Cassandra Seale consulted me before writing this mic.com article about how your dog could be happier. I provided a few tips about how to set up a dog’s life to ensure he or she gets everything necessary for a happy Read more…
You have already spayed/neutered your pets or if they are still intact, you manage them so they don’t produce unplanned litters. You hear all the pleas from the rescues and shelters begging everyone to adopt more pets, but you rely Read more…
In which areas of life does your pet have “agency”? In social science, agency is defined as “the capacity of individuals to act independently and to make their own free choices.” Of course, it would be irresponsible to have dogs Read more…
PLAN AHEAD Is your dog happy? Probably. But you can probably increase his satisfaction with his life. Dogs respond well to being able to predict what’s going to happen next. This starts with you doing things the same way every Read more…
Verbal cues have a different meaning to dogs than to humans. Humans tend to think dogs are actually understanding the language, but dogs are simply listening for an indication of what they can do to make things work, to get Read more…
Training Tip: Don’t put dogs in situations they don’t have the tools to handle. Human behavior challenges Why is it usually a bad idea to take a 2-year-old human toddler to a symphony performance? Toddlers don’t have the tools to Read more…
The days of a huge difference between “human foods” and “dog foods” are over. We now understand that our dogs (and cats) are healthiest when they routinely eat high-quality, whole foods like we do. Many high-fat, high-salt foods are not Read more…
Your dog is an individual but he or she learns in the same two ways as any other animal. Dogs learn through association and consequences. Association is how animals learn reflexive, involuntary responses; things they do automatically, without thinking. Emotional Read more…
Why is it so hard to identify a qualified dog trainer? The field of animal training can be confusing. For example, a jumble of letters often follows a dog trainer’s name. Some titles mean little or nothing. Others indicate the Read more…
Skinner on “Behavioral Processes” “You can’t foresee all future circumstances, and you can’t specify adequate future conduct. You don’t know what will be required. Instead you have to set up certain behavioral processes which will lead the individual to design Read more…