The International Dog Behaviour Conference

-
The International Dog Behaviour Conference is online this weekend.

The International Dog Behaviour Conference


By Zazie Todd, PhD

This weekend, I will be speaking at the International Dog Behaviour conference organized by Victoria Stilwell. My talk is about Helping Dogs Be Happy (or Even Happier).

As well as myself, there is a wonderful line-up of speakers:
  • Victoria Stilwell
  • Holly Root-Gutteridge
  • Sarah Fisher
  • J. Nicole Smith
  • Sherry Woodard
  • Sarah Heath
  • Clive Wynne
I am really excited for the conference! You can find out more details of the Dog Behaviour Conference here.


Zazie Todd, PhD, is the author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy. She is the founder of the popular blog Companion Animal Psychology, where she writes about everything from training methods to the human-canine relationship. She also writes a column for Psychology Today and has received the prestigious Captain Haggerty Award for Best Training Article in 2017. Todd lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband and two cats.

Useful links:
As an Amazon Associate I earn from qualifying purchases. As an Etsy affiliate, I earn from qualifying purchases.

Comments

Post a comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Ultimate Dog Training Tip

-
Image
The one thing every dog owner should know about how to train a dog.



By Zazie Todd, PhD

There’s a lot of incorrect dog training advice on the internet, which makes it hard for people with dogs to sort out which advice is good and which is not.

Does it matter? Some of the time, despite using methods that aren’t recommended by professional organizations, you can get away with it. Maybe you will have a well-trained dog or maybe you will muddle along. Maybe your dog will actually be a bit afraid but you won’t notice (people aren’t very good at recognizing fear).

But unfortunately, for some dogs, there will be issues. And perhaps, instead of blaming the method, you'll blame the dog.

Here’s what one scientist concluded after reviewing the evidence on dog training methods (Ziv, 2017):
“it appears that aversive training methods have undesirable unintended outcomes and that using them puts dogs’ welfare at risk” Dog training is not regulated and so trainers do not have to be transparent abou…
Read more

Survey Shows Which Treatments Are Effective for Fireworks Fears in Dogs

-
Image
Ad-hoc counter-conditioning and relaxation training work, say owners, but many other treatments don’t.


By Zazie Todd, PhD

Many dogs are afraid of the bangs and whistles from fireworks, up to half according to one study. A new, large survey by Dr. Stefanie Riemer (University of Bern) shows that treatments involving food and play are effective – but many other popular treatments are not rated as successful, according to people using them.

The standard recommended treatment for fireworks fears is desensitization and counter-conditioning (DSCC) using recordings of fireworks noises. The sounds are initially played very quietly at a level the dog is happy with, and over time the volume is gradually increased (the desensitization part). In addition, while the sounds are playing, the dog is offered very nice treats (the counter-conditioning part). In some cases, vets may also prescribe medication.


Outside of training sessions, of course, fireworks and other loud bangs will still happen, especi…
Read more

Dog Training Methods Affect Attachment to the Owner

-
Image
Dogs trained with aversive methods are less likely to show a ‘secure base’ effect, study shows.


By Zazie Todd, PhD

When people use aversive methods to train dogs, it is associated with risks to the dog’s welfare,  including fear, stress, and aggression (Ziv 2017; Guilherme-Fernandes et al 2017). Research published last year in Applied Animal Behaviour Science by Dr. Ana Vieira de Castro (Universidade do Porto) suggests it also affects the dog’s relationship with their owner.

Aversive dog training methods are those based on positive punishment and negative reinforcement.  The schools in this study that were classed as using aversive methods often used jerks on the leash, yelling at the dog, hitting the dog (all examples of positive punishment), or pulling the dog’s leash to choke their collar until they sat down (negative reinforcement).

This page contains affiliate links

Reward-based methods (positive reinforcement and negative punishment) are recommended by many dog training and veterin…
Read more