I had the opportunity to chat with Melinda Schiller on her fantastic Elite Pets Podcast, in two episodes themed around my training books. We had some great questions about training and problem-solving and problem-prevention. (Also there’s a bit of news hidden in the Fired Up talk!) You can catch each… Continue reading
Hey, there’s a great new training book hitting the shelves! Better Together: The Collected Wisdom of Modern Dog Trainers is a comprehensive collection of both practical and inspirational advice from some of the best trainers in the world. Learn the methods of modern dog training through more than 60 articles from 28… Continue reading
“As I mentioned before, I work in behavior, and my specialty is managing fear and aggression, so all my professionalism is coming to bear right now.” I have newly returned from a dream trip I’d been planning for fully ten years, a visit to New Zealand and then a cruise… Continue reading
Many clicker trainers are familiar with what is almost universally known by the ridiculously simple name of The Training Game. It’s a shaping game played among humans, and most often a learner is sent from the room while the group determines a (physically and socially safe) behavior to shape, and… Continue reading
Yesterday Mindy and I met some friends at the park for a picnic lunch. I debated and then decided to make it a rare “non-working” outing for Mindy, so she wasn’t in her vest and was free to sniff around and be a puppy. (She gets plenty of puppy time at… Continue reading
Yesterday my friend Mark sent me a page about polite and, hmm, less polite deer in Japan. And of course (as he suspected would happen) my little behavior brain took over, and we have here not only a great example of deer learning to work a system of tourists, but… Continue reading
Body language is really important. When dealing with species that don’t use English, it’s really, really important. Trainers who work with a lot of fearful, aggressive, or fear-aggressive dogs soon learn not only to read dogs’ body language, but to communicate effectively with their own. I often enter a home… Continue reading
World’s shortest CIA blog post, just because I was just surprised by my own succinct summary in an email I was writing. I don’t use “leadership” or social hierarchy to work with fear-aggression; they’re generally not related. A child may love and respect his mother, but still find the dentist… Continue reading
It has to be Day 0, you see, because ClickerExpo doesn’t even properly start until tomorrow…. First off, KPACTPs had the opportunity to go behind the scenes at Oakland Zoo and see some amazing training. We were asked not to share photos or video — not because of anything they… Continue reading
If I sound a little dazed or in shock as I write this, it’s because I am. Continue reading