Glasgow Dog Trainer Melbourne Seminars

Usually i try to focus on science, because science is concrete, measurable, definitive. Ethics is harder, they’re personal, there is obvious extremes, but there is a whole lots of blurry gray area. When considering the ethics of modifying an animals behavior (training them) and what methods we use, everyone has different standards.

I’m not here to judge anyone else’s standards. I’m just sharing mine. Before i try to influence my horse’s behavior i want to ensure they are able to do (or not do) what i want, physically and emotionally. If they are unwell, i can’t ask them to smother that problem.

Then i consider, am i trying to make a behavior happen or make a behavior not happen? I will only go down to the next step down if I need.

If i want a specific behavior i will train it with R+, easy as that. I have a huge tool bag full of ways to train things i want with all R+. I’ll use eveything i know to help use R+ to help my horse do what i want. I’ll train all sorts of things i want just for fun with R+, because its fun for both of us. But if there is a problem and i’ve done everything i know of with R+ and my horse won’t do the behavior i want, i will ask my R+ training friends for help. What’s going on, what am i missing? If R+ just can’t get the horse to do the thing i want, how badly does it need to happen? If its for fun, or my entertainment, i will probably accept that my horse doesn’t want to do this, i’m not going to push the issue. But if its for my horse’s wellbeing and i have really tried what i can or i just don’t have time to do it kindly with R+, because its a rush for THEIR wellness, then i will use R-.

If i want them to stop doing a behavior, i will train an incompatible bebavior with R+. I’ll let the unwanted behavior extinguish with time as the better alternative takes its place. I’ll also make sure that nothing is unintentionally reinforcing that unwanted behavior. If it continues because i can’t fix the situation, its self reinforcing (it feels good to do), i have to decide how far i’m willing to go. How big of a deal is this behavior? Or is it dangerous or harmful? Can i get more creative? Have i asked for help from my peers? Before i punish, what else can i do?

The focus game is literally game changing for you and your dog.

We haven't worked versions, the second one has additional lessons which will help around prey animals.

Some lovely feedback from one of our clients.

https://glasgowdogtraineronline.thinkific.com/courses/bulletproof-focus

https://glasgowdogtraineronline.thinkific.com/courses/squirrels-and-rabbits

GLASGOW DOG TRAINER MELBOURNE

Hello people and here is the exciting news. The Glasgow Dog Trainers will b back in November 9th 10th in Melbourne and then onto NWS 16th and 17th November.Further details to come but keep those dates free .

We have some pretty exciting news regarding a special guest, who will be hosted at our centre later this year! John, The Glasgow Dog Trainer, all the way from Scotland, will be running a two day workshop in November. This is open to everyone, dog owners, trainers, veterinarians and veterinary behaviourists. John's focus is reactive dogs and those that struggle to connect with their handlers. More information will be shared later, including fees.
If you are interested and would like to go on the waiting, please let us know. Spaces are limited!

Any interested persons

Maria Houben

Same bike, same place, same girl. 71 years difference. But.. 🐾💙
Photo credit: unknown

DON'T MISS OUT!

If you have been considering joining our monthly membership programme, which is extremely affordable but haven't done so, you only have 7 more days to join at the low price of GBP£15 per month (US$18). Form next week, we are changing the price but the good news is that if you sign up today, you'll secure the current price for as long as you remain a member with us.

For that price you get fully explained video lessons with both theoretical can practical examples of

- how dogs learn
- loose lead walking
- recall
- aggression and reactivity
- how to play with your dog
- bullet proof focus and attention
- working with and training adolescent dogs
- dealing with fearful behaviours
- solving problem behaviours

And a whole lot more. Regular live classes via video call plus access to the full back catalogue of previous live calls.

If you are a dog owner, walker, groomer, trainer, day care person or enthusiast, this is for you.

Don't miss out. Join us today

https://glasgowdogtraineronline.thinkific.com/courses/dog-training-and-behaviour-modification

When someone tells you feeding an animal is complicated and that they only take nutritional guidance from a vet...🙃... though to be fair it very much applies to your own health too.

4 top vets were asked at the Expo - of the 13hrs or so (studies show) of nutritional lectures you guys receive over your five years in college how many were about dogs specifically? The consensus was two hours. Two hours! Asides the fact we know those lectures are usually dispensed by whichever pet food company is sponsoring their veterinary department, most of us are doing two hours before we walk the dogs in the morning!!

It's patently clear most disease has an environmental cause and the major factor is what you put IN or ON your pet.

Their health is in your hands, folks. Get educated.

To learn more, you need to check out

📗"Raising Naturally Healthy Pets" by Dr. Judy
📘"The Complete Book of Cat and Dog Health" by Dr LiseHansen
📕"Forever Dog" Dr. Karen Becker and Rodney Habib (Forever 2 already on the way I hear...)
📙 or my book "Feeding Dogs" on Amazon which is about raw feeding specifically.

Or, check out any of our growing line of online courses available - you got ours http://dogsfirst.ie/webinars/ and Judys on https://www.drjudyu.com/.

I have a raw-feeding masterclass coming soon for newbies on the way. Going to be very comprehensive, covering dry, cooking, raw, the whole shibang.

Time to take the PTSD out of pet feeding!!!

Compassion fatigue.

VICDRG IS CLOSED TILL TUESDAY 16TH MAY

For the first time in eighteen years, we are taking a break and turning off our computers completely until Tuesday, 16th May. No more sitting with our laptops on our knees in the car, airport lounge, or wherever – an almost complete break of one whole week.

You can send your non-urgent emails on to the usual addresses but they will not be attended to before the 16th May.

We will also be placing this advice on the web and our individual pages.

For those of you who have been with us on our journey, a few from the very beginning when we established a rescue network at the Lost Dogs Home to save dogs and cats from the unbearably high-kill shelter, to those early adopters and supporters of the Drought Dogs Program, we can’t tell you how much your support has inspired us and kept us going. We are delighted that some of our early LDH rescue network, Drought Dogs drivers and adopters, have gone on to form their own very successful rescue groups. Others have continued to support us both emotionally and financially.

In the beginning we struggled to save dogs and cats that those in authority wanted to kill. Now we have the opposite situation. We are being deluged by shelters, pounds and individuals with dogs and cats that need a safe haven. And each dog or cat deserves to live.

It is not just us: it is the rescue sector generally. We are absolutely drained and exhausted. We are still waiting on changes we were promised by the government more than a decade ago, simple non-financial changes that would make our lives easier.

We would like a week to spend with our own dogs and cats; and in some cases, mourn our personal losses without having to respond appropriately to other demands on us.

Sadly, we have had to say already on our website that we are not taking on seniors with complicated health issues or any dog with behaviour problems while we regroup.

We are so disappointed with all the people that bought their COVID puppies during those difficult years – often from back yard breeders, with poor genetics, and then not trained or socialised – who are now busy dumping these pets when they are inconvenient.

This does not include those we also hear from who have made a genuine effort but are not coping.

Volunteer rescue groups exist because the individuals in them care. Probably too much. And we have have compassion fatigue. We don’t work nine to five. We take the emails and the calls whenever they come in, seven days a week.

There are only so many dogs and cats you can turn away, knowing they have no future. There are so many sad stories that you can hear, so many appalling photos that you can see, without it impacting on you.

Please give us this week and we will be back, hopefully with more stamina to keep on going.

For emergencies only this week please email [email protected].

NOTE: Because we have a number of kittens who every week get bigger, our cat coordinator Christine has made the decision to keep her section open. So no changes if you are contacting about a cat or kitten.

The photo we show below, is of Hughie, long deceased, but never forgotten. He came from Melton Pound and the best we and the vets could work out he had lived under a bed or something very low all his life. He could not stand properly and his insides were ruined. He had a short but happy time with his carer.

The next time you are beside yourself with frustration over your dog’s behavior, pulling your hair out wondering “when will this ever end??!!”

Please know there are very good reasons your dog is likely providing these behaviors. Especially when they are persistent in response to training you may have a behavior issue on your hands.

For cases like this, it often requires someone specifically educated in animal behavior which is a steep departure from standard dog training and definitely transcends the question ‘what method should I be using?’

The method is connecting with someone who understands what’s going on. Some of us are deeply committed, educated and trained in how to pacify the animal’s emotional needs so they no longer need the incompatible behaviors to feel satisfied and as a result they inherently become obsolete.

It’s this process of being interested in the underlying cause of a behavior and answering the question: what is a compatible method that satisfies both the animal and the human’s needs?

Creating this harmonious intersection is the skill I practice the most.

If you notice any of the “F” responses it’s a good sign that animal is experiencing stress. If you notice fight, flight, freeze, fidget, fawn (NEEDING your attention, can’t leave your side) behaviors consider the following in so far as finding some relief in the ’why the hell is this happening to us??!’ question:

The F responses are instinctually driven behaviors that service the animal’s need to survive danger, kill prey and avoid being eaten by predators.

When the HPA axis is activated, the sympathetic nervous system is triggered
causing increased heart rate, pupil dialation, decreased pancreatic funtion
allowing blood glucose levels to spike, and increased respiration, all resulting in
more energy packed blood to be pumped into the muscles which provides both for improved fight and escape behaviors.

Some dogs can't complete this stress cycle (how the body is activated by stress) because they are unable to escape the triggers responsible for creating this response. The entire environment is stressful for them.

When the stressors are removed, the HPA axis begins to deactivate and the body slowly recovers to a physiological base-line.

At that point, the parasympathetic nervous system activates and the relax, rest, digest functions take over.

Learning improves dramatically,
retention sky rockets and descision making over-all improves

Resliance conditioning directly targets those inputs most effective in helping our dogs complete this cycle and ultimately feel calm.

Fast activation and efficient termination of the stress response are associated with resilliance in dogs AND humans.
Imagine that 😉