Lovely Henrietta was dumped at the local humane society during the middle of the night. After fostering her for a little over a month we became a “foster fail” and adopted her. Below is a bit about her story and how we came to adopt her.
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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