Better Behaviour

Spaying or Neutering - What's really happening?
This is not the whole picture as health, behavioural health and population control is important when considering spaying and neutering dogs. That said, these large sample studies are showing that early sterilising of dogs can lead to an increase in some forms of aggressive behaviour problems; this research counters commonly held beliefs amongst many professionals.
https://www.psychologytoday.com/…/neute ring-causes-behavior…
... https://www.psychologytoday.com/…/are-t here-behavior-change…
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Classical music reduced the average heart rate of dogs taking part in veterinary training. Although only a small sample size, there was a significant reduction in the average heart rate of dogs exposed to the classical music, suggesting it may be beneficial in aiding relaxation.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/…/arti… /pii/S1558787818300972…

The stress bucket - how full is it for your dog?
Give your dog a break!
https://absolute-dogs.com/…/the-number- one-dog-ownership-my…

Foundation Behaviours - this is a great peice from Ken Ramirez on the sorts of behaviours that you may wish to consider teaching first. At My Dogs Best Friend - NI and Better Behaviour we focus on targeting, stationing, management and husbandry in all of our training and behaviour modification!
https://www.clickertraining.com/foundatio n-behaviors-a-prac…

Interesting study - dogs appear to have difficulty in associating words to objects in a simple associative way during training but have less difficulty in associating words with action responses.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/…/arti… /pii/S1558787818300352…

Dogs Need Together Time and Alone Time, Just Like Us....
https://www.psychologytoday.com/…/dogs- need-together-time-a…

Looking forward to to meeting all of the dedicated owners tomorrow who are attending our Rowdy to Relaxed Class and starting their journey towards a calm and relaxed best friend.
There is still time to join in as we have had a last minute cancellation. Does your dog bark and lunge at other dogs on walks? Are you ready for change - join us as at https://betterbehaviour.co.uk/services/cl asses.html and start your journey tomorrow! #learningwithchoice
Payment options available - call Al on 07989387407

#seekoutscience
https://www.psychologytoday.com/…/scien ce-shows-positive-re…

Fantastic infographic - Behaviour Suppression is NOT Behaviour Modification...

Our latest Rowdy to Relaxed Class finished this Sunday. For the last few weeks we have progressed back to parks and public places and the dogs have been fantastic. We started about 9 weeks ago and with a systematic approach, we ended up with owners and dogs who are much more comfortable and relaxed - really well done to all. #seekoutscience https://betterbehaviour.co.uk

It’s worrying to hear that many puppies are still not receiving adequate socialisation - this is common in many countries. It’s not about play, it’s about habituation to the world!
https://www.companionanimalpsychology.com /…/puppy-socializa…

Chemical castration in Swiss military dogs had no measurable effect on their working performance.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/…/…/abs /pii/S0168159118301382…

This UK based study identified three different areas that affected problematic feeding behaviour in dogs. Specifically, these were feeding dogs together resulting in decrease of aggression, which is an interesting finding. Also feeding dogs treats during owner mealtime increased aggression and providing feeding enrichment decreasing stereotypical behaviour.
https://fall2018.iaabcjournal.org/…/10/ 25/feeding-behaviour/

Does your dog pull on the lead? Are we getting the criteria right when we are teaching them?
https://barks.betterbehaviour.co.uk/…/l oose-lead-walking-a…/

“To work effectively and ethically, an animal trainer or behavior consultant must have a proper understanding of the natural world, each species’ natural behaviors, and what is significant to the individual animal in our care. Misunderstood dominance theory and the punitive, harmful approaches it is used to justify, has no place in modern, evidence-based training and behavior work”
https://m.iaabc.org/about/position-statem ents/dominance/

On the basis of genetic research, generalized anxiety in dogs was associated with a region of canine chromosome 7 that corresponds with a certain region in human chromosome 18.
“Fear is an innate and vital reaction. However, when it becomes excessive and an overriding feature in a dog’s life, it turns into a behavioural problem,”
https://www.technologynetworks.com/…/ge nome-overlap-in-huma…