What to Look For in a Dog Trainer or Behaviour Advisor

What to Look For in a Dog Trainer or Behaviour Advisor

Hello I’m Hilary, a registered Veterinary nurse. I am a member of the Centre of Applied Pet Ethology (COAPE) and have been helping clients with their dog’s behaviour and training since 2001. I used to compete in obedience with my own dogs and did lots of fun training exercises. I am writing a series of blogs which I hope you all find helpful.

At present the dog training and behaviour industry is sadly unregulated and so anyone can set themselves up in business even if they have little training experience with dogs. This can potentially lead  to poor practice and standards of welfare for the dog.

We have all seen people in the past talking about dominance and submission and even but many are now realising there is a better way to train dogs. 

There are so many people offering their services in the dog training and behaviour sector it is mind boggling, so how do we choose?

• The first thing I advise is to find a class and ask if you can sit in on a lesson and watch how the trainer interacts with the dogs and their owners. You wouldn’t send a child to a school without first checking it out. If you are refused then look elsewhere.  
• Classes should be kept small with no more than six to eight dogs. That way you and your dog get individual attention from the trainer and you can discuss anything that concerns you.
• Classes should not last much longer than 30 minutes for young dogs under 6 months and no more than one hour for dogs over a year of age.
• Good classes are often tailored to the age of the dog such as puppy, junior/intermediate and adult.
• A good trainer will cater for the dogs needs and recognise that some dogs are unable to cope in a class situation. They could provide an area where the dogs can just relax and observe without participation until they feel more comfortable to join in. Other trainers may have the space and are able to provide individual areas for each dog. This is so your dog has their own personal space and feel more relaxed. Some dogs may need one to one training especially if they are fearful or reactive around other dogs and people.

Classes run by forward thinking trainers are structured, use reward based, force free training methods and are run by people who have invested time and money in keeping up to date with modern science based techniques. They are able to identify stress in dogs and will look for solutions to problems realising all dogs are not the same and like people, learn differently.

Classes like this are very relaxed and clients are able to sit in a chair and the dogs are allowed to use a mat or a bed in between teachings, the atmosphere is often one of calm.

Professional organisations such as:

• Association of Pet Dog Trainers
• Association of Pet Behaviour Councillors
• COAPE Association of Applied Pet Behaviourist and Trainers
• The Animal Behaviour and Training Council and Dogs Trust

are all good places to look when looking for a trainer or behaviourist as they are required to adhere to a strict code of conduct ensuring that no punitive methods or equipment is used when training dogs.

What to avoid:

• Classes where there are a mixture of dogs of various ages
• Those classes where you can attend on a roll on/roll off basis
• Classes where there are lots of dogs and lots of disruption.
• Those based on an outdated dominance theory, crossing lines and punishment and often use choke chains.
• Anything that makes you feel uncomfortable

Some dogs are unable to learn in this type of environment and this is often when people say ‘’they have gone to training school but the dog is no better’’or the dog has become aggressive. Due to these out dated methods, dog behaviour can be made worse. Every dog can be worked with as long as you are willing to put in the time and effort.

If any of you have a topic you would like discussing please let me know, via Facebook or contacting the practice directly on 01924 566766

Next time: The use of indoor crates.

Punishment vs Reward in Dog Training

Punishment vs Reward in Dog Training

In order to build a strong relationship with our dogs they must trust us. Some dog trainers use methods that appear to dispute this and train through fear and punishment. This weakens the relationship between owner and the dog and makes us appear unpredictable to the dog.

Physically man handling your dog, such as forcing it to the ground is sometimes called an Alpha roll. Muzzle grabbing, Alpha rolls and the twisting of body parts are all based on outdated theories of dominance and pack leadership.

Modern science has now proved that studies done on wolves many years ago were inaccurate. These wolves were captive and forced to live in groups which were made up through human selection and not natural selection. This created conflict and appears to be where the dominance theory originates.

Dogs do not strive to dominate their human carers. When a dog is displaying behaviours that are perfectly natural for the dog, such as growling or lip curling, we might find those behaviours offensive but this usually means there is some form of conflict going on.

People who train using fear and punishment cause anxiety in the dog which suppresses the dog’s behaviour. For example yanking a dog with a choke chain, the dog may stop pulling in the presence of the punisher because of fear. However the dog may carry on pulling when being walked on the lead by someone other than the punisher.

Punishment can make some dogs resort to using aggressive behaviours through fear, whilst other dogs can get depressed and some will shut down completely which is very sad.

The other thing to remember is that you can do a lot of damage to a dog by yanking a collar on the neck area. As well as containing the cervical spine there are also important arteries and veins as well as the trachea (windpipe) which can be traumatised. I also wouldn’t advise forcing a dog into a ‘sit or down’ position as this could cause pain as some dogs may have undiagnosed hip or spinal problems.

Reward based training not only creates trust but gets quicker results and is more enjoyable for both owner and dog.

Most modern dog trainers have a ‘hands off ‘approach and get the dog to work through motivating the dog. This could be through toys or food depending on what the dog enjoys, the dog also has to use the brain by working out what it is we are trying to teach them.

So if we were teaching a ‘sit’ one of the ways would be to use the lure /reward method. By holding a treat just above the dog’s nose and when the head goes up the dog automatically goes into a ‘sit’ position. The dog is then rewarded and once doing this reliably you can then add the cue like saying sit. When the behaviour is reliable you can then look at rewarding just the quickest or best ‘sits’ until eventually your dog gets used to sitting without needing food every single time.

I know that I want my dogs to work for me because they enjoy it and not because they are fearful of me. One last word if someone tells you to do something to your dog that you feel is not right then do not do it. - Hilary Hardcastle Registered Veterinary Nurse DipCABT

 Next Time...

What to look for in a good dog trainer