Are dogs sentient beings?

Of course if you’re delving in www.brilliantfamilydog.com then you are fully on board with that idea!

Dogs think and feel. They feel pain, grief, affection. They feel fear, loss, joy and sadness.

We who live with the beasties know that.

But it’s horrifying to think of all those who either don’t know it, or simply deny it.

Here in the UK we can celebrate the efforts made to successfully get the new The Animal Welfare (Sentience) Act 2022 passed. It is now law.

Animals’ feelings must be considered when legislation concerning their treatment or environment is made.

And here in the UK a new law emphasises this sentience by making it a crime carrying up to five years' jail for stealing an animal.

The recognition of animals as sentient beings has been enshrined in EU law for a long time. And there are similar assurances of animal sentience in the USA.

Will other countries follow suit?

 

Insects too

Meanwhile, for those of you interested in all this, here’s an article from the Washington Post, The Consciousness of Bees.

It’s a fascinating read, showing that bees too experience fear and hope. They can think in order to solve problems, and have extensive learning memories, even recognising human faces.

Let us know what you think in the comments below!

Meanwhile, to find more about building a life with your dog that embraces mutual learning and excludes fear - watch our free Workshop on getting your dog to LISTEN!

Do you “command” your dog, or do you “ask” him?

We’re all brung up proper - right?

And that means being polite! Asking nicely! Saying thank you!

And we have learnt down the years that that is the best way of getting people to do what we’d like.

“I wanna cup of tea!” or “Gimme a sandwich!” are less likely to get a result than “I’d love a cuppa - could you make me one, please?” and “How about a sandwich - could you do it?”

We know that! Of course we do!

What’s sauce for the goose is sauce for the gander

So why is it that when we talk to our family and friends we speak one way, then for our friend the dog, we think we have to order them about?

Why go from polite requests to “commands”?

Sometimes I hear people proudly saying, “My dog knows the meaning of NO!”

And I can honestly say, “Mine don’t.”

Why? Because it’s a word I don’t use with them. And I didn’t use it with my children either.

What do I say instead?

“Is that a good idea?”

“Where should you be?”

“Where do toys/wellies/coats go?”

and when all else fails, “Who’d like a treat?” always gets a great response!

Far better to show them what you’d like, with good reasons for them to choose to comply, and go through your day without the tension that a “command” brings.

You see, it’s not just that we want the dog to sit, or whatever.

When you issue a command, it challenges the recipient of the order to comply.

It’s a conflict-driven word.

“You do what I say or else!”

And if they choose not to follow your instruction, what then? You’re in a battle!

It’s so much easier not to put yourself in that position of demanding blind obedience and then having to deal with resistance or dismissal.

Life is easier when you *ask* your friends and family to do things for you, and that includes your dog!

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!