Dogs And Illusions
Dogs can be subject to illusions. So can humans. A couple of weeks ago, I was outside to meet a couple for the first time with their dog. When the dog first saw me, he was happy and pulling my way. But, when he sniffed me, he startled, jumped back and started growling. His initial […]
Dogs And Laser Pointers (Part 2)
I have worked with several dogs that developed light and shadow chasing behaviors after someone had them chase laser pointer dots. These dogs not only then continually chase the smallest flickers of light and shadows but also develop an anxiety disorder. How could this be the result? Dogs never develop an abnormality after chasing actual […]
Dogs And Danger Clues
There are going to be instances when a lesson that you have performed countless times with other dogs fails with a particular dog. You will misread the situation, setting up the same scenario that has always worked before, but the result backfires. Here is an example. You are practicing Come when called. Simple exercise. Let’s […]
Dogs And Perception
Dogs don’t perceive the world the same way we do. You had better think about that when training, or making demands of, a dog. While humans and dogs have a similar three level afferent (inward conducting) neural pathway, transmitting sensory information towards the brain, the dogs brain processes that information for different priorities. As that […]
Daily Activities For Dogs In Shelters
What should be the minimum daily protocol of activities for shelter dogs (and dogs in foster homes)? What can be done to help ensure they don’t mentally break down? What can be done to increase their potential for adoption and reduce behavioral returns? And what can be done to create photo opportunities to market the […]
What Do Dogs Do With Their Time?
Have you ever considered what dogs do with their time? Their activities can be divided into two types. They are either 1.) “looking” to satisfy their biological needs or avoid danger; or 2.) processing and making adaptive responses to the stimuli they internally generate or encounter along the way. In other words, a living being, […]
Dogs And Learning Curves
German psychologist Hermann Ebbinghaus (1885) came up with the concept of a “learning curve” while studying the effects of repeated performances of a task and its effect on memory. Generally, the more an activity is practiced, the more likely it will be remembered and repeated correctly. Thus, you could plot the increased performance on a […]
Dogs And Anticipation
We set a lot of dogs up for failure by building unrealistic expectations about our dogs and in our dogs. An anticipation is a learned, sustained belief in some kind of good or bad outcome. So, let’s take that apart. Humans: Based upon some kind of historical data, a human will pursue, sometimes relentlessly, an […]
Why Should You Train Puppies?
What have I seen regarding the differences, other than physical, between puppies and adult dogs? When I evaluate a puppy, or any dog, I am looking at the cumulative past experiences that dog has had, which will be the interplay between innate abilities, maturity, and acquired learning. The younger the dog, and the more I […]
The X In Dog Behavior And Learning Theories
It isn’t unusual for a particular theory to use a hypothetical X to account for factors that the researcher doesn’t wish to isolate and examine or haven’t yet figured out. There is nothing wrong with this approach. We use it in mathematics for a reason. We can solve an equation by assigning an imaginary value […]