My name is Laure-Anne and I am an English-speaking expat dog specialist based in the Hague (the Netherlands).
For a detailed bio, click on About me.
What the blog is about
In a nutshell, this blog tries to spread good science about dogs, and relates tales from life in the Netherlands’ dog world.
I am on a mission: spread fact-based and thought-provoking information about dogs. I am relentlessly:
busting apocryphal stories, speculation, fallacies and biased tales; and
promoting responsible dog ownership.
I enjoy delving into technical subjects and re-surfacing with an article that every dog owner can understand. I am hoping to make specialist subjects like diseases vaccination, genetics, more accessible to a broad audience.
So what qualifies me to write about dogs? I have done A LOT OF self-study, but I also have formal qualifications (professional and academic).
What do I write about?
My specialist subjects are:
dog training;
evolution;
ethology; and
canine first aid.
I also write about:
Veterinary care;
Dog sports;
Dog breeds; and
Dogs in society (am a bit of a philosophy nut).
To find the articles
Click on a category such as ‘Dog breeds’ or ‘Dogs in the news’ (list on the top-right corner), or
Scroll down to browse through all articles (latest on top)
Write a comment
I love comments, no matter how short, off-the-mark, or in disagreement they might be.
You can leave a comment on each article by:
clicking on the title for the post you want to read, and
completing the comments form atthe bottom of the article.
Order an article
I can also write for your magazine, blog or website on demand. If you want to order an article on a canine subject of your choice, contact me and I’ll be happy to discuss your needs.
To find out more about my dog writing services, go to my Dog writer page.
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Announcement: science-based, fun-packed and force-free dog training school opens in The Hague
By Laure-Anne Visele, written Mar 2013.
OhMyDog! New dog training school in The Hague
After years of squirreling away the dog training experience (behaviour consults) and qualifications (including O&O), I kept dreaming of starting my own dog training school. Whilst studying for the renowned O&O dog training qualification, I met my match: another university-trained and dog-obsessed young woman with the same dream.
Like me, Nicolle has a specialist university degree (MSc in Ethology), spent years in the rat race whilst attending countless dog training courses and seminars. And then, like me, she left the cushy life behind to follow her true passion: dogs.
It all started with vague dreams, but our planning got more and more concrete, and before we knew it, we’d set ourselves a deadline. After months of planning and preparation, we are proud to announce the opening of OhMyDog!, The Hague’s science-based, fun-packed, force-free training school.
What makes us different
As dog training customers, we started picking up on do’s and don’ts (I’ve been quite open about the don’ts), and came up with our vision. What we want to offer is:
Positive methods, but measurable progress: With OhMyDog! (The Hague), force-free dog training does not mean permissive. We keep an eye on progress and won’t leave you behind if your dog is lagging.
Science-based advice: At OhMyDog!, dog training advice is founded on solid fact, not docu-tainment.
Minimum between-turn waiting: We restrict our class sizes to 6 participants.
Excellent customer service: Organised, transparent, responsive, and courteous
Serving local expats: Courses in Dutch AND in English
Fun: We make use of real-life situations and props and make sure that our exercises are dynamic and variable.
We open our doors on April 8, and our lessons will start every Monday night in Scheveningen. We shall start with basic obedience (for adults) and puppy classes.
Come check us out at OhMyDog! Dog Training The Hague and see for yourselves.
Your comments
What is your experience with your local training schools? Any do’s and don’ts? Are you a dog trainer and you’ve founded your own school? What were the pitfalls and successes? Share, share, share.
SUMMARY: Pocket-sized booklet explaining the rehabilitation steps for dogs that are aggressive to other dogs when on-leash.
AUDIENCE If you’re an owner or trainer interested in on-leash reactivity, it’s definitely worth a read, and it will yield non-negligible results if you follow it to the letter. But please do not expect it to resolve the problem fully without further work and specialist help. I see this book as a valuable explanatory tool, rather than a self-sufficient treatment protocol.
REVIEW
Both authors have impressive credentials: they are both clinical behaviourist diplomates AND zoology doctorates. They bring together common-sense and academia, an extremely rare commodity in the world of dog publishing.
Feisty Fido talks of a problem with epidemic proportions: reactivity to other dogs when on the leash.
Gradually re-introduce your dog to the stimulus (another dog)
Distract your dog from the stimulus
Increase your voice control over your dog even in the presence of the stimulus
Associate the stimulus with a pleasant outcome, effectively ‘re-wiring’ the unpleasant feeling previously triggered the presence of another dog.
An important side note: The authors appear to be the first to recommend the “where’s the dog” technique: rewarding your dog for looking at the other dog, somewhat of a paradigm shift in the community where, hitherto, we would train the dog to look at the owner. This subtle change of approach makes their techniques that much powerful.
Given the authors’ credentials, it is little wonder that the book promotes non-invasive and evidence-based methods. Thus fear not: no paranoid, dogmatic, dominance-based advice from our two good ladies.
As ever with dog-dog reactivity, the demands of the programme are somewhat unrealistic, and the prognosis is often guarded. Still, reading the book will help you open the bonnet of a desensitization programme, and will deliver sizable improvements.
As often with these highly specialized booklets, I would sooner place it in the hands of a budding specialist trainer than those of a dog owner. My concern is that leash reactivity is best handled by a specialist, as a botched job might achieve the opposite effect.
Your comments
Did you read this book? What did you think? Would you recommend it? Have you read a similar one that you’d recommend to Canis bonus readers?
Science popularisation article about fear aggression
By Laure-Anne Visele, written Jan 2013.
Dog desensitization vs. exorcism
Does Rover — normally an angel — turn into the devil incarnate at the mere sight of a jogger (or another dog)? Perhaps a little exorcism is in order. Either that, or… a spot of “Systematic Desensitization and Counter-Conditioning” (aka “D&C”).
D&C is THE ritual for fear-aggressive dogs. It delivers dramatic results (at least as dramatic as the cute Catholic trick), AND it’s less messy. What’s not to love?
If you’re interested in a little background, you’ve come to the right place. If you’re not that much into theory, jump ahead to the D&C programme.
Why? Either demonic possession or…
When wondering why a dog does anything, there are four ways to skin the cat: the four questions of ethology.
1. What function does it serve?
99% of dog aggression really is ‘defensive threatening’ — a way to keep distance with something scary.
2. What controls it?
Fear/anxiety and reward/punishment, can combine into a nasty motivational cocktail:
First time: Rover feels a little fear.
Next time: Rover anticipates the fear (i.e. feels anxiety) around joggers. The anxiety intensifies the fear when the jogger approaches. Rover reacts threateningly, which is rewarded by the jogger keeping his distance.
Next time: Increasingly fearful/anxious Rover behaves increasingly excessively. So much so that you need to punish him (sometimes preemptively) each time a jogger comes near.
So, now joggers (or other dogs, or whatever) = anxiety, fear AND punishment for Rover. Oh, and he’s learnt that lunging worked.
Go through the circle enough times, and it could escalate into a lawsuit and a broken heart. Either that, or you decide to only walk Rover at 2am, cursing the day you got a dog. Time to break that vicious cycle, no?
3. How did it start?
I have a shelter dog, so I also imagine tales of past abuse to explain his present behaviour. But, truth be told, most times, fear is just a question of:
Temperament: He’s just a bit of a wuss; and/or
Under-habituation: He didn’t see enough joggers as a pup; and/or
Trauma (sober version): He may just have been unpleasantly startled by a jogger at a sensitive age; and/or
Trauma (Dickensian version): Evil, tall, mean, alcoholic men (in tracksuits and jogging shoes) used to beat him up when he lived on the streets to try to make a fur coat out of him.
4. What is the evolutionary advantage of doing it?
Many species (ourselves included) suffer from a fear bias when facing something unfamiliar. It makes sense from an evolutionary perspective: false positives are inconvenient, false negatives are lethal. Guess who’ll live to tell the tale: Rambo or Dilbert?
How does D&C work?
Get a hold of about 1 pint of holy water. Make sure it’s the real stuff, mind, not tap water. Then sprinkle … OK, OK, just yanking your chain.
D&C, as my astute readers will no doubt have gathered, is a two-fold principle involving (drum-roll)…
1/ Counter-conditioning
Every time the unfamiliar thing crops up, we reward the dog.
Pictures speak louder than words (particularly ones with ice cream): replace the kid with a dog, the snake with a jogger, and the ice cream with a treat (or stick to the ice cream, what do I know).
2/ Systematic Desensitization
Starting at a low level, we gradually re-expose the dog to whatever used to scare the Bejeesus out of him. Only this time we teach him that the stimulus is irrelevant/neutral/routine/boring/you get the gist: NOT scary.
When I say that we start at a ‘low level’, am not kidding around here. The central idea is to NOT breach the dog’s comfort zone. Our goal? (Gradually) reduce his personal space, not invade it.
Prognosis
Getting solid improvements can take a few days to… a lifetime, depending on how profound the aversion got, and how many things the dog fears.
Risk assessment needs to weigh in too. Fear-reactive chihuahua puppies are annoying, but adult-sized Labradors? And what if a disabled, very young or elderly person could be affected?
What contributes to sending Rover ‘over-threshold’? Make a list of all the elements (dimensions) that make him worse for each of his aversions.
e.g. Dimension list for jogger aversion
Distance: Dog gets vigilant around 7 meters, lunges around 3 meters from jogger.
Gender: Worse with men
Jogger position: Worse when jogger facing dog
Daytime: Worse at night
Path width: Much worse on narrow paths
Path shape: Much better with sinewy path. Worse with straight paths
etc.
e.g. Dimension list for aversion to other dogs
Size: Worse with large dog
Boisterousness: Worse with ranbunctious dogs
Distance: Starts freezing within 15 meters. Snarls and lunges within 5 meters.
Gender: Better with neutered than entire dogs
etc.
A well-documented starting point allows you to break down the problem into more easily managed components, and it gives the bottom bar against which to assess progress.
Step 2: Look ahead
Picture what you are hoping to achieve in tangible terms: e.g.
Rover may never tolerate being hugged by a jogger, but we could aim for sitting relaxed when the jogger runs past two meters away.
He may never like on-leash hello’s, but we could aim for calmly passing by other on-leash dogs on the same pavement.
Write these goals down somewhere: it will encourage you when you’re hitting a slow corner, and it will give you a top bar against which to assess progress.
Step 3: Wave that Dumbo feather
Pick a any distinctive item of clothing (say a hat), and wear this during each session, and only for these sessions. The hat is your contract: a pledge that nothing scary can happen as long as you’rewearing it. The dog will come to see the hat as a Dumbo feather: a magic safety clue.
Step 4: Climb up
Pick a dimension to tackle –say, distance– and work your way up for that dimension (e.g. from 12 to 2 meters).
Keep all other dimensions at their easiest level — e.g. only women joggers; wide, sinewy paths; during daytime; etc.
First session: as soon as the dog notices the (woman) jogger at a distance:
1/ Say ‘look at that” (he looks at the jogger); and
2/ Give him a treat and retreat off the path (caaaaaalmly, no rush)
Repeat this a few times, each time allowing the jogger to get closer before retreating (always taking the dog away before he gets intense). If you see a man-jogger, don’t draw your dog’s attention to him. Just calmly retreat off the path and distract him. We’ll get to men later.
When reducing the distance, you’ll be surfing that fine line between close enough that the dog notices, but not so close that he gets stressed out. It’s called ‘keeping the dog sub-threshold’. Push it too hard and you’ll only reinforce the aversion.
Once you’ve reached a nice distance with women joggers, start over from the longest distance (and in day-time; wide/sinewy paths; etc.) with men-joggers. Then work your way up all other dimensions (e.g. working in slightly straighter/narrower paths).
If you want your dog to REALLY like joggers, you could ask them to stop next to you, look at the dog, toss treats (caaalmly) and move on. After a few tries, increase the length of time the jogger stays around. One caveat: the jogger may not pet the dog!
Step 5: Dealing with the unpredictable…
A nasty encounter could set you back weeks, if not permanently, so:
Train in a wooded area so you can take the dog off the path and out of sight easily.
Train where only leashed dogs are allowed.
Do not use the hat, if you’re at all unsure.
Tie a yellow ribbon to your dog’s leash. It signals that your dog needs space.
Step 6: Keeping up good habits
After a few short sessions several times a day, you should start seeing a change within a couple of weeks. Once you’ve reached your ultimate goal (likely a few more weeks), start thinning out the treats (gradually) from once per jogger to only for the occasional jogger. Do some refresh sessions if things are regressing.
To fade away the training hat, just work your way up the hierarchies again — this time without the hat.
Getting extra help
If you’re not getting anywhere, don’t let it escalate. Contact a specialist trainer instead.
Actions speak louder than words
Many people ask me: “How do you make sure that you’re not rewarding the lunging?” I think this video will answer that. Watch this guy being counter-conditioned from his previous fear of being blown in the face.
And here’s another demo.
Your comments
I always love to hear from you, Mr./Mrs. Reader. If you have a comment, I would welcome your insights/input/experience. Particularly if:
Your dog has gone through D&C protocol. How did it work out? Were the results dramatic? What did you use it for?
What other treatments had you used before being advised D&C?
Have you been using D&C in conjunction with medication?
SUMMARY: Pocket-sized booklet teaching puppy owners how to avoid and deal with common puppy problems using modern methods.
REVIEW
This book is insanely useful and… insanely small. Whatever her secret is to compact so much good stuff in so little space, I want in. She covers all the crucial areas in a breezy, uncomplicated style that hits the spot again and again.
Given the date of edition (2002), many authors were still obsessed by punishment-based methods and the pack theory, but… Not so Dee Woodcock.
She divides the booklet in handy little sections:
Management: Crate training, house training, setting boundaries, etc.
Training: Methods to teach the crucial cues (sit, come back, etc.) with AND without clicker.
Body language: Dee Woodcock also shares dog trainers’ secrets on the subtle body language signs that will have you read your dog like no one else in no time. Mastering body language is an invaluable tool for reading budding signs long before they develop into full-blown problems, and the author does a great job at covering the subject in just a few lines.
Addressing typical puppy problems: Humane and effective tips on dealing with typical complaints like jumping up, play biting, begging, separation intolerance, stealing, chewing, etc.
My one gripe: I wish the pictures were illustrating the local text, rather than all condensed in the central section.
With its spotless contents and affordable price, it should be a standard handout for every puppy class client. Mind you, I shouldn’t blow its trumpet too much because, frankly, if the word spread, specialist trainers and behaviourists may soon be out of work…
Your comments
Did you read this book? What did you think? Would you recommend it? Have you read a similar one that you’d recommend to Canis bonus readers?
Interview with dog trainer and radio personality Nando Brown
By Laure-Anne Visele, written Dec 2012.
About Nando Brown
Nando is a rather dashing (sorry, Donna) muscles-a-rippin’, arms-a-tattoin’ ex-Royal Marine on a crusade for evidence-based dog training.
From his sunny retreat in Spain’s Costa del Sol, Nando and his other half, Donna Saunders (sorry, ladies), run a booming dog business promoting the humane treatment of dogs.
Nando also hosts In the dog house, iTalk FM’s unmissable pet show, when he grills industry giants (e.g. Nicole Wilde) and microbes (e.g. myself) alike.
A dog business in Spain
L-A: Hey Nando. Nice to turn the tables and grill you this time! Let’s start with the business. Can you tell me a little about “In The Dog House“?
Nando: Sure. Donna and I provide four types of services:
Pet Lodge (kennels and a cattery);
Grooming salon (Donna is a qualified groomer);
One-to-one behaviour consults; and
Dog training classes (scattered over the Costa del Sol).
Donna does the grooming and the Pet Lodge, I focus on one-to-one training, and our instructor leads most group classes.
L-A: Is it more boring-old-routine or a-surprise-a-day?
Nando: Oh every day is new. I could be…
training at the Centre; or
providing stimulation for the dogs staying with us, or
on behaviour consultations, or
running training classes, or
running a puppy party at the local vet’s, etc.
We’ve been hammered and hammered and hammered… Me and Donna have just taken our first day off in… TWO years.
L-A: About Donna, I guess I don’t need to ask but… Is she OK with your dog obsession?
Nando: I’d say she’s 75% as much of a dog nut as I am!
L-A: There’s ‘dog nut’ and ‘dog nut’. How bad is the Brown – Saunders home? What’s the latest count?
Donna, Nando and the little family
Nando: [laughs] We have… seven (of our own) dogs:
1 staffie
1 pitbull
1 dobermann
3 labradoodles, and…
1 sausage dog, Pablo. [laughs] He’s a good lad!
They’re cracking dogs. I did say to myself before we left: “We’re not getting any more dogs.”
L-A: Famous last words, hey?
Nando: It was inevitable. There are so many abandoned dogs here…
Animal abuse
L-A: So how bad is the welfare problem in the region?
Nando: The dominance thing was still all over when we got here: shock and prong collars, etc.
But also, a lot of dogs are outside alone all day. They’re not seen as pets. They’re just things that bark at passersby. A dog living inside with his family is already a step forward for me.
L-A: Have you learnt to keep your mouth shut, or do you still get in trouble a lot?
Nando: If I see an animal being –what I would call abused or mishandled– I say something. There’s no two ways about it.
But sadly, I am getting desensitized to the strays. It was horrendous to start with, but it’s such commonplace that if I stopped for every stray, I wouldn’t ever get off the mountain. That’s how overwhelming the problem is.
I used to stop and feed them and give them water – which is now illegal in Spain – and take them to rescue centres. But the Centres are so packed that the dogs can kill each other there. So it can be more cruel to take them there if they’re doing OK in the wild. It’s like putting them in prison.
Nando: My job title is ‘Head Trainer’. I do behaviour work because the alternative here is the dominance guys.
But I also don’t think you should do training without knowing the minimum about behaviour, and vice and versa.
So, to go back to your question, I don’t call myself a behaviourist. That means ‘clinical behaviourist’ to me, and I don’t have a degree in it. I haven’t got the the grey matter for a life at University.
I think that if the dog is progressing, the client is happy and we’re doing it in an ethical manner, we need to keep doing what we’re doing. Back in the UK, where there were lots of behaviourists, I could refer on cases that felt too much. But I don’t have that back-up here. The closest person I can refer to is… eight hours away.
L-A: And if you get stuck?
Nando: I haven’t so far, touch wood. I have had long-winded cases, but they are moving forward. Back in the UK, I didn’t need the confidence to keep working on difficult cases, but now I do.
L-A: Oh, with these groups, you can bend the ear of very impressive people. The Pet Professional Guild is a tightly vetted, closed-membership groups and they take responsible practice seriously, like you do.
L-A: Do you have a role model? Mine’s Jean Donaldson. She grasps the science and spreads the word like no one else.
Nando: I worship the ground she walks on! And she’s very approachable too. Her and Cesar Millan…
L-A: [Gasp]
Nando: Only joking. But Jean Donaldson is really down to earth. She is on the back of my choke chain video! I can’t believe she said yes. She’s definitely my number one.
Keeping on top of progress
L-A: How do you keep up with the huge body of knowledge on dog training and behaviour?
Nando: The field is constantly moving forward, isn’t it?
At one of the first places I worked, the trainers thought they’d got there, and they stopped learning. That held them back. Whereas I am a course-aholic.
I have had amazing ones, and horrendous ones. Some courses were so bad I left in a blazing row. I went to this one about working trials that was just brutal. There was this poor Malinois, who didn’t have a clue what we wanted from him, and the instructor just slapped a shock collar on him!
Radio show
L-A: So, how did you get the radio show off the ground?
Nando: It was a bit of a fluke. I was on a one-to-one with a customer, and this lady walks by and says: “The dog is picking it up, but you’re not saying anything”. (I was using a clicker) “That’s interesting! Would you come and talk about this on the radio”?
So I did it and it went really smoothly. As I walked out, the station’s boss said: “I don’t even have dogs and I found the interview fascinating! Would you come onto my show?”. So I did that too, and it also went well. After that one, the boss just said: “We want a pet show, and we want you to host it“. I loved (and still love) it.
With the show, I get to talk to people I look up to about stuff I find fascinating. It’s a great opportunity. I’ll never look back.
It started with a ‘demon incarnate’ of a dog
L-A: How long have you been working with dogs?
Nando: It’s only been about 8-9 years. I’m still just a baby.
But it’s the one thing that has gripped me fully, 100%. I joined the Royal Marines after I left school, and when that didn’t turn out as I was hoping, I didn’t really know where I was going with my life.
I loved dogs, so I got one then. The whole ordeal with that dog is what got me where I am now. I honestly don’t know where I’d be without dogs today.
L-A: I love the ‘ha haaa’ moment when we realize we want to work with dogs.
We all had a career laid out, and every reason to stick it out, but it just didn’t fit. In the end, we’re drawn to it. One way or another, we get there.
So, tell me about the dog?
Nando: He was my second dog. My previous one had been a perfect, happy-go-lucky dog. Of course, she didn’t teach me as much. But my second dog… That was another story. He was a Cane Corso.
It turns out his problem was… me. I made every mistake in the book. I bought…
… the wrong breed
… from the wrong breeder –looking back, she was a disgrace
… and the wrong puppy –I picked the shy one, thinking “I’ll get the quiet one in the corner”. Of course, he was not so much “quiet” as terrified.
Around a year old, he started getting grumpy with other dogs, then with people. The first trainer I contacted gave me a counter-conditioning and de-sensitisation protocol. I didn’t really understand the process, but they just vanished. I threw questions at them by mail, by phone,… But I never heard back.
All the while, my dog’s life was getting more and more stressful. It was breaking me in half, because I loved this dog, but he was demon-possessed when we went out the front door.
After three months of silence from that first trainer, I’d had it. I got in touch with a TV trainer. I thought: “They’re on TV, they must be the best“. And that’s how I ‘went to the dark side’ and turned my back on clicker training. They told me to use choke chains, hang him off his feet… They said that he was a ‘dominant’, that he needed a ‘rank-reduction programme’ so I could be the ‘alpha’.
To a young male, dominance stuff is personal. I was furious… I loved this dog. I had given him warmth and shelter, food and water, and all the love in the world. And yet he was going to take the piss out of me by trying to be the ‘pack leader’.
So I became harder and harder on him… It wasn’t until I learned about body language and learning theory, that I understood that he wasn’t so much pack leader as dead scared. That’s when I started getting results.
But the learning process of crossing back over from dominance training was at the expense of my dog’s life. Due to bad breeding, he died very young.
L-A: Crossing over means changing your mind in light of new facts. There’s no greater virtue than intellectual honesty to me, especially when you need to get away from the seductive concept of ‘pack theory‘ to get there.
Nando: My moment was when I realized that I’d massively let that dog down. I swore I’d never do it again.
L-A: It breaks my heart to hear the guilt from so many people. It was avoidable had the trainers got themselves educated. We live in an insane world where you, the client, feel guilty because you trusted the expert.
Thankfully, you ran away with it, and you made it into something great.
Nando: Having a shaved head and tattoos, people assumed I’d beaten the dog into being like this. You know the tune: “There’s no such thing as a bad dog, only bad owners”.
Looking back, I was misunderstood completely, as was the poor dog.
So it was a learning experience. Now, I am there for people, I support them, I sympathize. Having an aggressive dog is horrendous.
L-A: The first thing I do when people talk through their dog’s problems is to talk that guilt away. I love to see that weight lift right off their shoulders. You see that relief: “Finally, someone is not judging me.” And they open up and tell you the full story, even the stuff they’re potentially ashamed of, because they know you have their back.
Then I gave training classes
L-A: So when did you go pro?
Nando: I had been working at a couple of different clubs and then a London Council hired me through the Woodgreen Animal Shelter to run a free ‘status dog’ class [as staffies and pit bulls are called in the UK] with young fellows whose dogs were getting out of control.
Guys that were going through exactly what I went through. Sure, they wanted the dog for the image. It’s not necessarily acceptable, but when the dog starts kicking off, most of these guys don’t want the dog out of control.
Some of these guys worked really hard and did a great job of training. They listened to me because I had tattoos and a bald head. If you’d put a young woman there, it wouldn’t have happened. But it’s also this: I got where they were coming from in the first place.
L-A: So you’re saying: “OK, am here. Am listening.” And then they know: “You get me”.
Nando: Yes, it’s definitely about listening to the people, not just the dogs.
A man found his calling
L-A: Any regrets about your career choice?
Nando: I am run off my feet, but it’s such fun that it’s not even work. I get to stand here, talking about the things I love. And, being a male, I get to talk about myself. How much of an ego boost is that?
So, I’ll keep going as long as I’m enjoying my life. I’m a very lucky guy.
SUMMARY: Dog Sense is a giant research literature survey, written in layman’s terms, about dogs’ behaviour through: evolution, domestication, cognitive abilities, emotions, genetics, and training methods.
REVIEW
It was tough selecting a readership stamp, as:
Owner: It’s a long read, but in layman’s term. It will help you shed the clinging few old wife’s tales and let you look at your dog for what he is.
Professional: It’s fast becoming the bible of science-based trainers.
Academic: It’s bursting with ideas for cognitive ethologists, comparative psychologists, and clinical behaviourists.
In terms of scope, Dog Sense (aka In Defence of Dogs) combines the grounds of two pop science giants –Culture Clash (dog training and learning) and Inside of a Dog (dogs’ senses and cognitive abilities)– in one volume.
Dog Sense takes you through what we know and what we don’t know about (among other things):
1/ Dogs’ emotions: covering jealously (THANK YOU, finally someone is covering this in pop science) and shame. It takes a very interesting twist on love –I expected to be admonished for clinging to the certainty that my dog saw me as more than a meal-ticket, but nope.
2/ Dog’s evolutionary history: discussing the rise of the canid family, and the potential details of speciation from wolves, including an interesting twist on the Coppingers’ theory. Another THANK YOU for being the only other author I’ve read (with Linda Case) who explicitly mentions that the domestic dog and the gray wolf share a common ancestor: the dog does not directly descend from today’s grey wolf.
3/ Breeds: THANK YOU also, for making the oft-understated point that working strains of pedigree dogs are not the magic answer to all welfare problems associated with purebred dogs. Granted, they are not primarily selected for their appearance (a la showring), but for extreme behaviours, making them unsuitable as pets.
4/ And a few other chapters full of similar gems on dog training, learning, intelligence, socialisation, etc.
True to form, I had to find something negative to say about it. Well, two things:
1/ Breadth and depth… Where Jean Donaldson summarizes, John Bradshaw… analyzes. The discussion and analysis in certain chapters stretched too long and dug too deep for the layman.
2/ Countless paragraphs started with ‘Scientists say that…’, implying a consensus in the scientific community. My objection is: he does so even on topics that are far from clear-cut like… dominance. In his 2009 opinion piece (Dominance in domestic dogs: useful construct or bad habit?), he did a better job at presenting the inconvenient literature too. The book is now wide open to accusations of intellectual dishonesty. Brevity and oversimplification are inevitable in pop science, but even a little quantifier like ‘Most’ in front of ‘scientists’ would have gelled with me more.
Every dog book boils down to a simple question for me: “Would the world be a better place if every dog owner had read this book?” With Dog Sense, my answer is: Yes, yes, a million times yes.
Your comments
I’d be curious to hear what you thought of this book. Did you have the same objections? What did you think about the chapters on dominance, domestication, and emotions? Did something else strike you with this book? Will you be recommending it to your clients?
SUMMARY: Overview of the standards and techniques of behaviour measurement in research.
CONTENTS
Overview of the behaviour sciences
Pre-study decisions
Sampling and recording methods (e.g. ad libitum, one-zero, etc.)
Testing measure reliability and validity
Assessing research design
Statistical analysis
Specific aspects (e.g. bout length, sequences, dyadic exchanges, etc.)
Interpreting and presenting findings
REVIEW
A must-have if you are contemplating a scientific career on dog behaviour. Otherwise, leave it well alone: the target audience is firmly academic.
If you’re studying ethology, it’s likely a compulsory read for your college –and rightly so. What the book lacks in depth (it’s just 170 pages), it makes up in breadth: taking you through a wide sweep at all essential topics for measuring behaviour.
If you’re past your first year in Psych/Ethology, it will serve as a wonderful, concise, refresher of the fundamentals. If you’re new to the field, it’ll give you the entry point that you need to get your feet wet without drowning.
A couple of paragraphs gave me the clearest explanations I’d ever read: e.g. four questions of ethology, sampling vs. recording methods, the interrelated behaviour sciences, etc. And the list of annotated references offers a great tool if you want to dig deeper.
I do have an ax to grind though: some statistics chapters were soooo superficial that they barely covered the conceptual level. The chapter on Findings presentation took it even further, to the meager agenda that was covered seemed to have been picked haphazardly. As this chapter isn’t core to that what the book purports to do, I would have done away with that chapter altogether, to make room for more details in other sections.
Verdict time: I love that it is succinct, I hate that it is succinct… A classic all the same.
Your comments
I’d be curious to hear what you thought of this book. Let me know what you think. Have you read a similar one and how do they compare in breadth/depth/consistency?
Science popularisation article about the four questions of ethology
By Laure-Anne Visele, written Dec 2012.
Why does my dog DO that?
Rover lunged at Uncle Fred again. WHY-OH-WHY?
You asked the vet, read the books, told your trainer, and… they all tackled it from a different angle. Result? You’re still confused, Rover’s still barking.
So ‘Why is why such a tough question?’…
Because it rolls four questions into one.
We owe the big four to Nico Tinbergen: ethology co-daddy, Nobel prize co-winner and all-round clever guy.
Question 1: Function
The idea
Put on your –rather large– Skinner glasses and ask: what reinforces his behaviour each time?
The basic answer here is: Rover is barking to increase the distance between him and Uncle Fred.
Beware of two logical traps
1/ Teleology: Rover is not consciously pursuing a goal. We’re talking outcome, not purpose.
2/ Speculation: Is speculation fun? You bet. Does it make it fact? Nope. Promise me, no more:
“Rover was trying to save the baby”,
“Rover wanted to show Fred who’s boss”,
“Rover must have been abused in his former home” …
Relevance to Rover’s barking
Now we know what Rover wants, we can teach him to get it in a more appropriate way.
Question 2: Control
The idea
Here, we look at Rover like an input-output box churning out behaviour.
a. Contingency statement
To a behaviouralists (a special type of behaviourist), answering ‘why’ means breaking the events down into is the ‘ABC chain’:
Antecedent: What happened JUST before the behaviour started “Uncle Fred stands in the doorway two meters away from Rover”
(Motivating operations): i.e. context.
“It only happens at home”
“It only happens when Rover is on-leash”
etc.
Behaviour : “Rover barks and lunges”. And precisely:
How high-pitched?
Is he cowering away?
etc.
Consequence: We looked at consequence under the heading ‘Function’
b. Physiology
In Rover’s case, we’ll look for clues of the underlying neurological/hormonal processes of the fight/flight/freeze/f*** response.
Relevance to Rover’s barking
The contingency statement focuses the training plan (e.g. what specific stimuli we’ll desensitize Rover to).
The physiological cues help us determine his underlying emotional state (e.g. fear, anger, etc.), predict how long each episode is likely to be, and quantify progress.
Question 3: Ontogeny
Did something happen before the problems crept in?
“We had just moved house”
“He was 18 months old” — he could be entering social maturity.
“Something happened when he was 9 weeks old” — bang in the middle of the sensitive period
“I had just started working again”
etc. etc. etc.
Relevance to Rover’s barking
It helps us understand what tilted the dog over the edge, so we can design an appropriate management plan.
Question 4: Phylogeny
The dog’s taxonomical tree
Class: Mammalia
Order: Carnivora
Family: Canidae
Genus: Canis
Species: familiaris
Breed: German Shepherd, Labrador Retriever, etc.
The basic idea
We compare Rover’s barking to what his relatives do [e.g. other mammals, other canids, other labradors...]. Do they do it too? What is the adaptive significance of the behaviour for them (how does it increase their chance of survival)?
Looking at breeds
When assessing the ‘typical’ behaviour of a breed, beware:
Don’t be over-optimistic: Breed descriptions can be euphemistic: proud = inflexible; will-to-please = stimulation-addict; etc.
Don’t be over-pessimistic: The average German Shepherd is more likely to be wary of strangers. But your German Shepherd may be on the weak side of the GSD range.
Relevance to Rover’s barking
Now we understand the ‘normal’ behaviour (i.e. breed-typical, species-typical, etc.), and its evolutionary origin, we can better assess how much Rover is likely to be able to change, and how much we’ll need to adapt his environment.
But my dog trainer said…
Behaviour consultants (consciously or not) build a training plan on the four questions. That’s why we start every project by looking at the dog’s history with a fine-toothed comb. Sure, it’s faster to blame it on dominance, but…
Bibliography
Alcock (2009) Animal behavior: An evolutionary approach
Davies, Krebs and West (2012) An introduction to Behavioural Ecology
Martin and Bateson P. (2007) Measuring Behaviour – an introductory guide
Interview with dog photographer, Fenne
By Laure-Anne Visele, written Nov 2012.
Behind the scenes with pet pros
This article is part of a series of chats with dog professionals. When their story is too fascinating to pass, I grab pen and paper and we chat about their lives, their jobs, their aspirations.
In each interview, I let you peek beyond the business card, and we reveal what it is really like to be vet, a lecturer, a lobbyist…
Fenne and one of the assistance dogs she has fostered
Fenne Kustermans is a university-trained pet photographer. She lives in Antwerp (Belgium) with her partner, Joeri, and three dogs.
Fenne has many passions, but her two most transparent ones are: light and dogs. What got me in her pictures was not just the technical quality (out of this world), but the life that is bursting out of them. Visit her galleries, and you’ll be transported from one magic shot to the other.
So, like so many of us educated women with a passion for dogs, she swapped catwalks and champagne for Frolicks and muddy shoes.
Here comes the story of Fenne’s career with her hairy, funny, dopey friends.
Career path
L-A: Your pictures have it all: composition, capture, colour. So: natural born talent, or a hard-working diligence?
Fenne: I learnt the technical side of things when I did my BA in Photography. It’s funny, my fellow students dreamed of making it into the fashion world, but my heart was already into dogs…
Anyway, so I learnt a lot at college, but i think it’s also in me: I see pictures everywhere. I notice details that people just walk right past. I am addicted to light.
Also, with photography, you never really finish learning. I am constantly exploring, trying out new things.
—
L-A: So you experiment a lot?
Fenne: Definitely a lot more since digital photography! Now, I’ll click even if the light isn’t perfect, and I get instant feedback.
Playing around with the depth of field
I also like to experiment with concepts. But I generally use my own dogs for that, as I need a model that is used to the studio and whom I know inside out.
—
L-A: With your curiosity and drive, you must be a constant student, no?
Fenne: Definitely. Right now, I am combining work with a full-time Graphic Design and Illustration degree. It’s tough scheduling, but I had to do it. It’s like my brain is breathing again.
—
L-A: Among all the beautiful shots you’ve taken, do you have a favorite picture? Which one are you most proud of?
Fenne: I couldn’t single one out. I guess I am happiest with my work when I have managed to capture a little bit of the dog’s story. I try to catch the small moments: the typical habit, the familiar look, the funny pose…
—
L-A: Have you been published in print?
Fenne: I get media assignment once in a while: magazines, a book, a commercial, a TV television show … But most of my work is for regular families.
Fenne's picture on the front page
I also take promotional photos for pet businesses, like this Mexican Hairless one for a dog groomer.
—
L-A: What’s your next career move?
Fenne: I don’t plan that far ahead anymore. I had this hip problem a while back, and I had to quit my job. It’s made me realize that life is too short to plan everything, and to postpone your dreams. So I follow every path that calls me –like the dogs, these studies– and see where it leads me. It’s a constant evolution, and you can see that in my work.
I like that I am not tied down to just one thing. There are so many things I want to do: like seeing the world… So I’m going to finish my studies, and then we’ll see.
The tech stuff – skip if you’re not a photographer
Fenne: I am not a die-hard fan of a particular brand. Nikon was cheaper when I was studying, so that’s the one I got, and I stuck with it. I have the D300 as my main camera, and the D7000 as backup.
—
L-A: How do you deal with less-than-ideal background or light conditions? Do you spend hours post-editing in Photoshop?
Fenne: I can make tricky backgrounds work for me. They don’t have to be a problem. Given a choice, of course, I’d pick the seaside: the light is amazing there, especially in the Autumn.
Clean background: a seaside shoot
But most people call me in the Spring –when the light is harsher. But even then, there are these great moments for light, like early in the morning.
So really, the tricky situation is when the light is harsh and scattered –a bright day in the woods or in a shaded garden.
—
L-A: What post-editing software do you use?
Fenne: Mainly Lightroom, and a bit of Photoshop when I feel creative. I like to make collages and that sort of thing. [You can see Fenne's design work on Fennek.be].
—
L-A: What sort of backdrop do you have in your studio?
Fenne: I have a paper one. Dogs are tough on it (those scratch marks), but the colour range is amazing.
—
L-A: Do you shoot in raw?
Fenne: It might sound blasphemous, but I don’t. I don’t do that much post-editting, so I don’t feel the need. I make the decisions about light when I shoot, not really after the facts.
—
L-A: Any tricks on how to convince the dogs to strike the pose?
Fenne: It’s mainly a question of patience. One time, I really wanted to catch these puppies as they lay sleeping, so we cuddled and cuddled and cuddled them until they fell asleep.
Some breeds are so eager to get into position, though. Especially Border Collies (and other sheepdogs). They make composition a breeze.
Strike the pose: sheepdogs are the best
The average dog is not so responsive. I have to pick up on the way they move, the way they think — and wait for a moment that captures their personality — rather than prompt them into position.
—
L-A: Do you have a favourite prop?
Fenne: I ask people to bring their own things, but some of them are coy about it. On the other hand, some people bring half their house. It’s really funny.
But my friends know I like incongruous old objects, so they turn up with an old chair, phone, suitcase… My favorite is this old armchair.
A day in the life
L-A: So you love dogs, that really shows. Do you have your own?
Fenne: I have two of my own (hunting breeds), and one foster one. The foster (a golden retriever) is a future assistance dog. It’s the second time I do this. I prepare them (from 8 weeks to 18 months) to start the assistance dog training for wheelchair-bound or epileptic people.
My previous one just got its permanent owner. Handing her over was a tough, but beautiful moment. I saw her back recently. She recognized me instantly, but I had to take a step back. I was distracting her from her work.
—
L-A: Pets bring their share of heavy emotions, hey. I sometimes get asked to photograph old pets in their last days. Do you get a lot of these ‘last chance’ assignments?
Fenne: I do get these requests once in a while. Then it’s especially important to give the owners the pictures they want. It is an honour that they trust me with it.
One time, I had this dog whose eye was gradually shrinking away… The owners wanted the last pictures with their dog’s face intact.
—
L-A: That’s must have been a tough moment, hey. Talking of tough moments, how do you deal with it when dogs just will not cooperate?
Fenne: Generally you wait and observe and the moment will come. But there was this time, where the owner was getting frustrated, so the dog got more and more restless. She [the owner] briefly left the room, and it happened: the dog just lied down on this beautiful flower. The owner was so happy when I showed her what was on my camera!
And then, he settled down...
—
L-A: What is the hardest part of your job?
Fenne: I find it tough to pick which pictures to keep. You can’t keep them all, and I want to remove the technically imperfect ones, but then they may be the very ones the owners would have really loved. So it’s a tricky process.
And then there’s the weather… I had to turn around and go home so many times this Spring because of the weather. I can work under a lot of conditions, but I need at least a slither of sunlight to make the dogs sparkle.
When the dog sparkles
—
L-A: (Outside of the US) is it financially realistic to plan a career living solely off pet photography?
Fenne: I don’t live exclusively from it myself. Right now, photographing dogs is a choice that I can make every time again. This choice keeps the quality and joy in my work.
But even without living from it exclusively, I notice ups and downs. The private photoshoots are going quite well for me at the moment, but I am getting less corporate contracts than I used to, for example.
My (Canis bonus) personal favourite
—
L-A: Is there a typical misconception about your job? Some stereotypical, and misled, opinion that you hear again and again?
Fenne: Some people assume that my customers are chihuahua-pampering millionaires. I don’t get this: man has been painting pets for the longest of time.
My clients just want to mark a moment. Say their dog did really well in a sport, or they just want a souvenir of their companion.
—
L-A: So, no Paris Hilton, then?
Fenne: No, just regular people like you and me. But I wouldn’t send her away if she ordered a portrait of her dog!
—
L-A: I’ll be you wouldn’t! Am thinking she’d be a handsome payer… So, what’s made you chuckle in your work lately?
Fenne: There was this clumsy moment… I was (trying to) follow a Weimeraner on a snowy day. He was leaping like a gazelle and I was following in slow motion, digging trenches in the snow. And that athletic, lean, silver bullet of a dog just kept running. To think I kept trying as long as I did… [laughs]
—
L-A: I can just imagine! [laughs] I assume it’s mainly dogs, right? What’s the most exotic pet you have photographed?
Fenne: There was a girl at a dog show: she had a reptile and a bulldog with her. I just managed to take a snapshot before they went off again. But generally, I photograph cats and dogs, and their human family.
—
L-A: Are some breeds of dogs more or less photogenic?
Fenne: I guess it’s tougher to capture the expression when you can’t see the eyes. Also, long hair can hide movement, and movement can tell a story too, you miss something there.
But my personal favorites are water dogs. There’s something about a picture of a dog splashing in the water…
—
L-A: So, how long is a typical session?
Fenne: I set aside two hours. That means the dog can explore the studio, take its time, and the owners can relax, not feel rushed. I want the owners and the dogs to really enjoy the session.
References
Yann Arthus-Bertrand, Les Chiens – ISBN: 1863333142, 9781863333146
Nick Ridley, How to Photograph Dogs – ISBN: 1 86108 332 7
Paul Walker, Pet Photography now – ISBN: 10 1-905814-33-X
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Welcome to Canis BLOGus
Canis BLOGus – Dog blogging
Who am I
My name is Laure-Anne and I am an English-speaking expat dog specialist based in the Hague (the Netherlands).
For a detailed bio, click on About me.
What the blog is about
In a nutshell, this blog tries to spread good science about dogs, and relates tales from life in the Netherlands’ dog world.
I enjoy delving into technical subjects and re-surfacing with an article that every dog owner can understand. I am hoping to make specialist subjects like diseases vaccination, genetics, more accessible to a broad audience.
So what qualifies me to write about dogs? I have done A LOT OF self-study, but I also have formal qualifications (professional and academic).
What do I write about?
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I also write about:
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