Canine Nation

Good communication with our dogs relies on positive reinforcement, consistency and fairness. When that breaks down, our dogs can get frustrated with us. They can't be sure what we're asking and they risk being scolded for not complying with our cues to them. That frustration can take an emotional toll on our dogs.

When we went through our difficulties with our dog Vince ten years ago, I’m not sure I understood what a life-changing experience it would be. It can be a difficult and scary thing to leave behind the things you thought you knew and try something new with an open mind. What I didn't realize was that it would open my heart as well.

When we went through our difficulties with our dog Vince ten years ago, I’m not sure I understood what a life-changing experience it would be. It can be a difficult and scary thing to leave behind the things you thought you knew and try something new with an open mind. What I didn't realize was that it would open my heart as well.

Audio edition of the article Finding Out the Truth About Your Dog from the Life As A Human online magazine website. You can visit Life a a Human to find this and other articles. We make a lot of assumptions about dogs.  We pass them one.  And, over time, these suppositions can turn into things we believe as TRUE about dogs.  But ours is an age of reason and science.  Shouldn't we devote as much effort to finding out about our dogs and their behaviour as we do to a new appliance or software program?  The scientific method of posing questions, testing to see what we find, and making conclusions based on experience rather than hearsay has taken mankind a long way.  If it's good enough for modern medicine, it should be good enough for "man's best friend" shouldn't it?  Is it easy to let go of some of our beliefs about dogs?  No.  But examining what we think we know might just be the key to a better life with our dogs.  It has certainly made all the difference in my life. essence of scientific method just plain wrong This week I'd like to recommend Google Scholar. It's a variant of the standard Google search engine that searches academic publishers, professional societies, online repositories, universities and other web sites. It's a great way to find data from professional sources without having to sift through unwanted results in the main Google search page.

We make a lot of assumptions about dogs.  We pass them one.  And, over time, these suppositions can turn into things we believe as TRUE about dogs.  But ours is an age of reason and science.  Shouldn’t we devote as much effort to finding out about our dogs and their behaviour as we do to […]

For some people, a new dog is no big deal.  You just bring it home and that's it.  To others, it can be a wonderful adventure full of fun and learning and activities for both the human and the dog.  My friends Angela and Michael were looking forward with some excitement to getting their new puppy, whom they have named Castle.   Angela has been deep in learning about the latest training methods and behavioural science so she can teach young Castle all kinds of things.  The puppy's breeder, Natalie Vivian, is also a friend and one of the best breeders of Belgian Shepherds I know about.  Natalie uses proven science to give all of her new puppies the best training from almost the day they are born so they are prepared to meet a big new world with no fear and lots of joy.  How great that these two found each other and how lucky for Castle to have such a great start in life! A transcript of the main text of Adventures in Puppyhood: Tips for Matchmaking a New Dog is available at the Life As A Human online magazine website. You can visit Life as a Human to find this and other articles. Thanks for listening to Canine Nation podcasts. I hope you can spread the word and let your dog-friends know about what you're hearing here. As always, your comments and suggestions are welcome!    

  Audio edition of the article Adventures in Puppyhood: Tips for Matchmaking a New Dog from the Life As A Human online magazine website. You can visit Life a a Human to find this and other articles. For some people, a new dog is no big deal.  You just bring it home and that's it.  To others, it can be a wonderful adventure full of fun and learning and activities for both the human and the dog.  My friends Angela and Michael were looking forward with some excitement to getting their new puppy, whom they have named Castle.   Angela has been deep in learning about the latest training methods and behavioural science so she can teach young Castle all kinds of things.  The puppy's breeder, Natalie Vivian, is also a friend and one of the best breeders of Belgian Shepherds I know about.  Natalie uses proven science to give all of her new puppies the best training from almost the day they are born so they are prepared to meet a big new world with no fear and lots of joy.  How great that these two found each other and how lucky for Castle to have such a great start in life! We really appreciate your support of Canine Nation and we hope you continue to enjoy both the podcast and the written articles at Life As A Human.  Your comments and feedback are important to us as well!  Please be sure to take a few moments to drop us a comment here or on the Life As A Human articles. You can also join our Canine Nation discussion group on Facebook.  Just click "Ask To Join" when you get to our page and an admin will approve you.  Join the conversation!

Humans like the affection of dogs. We find it reinforcing when they come to us for petting and attention. Once they find something that annoys us, they can be masters at using it to get us to do things in order get them to stop doing it. It’s cause and effect, consequences dictating behaviour. And […]

Audio edition of the article Dog Training? Who's Training Who? from the Life As A Human online magazine website. You can visit Life a a Human to find this and other articles. Humans like the affection of dogs. We find it reinforcing when they come to us for petting and attention. Once they find something that annoys us, they can be masters at using it to get us to do things in order get them to stop doing it. It’s cause and effect, consequences dictating behaviour. And they know it. As Jean Donaldson put it in her book Culture Clash, “Dogs do what works.” So who is training who in this relationship? The answer is probably both you and the dog. The good news is that it's probably best that way! This week I'm recommending a great book. "Reaching The Animal Mind" by Karen Pryor is a wonderful book about how and why training based on behavioural science works. Karen shares stories from her own life about training horses, goldfish, ferrets, and even humans with behavioural science in a fun and effective way. This book has received critical acclaim and comes highly recommended. It's a great read! You can find it at the Dogwise online store or at Amazon. It's also probably at your local book store.

When it comes to dog training, Positive Training and training based on rewards are hot topics these days. There are some in the dog world who think training with rewards means you never say “no” to your dog. Is it possible to be a Positive Trainer and still stop problem behaviours in your dog? The […]

Audio edition of the article Is A Reward Trained Dog a Misbehaving Dog? Positively NOT! from the Life As A Human online magazine website. You can visit Life a a Human to find this and other articles. When it comes to dog training, Positive Training and training based on rewards are hot topics these days. There are some in the dog world who think training with rewards means you never say “no” to your dog. Is it possible to be a Positive Trainer and still stop problem behaviours in your dog? The answer is YES! This week I'm recommending wonderful learning opportunity. ClickerExpo is a 3-day seminar event put on by Karen Pryor's Clickertraining.Com crew. Twice each year they bring together some of the top trainers working in the field today to share their insights and wisdom. Three days worth of intensive sessions on everything from basics of clicker training to the latest information and techniques from behavioural science are offered. Whether you are a beginner at behavioural training or someone who is well read, you will something of interest. It's a great weekend you won't regret. All the information you need is right HERE! Check them it out!  

The terms we use to describe when we talk about dogs and dog behaviour matters. Sometimes generalizing too much can do more harm than good. While clever terms can get you to agreement on some level, they may also keep us from understanding what each other is REALLY talking about. A transcript of the main […]

Audio edition of the article How Do We Talk About Dog Training? from the Life As A Human online magazine website. You can visit Canine Nation to find this and other articles. The terms we use to describe when we talk about dogs and dog behaviour matters. Sometimes generalizing too much can do more harm than good. While clever terms can get you to agreement on some level, they may also keep us from understanding what each other is REALLY talking about. This week I'm recommending a great DVD set. "Fundamentals of Animal Training" by Bob Bailey is a tremendous value. Bob has more than 40 experience in training animals from dolphins and whales to lizards, bears, and dogs! His presentation is fun, informative, he brings even complex topic into an easy to understand focus. You can find it at the Dogwise online store. Check them out out!

Dogs have been with us for centuries. Today, millions of dogs live in the homes of humans. But what exactly is the dog getting out of the deal? In fact, a better question is what should the dog be getting out of the deal?

My wife and I love having our two Belgian Shepherds in our lives. We have occasionally had three dogs for short periods. You would think that adding a third dog would add about 30 percent more work, fun, and chaos into our lives. Unfortunately, it’s not quite that simple. I talked with dog trainer Amanda […]