbana, Illinois. In 2006 I was honored to be elected to the
Board of Directors of APDT. I served as Board Liaison for the
Legislative Affairs Committee for two years and am currently
the Board Liaison for the Member Relations and Communications Committee. I am particularly pleased the Board has
supported my proposal that APDT begin giving awards for
research in dog behavior and cognition. Currently , I share my
life with an equally dog-crazy husband, Barry, and our five assorted dogs with colorful pasts. We are still mourning the loss
of my brilliant rescued Doberman, Sara, who was my most
stalwart companion, guide and teacher over the last decade.
She was my poster child for positive dog training, making an
incredible transformation from a lunging, snarling young dog
on the shelter’s euthanasia list to a wise, gentle old lady.
In my time on the Board I’ve realized that the main job of
the board of directors is to find ways the association can help
our members become better dog trainers and more effective
and efficient business people. The more benefits there are to
membership, the better we can build this organization and the
better our members will serve the pet dogs and their people
who are our main clients. Better trained trainers create better
dog-human bonds, keep dogs out of shelters, and give owners
the tools to competently work with every dog they meet in
the future as well. I would like to encourage more science,
skepticism and rational thought in the world of dog training
and continue to work past some of the negative undercurrents
that sometimes inhibit our progress and credibility as professionals. I am concerned that too much divisiveness between
the different factions of dog training will negatively impact
the future of this organization and our profession. It’s important to me that we maintain APDT’s extremely successful
open door membership policy, encouraging trainers from all
backgrounds to update and enhance their education, particularly in the areas of scientific knowledge and reward-based
dog training.
As the director of the behavior department at the ASPCA’s
Manhattan shelter for more than three years, I used and advocated primarily reward-based methods to resolve even the
most challenging canine behavior problems. Our team then
passed these techniques on to adopters so that they could
continue to reinforce desirable behavior once the dogs were in
their new homes. I currently write articles about reward-based
techniques for the ASPCA’s Virtual Pet Behaviorist project and
answer questions from the public via email and telephone.
Our behavior team also conducts behavior evaluations for
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legal cases, offers in-home
consultations
for local pet
owners
and
works on research projects.
I am particularly interested
in professional
development. In addition to obtaining a Master’s degree in
Animal Behavior, attaining CPDT and CDBC certification,
and completing the SF SPCA’s CTC program, I am applying to
be an associate CAAB, attend conferences and classes whenever possible and read voraciously. I pride myself in treating
colleagues with professional courtesy, even if their training
philosophies are very different from my own. I believe I can
learn something from everyone, and I never want to stop
learning.
I have spent many years promoting positive training
methods, especially for shelter dogs. When working with
a dog who has no bond with me, I’ve found that I can most
quickly form that bond using whatever that dog likes best
in the world to accomplish training expediently. I use clicker
at times, particularly for precision obedience and agility
work with my own dogs, but I gravitate toward lure-reward
training, desensitization and counterconditioning (and negative punishment when needed) for most other shelter dog and
client dog training. I work with a varied toolbox though, and
let each dog tell me what will work best for them.
I am very optimistic about the APDT’s future. Our cohesive
and enthusiastic Board of Directors has been able to make
tremendous progress over the last few years. Along with our
incredibly energetic, professional and well-organized office
staff, I believe that we have some amazing people running
this association, and I would like to see us continue to build
on this strength. I am particularly optimistic about our plans
for a new Education Director and think this will help our
organization become the go-to place for people looking for assistance with their pet dogs, as well as for trainers interested in
furthering their education. I would like to continue to expand
member benefits and make sure that APDT members get great
value for the hard-earned fees they put into our association.
I am a Consulting Animal Behaviorist at the ASPCA’s
Animal Behavior Center. I work closely with Dr. Pam Reid and
other experts to develop and run the Virtual Pet Behaviorist
website, a free, online database of science-based pet behavior
advice dedicated to keeping animals in their homes . I am on
a steep learning curve about feline and equine behavior as
well and have found that learning how to work with other
species truly enhances my dog training skills. Our team also
offers private in-home and phone consultations, evaluates
animals for shelters and court cases, does research on beJuly/August 2009 w The APDT Chronicle of the Dog w 55
Candidate: Trish McMillan (continued)
Candidate: Trish McMillan (continued)
havior and cognition, and speaks at conferences. I live with
five fascinating rescued dogs, who take it upon themselves to
continue my education after working hours: Buddy, a pit bull
rescued from a dumpster, scarred and bleeding from being
fought, Max, an enormous former junkyard dog who hides in
the bathtub at the first sign of thunder, Aleli, a former Puerto
Rican street dog, Kenya, a Malinois mix with an incredible
prey drive, found wandering the streets of Oakland, CA, and
Cosmo, an Australian Shepherd who was biting people in his
old home.
Before working for the ASPCA I ran my own businesses for
years, managing up to nine employees, and have held several
managerial positions in the animal welfare and dog industries. I have been through media training with the ASPCA,
written articles and press releases, and appeared on TV and
radio shows. I have trained and worked with volunteers
over more than 13 years of shelter work, teaching volunteers
one-on one and leading seminars on various behavior-related
topics. My team and I developed the “Red Dog Volunteer”
program at the ASPCA’s Manhattan shelter, training our most
experienced volunteers to help train and exercise our most
challenged dogs. I pride myself in my diplomacy, critical
thinking and conflict resolution skills, developed through
years in the shelter world. I work very well under pressure,
and I am able to stay calm and do what needs to be done
even under extremely stressful conditions. I do a tremendous
amount of writing for my current jobs, and in the past I have
edited newsletters and had a number of articles published. I
currently do presentations for a number of different groups
and have made many media appearances in the past for the
ASPCA (we had a TV show, Animal Precinct, based at our
Manhattan shelter.) I am trained as a scientist and am capable
of performing and critically dissecting research. I think this is
a valuable addition to the board of an organization that would
like to be more science-oriented.
In my work as Director of Animal Behavior at the ASPCA’s
New York shelter, my team and I had to make incredibly
difficult, life-or-death decisions every week. The euthanasia
decision process was a particularly difficult one for all staff,
especially those who handled the animals directly, and I was
proud of the changes that we made while I was at the shelter.
We put together written adoptability criteria, outlining which
behavior problems we were able to work with and which
were too dangerous to send out into the community. We also
developed a process to communicate our decisions to staff
in other departments. Meeting with them privately or in
groups, we showed video, described techniques we tried to
modify behavior problems and helped them understand our
decisions. It was particularly challenging explaining to staff
that even though a dog might not be aggressive toward them,
the fact that he tended to direct aggressive behavior toward
children, for example, made him too risky to place. No animal
is aggressive 100% of the time and just about every dog has
a very lovable side, so helping people understand these decisions was often an extremely difficult and emotional process,
requiring great empathy and diplomacy.
I still support the decisions that have been made during
my time on the board - I think we’ve accomplished amazing
things over the past few years. I am still not terribly enthused
about the changes that were made to APDT’s mission and vision statements shortly before my time on the board – I think
these statements could be reworded more concisely and made
more relevant to our leadership role in the industry.
Candidate: Lisa Tudor
Biography
Hi! My name is Lisa Tudor, CPDT and owner of KissAble
Canine, LLC, a behavior modification and family pet training
company located in Arlington, Virginia. In 2004, I found myself spending most of my weekends volunteering with local
rescue organizations. I handled the dogs other volunteers
did not want to and fostered the less popular pups. During
this time I managed adoption interviews and placement of
dogs with potential adopters. I realized I wanted to spend not
just weekends with dogs, but my weekdays too! My training
foundation began with observing area trainers. I enrolled
in the Animal Behavior College where I continued to study,
test and apprentice. That program molded me into a positivebased trainer whose focus is getting family pet guardians to
establish the best relationship with their pet. I founded Kiss56 w The APDT Chronicle of the Dog w July/August 2009
Able Canine, LLC, in 2006 and committed myself full-time to
the business in 2007. Last year I obtained my CPDT status. I
coach reactive dog classes and present seminars on anxiety
and destructive behaviors. I also offer Ask the Trainer sessions
where all the money is donated to animal rescue. As recommended by my mentor trainer (Thank You Heather!) I joined
the APDT. My first conference was in 2008 in Portland, OR
where I volunteered as a Border Collie. I am currently active
on the Awards Committee.
My own husband asked me this very question. He added,
“Aren’t you busy enough with your other responsibilities?” I
said, “Of course, but I want to do more for the APDT instead of
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just being a professional member!” The APDT has an enormous
amount of responsibility and influence in the pet training industry. As a newer trainer, it is my fresh perspective that I bring
to the APDT Board of Directors. I offer my personal insights of
what it means to start and run a successful training company
in a difficult economy. Business support and mentoring are
areas I see as opportunities for improvement in the APDT. We
all want the APDT to be THE premier resource for trainers
to grow, to learn, and to share the knowledge of training in a
positive way. If I am elected to the APDT Board it will enhance
the variety and breadth of perspective so we continue to be in
position to be number one amongst dog training associations;
where all members have a chance to influence our growth.
When I work with my students it is my responsibility to
listen and to understand their expectations. I guide my students in strengthening the human and animal bond. This is
my first step. I treat my students not only as I would want to be
treated, but as I expect them to treat their canine companions.
I work hard to impact my local animal welfare community by
advising foster volunteers and shelter staff in what it means
to use dog-friendly training techniques. The APDT Vision is
seen in my work, such as:
• introducing clicker concepts to a rescue volunteer
• working with shelter staff to improve behavior assessments
• partnering with a veterinarian to create a behavior
modification plan.
In 2008 my clients recognized my professionalism by voting
me a top trainer in the area by a premier Washington, DC
magazine. I also partner with area businesses to compliment
each other’s success in the pet community. I enjoy attending
seminars on ethology, clinics on canine sports, and workshops about alternative therapies. As most trainers believe,
the learning never ends. I make it my priority to meet area
trainers. Yes, this means fraternizing with the competition!
But this also places me in a position to either partner or offer
referrals to other trainers when a student’s needs extend past
my expertise or service offerings. Only when pet professionals
in the community come together can we educate the public
and affect the most change to training in a more dog-friendly
way.
My training philosophy is to approach each student individually; to take time to understand my student’s lifestyle so
I can create a ‘whole’ approach to training their family dog.
I work with many dogs with little or unknown behavior histories so I find that positive based training techniques allow
me to succeed with these dogs. My training method seeks to
motivate the dog and then acknowledge and reward the behaviors we want repeated. I emphasize with my students to
create a trusting and consistent relationship between dog and
guardian. I also encourage students to learn from mistakes.
Failure is information which provides another piece to the
puzzle of how their dog perceives its environment. Training
should be fun, efficient and involve all caretakers.
www.APDT.com
4. What is your personal
vision for the future of
the APDT?
My personal vision
for the APDT involves
three main areas: 1) I
would like for the APDT
to become more visible
to veterinarians and pet
care businesses. This will
create the foundation for
the dog-owning public to
look towards the APDT’s
members for their training needs. 2) The future success of
APDT correlates to the growth in membership. We should
continue to evaluate and to uphold a high-level of standard so
the organization’s integrity is not compromised for the sake
of size. 3) The APDT is in its ‘teenage’ years. I would love to
see other methods of increasing member involvement outside
of conferences and special events. Activating members year
round in the core values of the APDT would be an excellent
way to bring additional attention to dog-friendly training and
its benefits.
My training company is going into its third year. My focus
and specialty is private, in-home training and behavior consultations. In addition, I offer students a group class option.
In partnership with an area daycare, I assist in instructing
the only Levels-style class inside Washington’s Beltway. I am
an AKC evaluator for the Canine Good Citizen test and am
Pet First Aid certified. I train family pet dogs full-time and
commit weekly volunteer hours to the local animal welfare
league to evaluate dogs for adoptability. I speak at community
events, present seminars on topics such as destructive behaviors and separation anxiety, and offer clinics to raise money
for animal rescue. In my downtime, I work with my own two
rescue dogs, Jack (Spaniel mix) and Betty (Terrier mix), who
both recently joined our family after the loss of my beagle mix,
Wilma. Wilma and I were a therapy team for the elderly. I hope
to continue this interest with Jack.
I graduated from James Madison University with a degree
in Computer Information Systems. My post graduate career in
consulting was a fast track to learning a lot about business and
people, including: Working in teams – In consulting, teams
could change quickly depending on the expertise needed by
the client. I came together with my team members effectively
to get the job done. It is important to respect the different
opinions of the people that I work with. There are opportunities to learn from them. Communicating with expertise – In
consulting, I submitted weekly reports to inform the client on
project status. In my current business, I send a quarterly newsletter to stay connected with partners and students. Managing
Candidate: Lisa Tudor (continued)
Candidate: Lisa Tudor (continued)
Financials – While in consulting it was my responsibility to
communicate to the client if we were on budget and to resolve
any discrepancies. For my current business, I analyze current
sales against past performance so I can project where my company will be in the next fiscal year. Time Management – I am a
business owner whose time must be wisely spent. By planning
ahead I stay on task, but also remain flexible to address urgent
issues if they arise. Marketing – KissAble Canine, LLC is a
trademark granted by the United States Patent and Trademark
Office. I have established my brand and taken the additional
steps to protect it.
Below is an example of how I successfully worked with
others during a difficult time of change. I left my consulting
job to work in an operational role for an IT company that focused on higher education. The role was completely new to the
company. Approximately 40 people that needed to be aware,
trained, and evaluated against the new policies and procedures being implemented department wide. These coworkers
were losing freedom to make all the decisions regarding
resource management. Executive management wanted to
grow this service line as a part of the company’s strategic vision. However, as with any change, there was confusion and
resistance from employees. I consulted with management and
employees to better understand their perspective. From those
sessions, trainings were created, communication plans were
implemented and employee feedback was rolled out. It was
not an easy job given that there were employees that never
accepted the change and left the company. However, within
the first year we were able to quantify an increased efficiency
in resources and implement a large enterprise application.
The business began to grow significantly. A key component I
learned was to understanding both management and the employee’s perspective. By keeping those lines of communication
open and by considering important feedback from employees,
the business was were able to include them in the growth of
the company. They became active in expanding the service
line and offered valuable insight to its success.
During my experience with the APDT, as changes have
been implemented, there has been a clear level of communication to explain why and how the decision is impacting members. Staff was made available to answer or clarify questions.
Whether updating APDT’s mission statement, improving the
online trainer search engine or modifying the list of accepted
certifications, the Board’s decisions reflect that the organization’s integrity is a priority. However, if I HAD to pick a decision that I would want changed it would be the location of
this year’s annual conference to a location other than the West
coast. (hint: perhaps a DC based conference?)
Candidate: Laurie Williams
Biography
A canine education specialist, dog behavior counselor and
trainer for over 25 years, Laurie is the owner and Director of
Training and Behavior Counseling at Pup ‘N Iron Canine Fitness & Learning Center in Fredericksburg, VA. The unique,
state of the art dog training, daycare and fitness facility offers
over 20 group training classes per week, from basic puppy
and family dog to therapy dog training, competitive agility,
rally, obedience and other dog sports. Laurie appeared on the
CBS summer reality show Greatest American Dog with her 7
year old Maltese dog Andrew. They were selected runners-up,
but were praised for demonstrating the beautiful, mutually
respectful relationship that can result from positive, dogfriendly training. In her parting comments, Judge Victoria
Stilwell said, “Laurie, you and Andrew have so much love
and respect for each other. You define what dog ownership
is all about.” One of the first Virginia trainers to become a
Certified Pet Dog Trainer through the CCPDT, Laurie has
been a member of APDT since 2002, and served as its Member
Relations Committee Chair from February 2007 to April 2008.
She is the founder of the Stafford Dog Club, an organization
established to build greater public awareness and provide
educational information about responsible dog ownership to
the Stafford, Virginia community, and an AKC Canine Good
Citizen and Delta Society Pet Partner evaluator. A nationally
published writer, she is a Contributing Editor for the APDT
Chronicle of the Dog, a weekly columnist for the Stafford
County Sun and is one of the featured authors in the APDT
Chronicle’s newest book, Dog Trainer’s Resource 2. She currently hosts DSPN - Dog Sports and Performance Network
radio podcast on Pet Life Radio and is an APDT, AKC, and
UKC Rally Obedience judge.
The reason I first joined the APDT 7 years ago, was to gain
a sense of belonging and feeling of community with other professional trainers, as well as show my students and clients that
I was committed to a professional organization that promoted
scientific learning and continuing education. As a member of
the Board of Directors, I would like to work towards keeping
the APDT on this path, further making educational and
networking opportunities even more accessible not just on a
national basis, but on a local, statewide and regional basis as
well.
I support the APDT Mission and Vision Statements and
Code of Professional Conduct and Responsibility in my business by employing trainers who are as equally committed to
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humane, dog friendly training techniques as I am. I am proud
that in my community Pup ‘N Iron is known to be a “thinking
person’s” training facility where trainers challenge their students to use intelligence and compassion to help shape and
influence dog behavior.
I fully support humane dog (and human) friendly training
techniques that promote developing a strong bond and mutually respectful relationship between dogs and their human
family members. It is my belief that people who have this
type of bond and working partnership with their dogs don’t
abandon them. And isn’t that the whole point of dog training,
keeping dogs in their forever homes? For me, this is better
achieved through mutual respect, successful communication,
a true understanding dog behavior, and developing a bond
that is not based on fear and intimidation.
With more and more people entering the dog training field,
the future is indeed bright for the APDT to continue being the
most well respected, innovative, enlightening and progressive
professional dog training organization in the world. I would
like to see the APDT continue keeping education for professional dog trainers, and the public as well, about the newest,
most effective humane and dog friendly training options and
techniques at the forefront.
I am the owner and Director of Training and Behavior
Counseling at Pup ‘N Iron Canine Fitness and Learning
Center, an 11,000 square foot facility that offers relationshipbased training using only positive, dog-friendly methods. We
also offer doggie daycare for busy and working pet parents,
fitness, health and wellness programs (featuring our state of
the art, hydrotherapy pool), and a wide variety of educational
workshops and seminars for pet parents in the Fredericksburg/Stafford, VA community. We hold over 20 classes per
week, from basic puppy and manners for the family dog and
Canine Good Citizen prep, to dog sports like agility for fun
and competition, competitive obedience and rally, flyball,
and canine freestyle. I pride myself in offering the most innovative and interactive training classes to my community.
Additionally, I facilitate the Pup ‘N Iron Canine Educator Apprentice Program, a comprehensive, structured program that
helps prepare the participant for a career in dog obedience
training.
Advertising/Marketing/Public Relations – I am a published writer and have a strong background in public relations and marketing, particularly in the area of developing
promotional materials. Teaching/Education – I have been
instructing group exercise and dog obedience courses for over
20 years. Additionally, I was a member of the adjunct faculty
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for Northern Virginia
Community College for
six years teaching primarily adult learners.
Conflict resolution – I
served as an Emergency
Communications Specialist for the Manassas
City Police Department
for 5 years. This placed
me in the position of
mediator for many volatile situations including
domestic disputes and
life-threatening emergencies. Writing and/
or Public Speaking – In
addition to being a published writer in several national publications, I conduct seminars and workshops throughout the
year in the areas of physical fitness and health and many dog
behavior and obedience topics. I am the host of a radio podcast
called DSPN - Dog Sports and Performance Network on Pet
Life Radio. Most recently I was a member of the cast of the
CBS television show Greatest American Dog. I appeared in all
10 episodes and each averaged 6 million viewers.
My work as an Emergency Communications Specialist and
9-1-1 Dispatcher with the Manassas, Virginia Police Department for 5 years greatly helped foster extensive communication and conflict resolution skills. Throughout my tenure I
was constantly placed in the position of diffusing potentially
hazardous life threatening crisis situations such as attempted
suicides, hostage situations, and talking people through administering CPR and other life saving techniques. These experiences helped me develop a direct, yet calm and reassuring
approach conducive for keeping the lines of communication
open. Additionally, it has helped me keep much smaller problems and disagreements in the proper perspective. This has
served me well when dealing with difficult students or clients
facing tough decisions about their dog’s future. Rather than
attempt to get them to switch to my point of view, my objective
is to listen to theirs and try to come up with a reasonable compromise that ends in both of us feeling valued and respected.
8. Is there a past decision by the APDT Board of Directors that
you would change, and if so why?
I really cannot think of a past decision by the APDT Board of
Directors that I would change, however because I feel it so greatly
represents the kind of mutually respectful relationship between
dogs and their humans that the APDT Mission Statement promotes, I would definitely like to see more priority placed on continuing to grow the sport of Rally Obedience and make it more
accessible to both APDT members and non-members throughout
the world.
Candidate: Laurie Williams (continued)
Presorted
Standard
U.S. Postage
PAID
Craftsman
Printers, LTD
150 Executive Center Drive, Box 35
Greenville, SC 29615
1-800-PET-DOGS
www.apdt.com

The APDT - Caniscool

Transcription

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