I've finished Made for Each Other, and do indeed recommend it for people who are interested in animal behavior in general, and specifically the biology behind the relationship we have with domestic animals. It's primary focus, as the title of this blog suggests, is the power of oxytocin and its role in initiating and maintaining our interest, attraction to and bond with other animals. As an addict of hugging friends and stroking doggy bellies and kitty ears, I loved learning even more about my favorite drug. Our levels of oxytocin double while we are petting our dogs, so I hereby consider lying on the living room floor and rubbing Willie's belly as "working out." The benefits of oxytocin on our health are little short of astounding: * An enhanced immune system * A decrease in the Read More
Lassie Fine, Special Sale for Trainers
Thanks to all the kind readers who sent their best wishes to Lassie. Good news: she seems fine. I'm hoping it was just one of those "dietary indiscretions" that come and go into all of our lives. Fed her tiny meals, low fat, gave her Pepsid as instruction by Dr. John for acid stomach (common if kidney problems). I am taking her in to the clinic though next week, just to get a chem panel and check on her kidney function. Assume all is well if you don't hear anything, no news being good news and all. Ah these old dogs. Thanks for your stories about your own, I love hearing them. Speaking of news, I promised my staff I'd say something about the Professional Trainer Special we have on right now for people who use the Family Friendly Dog Training book for classes or clients. I don't like to Read More
Made for Each Other
I'm a little late to the party here, (not Lassie's party! More on that below.) but I am loving Meg Daley Olmert's book, Made for Each Other: The Biology of the Human-Animal Bond. I'm not all that far along yet, but early on I was asking myself why in heaven's name this book has been sitting on my bed side table without being picked up. It should be no surprise that I'd love a book that combines research on behavior specific to our relationship with dogs, but the value added kicker is that she's such a good writer. In the second chapter she talks a lot about oxytocin and its role in social bonding. This is something I have talked about quite a bit, both in For the Love of a Dog, this blog and in my UW course on Human-Animal Relationships. Still, I learned some new things that I just love Read More
Willie & Sushi, Part II
Thanks to all of you who commented on the saga of Willie and Sushi. (And for those of you who haven't read the last post, my biggest training/behavior challenge at the moment is Willie's obsessive herding/stalking of my cat Sushi. I have started a new paradigm, which is to quietly and politely ask him to sit every time he looks at Sushi as if herding. Sounds simple, but so far it's the only "incompatible behavior" that seems to take him out of obsessive stalking mode.) Good news, although I hesitate to say that and doom myself with premature optimism. Does Willie ignore Sushi now? Oh no, oh my no. I truly don't believe that I will ever be able to completely turn around his interest and fascination bordering on obsessive/compulsive behavior around Sushi as a small, herdable animal. Read More
All “Incompatible Behaviors” are not Equal
Yeah well, this is something I know well, except, uh... how come it took me 2 years to figure it out with my own dog? Sigh. Here's the back story: As many of you know, my 3 year old BC, Willie, is both a joy and a challenge. He's joyful, incredibly responsive, the perfect dog for me to work on sheep, so reliable when working that I can let the sheep graze by the road, smart, fast and handsome. He also: * Came with projectile diarrhea (lasted 3 months, now completely solved). * Developed a bad shoulder early in life (now managed and partially healed, 'tho surgery still a potential). * Developed, also early on, a serious dog-dog aggression problem (partially treated and partially managed; plays with lots of other dogs, makes good, reliable decisions to keep himself out of trouble, but Read More