recall seminar

Saturday 3rd December

For Autumn/Winter 2011

NEW CLASSES Nov 2011

NOW AVAILIABLE

Mondays at 4.15pm – Start 21st November

For children aged between 6 and 14yrs old.
Learn how to train your dog in a positive manner in a variety of activities including:
* Obedience and basic manners
* Agility
* Heelwork to music and tricks
* Flyball
* Scent work

Contact the office if you are interested:
nina@sussexcountydogtraining.co.uk
01243 697 202

Is your dog fearful of fireworks?

We have two possible services which will be running at Sussex County Dog Training dependant on interest.

Firework Night Day Care:
Your dog can come spend the evening (5-11pm) with us playing games, training, interacting and playing with other dogs and snoozing in comfortable beds whilst you enjoy yourself at a fireworks display.
You don’t need to worry that you have left your dog frightened at home alone or leave one member of the family at home to look after the dog.
All dogs are supervised fully by trained staff.

The second service is and information workshop about keeping your dog calm on fireworks night.
Tips and tricks on the following subjects:
Setting up your home to prevent or minimise your dog’s fear.
Activities to keep your dog occupied and not thinking about the noise.
Massage to calm your dog.
Foods to feed that aid sleep and promote calmness.
Supplements that can be given to help your dog through.

Register your interest by either emailing or phoning:
nina@sussexcountydogtraining.co.uk
01243 697 202

Autumn Newsletter

“The dog was wagging it’s tail … then it bit me”

Dogs communicate to us all the time using their body language. Unfortunately we don’t always understand what they are trying to tell us, which at times can have huge consequences and may lead to serious injury.

By understanding dog body language and what they are trying to tell us, not only can we avoid accidents from happening, but we can also build a better relationship with our dogs, reduce their stress and improve our training. All of which will lead to a better behaved dog, which is something we all want.

GENERAL POSTURE:

Relaxed dog:

1. Relaxed muscles so the dog will move smoothly.
2. The dog’s body weight will be in the centre with equal weight positioned on all 4 paws.
3. Their ears will be in their natural position – this will depend on the dog – a golden retriever’s will be flopped over and side on whilst a German shepherd’s will be pricked up.
4. Their tail will be loose and may have a slight gentle wag to it – loose and soft moving from the top of the tail to the tip. It will be in the dog’s natural position again dependant on the dog’s breed. A labrador’s tail might be lower than horizontal whilst a spitz breed may have their flipped up over their back.
5. They will generally be happy to just look around and won’t be fixated on anything in particular.

Alert dog:

1. Muscles will be more tense and the dog will move in a more stiff/purposeful manner – think soldier marching compared to some one walking down the street. An extreme example is a dog stalking and then pointing out a bird.
2. The dog’s body weight will be positioned more forwards with a greater weight on their front 2 paws compared to the back ones. They will also seem bigger than usual because they will be making them selves as tall as possible.
3. Their ears are likely to be pricked forwards in the direction that they have interest in. This is to help them gain more information about the situation.
4. The dog’s tail will be stiff with or without a wag. If wagging it will be fast. The tail will be positioned higher than normal so for a Labrador that might be in a horizontal position but some breeds can pull them up higher above their back.
5. Generally the dog will be fixated on something in particular and will be unlikely to be able to remove their gaze from a specific area – if they have become alert due to a smell or noise then they might be scanning to determine where it has come from.
6. The dog may have put their hackles up – the hackles are the dog’s fur standing up on end and can start at the top of the dog’s head right down to the tip of their tail.

Nervous dog:

1. Muscles will be very tense and the dog, if moving, will seem stiff and tentative.
2. The dog’s body weight will be more backwards with a greater weight on their 2 back paws compared to the front ones. They will also be lower to the ground.
3. Their ears are likely to be pulled back or even flat against their head.
4. The dog’s tail will be stiff and with or without a wag. If wagging it will be either very quick or very slow – both types will be stiff with the whole tail moving as one.
5. The tail will be at a lower position than normal for your dog – mostly this means hanging straight down but a very worried dog may have it tucked right between their legs.
6. The dog will generally have their gaze fixed on what is making them anxious but if they can’t pinpoint where that is then they may scan the environment.
7. Their hackles may or may not be up.
8. They are likely to be showing other stress signals – discussed below.

As you can see from above it is not all plain sailing when it comes to reading your dog. The same posture/movement can mean your dog is either alert or nervous. The key to understanding how your dog is feeling is to look at the whole dog as one. If accompanied by a low body posture and ears flat against the dog’s head, a wagging tail does not always mean happy.

Probably the most important emotion that we must be able to read from our dogs is that of fear or anxiety. Fear is an overwhelming emotion for both humans and dogs, which means that the person/animal may do irrational or unusual things when in that state. These actions could be dangerous for the dog or people around the dog. Fear can cause 4 different reactions, the 4fs, FLIGHT, FIGHT, FREEZE or FIDDLE ABOUT.

FLIGHT:

Avoidance:

1. Moving away from the scary thing or simply not looking at it. Have you got cross at your dog for not paying attention to you and your dog just ignores you? Your dog is trying to avoid the conflict because he is worried (not because he is stubborn) – try softening your voice and see if your dog suddenly perks up again.
2. The dog on the left here is a little uncomfortable with being so close to the dog on the right. She could be distracted but this was a series of three photos which all showed her giving off stress signals (see sniffing a licking lips and shaking off)

Bolting:

1. Running as fast as they can away from what scares them. This can be a very dangerous action if you are out on a walk as they can run across roads (potentially life threatening for your dog and other road users). Your dog is also liable to get lost in this state because they are not in a rational state to remember where you are. Even the dog with the best recall will not respond if they are this scared. If you have a dog that is liable to bolt keep them on a lead for their safety and that of others.

FIGHT:

• Does your dog lunge at, bark at or show other aggression towards people/dogs or other things? The likely reason is that your dog is fearful of it. Your dog is trying to make itself as big and threatening as it can to make the thing they are scared of go away.
• If your dog is reacting in this way get your dog out of the situation – if the scary thing gets closer to them they are likely to escalate their attempts to make it go away which could lead to a bite.
• If your dog does react in this way it is imperative that you do not shout, scold or add anything negative to the situation as this is just going to confirm their fears that the scary thing is dangerous. Instead book yourself in for a behavioural 121 with a trainer who uses positive reinforcement methods. We have 4 experienced trainers here at Sussex County Dog Training who are all willing to help you out – just give the office a call (01243 697 202).

FREEZE:

Inability to move:

1. The dog becomes fixed in one place and can’t move away or get closer they are literally frozen with fear.

Fixation:

1. Your dog will not be able to take their eyes off what they are scared of. Making sure it is not getting closer to them in case they need to change their tactic to keep themselves safe.

FIDDLE ABOUT:

These are displacement activities, which your dog might do. They are similar to those we use such as biting our nails, twisting our hair, children sucking their thumbs… A lot of these will show up if you ask your dog to do something either in a harsh way or they are slightly stressed so can’t do as you are asking.

Scratching:

1. As though they have fleas but you know they don’t.
2. Chronic stress may lead to a dog harming itself by obsessive licking, scratching or biting of it’s fur – a likely cause if your vet can’t find a medical one.
3. Remember you dog may just have an itch so read the situation carefully before assuming it is one or the other.

Sniffing:

1. Intensely sniffing the ground when they weren’t previously interested in that area.
2. They may just also be sniffing because there is a good smell again reading their other body language is essential.

Drinking:

1. You might see this if you bring your dog to training class and you are letting your dog explore but even though they have just had a drink they keep going back to have more.
2. Remember your dog may just be thirsty especially if you are using salty treats.

A need to hold a toy:

1. Generally this occurs with gundog breeds – they might find it is comforting to have a large soft item in their mouth – very similar to when children suck their thumbs.

There are two final categories that we need to look at – stress signals (for more information see ‘Calming signals’ by Turid Rugaas) and stress release signals. These final two categories are often found accompanying the other behavioural signals described above but are key things to look out for and can help you determine whether your dog’s behaviour is due to stress/anxiety or something else.

STRESS SIGNALS:

Licking lips – the tongue flicks out quickly and usually repetitively. Your dog may just be cleaning it’s mouth if it has eaten a yummy treat!

Yawning – either partially or full yawns are a sign of stress just as they are in humans. Again there is another explanation – your dog has woken up or is tired.

Panting – this is a different type of panting to that of when your dog is hot.

1. The face being very tense with the corners of the mouth drawn right back accompanies stress panting.
2. The tongue usually stays within the set of teeth as apposed to lolling to the side if your dog is hot. The panting is generally very shallow and quick.

Slow movement – your dog does everything in slow motion – this is the dog trying to calm a situation down by not making any sudden movements.

Curving – this is most commonly seen when dogs are going to greet something or try very hard to avoid it.

1. A polite greeting by dogs is where they both walk towards each other in a curve – they may end up doing a circle around each other before they reach each other’s bottoms for a sniff.
2. Dogs who are slightly anxious about greeting a person will come in at a angle to you. You can make them more comfortable by turning sideways to them.

Blinking – very slow and large blinks.

Trembling – as though your dog is shivering because they are cold but will usually be accompanied by several other stress signals.

Wide (whale) eye – your dog will show the whites of their eyes and their pupils will be dilated (very large) to enable them to take in as much information as possible.

STRESS RELEASE SIGNALS:

These tend to come when the stress the dog is feeling is removed however they can come during a stressful period as well.

Shaking off – as though they have just been swimming and are shaking water off.

Stretching – as though they have woken up.

If you would like to learn any more about this subject and what your own dog is trying to communicate to you do not hesitate to contact one of the trainers (Jeff, Miranda, Gemma or Anna) here at Sussex County Dog Training. If your dog does any of the behaviours listed above we would love for you to come and see us so we can help you and your dog. We run both classes and 121 sessions for your convenience just give the office a call – 01243 697 202 or email nina@sussexcountydogtraining.co.uk

By Anna Nussey

Sussex County Dog Training

DAYCARE T&C’s

The most common answer you will hear to the question above is …

‘because my dog loves me’

How we all wish the above statement could be true. Unfortunately it isn’t which makes our lives a little harder when training our dogs. Essentially there is just one single reason why your dog follows your commands and that is:

The behaviour you have asked for has been rewarded in the past or to avoid something bad happening.

***Here at Sussex County Dog Training we only use ethical methods, which help build the trust and bond between you and your dog as well as being very effective at teaching your dog the correct behaviour. Therefore we will not be discussing at this point the part of the statement above that says ‘or to avoid something bad happening’. At a later date there will be a post on why using aversive methods does not work and how those methods have negative outcomes not only on your training but also your relationship.***

The behaviour will occur because it has been rewarded in the past. This means that the behaviour will have what trainers call a reinforcement history. The behaviour you have asked your dog to perform has been followed by a treat, toy, praise, chance to go off lead or their dinner etc. at a previous time. A behaviour will be more likely to occur if it has a high reinforcement history (there have been loads and loads of times when the dog has got something good after the behaviour) than if it has a low reinforcement history (maybe once or twice it has had something good follow it).

Basically if you want your dog to repeat a behaviour again (e.g. sit when you have asked) reward it heavily every time your dog does the behaviour and your dog will soon sit first time, every time you ask.

Now I hear you wondering – why does my dog not work for me? This is a more complicated subject. Firstly to put a few misconceptions to bed. Your dog is not any of the following.

• Stubborn
• Annoyed at you for leaving them alone, not saying hello to them first …
• Ignoring you on purpose
• Doing it to spite you
• etc.

If your dog doesn’t do as you ask it will almost certainly be because of one of the following points that will be looked at in more detail.

• Bored
• Tired
• Ill
• Frightened or anxious
• Can’t hear you
• Doesn’t know the command
• Distracted
• Frustrated or confused
• Yucky weather!

Bored:

If you do the same thing every day, using exactly the same voice and go to the same places for some dogs this will be very boring. (However some dogs would love this so it just depends on your dog). Try varying what treats, toys, voice praise you use when you are interacting with your dogs. Try taking them to a different area for their walks or at a different time of day.

Tired:

Has your dog had a busy day – been to day care, for a long walk, have you had visitors around (this can be extremely tiring for dogs), or been to a training class? All of these can tire your dogs out and just think if you had been to the gym would you want to keep sitting and then standing back up again? Give your dog plenty of rest and perhaps at the curb just ask your dog to wait instead of sit?

Ill:

If your dog is ill they will be feeling just like you would if you are ill. Give a day of two of rest and see if they are up for following your commands after that. A food treat or toy isn’t going to seem like much of a reward if they have a dicky tummy so that reinforcement history won’t count for much!

Frightened or anxious:

Many things can make your dog worried. When an animal becomes worried there are only 4 things a dog/person/animal can do – Freeze, flee, fight or fiddle about! Freeze is easy the dog will just stop moving and become very stiff – ever taken your dog for a walk and they have put the breaks on? Perhaps the walk is a bit scary (loud traffic, bangs, aeroplanes…). Fleeing – this is the flight response – your dog will just want to run away. Has your dog just bolted away from you on a walk because they got scared and won’t respond to your recall? This is why they are just not able to because they are running for what they think is their life. Fight – does your dog start barking at people/statues and won’t sit or come to you when you ask? Your dog is most likely scared and can’t respond because they are trying to make the scary thing go away (if this happens to your dog perhaps book a 121 with us so we can help you teach your dog these things aren’t so scary). Fiddling about! – this is a funny one. Has your dog ever started scratching or sniffing the ground when you ask them to sit? They are showing a displacement activity – try saying the command in a really light hearted voice and see if they can do it and stop sniffing/scratching. Other displacement activities will be covered in a blog post soon.

Distracted/can’t hear you:

Your dog won’t follow your instruction if they are distracted. Try gaining your dog’s attention first before issuing your command. Ever been in the middle of reading a book/watching a film and someone suddenly shouts at you? You turn round in a huff and ask them what that was for and they say they have been saying your name 5 times and have ignored them. Actually you didn’t hear them because you were so engrossed in your book. The same happens with dogs they may be so engrossed in playing with that other dog that your voice doesn’t get though. Don’t shout at them (you may cause one of the 4 f’s described above) instead perhaps train them to respond to a whistle which is more likely to be heard – again we can teach you this in a 121 session just phone the office to find out more.

Frustrated/confused/doesn’t know the command:

Make sure that all your commands are said exactly the same each time you use them. Your dog won’t know what lie down means if you have taught them to down on the command ‘down’. Always be consistent and make sure your whole family uses the same commands. Also it takes a long time for dogs to learn commands. Try and make sure you have done at least 100 repetitions over several days in training sessions of pairing the cue word with the behaviour before you use it in real life. Also dogs are very specific about learning things. A sit in the sitting room is not the same as a sit in the garden! Make sure you take your training sessions on the road and don’t just use one room of the house and then think your dog can do it anywhere.

Yucky weather:

Would you really want to lie down in a puddle?

What should I do if my dog doesn’t do as I ask?

• STOP what you are doing – if it isn’t working try something simpler.
• LOOK at what your dog is telling you with their behaviour and try and determine why your dog isn’t doing as you ask.
• STAY POSITIVE and don’t get mad – this is only more likely to make your dog not do as you ask in the future.

By Anna Nussey

Yesterday was a post about what doggie day care was and we mentioned a few benefits of what it can bring to you and your dog. This post is going to be specifically about the socialisation and confidence building benefits that the day care can bring. Please post a comment if you can think of any we have missed off.

Learn doggy body language to hone their communication skills. This will ensure your dog communicates the right thing to strange dogs as they are giving off polite signals.

Learn about the strength of individual dogs so they can play appropriately with young, small, large or old dogs. We encourage the dogs to play with toys together and generally get to know how each other like to play. We supervise it so that dogs who get a bit over the top learn it was too much and that next time if they want to continue play they have to tone it down a bit. We do this by using time out zones so dogs that can’t calm down have an enforced break from play for a minute or so before being allowed to re-join the group.

Learn to relax whilst lots is going on in the ‘chill-out’ or ‘dog house’ zones – perfect for if you want to take your dog to a pub, BBQ or other dog friendly party/activity.

Meet friendly dogs of all shapes and sizes. Many dogs may have a single bad experience with a particular breed and then be worried if they see them on walks. At Doggie Day Care there will be multiple breeds so hopefully your dog can meet enough friendly ones and have a good time to stop them being anxious on walks.

Walk/play on all different surfaces – this builds a dog’s confidence. Many anxious dogs rely of their owners for all of their confidence. We find that if you get them to learn in their own time that doing stuff that previously scared them is actually fun it boosts their confidence in other areas too. At Doggie Day Care we have slides, climbing equipment, Wendy houses, paddling pools and pebbled areas to stimulate our dogs. With an anxious dog we will use positive reinforcement methods to teach them each of these aren’t scary and can actually be fun.

Have fun with non-family members. Your dog will meet lots of different staff members (men, women, children, teenagers, in winter clothing or summer shorts!) and build positive relationships with them. This will mean your dog will more easily bond with your friends and strangers. This is handy when you go on holiday – you can be sure your dog isn’t stressing that you aren’t there because they have learnt that good things happen with strangers too. If you use the boarding Sussex Pet Sitters service then they may even be staying with one of the staff who they know and love. This is also good if you want to go to the pub/BBQ/friends house – you know your dog will like the attention that he is sure to get and will enable you to relax knowing you can trust your dog.

Learn that being away from you is OK. Having their owner’s leave them either at home alone or with a friend/dog walker can make dogs a little anxious because they don’t understand that you will be coming back or that they can have a good time without you. Leaving your dog at Doggie Day Care will teach them this because they have a great time after you leave. This can be really helpful for dogs with separation anxiety as they usually have an over developed reliance on you. Spreading this reliance onto other people helps decrease the anxiety they feel when you leave. Having the routine of coming to Doggie Day Care, leaving you, having fun and then going home with you again will teach your dog that if you leave you aren’t leaving them forever.

I am sure there are more but would love to hear your ideas and what you feel your dog will get out of Doggie Day Care.

By Anna Nussey