PDTE 2012 March Newsletter

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PDTE AGM MEETING In NORWAY 24 – 25 September 2011 dogs knew each other we thought we would make the experience as nice as possible by just going for a little check-up, and it went really well. Socialisation is important as well, and by that I mean going out and learning about the world with nice, well-socialised older dogs. What I did not do with Pete take him to a park with loads of dogs running around, playing ball, barking at each other, and getting highly excited. I didn’t want him to learn that that is normal dog behaviour because it isn’t. I find that so many nice older dogs are incredibly tolerant of puppies, but a lot of owners are not! One of my jobs as a dog trainer is teach owners tolerance. Of course Pete had some puppy friends, but he didn’t have a huge amount of play dates with other similar-aged puppies. A FEW BOUNDARIES FOR SAFETY OR FUN I live in London, so some safety things are important. Waiting at the side of the road is one of them. But all I want my dogs to do is to turn and look at me. Then when it’s clear, we cross the road. I may use treats for this, and it is useful training. I also teach the wait, so that as a young puppy Pete could wait while I set up a little game for him, like hiding treats. Just showing the flat of the hand is enough; it’s not a formal stay. They can wait in any position they feel like. But learning the wait is great if you want to set up games or other things with your dog. Walking nicely on the lead is important, but it doesn’t matter where your dog walks. It doesn’t matter on what side, or whether in front of you or behind you. For too many puppies, their first experience of going outside for a walk is to walk exactly next to the owner to heel. Sitting is also something one can teach, but for example Pete just sits whenever and whichever way he likes sitting. I don’t teach my dogs to sit. Recall is nice and can be a lifesaver. My dogs are very fast and can cover a lot of ground very quickly, so I really like it if they come back equally fast! Fortunately my dogs love to come when called. This is important to keep them safe. If I think they might not come back, for instance in an area infested with rabbits, I keep them on lead. ENJOY YOUR PUPPY AND LET HIM ENJOY YOU Setting up your environment and your experiences to be as interesting and safe as possible is great for your puppy. Allow him to learn new things at his own pace, without pressure. Let him sleep as much as he wants, with a choice of places to be. Give him loads of opportunities to relieve himself. Allow him to eat when he feels like it and use his body to explore the world around him. And just sit back and watch! Having Pete has been a huge learning experience, and no doubt my three dogs will continue to teach me. THE HEART OF THE MATTER OPENING Max MUIR, Scotland Marc Bekoff often opens a lecture with a very simple question put to his audience, ‘Is there anyone in this audience who thinks that animals don’t have feelings?’ Even in this day and age the response is still very split down the middle. Some of the audience may look around them to see which way the tide turns before committing themselves to answer. The subject of emotions in dogs has received widespread debate over recent years. The author Frans de Waal once commented ‘Sometimes I read about someone saying with great authority that animals have no intentions and no feelings, and I wonder, doesn’t this guy have a dog?’ If we are to understand a develop a deep relationship with our dogs understanding and acknowledging how they feel is crucial and very necessary during our interactions with them. Bekoff refers to himself as a ‘seer’. A seer means someone that has a fantastic ability to have deep insight and a person that can see something specified. ‘I try to become the ‘seen’, so if I am studying the Coyote, I become the Coyote, I become the wolf or I become the Dog. This means to imagine what it is like to try and step into that animal’s rich sensory world, to try to experience and discover what it might be to be like any of them, how they sense their surroundings and how they behave, react and move around in particular situations. He also proposes the question: Is attaching personhood to a dog a good or a bad thing? ‘Calling a nonhuman a person does not degrade the notion of personhood. This however may result with in the dog being treated with the respect and compassion that is due them.’ Nothing is lost by attaching personhood to dogs in the proper way but there are also flip sides to the coin where people project certain personality types to their dog and this can have massive repercussions. How we name a dog can influence people and it can also have great effect on the dog. What are canine personality reac- Page 34 PDTE NEWS
PDTE AGM MEETING In NORWAY 24 – 25 September 2011 tions to our attitudes and is it a good or a bad practise? This greatly influences how the world views specific breeds. There is mounting evidence that suggests dogs share many of the same neurochemicals underlying emotional feelings in humans. Dopamine, serotonin and norepinephrine are all neurotransmitters associated with enjoyment and pleasure and the regulation of play, opiods are related to feeling relaxed or socially comfortable, which is a condition important for promoting play. Discoveries have showed that companion animals are social triggers that provide humans with opportunities to meet people and also allow them to be alone without feeling lonely. This is no more evident than in the case of the domestic dog. Dogs have deep therapeutic and healing powers playing an important role in decreasing high blood pressure, detecting cancers, reducing anti-social behaviour in offenders and helping children that have learning disabilities. Elderly people benefit greatly by being saved from depression caused by loneliness or feelings of uselessness through caring for their pet dog. The trust, love and loyalty that we get from our dogs is pure. This is not because dogs are warm and ‘live’ cuddly toys but because they have the social ability and sensory awareness to empathize with you and understand your needs and emotions. I am sure we all can relate to some point in out life when we could not speak to anyone for deep emotional feelings but we found deep comfort in our dogs and they reciprocated this feeling and provided us with the much needed support we craved. Indeed dogs are much more than cuddly toys. It is imperative that we get the message across to our clients and the world that dogs have rich emotional lives and they are capable of suffering mentally as well as physically in order to change the way millions of dogs are treated. For centuries humans have displayed their power to dominate dogs. We can be intrusive, abusive or compassionate and we are responsible for our own choices. In the world of dog training and behaviour the way dogs are treated invites a vast opinion on a global scale of how they should be viewed and dealt with. As an organisation we are individuals who have come together because we share common goals in how we should behave, train and interact with our dogs. Our ethics are based on putting respect and compassion for our dogs first and foremost. We need to take seriously their point of view, focusing on the importance of their individuality. Much canine behaviour is related to being breed specific, even problem behaviours but we need to appreciate individual variation in our dogs. Every individual counts so having an understanding of their individual differences even within breeds shows just how different individuals can be no matter how closely related they are in breed. Margaret Mead, a renowned anthropologist stated ‘we should never doubt that a small group of thoughtful and committed citizens can change the world. Indeed, it is the only thing that ever has.’ DO NOT THINK THAT YOU CANNOT MAKE A DIFERENCE! A softened approach creating an enjoyable experience for them is far more conducive and beneficial for learning. Attaching specific names to breed types also has a deep impact on how people see those breeds. People who obtain dogs for status symbols and attach such names to them can forever alter others views on dogs of that breed. Before keeping dogs I kept Tarantulas as pets. I remember bringing friends to my home and there was always a mixed reaction from those that came into the room, some were curious, cautious and others were quite scared to be in the same room with these creatures. With many of them though they gradually became desensitized to them the more they got to know them and this was also due to the their names, in time they came to refer to them by their names, Bathsheba, Inca and Boudica, and at times they even spoke affectionately about them and took the time to study them. If I had called them Spit, Venom or Demon then they would probably have had an adverse reaction from the beginning with the spiders and one that would possibly never have improved or even deteriorated each time they were in the room with them let along getting to the stage where they might want to handle them. I would like to see this stigma taken away from our dogs. I think it would have a massive and positive effect on how society views them. Dogs that are bought for status symbols and given macho and gladiatorial type names and images suffer massive psychological drawbacks. In my experience guarding and fighting breeds are some of the most sensitive breeds of dogs out there and media assaults on breed types referred to as ‘devil dogs’ have done the dogs, owners and public perceptions of those breeds no good at all. HUMANISING DOGS has to be done with great care. As humans we have a human view of the world and this is a fact. When we are anrthropomorphic we give ourselves an image of the dog’s world and this brings it to life for us in the only way we know how. If we strictly categorize a dog’s behaviour and emotions simply to neural networks, muscle movements and hormonal effects we are not opening up to a world that will bring us closer to having a greater understanding or appreciation of a dog’s world and how they are emotionally attached to it. When we try to think ‘what is it like to be a dog…?’ we need to appreciate their individuality and see things from another point of view, by studying them and understanding through observation what their worlds are like to them. WHAT’S IN THE DOG’S MIND? Studying how they communicate is very helpful and provides us with the knowledge of what may be happening in their minds. Communication has many tell-tale signs of how they are feeling and this is where our expertise and study should be as trainers and behaviourists. We need to open our eyes, ears, minds and our hearts and to look deeper to understand what they are saying and communicating to us and each other. Shared emotions and empathy are the magical qualities that bind our relationships with dogs together and it is this reason that dogs are able to form these reciprocal social bonds with us and one another. I like to let inhibitive theories go and experience living interaction with them and free my mind. As Jane Goodall says, ‘WE NEED TO LEARN MORE FROM THEM, NOT ONLY ABOUT THEM!’ I do not get too hung up on what they might be thinking, letting that go and enjoying their company and intimacy at a deep level will provide you with the answers to all your questions. Their faces, eyes and the way in which they move around in certain situations will give you strong clues about what they are feeling, as you view changes in their muscle tone, posture, facial expressions, eyes and vocals. What can be visually apparent on the outside will give you a lot of knowledge about what’s happening inside their heads. PDTE NEWS Page 35
Page 1 and 2: PDTE NEWs MARCH 2012 l Issue 18 www
Page 3 and 4: BOARD’S CORNER Contents: Board´s
Page 5 and 6: WElCOME OUR NEW MEMBERS Agnes Prins
Page 7 and 8: WELCOME OUR NEW MEMBERS I was raise
Page 9 and 10: WELCOME OUR NEW MEMBERS CLAUDIA ZÖ
Page 11 and 12: What‘s up in 2012? Other Events,
Page 13 and 14: Opening Gardens to Dogs Some time l
Page 15 and 16: BRIAR Eating from the bowl. Explori
Page 17 and 18: ENVIRONMENTAL ENRICHMENT FOR DOGs I
Page 19 and 20: PDTE AGM MEETING In NORWAY 24 - 25
Page 21 and 22: Treasurers Report 2010 - 2011 PDTE
Page 33: PDTE AGM MEETING In NORWAY 24 - 25

PDTE 2012 March Newsletter

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