Is your dog chasing his tail?

Some people mistakenly think tail-chasing is cute! But I’m afraid it’s far from cute.

It’s what’s known in the trade as an Abnormal Repetitive Behaviour (ARB) - a bit like OCD in humans - and not only can the tail-chasing get worse, but it can spread to a lot of other unwanted activities, like chasing lights or reflections. ARBs can get worse over time, and may need meds to help eliminate them.

If it becomes extreme, the dog can lose the hair of his tail from grabbing it.

So we need to look at why your dog is chasing his tail, and then what to do about it.

Why the tail-chasing?

It could be that parasites, internal or external, are causing this tail fixation. Maybe it’s simply developed out of boredom, and it can be seen in kennelled dogs who get no mental stimulation. Or it could be a distraction behaviour your dog has developed when he’s overwhelmed.

Just as with any behavioural change, the first thing to do is have a thorough vet check to rule out hidden pain or any underlying problem. This is really important, and may uncover something that is lurking.

Then how to change it?

Interrupt!

The best thing to do is interrupt any things your dog does that you don’t want him to do. That doesn’t mean by yelling NOOO! It simply means you distract him into something you’d prefer he did.

First of all, you want to teach something else that he can’t do while he’s spinning (that’s most things! But a DOWN would do well here).

Make sure he knows it inside out, that he always gets a massive reward from it - top quality treats and fun - and that he’s happy to perform this trick anywhere, any time, any place. 

Then you have to keep your eyes peeled! You have to notice what triggers the spinning, and get in there fast with your Down cue.

Getting him to lie down before he starts the spin is best. But even if he spins then lies down, this is a start - and don’t forget! Always heavily reward this Down.

This is not going to change overnight! You have your work cut out, and I would focus on just this for at least a week, then see where you are with it.

Down? Or Ball?

Another thing that can work well to forestall the spinning is to toss your about-to-spin dog a ball. Be careful that he doesn’t think he has to spin in order for you to throw the ball!

Just as with the Down, there need to be lots of occasions when the ball is thrown in the total absence of any tail-chasing.

You’re offering your dog an alternative to spinning - something he can choose to do instead of the tail-chasing. So it has to be good! And it has to be ultra-rewarding for him to choose it instead of relapsing into his previous habit.

Here’s what Edwina had to say about how she eliminated spinning from her adopted Collie’s life. She said, “Bud chased his tail whenever we weren't doing anything.”

At first she’d tried to praise not-spinning, but found there was a danger of creating the sequence that he must spin to be able to stop and get the reward! So I suggested she interrupt the spin before it started.

“Bud has a fairly good down cue no matter how far away he is. I know when he is likely to spin and although I was sometimes a moment late I caught him before a full-blown spin and so he was happy to lie down. I calmly praised verbally, waited a moment and then released him. Initially he would quickly go into the spin again so I would give the down again as fast as I could. The next time I waited a little longer to release. It didn't take many spins before he seemed to realise nothing was happening and he was free to wander.

He isn't completely free of spins yet but he is so much better it is hardly an issue now.”

Abnormal Repetitive Behaviours

So you can see that this “cute” spinning is not so cute after all! If your dog is showing signs of developing one of these fixations, you need to act fast to stop it becoming debilitating.

How to teach your dog useful tricks

Teaching tricks is such fun! And the joy of it is that the way your dog does the trick is how it should be - for him.

There’s no Obedience Competition judge lopping half a mark here and half a mark there, because when he does a Sit Pretty your dog waves his paws around, or dangles one of them.

It’s just pure fun - for both of you. And if he’s dangling a paw, how cute is that?

And these “dog tricks” can also be incredibly useful. My dogs help me unload the washing machine, and can reach right in to get the garments that stick themselves to the back of the drum. They regularly fetch my shoes or my jumper for me, pick up anything I drop, help me take off the duvet cover on laundry day, pull off my socks - and any other game I offer them.

I’m perfectly capable of doing all these “Assistance Dog” tasks for myself - it’s just fun to involve the dogs.

 And they love it!

So what’s the trick to teaching a dog trick?

Many people go at this backwards. They think of the finished result they want, and start at the end. “Pick it up!” they say, or “Roll over!”, and their dog looks at them in puzzlement, having no idea what they’re wanting.

So what you want to do is turn this round and start at the beginning - the beginning that makes sense for your dog.

Getting him to CHOOSE to do what you want is the very best way, but sometimes a little luring doesn’t go amiss.

But the main thing is that apart from enthusiastic encouragement, keep your mouth shut!

Here’s the secret: You only add the vocal cue - your chosen words - to describe what your dog is doing, when he’s confidently and happily doing it.

Gradually he’ll associate the sounds coming from your mouth with the action he’s making at the time.

That’s the way round it goes!

 

Emptying the washing machine

And you need to work out the steps towards your trick in advance. If you want your dog to empty the washing machine for you, she’ll need to have a good, gentle, retrieve. Ripping up all the clothes in her excitement is no good!

So you’ll start with getting that gentle retrieve. Here’s where you can get a step-by-step system for both a play retrieve and a controlled formal retrieve: Fetch It! Teach you

Once you’ve got a lovely retrieve to hand, of whatever delicate item you want - tv remote, car keys, jumper … then you can simply add your vocal cue and transfer the exercise to the washing machine.

So there’s no mystery here - it’s a step-by-step process that your dog will understand and enjoy.

And who knows, one day you may be glad of a helper in your home!

Deaf dogs! How we love ‘em!

Now what I mean by “deaf dogs” is . . . dogs who are deaf!

I’m not talking about it the way people commonly do - to mean a dog that doesn’t respond to them.

Fact is, those dogs have never been taught - either the right way, or at all. And the owners would rather blame the dog than their own dilatoriness.

So to dogs who can’t hear …

They may have been born deaf, or it may have crept up on them.

There are certain breeds that have a history of deafness (often dogs with a lot of white in their coat), and this is yet another reason you need to look carefully into the breeding of any dog you choose. Good breeders are always looking to reduce the possibility of inherited problems, and go to great lengths to test their breeding stock and ensure they only use the best.

One mistake that can result in deafness (and blindness) in puppies is to breed merle collies together. One parent must always be a solid colour.

Deafness through ageing

This is where I am with two of my dogs, aged 15 and 12 respectively. Their lower register is gradually going. This means that a high squeaky call, or a whistle, can still reach them.

For everyday issues, like calling them in from the garden, I’ve taught them new hand signals, and reinforced those that had fallen into disuse when a word would do the trick. Old Rollo just needs a touch on the side I want him to turn, so he knows which way to go.

On walks he keeps close to me - he likes to be in front of me - and constantly glances back to ensure I’m still there. Your hearing dog should be doing something similar, of course, but in his case it will be a simple ear-flick that will fix your position!

And for my very old, deaf, dogs, I like them to wear a bell so I know just where they are. As an old dog is probably losing his vision as well, they can easily lose sight of you and start going the wrong direction. With the bell I’m aware straight away if I can’t hear it, so they can’t get lost.

Born deaf

Now, if you’re starting out with a dog who has always been deaf, you need to have some knowledge of how the dog’s brain works, and how they can compensate. Fortunately for us, Fay Moffat-Roberts has written the definitive book on how to train deaf dogs, using the research and knowledge she used to work with her own deaf Dalmatians.

You can get it here for UK:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/How-Get-Deaf-Dog-Listen-ebook/dp/B0825DVW4X

and here for US:

https://www.amazon.com/How-Get-Deaf-Dog-Listen-ebook/dp/B0825DVW4X

Fay has a thorough grounding in force-free dog training and is the most compassionate and helpful person!

I heartily recommend her beautifully-illustrated book!

Can you give your dog a choice?

I had an unfortunate correspondence recently with a “dog trainer” who justifies the use of punishment in her “training” by implying that dogs that are given a choice will inevitably make the wrong choice.

How shortsighted!

As dog trainer I am an educator - a “dog coach” as someone recently described me!

And just as we don’t let our children run amok and expect them to make the right choices, we don’t do that with our animals either.

Guiding them to make a good choice is what it’s all about.

But it is essential for them to make that choice freely!

Getting someone to suggest a course of action themselves is a sure way to have them follow through. If they decide that’s what they want to do, then they’ll probably do it.

Dogs are no different!

They take pride in understanding what would be a good decision in the moment - even a moment that they would previously have found stressful. And they love to be reassured and praised for so doing.

Punishment?

Treating the dog as an automaton, which we switch on or off, means we always have to be in control

As I say so often,

I don’t want to have to control my dogs: I want my dogs to control themselves.

The so-called dog trainer claimed that reactive dogs could only be managed through control and limiting choice. “Do what I say,” Kind of thing.

I have specialised in reactive and aggressive dogs for many years. I have had a dramatic success rate with my non-confrontational, choice-based, methods 

The more we treat the person, child, or animal, in our care with respect for their individuality, the better the result.

Punishment serves only to make the punisher feel good.

Choice Training makes everyone feel good!

Want to know how you can incorporate choice and respect into managing your dog? Start with our free Workshop here!

“How do I stop my dog doing xyz?”

I get a lot of emails every day, from people with questions about their dog.

And that’s great! Keep ‘em coming! I love to help people find a better way to do things.

But many of them - and I mean MANY of them - start like this: 

◆          “How do I stop my dog jumping up?”

◆          “How can I stop my dog chewing?”

◆          “My dog pulls on the lead - how do I stop this?”

Notice the common word?

STOP!

Now dogs are not automatons. You cannot switch them off. If they STOP doing one thing, they have to START doing another.

Even when they lie down peacefully to snooze - they STOP being awake and START sleeping.

They cannot exist in a vacuum!

Any more than we can.

So attempting to STOP your dog doing anything at all, without explaining to him what you’d like him to START doing, is not going to work!

If you choose to prevent one thing, you have to teach a substitute for that thing.

• So instead of stopping your dog jumping up, you teach him how to express his joy in a different way.

• Instead of stopping your dog chewing, you find out why he’s chewing so much, and offer him things he can chew.

• And instead of stopping your dog pulling on the lead, you show him where you’d like him to be when you take a walk together.

Does that make sense to you?

Do you see how much easier it is to substitute a preferred behaviour with love, rather than trying to remove an unwanted one by force?

Want to learn more how to do all this?

I’d just love to show you!

If you like watching, start with the free Workshop here

Or if you prefer listening, try these audiobooks right now at a special price!

Or you’re happier curled up with a book? Here you go

And do keep those questions coming …

How do heatwaves affect dogs?

We’re having a heatwave! That is, we in England.  

Readers from warmer states and countries may be baffled by our excitement. But extreme weather is relatively rare in our temperate climate. Our homes, our lifestyles, and our infra-structure, are not designed for extreme heat or cold.

We’re always caught out in the very occasional winter blizzard, because it’s not worth the huge national investment to cope with just two or three days of deep snow.

Similarly, we’re not used to heatwaves, and this week they’re threatening 40°C - that’s 104°F - and that’s HOT!

So as a nation, what do we do? We jump in our boiling hot cars, and drag the whole family miles to a crowded beach, wear them out, then drag them all home in the same traffic jams.

Madness!

And especially mad if you have a dog in the mix.

Hot cars

We just about all know by now, that dogs die in hot cars (even with the windows open). So thankfully that doesn’t happen as much as it used to.

In fact, most heatstroke victims vets see now, are as a result of a walk in hot weather. If the dog is not used to walks anyway, and is suddenly whisked off for a huge long tramp in the blazing heat, this is a recipe for disaster.

At the moment we have a very cooling breeze where I live. But should the breeze drop and the temperature shoot up, my dogs will be skipping their regular walks.

But what if the worst happens and your dog is suffering early signs of heatstroke?

(If he’s actually collapsed - you need a vet fast. Less than 10% of dogs can be saved at this stage.)

 

It doesn’t have to be that hot

Surprisingly, perhaps, it doesn’t need to be that hot for a dog to suffer heatstroke. Wildly racing about in moderately warm weather can be enough to bring it on. Puppies - who can’t manage their thermostats at all well yet - are particularly vulnerable.

So what to do?

Here, straight from the horse’s mouth, aka the RSPCA, is some good info:

“Dogs suffering from heatstroke urgently need to have their body temperature lowered gradually for the best chance of survival.

Here's what to do:

◆   Move the dog to a shaded and cool area

◆   Immediately pour cool water (not cold water to avoid shock) over the dog. Tap water (15-16°C) has been found to be the most effective at cooling dogs with heat-related illnesses. In a true emergency, any water is better than nothing.

◆   Wet towels placed over the dog can worsen the condition, trapping heat. In mild cases towels can be placed under the dog, but never over, and in a true emergency water immersion or pouring water with air movement is ideal.

◆   Allow the dog to drink small amounts of cool water

◆   Continue to pour cool water over the dog until their breathing starts to settle, but not too much that they start shivering

◆   Dogs that have lost consciousness will stop panting, despite still having a very high temperature, these dogs require urgent aggressive cooling as a priority.

◆   Throughout the treatment of heatstroke try to avoid pouring water on or near your dog's head, as there is a risk of them inhaling water which could lead to drowning, especially for flat-faced and unconscious dogs.

◆   Once the dog is cool, take them to the nearest vet as a matter of urgency.”

They also point out that the dogs most vulnerable to heatstroke are the young, the old, those with thick coats, and short-nosed (brachycephalic) dogs.

Is your dog on that list?

Look out for water

If you do decide the temperature is safe to walk your dog, watch out for water sources on your route, in case you urgently need it.

By the way - a great tip for you: put your hand flat on the pavement. Too hot for your hand? Then it’s also too hot for your dog’s paws!

Enjoy your hot weather safely, by enjoying dozing and relaxing with your dogs in the shade. Your busy activities and long walks can be resumed as soon as the weather is back to normal.