The Pet Professional Guild

No Pain, Lots To Gain Relationship-Building Between Pets and People.

Barks From The Guild

www.PetProfessionalGuild.com 41-Dog-Train (413-648-7246)

Vol. 1, No. 1 March 2012

(An environmentally force-free online magazine)

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Message from the Founder

Welcome to our first edition of ―Barks from The Guild.‖ I cannot adequately express how delighted we are to have so many of you, our members, to send this to. The Pet Professional Guild has very quickly moved from being a vision and outline in my notebook to becom-ing a reality and it‘s a huge ‗thank you‘ to all of you who have shown the pas-sion and courage to join us so quickly, entrusting us to create a professional organization of which you and the steering committee can all be proud. A little About My Personal Journey to help you understand the motiva-

tion behind The Pet Professional Guild. I began my journey into the pet industry more than 12 years ago. The industry had a very different landscape then. A dog trainer was somebody you called for advice on how to attain the leadership role in your home. The belief was that every day you awoke from your bed, you had to fend off a hostile leadership takeover spearheaded by your pet dog. The professional advice dispensed was all about how to make your dog ―obey,‖ how to be the ―alpha‖ and how to dem-onstrate ―pack leadership.‖ Many of the readily available methods were far from humane and often extremely ineffective or dangerous to the well-being of beloved pets. Searching the Internet for dog train-ing books was another challenge. When they could be located, it was not unusual to read advice like ―if your dog does not sit, then pull up strongly on the leash while pushing down hard on the dog‘s back end.‖ This is actually a very tempered example. Much of the professional emphasis was placed around punishing dogs and teaching them who is the ―boss.‖ These methods and ad-vice led to many misguided pet owners and damaged pet dog-owner relationships. Even in the year 2000, I could not comprehend these methods nor was I about to embark on a dog training journey with my pet dog using such an unpleasant approach. Having managed hundreds of people and been responsible for the leadership and development of senior management personnel, I was not completely ignorant to the laws of learning and how important it is to motivate, educate and engage one‘s students if a truly productive learning environment is to be created. So even as a naïve canine educator, it was highly-aversive to me to take on an approach that appeared to be physically and mentally intimidating to my dog even if I was on the more preferable end of the leash. Pet training wasn‘t the only challenge back then. If you needed pro-fessional care for your pet while you vacationed and you were in-sightful enough to recognize that a commercial boarding kennel may not be a wise choice for your little ‗fluffy,‘ then you probably tried in-

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Our key business purpose is to initiate a serious effort for the education of pet care provid-ers and the public coupled with an emphasis on building collaboration among force-free pet trainers and professional pet-care providers. We aim to publicize “our voice for the

profession” that advocates for mutually agreed guiding principles for the pet care industry.

IN THIS ISSUE…

Featured Articles Designing Relevant Group Classes—J. O’Heare

Where’s the Beef—L. Roberts Welcome International Members

Control Unleashed Case Study - A. Steinker The Functional Assessment—N. Tudge

In My Opinion… - J. Casey

Columns Founder’s Message—N. Tudge

Book Review—C. Zehner DVD Review—D. Garrod

Free Member Educational Resources Business Bites—N. Tudge

Member Brags—contributed

The Guild Steering Committee Niki Tudge

Catherine Zehner Diane Garrod

Angelica Steinker Leonard Cecil Leah Roberts

Anne Springer

Contact The PPG Member Communication

Admin@PetProfessionalGuild.com

Publication Information Catherine@PetProfessionalGuild.com

Advertisements

Admin@PetProfessionalGuild.com

International Communication Leonard@PetProfessionalGuild.com

Mailing Address

P.O Box Oxford, MS, 38655

Telephone 41 Dog-Train www.PetProfessionalGuild.com

Newsletter Editor—C. Zehner

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James O’Heare, CABC, CDBC, PABC © 2012 James O’Heare. All rights re-served In 2003 I published an article called ―Real Life Group Classes‖ in the APDT‘s Chronicle of the Dog, implor-ing more trainers to design group classes that taught behaviors more relevant family pet dogs in environ-ments more like family homes. In the 9 years since that article, this has become much more common. When asked to provide permission to reprint the arti-cle here, I was worried that it be less relevant given that it was imploring something that was then very uncommon and is now more common. I decided a quick rewrite would be more appropriate. In this very brief article I would like to outline a few points that I hope will encourage more trainers to design their cur-riculums and training environments to be more rele-vant to the family pet. This will not be a comprehen-sive guide but rather a few points worth considering when formulating curriculums. The first thing to do is clearly decide on your objec-tives for the training class. If you are training for for-mal obedience or for a specific sport then the environ-ment and behaviors will be determined by this objec-tive. If on the other hand your clients are families with dogs they wish to have fit into family life, then this too will inform how you design your classes. These clients need to learn how to teach their dog live within the bounds of human society. They need to learn how to help their dog adjust to and live in the real-world home and community. They also need to be moti-vated to continue training their dog outside of the class. By starting with clarity in your target audience and their needs and designing the curriculum that will satisfy those needs you will be more successful. Students often have difficulty applying what they‘ve learned in class to their daily lives with their dogs. Therefore, training halls that look like school auditori-ums rather than homes may not be as efficient a way to train family pet dogs in the group class environ-ment. Making the training hall look more like a home that includes the various items required to training behaviors related to them will be much more effective. For instance, If you will be training dogs real-life be-haviors like sitting to greet at doorways or sitting while doors are opened rather than rushing out, then you will need a safe doorway for this. If you will be training dogs to get onto and off of couches then you will need a couch (or two). It might even be worth considering field trips so that some outdoor behaviors like walking on loose leash or recall can be trained in environ-ments similar to that which the behavior will be per-formed in. If we can implement more behaviors and environ-

Training Tips & Techniques

Where’s the Beef? Leah Roberts By now most dog training professionals are familiar with the basic me-chanics behind treat training. It‘s pretty simple and can be described in three steps: (1) The dog performs the behavior, (2) the behavior is marked, and (3) the dog gets the treat. Using these three steps, just about any behavior can be trained in an easy and painless way. We teach dog owners how to lure, prompt, cap-ture, shape, and eventually cue the behaviors to achieve step 1. We choose what is used to mark the behavior in step 2, such as a clicker or verbal sound, or maybe even a visual marker for dogs who can‘t hear. And in step 3 we not only have to address what kind of reinforcer is most effective for each individual dog and in each individual situation, but take into consideration that the speed of delivery after the marker is very important. If there is too much time between the sound of the clicker and the appearance of the food, then the connection between them can be lost to the dog. So when we train with food, we have to carefully consider the questions how, what, and when. But there is a fourth question that can greatly enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of the training process. And that is consciously decid-

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ments in training classes that are relevant to the future needs of the family dog in real life, I believe the training will be more successful. I have one further suggestion and that is to make training more fun. Achieving training tasks with games and incentives for the trainers can promote the family carrying training over from the class to real life. Musical chairs for instance can be used to train ―sit‖ on cue. When any game is implemented, just be careful that there are no losers as this can backfire in terms of motivation. The point is to work training behaviors into games that will make training fun. Don‘t forget to treat clients like dogs—set them up for success in per-forming the behaviors you want and then reinforce that behavior. James O’Heare, CABC, CDBC, PABC is President of the Companion Animal Sciences Institute (www.CASInstitute.com), Director of the Asso-c i a t i o n o f A n i m a l B e h a v i o r P r o f e s s i o n a l s (www.AssociationofAnimalBehaviorProfessionals.com), editor of the Journal of Applied Companion Animal Behavior and owner of Be-haveTech Publishing (www.BehaveTech.com). His personal web site is at www.JamesOHeare.com. James has studied the natural science and technology of behavior extensively. His books, Empowerment Training, Changing Problem Behavior, Separation Distress and Dogs, The Dog Aggression Workbook, Aggressive Behavior in Dogs, Dominance The-ory and Dogs, Raw Meat Diets for Cats and Dogs?, Vegan Dog Nutri-tion and Canine Neuropsychology, are translated into many languages and available throughout the world. James has been helping companion animal guardians resolve problem behavior since the early 1990s.

Designing Group Classes Relevant for Pet Owners

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home pet care. This pet care was negotiated with your neighbor over the garden fence on a warm Saturday afternoon; the contracted labor agreement left some unwilling teenager, who had other plans for their summer vacation caring for the family pet. I know this all too well, as I was once that begrudg-ing and often belligerent pet-sitting teenager set loose into the homes of our neighbors to feed and water precious pets. So here we are at the beginning of 2012, and oh how things have changed. The marketplace is now full of dog trainers, pet-sitters and dog walkers. Pet care books and the latest training fads are published at a fast rate. Because of the growth of the pet industry, it can be difficult determining what works and what doesn‘t. The methods, philosophies and techniques of many ‗experts‘ on dog training and pet care can be buried in the mar-keting message and industry jargon often hides obsolete tech-niques, questionable methods, regressive philosophies or dam-aging equipment choices. As in any industry, pet care profes-sionals range from the highly-professional to the modern ver-sion of the reluctant but more technologically-savvy teenager left to care for a beloved pet. All of this culminated in a growing need for The Pet Professional Guild. Your eagerness to join has certainly reinforced our behavior. I want to take this opportunity to personally welcome and con-gratulate our first 50 members, our founding members and charter members. Your names will sit proudly on our site as we grow and prosper and we invite you to proudly post your Char-ter Member Badge. In just one month we have launched a pet care organization, which, while still fledgling, is already developing 2012 goals. These goals are designed to support you in your business, to help educate pet owners to the benefits of choosing a force-free trainer, and to help create a dynamic network of industry professionals that can share best practices and support each

other in order to more deeply penetrate the pet care industry landscape and make solid and positive changes to the benefit of our industry, our clients and most importantly, the welfare of our family pets. Throughout my career I have been privileged to work as a member of highly-effective and dynamic teams across several countries and continents. I acknowledge and recognize that when a group of people have the opportunity to gather to-gether, sharing a common goal with an aligned philosophy and an overwhelming passion, there are no limits to what can be achieved. So what do we wish to achieve? What is our vision? First, to grow a strong brand that represents our community, a commu-nity of science-based, force-free, highly-ethical pet profession-als and business owners. It is a brand that gives us a platform to advocate for our community in an objective and professional manner, a brand that resonates with the pet owning community as one of effective, efficient, approachable and ethical pet care professionals and a brand that is a powerful voice in bringing about change in our industry. We not only care about our in-dustry, we must care about those who practice within it and this is the driving factor behind the Guild University that will provide an umbrella for our educational programs delivered by the best third-party educational providers. Our key 2012 goals fall across six main categories with each category represented by a committee and a committee chair to coordinate the tasks and results. I have summarized our com-mittees below and want to take this opportunity to invite you to join us in driving our goals forward. Bring your talents and skills and volunteer some time to help us, you will be warmly received.

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Committee Name Committee Chair Committee Vice-Chair Key Initiatives

Member Education & Skill

Proficiency Programs Niki Tudge

Angelica Steinker & Diane Gar-

rod

Monthly educational webcasts,

skill proficiency programs and

provisional member mentoring

programs

Marketing & Public Relations Niki Tudge Diane Garrod Strategic marketing plan, brand

positioning

Community Outreach &

Advocacy programs Angelica Steinker Leah Roberts & Leonard Cecil

Position statements, pet owner

educational materials and mem-

ber educational resources

Member Services Products &

Programs Diane Garrod

Angelica Steinker, Anne

Springer, Niki Tudge

Branded member curriculums,

member handouts and tools, busi-

ness support tools and skill train-

ing.

Member Communication Catherine Zehner Leonard Cecil and Diane Garrod Monthly newsletter, quarterly

member publication

International Member

Communication Leonard Cecil Niki Tudge

Coordinating the needs of inter-

national members across all five

goal committees.

Guild Key Goals & Working Committees

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Inclusion for success! What is inclusion and why is it important? Join the PPG on March 27 at 1 PM CST for this 45-minute FREE webinar to discuss how families can plan and prepare to include their dogs in their lives as their family grows. From pregnancy to preschool, presenter Jennifer Shryock will cover topics that will support dog professionals as they enter homes with this dynamic duo. She will focus on supervision, management and positive and practical ways to include family dogs all along the way! There are three topics you will gain a great deal of insight into during this informative webinar: 1. Inclusion: Why and How? 2. Supervision: What does it really mean? Pitfalls and solutions. 3. Management: Changing through the stages! PPG members will be contacted directly and invited to join this first of many continuing educational offerings. About the Presenter, Jennifer Shryock Jennifer Shryock is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant who special-izes in safety and harmony between children and dogs. Jennifer has more than 20 years of hands-on experience working with dogs and families in a wide variety of environments. She earned a B.A. in Special Education at Kutztown University with an em-phasis on behavior modification and is the creator of the national Dogs & Storks™ program for new and expectant families as well as The Dog and Baby Connection. These programs provide families with support before, during and after a baby arrives. Jennifer is the pet behavior expert at Pregnancy.org and has been featured in publications such as the Wall Street Journal and Dog Fancy Magazine on child/dog related topics. Jennifer has been a regular guest on many radio programs. She is a certified member of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants and a professional member of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers. Jennifer is also a consultant for Karen Delise, founder of the National Canine Research Council and author of The Pit Bull Placebo and Fatal Dog Attacks.

Free Member Educational Resources

Member Level Eligibility Benefits

Supporter A pet owner who supports

PPG

Visit this page where you can proudly display

your name and your pet’s names.

Provisional

Join Today

A dog training student or ap-

prentice trainer

You will receive your name in our provisional membership listing and have access to our

mentoring programs as soon as they are

launched.

Associate

Join Today

A pet business employee You will receive a basic business listing in

our membership directory

Full

Join Today

A pet business owner You will receive a deluxe business listing in

our membership directory

The Pet Professional Guild membership offers a variety of benefits for the force-free dog training and pet care community and others interested in the behavior and care of pets. It is the Mercedes Benz of the Pet Indus-try. The Guild is not designed to attract the masses — we aim to attract the best. The only pet care providers and dog trainers that are listed on our pages abide by all our guiding principles and are proud members of the Guild.

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ing exactly WHERE the reinforcement is to be delivered to the dog. If we are just popping the treat into the dog‘s mouth, we may be missing some great training opportunities. Most trainers are aware of the importance of treat delivery place-ment when training loose-leash walking and heeling. If using a clicker, the click comes whenever the dog is in the desired position at the human‘s side, and the treat delivered right in that same posi-tion to further reinforce it. Even if the dog moves away between the sound of the click and the delivery of the treat, the savvy trainer knows to hold that treat at the side of her leg to bring the dog back into position and reinforce that THERE is the ―sweet spot‖ where good things happen. Ideas for training using treat delivery placement Here are some other ways to enhance the power of the food rein-forcement by using delivery placement: 1. When you are capturing a sit or a down, you click when the dog performs the position. If you then hand the dog a treat, she may remain in that position. You now have to wait for the dog to get up so that she can repeat the behavior, giving you the opportunity to mark and reinforce it again. But if you toss the treat so that the dog has to stand to get it, she is set up for a quicker repetition of the sit or down behavior. 2. Teaching “back up” is a great way to use treat placement. Stand in front of and facing the dog, and toss a treat be-tween your legs and slightly behind you. The dog will move between your legs to take the treat, then back up. Click (or otherwise mark) as soon as you see him stepping backwards, then reinforce by tossing the treat between your legs again. Like when capturing sits and downs, this will set the dog up for more repetitions of the behavior more quickly. (Note that if the dog is turn-ing around instead of backing up, you can usually fix this by not throwing the treat as far back.) 3. Any behavior which requires a dog to move in a certain di-rection can be taught more efficiently by using thoughtful treat delivery placement. If you want to teach a dog to walk around a cone, click any movement near the cone and then toss the treat so that the dog will continue to move in the desired direction in order to eat the treat. Click that movement, and toss the next treat a little further around the cone, setting the dog up for another fast click when he moves toward it. A spin can be taught in this same way, by first capturing a head turn and then tossing the treat in the same di-rection the head is turning to get a more exaggerated move in the desired direction. The bonus of carefully tossing the reinforcement in the right direction is that you will be prompting the dog in a way that results in a steady stream of clicks without hesitation. How does this differ from a lure? When luring a dog, you show him a treat and move it in a way that causes him to perform a desired behavior as he follows it. So your first move can be a lure, as demonstrated in the instructions for teaching back-up when you toss the first treat between your legs.

(Continued from page 3) But every treat delivered after that is the reinforcement – the food appears AFTER the behavior instead of before it. There is nothing wrong with using lures. They are hu-mane, easy and effective. But it is very important that lures are faded very quickly, so that the dog doesn‘t be-come dependent on the sight or smell of the food in order to perform the behavior. This is how lures can become bribes! Also when a dog is following a treat with her nose, that‘s where her mind is – ―get the food.‖ If her behavior is marked after she eats the treat instead of when she is actively in pursuit of it, she will be more likely to be in cognitive thinking mode rather than simply react-ing to the movement of food in front of her face. Now she is able to focus on figuring out the puzzle of what she needs to do to earn that next click. Other food placement concerns The biggest complaint heard from dog owners who are taught to train with food is ―He only does it when I have a

treat in my hand.‖ This can result from not fading a lure quickly enough, but it can also result from not paying enough attention to where the food is throughout the training process. There‘s a pretty simple fix for that. Remember that the three training steps are basically (1) Dog performs behavior, (2) behavior is marked and (3) reinforcement is deliv-ered. If you make it a prac-tice to always wait until after step 2 before you actually reach for the treat, there is no longer any reason for the

dog to expect to see food before he performs the behav-ior. If you use a bait bag and the dog ―only does it when the bait bag is worn,‖ there‘s a simple fix for that, too. Wear the bait bag off and on when you‘re not training. The presence of the bait bag becomes meaningless, and the dog learns to ―do it‖ without the presence of food ahead of time. So if you‘re having difficulties with your students master-ing the training process, or you are looking for ways to improve your own, don‘t forget to ask yourself the ques-tion: “Where’s the beef?” Leah Roberts is the owner of Dog Willing, which places an emphasis on teaching owners and dogs skills that will allow for bet-ter communication with one another. She is a mentor trainer for the Animal Be-havior College and is cur-rently participating in the Academy for Dog Trainers

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new customers for a very long time. And you will know when it is time to change your ads when it stops fulfilling its primary pur-pose – attracting new customers.

Who Should Design Your Ad There are a few basic principles that can help you create an effective ad for your pet services. First, design the ad yourself. Whatever medium you use for advertising, newspapers, magazines, postcards, door-hangers or the internet, don‘t rely on the sales person or the ‗in-house‘ design folks to create your ad. Unless you can afford to hire someone who has a proven track re-cord creating ads for small businesses in the pet industry you should design the ad yourself. No one knows your business like you do, no one knows your customer like you do and most ads created by telephone book companies or magazine art depart-ments may look good or be considered funny or clever (more on this later) but they are usually ineffective, too general and simply variations on all of the other ads they run. So do it yourself.

Elements of an Effective Ad Your first consideration when preparing to design your ad is your objective. What is the ad intended to do? Of course your ad is intended to get more customers so you can make more money but what I mean here is what action do you want the potential cus-tomer to take? For most small pet businesses the objective of your ad should be to get your potential customer to pick up the phone and call you or go to your website and make a reservation for one or more of your services. Once you‘ve settled on your reason for running your ad make sure you have a clear understanding of who you are designing the ad to attract. After all, you don‘t want to create an ad that appeals to everyone. You want your ad to attract pet owners who need your services. If at a ll pos-sible, try to limit the emphasis of your ad to a single service or service category. It is far better to advertise one service that you can cover completely than try to cover all of your services in the limited space of a typical ad. Now you are ready to start the design. The first element, and the most critical, is the headline. The headline is the most impor-tant because if your headline does not grab the attention of your customer and encourage her to read your ad then you‘ve wasted your time and money. Your headline needs to be specific and straightforward leaving little doubt about what services you offer and how your customer will benefit from your services. Despite an all too common misconception, the headline is not the place to try to be cute, clever or funny. Cute, clever and funny may win advertising awards but many tests over many years have proven that cute, clever and funny do not translate into more paying customers. You want your headline to do two things, grab the atten-tion of your prospective customer whether she is skimming a magazine, surfing the web or reading the paper and create enough interest so she will read the rest of your ad. That‘s it. That‘s the total job of your headline. The second element will be the body of your ad, sometimes with a sub-headline and sometimes without. The body of your ad should explain very clearly how your prospective customer will benefit from your services. The more immediate the benefits are the better. What is in it for your customer? Remember, people in general buy solutions to immediate problems; they do not buy prevention for future problems, so focus on the immediate benefits your services provide. And always lead with your most impor-tant and significant benefit. This is no place to be shy. Again, you want to be specific and straightforward. Too often ads are simply a list of features that leaves the reader to figure out how she would benefit. The next element is the call-to-action. You need to tell your reader what action to take to receive the great benefits of your ser-vices. Always ask for action in your ad – call now, visit our website, email now etc. Make sure that your contact details, phone number and website are accurate and easy to read. Your logo should the smallest element of your ad but your contact details need to be the most prominent. And it is your call-to-action where you want to make your reader an offer. Offer them something in return for contacting you. Make the offer clear, make it urgent, make it risk free and make it easy. You may want to offer them a discount on services or a free gift with a reservation. To make your offer urgent you can set a time limit or make your offer only available to the first few callers. You will also want to guarantee your services to minimize your customer‘s risk.

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Business Bites

How to Create Effective Ads for Pet Services

Niki Tudge © 2012 I am sure you don‘t have to be convinced of the impor-tance of advertising, but knowing how critical advertising is to your business and actually designing an effective ad can be frustrating. The good news is, once you‘ve devel-oped an ad that works, you can usually rely on it to attract

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PPG Reviewer Diane Garrod DVD Reviewed: Behavioral Genetics by Jim Ha, PhD, CAAB

Length: 60 minutes

Tawzer Dog Videos, 2011

Price: $25.00

Understanding the evolution of dogs correlates to comprehending genetic health and behavior studies. Dr. Ha tosses out some valuable information in this one-hour lecture. The breed clusters, wolf/poodle study, and breed behavior clusters are the three top reasons to view this lecture DVD.

The lecture is peppered with ―ah ha‖ moments, such as more money goes into the study of genetic disease than genetic be-havior; the best studied breed in genetic health studies is the Portugese Water Dog; and poodles on average are identical to wolves, except in the way they communicate. The behavior cluster studies were intriguing dealing with reactivity, learning ability and aggression. An example is level 4 of the cluster in-dentifying reactive as high level; trainability as very high; and aggression as medium. In this cluster are Poodles, Shihtzus, Shetland Sheepdogs, Springer Spaniels, Welsh Corgi and Bichons. This may correlate to what trainers see on a daily ba-sis and can serve as a reference when working with any breed.

Behaviorist, Jim Ha, PhD, CAAB, Companion Animal Solutions takes a serious look at genetics. Genetic diseases in dogs is where most grant money goes and so the most information is available on that topic. Genetic behavior and temperament testing bears little to no money for studies. You also learn that not much is know about the evolution of the cat.

As a lecture worth paying attention to and reviewing again and again, the positive points were as follows:

There is no doubt dogs evolved from the Grey Wolf, Eura-sian stock. The primitive dog breed genetics are wolf-like to the point that the ancestor breeds cannot be genetically distinguished from the Grey Wolf. Breeds such as the Sharpei and Basenji.

What are the ancestral breeds? Sharpei to Shiba Inu to Chow to Akita; and from Basenji to Siberian Husky and Alaskan Malamute. Third, Afghan Hound and Saluki. Shake hands with the ancestral breeds. From there stem ―all other breeds‖.

Next most primitive breed is the Mastiff; herding breeds take a third.

All the other breeds are harder to distinguish as compared to the wolf and are not an ancestral breed. They fall under Modern European and Mountain (those breeds more re-cently developed, such as Bernese and Swiss Mountain Dogs, St. Bernards, Cocker Spaniels.

A genetic problem is in-breeding. There are 360 genetic diseases, 46 percent occurring in only one or a few breeds according to a Cambridge University study

www.vet.cam.ac.uk/idid/, which has a great research database compiled for those interested in further revela-tions.

If there is a genetic component then you can have evolution, breed differ-ence, genetic disease malfunctions.

The functions that are correlated and controlled by the same genes are fetch, attack, guard, bite BUT jumping IS a different genetic gene, at least in the Belgian Shepherd study. Who knew these were even considered a genetic component?

Wolves are not able to read the body communication of Poodles and vice versa. In all other respects there are more similarities in behavior than differences.

In all the studies done, the breed or breeds chosen seem to occur with those breeds available to the region or to the one implementing the study. A European study on behavior used 2427 Belgian Shepherds. Since that is my breed of choice, the study grabbed my attention. Out of over 15,772 tests con-ducted, the findings revealed every behavior is variable and can be explained by genetics, as in smart versus stupid. The Belgians studied rated low for skills such as following at heel, moderate for jumping, fetch, attack, guard and bite. The same values appeared for Spitz, English Setters, Whippets, and German Shepherds. This was a Correau and Langlois 2005 study also finding sociability .37 out of 1.00 and tempera-ment .51 out of 1.00. This seemed correct as Belgians truly can be 50/50 in temperament, some highly aloof and wary, others milder in temperament. Discussions have occurred on what it means to be a behavior-ist versus a behavior trainer or consultant. Dr. Ha cleared this up in his lecture when he states that Behaviorists QUANTIFY ―That‘s what we do‖ he said. The only downside is the audiovisual. While there are cluster slides the whole DVD is mostly one talking head presenting a lecture with written powerpoint. This could use a little jazzing up with some compelling videos and digital photographs. The DVD was compelling, informational, revealing and knowledge-based providing an intelligent resource for those interested in aggression studies, behavior and genetics, disease and genet-ics and how breeds belly up to the wolf. I would give this DVD a rating (1 to 5 with 5 high quality), a 4 for genetics study geeks and a 2 for others simply due to the fact of missing audiovisual to draw the audience into the lecture. DIane Garrod, a PPG Steering Committee Member, is a Behav-ior Trainer and the owner of Owner Canine Transformations Learn ing Center (cTLC) www.caninetlc.com. She is also a Guild Certified Tellington Touch Practitioner – CA1 and earned a Bachelor of Science from the University of Wisconsin in Communication and with a minor in Journalism.

DVD/Video Review

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PPG Reviewer Catherine Zehner Inside of a Dog. What Dogs See, Smell, and Know By Alexandra Horowitz Scientists spend years and thousands of dollars studying exotic

a n i m a l s . A l e x a n d r a Horowitz, a professor of psychology at Barnard Col-lege, Columbia University earned her PhD in Cogni-tive Science at the Univer-sity of California at San Diego, has all the t-shirts. She has studied the cogni-tion of humans, rhinoceros and bonobo monkeys. But it was at the dog park one day that she realized that she had been completely oblivious to the rich social lives and communication systems used by dogs – both with other dogs and with humans. So she turned an eye toward her faithful companion (and unwitting research subject) Pumpernickel, a mixed

breed dog that she shared her life with for 17 years. With a researcher‘s keen eye and a dog-lover‘s acute love and compassion, Horowitz explores what science tells us about dogs without relegating our pets, emotionally, to lab rats. Her self-admitted goal was ―to take an informed imaginative leap inside of a dog — to see what it is like to be a dog; what the world is like from a dog‘s point of view.‖ Her work draws on that of an early-20th-­century German biolo-gist, Jakob von Uexküll, who proposed that ―anyone who wants to understand the life of an animal must begin by considering what he called their umwelt . . . : their subjective or ‗self-world.‘ ‖ To a tick, she explains, the whole world can walk by unnoticed, but if a warm, carbon-emitting creature happens by the blade of grass upon which the tick is perched, the tick‘s world comes alive with smell and meaning. Similarly, to humans experience roses as a lovely, familiar shape, with a pleasing scent. That is the very definition of a rose. To a dog, it doesn‘t register unless it is adorned with some other important perfume — a recent spray of urine, perhaps. A hammer ―to a dog,‖ Horowitz points out, ―doesn‘t exist. A dog doesn‘t act with or on a hammer, and so it has no significance to a dog. At least, not unless it overlaps with some other, meaningful object: it is wielded by a loved per-son; it is urinated on by the cute dog down the street; its dense wooden handle can be chewed like a stick.‖ Dogs‘ goals, she explains, are not only radically different from ours; they are often invisible to us. To get a better view, Horowitz proposes that we humans get down intellectually on all fours and start sniffing. To do that, Horowitz intricately details how dogs experience the world, and how it differs from human experience. For dogs,

smell is multi-dimension for dogs; ―smell tells time,‖ she writes. ―Perspective, scale and distance are, after a fashion, in olfac-tion — but olfaction is fleeting. . . . Odors are less strong over time, so strength indicates newness; weakness, age. The future is smelled on the breeze that brings air from the place you‘re headed.‖ While we mainly look at the present, the dog‘s ―olfactory window‖ onto the present is wider than our visual window, ―including not just the scene cur-rently happening, but also a snatch of the just-happened and the up-ahead. The present has a shadow of the past and a ring of the future about it.‖ Now that‘s umwelt! A dog‘s vision affects its sense of time, too. Dogs have a higher ―flicker fusion‖ rate than we do, which is the rate at which retinal cells can process incoming light, or ―the number of snapshots of the world that the eye takes in every second.‖ This is one of the reasons dogs respond so well to subtle human facial reactions: ―They pay attention to the slivers of time between our blinks.‖) It helps explain how dogs make those astounding mid-air catches of tennis balls and Frisbees, but Horowitz lets us see the impli-cations beyond our human-centric fascination with our pets. ―One could say that dogs see the world faster than we do, but what they really do is see just a bit more world in every second.‖ As for their hearing, despite a talent for detecting those high-pitched whistles that are inaudible to us, dogs‘ ability to ―pinpoint where a sound is coming from is imprecise‖ compared with ours. Instead, their auditory sense serves to help them find the gen-eral direction of a sound, at which point their more acute sight and smell take over. Dogs‘ ability to respond to language has more to do with the ―prosody‖ of our utterances than the words themselves. ―High-pitched sounds mean something different than low sounds; rising sounds contrast with falling sounds,‖ Horowitz writes. Dogs respond to baby talk ―partially because it distinguishes speech that is directed at them from the rest of the continuous yammering above their heads.‖ In her discussion of the natural history of dogs, she gives a good history of dogs‘ evolution from wolves, citing more recent re-search from renowned wolf experts like Dr. David Mech. She also advocates force-free training. The idea that a dog owner must become the dominant member by using jerks or harsh words or other kinds of pun-ishment, she writes, ―is farther from what we know of the reality of wolf packs and closer to the timeworn fiction of the animal kingdom with humans at the pinnacle, exert-

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Book Review

10

PPG Worldwide Australia By Debra Millikan, Dip Dog Training & Behavior Consulting, Dip Animal Behavior Science & Technology, Cert IV Dog Behavioural Training, CAP 2., Adelaide, Australia. The creation of the Pet Professional Guild has allowed the com-ing together of a truly international group of Force Free Trainers. This group aims to work together to educate, communicate and support each other‘s efforts to achieve Force Free Training for all pets. A traffic roundabout is a tool to aid smooth traffic flow. Many roads can lead into this roundabout.Our ―roads‖ will be the multitude of international members of our Guild who will bring along with them differing ideas, experiences, methods and ra-tionales that have been borne out of prior learning, differing cul-tural experiences and individual innovation. Despite our differing backgrounds, or perhaps because of them, our Guild Members look forward to this exciting multi-way networking with our col-leagues and welcome the exciting times ahead.

Dutch By Annieke Lamers, Hoofddorp, Netherlands. De oprichting van de Pet Professional Guild heeft het samenkomen van een internationale groep van Dwang Vrije Trainers mogelijk gemaakt. Deze groep heeft tot doel samen te werken om te on-derwijzen, te communiceren en elkaars inspanningen om Dwang Vrije training voor alle huisdieren te realiseren te ondersteunen. Een rotonde is een hulpmiddel om een soepele doorstroom van het verkeer te helpen. Vele wegen leiden naar deze rotonde. Onze "wegen" zullen de veel-heid van internationale leden van onze gilde zijn, die verschillende ideeën, ervaringen, methoden en uitgangspunten met zich meebrengen die zijn ontstaan uit elders verworven competenties, verschillende culturele ervaringen en individuele innova-tie. Ondanks onze verschillende achtergron-den, of misschien wel dankzij hen, kijken onze Guild leden uit naar dit spannende multidimen-sionale netwerken met onze collega's en zijn we verheugd over de spannende tijden die voor ons lig-gen.

Espanol By Nando Brown, CAP2, Almogia, Malaga, Spain. La creación del gremio de profesionales de animales de com-pañía (Pet Profesional Guild), ha permitido la puesta en común de un grupo de adiestradores caninos que evitan el uso de métodos agresivos de todas partes del mundo. El objetivo de dicho grupo es trabajar conjuntamente para educar, comunicar y apoyarse mutuamente, logrando una rápida implementación del aprendizaje sin métodos agresivos para cualquier mascota.

Usando como analogía una rotonda en el medio de un cruce de caminos, nuestro gremio será un punto de encuentro para todos sus miembros de ámbito internacional, los cuales aportarán ideas de diferente índole, experiencias, métodos y fundamentos debidos a la formación previa de cada miembro, su entorno cul-tural y desarrollo individual de nuevas técnicas. A pesar de nuestros distintos orígenes, o tal vez debido a ellos, los miem-bros de este grupo anhelamos la oportunidad de asociación y puesta en común con otros colegas. Dicho crisol de conocimien-tos contribuirá a un emocionante futuro en técnicas y métodos de adiestramiento canino.

Deutsch By Martina Schoppe, Golmbach, Germany. Mit der Gründung der Pet Professional Guild hat sich eine inter-nationale Gruppe gewaltfrei arbeitender Trainer zusammen ge-funden. Die Ziele dieser Gruppe sind Weiterbildung (wer soll

weitergebildet werden, wir, oder die Hundehalter?), Information und die gegenseitige Unterstützung

unserer Bemühungen, gewaltfreies Training für alle Haustiere zu ermöglichen. Ein

"Verkehrskreisel" ist ein Instrument, fließenden Verkehr zu erreichen. Viele Wege können zu diesem Verkehrskreisel führen. Unsere "Wege" werden die vielen

internationalen Mitglieder unserer Gilde sein, die unterschiedliche Ideen, Erfah-

rungen, Methoden und Beweg-gründen mitbringen, die auf bereits gelerntem, unter-

schiedlichem kulturellen Hinter-gründen und individueller Innova-tionen beruhen. Trotz oder vielleicht wegen unserer unterschiedlichen Hintergründe freuen sich unsere Mitglieder auf dieses aufregende vielfältige Netzwerken mit unseren Kolllegen und die kommende aufre-gende Zeit.

Franҫaise By Jean Lessard, MCP, Magister Cyno

Professionnel, Montreal, Canada. La création de la Pet Professional Guild a permis la reunion d'un groupe vraiment inter-national d‘entraîneurs n‘utilisant pas la force.

Ce groupe vise à travailler ensemble afin d‘in-struire, de communiquer et de soutenir les efforts de chacun en entraînement sans violence pour tous les animaux de compag-nie. Un rond-point est un outil facilitant la circulation. Plusieurs routes peuvent aboutir à ce rond-point. Nos «routes» représenteront la multitude des membres à l‘international avec leurs idées variées, leurs expériences, les méthodes et les ap-proches préconisées, leur différence culturelle et l'innovation individuelle. Malgré ces bagages différents, ou peut-être à cause d'eux, la PPG accueille avec enthousiasme cette gestion de réseaux multiples entre collègues et anticipe des moments pas-sionnants.

11

Now What? Okay, you‘ve created an incredibly effective ad with an irresistible offer and a motivating call-to-action and your phone starts ringing. This is the crucial step and you don‘t want to frustrate your cus-tomer by being unprepared. Your ad has convinced her she needs your services so you don‘t want her going to your competition when she can‘t reach you. Be prepared to close the sale and make this part of the buying process as easy as possible. Think Amazon.com. No company makes it easier for customers to spend their money than Amazon.com. So answer your phone and return calls as soon as possible. Be prepared to close the sale, be prepared with the information your customer needs, be ready to sign them up and be ready to take their payment. And now the real fun begins…retaining your customers by ‗wowing‘ them with your exceptional service. Stay tuned for my next article on delivering consistent and impact-ful customer service. Niki Tudge is the founder of the PPG and The DogSmith, a national dog training and pet-care franchise. Her professional credentials include; CPDT-KA, NADOI – Certified, AABP- Professional Dog Trainer, AABP- Professional Dog Behavior Consult-ant, Diploma Animal Behavior Tech-nology, and Diploma Canine Behav-ior Science & Technology. Niki has also published many articles on dog training and dog behavior and her pet dog training businesses have been featured in many publications including The New York Times.

(Ad, continued from page 7)

ing dominion over the rest. Wolves seem to learn from each other not by punishing each other but by observing each other. Dogs, too, are keen observers — of our reactions.‖ For experienced dog trainers, much of her material will be familiar. Horowitz can be a bit coy and over-reach into awk-wardness in her attempt not to sound too scientific. The tone of the book is a bit that of a dog-lover espousing what unique and sorely-neglected research subject dogs make as if to justify to her white-rhino-studying colleagues her fascination with such mundane subject matter. She also, in a couple of instances, left me questioning her conclusions. For example, in the section on "Hero Dogs" (dogs that have responded to emergencies and saved the lives of their own-ers and people in general), Horowitz details what she calls a "clever experiment" with dogs where "owners conspired with the researchers to feign emergencies in the presence of their dogs, in order to see how the dogs responded. Owners faked heart-attacks or cried out as a particle-board bookcase fell and pinned them on the ground. In both cases, owners' dogs were present, and the dogs had been introduced to a bystander nearby--perhaps a good person to inform if there has been an emergency. None of the dogs acted the hero. ―The conclusion that one has to take from this is that dogs simply do not naturally recognize or react to an emergency situation--one that could lead to dan-ger or death,‖ she writes. How so, I wondered? After de-tailing how keenly dogs perceive their world, she simply didn‘t consider that the dogs knew the difference (from res-piratory rates, hormonal changes, pitch and tone of voice, smell of sweat, etc.) between their owner being truly dis-tressed and simply play-acting? It left me disheartened at the quality of the ―study.‖ But then Horowitz will deliver a truly profound fact, study, odd detail or observation that causes a shattering paradigm shift for both the casual dog lover and the professional dog expert alike. When researchers, she notes in one of these fine moments, studied the temporal patterns of dogs inter-acting with people, they found the patterns to be ―similar to the timing patterns among mixed-sex strangers flirting.‖ How can you not stop and think, ―Wow, that‘s fascinating! What will she come up with next?‖ These ―Ah-ha!‖ mo-ments kept me turning pages through some of the slower part of the books, and it will be a book I re-read periodically because it is permeated with good information, studies and observations, even if it is not the most beautifully-written prose or entertaining read on the bookshelf.

Catherine Zehner is the owner of The DogSmith of Florida’s Emerald Coast and a founding member of the PPG. She earned her B.A. in English, communicaitons and a minor in journalism from Macalester College. She is a professional member of the APDT, an AKC CGC evaluator, and a Delta Society Pet Partner with her GSP, Colter.

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Control Unleashed, developed by Leslie McDevitt, is a founda-tion training and behavior modification program that has a proven record of success. The program empowers dogs by giving them a communication system that allows them to com-municate what is stressful to them and where that stimulus is located. This case study functionally analyzes both the prob-lem behavior of the featured dog and the Control Unleashed program.

History Medical, Diet and Exercise Overview Zoomie is an eight-year-old Border Collie in excellent physical condition. Notable medical conditions are deafness in one ear, hypothyroidism and arthritis in one toe related to an injury. He also has bicep tendonitis in one shoulder. Zoomie eats Pet Tao Qi diet which has shown outstanding results. He is exercised daily doing dock jumping, low-impact agility, scent games, disc retrieving and rally obedience.

Problematic Behaviors Zoomie‘s problem behavior occurred when a dog approached his face within a distance of three feet, he would snap at the air toward that dog. This same snapping behavior would occur if a dog sniffed or attempted to sniff his tail area with a distance of three feet or less. While this is not an untypical behavior for the breed it presented two problems. First this behavior could cause the dog, who was the target of the snap, to move away, react or become stressed, none of which was accept-able. In addition, Zoomie would lose focus and be unable to perform cues. Control Unleashed is de-scribed in two books and several DVDs written by Leslie McDevitt and pub-lished by Clean Run Pro-ductions (available at www.CleanRun.com). In the dog community this book is a best-seller. In the first book Leslie McDevitt chronicles the rehabilitation of her dog who was very reactive to a wide array of stimuli. In the second book she presents a proactive preventive program for pups or working dogs. Control Unleashed recom-mends establishing a base-line for your dog. The base-line is usually a time period of one month where the

subject dog is exposed to the least amount of stress possi-ble. Stressors are identified using the dog‘s body language. Achieving this baseline is a two-step process. The first step is assessing your dog‘s signs of stress. For example, a very common sign of stress is a tongue flick, which I am defin-ing as a repeated forward mo-tion of my dog‘s tongue that can be replicated by the same situation (not food consuming related). As a second step, Control Unleashed recommends gathering the individual signs of stress for each dog prior to beginning the training program. This enables the trainer to conduct all training sub-threshold. Sub-threshold means that at no time of the train-ing should the dog be triggered to perform the problem behav-ior. Training occurs in a controlled environment that sets the dog up for success and allows for behaviors consistent with relaxation and play. The Goal

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Behavior & Learning — A Case Study

Functional Application of Using the Control Unleashed

Program to Effect Behavior Change How to empower your dog and optimally implement desensitization

Zoomie

Antecedent Package What happens BEFORE the behav-

ior?

Behavior What is the problem behavior?

Consequence What happens immediately

after the behavior?

Conditioned Stimulus Zoomie:

Breath holding

Freezing

Fast 90-degree head turn

Other dogs:

Dog approaching face

Dog approaching butt

Dog touching Zoomie’s nose

Dog sniffing Zoomie’s tail area

Motivating Operations Zoomie is fearful of having a dog in

his face or having his butt sniffed

(CER, Fear)

Setting Events Being at an agility competition

Being in a crowded area with

other dogs

Having a dog approach

Air snap at dog

Intensity High, Zoomie would be unable to

function mentally (perform cues)

after an incident for about one

hour

Duration Less than two seconds

Frequency There was always only one snap

because I would remove him im-

mediately from the situation if

such a failure occurred

Other dog startles and moves

away, negatively reinforcing

Zoomies behavior (-R)

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The goal of the training is to expand the sub-threshold zone. This goal can often be attained if the training plan is consis-tently compliant and if the dog is not being flooded. Any use of flooding will cause the program to fail.

Overview of the Program I had been using Control Unleashed based training at my school for a year when I decided to use it on my own dog for the problem described above. The Control Unleashed program makes use of games to teach alternate behaviors, this article will analyze the program which is comprised of games, specific counter conditioning strategies and a means of assessing stress in dogs. Below is a graph that describes the goal of training in the happy zone, and the concept of the dog being trained sub-threshold at all times during the training process. For Zoomie, sub-threshold was if dogs maintained a distance of three or more feet away from his face or tail area, if a dog was less than three feet more than two feet from his face or tail area he would start breath-holding and getting a little stiff and finally if a dog was less than two feet from his face or tail area he would air snap. When Zoomie would snap at another dog this was the result of stress. We knew this because he would begin to display stress behaviors the moment he exited the vehicle that trans-ported him to the trial. The vertical side of the graph shows the variable of stress increasing. At zero there is no stress, a dog could be sleeping, or is entirely relaxed. As stress increases it positively correlates with the increase of frequency and severity of the display of behaviors related to stress. These ―signs of stress‖ are individ-ual, but will increase in either frequency or severity until the dog reaches threshold. Once a dog goes over threshold the following operants are triggered: growling, barking, lunging or even biting. The entire the training process is sub-threshold. Any failures must lead to the modification of the training regimen to prevent future failures. In Zoomie‘s case there were no failures since his trainer handled him proactively and because he rapidly pro-gressed through the training program.

Intervention Stage 1 Stage one of Zoomie‘s intervention consisted of establishing a baseline (Cortisol Vacation) for one month.

Cortisol Vacation Cortisol vacation is what the Control Unleashed program refers to as the baseline. In order to establish a baseline, the trainer is armed with the concept of threshold and the knowledge of their

dog‘s signs of stress, modifies their dog‘s environment until anything but mild stressors have been removed. Some trainers call this process cocooning the dog, but it always results in stressors being significantly reduced to the point of where the dog feels safe. Control Unleashed calls this program a cortisol vacation because high cortisol levels positively correlate with stress. Common recommendations for cortisol vacations in-clude: temporarily stopping walks, stopping exposures to the feared stimuli: strangers, strange dogs or whatever stimuli have been identified in the initial stages. For one month Zoomie did not go to a competition, or any place that caused the identified signs of stress. Zoomie was exercised and engaged in training as is normal. Zoomie was protected from experiencing his stressors of dogs within three feet of his face or tail area. Zoomie did not see the vet or groomer during this baseline time period.

Relax Relaxation prompts be-haviors that are inconsis-tent and incompatible with being reactive or aggressive. Control Unleashed advocates prompting relaxation and then putting the behavior on cue, hen working to generalize the cue to dif-ferent environments it is important to gradually — through tiny steps incre-mentally — increase the level of difficulty until you reach the most problem-atic environment. Teaching an aggressive dog to relax is a very self-reinforcing process. All human trainers must

themselves be relaxed in order for the training to be successful. Zoomie had already learned the relax game prior to entering the program; however training did now require for him to relax in several new areas of the house. There was no problem re-garding stimulus control thus it seems the cue had been previ-ously well generalized. A dog that is truly relaxed looks to have heavy limbs. It is im-portant to actually achieve this state which in some cases can take months of time. I had started Zoomie on the relax game

at 7 weeks of age and it became self

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Zoomie Relaxed

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reinforcing to him a few months later. It is not unusual for every high drive dogs to struggle with learning to relax.

Intervention Stage 2 After the one month of baseline, cortisol vacation, and learning the relax game in various settings around his home had passed, Zoomie entered stage two of the program. This second stage focuses on the very gradual desensitization of the triggers for the undesired behavior. It is important to em-power the dog to set the pace for all stage two training. Ap-proximations are only increased when the dog indicates that he is ready. How this is accomplished is explained below. Control Unleashed installs a two way communication system that en-ables the dog to tell you when he is slightly stressed and need-ing more desensitization or when he is ready to proceed to the next tiny approximation. The art in successful Control Unleashed training is in making the approximations very tiny. This will also be explained below. The first step : Identification of Signs of Stress Zoomie‘s signs of stress are:

Intense sniffing that is not easily interrupted

Excessive drinking of water

Taking a treat more roughly than usual

Tongue flicking

Breath holding (notice the tension around his mouth and how the corners are slightly pulled forward in the picture below)

Whale eye, when the corners of his eyes are showing white

Leslie McDevitt has had the brilliant idea of clicking and treat-ing a dog when they display a sign of stress. Initially this seems counter-intuitive but it is actually an ideal way of counter condi-tioning a dog immediately as the stress arises. Since this is a concept that is new to many trainers, I will explain it using an example of what Zoomie ended up with after the completion of cortisol vacation when I took him to his first trial. He was not competing this was part of his training program to help him feel safe in this environment. Arriving at a trial we exited the vehi-cle, Zoomie immediately started sniffing intensely the type of sniffing that tells me he is stressed. I clicked and treated this intense sniffing. When I would do this there were two possible scenarios:

Zoomie would startle at the sound of the click and turn back to me for his treat.

Zoomie would continue intense sniffing and ignore the click

and treat. If scenario 1 occurred I would stay were I was and continue the clicking of his sniffing. Zoomie would then continue the chain of sniffing, my clicking, and him eating the treat until he would suddenly stop sniffing and then just intently stare at me. This is the moment I have been waiting for. When this happens the trainer shifts to clicking and treating their dog for eye contact instead of for the sign of stress. Next, we would proceed toward the trial area slowly while I continue to watch him for signs of stress. As soon as a sign would occur, I would stop, and start the process of clicking and treating the signs of stress and then waiting for him to offer at-tention again. For one month we went to two trials and worked on the perimeter of the activity. This was a total of two sessions on two separate days (trial weekends). Both training sessions included alternating clicking of signs of stress with the relax game. We also played the look game — more on that below. This process is very empowering to the dog as it lets him offer attention when he is ready. When dealing with stress and fear it is only appropriate that the dog set the pace of the training. When you empower a dog in this way the training process can happen with amazing speed. As usual, the click functions as a bridging stimulus which is always followed by positive reinforcement. The positive rein-forcement used is determined by the dog. Zoomie is positively reinforced by the following reinforcers which are in his order of preference:

Food (including pocket lint): Zukes treats --peanut, chicken or salmon

Throwing of a disc for him to run after and catch

Tug, a toy held by trainer for Zoomie to pull on The specific process looks like this:

Antecedent: stressful environment or exposure to a stressor

Behavior: sign of stress—dog sniffs grass

Consequence: click and treat Clicking and treating the sniffing, prompts the dog to turn her head back to the trainer to receive the treat. (If the dog fails to do this, training is NOT sub-threshold, environmental adjust-ments are needed to set up for success. Adjustments usually consist of increasing distance between the dog and the stimuli that is causing stress.) This process functions to create a be-

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Tongue flick Breath-holding Whale eye

15

havior chain: Signal of stress click treat from trainer standing be-hind dog/dog turns head toward trainer. After this pattern is repeated a few times the behavior of sniff-ing extinguishes, and the dog defaults to just looking at the trainer. The trainer can now click and treat this new behavior. In Control Unleashed lingo we say that the dog is now finished with that distraction and ready to focus. Antecedent: proximity of trainer, clicker and treats Behavior: Dog stares at trainer Consequence: Click and treat One of the questions I have asked is why does clicking and treating the signs of stress work so well in eliminating the tar-get stress behavior? Trainers have been told that clicking and treating increases a behavior but in this case the behavior is decreased. This process is consistently effective and ultimately fast in being able to ready a dog for working/focus. What spe-cifically is happening behaviorally that explains how this proc-ess works? One explanation for this could be non-contingent reinforcement (NCR). If the dog displays signs of stress, there are a lot of clicks and treats which could function as NCR. Another possi-bly is Differential Outcome Effect (DOE). If the dog gets more reinforcement from the treat than for engaging in the sign of stress, the dog will eventually default to looking at the trainer. It is also possible that the clicking and treating functions as a counter-conditioning mechanism so after you click and treat the signs of stress about five or so times, they disappear and the dog defaults to just looking at you. Regardless of the actual functioning mechanism, the behavior chain ends with the termi-nal behavior of looking at the trainer, since that is the area of reinforcement. The trainer delivers the treat while the dog is turned and facing her, which ultimately becomes the new be-havior. Throughout the training, Zoomie‘s signs of stress decreased when clicked and treated. The highest amount of clicks and treats needed to extinguish a sign of stress in that context was five; this included the clicking and treating for fast moving toys or dogs.

Look Game The Look game is a Control Unleashed procedure that teaches a dog to look at a stimulus on cue. Focus on the trainer is not the key of modifying behavior according to Control Unleashed. Teaching your dog to stare at his trainer is bound to fail. To explain this, pretend you are afraid of spiders. I am training you to not be afraid of spiders and ask you to enter a room with a spider at the other end which is on leash. I then tell you that you must do math and under no circumstances look at the spi-der. What is going to happen? We can all predict that the math will not be done or at least not done accurately and that the demand that you do not look at the spider is going to fail. Con-trol Unleash empowers the dog to look at the spider (the scary stimulus) and when they do it is paired with a click and a treat. It is one thing if you are in room with a scary spider but let‘s pretend you are in a brand new environment and rather than

looking around and checking out the place, I insist that you stare at me and nothing else. Again, I am setting you up to fail. Instead in Control Unleashed, we ask the dog to look around and then we reinforce our dogs for doing that. Most dogs experience novel environments as stressful to vary-ing degrees. Forcing a dog to maintain eye contact in a variety of situations prior to the dog being ready will usually end in fail-ure. In addition the startle response is a respondent behavior thus operant conditioning is unable to modify it. A startle can easily be followed by a dog going over threshold and lead to the undesired behavior: snapping in this case or aggression in general. Control unleashed empowers the dog to scan the environment, communicate concerns, get these concerns resolved and only then offer attention to the trainer. You know he is ready by let-ting him explore the environment: sniff, investigate and look around BEFORE asking him to perform. But how is this done? Here are the steps. Step 1: trainer looks and points at a neutral stimulus.

Step 2: Zoomie looks at the lawn chair following the prompt/cue. Step 3: Eye orienta-tion will prompt your dog will glance at what you are staring and pointing at.

Dogs are descended from wolves and eye orientation is an impor-tant part of hunting. The trainer captures this glance by clicking and treating. After doing this repeatedly a new behav-ior chain is established: Glance at neutral stimulus click treat from trainer standing behind dog/dog turns head toward trainer. Zoomie has looked at the chair and turns back for his treat. Step 3: The trainer adds a cue ―look‖ to prompt the glancing behavior. The dog looks at whatever the dog is pointing at. Now the fun really starts! The trainer cues the dog to ―look‖ at the stress inducing stimulus. One of three things will happen:

The dog glances at the stress-inducing stimulus and back at the trainer for a treat, this is what you want and hopefully you were ready and clicked and treated this glance.

The dog stares at the stress-inducing stimulus and is un-able to look back at you. You are over threshold, make en-

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16

vironmental adjustments to decrease difficulty and try again.

The dog pretends to look at the stressful stimulus! This is your ideal response. Definitely click and treat your dog!

In Zoomie‘s case the look game consisted of two variations. One was simple, a dog approaching him was paired with the ―look at that‖ game. So every time a dog appeared in the envi-ronment, Zoomie would glance at the dog, then get clicked and treated. Initially this game was only played at the training school but since the program must be generalized to be suc-cessful we soon played the game in the neighborhood, at other dog schools, on the edges of agility trials and ultimately in the middle of a crowded competition area. The end goal of this game was for Zoomie to actually have a dog touch his nose while playing the look game. This goal was achieved week five of his group Control Unleashed class at my dog school. Next we played car crash which consisted of low speed ―car crashes,‖ or dogs running into each other. All games were sub-threshold and if signs of stress appeared, cri-teria were immediately adjusted. If Zoomie displayed a sign of stress, the exercise he was engaged in was stopped or modi-fied and, if necessary, we went back to clicking and treating signs of stress. The second application of look at that was slightly more com-plex. I needed to address his ―butt sniffing phobia.‖ I devised a plan that required a dog approaching Zoomie‘s tail area and Zoomie being cued to look at the dog approaching, then getting clicked and treated. Ultimately we had the dog actually make contact with his tail area, waited for Zoomie to look, then clicked and treated. This we dubbed a butt sniffing car crash. But back to the ―look‖ game — it is important that trainers un-derstand the communication aspect of the look game. When using the ―look at that‖ game it is an important variable to un-derstand the ―fake look‖. This communicates he is not worried about the toy. A ―fake‖ look indicates that a dog is not worried about the stimulus, thus training is sub-threshold and your dog is able to relax and play and if necessary crite-ria can be raised. A dog that stares at the stress inducing stimulus is over threshold, which means a distance increase (or other modification) between the dog and the stress induc-ing stimulus is needed. Zoomie would advance from real looks to fake looks on average with five or less click and treats. While we did not specifically track this data, larger, darker-colored dogs would take more clicks and smaller, lighter colored dogs would take fewer clicks. One of the terminal goals of the Look at that game is for a dog

to be taken to a new environment and prompted to look in all four directions. The trainer can then read the responses, based on the three options above, to assess if the dog will be able to relax and play in this environment. Once Zoomie was leaving the dog school training area his trainer consistently prompted him to look in all four directions to communicate with Zoomie about how his level of stress. Large, dark colored dogs would take the most clicks and treats for him to begin fake looking.

Incoming While the Control Unleashed program is comprised of more games than can be listed in this article, one more game was fundamental to Zoomie‘s training success: incoming. Incoming is a control unleashed game that indicates that a dog, or other potentially scary stimulus, is about to approach. To set Zoomie up for success we started with a very stable dog: a stuffed one. An unpublished ASPCA study by Dr. Pam Reid and others showed that dogs respond to a stuffed dog that is life size and realistically made as if it was real. The mechanism by which this happens is called a super-normal sign stimulus, but in behavior terms it is referred to as stimulus salience. Re-gardless, the dog biologically responds to what he sees even though the stuffed animal does not smell real. In Zoomie‘s case this let us play the incoming game knowing there was absolutely no risk to a decoy dog. As the stuffed dog, moved by one of the trainers, approaches Zoomie‘s trainer would say ―incoming‖ in a playful sing-song tone. This ―incoming‖ song became the cue for Zoomie to ―look‖ at the approaching stuffed dog. To set Zoomie up for success, we started with the less-scary approximation of him approaching the stuffed dog, as with the ―look‖ game where the dog turns back to the trainer after the click, to get the treat. Failure to do so communicates stress and that the dog is over-threshold — training must be adjusted to get back sub-threshold.

The some of the approximations that I used with Zoomie were:

Zoomie being approached by stuffed dog

(Continued from page 15)

(Continued on page 17)

Incoming! Zoomie approaches the stuffed dog.

17

Stuffed dog approaching Zoomie

Zoomie approaching small light colored real dog

Small light colored real dog approaching Zoomie

Zoomie approaching faster moving medium sized dog

Faster moving medium sized dog approaching Zoomie

Zoomie approaching huge dog dark color dog

Huge dark color dog approaching Zoomie

Generalization training occurred in group classes and at trials. When doing a training session we always used dogs that were known to be very stable with other dogs. A variety of dog sizes, distances and speed of approach was also used. Throughout the process of playing incoming we used the ―look at that‖ game as a means of gathering information about Zoomie‘s stress level. Throughout training we worked to have 90 percent or more of the session approximations sub-threshold. Control Unleashed is a program that builds on success. During all Control Unleashed training my goal was always to empower Zoomie to the point where the next approximation that I asked of him was in his mind ridiculously easy. I wanted him to give me a look like, ―You are kidding? You are going to click and treat me for that?‖ It was by keeping my mind on this goal that I became creative and had fun with the process.

Results After the intervention Zoomie has been able to compete suc-cessfully even when dogs have approached him face to face with only six inches between them. Training did progress to less than six inches of nose to nose distance, but I don‘t allow less than six inch nose to nose contact with unfamiliar dogs. Zoomie‘s behavior has been modified but he is not cured; I will always know that he has a tendency to be reactive toward other dogs. One humorous accidental side effect of training that I am still working to extinguish is that Zoomie when seeing an unfamiliar dog will now attempt to play incoming without prompting. He joyfully launches for the strange dogs face and when I gently restrain him then turns his head looking for a treat. Zoomie is offering the incoming game; however this behavior will be ex-tinguished using differential reinforcement and stimulus control training. For obvious reasons I only want Zoomie to approach the face of other dogs that are on our approved list. Post-intervention if a dog makes contact with his tail area Zoomie does not snap and offers a head turn toward me and looks for a treat.

Notice the happy facial expression on Zoomie’s face, this is the precise situation that would have caused him to shut down, prior to the Control Unleashed protocol.

Below is an ideal approximation for starting the butt sniffing game. The fearful dog sniffs the butt of a dog and is clicked and treated for it — a very empowering approximation as it should be very easy. Control Unleash advocates for the use of empowering first approximations.

Below is a photo of Zoomie playing the look game with Zoe. Notice how he is relaxed and actually leaning toward the unfa-miliar dog he has never met prior to this session. Control Unleashed modified his behavior by modifying his emotional state about unfamiliar dogs.

(Continued from page 16)

(Continued on page 18)

Zoe is an Aussie that Zoomie has never met. Zoe is being lured to approach Zoomie tail area, Zoomie is looking and physically relaxed.

18

Nibble on this… Allergy Prevention

According to research done at the Henry Ford Hospital in Detroit, mothers who spend time with pets while they are pregnant have children who are less likely to have allergies and asthma. The research indicated that the cause of this is the IgE antibody, Immunoglobulin E. Children exposed to pets prenatally have a lower level of the IgE antibody when compared to children from pet-free homes. Higher levels of IgE are linked to the development of allergies and asthma.

Dr. Christine Cole Johnson, chair of Henry Ford‘s Department of Public Health Sci-ences and senior author of the study said, ―We believe having a broad, diverse exposure to a wide array of microbacteria at home and during the birthing process influences the development of a child‘s immune system.‖

So to help raise happy, allergy-free children, you may want to load up on pets.

Below: Zoomie a few minutes after first seeing Zoe. The sequence of events were:

Look game

Incoming game, the picture above was taken at this point

Butt sniffing game Notice how relaxed Zoomie‘s body is. Again, his body is a reflection of his emotional state. At right: a final picture of Zoomie with Zoe approaching his hind end, this was the most feared situation, Zoomie shows relaxed body language and takes his treat as he usually does, indicating the absence of stress. Note: only cer-tified profes-sional dog be-havior con-sultants or

trainers working under the supervision of a professional dog behavior consultant should work with dogs that have displayed aggressive behaviors. Aggression and its precursors should never be punished as this may suppress warning signals and thus lead to a much more dangerous situation. Citations: McDevitt, L. (2007). Control Unleashed. Clean Run Productions MA, USA. Reid, P. et al (2010). Unpublished study ASPCA.

Angelica Steinker is the president and founder of Courteous Canine. She has authored Agility Success: Training and Compet-ing with Your Dog in the Winning Zone and Click and Play Agility. She has also been published in the Journal of Applied Com-panion Animal Behavior and the Journal of Veterinary Behavior, peer-reviewed professional journals. She has been published in the APDT (Association of Pet Dog Trainers) Chronicle of the Dog Newsletter, Dog & Handler, Animal Trainer Magazine, Dog Sport Magazine, Dalmatian Quarterly, and Clean Run, the dog agility magazine. She is certified by the Association of Animal Behavior Professionals, and she serves on the Advisory Board and instructs at the Companion Animal Sciences Institute. Angelica is also certified as Dog Behavior Consultant through the International Association of Ani-mal Behavior Consultants. She has her CAP2 through Kay Laurence‘s Learning About Dogs. Angelica is a sought-after public speaker who has presented at conferences across the country including the famous Camp Gone to the Dogs in Vermont, the Association of Pet Dog Trainers Annual Conference, BARK Agility Camp, and Karen Pryor‘s Clicker Expo. Angelica has a Master‘s degree in Education, which has served as the foundation for her continued certifications in dog training and her ex-tensive understanding of dog behavior and operant and classical conditioning, the sci-ence of how animals and people learn.

Buy your own copy of Control Unleashed from AND benefit the PPG by clicking here.

(Continued from page 17)

19

Learning & Behavior — Functional Assessments

By Niki Tudge Copyright 2012

There are fundamental differences between the behavior ana-lytic approach to assessing problem behaviors in our pet dogs and the medical model approach. The medical model approach to problem behaviors diagnoses and treats the behavior prob-lem like an illness or disease. Within the medical model ap-proach, problem behaviors are categorized and then set proto-cols are prescribed based upon into which the category the problem falls. The medical model approach does not address the cause of the behavior or look at the specifics of the individ-ual animal displaying the behavior. The medical model ad-dresses the problem behavior through surgery, pharmacology intervention or anecdotal explanations based on how the be-havior looks or the animal‘s believed mental condition. Much of the prescribed treatment used to address problems using the medical model is based on intui-tion and passed-down medical protocols. Unlike the medical model, the behavior analytical approach to assessing problem behaviors recognizes that behavior is a product of the environment and the individual animal‘s condi-tioning history. The behavior analytical approach recognizes that in order to change the be-havior the causes need to be identified. The behavior analyti-cal approach focuses on the details of the specific behavior. The behavioral approach to problem behavior is far more effective and efficient than the medical model because it is based on the science of learn-ing theory and follows scientific processes to identify the ante-cedents and consequences of the behavior. The behavior analytical approach does not rely on guesswork, trial a-and-error tactics or anecdotal recommen-dations. Rather, it systematically identifies the functional rela-tionship the behavior has with the environment. When these relationships have been identified, then efficient and effective solutions can be developed. The behavior analytical approach is called a functional assessment defined as ―an objective and systematic, efficient and effective strategy for explaining, de-scribing and controlling behavior‖ (O‘Heare 2008 p. 14).

The Functional Assessment There are several components to a functional assessment starting with the informant interview. During this interview, an-ecdotal information about the problem behavior is obtained. For many of us this information is learned during our first con-

sultation with the client. The next component of the functional assessment is the direct observation phase. This is where the dog‘s behavior is observed and the relationship between the variables is measured and correlated. The final part of the func-tional assessment is the functional analysis. The intended final product of the functional assessment is a contingency state-ment in which the dog trainer has confidence. The contingency statement details in simple terms the antecedents, behaviors and consequences in measurable terms. This contingency statement clearly defines the problem behavior, how it is evoked and how it is maintained. The contingency statement identifies the stimuli, S

D, that reliably evoke the behavior and

the more distant antecedent that motivate operations and set the context for the behavior. The postcedents are also identi-fied and those that are functionally related to the behavior are labeled as consequences.

Let us look in more detail at each stage of the functional assessment.

1. The Informant Inter-view The informant interview is the interview process be-tween the pet dog consultant and the animals‘ guardians. The goal is to collect infor-mation from the animals‘ guardians to assist in devel-oping a contingency state-ment. During the interview, the consultant has to take the answers provided by the animal‘s guardian that are often interpretations of be-havior and convert their an-swers through additional questioning into ―clear de-scriptions of the actual ob-servable and quantifiable behavior involved‖ (O‘Heare 2007 p. 190).

During the informant interview there are several components of information that should be established. The consultant must develop a clear concise, measurable description of the problem behavior or behaviors. It is also important to understand the setting events - the context that makes the problem behavior more likely. It is necessary to understand the motivating opera-tions that influence the value of the consequences such as sa-tiation, deprivation and any conditioned emotional responses such as fear or aggression. Discriminative stimuli should be identified alongside the consequences that follow the behavior. We need to be able to answer the question, ―What does the animal get out of this situation?‖

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The Process of Conducting a Functional Assessment in Pet Dog Training

20

The consultant should rate the efficiency of the problematic behavior particularly if there are several problematic behaviors at play. The history of the behavior should be sought and the results, if any, from previous behavioral change programs. Dur-ing the interview it is also advisable to ask the animals‘ guardi-ans what alternative behaviors they would feel are more appro-priate and acceptable. When the informant interview is complete the consultant can develop a preliminary contingency statement that will help with developing further questions.

2. The Direct Observation Stage The goal of direct observation is to pinpoint the source of the problem by factually understanding the functional relationships between the antecedents, behavior and consequence. The measurement process provides quantitative data which cannot infer causal relationships but it can identify correlations be-tween the different variables. When collecting baseline data it is important to have a data collection plan. The plan includes a data collection form that identifies the stratification areas of data to be mined and opera-tional definitions that accurately define what the behavior is ―and what constitutes a recordable event‖ (O‘Heare 2007 p. 196). The data collection plan clarifies which dimensions of the behavior will be measured; frequency, duration or intensity. It is not always necessary to measure all the dimensions and con-sideration should be placed on the dimension that is most use-ful given the behavior and its setting events. Data is best obtained from as few trials as possible without lim-iting the quality and accuracy of the data. Measurement should continue until trends emerge. It is, by the same token, as im-portant to decide who will be responsible for the data collection. The data collector will need to be trained on the data collection process and the necessity to remain nonintrusive during the collection process so the data is stable, precise and unbiased. If the problem behavior is dangerous or poses a safety risk then the consultant must use their best professional judgment as to whether direct observation should even be carried out. When the data has been collected it will be essential to revise the contingency statement developed during and after the infor-mant interview. The data collection process may, and often does, reveal new evidence and information about the functional relationship between the variables.

3. The Functional Analysis The functional analysis stage is a single subject experiment that tests the consultant‘s hypothesis - the contingency state-ment. The two most common single subject experiments that are used to analyze behavior are the reversal design and the alternating treatment design. The suitability of each experiment is determined by the hypothesis being tested. The functional analysis is designed to test the relationship be-tween the hypothesized controlling antecedents and the behav-ior and/or the hypothesized maintaining relationship between the behavior and its consequence. The functional analysis sets up different independent variables and confirms or refutes their effect on the dependant variable, the actual behavior. The goal

is to analyze what is and what is not evoking and/or maintain-ing the behavior so an effective behavior change program can be designed. The experiment should only cover areas of the contingency statement that are unclear and not everything. The consultant must also take into consideration, during the experi-ment, that setting events and motivating operations should not be overlooked as they can ―contribute indirectly to the contin-gencies.‖ (O‘Heare 2007 p. 212) The functional analysis should only be carried out if the initial interview and direct observation does not reveal trends in the problem behavior and/or components of the contingency state-ment are still unclear. When embarking on a functional analysis the benefit and precision of the analysis must be weighed against the effort, time, skill required and potential fallout of behavior rehearsing (O‘Heare 2007). A functional analysis should only be performed by a trained professional with a mini-mally invasive approach, a clearly defined plan to test only what is necessary, a tangible goal and with careful considera-tion to the safety and security of all involved. The analysis should only be carried out if the important variables can be controlled throughout the experiment or the experiment will be flawed and there must be consent gained from the animal‘s guardian. The functional analysis experiment should only test areas of the contingency statement that are unclear and not everything. If the consultant is unsure about the relationship between the antecedents and the behavior then the consultant would test the antecedent package until the evoking, discriminative stimuli were identified. Likewise if the lack of clarity in the contingency statement came from understanding which consequences were maintaining the behavior then these would be tested. At the end of the functional assessment you should know:

What are the distant and direct antecedents? What is the S

D, the setting events and the motivating opera-

tions?

What is the actual observable, measurable, problem-atic behavior? What are the problematic dimensions of the behavior, intensity, frequency or duration?

How is the behavior being reinforced? +R or –R? When planning for your behavior change program (which we will discuss in future editions) be prepared to ask yourself:

What is the behavior change goal? Is it realistic and does the client agree with the goal?

What primary and secondary reinforcers will you use?

What behavior change protocol will be most suitable to reach the agreed goal?

How and what will you measure during the behavior change program so you are sure that your intervention is actually having the desired effect on the problematic behavior?

O’Heare, J. (2008) Functional Assessment 108, Companion Animal Science Institute O’Heare, J (2007) Aggressive Behavior in Dogs, DogPsych Publishing, Ottawa Canada.

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Can Shock-collars Burn? By Jan Casey, MS, Dip CBST Professional dog trainers can be a contentious lot. Our methods fall on a continuum, from positive with no use of corrections to painful and physically damaging. We argue as to whose methods are most effective or quickest at achieving results or most psychologically sound for the dog. I suggest there is no topic more divisive nor more hotly debated than the shock collar, often referred to as an e-collar or remote collar. The arguments both pro and con regarding shock collars are endless. The latest battle in the war revolves around the claim that shock collars cannot cause a burn to the animal wearing it. "Shock collars are not capable of causing burns because there simply isn't the voltage required to generate the joules necessary for combustion." It‘s a pretty grandiose statement involving technical terms from which many of us will shy away. Those of us who question that claim do so because of anecdotal evidence to the contrary from a variety of sources. Blogs writ-ten by well-respected trainers such as Grisha Stewart describe and provide photographic evidence of "burns" on a dog's neck, the result of a shock collar. Don Hanson, past president of the APDT and also a respected trainer, writes of personally witness-ing burns on a dog's neck. There are letters from veterinarians claiming to have treated burns created by shock collars. In the midst of the battle, some whose war cry has been "no shock collars" seem to be in agreement that a shock collar cannot create a burn, that there is no documented evidence of such burns occurring. What is the truth? I do not want to support a myth, but I also find it hard to buy that argument, especially when it originates with a company whose success is based on the sale of shock collars. I am not an engi-neer, so how can I tell whether the technical explanations given are truthful or just smoke and mirrors? My first option was to corner my husband, Jim Casey, for an opinion. He is my go-to guru, knowledgeable in all things mechanical and electri-cal, holding a degree in engineering from the University of Florida and having more than 35 years‘ experi- ence in the field, working primarily with electric and nuclear power plants. He has previously described how shock collars work and this information is available at http://www.hollysden.com/say-no-to- shock-collars.htm. With a cautionary note that he does not mince words, here is his response: "It has been claimed that the dis- charge from shock collars does not contain enough energy to cause a burn. I will concede that a properly-operating shock-collar should not cause burns. 'Should not' is not the same as 'can not.'

There are no national regulations as to the energy level or wave-form of a 'properly operating' shock collar. I cruised through the descriptions of shock collars on the Internet for an hour or so and the energy-per-zap is not posted by any manufacturer I found. Wikipedia shows the energy per zap at 0.0003 joules but did not cite a specific source for this bit of data.

Shock collars that I have seen have pointed electrodes. Those penetrate the hair and remain in contact with the skin. I get irri-tated when the tag on my t-shirt has a sharp corner, so having a pair of de-energized metal cones pressed into my neck sounds bad enough to make me grumpy. One negative in having the dog wear a shock collar is the possibility of skin injury from the pointed electrodes; either mechanical abrasion or contact dermatitis as the electrodes are unlikely to be made from a hypoallergenic alloy. An open sore is not only more likely to become infected, but it is substantially more electrically conductive and invites electrical burns. Domed electrodes are more comfortable but actually require more voltage to launch a spark.

IF the electrical circuit in the shock-collar always parcels out the same energy bundle there are still variables. Pressing the electrodes firmly against the skin contacts more surface area and spreads out the energy of the zap. Conversely, if the pointed electrode hovers just above the skin and a spark jumps, the energy discharge will be concentrated into the tiny pinpoint of the area of the spark. We see a spark because it is hot enough to make the air glow. Some tiny amount of tissue is burned with every spark.

Spark intensity also depends upon the duration of the spark. If the 0.0003 joule spark occurs in 1/10,000 second over an area of one square micron then the instantaneous power consumed would be 3,000,000 joules/cm2. That would vaporize the tiny area of tissue affected. Since waveforms are not published I can't know if these values are ‗real,‘ but they are certainly possi-ble.

Third-world assemblers with dodgy quality assurance, lack of standards, and overly-enthusiastic trainers (who I will refrain from

In My Opinion…

22

referring to as cruel SOBs) all can contribute to multiple-shock trauma or injuries to the animal." Okay, except for his final sentence, this is still technical for me, but I surmise his basic answer is "yes, it is possible for a shock collar to cause a burn." Still, this is pretty technical jargon for me. How do those of us who are still wondering about the differ-ence between a joule and a volt determine whether the engineer or the manufacturer is correct regarding the ability of a shock collar to burn? I continued to read. From the Radio Systems Corporation PetSafe pages: "Some descriptions of advanced bed sores or pressure necrosis describe the sores as looking like burns on the dog‘s neck. Be assured that electronic collars do not use enough energy to create burns. The energy in an output pulse is less than a few thousandths of a Joule; it is similar in na-ture to the static pulse that you may feel when you shuffle your feet across carpet and then touch a door knob or metal object." That is almost exactly the same as the statements I am hearing from the non-corporate advocates who claim shock collars can-not cause a burn. I become skeptical when I hear rebuttals from a variety of sources that sound like a script. From what source does a shock collar derive its power? For many, it is a 9-volt battery. How could that be harmful or produce enough energy to burn? Thinking that I had heard stun guns are also powered by a 9 volt battery, I checked the FAQs page for Taser®. And, yes, a Taser® also only requires a 9-volt battery, but the effects produced by a Taser® are pretty impressive. It seems the shock collar and the stun gun both store energy in a "capacitor" which releases the energy when the button is pushed. A simpler analogy is this: water flowing through a hose will not hurt your foot when it hits. Send that same water through a pressure washer and it will cause lacerations on your foot. As an aside, the Taser® website produced a similar comparison of the effects one experiences when shuffling feet across the carpet: "One can receive a 25,000-volt shock of static electricity from a doorknob on a dry day without harm." As noted above, the PetSafe site describes the feel of the shock collar being like this. While the jolt one receives from the doorknob may not cause physical harm, I don't know of anyone who finds the experience pleasant or who would volunteer to repeat it intentionally. I do know of at least one person who finds it so aversive, she makes me open the door so she will not be shocked. My personal is experience is that it hurts - a lot. Back to the argument of whether shock collars can produce burns. The manufacturers and many trainers will say it is impossible. Would I be willing to bet $10,000 that a shock collar is incapable of causing a burn? Not a chance. The greater question for me is why would anyone care whether the extensive damage on a dog's throat is a burn or pressure necrosis or edema or contact dermatitis? The fact remains that, had the dog not been wearing a shock collar, the painful injury would not be there. The shock collar has caused physical damage. That's the only factual information I need.

Jan Casey is an instructor at Courteous Canine. She has a B.A. Special Education, M.S. Curriculum and Instruction, DipCBST, and is a CGC Evaluator. Jan is currently pursuing her Diploma of Canine Behavior Science and Technology through CASI.

(Continued from page 21)

You Can Advertise in Barks from the Guild! FULL PAGE $145 1/2 page Horizontal $100 1/2 Page Vertical $100 1/4 Page $65 Business Card $35

For more information, contact Niki Tudge

Niki@PetProfessionalGuild.com 41-DOG-TRAIN ((413-648-7246)

23

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The Steering Committee would like to announce and congratulate the 50 Charter mem-bers who were the first to apply to join the Pet Professional Guild in February. These 50 dog lovers showed no hesitation in putting action behind words and committing to the force-free movement.

Please join us in giving a warm welcome and a heartfelt “thank you” to the following:

24

Barks from The Guild is the offi-

cial Pet Professional Guild quarterly pub-lication. The publication is circulated in March, June, September & December. BFTG is produced by Guild members with contributions from industry experts and featuring a selection of informative articles, reviews and news stories sup-ported by regular columns. Members are encouraged to submit scholarly articles, opinion editorials, let-ters to the editor, member achievements, and other information pertinent to the in-dustry. Articles submitted will be ap-proved for publication by the Guild Steer-ing Committee. Contributions to Barks from The Guild should be submitted to: Managing Editor Catherine Zehner Catherine@PetProfessionalGuild.com Submissions will be accepted no later than four weeks prior to the publication deadline. The Pet Professional Guild is not respon-sible for unsolicited submissions, manu-scripts, photographs and other proffered material. Submissions will not be re-turned. Submissions constitute permis-sion for PPG, at its sole discretion, to use the submitted materials, in whole or in part, without compensation to the submit-ter. For reasons of space and editorial con-tent, PPG reserves the right to delete or alter any solicited or unsolicited informa-tion or part thereof, that is submitted or reserved for inclusion in the publication.

The Pet Professional Guild stands alone as the only single point of access to a variety of information and tools provided by pet care professionals who adhere to a strict code of conduct. The Pet Professional Guild affiliates & members offer a selection of force-free, learning theory-based dog training services and profes-sional pet-sitting and dog-walking services. Whether you’re a dog owner looking to solve a specific behavioral problem, a dog lover simply wanting to gain more control and clarity in your relationship with your dog, or a family burdened by the question of how to take care of your pets while you’re away from home, the Guild Members can help you.

The Pet Professional Guild is guided by a steering committee of experienced pet professionals. The 2012 Steering Committee

members are:

Name Company Information Niki Tudge The DogSmith Training Center (Fla. & Miss.) Contact Angelica Steinker Courteous Canine (Fla.) Contact Anne Springer Paws for Praise (Mass.) Contact Leah Roberts Dog Willing Positive Training Solutions (Fla.) Contact Diane Garrod Canine Transformations Learning Center (Wa.) Contact Catherine Zehner The DogSmith, Florida Emerald Coast (Fla.) Contact Leonard Cecil Auf den Hund Gekommen (Switzerland) Contact

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