Why Did He Do That?!

I was out with my buddy, Loki, last Saturday.  It was a beautiful morning, actually on the cooler side which was a nice change from the crazy hot weather we've been having.  At one point Loki sniffed the air, then he dropped and began rolling around on the wet grass, smiling ear to ear, and really enjoying himself.  A woman pushing a stroller walked by us and then stopped, apparently because she couldn't figure out why I was letting Loki just roll around.  She actually asked me, "Why in the world is your dog rolling around like that?! Is he okay?!" Clearly not a dog owner, amiright? She asked if he was having a seizure!  That quite literally cracked me up. No, I told her.  He's not having a seizure. He's having a moment of joy!  The grass is wet and it feels good to roll around.  Plus, Loki knows if he grins my direction while rolling, I'll lean down and scratch his tummy and armpits, his favorite thing in the world.  She still looked perplexed as she walked away, shaking her head, but that's okay.  Dogs aren't for everybody!  And here's the truth of the matter:  Dogs roll around for many reasons beyond the joy of wet grass.

Dogs roll on the ground because their world is based in scents.  A dog who's just been bathed/groomed will roll around (if allowed to) drying himself off in the process.  Some dogs roll around post grooming, even if they are dry, as they are trying to get rid of the "clean dog smell" in favor of something more earthy and "normal," or familiar, from their perspective. Dogs will roll in mud or damp leaves to cool off.  They'll roll in smelly things like seaweed, horse manure, and cow patties for the joy of smelling like those delightfully stinky things.  They may also be doing so to disguise their own scent. So, rolling dries them, cools them, gets rid of a smell, adds a new smell, and of course, brings them joy.

And then, there are the dogs like Henley.  Henley rolls on his back to scratch.  He has a lot of allergies (it's why I bathe him twice a week!), but rolling on his back allows him to scratch spots he can't reach.  And Ozzie?  He rolls around, mostly rubbing his face, as he likes to clean up his mouth post water or food that way. So my two dogs are rolling around as some kind of individualized grooming ritual. It's interesting to me that after Ozzie has done this face cleaning, or Henley has scratched his back by rolling on the rug, each of them will go to that spot, drop down for a deep sniff, and often paw that spot.  Clearly, rolling around like that has left the other dog's scent behind and they know it!

I really do enjoy watching dogs do, well, just what dogs do.  And it is kind of fun when you meet someone who isn't a dog person as their perception of what us dog owners see everyday is quite different. Just for fun, share why your dogs roll around or if they even might be the ones sleeping on their backs, all four feet up in the air!

And as always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

Here's Loki, post-roll, getting his scritches in!

Why Can't We Be Friends?

I just met yesterday with a lovely young couple who recently moved to San Francisco from the Midwest.  They had chosen San Francisco because they had read online about it being one of the most dog-friendly cities in California and they were eager to be able to take their adolescent Boston Terrier more places with them.  They were also hoping that they'd be able to find him a few playmates, whose owners they might like too, since they don't really know many people here yet other than their coworkers, and those are all virtual! So far, however, it's been a total bust; either their dog didn't like the other dogs they've met, or my clients didn't like the dogs' humans!  They'd met with their new veterinarian to update their dog's vaccines and that's how they'd heard about me and reached out for help.

This was such an interesting appointment!  I wasn't there because their dog had any specific behavioral issues; he didn't even really have any training issues.  I was there to help this couple and their dog find some social opportunities here in the Bay Area that would get them off to a great start.

We took their dog for a walk so I could observe him (and them) out in public.  I made suggestions about where to walk and explore, including places other clients regularly use and love like Fort Funston, Strawberry Hill, the Presidio, and Dolores Park. I did tell them that they would need to visit these places several times, and on different days, to get a feel for the areas and the dog owners that use them.  While Fort Funston is an off leash dog haven, dogs are primarily on leash at Strawberry Hill and Dolores Park.  I told them that they should really think about their ultimate goal; was it truly to find their dog a dog friend, or was it for them to find like-minded, dog-owning humans to hang out with? These are not necessarily the same thing.  They could send their dog to doggie daycare to make friends and socialize with other dogs, BUT if they really wanted to make friends themselves, then they were going to have to get out a lot more than they've been doing.  On a recommendation from my daughter, I even suggested that they try online groups like MeetUp and Bumble BFF to find couple friends with similar interests.  They'd never even thought of that!

I agree that it can be harder to make new friends when you first move to a new area, but while it may seem overwhelming, it's really not.  You just have to put yourself out there and be okay with not every connection working out.  Finally, I suggested they consider volunteering with Furry Friends, the pet assisted therapy group I work with, given that they are both very interested in volunteerism AND their dog loves meeting new people.  Through an organization like Furry Friends, I know this couple will definitely connect with other like-minded dog owners, including many who live outside of San Francisco, thus expanding where they cast their net for new friends and new connections.

We can't make our dogs like certain other dogs, or even certain people.  And our dogs may like people or other dogs that we ourselves don't.  That's just how it works!  You can't force a dog to like who you like, though you can hedge your bets by including good treats and a lot of positive reinforcement on those first meetings in the hopes of making a great first impression.

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

My daughter met a lot of like minded dog owners hiking in Los Angeles County when she lived there.  Ozzie and I often joined her and Westley on their hikes which were quite enjoyable, except for the mud.  Rough collies definitely get dirtier than smooths as this photo aptly proves!

If You Just Need a Plan!

I worked with a wonderful client over the weekend who told me that she just needed a training plan for her new dog.  She likened it to the workout program her personal trainer gave her for getting back into shape. She said what she really wanted, and hoped I could provide, was a simple outline of what she should be doing everyday with her dog to make sure he was headed in the right direction.  She indicated, too, that she'd tried to find simple guidelines like this online, but ended up down a rabbit hole of suggestions and exercises, some of which she was pretty sure weren't good for her dog! So, when I told her she really just needed to put in about 5-10 minutes a day to reach her goals for her dog, she was ecstatic!  This was something she could commit to and she took out a notebook to write down the plan.  Here's what I told her:

1.  Work everyday on the important behaviors you need your dog to reliably do.  Run through them quickly and efficiently, kind of like stretching before you go for a run.  Then spend the remainder of your training with your dog working on a new/fun skill/behavior.

2.  The basic behaviors I think every dog should be able to do reliably:  sit, down, stay, stand, come, drop it, leave it, and walk nicely on leash.  My client's dog had reliable sits and downs, but that was about it.  So, we worked together on luring him into the other behaviors.  I showed her how to turn leave it and drop it into a game so her dog would be more likely to comply rather than resist giving up treasured things he finds.  And for the loose leash walking, I told her to work indoors, sans leash, luring her dog using treats and her voice FIRST, before moving outdoors with a leash and trying the same techniques.

3.  The list of behaviors I gave her for adding in fun/new skills:  touch, bow, turn, through, back it up, sit up, dance, spin, speak, whisper, flop, and roll over. I then had Henley demonstrate each of those skills for her!  He did each skill twice, once for her to observe, and once for her to see how I got the behavior in the first place.  

4.  Don't get frustrated!  Rome wasn't built in a day, as my grandmother used to say.  It might take her dog weeks to get through just the basics and that's absolutely okay!  But, even if he's still struggling with the basics, she should introduce something new and fun every day to try, learning how to keep his brain engaged and keep herself motivated.

5.  Always end on a positive note.  Regardless of how that 5-10 minute session went, always end the session with something easy or fun that your dog will be 100% successful doing, even if it's "just a sit."  Because, you know what?  A dog who can sit still, even for just a few seconds, has potential and that should be rewarded and celebrated!

We will be meeting again in two weeks to check her progress.  She referred to that as accountability for herself!  In the meantime, she's going to send me video progress reports which should be fun for us both.

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

I simply could not resist sharing this picture of my granddog, Westley!  

My daughter taught him to do "junkyard dog face!" This trick is hysterical.  When I've tried it with Henley, he just ends up yawning or sneezing!

An Ode To Those Gutted Stuffy-Fluffies!

I know Henley is not the only dog out there who can gut a toy in two minutes flat. I mean completely wreck it, stuffing all over the place and giant holes where those cute stuffed limbs used to be.  Even toys labeled "indestructible" are no match for Henley; they will have a chunk taken out of them in seconds. He is a dog with a singular purpose, gut the toy and call it a win.  I just roll my eyes, pick up the pieces and move on, but I've started thinking about this a bit differently recently, mostly because he's the first dog I've ever had (and I've had a LOT of dogs) who was this single-minded with toys.

How about if we look at this as a necessary behavior?  Dogs are animals and animals, by their very nature, must hunt and kill to survive.  Now, dogs have been domesticated for over 30,000 years, but who's to say that predatory drive isn't still there?  Maybe it's just the case that some of our dogs have more of a predatory drive than others, and while they may exercise that drive by chasing squirrels, birds, and neighborhood cats (Henley does that too!), some also direct that prey drive at their toys.

If you watch a dog taking apart a toy, and believe you me, I've had a lot of opportunities to do so with Henley, there is a method to his destruction.  He is focused, toy poised between his front paws, or pinned to the floor with one paw, as he snaps at it, shakes it, and rips his first hole. Once that first hole is made, he often moves to a new place, laying down to get a better angle, as he starts pulling out the stuffing, literally dissecting it. Now, fortunately for me, he's never eaten any stuffing, squeakers, etc.  He just leaves those spoils for me to clean up, which I do promptly.  Once a toy is gutted, he's done with it.  He might return to it later to see if he can pull it apart some more, but for the most part, once it's gutted, he just carries around the empty carcass until something new catches his eye. Or he nods off.

I'm now starting to think of Henley as a captive animal, not just my beloved pet dog.  I wouldn't give a second thought to a captive wolf tearing apart a carcass!  But Henley is stuck in my house with me (and Ozzie), and his toys are his outlet for this very natural, normal behavior. He is genetically wired for this, as he's been doing it since we brought him home.  What does it mean for me long term? It means I buy a lot of toys for Henley, varying the texture, durability (I hope), and size to keep his interest.  If a toy is able to be repaired, I re-stuff it, sew it up, and put it back into the rotation. If it's beyond repair, I toss it.  And the best part of all of this is that this dog has NEVER chewed up anything that wasn't one of his toys; he's never touched a blanket, pillow, cushion, chair, etc.  Not once.  All of his predatory drive and chewing behavior has been directly appropriately to the toys that are his.  I'm actually quite proud of him for that, and frankly relieved, as were he chewing my stuff, it would be a lot more expensive to replace!

So, if you, too, have a dog who likes to dissect toys, try thinking of it as a natural part of the predatory sequence and part of life as a captive animal. It's our responsibility to keep our dogs entertained with appropriate outlets for their mental and physical exercise.  Finally, if any of you have durable toy recommendations, Henley and I are all ears.  Well, he's all ears, but I'm listening too!

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

I also buy Henley lots of hard, ridged, flavored, bone-type toys to chew on.  He loves these and I find them in every room, especially when I step on them in the middle of the night!

A Bit More on Reactivity

I have had so many new clients approach me for help with their "reactive" dogs.  I find this interesting because using that terminology to describe a dog's behavior really wasn't a thing until just a few years ago. Now, however, I hear it batted around and used quite frequently to describe dogs who do everything from bark at the TV to biting the neighbor!  It seems that many owners with aggressive dogs prefer to use the term reactive, thinking that this will make the problem seem less serious.  This is troubling because an aggressive dog has a very different problem than a dog whose barking has become an issue. 

By definition, reactive just means responding to a stimulus or acting in response to a situation.  Well, you know what?  We all do that.  The doorbell rings and you jump up and answer the door.  Are you reactive? Yes, because you acted upon a stimulus you received.  Now, I'm not trying to be difficult here; I simply want everyone, dog owners included, to think about the words they use to describe behavior. If your dog is afraid of sounds, then he's noise sensitive.  If your dog barks at the neighbor's dog at their shared fence line, then he's territorial. If your dog charges at guests, biting at their pants leg, then your dog is aggressive. And yet, all three of the dogs I just described came to me with the label "reactive." I do want to help all three of these dogs, but helping them means helping you, and you can help me by telling me what's really going on. I'm not going to judge your dog parenting skills, I just need to know exactly what's happening. Was is really a nip?  Or was it a bite?  Is the barking just at the fence, or is your dog barking at the TV, your kids running in the yard, and on walks? And those noises that set your dog off; are they barking dogs on the TV screen, the garbage trucks in your neighborhood, or the sound of your ice maker?  All of these details are important for diagnosis and treatment, and way more important that any labels.

So, while I agree that noise sensitive dogs, barking dogs, and aggressive dogs are all anxious dogs at the heart of the matter, I don't think calling them reactive helps at all.  All of these dogs have the capacity to learn a different behavioral response to their triggers.  Getting frustrated and labeling them disobedient or stubborn won't help either.  What they are is anxious and their anxiety is keeping them from hearing you.  

OK.  Hopping down off of my soap box now and calling back that dog owner that left me a message this morning about their reactive dog.  I know one thing for sure, their dog is anxious.  Now, I just need to figure out if he's afraid, obsessive, lacking physical or mental exercise, or aggressive.  Or some combination of all of those things.  But, you know me. I'm on it!

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

Here's my sweet granddog, Westley.  Westley doesn't like the sounds made by garbage trucks, city buses, and street sweepers.  Does this make him reactive?  Well, yes, he's reacting to a stimulus and responding with fear.  Is he anxious?  Absolutely, but we've worked hard with him to understand the safe spaces in our home, and he now goes there when he hears a triggering noise.  He is less anxious overall as he's in control of the outcome.  That's the key with treating anxiety.

The Dog Who Didn't Like Hugs

Not the hugs you are thinking of though.  This is a dog who doesn't like it when the humans hug, and more specifically doesn't like it when anyone hugs mom.  The owners thought it was kind of cute, at first.  But then, they noticed that it wasn't really all that funny when the dog started jumping up, interrupting hugs, and shoving people apart.  It became especially concerning when he escalated to nipping anyone who tried to shove him away.  The final straw?  Mom was sitting on the couch with the dog laying next to her.  One of the kids came up behind her and leaned over the couch to hug her and the dog jumped up and bit the child in the face, necessitating a trip to the emergency room and a handful of stitches.  Such a desperately sad situation for this family, but one that really should have been dealt with long before the dog chose to bite to make his point.  Whether you want to say that this dog suffers from resource guarding aggression with mom being the resource, or you choose to label him as a protective aggressor, it doesn't really matter.  The bottom line is that he's now bitten a child, a child who he's lived with his whole life and who walks him every day, plays ball with him, and even gives him treats. This dog had given this family many warnings that a bite *could* happen and they ignored those warnings thinking he'd never actually bite anyone.  They still believed this to be the case right up until the bite to their son.

Their veterinarian, and a friend of the family, had recommended me to this family more than once.  Apparently, the dog didn't like the vet hugging mom when she brought him into the clinic for a vaccine. When the vet saw this, she knew what she was seeing, but her recommendations were downplayed and she stopped hugging her friend when she saw her.  After the bite, however, she couldn't keep quiet anymore, asking them why they hadn't reached out to me for guidance as she'd strongly suggested?

While it may be hard to admit that  your dog has a behavior problem, ignoring the problem will not make it go away.  More importantly, when you are dealing with issues in aggression, burying your head in the sand or making excuses for your dog puts others at risk.  In this case, a child. So, here were my recommendations to this family:

At this point, the dog is a proven biter.  He has demonstrated that he is willing to escalate to a serious bite if someone touches his female owner in his presence.  Going forward, this dog must be confined when people arrive and go through the hugging rituals of human greetings.  When guests are in the house, he must be on leash and tethered in place on his dog bed; he cannot be allowed on furniture or at his female owner's feet any more.  The owners will need to muzzle train him so that when he can't be confined or tethered for some reason, he'll be prohibited from biting.  And yes, HE WILL BITE AGAIN if they don't complete all of these steps.  The bottom line, however, is that I don't think that this dog is a good fit for this family any longer.  He should be in a home with a single human or couple who will enforce boundaries and keep him under threshold for his guarding behavior.  Given that their veterinarian had recommended euthanizing the dog, my treatment plan though difficult, seemed like something they were willing to try.  The kids love this dog, even the child who was bitten thought it was his fault for "surprising the dog when I hugged mom."

I really hope this family heeds all of my warnings and boundaries are rigorously enforced with this dog.  He actually is a pretty nice dog overall, a bit pushy, but not bad, as long as you don't try to hug his female owner, so we'll see how it goes.  The liability is still there and that's never going away.

As always, if you have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

Here's Henley, asleep in the crook of my legs on the couch.  Anyone can sit on the couch next to us, or hug me when he's there.  He just figures one more person available for him to cuddle with and love on.  He does try to block Ozzie from getting attention, but it doesn't come from a place of guarding, he's just competitive and Ozzie always lets him know where he stands in the pecking order.

If You Take a Dog to a Party...

They should be a well-behaved guest! Being able to take your dogs with you when you are out and about is a privilege, not a right, for those of us with pet/companion dogs; only service dogs are afforded rights to be in public spaces with their handlers, unrestricted.  For the rest of us, we really need to take an honest look at our dogs, how they behave (or don't!), what they enjoy doing (and don't!), and what our plan is if we are out in public and our dog has a meltdown.  As any parent of a toddler will tell you, you have to have a plan for those untimely meltdowns!

I do try to take my dogs with me whenever I can; I think it's good for them to get out and see new places and meet new people, and have novel experiences. It's mentally stimulating for them and good practice for me to see where they are with their distractions training, for example.  Ozzie has gotten to be an old pro at this, having stepped into Desi's rather large pet assisted therapy dog shoes.  Ozzie does one pet therapy visit each month, and I also try to take him to coffee or lunch with me once a month as well, just so we can have one-on-one time and he can get a break from Henley.  Henley isn't ready for pet therapy visits yet as he still can be a little bouncy with new people.  I take him out, however, as I like to walk him around populated malls and busy stores as I want him to continue to improve.  For his recent stage presentations, he had to walk through a parking garage, board an elevator, go through automated doors, greet new people, greet new dogs, pose for pictures AND perform alongside me onstage.  He did great, but he was still bouncy in a few of his greetings, so we'll keep working on that.  You might be thinking, "Well why didn't you take Ozzie for those presentations?" Well, the answer is that I didn't take Ozzie because he'd have hated doing that!  Ozzie knows a lot of tricks, can do elevators, etc., but having screaming kids running at and around him isn't his cup of tea. In fact, screaming kids make him anxious, so I avoid taking him places where that's likely to occur.  Now, he's certainly heard/seen screaming kids when we've been in restaurants, and while he'll alert to the sounds, he doesn't get anxious as he's pretty sure those screaming kids are going to stay at their table and not encroach on his space. Henley, on the other hand, loves kids, screaming or not.  He figures screaming kids need a collie to hug and that's his approach.

So, why am I telling you this?  Every single one of us needs to know our own dog and be mindful of the situations we put them into.  While there are certainly steps you can take with your training to prepare your dog for being in public spaces more often, you do need to keep their personality/temperatment in mind always.  If your dog is a total introvert for whom loud noises, screaming kids, and random approaches from strangers might trigger anxiety, don't force them to do it.  Instead, choose hikes or park excursions for that dog, at off peak times, so that they can experience working with you away from home, but not be forced to deal with situations and people who create anxiety.  Yes, you can certainly still take your introvert with you to busy malls, events, etc., just remember that doing so is stressful for them.  Weigh your options: Is taking them with you in their best interest, or is it that you just want to do so? And if your dog doesn't like being approached or petted by strangers, please don't take them with you as it puts you and your dog at risk.  People are going to approach you and many will try to pet your dog without asking. I know, I know. They should ask, but frankly they often don't and you don't want to put someone, or your dog, at risk.

Training your dog in public access skills is a worthwhile endeavor and a good way to mentally stimulate any dog.  Start with simple outings such as walking to the post office or bank, sitting quietly next to you while you drop mail in the box or use the ATM machine.  Work up to taking your dog into dog-friendly stores and walking them around the displays.  Have your dog sit each time you stop walking.  Do not allow extensive sniffing, rubbing on displays, etc. Brief sniffs are fine. Find stores with stairs and elevators so that you can practice both.  Stairs come in all forms, some you can see between the stairs, others are solid, some are made of wood, and others are slippery or covered in carpeting that can retain odors.  Practice all of those different kinds of stairs, encouraging your dog to go slowly, stopping at the top and sitting before descending. Do not allow your dog to linger or sniff excessively on the stairs. On the elevator, you can start with having your dog stand next to you, but work up to having them sit next to you or between your legs so that they don't take up too much space or block someone else's access to that elevator.

When you are working on taking your dog to eating establishments, do take it slow. If your dog is still surfing counters at home, you'll want to have that issue addressed before you try to walk through a restaurant where people have food on their tables as you pass by!  Start simple with a coffee shop, yogurt shop, or smoothie place.  Sit at a table with your dog and offer them treats for sitting calmly at your side or laying at your feet. Don't bribe them to behave, instead reward them when they do. If they can't focus or are fidgety, just pick up your coffee/yogurt/smoothie and move on; you can try again another day.  Once your dog is good at those coffee shops, you can move on to a casual restaurant, just remember that a busy restaurant on a weekend may be more than your dog can handle that first time out in public.  Maybe try that restaurant on a weekday and work up to a busy weekend. Dog friendly restaurants are terrific, but they get busy and if there are a lot of dogs there, that may be too much your first few trips out together.  Don't push it.  You want your dog to enjoy going out to restaurants with you, not dread them.  And take some advice from those toddler parents and walk your dogs outside the restaurant if they become fidgety, bored, or start acting up.  Don't allow your dog (or your kids!) to impinge upon the dining experiences of others.  Nothing gives kids or dogs a worse rep than when they are ill-behaved in public and their parents/owners do nothing about it.  Consequences are important! We need to be fair to the other diners around us and keep our dogs away from their tables.  And by the same token, those parents need to keep their kids at their own table as well.  And remember not to allow your dog to block the path for the servers just trying to do their jobs. If you have a big dog, ask for a table in a corner where you can keep your dog closer to the wall and not block pathways.

Just as those toddler parents have baby bags filled with what they need to survive out in public, so should dog owners!  Carry your own water, water bowl, treats, a mat/towel for your dog to lay on, and of course poop bags.  You can even bring a bone or other busy toy for your dog to chew on, just make sure the toy you've brought isn't messy or noisy. When Henley was a young puppy, I used to always bring a bone and a bullystick with me, allowing him to chew on one for a bit, and then switching it up.  It took most of his first year practicing for him to get to the point where he can now go to a busy restaurant and hang out with me for an hour.  He's not ready yet for much longer than that, but he'll get there.  For now, I don't push him and we keep practicing! He's been the most challenging collie I've ever owned from the standpoint of teaching calm behaviors. Henley is super-smart, loves to problem solve, is bold and fearless, and is only now understanding the pleasure that comes from sitting still and observing the world.  Calm was not in Henley's vocabulary for much of his first year.  Now, at almost 18 months, he's beginning to see how fun it is to be out in public, calmly accepting attention from new people, and being able to further explore the world as he becomes more proficient at handling what busy public spaces have to offer. Slow and steady wins the race, and if he had never really gotten it, that would have been fine too. It just would have meant less time out in public and more time working at home. He'd still be a great dog, but now that he's gotten a little older, he can go more places and I trust him to make better choices when we're there.  And if he's having an off day, I don't push him. Just as I've cut pet therapy visits short for Ozzie because I could see he was done, I don't push Henley to remain out in public longer than he's able.  If he gets fussy or fidgety, we're out of there.

I hope that gives you a training path to pursue more time out in public spaces with your dogs.  If you still have questions about your pet's behavior, you know where to find me.

Here's Henley just calmly watching the people go by at our Golden State Warriors event in San Francisco.  He's in a sit/stay, dropped leash just loose on the ground.  Six months ago, I wouldn't have dropped his leash like that and walked away for a photo; he'd have wanted to get to the other dogs and people going by. Now, he's able to do this, no problem.  Henley is maturing, clearly loving his time out in public and teaching people all about smooth collies!