The Two “Shore Girls

What The “Shore Girls” Teach Us About Dogs

by Beth Rodgers

The story of these two “Shore Girls” is sure to melt some hearts. The love and commitment of their foster families is an immeasurable part of their experiences and gives us hope that both will become happy and fulfilled dogs. Neither dog is the typical golden retriever in many ways, but we can learn a lot from their experiences that helps us have a better understanding and relationship with our own dogs.

Fear is a necessary emotion; it steers dogs, just like it steers us, toward conditions essential for survival. It is present in all beings at different times and in different degrees. We see it predictably in dogs who come into shelter or rescue situations whose lives have been turned upside down. Even those who come from ideal circumstances and go into loving homes have no way of understanding what is going on or what will happen next. Consider that many dogs in rescue did not come from ideal circumstances so the potential for fear and associated reactions is even greater. Even our fluffball goldens can have significant fears simply being moved into an unfamiliar environment.

Because these “Shore Girls” were so profoundly fearful, we engaged two wellknown, board certified animal behaviorists who typically work with shelters or with other professionals, but who were willing to help us with Gracie and Poppy. The specialized knowledge of certified behaviorists was essential in these cases because of the severity of the fear, beyond the need for “training.” Both behaviorists had very similar approaches reflecting the latest science about canine cognition.

Before sharing that information, however, we need to recognize how much advancement there has been in our understanding of canine behavior. In the United States, researchers at Yale and Duke Universities particularly are revolutionizing our perspective on how our dogs interpret their worlds (how they think, actually). The ideas many people have held for years about pack behavior and dominance have not been upheld by research. Once we dispense with those old ideas, there are two points that stand out from current research: Dogs are far more complex than many people realize, and they are a lot like us in many ways.

What does this mean for working with our own dogs? Both behaviorists used a classical conditioning and desensitization approach that relied on very slow and careful exposure to things that were perceived as scary; critical evaluation of the dog’s response so that the dog did not exceed “threshold”; properly timed rewards so the desired response was reinforced; a slow, steady and very patient process; and reinforcement of things in the dog’s life that were pleasurable for the general welfare of the dog and also for relationship building with the foster families. Let’s look more closely at some of the key principles in this approach, especially as they can be of benefit to us in sharing our lives with dogs.

•• Each dog is an individual. There is no one size fits all in terms of how they interpret their worlds, what they find troublesome, or what they need to work on to be happy and fulfilled dogs. One dog excitedly rushes to greet every stranger, another hides behind the handler, while a third growls at some and wags happily at others. Each dog is unique and has to be handled as such.

•• Do not make assumptions about any dog. Golden retrievers are known for friendly, outgoing personalities, dogs who love everyone and want nothing more than to be glued to you constantly (unless they see a squirrel or a tennis ball). Such stereotypes can be harmful as they set the dog up for exposure to things for which they are not ready or to be disappointments to their families who thought they were adopting the perfect furry best friend. The new dog may not be ready to meet everyone in the neighborhood! We recommend that such experiences do not happen within the first few days of the dog entering your home, and even later for some. Every dog needs a chance for its own personality, its likes and dislikes, its tolerances and its limits to shine through and it needs things to move slowly enough in its new surroundings for those characteristics to emerge. When dogs come through rescue, they are not being their typical dog-selves. Nothing about their worlds is typical. Some adjust quickly, others need more time, and we must give them that time to adjust and learn their new environments at their pace. They also need to know that they can trust their human companion not to put them in scary or uncomfortable situations.

•• Dogs need to be able to make choices. This is a major change from the old thinking based on ideas of dominance and alpha behavior that led to a “they’ll get over it” kind of thinking. Decades of research is very clear in showing that the dog world does not work based on hierarchical dominant social structures. This is crucial to helping any dog learn and gain confidence in new situations. When encountering new experiences, the dog should not feel trapped or be forced to confront its fear or endure a constant flood of the scary thing. Instead, when possible, the dog should be allowed to determine whether and how to approach something that is scary. The dog can be rewarded for approaching, then allowed to leave when it has had enough. Obviously this does not apply to important activities such as a vet visit, but we can let the dog approach on its terms and reward it

GRACIE

Follow my story on page 16

POPPY

Follow my story on page 18

for doing what we want so it has a positive experience and learns what is the desired behavior.

•• Dogs communicate extremely well, but the cues may be very subtle and also fleeting. We need to learn to speak dog, reading and understanding their reactions and messages to us. This can be especially challenging when working with canine fear. Dogs may show distress and fear with obvious responses such as trying to get away or hide. The cues often are much more subtle, however, such as yawning, lip licking, nose licking, panting, a low ear set (ears pulled back and low on the head), slight movement of the head away from the stimulus, in addition to more obvious signs. A slightly averted glance called “whale eye” is a common reaction to a scary situation. With this reaction, some of the white of the eye is showing as the dog attempts to look away from the frightening stimulus but still wants to see what is going on and monitoring whatever seems threatening. Reading the dog’s communication is crucial to evaluating its response so that we can recognize when it is having trouble with a situation. It also is important to ensure the dog does not exceed “threshold,” the point at which the dog is too stimulated to think about what is happening and can only react. •• Timing of reinforcement is critical for the dog’s learning. Rewards must be provided in a way that clearly marks the desired response. If we are slow, we may be providing a reward at a time that the dog associates it with a less desirable behavior.

•• While not a solo treatment, medication can be a very important part of a behavioral program. A frightened or extremely anxious dog cannot learn. Medication can take the edge off the fear and anxiety enough to enable learning to occur.

•• There is no timeline and the process cannot be rushed. Progress can come in very small steps and be accompanied by forward and backward movement.

All of these principles are an essential part of the work with both dogs. Both dogs still have a long way to go, but they have made tremendous progress thanks to the love and dedication of the foster families and a sound behavioral program based on current science. As an example of how slow and stepwise this process can be, an early intervention for Gracie was for the foster mom to read aloud while sitting on the floor adjacent to but outside of Gracie’s safe space under the table. Gracie needed help to learn to tolerate even the presence of humans close to her, and this activity provided some exposure but in a nonthreatening way. Treats were included, but at times the fear was so great that she would not risk taking a treat from foster mom’s hand. She has progressed to allowing brief touch during those reading sessions. Starting at such a basic level in the desensitization process takes tremendous patience and love, and both dogs have been fortunate to be in the care of such dedicated foster families.

As mentioned earlier, research has led to substantial changes in understanding how dogs think and feel, and thus how to help them learn and develop in a healthy way. Links to two noteworthy centers for such research are provided below. Perhaps reading the stories from Gracie and Poppy will stimulate more awareness of how we communicate with our own dog and how they see the world. They are always watching and learning from us, and as these two Shore Girls show, we also can learn a lot from them.

– Yale University Canine Cognition Center: https://doglab.yale.edu/ (Dr. Laurie Santos, Director) – Duke Canine Cognition Center: https:// evolutionaryanthropology.duke.edu/research/ dogs (Dr. Brian Hare, Director)