Whenever I post about allowing dogs to sniff, one of the concerns I hear is that sniffing will prevent the dog from walking nicely with the handler. It's not unreasonable to want the dog to be able to walk with us; however, it may create a conflict of interests between what the human wants from … Continue reading Sniffing walks and loose leash walking are not mutually exclusive
Author: Shay Kelly BSc FdSc
Shay Kelly is a multi-award-winning behaviour consultant. He holds a first class honours degree in Canine Behaviour. Shay's books include 'Dog Training & Behavior: a guide for everyone' and 'Canine Enrichment: the book your dog needs you to read'.
SHOULD “MAN’S BEST FRIEND” BE LED BY THE NECK?
At first glance a dog’s neck may seem muscular and strong; easily capable of having a leash and collar attached for walking. After all, it’s what we’ve used for the past umpteen years and it’s able to hold the weight of a heavy head, projecting forward rather than sitting directly above the body as the … Continue reading SHOULD “MAN’S BEST FRIEND” BE LED BY THE NECK?
The Curse of the Poisoned Cue
You’ve probably heard it a hundred times – ‘dogs do what works’. I’m going to tweak this just a little and say ‘dogs do what makes sense to them’. If they get a treat for walking to a particular spot (perhaps a doorway) then, of course, it makes sense to walk towards the doorway; it’s … Continue reading The Curse of the Poisoned Cue
Don’t worry about where you want to be – Be where you are.
A big concept in training dogs is to find a way of getting the dog to perform a behaviour, then reinforcing that behaviour so they are more likely to perform it again. Once we can predict the behaviour will occur, we add our cue word and Bobs your uncle. However, this often leaves us trying … Continue reading Don’t worry about where you want to be – Be where you are.
Fear of Fireworks
The following is a free subchapter of my book 'Dog Training & Behaviour: A guide for everyone'; in the hope that it will help as many people and their dogs as possible. Fear of fireworks and thunderstorms is probably the most common fear-based problem I hear about. A very common misconception has persisted in which … Continue reading Fear of Fireworks
Behaviour isn’t a number
It's easy to add 2 and 2 together, and come up with 4. When we are talking about adding numbers together context doesn't come into it. But behaviour isn't a number. Behaviour always depends on context. In the enrichment group I run, I see many people concerned that allowing a dog to rip open a … Continue reading Behaviour isn’t a number
Is socialisation causing reactivity?
Recently I read, on social media, that we should not allow our young dogs to play with other dogs. The suggestion was that it causes reactivity or that dogs will injure people as they attempt to play with other dogs. There was also a suggestion that reactivity has increased in line with the practice of … Continue reading Is socialisation causing reactivity?
PickPocket Foragers Review
PickPocket foragers are a relatively new innovation but we are already seeing a number of different products in the range, for example, crate and caterpillar foragers. The focus of this review is the six mini foraging pouches with large pouch. There are many different options available in the pouch sets so make sure you check … Continue reading PickPocket Foragers Review
What’s the best way to train my dog?
We can often be torn between training methods. Ethics are constantly shifting and what may once have been common practice is now unacceptable to many. Even simple and straightforward exercises have been brought into question. Recently I've even seen posts about the legitimacy of teaching sit. We want to use good methods and avoid bad … Continue reading What’s the best way to train my dog?
No More
It’s the end of an era and the books have gone away
