Nov 22, 2009    By Dr. Sophia Yin

When we last left off, I’d dropped Lucy, the 8 week old Australian Cattledog with my parents after taking a week to train her through the puppy learn to earn program at my house. Before I brought her down, she seemed virtually perfect. She would automatically sit to be petted, to get her leash on, to go out the door, to have her toy tossed, and even when she greeted guests, including young toddlers. She could fetch and would chew on appropriate toys. And she could walk on leash in heel position and come when called even away from playing with other puppies.

Then I brought her to my Dad, with the hopes that if my parents could just continue to reward the behaviors I had just trained she’d be almost as well-behaved for them. It sounded so simple, until on day one at their house she immediately decided, they didn’t exist. They were far too slow to deliver the treat while she was behaving or sitting and looking at them, so she’d immediately run off and do something else. Luckily, the Puppy Learn to Earn program starts with the puppy on leash at all times when the owners are home so she had to stick near my dad thus giving him a better chance to reward good behavior. After a full day attached to him earning her meal throughout the day, Lucy finally started sitting and looking at him. They finally started bonding. And it was a good thing since I would be unable to return to check their progress for several weeks.

Hints of Lucy’s Bad Behavior

In the weeks that I was away, it was clear my dad and Lucy were bonding. “Lucy licks me when I carry her,” or “Lucy’s doing better at sitting for us,” he would report.

But then came the email reports from my mom when I was traveling several days later. “She’s still pottying in the house, what should we do?” “Lucy’s chewing on our arm, how come?”  ” She keeps grabbing her leash on walks. How do we stop that?” Now these seem like typical questions anyone might have, but that would be people who’s did not already have a 35-page 100-photo book specifically detailing how their puppy had been trained. So my answers included statements, such as ” Did you read and look at the photos on pages 1-8 on how to potty train Lucy, or p 19 on nipping? Or watch the instructional videos I sent on how to perform the exercises?”

Even though my dad doesn’t like to read in English, I had hoped he would at least look at the photos. Yeah, right.

Anyway, based on their reports, when I finally visited them about two weeks after I’d last seen her I wasn’t surprised by her bad behavior. On a positive note, my parents had walked her twice a day through the neighborhoods of San Francisco where she’s greeted many people and received treats for sitting. So she was much more comfortable around cars, buses, individual and crowds of people, as well as fire engines, dump trucks and the other city sounds that and sights that could scare dogs who didn’t get such experiences before 12 weeks of age.  On the other hand two weeks ago we had a sweet puppy who sat for petting, treats, to be greeted, to get leash on and on walks whenever we stopped, now Lucy was a jumping maniac. That in itself wasn’t that bad, nor was the fact that she was still an angel when I walked her on leash but a little monster when my dad tried. She would stop and grabs leaves or lunge randomly in different directions or grab the leash and play tug. What was really bad was the things she learned in her puppy class. I saw them first hand when I went.

Lucy’s Bad Puppy Class

Puppy socialization class started as close to 8 weeks of age as possible is supposed to solve or prevent a number of problem issues from developing in puppies. In class, owners should practice handling their puppies and teaching their puppies that remaining calm to have their feet, ears, tail, mouth examined is good. Puppies should also learn how to play nicely with other puppies and dogs, that humans in general are safe and friendly, and that even in the high excitement environment of a class with other puppies and people, they should be able to calm down and focus on their owners.

That’s in theory what puppies are supposed to learn, but what Lucy learned was exactly the opposite. In the class, the instructor started with handling exercises. Lucy’s breeder had started these during Lucy’s first weeks, so Lucy had been good with me, all of my student volunteers, and my parents from day 1. But during class, the problem was that she wanted to play with the puppies so she was struggling and more agitated overall and my parents didn’t know how to hold her to prevent this. You’d think I would jump in and help, but not wanting to miss the educational opportunity or to interfere in the instructor’s class, I just videotaped the evidence as the bad behavior played out.

First Lucy just struggled in short bursts. But next thing she was growling. The room was fairly quiet with everyone sitting in a circle, so the growling was like a megaphone to me. The instructor seemed oblivious. I asked her what she wanted my parents to do in this type of situation. Her answer told me she hadn’t been watching. She started explaining how to reward Lucy for allowing her feet to be handled when the actual problem was that my parents had not been holding Lucy effectively. (Note: I know this because I had spent the previous year writing a photoillustrated book and DVD called Low Stress Handling, Restraint and Behavior Modification of Dogs and Cats. This involved videotaping and analyzing exactly what technicians, veterinarians and other animal healthcare staff were doing right and wrong when handling animals. And then photographing both correct and incorrect techniques. The book has 1600 color photos).

Not that her instruction was wrong. My parents were actually doing the desensitization and counterconditioning incorrectly. They were randomly giving treats and handling her feet, rather than giving treat at the same time or within a split second of handing the feet so that Lucy could make the connection. The funny thing was that they looked so happy when they were doing it, even when Lucy was struggling and growling. So as I looked through the video camera lens in horror, they were enjoying their just enjoying their new puppy.

I watched as the instructor patiently explained and demonstrated the correct method of feeling the feet and then rewarding for good behavior with a treat. The problem is that after the first few times, her technique changed. She would feel the feet and sometime take over 3 seconds to follow with a treat making it difficult for Lucy to associate the reward with the foot handling. Then, not surprisingly, as soon as the instructor walked away, my parents went back handling Lucy’s feet or mouth and randomly giving her treats, as they had been before. So they clearly hadn’t understood what the instructor had told them. Mental note to self: Have hidden video of participants in my own dog classes to see how frequently this happens. Luckily in my classes I have one assistant per every 2-3 participants.

Next, it was time for puppy play session. The instructor had us let the puppies loose, all 8 at one time and now I understood why Lucy’s behavior was so bad. In my puppy classes I tend to only let two or three puppies off leash at a time while dragging a leash, and I match the puppies based on personality and play style. These puppies only get to play this way after they can focus well on their owners when around the other puppies. Otherwise the puppies will just learn how to blow their owners off.

And ignoring people is exactly what Lucy learned. She’d run and jump on a puppy and wrestle for up to 30 seconds and the run and jump on another. She raced back and forth as the other owners laughed, “Lucy’s the fastest one.” Personally, when everyone in the class is at a consensus that one puppy is the wildest one and that puppies owners are also the oldest senior citizens in the class, that raises a huge red flag. These owners will need lots of one-on-one  help if they plan to keep the puppy in their family for a long time or to raise a canine good citizen instead of doggie juvenile delinquent.

Next the instructor started the exercise called “Catch the puppy,” where people would grab a puppies collar and then give them a treat. The goal is that the puppy learns that it’s good to be grabbed by the collar. The problem is that for puppies to make the connection for sure, it’s best to grab their collar and follow with a treat 5-10x in a row and in multiple sessions until the puppy actively look to you for a treats whenever his collar is grabbed. What Lucy was learning was that she didn’t like having her collar grabbed, it meant she wouldn’t get to play. This learning was clear, later in the class when the instructor was stepping on the leash I’d put on Lucy so that she could observe Lucy better. A puppy owner went to grab Lucy’s collar and Lucy turned, flashed her teeth, and growled. The instructor didn’t notice. So much for observing her better.

This collar grabbing technique became even less likely to effective when the instructor stated, “Now when you grab the puppy, have him sit, and then lie down and then stand.” Now all of a sudden the room was filled with demands of  “sit, sit, sit, sit…” Then when a puppy owner caught Lucy and Lucy was too interested in other dogs to pay attention to the treat, the instructor instructed, “First tell her to sit.” By then Lucy, who knows to automatically sit when she can’t get what she wants, was sitting. Regardless, the instructor repeated, “tell her to sit.” So the puppy owner said “sit” to Lucy who was already sitting, and then gave her a treat. Now, not only was Lucy learning that collar grab means cessation of play, but she was learning her cue to sit (or to not sit in cases where she was too distracted to sit) was “sit, sit sit sit sit.” Unfortunately, I didn’t get this on tape.

The rest of the class Lucy’s behavior continued to deteriorated. She became more and more aroused around the other puppies. She was happy to be the puppy on the bottom of the pile and play on her back, but she pounced on the puppies the way football player pounce on a fumbled football. She could not focus on me or my parents or hold still-especially since even when she was being held by her collar, other puppies might still be running around and jumping on her.

So, in just 2 puppy classes and a little over two weeks with my parents, she’d turned from a calm, sweet, polite puppy, to a puppy with impulse control and the start of aggression issues.

Effects Extend Beyond Class

Needless to say, I took her out of the class and took her back with me to work with her more. Once at my house, I was able to confirm that my worries were correct. Now when Jonesy, my Jack Russell Terrier, growled at Lucy to get her to back off, she would leap on him more excitedly instead of backing down to the more mature dog like she had two weeks ago. This behavior was repeated with two other test dogs similar in size. They grew tired of her repeated attempts to play roughly with them and when they voiced their opinions with growls, she escalated by growling and lunging more. In other words, she was learning, harass other dogs at will and then get into a fight when they growl at you. And she was only just over 10 weeks at this point in time. On to of this, if there was a dog in the same room or within 15 feet of her she had to lunge to try to get at it whereas before she could easily focus on me and even come when called away from puppy play.

With all that had gone wrong in just two puppy classes and a little over two weeks, I wondered, now how long would it take to retrain the bad behavior out of her and reestablish the good behavior from that first week? And once that was established how long would I need to train her before the good behavior could become a habit? Find out in the upcoming blogs.

I can say this, as a result of her bad behavior, I added about 150 more pages and hundreds more photos to the Lucy’s training manual book.

QUESTION:

My 8 week old puppy won’t sleep in her cage and when ever she is in it she whines even if I’m still beside her and no body can sleep what should we do?

ANSWER:

Brittany, it’s a good thing that you’re asking now rather than waiting several more months when the behavior is even worse. This is a common problem that many new puppy owners have. And it’s made worse when they let the whining puppy out because then the pup quickly learns that whining works and now, can whine for hours on end.

While people might think that just nixing the crate expectations will solve the problem-you’re right in pursuing the issue. Your pup gets frustrated and anxious when she can’t get to you on her own terms.  Right now it’s just the crate but down the road you’d probably find the same results if you separate her from you by putting her in another room, on the other side of a babygate or just tethering her by leash on the other side of your backyard.

Crate Training Starts by Feeding the Pup All of Her Meals in Her Crate

The first thing you can do is feed all over your pups meals in her crate. If your dog really dislikes being confined, start by feeding her daily meals just outside the crate. When she’s comfortably eating her meals in this new location, move the food just inside the crate so that she has to stick his head in to eat. Within a days or two, you should be able to move the feeding location farther in the crate so that she has to step in with her front feet. In this manner, move the feeding location farther and farther in. Once she easily goes in and out on his own, which usually takes no more than a few days, you can start shutting the door while she’s eating or putting her in with a special toy, which can be a Nylabone® Rhino or a tasty bone. As soon as he’s finished, or just before, open the door to let him out. You can also randomly place secret food surprises for Fido to find in her crate. Try peanut butter smeared on the back wall of the crate or pieces of hot dog under his blanket. This process sounds like it will take a long time, but in reality it usually takes less than a week, even with adult dogs that don’t like the crate.

Put Really Tough Puppies through the Learn to Earn Program

If the above method doesn’t work within a week or her behavior gets worse, it’s time to teach Fido that they only way she gets your attention is when she sits or lies down away from you. This is part of what is called the Learn to Earn Program where dogs learn to say please by sitting to get whatever they want.

First Teach Her To Say Please By Sitting

This starts first by teaching her to sit automatically to get treats from you. Just hold the bite-sized treats in your hand and stand completely still. When she sits, immediately get the treat to her while she’s still sitting. Then give her a few more treats sequentially for remaining seated. For fast training, it’s best to have her earn her entire meal for automatically sitting but spread it out a kibble at a time, throughout the day.  If she’s earning 100-200 kibble for sitting and remaining seated, she’ll learn to sit when she wants things from you virtually overnight.

[Watch the MannersMinder DVD chapters on say please by sitting which is soon to appear on the Online Animal Behavior Courses at www.AskDryin.com/elearning]

Next Apply the Automatic Sit to Other Situations

Next it’s time to apply the sit to other things she wants. One exercise is called the “leave-it game.” Have her on leash and toss a treat out of her range. When she gets to the end of the leash, she’ll pull for a few seconds, then when she figures out she can’t get the treat she’ll come back and sit and look at you. When she does, give her a treat for the polite “say please” behavior and then a few more for continuing to look at you. When she’s stable at looking at you then reward the eye contact by letting her get the treat on the floor. The goal of this exercise is to teach her self control. That instead of impulsively demanding what she wants, she controls her excitement and asks politely you by politely sitting and looking at you.

Now Train Her That Sitting or Lying Down Calmly Get Her Your Attention

Ok, now for the real work. She knows to automatically sit for treats and to get an item that’s out of her reach. Now we are going to make you the item out of her reach that she must sit or lie down calmly for in order to gain access. Tether her 2-10 feet away from you while you watch T.V. or are engaged in some other activity. Ignore her pulling, whining, pacing to get to you. When she sits politely, give her several treats in a row and/or pet her for 5 seconds at a time if she’ll remain seated when you do so. Then toss a treat on the floor so she’ll get up and you can repeat the exercise. You may need to wait 20-30 minute for the first sit. But if your timing is good and you pair the reward with her sitting, then next sit will take probably ½ the time. And shortly thereafter she’ll be sitting every 30 seconds.

The goal is that the lightbulb goes on and she understands that sitting or lying down quietly is what makes you give her your attention. From now on the only way she gets your attention is for sitting and you continue to practice tethering her away from you so you have many opportunities to make it clear that calming sitting or lying down gets her what she wants. Once she’s making the association you can walk away and then come back while she’s still sitting or lying down. Now you’re working on a sit or down-stay.

[Refer to Chapter 22 in How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves or stay tuned for the Online Education portion of AskDrYin.com]. First come back frequently and then wait longer and longer in between. Also practice walking out of the room. She must sit or lie down before you approach her.

Now Transfer the Training to the Crate

Now have her go in her crate and block her from coming right out. You can do this by shoving your hand with a treat right in her face to block her path out. Once she’s stopped  guide her into a sit with an additional treat. Better yet have her lie down.

[Refer to Chapter 21 in How to Behave So Your Dog Behaves or to the MannersMinder DVD or stay tuned for the Online Education portion of www.AskDrYin.com]

Once she’s sitting or lying down continue with a few more treats every few seconds or a short petting bouts, then stand back and go back and reward her again for remaining in place. Then let her out of the crate. Now she’s getting treat and petting rewards for going into her crate and lying down and she gets the added reward of coming out. Repeat this until she acts like she’s clearly having fun running into the crate because it predicts that she will earn your attention and get to run out. Now, with the door still open add a down or sit stay. That is, work on being able to be far away or in the other room. I find the easiest way to do this is to practice when I’m watching T.V. or working on menial tasks around the house. And, actually, I’m really lazy, so rather than my going back and forth, I prefer to use a MannersMinder, a remote controlled food-reward dispenser, to automatically dispense food at set intervals or to dispense using the remote control.

Switch to Closing the Crate Door

Next for that all-important final phase. Have the pup go into the crate and lie down, close the door, feed her treats, then open the door while she’s still lying down and let her out. So the door should just be closed for a short amount of time. Short enough so she’s just thinking about treats and rewards and not how she’s locked inside. Then systematically increase the time she’s in the crate.

Again, at this stage, I prefer to use the MannersMinder so that I can walk away and reward her with food rewards while I’m far away. The goal is that the treats are coming frequently enough so that she is focused on the food and that I get back before she has a  chance to get anxious. So I can increase the interval between treats sequentially from 5 to 7, 10, 15 or more seconds as long as the puppy remains relaxed, lying down, and focused on the food rather than looking like she wants out.

By the beginning of this stage, your problem pup should already be relaxed in the crate because she’s learned overall that remaining calm is what gives her access to you. And this final stage should go really fast.

The End Results

For me it would probably just take a day or two to get through this program, but it may take you a bit longer since you aren’t being coached through each stage. In any case, if you can get her to understand that being calm and control her emotions is what gives her access to you, you’ll have a puppy who can quietly sleep in her closed crate whenever you want! If you’re still having problems in a week or two it’s time to find professional help for her. Fast!

By Sophia Yin, DVM, MS       Nov 2009

Question: HELP!!! I have 2 dogs, an 8 year old purebred black lab, and a 5 year old lab mix named Bernie. We also have 2 lovely boys ages 5 and 3. Recently Bernie has demonstrated aggression toward our 3 year old, granted the actions are always ALWAYS after our 3 year old has been rolling on him, but I’m not sure what to do. Bernie is a good dog, but I’m finding myself unsure if he should stay in our house… Our 8 year old lab is the most mild mannered dog I’ve ever seen (when it comes to the boys). They roll all over him, and he’s never acted displeased. My question, is Bernie now more likely to bite as a reaction because he’s already done it? The thought of not having him here is very sad, but my children’s best interest and safety is more important. Just trying to make an informed decision… Can Bernie be taught not to react by biting, and can a 3 year old be taught not to “love” up a dog so much it hurts them?? HELP!!!

Noelle from NY

Answer: Noelle, the answer is yes and no. For instance imagine this. If your 5 year old boy frequently played by sitting on your 3 year old and the 3 year old used to just yell or cry but over the last week has started hitting back will the 3 year old now hit regularly? The answer is, that as long as you let the 5 year old harass him instead of playing appropriately, then yes, because the cause of the problem has not stopped.

While many people think that the job of the dog is to put up with everything the children throw at them, dogs are not saints or stuffed animals. They are family pets. If it were two kids playing together, it would be clearer. If one child doesn’t like how roughly the other is playing we don’t force them to tolerate it. When kids are playing it should be fun. Similarly, when humans are playing with pets, the goal is that it’s fun for both, not just for the human.

Another issue is that although some dogs may tolerate this rough play it’s important to teach the kids to interact appropriately with pets. If they don’t learn now, then even if you do rehome Bernie, if they treat other dogs this way, they are likely to get bitten. In fact there’s a reason why young boys comprise the largest category of dog bite victims. As a group, they tend to ignore the body posture and warning signs dogs give that indicate they want some personal space, consequently dogs are forced to snap or bite to defend themselves.

So, in general, my recommendation is that Bernie has a place that is off limits to the kids and the kids learn to treat him gentle and with respect. They should learn to read his expressions so that they know when he’s happy to interact with them vs when he “feeling sad, scared, or just tired.” You can also train Bernie to like the kids more by have them give him lots of rewards for sitting calmly and politely.

Realistically, you may need one-on-one help from a veterinarian with special focus in behavior (www.AVSABonline.org), a certified applied animal behaviorist (www.animalbehavior.org) or a CCPDT certified dog trainer (www.ccpdt.org) who has lots of experience dealing with this type of case, just to be on the safe side. In any case for Bernie to be happy in your house, instead of feeling harassed to the point where he has to express it by snapping or growling, you’ll have to spend a lot of energy training the kids.

For more information on dogs and kids read

and “Living with Kids and Dogs—Parenting Secrets for a Safe and Happy Home”

By Sophia Yin, DVM

Six-Week-Old Girl Dies After Mauled By Family Dog” the headlines blared. The LA County Sheriff’s Department reported the familiar scenario. A family member had left the baby unattended on a bed for a few minutes and returned to find her head encased in the dog’s mouth.

Sounds shocking, but this isn’t the first time an infant has fallen prey to the family pet. According to the Center for Disease Control (1997), of the 279 dog bite-related fatalities in the US that occurred between 1979 and 1994, most involved children younger than ten years of age, with infants making up a disproportionately high percentage. The most common bites occurred when infants were left alone with the family pet.

What type of dog would perform such a deed? While many would immediately conclude that it must have been the much-maligned Pit Bull mix or a rogue Rottweiler, not so here. In the case above, it was a Pomeranian-a pocket-sized dog known more for being babied than biting babies. And although due to their size, large dogs are usually to blame for fatalities from dog bites, other little dogs-Dachshunds, Westies, and Cocker Spaniels-have all committed the same crime. Even Labrador and Golden Retrievers are on this ill-fated list. So the word is out-all dogs can bite, and a few will even kill.

Why would a pet attack an infant or child?

But why would a pet attack a family member, especially an innocent child? The whole situation seems senseless, but once you take a moment to think like a dog, the pieces come together. One day life for Jake the Jack Russell Terrier is just ho-hum, and then, suddenly, a surprise. A five-pound squeaky thing moves in, triggering his predatory instincts, the same ones that cause him to kill fluffy toys, squeaky balls, and to chase relentlessly after squirrels.

The mystery object enters hidden in a bundle of cloth. It smells like a mammal and squeals like live food, yet Fido never really learns what it is. It also jerks and gurgles like wounded prey. This secret toy is it’s off-limits but always tempting with its presence. The longer it hides from Rover, the higher his frustration and drive. Older toddlers and young kids incite this instinct too. They run around yelling and flinging their arms like the ultimate interactive squeaky toy. Then when the dog gets loose he chase just to play, but when the kids get scared and scream and flail more, Rover’s arousal gets out of control sometimes leading to a bite.

While prey drive can cause Rover’s to bite tiny infants, the most common cause of bites to youngsters overall is actually fear. This is generally very surprising, especially in cases where Fido is loves all adults. But what commonly happens is that Fido was socialized to adults when he was young but didn’t see many kids. So while adults are filed in his brain as being safe, infants and kids are categorized as alien. Often owners are completely unaware that their Fido is afraid of their infant. Because the infant is relatively immobile, Fido can just stay away. But when he becomes a crawling or walking toddler, then the aggression begins. The toddler keeps approaching Fido ignoring Fido’s warning lip raises or growls. In fact when owners note these postures, they may even punish Fido instead of thanking Fido for giving a warning sign. This punishment serves to increase Fidos anxiety and possibly to hide his warning signs so that instead of a warning lip-raise, growl and then snap when he get cornered, he holds it in until he can’t anymore and lets out a full-fledge bite.

Even when Fido isn’t afraid of kids, kids can drive dogs to the boiling point. Parents are often proud that their dog is so tolerant that he puts up with the toddlers sitting on him or poking their fingers in his ears but they doing realize, just like humans, dogs can only take so much. Imagine how you would feel locked in a room with a bunch of screaming, kids who have no concept of your personal space and where you have no control over when you can take a break. You might be okay for a few hours or a day or even a week. But at some point they’re going to irritate you enough to yell at them or even become more violent. As protectors of both our dogs and our kids, it’s our job to train kids to play and interact with pets. The pets should look like they enjoy the experience rather than just tolerating it. (For more info read: Living with Kids and Dog-Parenting Secrets for a Safe and Happy Home by Colleen Pelar).

One last cause, that’s really not common but occurs sometimes is that Fido doesn’t like his new position playing second fiddle. No more walks, no more talks-everyone’s focused on the new addition.  Like older human siblings, each dog responds to this situation differently. Some dogs don’t mind their new status on the fringe; others long for signs of their owner’s affection. They watch plaintively but politely as new parents fawn over the newcomer. Still others seethe at this object that is hogging their owner’s time and attention. If the offender were another dog, this Fido would make it clear that he gets first dibs. He’d nudge or even force his way into position. And if the message still wasn’t clear, a flash of teeth would be sure to set things straight. The problem is that toddlers don’t read or heed the warning signs and back off. And if adults notice them they just punish the dog, making the dog even more upset. Like siblings whose parents constantly reprimand them for bad behavior towards eachother rather setting the situation up for success and then rewarding appropriate interactions, the dog learns to associate the toddler with his getting in trouble. Needless to say, this is not good for their relationship. He may direct his aggression to her when owners are not present to supervise.

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How to Prevent Problems

Knowing the causes of infant and child attacks can help us avoid a serious disaster. Dog bites to infants and kids can be prevented and the steps begun before baby comes home.

• The first step is to make sure your dog knows his manners and has self control. Does he come when called, sit when asked, and wait patiently for your next cue, even when he’d rather grab the toy you just tossed or snatch that piece of food that just fell on the floor? If not, put him through the learn to earn program where he learns to say please by sitting for everything he wants. Also make sure he has a good come when called so that you can call him out of danger and that he walks well on leash already since walks will be more complicated when you’re pushing a baby stroller. A second reason to work on the say please by sitting exercises is that they provide structured fun-time for Fido which you’ll be able to continue once the baby arrives.
• Next make sure Fido has safe place where he can rest and be away from the baby and kids. A crate, exercise pen, babygated area, or his own room are good. It’s best if the place can be an area he can choose to go on his own and which the baby will be taught to avoid.
• Train Fido to enjoy all of the bad things that might accidentally happen just in case they do. For instance, train him that when people approach his food bowl good things happened to him, and that it’s fun giving people his toys because he gets treats and the toy back. Train him to love being touched and handled all over, including his paws, ears, and tail. Although you’ll ultimately spend every day teaching your toddler to stay away from Fido while he’s eating or sleeping and to only touch him gently, invariably the child will make a mistake and that’s what we want to train Fido to tolerate now.
• Get Fido used to baby sounds by playing recordings of babies. Ask him to play some games such as targeting or say “please” by sitting, if the sound seems to bug him. Make sure he gets lots of treats. Also, if he reacts strongly to the sounds at regular level, start with the recording at low volume and gradually increase it.
• Then, to prevent cross-species sibling rivalry, do the unthinkable: Start paying less attention to Fido a week before the expected day. Continue his exercise, fun training games and overall say please by sitting exercises throughout the day, but otherwise treat him like a ghost at home. That is, don’t lavish extra attention or have long period of petting. We don’t want him to associate a big decline in attention with your bringing baby home.
• When the baby does arrive, bring a blanket or something else with the baby’s scent if possible, and let Fido get used to the smell. If he ignores it, that’s fine, because it shows the smell doesn’t bug him. Then when you bring the baby home, let Fido get used to him or her. While holding the baby safely out of his reach, have him sit quietly and reward him with treats for being calm. That means no whining and no straining or jumping up to reach you. The ideal behavior is for Fido to act relaxed, like a baby is not a big deal. In other words, you’re training him to perform his sit games and practice self-control while the baby’s around.
• As a matter of habit, ignore Fido when the baby is away and reward him for good behavior, such as sitting, when baby is nearby. Soon he’ll learn there’s nothing to fear when the little infant is near. He’ll just know that good things happen to him when baby is around. As a bonus, he’ll also know that he should remain calm and controlled around the baby and that the baby does not mean removal of attention for him. Instead the presence of the baby means that he’s going to get rewards.
• Lastly, no matter how petite or perfect your dog is, never leave him alone with an infant or small child. In fact things can go terribly wrong even when you’re in the same room. It’s up to you to recognize the signs and know when Fido needs a rest and your toddler needs more rules. It sounds labor intensive but by failing to take these precautions, one bad day and a lapse in your attention, and tragedy could occur.

Have you had or heard of a difficult situation with a dog and the household kids? If so, please share!

This article is revised from an article that appeared in the San Francisco Chronicle in 2001.

Day 4 of my trip to Indonesia (Sept 2009)

Dolphin Encounter

Today we went dolphin watching at Lovina beach in Bali; I give the trip mixed reviews. First, we had to ride out further than expected to get to deeper waters in hopes of seeing dolphins. This was actually okay because we enjoyed the ride and the scenery. But instead of seeing the horizon or having a postcard view of the coast we saw a brown haze. It was smog! From the cars, maybe from Java, and definitely from the boats, which are traditionally outriggers with ancient motors. Throughout the ride you could smell the fumes and hear the loud engines. Given that sound travels well under water, I can only imagine the effect on the fish. If I were a dolphin, I’d probably elect to avoid areas with boats and their noisy, polluting motors.

We did see a few dolphins, although not like the entire pod Asri’s sister saw on her last visit. Such things are not predictable. What I was really missing was information from the guide about the dolphins and their behavior. After the bird park experience from the day before, I wasn’t surprised that the guides didn’t know anything about the dolphins. They were really just boat drivers, and I guess most people are happy to look at animals without really learning anything about their lifestyle and habits. Seems like a huge missed opportunity to me, though.

On the way back we stop to peer over at the fish. At first I can’t see anything, but then the boat guide tell us they’ll come up if we toss food in. So I toss a bit of bread and sure enough tons of fish come teeming up to the top.

Overall it would have been nicer to make this experience more of an eco-adventure. That way if no dolphins are seen, it’s still a good learning experience. For that to happen, though, the guides need to learn quite a bit about dolphin social behavior, hunting, and communication.

Monkeys Everywhere

Later, on the way across the island, we stopped to observe A troop of crab-eating macaques by the side of the road. This troop is comprised of probably 5-10 families and spans several stops along the road. As I get out to take photos a local woman brings out a plate of bananas and says, “10,000 rupees.” She wants me to purchase bananas to feed the macaques. Now, in general, it’s not a good idea to feed wild animals, because pretty soon they’re taking the food from you and even biting to get it. Or, if they’re bears at Yosemite or another national park, they’re raiding your garbage can or breaking into your car. The driver tells us that these macaques by the side of the road are not yet very aggressive to humans. The ones in the Monkey Forests where many visitors go regularly grab food from people and grab sunglasses and other accessories because they know that people will need to use food to get their stolen items back.

At first I refuse to purchase bananas, but then I realize that no matter what, these monkeys are going to be trained by humans to grab food away eventually. So I get some bananas and take a photo for my Dumbass file. Me feeding a wild animal from a known aggressive species-looks harmless enough, but it’s not. I did make sure I gave the banana to the highest ranking female only when she was sitting rather than accidentally rewarding her for grabbing for it or jumping. Other visitors let the monkeys jump up and grab the food from them, and the local woman let one of the baby macaque jump on her.

What she probably doesn’t know is that a macaque bite can innoculate humans with herpes which leads to fatal brain disease. herpes virus-. And she probably doesn’t know how aggressive the macaque social system is. Macaques live in a female-dominated hierarchy. The females have a rank order and everyone in their family retains that rank relative to other families. So if you’re born into the family of a low ranking female, you’re out of luck. What’s more, they have what’s called a despotic social system in that they routinely maintain their rank by picking on others who are below them. In A research setting, if a high ranking monkey is removed for an extended period of time, serious fighting occurs as the rank order is upset.

Aggression is apparent with these macaques. The dominant female takes all of the food and none of the others around her can get a banana because she attacks them.

Note that like with the Bali dogs, these monkeys provide a glimpse into how domestication occurs. Domestication is a process occurring over many generations in which a population of animals becomes more adapted to living with humans. This process involves genetic changes. In contrast, tameness is a process that occurs within an animal’s lifetime by which animals become less fearful of humans. A tame animal is defined as one that does not flee from humans. As animals become tame, the distance to which a human can approach before the animal moves away (flight distance) decreases.

This troop of monkeys has become less fearful of humans, so they are tamer than monkeys living far away from humans. Because they are less fearful, they can make good use of food sources close to humans-such as trash, human food, and food that humans feed them. Over many generations as the most tame breed and reproduce well, the genetic make-up of the population can change so that the monkeys are easier to tame and more tame early on than populations in the jungle.

Sophia’s Indonesia Trip — Day 3 (Sept 2009)

Today we’ve arrived on Bali, an island described as Paradise and one also known for having many stray dogs.  Virtually all developing countries have many stray dogs and the dog population is a good reminder of how dogs co-evolved alongside man. That is, while a common idea is that humans purposefully domesticated dogs by stealing wolf pups from dens and then selectively breeding the ones they liked, this process would be labor intensive, especially considering the fact that, even now, to get a tame wolf you must hand rear them starting before 14 days of age.

An alternate hypothesis to the labor intensive and potentially hazardous method of plucking wolf pups from the den and then hand-raising them is the model of self-domestication supported by Darcy Morey, as well as Ray and Lorna Coppinger. This hypothesis says that as humans moved into permanent settlements, they also developed trash sites that some wolves were able to exploit for food. Those that were the tamest or least fearful and best able to scavenge in this environment survived and reproduced better. Their pups inherited this degree of tameness and, in turn, survived better than their peers.

In time, such populations of “village wolves” arose in many different settlements around the world. Due to the decreased fear in these village wolves, humans were able to interact with them easily. At first, they started playing favorites by tossing food to those individuals they liked best, with no specific goals for long-term artificial breeding programs. Then, at a more recent point in time, humans started to systematically select dogs for specific traits, which led to the development of many different dog breeds.

This method of self-domestication is supported by findings in other animals, as well as in the current state of the world’s dogs. Three quarters of the world’s dog populations live in developing nations as village dogs. Like the model of the village wolf, they scavenge from human discards and are considered pests rather than pets. Bali is a good glimpse into how this system works.

Bali is Overrun with Dogs

Janice Ghirardi from Bawabali.com estimates about 1 dog to every 5 people here. Based on our morning drive from the airport all the way to the other side of the island, these numbers are likely to be true. On our drive we see about one dog every minute. Most that I see have clear signs of mange, a skin problem caused by either demodectic or sarcoptic mites. The primary sign is intense itchiness and hair loss due to scratching. The skin is red from inflammation and scratching and over time can become thickened and black. One of the most common postures I see as we drive by dogs is the sitting-itching posture.

Most of the dogs have a tired look on their face because the skin condition has caused their ears to tilt forward. I can’t yet tell whether the dogs are happy or just getting by since I only see them while we drive by. But I hope to interact with dogs later on in our trip. I’ll also get a better idea later on whether most dogs look as bad as the ones I see on my first day in Bali.

Dogs and Cars

With dogs so close to the road, you might think that these dogs have an innate ability to avoid cars. But as we’re driving on the main 2-lane road, I do see dogs walking right into the street. Due to the crazy driving style here-where you learn that actually 3, not 2, cars can fit in a 2 lane road- drivers here are more alert and ready to avoid dogs as well as other cars, people and motorcycles. In spite of this, many dogs are still hit by cars. According to Janice Ghirardi, Bawabali easily gets 5 calls a day from people who’ve reported dogs hit by cars. A majority of people on the island wouldn’t know who to call, however, so there are many more killed that they never hear about.

My Trip to Indonesia: Day 1 (Sept 2009)

It’s the first day of my last-minute vacation trip to Indonesia-only the second actual vacation I’ve taken in 15 years. A few weeks ago, out of the blue, my college roommate Asri who had just received her U.S. citizenship emailed me. “Sophia, I’m going to Indonesia to visit my family next month. Do you want to come?”

“Yeah, right,” I thought. But then she added. “We’re going to Bali. It’s really nice there. We can snorkel and watch dolphins.”

Then I, the one who usually has to make a list of pro’s and cons before even deciding to take a day off to spend with friends, said “yes.” At the time, I was secretly hoping that I’d be able to take photos of free-roaming village or street dogs. Luckily, after I booked my flight, Claudia Kawczynska, editor of the Bark learned of my vacation plans and hooked me up with the Bali Animal Welfere Association (www.bawabali.org), an organization that helps spay, neuter and vaccinate dogs on Bali. As a result, I was all set to spend some volunteer time too.

So I’m here in Jakarta, Indonesia now-we leave for Bali in a few days-watching the crazy traffic, inhaling the smog, and being thankful that I don’t live here. Traffic is crazy, even compared to Market Street during rush hour in San Francisco. Motorcycles crowd 2-3 to a lane routinely driving within inches of the cars.

And it’s common to see cars and motorbikes approaching you head on. Somehow, like flocking birds that change directions simultaneously, the vehicles, turn, veer and merge seamlessly. People also randomly help guide traffic. It’s not their official job, they’re just doing it for donations. Drivers give them “tips” for their help.

Traffic is so bad it would be faster to walk from one location to another, if there were sidewalks and you could handle the walking several miles in a sauna. It takes 30 minutes to go 2 miles during rush hour. Of course walking would probably lead to asphyxiation from the oxygen-depleted air.

I’m keeping my eye out for pets and stray animals. There are a lot of stray cats in Jakarta. Asri tells me that people do not routinely spay/neuter here and vets may not recommend it.

There are not many dogs seen on the streets here in Jakarta. In fact, I don’t see any. Ninety to 95% of people here are Muslims but unlike other majority Muslim countries the government is not Muslim.  In general, Muslims consider dogs to be filthy. They don’t feed strays like people in the U.S. might. And dogs are not welcome in the house. Dog owners in Jakarta tend to not walk them in public. Owners tend to not to let their dogs go up to people and lick them. That would be considered ultra-filthy.

Cats, on the other hand, are practically considered holy. Injuring a cat, even accidentally is considered bad luck.

But Indonesia is a diverse country so not everyone has the same views. In fact Indonesia is comprised of 17,508 islands. The 5 most prominant islands are—Java (where Jakarta and the central government is located), Borneo, Sumatra, Sulawesa, and part of New Guinea. Bali is a small island located just south of Java and we’ll be going there in a day. The view of dogs and the presence of dogs and cats there is very different. So in the next few blogs I”ll be providing a glimpse of how dogs, cats, and the wild animals (monkeys) coexist with humans on the island paradise of Bali.

By Sophia Yin, DVM, MS     September 2009

Anyone who hangs out with dogs and their owners has probably heard this or similar comments a million times-”My dog is dominant, he ignores our commands and plays too rough with other dogs.” To the general dog owner, this statement seems pretty normal, but to researchers studying social hierarchies in animals ranging from lions, to macaque monkeys, to bulls, the statement is likely to solicit a pause followed by a “huh?”

That’s because while an individual in a group can have a high dominance rank, dominance in dogs, and in any animal for that matter, is not a personality trait.

The Definition of Dominance

So what exactly is dominance? Dominance is defined in animal behavior as a relationship between individuals that is established by force, aggression and submission in order to determine who has priority access to multiple resources such as food, preferred resting spots, and access to mates. For instance, when a group of sex-hungry bulls are introduced to each other they immediately fight in order to establish rank.

Now, if you’re a woman reading this you’re probably rolling your eyes thinking, “Oh brother. Dumb males at it again.” But in the wild this fighting is actually really important. The bull that wins the encounters with all of the other bulls becomes the highest ranked and thus the dominant male of the group. That means that he’ll have priority access to food, resting areas, and, hubba hubba, young, desirable cows. Ideally, these high ranked males aren’t just going to stand around and look. They all want to mate. The highest ranking bull will have the most chances to mate which will hopefully result in little Juniors that are carrying his genes.

Being the highest ranked means that during mating season the others male will make way if the dominant bull is approaching a female in estrus (a.k.a in heat). So, even if a lower ranked bull is planning to mate with a cute cow himself, if the dominant bull approaches, he’ll change his plans fast and head the other way.

But that’s not the end of the story. Because sex is so important for passing one’s genes on, even seemingly bone-headed bulls can play a game as devious as that on your favorite soap opera. A lower ranked bull may sneak copulations with cows when higher ranked bulls are not looking. As a result, in a pasture of several males and many females, the calves will be sired by more than one bull, but the highest ranked bull will get the most matings.

Similarly, the dominant bull may chase subordinates away from a particular food source or the subordinates may just defer automatically, but the subordinates may also sneak back to the food source when the dominant individual is not available to guard the resource. In both cases, the subordinates are not trying to challenge for higher rank, they are just using an alternate strategy for mating and obtaining other resources. Note to readers. This reasoning works well on paper for bulls, but don’t try using it as an excuse for yourself, since humans tend find out and seek retaliation later.

Dominance Rank Changes Based on the Social Group

Unlike a personality, which by definition is a set of behavioral characteristics that stays the same across different contexts, rank changes depending on the group in which an animal inhabits. If four individuals who are dominant in their own social group are all placed together, only one will be dominant in the new group. Anyone who owns chickens is familiar with this concept. For instance, once I had a flock of 3 trick trained chickens-one rooster and two banty (miniature breed) hens. When I added a third hen, Goldie, she immediately pecked the two other hens and established that she was the highest ranked of them all. This sorta made me mad because the original two were cute and knew a lot of tricks. But ultimately, I did get my revenge. When I brought the evil hen Goldie and my rooster over to a friend’s house, her hens, which were full-sized, put them both in their place. Goldie and the rooster had been at the top of the male and female totem poles at my house but were at the bottom at my friend’s.

If Dominance is Not a Personality Trait, Then What About These Behaviors?

You’re probably wondering, if dominance is not a personality trait then what are the traits we’re talking about when we’re incorrectly referring to a dog as being dominant? It depends on the situation.

For instance, I’ve heard one celebrity dog trainer on T.V. describe a light-fixated dog as trying to be dominant to the light. The idea was that the dog must learn to be submissive to the light. In animal behavior, submission and submissive behaviors are those that are meant to turn aggression off, to signal that one individual does not want to fight. Now if you insert that definition into the trainer’s statement the trainer would be saying that he wanted the dog to perform behaviors that would turn off aggression by the light. Hmm. Sound kinda fishy, like the wrong word inserted into a Mad Lib? It should. As odd as this dog may have been, he did not have a social relationship with the light. What he most likely had was a compulsive disorder causing him to fixate on the light.

Then there’s the case of the puppy or adult dog that loves to jump on you to greet you exuberantly or who even barks to be picked up and placed in your lap. They aren’t using aggression and aren’t trying to establish high rank and priority access to everything they want. Rather they are just unruly or untrained. Their exuberant jumping and barking have been rewarded when owners finally give in and pet them or acknowledge them when they perform the naughty behaviors.

And there’s the case of my naughty Jack Russell Terrier, Jonesy. When I first got him at 8 months of age, and introduced him to my parent’s Scottie Maggie and my Australian Cattledog Zoe, he immediately tried to mount them. Was this a clear cut example of him trying to establish dominance rank? Or was it an example of a silly pup trying to have sex with two spayed females? Actually it was neither. If Jonesy, who was already neutered, were trying to establish high dominance rank, then when the others snapped at him to go away, he would have fought back. What he did instead was to bounce around and play bow. His mounting behavior was inappropriate play behavior. In fact Zoe was clearly higher ranked. She would sometimes chase him away from chew toys or treats and he’d always back off. But if she wasn’t paying attention, he’s would sometimes sneak up to her and mount her. So the trait he was exhibiting was that he was socially inept.

The examples go on and on and the cause of the behaviors need to be evaluated on a case by case basis. Most likely, if you stick to the scientific definition for dominance and then look more closely at the dog’s behavior, body language, and the reaction of the animals around him, you’ll find dog behavior to be much more nuanced and interesting.

More info:

http://www.askdryin.com/dominance.php

http://www.askdryin.com/dominanceindogs.php

Also see chapter 2 in Low Stress Handling, Restraint and Behavior Modification of Dogs and Cats.

Sophia Yin, DVM, MS     September 6, 2009

Ever since that great video featuring Tyson the skateboarding bulldog hit it big on youtube, skateboarding has become a standard dog trick that owners attempt to train. Most owners start by using some basic method of luring the dog onto the skateboard with a treat or pointing to the skateboard and hoping the dog will get on. If he does, then they praise and pet him like they would a child who has finally managed to ride a bike without the training wheels. They may even give the dog a treat.

For some natural-born skateboarding dogs, this crude technique works. In other cases you end up with a dog that sometimes rides the skateboard and at other times tries to eat it. Or worse, you get a dog that goes crazy every time he sees the skateboard because he wants to chomp on it like it’s a chewtoy. For those who have dogs that don’t naturally know how to get up and ride, here’s a step-by step plan. This simple dog trick starts with teaching the dog to step on objects with the two front feet on cue and progresses to stepping on moving objects such as a skateboard.

Start by Teaching a Simpler Dog Trick Called “Step” with the Two Front Feet

Step 1: Luring

The first stage of training this dog trick consists of teaching Fido to place two front feet on any object that you want. The benefit of this behavior is that you can also use it to teach other tricks such as shake paws, high five, wave, turn on the lights, or ring the bell.

To start, you’ll need an object that’s elevated several inches off the ground and wide enough so that your dog can’t easily walk around it. Objects I’ve used for a 40-pound dog include a step-aerobics platform, an indo board, several coffee table books placed side by side, and a square, firm doggie bed.

Next lure the dog with treats or kibble so that his front feet are on the object and then give him 5-10 more treats in a row. Then walk away so he gets off and follows you (or toss a treat on the floor so he has to move) and repeat the procedure. Repeat this step until you are able to walk towards the object with him and he steps on without hesitation consistently-meaning 5-10 times in a row-with the food lure.

Step 2: Switch to Rewarding the Desired Behavior

Next, switch to rewarding the behavior instead of luring. Walk up to the object and see if he will step up on his own. If he does, say “yes” right as he does it in a distinct voice and give him a treat within 0.5 seconds. That’s right. I said 0.5 seconds. Dogs learn best if the reward comes within a split second. That means you’ll have to whip your treat delivery hand out and get that treat right up to his face. If you’re able to do this, then “yes” will come to inform Fido exactly what he’s done right and that he’s getting a treat within an instant. Again, follow with several additional treats. Then walk away and repeat. Be sure to approach the object from different directions so that you know Fido’s focusing on stepping up onto objects rather than just on stepping on one object from one specific approach.

Step 3: Generalizing to a Few Other Objects

When he can immediately step up 5-10 times in a row from different approaches, switch to a smaller object for him to step on. Try a coffee table book or a hard-cover binder. At this point you may realize he only knows to step on the objects you just trained. So you may need to go back to step 1 when you first start with a new object. Work on several different types of objects so that you know he’s learning the concept of “step.”

Step 4: Adding the Cue Word

Once he’s regularly stepping onto the object of interest, you can start teaching the cue word “step.” Walk up to the object ahead of him and if you’re sure he’ll follow and step on it, point to it first and say “step.” It’s important that you’re sure he’s going to step up and you say the word before he’s performing the action. If you say the word and he does not perform the behavior he will not make the connection between the word and the action.

Step 5: Practicing on Random Objects to Test Fido’s Knowledge of the Cue

Now you can move to an even smaller objects or objects that are tilted slightly if you want. If the object is small it’s ok for him step with just one foot. Walk up to the next object, point to it and then stay “step.” Once he’s stepped, say “yes” and reward. Avoid staying “step” and pointing simultaneously in this step and the last step too or he’ll tend to learn just the visual pointing cue and not the verbal cue since the visual one is more obvious. Repeat step 5 in rapid succession going between different objects. When he can step on different objects on cue without hesitation, then he actually knows what the visual or verbal cue means.

This process is short. Most dogs can learn this dog trick within several sessions if they are hungry and motivated for what you have to earn. My dogs are used to working for their meals so I use their daily alottment of kibble as rewards when I want them to learn tricks such as this quickly.

Step 6: Turning this into the Skateboard Dog Trick

Now transfer this dog trick to stepping on a skateboard. Place the skateboard on a carpet or grass so it won’t move and scare him. Point and say “step.” Then reward him when he’s standing with his two front feet. Repeat 5-10 x in rapid succession. Then start requiring he step on with 3 or 4 feet before you give the reward. Once he easily steps on onto the board, sometimes reward 2 feet on and sometimes 3-4.

Next move the skateboard to a sidewalk so that it will move around and have him step on the skateboard. When he’s more excited he’ll jump on with all four feet. It’s important that he learn both 2 and 4 feet so that he can propel the board forward as well as riding on it.  Practice this dog trick in 5-15 minutes sessions several times a day and in just several days your pooch will be a skateboarding pro.