Dogs Inside Out

Dog Appreciation Day

Dog Appreciation Day!

Do we have one? We should!

This is an article about special dogs and special kids and how a dog can make all the difference. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/10/06/health/06pets.html

 

I think dogs like Chad help autistic kids like Milo begin to relate because,

like all of us, they want everyone to know what a great dog they have

and how much they love them.

 

Let’s all do something with our dogs this week-today-heck, right now!

Take them for a walk, give them some play time one-on-one with you,

teach them a trick, take them to an obedience class. It will remind us how

much we love our dogs and appreciate them and the interaction will be a benefit to both of us.

 

What is your relationship to your pets? Our dogs affect our emotions; make us

laugh or cry, they help us live longer, they can affect our relationships with other

humans. Pretty amazing.

Below is a picture of 11 year old Sherman owned and loved by Rosemary George. He survived a traumatic event a few months before this picture was taken. Our dogs can also teach us so much-like it's good to be alive and every day is a gift! 

Let's Play

Childhood summers in Erie meant when my brother, mom, and I finished chores we’d pack up a lunch basket, stuff blankets and towels in my mother’s cherished Chrysler convertible, and head for the beach. We spent many summer afternoons in Lake Erie’s chilly waters, or on its pebbly sands—playing. If we didn’t go to the beach, I’d head out on my bicycle with my friends and go exploring. Often we’d travel far beyond the boundaries my mother so carefully drew for me; into the woods, creeks, and trails of neighboring wilds.

 

When I needed cleaning off, I’d bike to my great Aunt’s house where she’d brew a pot of tea. Late into the afternoon I’d sit at her kitchen table sipping the warm, sweet tea and we’d tell each other stories, mine usually of what out of bounds territory I’d explored that day. She kept my secrets.

 

I didn’t know then that the hours I spent out of doors in unstructured free time, or telling Aunt Marie my adventures were developing critical cognitive skills the psychologists now call “executive function.” Using my imagination in play, (in my early youth I was also a great lover of Lincoln logs) developed my ability to self-regulate, taught me how to control my emotions and behaviors, and how to exert self-control. By being able to manage my feelings and pay attention I became a better learner—all through play, imagine that.

 

Animals have the same capacity for play and reap the same kinds of benefits. When our dogs play, they relax and gain the same abilities to learn and pay attention. If we play with them, we both get the added bonus of building strong bonds. This is an overly simplistic explanation, but when we play with our animals we both release endorphins, and endorphins inhibit the fear and anxiety response. With less fear or anxiety, Patrick can learn more easily.

 

As Patrick relaxes, he is inclined to play; as he plays, he relaxes. What a great feedback loop.  He plays with the other dogs, which is wonderful, but more importantly to my goals, he also plays with me. We play fetch and every time I throw the toy, he brings it back. I praise him and am very happy, and he is happy, and we both smile. I’m also reinforcing his newfound sense of play, and it’s as important as everything else we do. 

Patrick's Journey, June 24

Plateaus and learning "Come"

“Plateaus may appear during the course of learning, but it appears that learning is still going on; performance can plateau but learning continues. It usually occurs when one aspect of a skill is developed to a more advance or complicated phase of that skill. (paraphrased*)”

 

Dog trainers often see plateaus during the course of an eight-week training session, it's especially obvious with the novice or beginner dogs. One of the early manuals I used in obedience classes warned some dogs reached a plateau at five weeks. Plateaus can happen for a number of reasons and understanding why helps get through them.

 

I’ve increased some of the challenges for Patrick and he’s hit a plateau. Since I know he is still learning despite his performance, I have options. I can take a step back and let him succeed at something he already knows, or I can let him work through the new challenge and break it down into smaller components so that he can succeed.

 

For example, coming when called. Patrick’s previous behavior was to approach to a certain point and then sit, but come no further. I accepted that for awhile, but now I’d like to get him to actually come right up to me. A static command to “Come” doesn’t work with him, so I have to try some different things. We play a game on leash where we head in one direction and then I turn and run backwards with a treat while saying “Come.” Patrick follows me and I click (using my clicker) and treat when he is close enough to take the food from my hand. I make it happy and fun and he thinks it’s a game.

 

Outside we use a long line with a slightly different version. Before he default sits, I run backwards and use the food as a lure to get his focus on coming directly to me. As soon as he comes, I praise him and tell him to “Go Play.” We run around a little bit and repeat the same scenario. “Go Play” is a reward in itself, even if Patrick doesn’t actually “play,” the only anticipation is more fun.  

 

It’s a matter of conditioning and positive reinforcement—I will never, ever call Patrick to me for anything he perceives as a negative. Coming to me should always be positive, and not associated with something Patrick doesn’t want to do. (for example, go inside if outside is more fun, get corrected for not coming, go in a crate and then leave him) It takes some creativity to mix it up sometimes so that there are no negative associations. If I have to bring him in and I know he is having fun outdoors, I simply go get him--I don’t put the directive “come” with it. Patrick may have some plateaus this week, but I know he is still learning.

 

*Plateaus quote from The Art and Zen of Learning Golf  by Michael Hebron 

Patrick's Journey, June 16

Sometimes it helps to have a friend. Stacy’s sheltie Kamin came to visit for a long weekend and Patrick is clearly happy to see one of his own. Stacy’s son Ben kneels down in front of Patrick, gently cups his hands around Patrick’s head and give him a squeeze. Perhaps reminded of the two boys in his own home, Patrick accepts this gesture of affection.  I’m curious to watch this little interaction because Patrick often freezes at anything that he perceives as “making him” do something; his body gets stiff and tense.  He clearly enjoys Ben’s attention.

 

By the time Kamin leaves, Patrick is joining us in the TV room, lying near the couch or under the table with the other dogs. You might wonder what the big deal is, but they are signs that he is relaxing, and not reverting to his crate as a safe haven.

 

Patrick has been here two weeks now and we’re making progress. He’s learned to sit and understands, although he sometimes forgets, that he must sit for everything—sit to go outside, sit to come inside, sit to get his dinner, sit for his leash, and sit for just about anything else I can think of. We’ve started going places, too; to a handling class that’s out of doors in a quiet setting. No pressure, no asking him to do anything but sit, and he does well. I’m always watching for clues though, if he is stressed. He won’t take a treat that I bring, and that tells me he is anxious and I shouldn’t push. We just sit and watch the other dogs, go for a little walk, and hang out.

A nearby park is another location we visit, where we go for a walk and then do our sits. Again, he won’t take a treat, so although I know he is enjoying his walk, he still worries.

What is Patrick worried about? I can’t definitively answer that, but I know he won’t stop worrying until he learns to trust I will not ask anything of him that he can’t handle. It’s all part of the compliance and deference I work on at home.

 

We’ve started some training on other things too. He’s learning to “shake” to make a game of me holding his paw. We’re also working on “come.” That’s a difficult one for him, and he compromises by running a little distance and then sitting several feet away from me. I appreciate the effort, but put the long line on to help him understand running and sitting is not part of coming to me.

 

Patrick is here to learn a new way in his life, that when I ask for something, if it is fair and kind, he will comply.

 

Fairness--it would be unfair to ask Patrick to do something that I haven’t taught him or shown him what I want. It would be unfair to force him to do something because of his overriding stress-and it would be counter-productive. But it is fair to ask for something and then help him understand that I will follow through with the expectation that he can do it. So for me there is a constant evaluation of what to insist on and what to let go because he simply isn’t ready for it. It’s a balancing act that there isn’t always a clear answer for; you have to use common sense, and experience helps too. If I feel that he knows what I am asking and I feel he can comply, it is fair to insist he follow through.

                                    

We just started with clicker training, too. Since I can now get Patrick to take food during our behavior modification protocols, every time I give him a treat, I click. He doesn’t know it, but we’ve started the first step in associating the click with food as a reward.

 

Of course we have our frustrating moments. Times I say, “you should know this,” or “you shouldn’t be afraid,” or “you are being silly.” But I go back to what we have succeeded at before the frustration set in, and we start over. Then the next time, in some mysterious way, we are just a little bit further ahead.

Patrick's Journey, June 8

(Iris decided she likes Patrick's crate and he being a gentleman, defers to her.)

I dig into the file cabinet, far in the back, and find what I am looking for, a manila folder titled "Overall's Protocols." I pull out a wrinkled, dog-eared collection of pages and each page lists a set of 26 exercises all beginning with the word "sit." They are a behavior modification protocol designed to teach a dog how to relax. 

Many years ago a Collie named Sully came to me with a myriad of behavior problems. Not knowing where to start, I took him to my friend and vet, Dr. Nancy Kelso, and she introduced me to the work of Dr. Karen Overall, head of the Clinical Behavioral Veterinary department at U. of Pennsylvania. It took effort and commitment, but over time, Sully's "idiopathic fear" as Overall described it, gradually went away. What I learned from Dr. Overall and Sully became the foundation of my understanding and helping dogs with behavior problems. 

 

Now, years later, Patrick is in my office and we are on the 3rd or 4th day of working with the protocols. We're still on page 1, but this is not about obedience, it is about Patrick learning to relax. Our first efforts he avoids eye contact and looks anxiously out the door, and refuses food. I watch for signs.

 

"I guess he's a “C” student" his owner says, and I detect the tone of disappointment. But it's not about how smart, or dumb, Patrick is; I'm not making a judgment. His slowness or hesitancy is about how much stress he is under and anxiety is impeding his learning. 

 

Today Patrick sits, I reward with a tiny piece of chicken, he takes it, and looks at me—more relaxed than I’ve seen him before. It's another milestone; taking food, sitting, relaxing. Once he learns how to really relax, he'll be brilliant. 

 

We have a helper in these tasks, Jimmy, our 17 lb. cat. Jimmy smells chicken and comes running. So I tell Jimmy--and Patrick--to sit. Jimmy sits first, he learned to sit as a kitten, and I reward him with a morsel of chicken. Patrick sits, and gets his reward. Jimmy licks his chops hoping for another session soon. 

Patrick's Journey week one

Patrick has been here nearly a week. 

His primary issue is an overriding anxiety that inhibits him from learning or relaxing. Until I reduce the anxiety we won’t make much progress. I have a confession to make, this has taken me by surprise, the extent of the problem. I underestimated what we were in for, as did Patrick's owner, because at home Patrick is a happy dog. What neither of us realized was how anxious Patrick really is away from his routine and structure.  

Some clues when Patrick-or any dog-is stressed:

Short, fast nervous panting

Standing stiffly, with an overly alert posture

Looking and listening in a hyper sort of way

Not making eye contact, avoiding eye contact

Not taking food treats, even particularly yummy ones

 

Stress makes learning difficult if not impossible. If a dog won’t take a food treat, it makes using food as a reward impossible and makes progress very, very slow. I talk to my friend Michelle and she reminds me of that very point.

“He has to learn how to be food motivated, Marianne," she reminds me.

She suggests cutting back on his regular meal and using something delicious to get him food motivated. A good idea that I will try.

One thing I do know, Patrick hates even the suspicion he’s going to be made to do something. If he anticipates pressure, he tightens his whole body, gets stiff, pants, and looks away in another direction. As a friend once said, once the missile has left the silo, forget it. In other words, once the stress kicks in I have to find a different way, especially taking the pressure off.

 

There are behaviors I do not want to reinforce, like running away or avoiding me when I want to bring him in, so for now Patrick is on a leash or long line. I simply pick it up, ask him to sit, and bring him in.

 

Sitting is a big deal. Sitting is asking for compliance. It is asking the dog to defer to me, and see me in the picture. I suspect he is accustomed to dashing through the door to go in and out, and his owner confirms this, but now Patrick must sit before going in or out. Privileges come by deferring to me. It’s a whole new life for him.

 

We spent a few days with me “showing him how to sit.” Which is silly, Patrick knows how to sit, he just didn’t know to do it with the word. I experiment; I can't lure him into a sit, so I gently tuck his bottom underneath him, or tap behind his knee to buckle his leg so he had to sit, or even a small tug on the leash until he responds. These methods are all called “compulsion” and it's a bit of a confession to say that I tried them, because I want to get away from them as quickly as possible. Patrick is not going to learn how to learn as long as I am doing the sitting for him. 

Compliance

Why is compliance so important, anyway? What compliance is not is bending Patrick to my will. It is simply asking him to defer to me. Although I see moments of a happy Patrick-and a sweet dog-I do not see him deferring to me. I’m simply not in the picture for him. Perhaps his anxiety level is too high, or perhaps he has never learned to defer to humans. Structure is good for dogs, but it’s like giving a kid responsibility, and by succeeding he builds confidence, same thing. 

 

For example, coming out of a crate. One way is to reach in and pull him out. Another way is to open the crate and let him dash out. A third way is to open the crate, ask him to come out, he responds, ask him to sit, he sits, put a leash on, and then tell him, “OK” as a signal he can get up and go. The first way he learns absolutely nothing, although it might save time. The second way he learns he is in control, no deference to humans. The third way he learns to defer to me.

 

It’s the same with going out the door-- first way open door, dog dashes out. Second way, call dog to door, ask dog to sit, dog sits until door is open and you tell him “OK” signaling it’s ok to go out the door. Now dog is deferring to human, can’t go out unless he complies, he is learning that he gets what he wants by complying, and most importantly the human is in the picture.

 

Once Patrick learns to comply, he will stop worrying. Once he starts to take food, he will learn more quickly. Any kind of compulsion, (forcing, making, or pushing too hard) is not teaching him how to learn on his own at the least, or it will shut him down at the worst.

 

So now dinner comes directly from me. In the course of the day, as Patrick complies, he gets part of his dinner—yummy chicken, which he likes. He earns his meals.

 

We had a breakthrough this morning. Patrick’s crate is in the kitchen, the door is open, and he is on a leash. I call him out, in front of the crate, and sit on a chair nearby. I ask him to sit. I’ve decided he must figure out all on his own what I am asking for-no pushing, making, or arranging him into a sit. We wait. One minute, two minutes and then, he sits all on his own. I praise him enthusiastically and give him a piece of chicken. We do this a few times more, and each time he sits it takes a few seconds less than the last. But it is a breakthrough because now Patrick understands that I will wait until he complies, that he must comply, he will be rewarded, and that he can figure it out all on his own. Today Patrick is taking food from me and figuring out that he can sit.  Hooray!

Patrick's journey

It’s difficult to know what goes through another species’ head; even ones we’ve spent our entire lives with. Without a common language, we can only guess where it hurts, if they are tired or hungry, or feeling cranky. There are clues, of course, in body language and behavior, if we are aware of them. The photo of my dog Banner, left, clearly shows a happy, relaxed dog. We can tell from his body language and his expression. 

But there are occasions when something happens and it is only upon deep recollection that we can discover when the problem began. I confess; I consider myself a good observer of dogs and the relationship their owners have with them. I’m an observer at heart. I use this word deliberately, because to me it connotes active watching. While observing I want to “see” beyond the superficial, whether it’s for photography, writing, or dog training.

I’m also the type of person who wants to know why things are the way they are, but sometimes I realize I can never understand, I can only guess. Patrick is here for me to work with. He was fine as a puppy, his owner tells me, but now he is very unhappy outside of his familiar home environment. “I don’t know what happened,” he says, truly mystified. Often I hear that something terrible must have happened, and that is the reason a dog is fearful. It’s not always the case, though, more times than not there are other explanations.

I do know that when dogs reach adolescence things change, like our own species of adolescents. That compliant, sweet child, or dog, is suddenly a problem. Lack of confidence, fear, poor socialization, genetics could all contribute in one degree or another.

Patrick’s “symptoms” are that he is a worrier, he’s unhappy, indicated by stress panting. He was fine as a puppy, I’m told, and I believe it, although I’m willing to bet I would have seen hints of future issues if I’d known Patrick then. Patrick's body language and expression are telling me he is "worried."

I’ll leave the technical explanations to the behaviorists (and provide some footnotes if you want to read more) but here is how I see it. Patrick’s baby brain was taking in, learning, observing, not judging. Adolescence hit, and the adult brain began thinking “good” or “bad,” or even “I’m not sure.” It can be a genetic predisposition, lack of socialization (I’ll talk more about what that means later), or environmental influences. Think of Patrick in a feedback loop—environment, dog, me. Something new or stressful presents itself, dog starts to worry, I miss the cues, so the opportunity to restore confidence is lost. What often happens is that more pressure is put on the dog, so next time it gets worse.

If there is less confidence to start with then that feedback to build up the ego is critical.

It begins with exposure to new places, people, sounds when the baby brain is eager to learn, and goes on through to adulthood. Socialization is not exposure to the same sounds, places, or people. What if your kid only went from the house to the classroom? Not a good thing, I bet you would say. It’s the same with dogs. Socialization is different exposures to different things; many, many different things where the dog can feel safe and secure and build confidence that he/she can handle the stresses of life. It doesn’t matter what breed, age, background; all dogs need tons of socialization to give them the tools to handle life’s challenges.

So Patrick is here to learn new rules and see the world in a different way. For him to be worry free he must have confidence that I will not put him in harm’s way, however he defines that. Join us in his journey. I’ll chronicle our process, our ups and downs, and hopefully we can all learn along the way. Patrick will be my teacher as well as my student.