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Wecontinuallyupdateourskillsandknowledgesothatwestaycurrentwiththebestpracticesthatcanhelpyouandyourdog.
cheerfuldogschroniclesLivingwithDogs:IfYouLikeIt,RewardIt
Issue19cheerfuldogs,happypeople
“Dogs’livesaretooshort.Theironlyfault,really.”
–AgnesSlighTurnbull
Asimplefactofbiologyisthatallorganismsdomoreofwhatrewardsthem.Ifyou
receivedtwentydollarseverytimeyousmiled,you’dwalkaroundgrinning.Ifwearinga
certaincoatpredictablyunleashedaflurryofcomplimentsonyou,chancesarethatcoat
wouldspendverylittletimeinyourcloset.
Dogsarenodifferent.Anybehaviourtheythinkworkstogetthemsomethingtheywant
becomesmorefrequent.Sayyourdogdropsatennisballinfrontofyouandbarks,and
youpickuptheballandthrowit.Youjusttrainedyourdogtobarktohavehisfavourite
gameperpetuated.Asastrategy,barkingpaidoffandsureenoughyourdogwillbark
more.Bycontrast,ignoringtheballand
walkingawayteachesthedogthatbarking
doesn’twork.Whenhenextdropstheballby
yourfeetwithoutbarking,pickitupandthrow
ittoreinforcethedelightfulquiet.
Dogquotes
2
….Ifyoulikeit,rewardit
Thissimpleexercisecontainstheessenceofdogtraining:
Ignorewhatyoudon’tlikeandbequicktorewardwhatyou
dolike.Theprincipleappliestoallsituationsanditpaysto
becomeawareofthemanywaysweaccidentallyreinforce
behaviourswedon’tlike.Weoftenrewardadogfor
jumpinguptogreetus,eitherbypettingandsweet-talking
thedog,orbypushinghimawayandsaying‘no,’whichis
morethanenoughattentiontobereinforcing.Turningaway
orleavingismuchmoreeffective.
Togetawell-behaveddogquickly,alwaysbeonthelookout
forwaystoreinforcebehavioursyoulike.Fourpawsonthe
floorwhengreeting,forexample,shouldalwaysearna
‘gooddog’orapetoratreat.
HealthyDog:DogFirstAid&CPR
Promptandinformedfirstaidsaveslives—
fordogsaswellashumans.Losingadogto
anasthmaattackoracommontypeof
poisoningisallthemoretragicincases
whereCPRskillsorknowledgeoffirstaid
couldhavekeptthedogaliveuntilhis
ownersreachedaveterinarian.Andnotjust
thosewhohiketrailswiththeirdogsneedto
considersuchscaryscenarios.Dogscan
chokeonbitsofkibbleonthekitchenfloor.
Thankfully,coursesforpetguardiansare
readilyavailable.LearntoperformpetCPR
andfirstaid,includingtendingtowounds
andrecognizingemergencies.Mostgood
classescoverchokingmanagement,insect
bite,stings,heatinjuries,vitalsassessment,
andseizures.
Totakeapetfirstaidclassinperson,check
outSkillsFutureshortcoursesofferedbyour
polytechnics,ordoawebsearchfor
appropriateonlinecourses.
cheerfuldogs.comYourgo-totrainerforenlighteneddoglovers
Website:cheerfuldogs.com
cont.
cheerfuldogswalking.comProfessionaldogwalkingyoucantrust
Website:cheerfuldogswalking.com
Tel:96303884
Email:[email protected]
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