Have you ever noticed that most of the time, a dog’s fart is silent?

Quickly we trace it back to one of the furry things lying next to us on the carpet.

Often, we will be sitting around watching t.v. or working on the computer, when we catch the waft of a full bodied bouquet.

At first, it is unclear where this distinctive smell originates from, but quickly we trace it back to one of the furry things lying next to us on the carpet.

Dogs seem to naturally produce silent farts. I suppose if you are hunting you wouldn’t want a fart noise to startle your prey.

The noisy ones probably won’t get invited back to pack hunts!

Silent but violent.

While experiencing my dog’s wonderful aromatic masterpiece, I notice that I can usually differentiate those produced by my dogs and those produced by people. I suppose it depends somewhat on diet, and since dogs have a different diet than people, their farts also carry a different fragrance.

Surprisingly, most people do not appreciate my dogs’ fragrant productions. They must be crazy!

My dogs seem to enjoy their own aroma. When they fart, they will sometimes turn around to get a better whiff.

Enjoying the smell of Shiba.

I think my dogs’ farts smell like roses. Well maybe not exactly like roses, but it smells a bit like them (the dogs not the roses). It is good to see them (the dogs not the roses) relaxed and farting. Although, I must admit, it would also be interesting to see relaxed and farting roses.

My friends think I am a bit soft in the head because I stay around to experience the sensory odor profiles created by my dogs.

I suppose you know you really love someone, when you also love their farts!

I suppose you know you really love someone, when you also love their farts!

No related posts.

It can mean anything from staring, jumping, showing teeth, lunging, growling, barking, or the terrible B-word – biting.

Usually, aggression is used to describe dogs that overact to a stimuli (e.g. another dog, a stranger, food).

Reactivity is a new, perhaps less negative term, coined to describe the same behavior. Some trainers use aggression to describe dogs that overact as a result of dominance and reactivity to describe dogs that overact as a result of fear.

These terms, however, are just labels, and it is not useful to overly focus on which label to use.

The important thing is to recognize extreme behavior in our dogs, which causes us to lose control.

Dog Aggression - What Does it Mean?

Mouthing and showing teeth in one context may just be play, while in another, it may be dangerous.

What constitutes extreme behavior varies from person to person, and is dependent on context. Mouthing and showing teeth in one context may just be play (top and right), while in another, it may be dangerous.

A problem only arises when the human/owner is not in control of the situation.

If your dog is biting you and causing puncture wounds, it is best to seek professional help.

My Experiences with Dog Aggression

Don't let that cute face fool you - He is a terror that flaps in the night!

I was very embarrassed, shocked, and worried when my Shiba first showed signs of aggression. It happened four days after we brought him home (at 10 weeks old), when we took him to the vet.

The vet was very afraid of him and had to muzzle him to do an examination. She later recommended that we return him to the breeder. I never visited with this poor vet again, but at the time it was very difficult not to be embarrassed, and try to show that we were good dog parents by scolding and punishing our Shiba.

Many of my neighbors also gave us the ‘you are such a bad dog parent‘ look.

Because I was so embarrassed I made some very bad mistakes. The worst was using alpha rolls and other aversive techniques including leash jerks with him. My embarrassment also caused me to get angry, and frustrated with my dog.

I was jealous and hurt when my dog would behave better with other people. After all, I feed him and take care of him most of the time, why should he misbehave most with me?

Although it is very natural to have such feelings, they are very detrimental to helping a dog with his reactivity or aggression issues.

With proper reward training, Shiba Sephy is now less of a terror and more of a lover.

Dog Aggression and Love

Remember that your dog’s behavior is a result of behavior conditioning, and not from lack of love

It is natural for us to place our own, very human values and expectations upon our dogs but that is not the way they think.

Dogs respond to conditioning (classical and operant). Dogs will repeat behaviors that have good results and reduce behaviors that have bad results.

What constitutes a good or bad result can sometimes vary from dog to dog. If your dog is showing aggressive behaviors that are continuing to escalate, then he is inadvertently being rewarded for that bad behavior.

• Does he get to go on a walk when he jumps up on you and makes a pest of himself?
• Does he get to smell the other dog by whining loudly and lunging?
• Does nail clipping stop when he mouths or bites you?
• Do you back away when he growls and shows teeth?

If so, then your dog is getting what he wants through aggressive behaviors and will continue those behaviors.

Once we accept that our dogs are not acting out of hate, jealousy, or some other human emotion, we can move on and start reshaping their behavior by changing the consequences of their actions.

Reshaping dog behavior by rewarding desirable actions, and not rewarding aggression.

Dog Aggression and Other People

Do not worry about what strangers think. Your dog’s welfare is a lot more important.

Actively watch out for feelings of embarrassment, anger and frustration and try to redirect yourself to a more positive frame of mind. Rather than focus on the judgment of strangers -

• Think about the fun you had with your dog just this morning and how cute he looked with cheese bits all over his muzzle and his tongue hanging out in a goofy smile.
• Carry some happy pictures of your dog with you to help redirect your negative feelings.
• Remove yourself and your dog from the unpleasant stimulus as soon as possible.

Dog Aggression and Breed

Some dog breeds may be more prone to reactive or aggressive behaviors. Breeds that are strong-willed, stubborn, and independent will have a higher propensity for challenging you, and displaying aggression in that process.

Breeds that have a strong prey drive may easily become over-excited when they spot prey (e.g. squirrels, cats) and redirect that energy onto you if you thwart their instinct to chase.

Similarly, a strong protective drive may result in using aggression to guard territory, food, toys, or other resources.

More primitive dog breeds often have a lower reactivity threshold. I.e., they may easily go rear-brained when excited, stressed, or fearful.

Make sure to take your dog’s temperament and natural breed instinct into account while retraining his aggressive behaviors.

Breeds that are strong-willed, stubborn, and independent will have a higher propensity for challenging you, and displaying aggression in that process.

Dog Aggression – What to Expect

Dealing with dog aggression can be difficult, and may take a long time to fix, but …

• The rewards are well worth the trouble.
  The journey will reveal many things not just about your dog, but also about youself. In the process, you will develop a special relationship and strong bond with your dog – and that in itself is priceless.
• Things will get better.
  Many dog owners are going through the same thing, and their dog’s behavior has and continue to improve.

When the world says, "Give up,"
Hope whispers, "Try it one more time."
~[Author Unknown]

• Your dog will challenge you less as he matures.
  … but he may keep challenging you. That is one of the joys of dog ownership

If you are having aggression issues with your dog, know that you are not alone. I had many aggression issues with my Shiba Inu.

There are also many touching stories from the Toronto Shiba Meetup and Dogster about dealing with dog aggression.

More on Aggression

• Aggression: The Humane Society of the United States
• Aggression: Mid-Atlantic Shiba Rescue
• Behavioral View on Dog Aggression
• Desensitizing your Dog with Clicker Training

Canine Body Language

• Calming Signals: An article about Turid Rugaas.
• How to Interpret Your Dog’s Body Language, Facial Expressions and Vocalizations
• Calming Signals from Australian K9 : A list of articles on calming signals.

Related posts:

1. How Did My Dog Go Bad?
2. Worst Dog Breed
3. Dogs Are Not Human!

When I first got Shiba Sephy I was constantly embarrassed by him. Being a Shiba, he is not very interested in being a model citizen, and more interested in doing whatever he wants.

I took him out on five 30-45 minute walks per day to get rid of his hyper energy but he was still a wild thang inside and outside the house.

Shiba Sephy - A terror that flaps in the night.

The worst was his leash biting.

Don't let that sweet innocent Shiba look fool you.

If I tried to stop him from doing something during our walks he would redirect his frustrations onto the leash and sometimes onto me. Several times he jumped on me and did kill-moves on my jacket sleeve.

This was all very entertaining for my neighbors and many of them would watch from their windows or even come out to watch whenever our leash-biting dance commenced. Many of them offered all kinds of free advice, much of which was conflicting and inaccurate.

It seems that everyone is an expert when it comes to someone elses’ dog.

Needless to say, I was very embarrassed by Sephy’s behavior.

Because I was embarrassed, I got frustrated and angry with him more easily and this only made him get even more Shiba crazy.

Shiba Sephy pretending to be a model citizen.

Finally, I decided that this path of embarrassment only led to bad things – for both Sephy and me. Rather than be embarrassed by what random other people thought about my dog parenting skills, it was more important to do what was best for Shiba Sephy and help him live a happier, better life.

Once I put my ego into cold storage and started to focus on Sephy; things improved significantly. I also realized that most of my previous spectators had problem dogs of their own, and are probably just as embarrassed as I was.

When it comes to dog training – it is best to gather information on your own and make up your own mind in terms of what makes the most sense for your dogs.

It is human nature to be affected by what others think of us – but whenever I start feeling that way, I consciously refocus on the well-being of my dogs and let people on the street think whatever they want.

Whenever I start feeling embarassed, I consciously refocus on the well-being of my dogs. They are the ones that matter most.

Related posts:

1. Dog Aggression – What Does it Mean?
2. My Dog is Lassie, Your Dog is Cujo
3. How Did My Dog Go Bad?

Dogs are predators, and all of them have some amount of prey drive. Prey drive can differ significantly based on breed, upbringing, environment, and other factors.

The Squirrel Instinct - Can it be Retrained?

Both my Shiba Inu and Siberian Husky have strong prey drive.

When in the throes of Squirrel Instinct, a dog will usually have no interest in food.

The Squirrel Instinct often gets a lot of attention because a bushy tail dashing amongst branches on a tree can suddenly turn our normally placid dog into a Cujo.

Both my Shiba Inu and Siberian Husky have strong prey drive. My Sibe is a three legged dog and she is usually very good about looking before she leaps. However, when a squirrel is involved, all thoughts of safety fly from her head.

When in the throes of Squirrel Instinct, a dog will usually have no interest in food, listening to their owner’s verbal monologue, or even in their own well-being. Indeed they will have little interest in anything except their quarry.

For many years, natural selection has favored wolves and dogs with a strong Squirrel Instinct, so facing this particular challenge will not be easy.

For many years, natural selection has favored wolves and dogs with a strong Squirrel Instinct, so facing this particular challenge will not be easy.

Can the Squirrel Instinct be re-trained? re-directed? fixed in any way?

There are several options.

The one most commonly cited is to use a physical correction (aversive stimulus) to ‘snap the dog out of it‘. ‘It‘ refers to the obsessive, often unwavering and unblinking gaze that a dog holds for his bushy tailed nemesis.

Aversive based trainers often cite the Squirrel Situation as a common failure point of reward training. After all, the dog shows no interest in crummy reward cookies, so reward training must not work.

Instead, they advise owners to apply a physical correction to the dog, that according to them, causes no pain. Rather, it is just a touch that will magically transform the dog from Squirrel State back to Lassie State.

Does the magic 'Squirrel Touch' truly exist?

Does this magical ‘touch’ truly exist?

Certainly you may startle your dog by doing something unexpected. For example, if you suddenly shout ‘Squirrel!‘, most people will take notice.

Similarly, if you suddenly poke or tap your dog’s flank – he will be temporarily startled, which will give you an opportunity to remove him from the Squirrel Zone.

However, this no-pain magical touch only works if you almost never perform the action.

The startle reaction, also called the startle response, startle reflex or alarm reaction, is the response of mind and body to a sudden unexpected stimulus. ~~[Wikipedia]

If you keep repeating that magical touch, its magic will quickly dissipate. As a result, the magical touch concept is unreliable at best, and often only works in the extreme short-term.

The magical touch concept is unreliable at best, and often only works in the extreme short-term.

Commonly used aversive training techniques such as leash corrections (leash jerks), finger pokes, muzzle slaps, and shock collars are not magical in nature. They work precisely because they deliver a pain stimulus to the dog, which may subsequently ‘snap the dog out of it‘. The stronger ‘it‘ is, the more pain must be applied.

In the case of Squirrel Instinct, a large pain stimulus is often necessary to trump what has been instilled by Nature over many years of survival and selection.

Is pain the only way to fix the Squirrel Problem?

Luckily for our dogs, that is not the case. There are several other less painful alternatives.

1. Management

Shiba Inu Sephy fixating on something - time to interrupt and move away.

One of the keys to addressing the Squirrel Problem is through careful management. Stay vigilant while walking your dog, and interrupt him before he escalates his squirrel obsession.

As soon as you notice the dog fixating on something – quickly interrupt with a loud noise or body block and lead him away with the leash. Do not pull directly back on the leash, but move the dog to the side and away, as if in an arc.

The earlier you interrupt the dog, the easier it will be to remove him from the Squirrel Zone.

If you notice the squirrel before the dog does, just ask for his attention and move him past the Squirrel Zone.

“An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” ~~ Henry de Bracton (English Jurist, b.1268)

Ask for your dog's attention and move him quickly past the Squirrel Zone.

2. Desensitization

The desensitization process will help to retrain a dog to use alternate and more human desirable behaviors.

The desensitization process will help to retrain a dog to use alternate and more human desirable behaviors when faced with a strong external stimulus (such as a moving squirrel).

The desensitization process is best performed in a more controlled environment – e.g. your backyard or a quiet neighborhood field. Pick an area where there are fewer distractions and where you can concentrate on the problematic stimulus.

In the beginning, expose your dog to only a very small amount of the problematic stimulus. In the case of the Squirrel Instinct, stand a far distance away from the Squirrel Zone – far enough away that your dog is calm and able to focus on you and on doing obedience exercises.

At this distance, get your dog to do some attention commands mixed with some regular obedience commands. If he does well, move one or two steps towards the Squirrel Zone and repeat. If your dog starts to fixate on the squirrel, you have moved forward too quickly. Move back and repeat the exercise.

This exercise teaches your dog to focus on you when faced with a ‘squirrel stimulus‘. If there are no squirrels readily available, you can get help from a friendly neighborhood cat or hamster.

Remember however that the Squirrel Instinct is a powerful thing.

While it is possible to desensitize your dog to a certain level of ‘Squirrel‘, it may not be possible to ensure perfect success. Instead, the Squirrel Instinct will still be present – but be muted – because your dog has learned that focusing on you in the presence of ‘Squirrel‘ is a very rewarding enterprise.

Incidentally, applying a pain stimulus does not magically remove the Squirrel Instinct either. In that case, the Squirrel Instinct is just suppressed by another stronger instinct – pain avoidance or fear of pain.

The Squirrel Instinct will still be present - but be muted - because your dog has learned that focusing on you in the presence of Squirrel is a very rewarding enterprise.

3. Set Your Dog Up for Success

If your dog has a strong prey drive, try and set him up for success during walks.

Carefully pick where you walk and avoid areas that are too high stimulus. If necessary, drive your dog to a nearby park or quiet school field. Do not expose your dog to more than he can handle.

Equipment such as the no-pull harness or a head halti can help with the training of certain dogs, while keeping both dog and human safe.

*Note – While dog training collars and other equipment may help in the training process, they are not a replacement for training. It is still necessary to carry on with desensitization and attention exercises.

Make sure to read the instructions carefully as incorrect use of any dog training equipment may cause injuries to the dog.

The no-pull harness was useful in training my Shiba Inu how to leash walk. My Shiba Inu is a small dog but he would pull very hard during walks and choke himself. The Shiba Inu breed has a short trachea, which makes them more susceptible to neck injuries. The harness was very helpful in this situation.

My Siberian is a larger dog with much more pulling power compared to my Shiba. It was difficult to control her pulling while using a harness. Therefore, I switched to using a head halti when taking my Siberian on long walks at the park. However, I continued with regular leash training on a flat collar while on shorter, neighborhood walks. Once her walking skills improved, I quickly switched everything over to a regular collar.

I am currently using the Premier Nylon Martingale Collar which I really like because it is great at preventing collar escapes.

Set Your Dog Up for Success.

Related posts:

1. Looks Can Be Deceiving
2. Operant Conditioning and Dog Training
3. Dog Aggression – What Does it Mean?

Shibas think that everything, including food, toys, the house, the neighborhood, and even their supposed owners, belong to them.

If not properly handled, many Shiba Inus, and indeed dogs in general can get aggressive about guarding their resources. Shibas are bred to be guard dogs so they have a strong guard instinct.

Dogs often guard objects from people because they associate people coming near them with their objects being taken away.

Resource Guarding - 'Mine!', Says the Shiba Inu

I was inadvertently teaching my dog that ...People coming near him = Loss of resources

When my Shiba was a puppy, he used to pick all all these dirty items from the street including tissues, pieces of plastic, etc. I did not want him eating the stuff, so I would always take them away from him. Ultimately, he started guarding his toys because he thought I would take them away from him as well.

I did not know it at the time, but I was teaching him that …

People coming near him = Loss of resources

When dogs show aggression and we back away, they also learn that …

Aggression = People backing away = Get to keep resources

What helped my Shiba most in breaking this resource guarding cycle is to help him re-associate people coming near him to be something positive rather than something he should guard against. In essence you want to retrain your dog so that he associates …

People coming near = More resources

In this way, your dog will seek out people rather than try to get them to back away with aggression.

Here are some resource guarding techniques that helped with my Shiba Inu.

People coming near = More resources

The key is to set your dog up for success and not expose him to situations where he feels he has to resort to aggression. The less he practices that aggression, the less it will become a habit.

Do not give your dog anything to guard.

Therefore, it is also important to take away all high priority items (such as bones and rawhide) and not give your dog anything to guard. Only give him very low priority items. Cut food up into small pieces and give those to him one at a time so he has nothing to guard.

Make sure that you always remain safe during the training process. Use leashes, baby-gates, or muzzles as necessary. My Shiba still wears a drag lead (with a flat collar) around the house so that I can more easily control him when I need to.

NILIF (Nothing in Life is Free) - Sit calmly before getting anything in return.

To stop resource guarding issues, it is also good practice to follow the NILIF (Nothing in Life is Free) program. This just means that your dog has to do something for you, before he gets anything in return including food, toys, going into the backyard, or coming into the house.

In this way, your dog learns that you are the source of all his resources, and he has to work for you to get what he wants.

Teach your dog that you are the source of all his resources, and he has to work for you to get what he wants.

If your dog is already aggressive and causing bite wounds as a result of resource guarding, contact a professional trainer.

Never try to take items away from an unknown dog. Even seemingly easy-going dogs may sometimes try to protect a high-priority item.

Shiba says, 'Come sit by me and give me more chicken!'

Related posts:

1. Shiba Inu – A Dog that is More Like a Cat
2. Shiba vs. Siberian
3. Super Shiba Inu Dusty!

Girl leaves boy. Boy gets lonely and depressed. Boy poops all over girl’s clean carpets.

Girl comes home and is angry and disappointed by boy’s actions. Boy gives girl a very endearing look, and many “apologetic” licks.

Girl forgives boy and the cycle continues.

So is it vengeance poop or something else?

Dog vengeance poop, or something else?

Dogs, it turns out, do not have a vengeful bone in their furry, little bodies. Vengeance poop is simply, us humans, projecting a very human quality onto our dogs.

If you have a vengeance poop situation, then it is probably a dog separation anxiety issue.

A Conversation About Dog Separation Anxiety

Separation anxiety?! - I spent three days straight with you.

“Separation anxiety?!”, I exclaim.

“But I spent three days straight with you before I had to work late for only one day”, I try to explain to my dogs.

My dogs sigh at me and respond slowly,

“It is not the total time you are with us during the week, but rather the uncertainty and change in schedule”.

My wonderful Shiba Inu adds,

Spending extra time with us and then suddenly no time at all, just makes things worse because we really do not know what to expect.

Dogs need routine and structure or they may get stressed.

“But you have each other”, I cleverly returned. “It is not like you are all by yourself. Why so needy?”.

My Siberian Husky is only too happy to answer with her usual enthusiastic style.

“We worry when someone in the pack leaves suddenly, without any clear reason. We worry because you are part of the pack and a smaller pack means a weaker pack and less goodies for everyone.”

She pauses, and considers how to make it clear to me. “If your dad disappeared unexpectedly , wouldn’t you be very worried too, even if your mom and brother are still around?”, she asks.

“Of course you would be!”, adds my know it all Shiba Inu.

Dogs may suffer from separation anxiety even in a multiple dog household.

Like us, dogs like routine and often get stressed over large changes in their schedule, especially negative changes that they do not expect and that they do not understand. When faced with such disruptions, dogs may chew up your house, or leave you some smelly, welcome home presents.

When there are large changes in your life or schedule, and you find yourself in a dog vengeance poop situation, it is not because of vengeance but likely a result of anxiety.

Read more about separation anxiety and how to help your dog cope with the stresses of change …

Related posts:

1. Debarking – Should it be Legal?
2. Dogs Are Not Human!

Females are the alpha of this species, not the males. If there are two pregnant females in the pack, they will fight to the death. I think mine really is a cat in dogs clothing. She’s friendly to every animal. She will swim (while I walk) along the breakwater, gladly. …

From talking with my dog-owner friends, it seems that most of them have dog packs that are ruled by an alpha female.

I say mostly because the alpha role is often fluid with dogs and may change depending on environment and activity.

This really made me wonder …

Is it more common to have a male or female in charge most of the time? How is like for your dog pack?

Why is it more common to have an alpha male/female?

I speculate that it is more common to have an alpha female.

Female dogs are more concerned about controlling resources around the house, given their role as mothers.

Alpha males would be more concerned about leading the hunt, but since there is little of that in a domestic dog’s life, the male feels less of a need to assume the alpha position.

What about human packs?

Is it more common in human households to have an alpha male or an alpha female? This is, of course, very rooted in the culture surrounding the human pack; but I really wonder what the statistics are like …

Many people say that they have a 50/50 household but I think it is difficult to achieve such symmetry.

In general, I think there are areas where the male or female really wants control, and other areas where he/she just stays away from. Occasionally though, there will be situations where everyone wants to make the call – these are the cases where it will be most clear who is the alpha.

What do you think?

What is it like with your dog pack? and your human pack?

Related posts:

1. Shiba Diary – Alpha Rolls
2. Shiba vs. Siberian
3. Dog Vengeance Poop

Operant conditioning actually encapsulates both reward and aversive training. In its simplest form, operant conditioning says that to shape a dog’s behavior, we can either add or take away a reward stimulus (positive reinforcement, negative punishment); or we can add or take away an aversive stimulus (positive punishment, negative reinforcement).

Operant conditioning in itself is not pro-reward stimulus or aversive stimulus.

However, it is interesting to note that B.F. Skinner, who developed many of the operant conditioning principles, has expressed that reward stimulus is the preferable form of control.

When someone says “operant conditioning” trainer, it actually refers to all dog trainers because every trainer uses some form of operant conditioning techniques to shape a dog’s behavior.

Included in the operant conditioning framework are studies on timing, frequency, and schedules of reinforcement.

For example, operant conditioning studies tell us that a variable schedule of reinforcement is more effective than a fixed schedule of reinforcement. I.e. rewarding our dogs intermittently for behaviors is more effective than rewarding our dogs every time, or every other time.

Similarly, if you over-correct a dog, he will quickly get habituated to your corrections, and may no longer respond to future corrections.

Operant conditioning is based on many years of study, by scientists and psychologists.

It provides us with a useful framework to not only shape the behavior of dogs, but also that of all animals.

When someone says that reward training does not work, or that aversive training does not work, it goes against all the scientific evidence that we have.

Both reward and aversive techniques can be used to shape animal behavior.

This includes getting your dog to perform good behaviors (e.g. Sit, Down) as well as stopping your dog from performing bad behaviors.

Personally, I use reward techniques almost exclusively with my own dogs because it is less risky, and the effects of making training mistakes are less serious.

When looking for a dog trainer, make sure to find one that understands the basic principles of operant conditioning and classical conditioning.

These two processes underlie much of what goes into dog training, and someone who understands these behavioral psychology principles will be in a better position to understand, guide, and shape your dog’s behavior.

Related posts:

1. Using Food in Dog Training – Bribery or Reward?
2. My Dog Training Mistakes
3. Dogs Are Not Human!

This is a true statement.

According to Wikipedia,

Currently, the domestic dog is listed as a subspecies of Canis lupus, C. l. familiaris.

We humans are not part of that evolutionary tree, so it is true that dogs are not human. However, there is a tendency on our parts to humanize our dogs anyway. We often overlay human feelings and human morality onto our dogs’ actions.

Bad Max pooped on my carpet because he was trying to get back at me for leaving him alone.

Sam dug up my roses and chewed up my designer shoes because he does not love me anymore.

Dogs are not human!

Humanizing our dogs can end up hurting our dogs, and ourselves, because we end up not seeing the root cause of their behaviors.

Max probably pooped on the carpet because of anxiety.

Sam likely dug up the roses and chewed on shoes because he was bored and nobody else provided alternate activities for him.

However, “dogs are not human” is not some magical line that can be used to dismiss our responsibilities to our dogs.

1. Grooming and Basic Care

The other day, I read an article where the author proudly proclaimed that “dogs are not human” and therefore there is no need to brush their teeth or take them to the vet for ‘little things’.

One has nothing to do with the other.

Dogs need a certain amount of basic care.

Dog grooming, including nail clipping and teeth brushing will help to improve the general health of the dog, give him a higher quality of life, as well as hopefully a longer life. There are also teeth cleaning toys available in lieu of teeth brushing.

As for vet visits, there are some things that can be treated at home, but there are other things that require medical attention. There are a variety of books written by qualified veterinarians describing symptoms that are treatable from home and those that require veterinary attention.

Anything that involves bloody discharge usually means that a vet visit is necessary, sooner rather than later.

Yearly vet visits are also necessary for shots against dog diseases (e.g. Parvo, Rabies) and sometimes for teeth cleaning.

But dogs are not human. In the wild they would not have a vet.

True, and dogs have shorter lifespans in the wild.

They also do not have to deal with overcrowding, synthetic materials, cars, or live in the backyard all day with nothing to do. If dogs should be wild, then leave them in the wild and get a fish for a pet.

Or perhaps a virtual dog.

2. Affection

Another popular area where this “dogs are not human” line often gets trotted out is in giving affection or even food rewards to our dogs. Apparently, because dogs are not human, it is somehow wrong to give them human affection.

In truth, much of this affection-giving is more for us, than for our dogs. Giving affection to our dogs makes us feel better, and helps to lower stress.

There is nothing wrong with giving affection, attention, or food rewards to dogs, as long as it is done with the right timing to reinforce good behaviors.

Some of us run into problems because we reward or give affection at the wrong time, and as a result the wrong behavior gets reinforced.

Timing is one of the most important components in dog training and in shaping a dog’s behavior. If you discipline or punish your dog at the wrong time, you will also inadvertently encourage bad behaviors.

In fact, this University of Pennsylvania study shows that aversive methods have a higher probability of encouraging aggression in dogs compared to reward techniques.

3. Physical Aversive Training

“Dogs are not human” is also often used as a reason for why physical aversive training is more effective than other types of training.

In particular, since dogs are not human, we should try to be like dogs and bite them, slap them, pin them to the ground, and growl at them.

Just as dogs are not humans, humans are not dogs.

However hard we may try, we will never be dogs, and our dogs will always be aware of this plain fact.

Both reward and aversive techniques come from the field of behavioral psychology, and behavioral psychology techniques can and has been applied to both humans and dogs.

For example, if you look-up desensitization and flooding, you will see that they have been applied, and are still applied to help both dogs and humans cope with phobias and stress.

It may be true that “dogs are not humans”, but that statement has nothing to do with the behavioral psychology techniques that we apply to train dogs and shape behavior.

Dogs are not human, but that does not mean they respond better to aversive stimuli.

One does not follow from the other – they are two separate statements that have no relation to one another.

Yes, dogs are not human.

All that means is we should try and understand their behavior, without any human moral overlay. 

We should learn to communicate with them, so that they understand us, and we understand them. By doing this, both dog and human can share a strong, happy, and lasting bond.

Related posts:

1. Operant Conditioning and Dog Training
2. Do Dogs Need Other Dogs?
3. Should Dogs Be Left in the Wild?

Are bad dogs simply untrained or were they born bad?

Some people believe that certain bad dog behaviors are a result of bad breeding while others believe that they are wholly the result of bad dog training.

The truth, as always, is somewhere in-between.

Breeding and breed does contribute to a dog’s temperament and behaviors. Some dogs are more high-strung than others, some are born confident, some are more susceptible to fear or stress, some are more mouthy, etc.

To get a dog with good temperament, do some research on the breeds you are most interested in. Once you have made a decision, do a lot more research into good breeders or adoption agencies in your area.

Puppies from pet stores, and online stores are mostly from puppy-mills, and will have a lot more health and temperament issues.

Even though breeding and breed does contribute to the overall temperament and behavior of a dog, it can be counterbalanced with training and management.

Dogs that are born with a less balanced temperament, however, will require more time, patience, training, and management.

My Shiba Inu, for example, is easily stressed, very stubborn, and naturally mouthy. Therefore, I manage him carefully and only expose him to situations that I know he can handle. At the same time I am slowly desensitizing him to the conditions that cause him stress.

My Siberian Husky is just a happy-go-lucky dog, and needs less management and attention.

We should all recognize, though, that some dogs are just more difficult to manage than others.

Try not to judge others too quickly because of the misbehavior of their dogs.  Just like us, dogs do not all start from a level playing field, and what we consider to be bad behaviors may be a result of the dog’s natural tendency towards fear, stress, or anxiety.

And if you have one of those more challenging dogs – know that you are not alone. Your dog can be properly managed and trained with time and patience. Make sure though that his unexpected behaviors are not a result of any physical health issues.

And a Big Kudos to you for sticking with your dog, and helping him through his challenges. That makes you a big Dog Hero and you should stand tall and be proud!

Related posts:

1. Dogs Are Not Human!
2. Embarassed by My Dog