A TWO WEEK COURSE INTO UNDERSTANDING BEHAVIOUR
Becoming a leader that others respect.
Chapter 1 In order to work in harmony with animals we must first discover an understanding of how and why they behave as they do. In this chapter we start by looking at the history of the canine.
UNDERSTANDING THE DOG.
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Identify the breeds of the canine in pictures below: 1. :
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WOLVES: A BRIEF HISTORY. Wolves and humans first became friends 14000 years ago. Their friendship began from tame Gray wolves being accepted into early communities, it was a good friendship on both sides with wolves providing their superior senses and their tracking abilities, and man provided their new partners with easy access to the most precious commodity: food.
Wolves were native to England, sharing the very ground we walk on, wolves were also found native to many other countries. Our friendship with the wolves lasted until we began to try to preserve our food, keeping our cattle alive until we were hungry. Then wolves would see an easy meal in our livestock so became our enemy. We were now competing against each other for survival .A relationship evolved based on a struggle for survival. In the tenth century King Edward accepted wolves’ heads in payment for taxes, making it legal to exterminate them as a means of saving livestock. Around 1773 the last wolf in the United Kingdom was exterminated. Their species was now rendered extinct in the United Kingdom.
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In America the Native Americans had great respect for the wolves labelling them as ‘teachers’ and animals to be revered and respected However, when the British colonized America Deforestation took place, clearing the land for farming purposes, in doing so the numbers of natural prey decreased and an increase in the farming of domestic livestock. The wolves finding it harder and harder to survive in the wild were forced to prey upon the domestic livestock. Inevitably tensions mounted between man and wolf: and the balance of a once hospitable relationship tipped and a period of hostility began.
Wolves were one of the most successful animals to walk the earth, loved by some people and hated by others, Wolves have since been killed off and lost 90% of their natural habitat around the world.
SPECIES OF WOLF AND WHERE THEY LIVED. The extermination of wolves grew rapidly as professional wolf cullers were engaged with bounties placed on their heads. With the use of guns the eradication happened quickly. In three centuries it was estimated that 250, 000 wolves were killed worldwide,. The wolf, once a friend that has been on the planet tens of thousands of years before us, nearly faced extinction in as little as three centuries.
Q: Why was the native Indians perception of the wolf so different than ours?
Tundra Wolf Arabian Wolf Arctic Wolf Mexican Wolf Russian Wolf
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Caspian Sea Wolf Italian Wolf Egyption Wolf Eurasian Wolf Eastern Timber Wolf
Great Plains Wolf Mackenzie Wolf Indian Wolf Honshu Wolf Hokkaido Wolf
Humans and wolves were fighting against each other for food to survive. In Japan, Mexico and the UK wolves are extinct. There are now estimated to be 150 000 worldwide. Q: Were humans right to kill wolves? Discuss.
1.2 Wolves communicate on several levels using their senses; firstly smell, then sight. Humans are the opposite: sight and then smell.
HOW WOLVES COMMUNICATE:
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Sounds Wolves communicate with sounds such as yelps, whines, whimpers, growls, howling, woofs, barks and snarls.
Howling Wolves howling are a great way for them to communicate. a long distance call with two main purposes • To call separated group members and as a means of identification or assessing location. • To warn off other rival packs (when wolves howl they do not do so in the same pitch. If one wolf replicates the same pitch then the other wolf would quickly change their pitch) this is to confuse rival packs of their numbers, resulting in their sounding like there are more of them than there actually is.
Smell Wolves communicate on several levels through scent; the most obvious form being urination. Their sense of smell is 100 times stronger than that of a human with the particular part of the brain being 14 times the size. A Wolf can smell their prey from half a mile away. Scent marking conveys numerous messages including information on species, individual identification, age, gender and reproductive status. Scenting is done to mark territory to alert other animals of their presence.
Body Language Wolves communicate through body language in many ways: - To alert others of social status. - To dominate or to submit. - To alert when it’s the subordinates turn to eat. - To display playfulness., Affection. - Courtship. - Aggression. - To give orders of when it’s time to hunt, or to pup sit. - To give the order to attack. - To give the order to run. - To say they are happy, scared, excited. - To warn other wolves away.
Wolves feed on animals such as deer, elk, caribou, bison, boar, antelope, fish, small mammals, and vegetation, fruit. Q: When a wolf detects its prey, what sense would be most likely used first, sight, smell or hearing? A:
1.3 Wolves operate within a highly developed social structure known as the pack. They all have roles and they all know their place. Pack sizes vary depending on age, available territory and prey.
THE WOLF PACK In the desert regions wolves feed primarily on small mammals making the pack sizes smaller. In Alaska and Canada wolves prey on large ungulates making pack sizes larger.
The wolves’ roles in the pack often change due to: - Old age - Strength, - New members, - Death, - Illness, - Their pups. Wolf Pups As soon as wolves are born and begin feeding they push, climb and shove to get the best supply of their mother’s teat to able better chance of survival. Q: Why do pack sizes depend on the size of their prey? A:
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Q: What does this suggest for their future? A:
Wolves operate in a highly organised team. Their survival depends on this team as a matter of life and death so they do take their individual jobs seriously. The pack structure of the wolves start with the leaders, they are known as the alpha male and alpha female. Below them are their subordinates. The pack is formed with the Alpha Male and Alpha Female in charge of the rest of the pack. They are the strongest, most intelligent wolves in the pack. It is essential for them to be in charge as the chance for survival is much greater if they have the best leaders possible making the decisions.
THE ALPHA PAIR
Below the alpha pair will be the beta, the next in charge and at the bottom of the pack is the omega. All the wolves have roles in the pack and the higher up in the pack, denotes the order in which you eat. Q: Which wolf eats first? A:
Q: Which wolf eats last? A:
1.4 The alphas are responsible for the packs survival. They are the strongest, cleverest,best decision makers of the pack.
THE ALPHA PAIR.
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It is vital that the best members of the pack are in charge as the packs survival depends on their ability to lead.The other wolves will feel confidence and security knowing that this is the case. The alphas have 3 main jobs to do all day and every day. The jobs never stop. The jobs are: • to protect the pack • to find food • to breed
How do the alphas communicate to the other wolves that they are in charge? In the wild the alphas must signal to the other wolves that they are in charge. This is done in 4 ways: • The hunt • The food • Perceived danger • Separation
THE 4 POINTS EXPLAINED IN THE WILD The Food In the wild the alphas eat first, this is to ensure that they can have as much food as they need in order so they are fit and healthy to lead the pack. (On occasion the other wolves will not get enough to eat but accept this as they know the importance of the alphas needing to be strong and capable to make careful decisions the next day) The pecking order of the pack is understood and reinforced in this manner.
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The Hunt In the wild the alphas lead the hunt, they are the strongest most intelligent members of the pack capable of making the best decisions so in the front is the best place to be to react to possible danger, if they see a threat coming they will make the decision of what to do. They can do this in 3 ways: Flight, Freeze and Fight.
Perceived Danger In the wild it is the alphas who deal with dangers coming near the packs area. It is the job of the subordinate to alert the alphas so they can come and deal with the situation.
Separation In the wild the pack will reunite after a separation to reassert (clarify) where they fit in the pack hierarchy. The Alphas will ignore the other wolves when they re-enter the territory. This is to alert the others that they are still in charge: strong and healthy and no member of that pack is permitted into the alphas space until invited.
1.5 A wolf has a defence mechanism similar to humans . If the pack is in trouble the alpha will decide on how to deal with the situation, this is done in 3 ways.
FLIGHT, FREEZE & FIGHT 1.5/pg.16
Flight This is the first option and for the reason it is the safest option. Flight causes no harm, if they can get away then they do. They do not risk their lives due to pride or ego; they get away from the situation and remain safe for another day. Freeze This is the next option if there is nowhere to go; if they are boxed in for example they will bark to attempt to keep the threat away. Fight Fight is the last option as this one will cause the most damage, when a wolf is boxed in and freeze did not work then they are forced to fight to survive to defend their pack or themselves.
Respecting these survival instincts in humans and animals is paramount to living in harmony. If you do not respect boundaries in life then you have to observe where you went wrong and blame yourself. When working with animals you have to understand and work with their nature rather than against it.
WOLF WORD SEARCH
ALPHA OMEGA FLIGHT FREEZE FIGHT PACK BONDS COMMUNICATE
SURVIVAL GENTLE NATIVE PERCEPTION ELK PROTECT CARIBOU LYNX
WOLF WORD FILL-IN Fill in the missing blanks The Alpha is the leader of the _______ Flight is the wolves first _______ response Fight is the wolves last defense _________ Wolves form bonds with each other by ______ and _________ Survival is the most important thing for every ________ on the planet Wolves used to walk on the ground we walk on. They are native to _________ Elk and Caribou are some of the wolves’ _____ The omega wolf is at the ______ of the pack and so eats last. Wolves communicate in many ways such as ________ and ________ Perception is the way an individual _______ see’s the world The alpha has three jobs to do they are ______ the pack To _____ food To _____
Notes on chapter 1:
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Chapter 2 Every dog originated from the Grey wolf. As these tame wolves bred and lived with humans, they bred into a sub species of animal called the dog, it no longer had to hunt for its food, its diet went from raw meat to human leftovers as a result their teeth, skull and brain became smaller, relative to the rest of their body.
WHERE DO DOGS COME FROM?
Evolution Evolution and man's interference resulted in a sub species now known as the dog. In the years passed humans interfered with the breeding process in a goal to breed dogs for a specific purpose or aesthetic reasons. If dogs were bred naturally they would look similar to this (img.1). The characteristics would be slim and agile, perfect for running and catching their prey. Q: Over the years what has evolved or changed in human’s bodies? A:
(Image 1, above) The characteristics would be slim and agile, perfect for running and catching their prey.
The Canine Family Tree
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Dogs of Today Look at some of the dogs of today. Nature lives with a rule known as natural selection. Natural selection is nature’s way of the fittest animals surviving. If an animal is poorly in the wild, this will reduce its chances of surviving. Q: Why is this? Discuss List dogs that would not survive in the wild and give reasons why they are still alive?:
There are many changes from wolf to dog but there is one thing that humans couldn’t change, that is instinct; nature’s rules that have kept them alive for longer than us. There is a saying, you can take the dog out of the wolf pack but you cannot take the wolf pack out of the dog.
2.1 As dogs have lived in our homes for many years we take for granted that their thought process has evolved and changed but it has not. Dogs have the same survival thoughts and instincts as the wolf.
THE COMMUNICATION BARRIER The dog is a wolf in a different coat and thinks the same way as it did hundreds of thousands of years ago. In the domestic situation today dogs still believe there has to be a leader. If you do not replicate to your dog the same signals the alpha would to the other wolves in the wild, then your dog will think he is the alpha.
With the dog having these major responsibilities in a world it does not understand, can be very stressful as the dog cannot identify what things are. For example alarms, buses, skateboards, etc. but the list is endless. We understand what fireworks are when they are going off or that the postman is coming to the house to deliver mail but the dog does not. We have given the dog a role as leader so he believes it is his job to deal with it. The fact that he is not capable of doing his job leads him to become stressed.
This in turn means that he then has 3 major responsibilities as the alpha does in the wild • To protect the pack • To find food • To breed 2.1/pg.22
Imagine a scenario in which you were expected to do a job and were responsible for your groups survival and did not understand what the things were around you and then these unidentifiable things came towards you.
E.g. German Shepherds are aggressive or Jack Russells are yappy. This is simply not true; dogs are individuals like people, it is ridiculous to see a few breeds behaving in the same way and then categorize a whole breed of animal
When the dog becomes stressed he displays all different types of behaviour such as - aggression, - nervousness - destructive behaviour, - possessiveness, - hyperactivity, - ignoring requests, - persistent following, - obsessive licking, - constant barking, - pulling on the lead, - jumping up at visitors, - Whining for food Humans then see a few of the same dogs in the same breed displaying these traits and then brand them. E.g. German Shepherds are aggressive or Jack Russells are yappy This is simply not true; dogs are individuals like people, it is ridiculous to see a few breeds behaving in the same way and then categorize a whole breed of animal.
Similarly it is ridiculous when humans categorize a race of people saying they are all a particular type. Discuss and find examples: It is human nature to label or stereotype, but it is wrong as we are all made up individually. Dog breeds do have traits but the list of problems that dogs display depend on their personality, we all have different types of personality some of us are shy or quiet whilst others are loud or energetic. The dogs outcome comes down to a mixture of their nature (personality) and their nurture (how they have been raised). Some dogs are born brave, shy, gentle, jokers, lazy. Discuss and give examples:
Q: if a dog is born with a certain nature and then is brought up with the stress of being Alpha, is it then his fault that he cannot cope and as a result suffers from undesirable behaviour? A:
Many dogs are put to sleep over behavioural issues because they become so stressed from not being able to cope with being alpha, the owners become so frustrated with the dog’s behaviour because they cannot identify what it is and have a lack of understanding of the psychological needs and make up of these animals In the wild when there are perceived dangers about, it is the alphas job to decide if they pose a threat to the pack. The way in which he lets
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the others know that it is not an immediate threat is by not reacting. The alphas lead by example if they stay calm the rest of the pack will respond in the same way. The great leaders in society are the ones that do not panic and their pulse rate do not shoot up. Imagine a situation in which you feared for your life and the person you looked up to became stressed and started to panic. I imagine the anxiety would transfer itself on to you. Q: Dogs do not speak the same language as us. So how do we show dogs in today’s world that they need not worry about a perceived threat? We cannot ever expect the dog to learn human language, so we have to communicate in a language that canines understand.
Notes:
2.2 If we adopt the wolves language and use it in the domestic situation, then we can communicate effectively to our dogs, that we are the alpha.
TRANSLATING THE 4 POINTS When the dog realises he is not the alpha he will have no other responsibilities. If he has no responsibilities then he will have no stress so when fireworks go off or he sees a potential threat. He will then look to the new alpha (the owner) to
make the decisions. You as a leader will look at the perceived danger and think nothing of it. This in turn will rub off on to the dog as he will look to you and think well, if he is fine then I am also fine, this way he feels grounded and secure.
The Hunt
The Food
Alpha Percieved Danger 2.2/pg.24
Seperation
The 4 points in the domestic situation: The Food We have to show our dog that we are the alpha and we eat first. We do this by gesture eating. This is done by eating over the dog’s food bowl before you give him his food. What this indicates and implies is that you found the food, you have power of the food, you will eat some first and when it is the dogs turn you will put the bowl down walk away and let him eat. If the dog walks away from the bowl, we then pick it up; the reason why we do this is so the dog does not eat all throughout the day otherwise the dog would believe he has found the food, so he is the alpha.
The Hunt On lead (SSCD) If your dog pulls against it’s lead then this is because he thinks it is his job to lead the hunt and therefore the alpha We set out to change his mind on this with a method called stop, start, and change direction. The best place to learn this is at home. This is because in the home you have your dogs undivided attention, where as outside there are many smells, sights and sounds to distract him. Imagine trying to attend a maths lesson in a theme park, it would be a major distraction! So what we do is walk the dog to heel inside the house, if the dog pulls then we stop where we are, gently pull the dog to heel, then change direction, if he gets it right and stays to heel then we reward him with food and praise. We carry this on for as long as it takes. As the dog becomes better in the house we venture out to the garden and practice there. If we get it right in the garden then we can go further afield.
Off lead
Perceived danger
Recall work, call once then leave We call the dog over and reward him with food; we practice this once again in the house so if he does not listen to you he has nowhere to go. The more we practice, the better he will become. When we get it right 100% in the house, we can then practice again in the garden. When we have it perfect there we can practice outside.
It is the alphas job to protect the pack but it is the job of all pack members to warn of perceived danger.
If your dog does not listen to you outside do not run after him as this will confirm he is leader. Better still turn around and walk the other way to show him he does not lead the hunt.
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So when the dog starts barking at the door, we thank the dog and say good boy or thank you. This is to show the dog that you have acknowledged the danger and we are okay with it. If the dog carries on barking then you go and have a look, showing him that he has alerted you, you have checked it out and by not reacting you have shown that you are fine with it. However if the dog still carries on barking and is still unnerved by the situation then this is when we isolate the dog. This is to show him that it is not the dog’s job to deal with the situation and that if his behaviour becomes erratic he will lose the pack, this way isolating him gives him time to calm down. As soon as he calms down we let him back in the pack.
Separation (golden five minutes)
Who’s on the throne?
In the wild after every separation the wolves reunite to find out their position in the pack, whilst the other wolves are doing this no one approaches the alphas. The alphas walk in the pack not looking at any other pack member, this is to say do not come near me, respect my space. This is because looking is a form of communication. The other wolves respect this and do not approach the alpha until they have been given the signal to enter into the alphas space. When it is time, the alphas invite the others into their space.
If the dog is trying manoeuvre you to moving then remember not to do it, everything as the alpha has to be on your terms. The dog will do it subtly like bringing you a ball to throw, or making you stroke him by putting his head on your lap, do not do it. Gently push him away then a little later call him over and then do it, this way everything is on your terms.
In the domestic situation it is important we mimic this. So when we enter the house after being separated from our dog we have to ignore them. We can call them over when they have left us alone as this is done on our terms, and nor before then. We call it the golden five minutes as this is the average amount of time it takes for your dog to leave you alone.
2.3 The Qualities of a great leader
THE 3 C’S The dog has to have a leader. To become a leader he has to elect you of his own free will, the way to do this is to apply the four points of behaviour used in the wild whilst being:
Calm Convincing Consistent
Calm
Convincing
Consistent 2.3/pg.28
The leader is the one that stays calm, the dog will pick up on this, as leader you lead by example Convincing is a must, if you are slow reacting in situations or getting things wrong, then you are not a convincing leader. Consitency has to be met all the time, if you are sending mixed signals then the dog will noty understand what you want from him and look at you as weak
Remember dogs make mistakes. That is fine it is not important how he acts, it’s only important how you act! As a leader you will expect the less experienced members in the pack to make mistakes that is natural learning process. In theses situations the last thing you do is become impatient or angry. You keep calm, convincing and consistent whilst applying the four points and the rest falls into place. Understanding things that can make the dog feel threatened As a dog does not understand our human world and realistically he never will, we have to understand that he will never understand what a car alarm is, what the postman is doing, what fireworks or motorbikes are etc. It should not be the dog’s job to deal with the situation, but to look to you as the leader (alpha) to deal with the situation. Your way of saying that you have no problem is to look at the situation and not to react. He will then think well he is fine so I am fine. However, if the dog believes he is alpha then he will react to perceived threats in three ways.
List some more things that the dog does not understand:
2.4 When faced with danger, the dog in the same way as the wolf and in a similar way to humans has a defence response flight, freeze and fight.
THE DOGS NATURE 2.4/pg.30
The sequence of events is in that order for a reason because in the wild the best means of defence is flight (run away) this response will cause the least amount of damage. The next response is freeze, this could be done by barking, the dog in this situation will be saying stay away do not come any closer. The last resort when the other two has not worked is fight, this could be if the animal is injured or cornered and has no choice but to fight. The best scenario is not to put an animal in this situation so they feel they have to protect themselves. Has anybody ever put you in that situation where you had to think of the 3 defence responses? It is not nice for any animal or person to be put in that situation.
So this is why we show animals and people respect and do not put them in that situation. Putting an animal in that situation where he is forced to defend himself is working against their nature as the human is trying to control him. If the human gets attacked in this situation then it is his own fault and the result of lack of understanding and empathy with the animal Would we let someone control us? Would we respect them for trying to control us? The world is full of stories of people being bullied or controlled then turning on the people who did this to them. In the human world the people that fight back are labelled as heroes. In the dog world these dogs are know as aggressive and uncontrollable.
The best form of control is self control. This is when the dog settles down of his own behaviour down without being told. Control is when you are forced to do what someone has asked. To teach the dog self control we must put them in a situation in which they calm themselves down, not because we told them to. A good leader will try and understand why he is angry in a way that demonstrates a respect for the dog’s instincts When people get bitten by a dog the vast majority of the time it would be through the human not respecting the dogs defence responses. Knowing and understanding this will enable you and the dog to work together rather than you to work
What are the dogs defence responses?
F F F Q: Do we get angry if a dog displays his defence responses? A: Q: How do we avoid putting a dog into a situation where the defence responses are called upon? A:
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Case study : Dogs barking at the door
owner answers the door
Door bell goes
Dog becomes aggitated
Dog silences & becomes nervous
Dog barks aggressively
Owner shouts at dog Owner becomes aggitated
Failing to get the message across e.g of a Vicious circle
To be a great leader we first must understand ‘Why’ the dog is upset and has become unsettled. When we know this we develop patience through understanding. When we understand ‘why’ we can then act in an appropriate way we will be on a better thought process to deal with the situation. If we do not understand we become frustrated at not knowing ‘why’ the situation is happening. So when dealing with any stressful situation it is best to understand and think to your self ‘why’ is this situation happening. To understand properly we must imagine how we would feel or act if we were in this situation.
Then as a leader we must go through a thought process: The dog is barking at the door
Why: Where:
How do we sort it?
When does the dog become stressed?
What is the dog becoming stressed at?
Where does the dog become stressed
What: When: How: 2.4/pg.34
Why is the dog stressed
Understanding and empathising is the key to rectifying any dog problem. This is a simple process that will stop you going around in circles and it will teach the dog self control.
Thank
Look
Isolate
Test of Wills: If the dog barks aggressively at the door, you go through the process: If he barks aggressively at the door next time, you repeat again and again and again. He will eventually give up and get the message, he has to!!!!! Think if you were behaving in a manner and every single time your actions didn’t get you anywhere, would you keep it up? Always keep calm, convincing and consistent without talking as that would add to the confusion. This shows the dog clear, concise signals. If you refer to this thought process and keep to the leader plan you will achieve amazing results and you will be able to stop dogs needlessly being put to sleep. Rather than go around in circles, step up as the leader and achieve results.
The dog’s personality and life is made up of two things, nature and nurture.
NATURE & NURTURE
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Nature:
Nurture:
The dog’s nature is the instincts, individual personality and genes he is born with Instincts:
The dog’s nurture means the environmental influences that shaped him into what he is.
To kill, protect, pack order, body language, to eat, defence responses (flight freeze and fight) Individual personality: some are bold, nervous, courageous, shy, affectionate, unaffectionate, weary, jokers, stubborn, relaxed, kind etc Genes: Their DNA makeup which contributes to their personality as well as the way they are formed e.g some are bigger, longer legs, stronger, bigger teeth, stronger jaws, no hair, long hair, floppy ears etc.
An e.g. of those influences which will affect his personality would be Home life: Food, water, shelter Their teaching: Are they receiving good leadership Experiences on the walk: Do they feel safe and secure Interactions with other animals: Are the experiences positive or negative All the nature and nurture factors contribute to each individual animal’s personality and well being.
Case study :
Think of one example of the dogs personality (nature) and combine it with an example of something that could of happened during his nurture and predict the possible outcome. What is the Individual dog’s personality?
What happened during his nurture?
What could be the outcome of this experience?
Nervous
Car nearly drove into The dog now runs the dog and scared him away from cars
(Now you try) What is the Individual dog’s personality?
What happened during his nurture?
What could be the outcome of this experience?
Case study II : If you can understand where the behaviour comes from, then you can begin to sort it out. There are many factors which will influence the dog’s life as many things will happen. Generally the more positive influences that happen in the dog’s life, the happier the dog will be. Generally the more negative influences that happen in the dog’s life, the more confused the dog will be.
Write in the spaces in the arrows, factors that could help contribute to a positive nurture for the dog: eg/ big family
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Write in the spaces in the arrows, factors that could help contribute to a negative nurture for the dog:
eg/ hit with brush
Understanding what animals need and prioritising is the key to a stable happy relationship, as shown in diagram:
Interaction: affection, play, exercise sense of worth: role in pack Organised pack structure: correct leader in place Safety Needs: security, safety Physiological needs: food, shelter, warmth, rest
2.5 If we are teaching the dog, we then need to create a perfect environment in order for him to absorb as much information as possible. The home is the place to teach as this is where the dog feels safe and has the least amount of distractions or threats..
THE TRAINING ENVIRONMENT If you are distracted then you cannot learn. Imagine if you had no idea where you were, and feared for your own safety could you learn a particular subject , it would be impossible. The same applies with the dog, outside there are many distractions and threats such as smells, other dogs, loud noises, cars etc. If you could not identify what these things are, then how would you react to them coming towards you? The dog will never understand our human world so we have to show the dog that we are okay with these situations, therefore leading by example. When a potential danger arises, the dog will look to us as leader and our way of communicating that we do not have a problem with it is to stay calm. The dog will then think that we are calm.
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So he will realise there is no reason to be afraid. However if the dog believes he is leader and becomes stressed at an oncoming problem then he believes it is his job to deal with it. This can cause the dog a lot of unnecessary emotional harm. Imagine objects coming towards you and you could not identify and were not sure if they were going to harm you. You would not stay calm. The dog is out of his depth in our human world and we must empathise with this. So in order to avoid this scenario we train the dog in the house, so when we get outside the dog already knows what we expect from them and trusts us as a leader the decision maker, so then when a scenario does present itself, the dog will look to us for a decision and if we show that we are calm the dog will pick up on this.
As a leader we teach our dog bit by bit if we get to a particular point or stage where the dog gets it wrong then we go back to that point. We do not progress until it is perfect otherwise we will be sending confused signals.
Case study: The walk Stage 1: Practice walking in the house without the lead, encouraging the dog to be by you side. Using food rewards makes it fun. Turn suddenly keeping the dog on your desired side.
Stage 2 Call the dog to you to put the lead on. If the dog will not come to you or becomes over excited then you do not reward him by putting the lead on.
Stage 3 Walk inside the house with the lead on, making sure the dog walks to heel. Every time he moves forward practice stop, start, and change direction. Every time he gets it right reward him. Do sudden turns to see how he copes.
Stage 5: Walk out the front door. Make sure that you walk out the door first, otherwise what message are you sending.
Stage 6: Walk just outside the house not far away, up and down. Make sure he is walking to heel, keep the reward going.
Stage 7: Walk a little further afield like to the end of the street. Keep changing direction and pace, lose ground where he pulls, reward when he gets it right.
Stage 8: Walk to a place where may be dogs about like the park. Keep him to heel, walk in the opposite direction of dogs for the mean time.
Stage 9: Stage 4: Practice in the garden. There are a few more distractions here so keep practicing, make the experience lots of fun.
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Walk to a busier place with more distractions. Avoid confrontation at all costs, make sure always heeling. SSCD if he pulls.
Notes:
Think to yourself if you were going to learn to dive, you would not dive off the biggest dive board straight away. Ideally you would learn inch by inch and build on your confidence. It is the same with the dog help build their confidence. If they get it wrong at any stage then go back to the stage where they had it right. Do not move forward unless they get it right. If you move forward a stage without getting it 100% right then what have you taught the dog?
If the dog does not respond well at one stage, then go back to where it was right, then move forward again. It can take a while but with calm, convincing and consistent signals the dog will eventually understand.
2.6 As a leader it is our job to teach the dog. We should never assume he knows even the simplest things. If he has not been taught, he will not know. A great leader or teacher will calmly show the dog what they want over and over again until he gets it...
IF THE DOG DOES NOT KNOW, IT’S BECAUSE THEY HAVEN’T BEEN TAUGHT PROPERLY. A bad leader or teacher will be surprised at the dog for not instantly knowing certain information and then become quickly frustrated at the dog not getting it.
Every dog is different, some understand the lessons very quickly on, and others will take longer. That is fine as long as we keep our composure and show and teach the dog what we would like as many times as it takes.
Recognise the dog that you are dealing with. Many areas dogs will be good in, other areas they will not. All you have to do is identify those areas and spend time addressing the problems in a leadership manner. Look at the dog’s problems like plants (right), some areas will be fine on their own and others will need nurturing to grow:
The Walk
Recall
Scenario We arrive home and our dog jumps up at us, what do we do? Hint: Ask yourself why, where, when, what and how and put all factors in your answer A:
A great leader teacher will blame himself, for example little details he might have done wrong and not blame the dog. His pulse rate will be low and he will be calm, convincing and consistent. Note: It is okay to become frustrated, the key is to stop teaching and come back again when you feel happy. A bad teacher will blame the breed, age, personality, method and all other factors on the dog rather than admitting having the problem.
Percieved Danger
The more time and effort you spend on identifying problems in the dog and then try to fix them, the quicker they will be resolved. With this power of patience and time, you will become a great leader.
Other Dogs
Confidence
Cats
2.7 Setting yourself up for failure.
TAKING RESPONSIBILITY
Anything we are responsible for be it dog or child, we must prepare our students with the right tools to deal with situations. If they do not react as we would like then they have not learnt yet and we have taught them enough. All dogs and people learn at different rates. If it takes longer for 2.7/pg.42
some dogs to learn, this means we have to be patient and keep teaching them. A good leader will not give up and does not blame the student for not understanding. A good leader will persevere again and again until the student grasps the principle and concept of the idea.
In life we must prepare for situations and if we lose control we must go back and examine our own behaviour. As leaders we must get it perfect as we are responsible for another life, to get it perfect which is possible, we must always examine how we could do better. If you get it 1% wrong you might as well be 100% wrong, as this would not be a clear message. Aim to do a perfect response every time!!!!! Remember it does not matter how the dog acts, it is important how you act At some points in life we all will have to lead; be it friends, employees, strangers, children, animals. If we
do that in a calm, convincing and consistent manner we will ease others around us and prove to be great. Think of a leader that is calm, convincing and consistent and think of a leader that does not demonstrate these characteristics and discuss Q: Could you do better? A great leader will change your mind and you will make the choice to follow. In the animal kingdom the only animal that follows a weak leader is the human! Q: Why is this?
2.7/pg.44
? Avoiding Conflict As a leader of a pack it is imperative that you avoid conflict at all costs. A great leader will anticipate how the dog will feel in a situation and choose the flight response ensuring the rest of the pack will not feel threatened. E.g. if you see a group of dogs in the middle of the park it is wise to go around them rather than walk through them. Q: What could leading a dog through another pack cause?
Question, question, question
The dog does not understand our human world like we do so appreciate he will be experimental with his behaviour to suss life out. If he pulls on the lead it is essentially asking you a question, If he barks, attacks another dog, begs for food, jumps up, and doesn’t come back when asked it is question, question, question. As a leader you are the one who is responsible to guide him through life so you are the one that must answer, if you become agitated or stressed this will send out a negative unclear message.
The dog will never stop learning so you must always keep on teaching in a calm, convincing, consistent manner. The more you answer the question the quicker he will understand.
Chapter 3 Dog training methods have been around for a long time. People have become very frustrated with dogs’ undesirable behaviour and have thought up ways and designed gadgets to resolve it.
ALTERNATIVE TRAINING METHODS There are many resources used to train dogs such as Choke chains, shock collars, haultys, shouting, intimidating, tying the dog up, and throwing water in their face or in the worst examples violence. The list is endless as people try to rectify their dog’s behaviour. When these methods of control do not work, people have then been know to terminate the dogs life. The methods used will never change a dog’s mind of his own free will; they will only physically restrict the dog from doing what he thinks he should be doing. E.g. a choke chain may stop the dog from pulling but does it stop him from thinking he is leader? 3.0/pg.46
Democracy VS Dictatorship Democracy: We live in a democracy, a democracy is run by a leader that the people have elected in power, and its interest is in the people’s well being and is exercised daily. Dictatorship: A dictatorship is a country run by an individual with absolute power and complete control. This power is often used with force to keep people in order.
We have the right to live in a world where we are free to make choices; we have welcomed a dog into the world. Do they deserve the same rights, to be free?
Put the alternative training methods under democracy or dictatorship? 1.) Choke chain 2.) Reward 3.) Praise 4.) Violence 5.)Intimidation 6.)Shock collar 7.) Cages 8.) Patience 9.) Shouting 10.) Calmness 11.) Neutering 12.) Spray collar 13.) Teaching self control
DEMOCRACY:
DICTATORSHIP:
3.1 Nurturing from all angles
LEARNING AT OUR OWN PACE Dogs and humans alike learn at different speeds. Some people are academic which means they excel at school and some people are better suited to vocational training which means they are better suited to the practical side and excel usually in their chosen profession. We are all good at something especially when we want to do it. If we do not like what we are doing we generally do not put any effort in so we never improve. E.g. I do not like physics, I find it boring and I do not see the point in learning it, as a result I did not excel in it and hold no interest in what it represents.
3.1/pg.48
This is fine with me as I ask myself’ what’s in it for me’ and the answer is nothing. There has to be something in things for us to do or we simply will not carry on doing them.
As we are all like this we have to show the same respect to the dog. A dog will not keep on doing the same command over and over again unless there is something in it for him. Once again this is fine as we reward the dog for positive behaviour. Similarly dogs will not be great in all aspects of their training and some need the lessons taught to them more repetitively than other dogs. We must learn empathy with regards to this and remain calm, convincing and consistent. Persevering with this method of teaching and the dog will get it in the end. Becoming impatient will only add to the stress for you as the teacher and for the animal and delay the learning process.
The reason we get impatient is because we become frustrated with the dog not grasping the ideas that we are trying to impose upon him. Perhaps we should look more closely at ourselves, how we are teaching and the signals we are sending.
Minimise stress Stress makes it very hard to learn so we need to take stress out of the teaching equation completely. If you were worried and had something on your mind could you read a book and absorb the information? A dog cannot learn if he is stressed as he will not take any information in. So whatever lessons we are attempting to teach the dog to do has to be away from any threats or time limitations. Q: Is it going to be successful if we have 20 minutes to go the shop to pick up some milk before work and we want to teach our dog to heel on the way there and back? Q: Why?
Training takes as long as it takes. As soon as you put time limits on it then you as the leader become stressed, if you become stressed then so does the dog. Then the dog will not be able to learn and benefit from the lesson and the experience will be unpleasant for both of you. Pick a time when you feel happy and relaxed with no time limitations at all. 3.1/pg.50
3.2 The dog is an intelligent animal and like the human they ask the question ‘what’s in it for me?’
WHAT’S IN IT FOR ME? We use this method to train our dogs. If we want to teach our dog to heel, every time he gets it right he should be rewarded. Every time he gets it wrong he does not make any ground, in fact he loses some, he will not be rewarded It will not take long for him to make a positive association with which behaviour is seen as good and which is seen as bad. If the dog loses the pack as in he gets isolated every time he barks and every time he does not bark he gets to stay he will learn what a negative association is. He will ask himself the question ‘what’s in it for me?’ if there is nothing he will eventually stop. 3.2/pg.52
Humans are the same. How many times would we turn up to work if we are not going to get paid? Or if a person was getting ignored for bad behaviour how long would they carry on in this manner. Shouting or reacting badly would give them fuel to react.
The only tools we need to train dogs are:
Lead Food Reward Patience The 3 C’s The 4 Points
3.3 As a leader in both the canine and human world we can see the fundamental aspects are respected in nature.
GREAT LEADERSHIP A good leader will be calm. People become frustrated with their dogs because they cannot get the message through. The dog is a different animal with an important job to do and does not understand words as much as we would like to think, being calm is the key to keeping them relaxed. If you are stressed the dog will pick up on this and become stressed. Whilst you are stressed it is a lot harder to receive information. Think of a time when someone has shouted at you whilst you have tried your absolute best at something. Quickly you learn to resent them as a leader. A great leader will calmly show you what is expected of you, not react badly when you get it wrong. Humans like dogs make mistakes. We must not shout information at them; instead we invite them to learn. 3.3/pg.54
A great leader is convincing. If you go to lead your dog away from danger and take too long in the process or give some weak signals. Then the dog will question you as a leader, should you have this job? In the domestic environment the dog will assume leadership. We have all had bosses that were not as good at their jobs as some of their subordinates or do not work as hard. These bosses will not be taken seriously by their subordinates. Often we harbour resentment for our superiors; instinctively we know they should not be where they are. In the wild the leaders are the cleverest, strongest best suited ones in charge who give clear signals. In the human world this is often not the case. A good leader will be consistent.. Too many people give dogs mixed signals which confuse the dog
so much so that he never knows how to act. E.g. Isolating a dog for bad behaviour one time then next time ignoring it. The dog will not understand what you want from him, every single time he reacts in an undesirable manor you have to react in the same consistent manor. If you do not react because you are tired or have had enough then what kind of message are you sending; keep acting up and I will give in, an absolute sign of a weak leader. Keep consistent It will not take long for the dog to understand his boundaries. Think of situations where a teacher, parent or boss has confused you through mixed messages. One minute there was no problem the next minute was an issue over the same set of events, circumstances or behaviour I imagine it was frustrating not knowing where you stood. I can guarantee you did not look to this leader favourably.
The only animal to follow a weak leader is a human.
3.4 Perception is a powerful tool as we all act on the way we perceive things to be.
POWER OF NOITPECREP E.g. if I perceived that I was in trouble I would react in one of 3 ways: Flight, freeze and fight.
Some dogs perceive cars, joggers or the postman to be a risk to their lives. If the dog thinks this way, it can be so stressful for the dog, he reacts in such a way that we then say he is aggressive and as a result could be put to sleep. If you spend some time thinking of all the ways this why this might be happening you will have a better chance of understanding why he is reacting and behaving in this way. If you understand what drives an animal to act in a certain way then you will become more patient with their behaviour. If you believe the animal is acting up to annoy you then you are wrong. Behind all the barking and agitated behaviour is stress, anxiety and sadness. The dog wants to please you but actually has not learnt how to do that. So in order to understand a dog you have to have patience as this will get
3.4/pg.56
tested if you haven’t got patience then you will never be able to act in a manner to really help the dog. Rather than acting inappropriately it is better to not act at all then think long and hard of why this is happening and be prepared for the next situation.
By thinking about a situation we are able to come out with kind training methods which do not hurt the dog. Thinking and being patient is the key to problem solving. A great leader will be calm. You can think properly when you are calm whereas when you are hysterical you need We give the dogs a choice and time to cool down as your thoughts invite them to learn at the time are Q: How do I perceive a making you make for themselves, dog’s problems? if you act in an hazy decisions. inappropriate This is why we manner then you too get isolated. give the dog time to calm down to For example until you calm down give him time to think ‘why did I do and realise what the consequence of that’ rather than inflicting force or bad behaviour will be. If you behave distracting him. then you get rewarded. Alternative training methods would involve Perception can end or change lives, muzzling a dog that barks too much. if we can understand that the dog But think; what does this actually is acting in a way for a reason then achieve? Yes it stops him barking we can then deal with it, there is a but does it prevent him from feeling reason behind all behaviour and it stressed the next time the same can be found from understanding the situation presents itself? nurture and nature of any animal. If you look hard enough you will find it.
Q: How did the native Indians perceive the wolf and what was the outcome of this? A:
Q: How did the English perceive the wolf and what was the outcome of this? A:
THE PROBLEMS WITH STEREOTYPING BREEDS... Every dog is an individual. The problem with stereotyping is a human trait. The problem with stereotyping dog breeds is the fact that all dogs have individual personalities. We now know that the reason dogs suffer from undesirable behaviour is because the dog believes he is alpha. Add this factor with the dog’s nurture (how they were brought up) and the dog’s nature (their individual personality they were born with) If you know this information then you have the reasons why a specific dog is acting in a specific way. The great news is that we know with careful training, teaching and clear signals we can show that dog how to be happy again, whatever dog it is,
3.4/pg.58
no matter what size, age or breed. People stereotype all sorts and it acts as a barrier to learning. Once again this is a factor of perception. If you perceive a breed like Staffordshire bull terriers to be aggressive then you will think it cannot be trained and therefore give up. If you have an open mind, respect for the dog and do not categorise dog breeds then you will be able to train any dog. Imagine if a particular dog is being aggressive because he believes he is alpha, then someone invades his space and forces him to use one of the defence responses. If you can, then you have just had an insight into why so many dogs get put down.
It is a similar situation with people. There is not one race of people that all act a specific way. We are all individuals depending on our nurture and nature and if our instincts are not respected, we will be forced to defend ourselves.
People stereotype, they always will! If you do not, you will always understand more than them as you will understand nature and nurture combined with questions like who, why, where, what and why some thing is happening?
THE IMPORTANCE OF AN OPEN MIND In any situation it is important to get all sides of the story from all the different angles. You can then have an educated view rather than just one piece of a puzzle.
E.g. it is only recently that we have started to work with the dog’s nature and respect the dogs defence responses, however other dogs in the past have been killed from people’s ignorance. How many dogs do you think have died as a result of a lack of understanding? Similarly many people have been beaten and killed for daring to have different opinions. How many people do you think have died as a result of other people being ignorant? Our perception defines the way we act so it is very important that we have an open mind to possibilities and consequences of situations in hand. If we can admit the possibility we my be wrong and listen to other opinions we will then start to have an open mind. It is rumoured that people who believed it was round were killed for their opinion!
3.4/pg.60
Case studies
Think, discuss and write down a scenario in which a dog would have attacked another animal or human and then the dog would have been put down. Remember to think what, why, when, where and how it happened. e.g What happened? Why did it happen? Where did it happen? When did it happen? How did it happen? How could of this situation have been prevented?
What happened? Why did it happen? Where did it happen? When did it happen? How did it happen? How could of this situation have been prevented?
3.5 To be a good leader we have to honest with ourselves and realise our strengths and weaknesses.
ATTENTION TO DETAIL 3.5/pg.62
to try and make it perfect. It is very important to achieve good attention to detail. Similarly this can be done in our lives. There are many things we can get always get better at e.g. our education, health, friendships, earning more money, more family time etc. First we have to identify our strengths and weaknesses so then we can work on them. One of my strengths is that I am good at one to one conversations No leader is perfect, but a good leader will accept they have made mistakes with the dog, and then learn from them.
One of my weaknesses is that I am nervous at speaking to a big crowd.
A bad leader will always have an excuse or blame the problem on something or someone else. A good leader will begin to become great when they realise their strengths and weaknesses and work on them, without getting upset. Attention to detail is spending lots of time on whatever you are doing
One to one
Public speaking
Because of this I will nurture and practice on my public speaking until I am better!!
We all have strengths and weaknesses. Identify your strengths and weaknesses under the plants. Place your weaknesses under the smaller plants and your strengths under the bigger plants:
3.5/pg.64
To be able to label your weaknesses is a massive achievement in itself and it makes you humble and aware. Many people do not think they have any weaknesses so they never pay attention to them. If they never pay attention to their weaknesses then they will never achieve attention to detail.
3.6 Many people feel their egos are being attacked when being giving advice and their defence response becomes active; flight, freeze and fight.
EDUCATING THE OWNERS You will more likely meet people with an open mind due to the fact they called you and are asking for help. if you choose to offer advice to someone who did not ask then expect them to use one of the flight responses. This will be because they will perceive the comments as criticism. So be very careful when communicating to people.
3.6/pg.66
An open mind is so important in life; it works well with perception and produces positive results. Many people’s brains can be compared to that of a brick wall; not willing to let any information in at all. As a good leader you should consider your brain is a tool for listening to people, perhaps more like a gate; being open to situations and different outlooks and perceptions. It will stop some information affecting you but ideas can slip under or over the gate.
Remember: in any of these scenarios dealing with any dog owner to use the 3 C’s. If you become agitated then it will have a knock on effect, and that will never help the dog.
Many people’s brains can be compared to that of a brick wall; not willing to let any information in at all.
Communicating effectively: We cannot communicate with the dog properly unless we can talk canine; the same applies when we are talking to the client. Some things we say may offend others so we have to be very careful on how we conduct ourselves on the consultation.
Do’s:
- Be Polite - Speak Clearly - Listen - Dress Nicely - Look at them when speaking - Use Analogies
Dont’s:
- Swear - Assume they know - Look at the dog - Lose Patience
If we offend the client or give off the wrong signal then they will put up a barrier and will not be able to take the information in.
3.7 We all have an ego and this can prevent us from learning and achieving our goals.
THE PROBLEM WITH EGOS Imagine telling a conventional dog trainer that what they do was wrong as it hurts the dog.
3.7/pg.68
How do you feel they would they would respond?
saying would damage the time they have invested. To carry on listening would be to jeopardise everything they know as true, which is a hard thing for anyone to do.
Are they likely to say’ tell me more’ and listen? Or are they more likely to put up a barrier as what you are
I think you would agree they would rather put their head in the sand and not listen to what you have said.
Egos would prevent this person from learning more and we all find reasons to act in a way which is detrimental to our happiness. Telling someone your opinion without being asked is likely to meet with a bad reception so be careful what you say and how you say things. Some
people will not like what you have to say even if they have asked your opinion.
Getting a point across is not easy, no matter what response you get: It does not matter how they act it is how YOU act. Remember & Stay calm, consistent and convincing...You can’t go wrong!!!!!
www.thewolfwithin.co.uk c. Nigel Reed 2010