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Introducing Dogs to Other Dogs

Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDT-KA

First impressions count. This is as true for dogs as it is for us. Taking some time to think through how to introduce dogs appropriately can mean the difference between dogs learning to be friends or ending up in a situation where you’re trying to overcome distrust and fear when the dog/dog greeting goes wrong.

Off Leash Introduction
I prefer off leash greetings if at all possible since all dogs are more reactive on leash than off leash. Off leash introductions alleviate two potential problems: [Read more...]

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Barking Dogs: Make It Stop!

Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDT-KA

In my post Control Your Dog’s Barking, I discussed the most common reason owners complain about their dogs barking, Alert Barking. In this post, I wanted to talk about some of the other reasons that dogs bark and how you can stop the barking as effectively as possible.

Separation Anxiety/Distress
If your dog is barking all day while you’re gone, that’s a type of separation anxiety. While it may be tempting to use a bark collar (spray or shock) to simply shut off the behavior, we strongly recommend that you do NOT do that. Separation anxiety/distress is a type of panic disorder so using aversives or pain to simply shut it off can cause more damage to your dog in terms of behavioral fallout (increased anxiety and fear).

If you’ve received a neighbor complaint about your dog barking “all day”, it’s time to set up a web cam and observe your dog’s behavior remotely. Neighbor reporting is sometimes unreliable as one hour of barking can seem like all day if you’re the neighbor having to listen to the barking. If your dog really is barking all day, that means your dog is suffering. The first thing you can try is to stop feeding your dog out of a bowl and put their food in puzzle toys. Let them eat their meals while you are gone. You can see our favorite work to eat toys here. If  your dog will not eat while you’re gone, it’s time to call a professional to help you counter condition your dog’s panic disorder. If you want to know what protocols work for treating separation anxiety, we recommend I’ll Be Home Soon by Patricia McConnell, PhD, CAAB or Don’t Leave Me by Nicole Wilde. [Read more...]

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Helping Dogs with Noise Phobia

Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDT-KA

If your dog suffers from noise phobia, you know that it is a serious condition. Dogs don’t just “get over” noise phobia with time and enough exposure. In fact, we have documented cases where dogs got continually worse over time and even began generalizing their fear to other stimuli. An example of this is a dog who is afraid of fireworks that over time, becomes afraid of the backyard. If your dog is suffering, there are things you can do to keep your dog safe and even help them feel better.

Desensitization and Counter Conditioning
Begin by purchasing/downloading recordings of sounds.  You can purchase a fairly comprehensive set of sounds via iTunes (buses, trucks, honking horns, construction sounds, etc). Legacy Canine sells a CD that comes highly recommended.

[Read more...]

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Invisible Fences: Not a Recommended Solution

Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDT

iStock_000004067879XSmallI’ve been wanting to write an article about “invisible” fences, aka electric fences for some time. I was spurred to action after reading an article by an esteemed colleague, Laurie Luck at Smart Dog University. She got herself and her dogs home safely after one of her neighbor’s dogs broke through the invisible fence but it was a scary experience. I’ve experienced this frightening situation myself with my own dogs and client dogs when out on walks. I wrote an article titled Protecting Your Dog on Walks where I made many suggestions for protecting your dog from people and other dogs that are off leash to help you if you ever find yourself in this situation.

If invisible fences are such a wonderful invention, why are off leash dogs breaking through the border towards those of us walking our dogs on leash? When I ask clients why they’ve installed an invisible fence, the two most popular answers are: the prohibitively  high cost of solid fencing and neighborhood covenants that prohibit solid fencing. I thought I’d take this opportunity to go through the justifications I hear from people for using these things and why invisible fences are often not a good idea for dogs or people. [Read more...]

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Adoption Counseling

Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDTiStock_000007062867XSmall

At Companion Animal Solutions, we offer Adoption Counseling for people interested in adding a puppy or dog to their family. I’ve been honored to assist many clients in making their home a forever home for a dog but to be honest, prospective owners don’t avail themselves of this service as often as we would hope. Too often, we get called in to work through behavior problems with dogs that are really just a mismatch between the breed/dog and the owner. It’s not the dog’s fault and it’s not the owner’s fault, it’s just a bad match. This summer though, I was engaged to find puppies for two different families and I’m thrilled at the outcome for these families (and their new puppies)!

[Read more...]

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Tips for Greeting Other Dogs on Leash

Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDT

You’re out on a relaxing walk with your dog when you see another owner walking towards you with their dog. The owner says to you, “can our dogs say hello”? How do you decide whether allowing your dog to greet a strange dog on leash is a good idea? After all, some of these greetings go beautifully with both dogs and owners parting company with a smile. Other greetings with dogs on leash go horribly wrong with both dogs and owners leaving the scene upset with pulses racing. What went wrong? [Read more...]

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Fun Activities For You and Your Dog

Guest Blogger: Andrea Kilkenny and the tireless MojoDog Backpack

I live with Mojo. Mojo will be 9 soon, and shows no sign of slowing down. I have to say, he’s better than when he was oh say, 2, but at almost 9, if it weren’t for his graying face, you would not know he is a senior dog. I love my Mojo, but I also realize that many people would find him extremely frustrating, and I often wonder had I not adopted him, if he would have stayed in one home or been shuffled around from one exasperated owner to the next, or been returned to the shelter. Coupled with his energy level are some other factors that make him a challenging dog: high intelligence and strong determination. Put that in a sporty, lean, muscular high energy package, and you could have a recipe for disaster.

[Read more...]

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Tips For Exercising With Your Dog

Miles Bensky, BA, CTCImageShack

Summer is a beautiful time in Seattle, and as the warmer weather approaches, many of us find ourselves spending more time outside. Recently, I have taken up running, completing my first half-marathon in March over on Whidbey Island. As I have continued to train outside, I notice more and more people walking, jogging, skating, and biking around town. Being a dog lover, I can’t help but notice an increase in the number of dogs enjoying outdoor activities with their owners. Therefore, I thought it would be a great time to discuss some important points that dog owners should consider when thinking about exercising with Fido.

Exercise is an important component to having a well-balanced dog. An article published in The Journal of Nutrition estimates that obesity rates range between 18-44% of the dog population and exercise is critical to their health as well. All dogs need some level of daily physical activity in order to stay happy and healthy. Lack of exercise can contribute to behavioral issues such as Destructive Chewing and Leash Reactivity. Having an overweight dog can lead to various health complications such as Heart Disease, Hip Dysplasia, and Diabetes.

[Read more...]

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Questions to Ask Before Adopting a Dog or Puppy

Carly Loyer Davis, CPDTImageShack

It’s more than mildly ridiculous that a dog trainer would not have a dog. Unfortunately, living in a Seattle apartment is very rarely conducive to dog ownership/parentage. Similarly, college, working multiple jobs, and driving a lot don’t lend themselves to being an ideal dog owner. As a result, this dog trainer has had to make do with adoring client dogs and spoiling the bejeezus out of her parents’ two dogs, Hobbes and Gracie (really, they’re family dogs, so they feel like ‘my’ dogs even though I don’t get to live with them on a day-to-day basis). However, I am finally in an apartment that allows dogs and has a convenient place to exercise and enjoy them, and I finally have a job that is flexible enough to allow me to provide sufficient attention for a dog, and I have a husband who is ready and willing to help care for and spoil a dog. What does that mean? It’s time to go dog shopping! [Read more...]

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How To Evaluate a Dog Daycare

Christine Hibbard, CTC, CPDTDoggy Daycare

I’ve been surprised by how often I’ve heard dog owners say with relief in their voices, “my dog passed the temperament test and has been accepted into dog daycare”, but when I ask the owner questions about the daycare, I discover that the owners did very little investigation. As with any facility or service, it’s important to be an informed consumer. At Companion Animal Solutions, we know what we consider to be important factors in how a daycare facility is run, but I also wanted to get feedback from top end doggy daycare providers to learn more about their industry. Based on our knowledge of canine behavior and feedback from daycare owners with whom I corresponded, I put together a list of questions you can use to evaluate whether a particular dog daycare is right for you. Since we specialize in behavior at Companion Animal Solutions, I’ve focused on the issues we feel are most important for the behavioral health of your dog, but I also included some questions about general safety at the end of this article. [Read more...]

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