Do you have a pup that gets stressed when going to the dog groomer? In today’s Animal Behavior and Dog Training Tidbit video, “How Do You Get Your Dog to Like the Groomer” I discuss some tips to help your dog feel more comfortable and less anxious when it’s time to visit the groomer.

If you prefer to read about “How Do You Get Your Dog to Like the Groomer,” below is a lightly edited transcript from the video.

Hi! My name is Terrie Hayward from Positive Animal Wellness.

Thanks for joining us. Today I’m going to talk about a question that comes up often and it is, “How can I get my dog to like the groomer?”

I think this is a really important question because so many of our dogs need to go to the groomer for bathing, nails, or if you have a dog that needs a special kind of haircut. A dog that’s as my sister, who’s a professional groomer, would say, “not a wash and wear dog.”

Your dog may need to make frequent visits to the groomer and we want that to be a stress-free or low-stress experience for both the dog and for you as the caregiver.

So, I think that this is such an important piece that I co-wrote a book called “Grooming Without Stress” with Jay Andors and Anne Francis. This book might help you along with some tips.

However, just to get started I thought we’d talk about the key components. Additionally, I also did the Fear Free course for groomers and we’ll have that link in the description.

The very first piece is what, as my co-author colleague Jay says, you want to do what “we call a meet and treat.” Basically, we want to help the dog to create a positive association with not only the groomer themselves but the whole experience. From entering the shop, with the location, with the sights and the smells, and with the individual who’s going to be working with you and your dog.

That “meet and treat” means that you might, in your first visit or two, not even do any grooming. It might be just you and your dog going to the shop and pairing that experience with something that the dog finds really great–some kind of high-value treats.

We do the “meet and treat” and the next step is also using the same kind of technique, which is that we would use desensitization. This means moving at a pace that the dog feels comfortable, and counter-conditioning which is again pairing with something that the dog finds reinforcing.

We do this to help create a positive association and a comfortable relaxed scenario of going to the groomer’s shop. If we move faster it may feel like we’re getting ahead however this not only impacts that particular visit but it can impact all visits to come in the future. Because it can exponentially become more fear-inducing, more anxiety-provoking, and more stressful for the dog as well as for you.

What you want to do is begin with that “meet and treat” and move slowly making sure that your dog has a really great association with the groomer and the shop and the whole process.

That way, for years to come your dog will feel comfortable and relaxed when they need to go and have some grooming done.

Thanks again!

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Are you a dog parent who constantly shouts “no” at your pup? Then this weeks Animal Behavior and Dog Training Tidbit video, “Why I Don’t Teach No” is for you!

If you prefer to read about “Why I Don’t Teach No” when training a dog, below is a lightly edited transcript from the video.

Hi, I’m Terrie Hayward from Positive Animal Wellness. Thanks for joining me. In today’s “Animal Behavior and Dog Training Tidbit” I’m going to talk about a popular question, “How do you teach your dog no?”

Actually, I don’t teach “no” to my hearing dog nor my deaf dog. There are many reasons why. First, because I feel like it provides some murky communication. Specifically, it doesn’t teach the dog what to do.

As such, I’d rather dedicate the time to teach the dog what to do, instead of saying “no.” Another reason is that when you say “no” the dog doesn’t understand–is that no not now, or no ever, or just no when you’re not looking?

And if you have had to say “no” more than one time, in actuality, is the “no” really working the way you’d like it too? Has the dog learned anything, or do you just need to continue to say “no” in different scenarios?

Also, here’s the issue if the “no” is as intended, to stop or decrease behavior. For example, let’s say a dog is jumping and you would prefer that the dog not do that. If you said “no” you’re trying to stop or decrease the jumping. Anytime we add something with the intent to stop or decrease behavior, then behaviorally defined, it is called positive punishment.

This doesn’t mean positive in terms of something good, it means positive like the addition of punishment. And punishment comes with dangerous side effects such as apathy, aggression, escape avoidance, and generalized fear. None of which any of us want for our dogs.

Instead what I’d prefer to do is use the time and teach incompatible or alternative behaviors. Let’s go back to my example with jumping. Say your dog is jumping up on you and you’d prefer they not do that. You can capture “four paws on the floor” and mark and reinforce that. Additionally, you can teach a settle or lie down and mark and reinforce that behavior.
You can teach these incompatible behaviors and make them much more reinforcing than the original behavior of jumping up. And you’ve also got a happier better relationship with your dog as a result.

If you, for example, did want to teach the word “no” and you’re only using the word “no” to mean an incompatible behavior like a recall, that could possibly work. For example, let’s say your dog was running after a bunny rabbit, and your version of “no” didn’t mean stop or decrease that behavior. Instead, your version here means “turn your head around and head back towards me.” In that instance, I would say full steam ahead. However, in that instance, we could also call that recall word “banana.” In other words, we don’t need to use the word “no.”

But traditionally as the word is often used to stop or decrease a behavior I would advocate that you use your time to teach things that you want your dog to do and that you want to see more frequently. Again, that will build trust and choice and more harmony in your relationship with your dog overall.

Thanks for joining me!

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For today’s dog training and animal behavior tidbit we answer the often asked question, “What is a clicker and how do you use it in dog training?”

If you prefer to read about what a clicker is, and how to use it when training your dog, below is a lightly edited transcript of the video.

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Hi, thanks for joining us. I’m Terrie Hayward from Positive Animal Wellness and today we’re going to talk about a question that I often get asked which is, “What is a clicker and how do you use it in dog training?”

For those of you that are not familiar with a clicker, a clicker is a small device that makes a consistent and repeatable sound. This is called a box clicker and on the back, it has a little bit of metal and when I push my thumb into one part of it, it makes a clicking type of a sound. There are other clickers that look similar maybe with rounded corners, maybe with a little bump instead of the box design, but they’re all set up to do the same thing.

Basically, clickers are a marker and a marker is a communication device. They allow us to communicate with an animal and explain, when you hear this noise it means that the thing you just did was what has now earned you access to something you find reinforcing.

A marker allows us to pinpoint a behavior that we’d like to highlight and then what we need to do is make sure we pair our marker with something the animal, the individual learner, finds reinforcing. That’s key because otherwise, a clicker on its own is just a plastic box. But if the animal understands that every single time you make this “click” noise it means something good is on the way to them–then they start to look out for that noise. The animal realizes the thing I just did earns the click–let me do that more often because it means I now have a road or path to access something I like.

In particular, clickers are handy because they are a unique sound in the environment, they carry no emotion, and it sounds the same no matter who uses the clicker. However, in addition to a clicker you can also use a verbal marker. Sometimes people use the word “yes” or the word “good.” Remember, a verbal marker is always paired with something the dog finds reinforcing.

Additionally, you can use another type of auditory marker. You may have seen the use of a whistle with marine mammals. We can use whistles with dogs too, again, always pairing our marker–whether it’s a clicker, a verbal marker, or an auditory marker–with a reinforcer. We can even use visual or tactile markers. I frequently work with deaf dogs and so this “closed fist, open fist, closed fist” is my visual clicker. Just like my auditory clicker anytime I make that sound or make this “starfish” hand gesture I always pair it with something that my learner finds reinforcing.

When it comes to training your dog, I hope that you’ll consider using a clicker and doing some clicker training. Whether it’s with your clicker, with a verbal marker, or with a visual marker to better communicate your with your animal.

Thanks so much for joining me!