by Joshua | Feb 15, 2018 | contents, contents
1. Stanford University School of Medicine; 2. Broad Institute of MIT and Harvard For a purebred dog and, on occasion, even a first-generation hybrid, breed-inference services often just confirm what the dog owner already knows. Sometimes a pedigree is available,...
by Joshua | Feb 14, 2018 | Working Animals
Animal-assisted interventions can have specific therapeutic goals of improving physical or cognitive functioning, or they can provide general “opportunities for motivational, educational, recreational, and/or therapeutic benefits to enhance quality of life” (Morrison,...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Dog
Separation anxiety (SA) and separation-related behavior (SRB) are significant welfare concerns for companion dogs (Cannas et al., 2014; Lund & Jorgensen, 1999). SA has been shown to be associated with negative affective states (Scaglia et al., 2013), raise...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | General
Boo is a male grizzly bear (Ursus arctos), born in 2002. He weighs 550 to 600 pounds in the spring, and up to 750 to 850 pounds in the winter before hibernation. We came to take care of Boo after he and his brother Cari were orphaned at approximately 5 months of age,...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Horse
Introduction Stallions can be used in different disciplines and they may stand at stud either as retirement or alongside their “career” (Burger et al., 2012). Traditionally they are managed with little regard to their natural behaviour (McDonnell, 2016b); they may be...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Shelter
Often times in sprawling country areas, such as the one I’m writing from now, the overall majority of dogs (and cats) brought into shelters and rescues are what I typically describe as “rural.” Not exactly social and not exactly feral, the...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Dog
“All done!” I cried. Amid applause and cheering, the retired police sergeant hopped up from his position prostrate on the folding table. We had accomplished our crowd-sourced training goal—using a clicker, I had shaped him to lie face down on this rickety table for...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Cat
Go-to-box training is a very useful tool. It enables you to not only relocate a cat, but more importantly to refocus him. It is an excellent tool for teaching impulse control. I find that target training is the best first step to teaching this. Below is a case study...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Dog
As any animal behavior consultant can attest, one of the greatest challenges we face is dissuading owners from anthropomorphizing their pet’s behavior. In many respects, anthropomorphism is the proverbial gorilla in the room: It’s taboo, highly controversial, and most...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Shelter
Helping professionals of all kinds are exposed to a variety of stressors related to both their workplace systems and the ongoing exposure to direct and indirect trauma. This complex combination of stressors requires helping professionals to explore the steps they can...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | General
So, this is huge. When the APDT Chile announced its intention to become part of the IAABC and to host a congress on aggressive dog handling techniques with Trish McMillan Loehr and Michael Shikashio in Santiago de Chile, I pricked my ears: the IAABC’s presence here in...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | General, Cat, Business of Behavior
Animal behavior consultants come from all walks of life. One of the most common questions IAABC gets is about how to get started working with pets and their people. The truth is, there’s no set career path, and no single qualification that prepares you for this...
by Joshua | Feb 13, 2018 | Working Animals
I had occasion today to think about how we working livestock guardian dog (LGD) owners view dominance in our dogs. Before we get into any further conversations about training, I think we should take a closer look at what dominance is and, perhaps more importantly,...
Recent Comments