Recently in Training Category

How To Litter Box Train Your Dog is a very interesting, in-depth DIY article about something I've wondered about -- is there any reason you can't litter train a dog? Now, the limitations of such a plan are obvious... large dogs would need a bathtub sized litter box, and I don't see that happening (but read on, there may yet be a solution), and the individual dog's temperament will certainly play a major role in accepting or rejecting this option.

I could imagine this being fairly easy to train, though... especially by judiciously and humanely utilizing the "crate" method a couple of times in the beginning if more free-form persuasions don't work out. As you'll see in the photos, this is where you place the dog in a small sequestered area with only room for bedding, food, and the litter box; typically a dog will not ever go on the food or bedding, so the only other option is the litter box. I would personally would never, ever leave a dog in such a crated area for extended periods, but for training, placing him there only when he needs to go plus praise and treats when he uses it seems like a pretty good method.

But, what I really love is the ultra deluxe, built-in-plumbing version -- the showerlitter! I would absolutely build this into any new home or renovation if I had the space. That's some upscale doggydoggy doo wa right there.

Tip: I've had quick success teaching my dog where she can go potty by saturating paper toweling with her urine, then saving in a plastic baggy and putting it where I want her to go and leading her to that spot to sniff when she needs to do the necessary.

IMAGE VIA K9 STORM INC.

As you may have heard, Osama bin Laden has been killed by U.S. Navy Seals in Pakistan. If you haven't heard, no need to thank me; I'm sure the rumors would have reached you shortly. :)  Those of you who did somehow stumble across this news may have heard that bin Laden was finally taken down by an elite team of 79 SEALs (SEa, Air and Land) and one dog. If you are like me, your ears perked up. Dog? Dog? What kind of dog? What did the dog do?

An old Register article from August of 2010 might help to fill in a couple of the blanks: Navy SEALs to deploy armoured dogs in A'stan: Elite, bulletproof commando canines go to war. The article reveals that the U.S. awarded an $86,000 contract to Canadian firm K9 Storm Inc for the supply of "Canine Tactical Assault Vests" for wear by SEAL dogs, and describes various characteristics of the high-tech armor, including this tidbit, "It also features an infrared nightsight camera and through-walls communications system, allowing a timid human handler to send his furry comrade forward to reconnoitre a situation and see all that the dog sees - and also issue audio commands." Well. I don't think we'd ever call the troops that carried out this raid "timid," but a doggy-powered night vision camera sweep (along with a dog's keen sense of smell to scent out hiding enemies) certainly sounds like something that might have come in handy on this mission.

As for what sort of dog our canine patriot might be, Global Animal reports that Navy Seals are known to work with Newfoundlands, but surmises that this special forces super star may have been a German Shepherd. I actually went to the Navy Seals website to see if they had any info on their K9 division, but the site was down; checking their twitter feed, I see this: "Due to the heavy traffic on sealswcc.com, users may experience temporary service unavailability." You can check out the K9 Storm website here.

Update May 5, '11: Yay! Here's the sort of thing I was looking for: A great photo gallery of "war dogs," plus info, posted today at Foreign Policy Magazine.

Are your pooch's table manners as good these doggy diners? If not, heed this article: Train Your Dog to Sit Stay when Feeding. Even though it is perhaps one of the most impressive-seeming behaviors for others to view (hungry doggy + delicious nibbles = perfect manners? Wow! ), this was actually one of the easiest things to train my dog to do. A couple of times of having her bowl removed if she moved from the sit position before I gave her the okay made quite an impression, and once she grokked the idea of waiting for her meal, I had no trouble at all teaching her to Sit or Down and Wait while I placed any kind of treat on the floor in front of her. I am now working on teaching her to leave a 15% tip.

Speaking of tempting treats and perfect manners, have a look at one of the most famous faces on the internet: the irrepressible Stains, who really, really loves cupcakes, and his expression of anguished, naked desire. If Stains can do it, your pooch can, too!

For other tips on teaching polite behavior, see Teach Your Dog Manners Using Everyday Commands,and for tips about how you should handle feeding, Expert Tips On How to Feed Your Dog. Most of it is probably stuff you know, but tips like elevating feeding bowls to help avoid bloat, and reminders not to exercise your dog after eating are examples of some info that can be forgotten or overlooked.

Since our girl has become more and more violently reactive to nail-clipping -- to such a degree that we breathed a sigh of relief when she had her teeth cleaned a few weeks ago, since the vet could get the nails clipped (still not without a struggle!) while she was sedated -- I've been seeking solutions to this apparently extremely common problem. I don't want to drug her, my husband rejects the Dremel tool solution (and I don't see this working well, since she also hates loud noises, ie blowdryer, etc.) and while the new thing with dogs filing their own nails on a giant dog nail file is super cool, I've yet to see one of these videos of the dog filing nails on his back paws, which of course is going to much more difficult to train. I also don't want to use brute force, of course, so we're back to ... um, convincing her that this is really okay. So very much easier said than done. However, I did find a really good video for addressing the problem with clicker training, in which the trainer was working with a highly reactive dog:



Now, I don't fool myself that we can achieve the same results as this trainer in the same short period of time, but this is the approach we're going with, however long it takes to shape this behavior without abject terror and panic. And hopefully the dog will be calmer, too. :)

And by the way, here's another interesting thing I came across: Is Your Pet Left- or Right-Pawed? Turns out dogs, and most all animals, in fact, favor one side over the other, just as most humans do, which is interesting for it's own sake, but also handy information because when you broach the whole nail-clipping thing with a reluctant pet, it's probably not best to begin with the favored paw. This helps me make sense of the fact that when our dog was still letting the groomer trim her nails, she'd cry, yelp and struggle as soon as the groomer picked up her front right paw.

I recently saw two different amusing internet items that both reminded me that I wanted to post about doggy IQ tests you can do at home. You can find many variations of tests like this for free online, as well as commercial books and kits; I picked this one because it includes short videos to help you understand how each part of the test works, and because it was created by someone with expertise in both psychology and dog training: "Dr Stanley Coren, professor of psychology at the University of British Columbia, a prize winning dog trainer and an authority on canine intelligence." We went through these exercises with our dog, Sky, and it turns out she's a some sort of doggy Einstein... so I'm currently trying to convince her to write these posts instead of me! It was fun for us, and Sky totally enjoyed it, but of course one should not rely on such a casual determination to make any assumptions about your pet's behavior or trainability; if the dog is comfortable with it and you are curious, it can be a fun activity, but don't make the mistake of deciding your dog is too dumb/smart for any particular behavior training based on these results! Now for the cuteness...
ILLUSTRATION BY ALLIE BROSH

Allie at Hyperbole and a Half offers a sweet and hilarious illustrated description of her disappointing experience with the doggy IQ test. I love this so much. I just really want to hug that pup, and Allie, too. :)

And then there's adorable Jesse. Jesse is a reeeeeaaaaaally smart dog:



Oh, Jesse, what an amazing wittle smartypants you are!

I was touched by these BBC photos commemorating Britain's WWII search and rescue dogs responsible for saving hundreds of lives during the London Blitz. (Smaller photos but more info at the Daily Mail). The images include a photo of Jet of Lada, the German Shepherd that became the world's first wartime search and rescue dog. And speaking of wartime dogs, this photo of Special Forces dogs in an anti-terror training exercise blew me away:


(Photo by Bay Ismoyo, AFP, Getty Images; click for larger view.) See more great images of rescue and service dogs here (click the full-screen view option for much bigger pics). In the U.S., FEMA's urban search and rescue division responds to disasters such as the 9/11 attack and Hurricane Katrina, and you can read about their search dogs here. It's gratifying to note that how many of these hero dogs, going right back to WWII, were what we now call "rescue dogs" themselves, from Rip, who was found homeless and starving during a bombing raid in London, to Jake, one of the amazing dogs that responded to both the World Trade Center and Katrina tragedies and who was found abandoned as a puppy with a broken leg and a dislocated hip. Here is a great article with lots of photos (that made me cry... you want to cry, don't you?)  about the amazing 9/11 rescue dogs. And hey, while we're on the subject, say hello to Pearl, the ASPCA's Dog of the Year for 2010 -- also a former shelter dog and another life-saving hero who is being honored for rescuing earthquake victims in Haiti.

These incredible animals break my heart in an odd way, while filling it with joy at the same time. *sniff*  What wonderful role models they are for us humans!

ELIZABETH SHOGREN/NPR PHOTOGRAPH

I think we've all contemplated the current bed bug epidemic with a distinct shiver of dread while crossing our fingers and hoping those new mosquito bites are really just mosquito bites... but did you know that one of the newer, more effective agents in the Great Bed Bug Wars is man's very best friend? A recent NPR report spotlights one such warrior -- darling Dixie, a beagle-Jack Russell terrier mix who can detect bed bug infestations no matter how small. Dixie mostly polices the Washington D.C. and Baltimore areas, but she was originally trained at the Florida Canine Academy in Tampa, and according to her owner/handler/trainer, Blaine Lessard, she can detect even one bed  bug in a room; "Dixie finds bugs three to 10 times a day, and she sniffs as many as 600 apartments or hotel rooms a week, according to Lessard."  See more photos of Dixie at work and read more about her methodology here.

The University of Florida began researching canine bed bug sniffing abilities back in 2007, by the way, and those with a more scientific bent may be interested in this paper (PDF) from the UF Department of Entomology on the study. The article makes it clear that the method and quality of training is essential since, among other things, poorly trained dogs can return false positives for "dead bed bugs, cast skins, and feces." Bedbug Central has more information about the efficacy of K9 bedbug scent detection, and this recent Atlanta news spot video about detection dogs warns that "bed bugs are crawling into the southeast." Now, if you'll just excuse me while I interrupt my screaming to go take a shower.

Oh, wow! I recently discovered the blog of animal behaviorist, trainer, ethologist and author, Patricia McConnell. I'm a rabid (PUN!) McConnell fangirl, and own several of her books, including "The Other End of the Leash," which is also the title of her blog. I adore her heart, passion and intuition combined with her unflinching, uncompromising commitment to scientific principle and methodology, and personally consider her something of a savant. (I told you I was a fangirl!)

I'm very interested right now in a recent post about her project (with Karen London) to make a booklet for people adopting dogs from shelters or rescue groups, which is such a fantastic contribution coming from such a respected source! This particular post is asking for reader input, so if you have thoughts that haven't been covered in the comments (or that you would like to emphasize), respond there! If you are considering adoption or are involved in pet rescue (or just generally interested in human/rescue interaction) the comments should prove extremely interesting and potentially helpful. Here's a sort of update, that also has suggestion comments. I can't wait to see the final booklet!

Pet behavior can often be mysterious to us simple humans, and when we have a problem we usually hit Google and hope to surf our way to enlightenment on what our furry friends are thinking or feeling -- and how we should deal with it. The problem is that without knowing the provenance, training, or philosophy of the advice-givers, we may end by overlooking critical clues or responding in ways that make the problem worse or even threaten our pet's health. Obviously, we need to rely on the professionals (so many odd behaviors can be caused by underlying medical problems, for example!), but we also want to educate ourselves to be aware of specific issues... Which is why I was very pleased to find these behavior Tip Sheets for Dogs, and Tip Sheets for Cats provided by the Dumb Friends League/Humane Society of Denver, and recommended by the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior. These are collections of PDF articles that address a wide range of behavioral concerns, and they are an excellent place to start any search with confidence. The League even offers one-on-one help, via either contact form or toll-free helpline call. Wow!

There are cat people, and there are dog people -- and there are groovy cat n' dog people who love both flavors, but will the animals get along? Pet lovers know that any time you introduce a new dog into a home with a cat, or vice versa... well, you pays your money and takes your chances. Depending on the relative aggression/prey drive/dominance and personality quirks of the cat and dog involved, it may work, and it may not... and when it doesn't, things can get hairy real fast. If only there were a magic formula for solving this dilemma! The good news is that for new pet owners, there is one way to scientifically maximize chances your cat and dog will be fond friends. According to Science Daily, research conducted at Tel Aviv University reveals that "if the cat is adopted before the dog and if they are introduced when still young (less than 6 months for kittens, a year for dogs), there is a high probability that your two pets will get along swimmingly." No word from the whitecoats on whether the two will gang up to perpetrate inter-species mayhem on their unsuspecting owner, but magic eightball says "yes." (and I swear on my dog's honor, this screen shot was from the very first time I tried the question. Magic eightball is indeed wise.) 

For those hoping to expand their pet family who already have an adult cat or dog, there are other tips for encouraging a peaceful coexistence. If you already have an older dog and want to introduce a cat to the home, the Champaign County Humane Society has a step-by-step guide, while "The Dogman" has good advice for bringing a dog into an already-established cat household.