I wondered if you have seen this --- an automatic 'dog washing machine,' in which you put your dog into a metal box, streams of water and soap engulf him or her, then presumably the dog is dried with blasts of hot air. Here's a link to the Dog-O-Matic (sent to me by an alert UW student). I'm relieved to say it's only in France so far, but honestly, keep your eyes peeled for it to show up in your area (and be ready to stop it!). Poor poor dogs! Speaking of animal welfare, thanks to everyone who wrote interesting and informed comments about my last blog, basically a rant on the problems associated with horse racing. If you are interested in the topic you might want to read the comments, there are some very good ones. Thanks to everyone who wrote in, and keep up the Read More
Authentic Happiness; New Lambs
I re-read Seligman's Authentic Happiness this weekend. Ever read it? Seligman is one of the American Psychologists who decided to focus on mental health rather than mental illness, and yeah for him I say. I'm writing about it here because it got me thinking about our happiness and our dogs. In the book, Seligman asks us to determine our "signature strengths," and suggests that the road to happiness is to do what you are good at and what you love. (He has a questionnaire in the book to help you decide your strengths. Mine include Curiousity and Love of Learning. I'm not saying what my weaknesses are!) So here's my question related to dogs: Is that true of our dogs as well? Is their happiness, at least in part, related to having an opportunity to do what they love and what they are good Read More
Willie Learns to use his Nose; Sheep Shearing Fun
One of my favorite games with Willie is to put him on sit/stay and then hide one of his toys in another room. I release him and tell him to go find his toy. We both think it's a hoot and get all waggy from the shoulders back together. We've played it on and off for months, but I started doing it on a daily basis in preparation for his surgery and restricted exercise. Until recently, Willie always looked for the hidden toy. It was overwhelmingly clear that he was using his eyes, and if he couldn't see it, he couldn't find it. However, after about a week and a half of playing the game 4-5 times in a row every evening, Willie completely switched strategies and started using his nose. The switch was absolutely obvious: he'd trot out of the room he'd been in with his nose in the air, sniffing Read More
Karen Pryor’s New Book; Valentine’s Day
I just finished reading a review copy of Karen Pryor's new book, Reaching the Animal Mind (Scribner). I don't know when it's coming out, I'll let you know as soon as I hear (but you can pre-order it on Amazon now). It's an inspiring book, especially for those that haven't yet used clicker training on any of their animals. I don't use clickers for everything I have to admit, I tend to use them most for tricks, or any behavior that is not in a dog's normal repertoire. One of the interesting parts of her book is a report of research by Lindsay Wood that found clicker training significantly faster than a verbal marker at training new behaviors. This makes a lot of sense, given what we know about sound and the way it is received. I did my dissertation work on sound, and learned that sounds Read More
Willie versus Redford, Round 3
What a difference a day makes. Here's what happened late last week between Will and Redford: Yep, that's Willie running away. He ran back about five feet, then turned and walked back toward Redford, with me encouraging him. For reasons I don't understand, this time Redford turned and walked away. And here's what I really don't understand. After that, every time, Will has won every interaction. Will walks forward with confidence, and Redford turns tail (now you know where that phrase came from!). I simply don't know exactly what transpired between the two of them, but Will's posture is now one of confidence as he approaches Redford. Only once, a few days later, did Redford turn to face Wilie and challenge him, and Will stood his ground, opened his mouth and snapped at the ram's face. Read More
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