Animal Welfare Professionals

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  • 1.  Coaching Dog-Dog Interactions (Camp Maddie: Behavior Edition Day 2)

    Posted 04-01-2024 07:02 AM

    Hi,  

     

    Whether in the shelter, a foster home, or at a dog park, dog-dog interactions can be tough to navigate for both the people and the dogs involved. 

     

    Join us on Wednesday, April 3 at noon PT/3 pm ET when we’ll hear from @Devan Amundsen of Animal Welfare United who will discuss some of the key points for your team to remember when supervising dog-dog interactions. These foundational pieces make great talking points with potential adopters and fosters, identify possible points to look for during assessments, and help your team feel more confident coaching dog-dog interactions. 
     

    Learn more or register for Camp Maddie: Behavior Edition. Day 2 happens on Wednesday, April 3 from 9a – 1p/PT, 12p – 4p ET.    

    This thread has been created so that we have a place to discuss and ask questions about this topic now and after the Camp Maddie event. 

    Sheila


    #AdoptionsandAdoptionPrograms
    #Behavior,TrainingandEnrichment
    #Conferences,WorkshopsandWebcasts
    #EducationandTraining
    #FosterPrograms
    #OrganizationalManagement
    #PetSupportServices*
    #Rehoming

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    Sheila Segurson, DVM, DACVB
    Board Certified Veterinary Behaviorist
    Director of Community Solutions
    Maddie's Fund
    Pleasanton CA
    9258608284
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  • 2.  RE: Coaching Dog-Dog Interactions (Camp Maddie: Behavior Edition Day 2)

    Posted 04-03-2024 01:29 PM

    Unanswered question from the chat:

    "Are electronic collars interrupters?"



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    Maddie's University
    Maddie's Fund
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    Original Message


  • 3.  RE: Coaching Dog-Dog Interactions (Camp Maddie: Behavior Edition Day 2)

    Posted 04-03-2024 03:32 PM

    Electronic, (static,) training collars are very unlikely to be interrupters if they are being used as part of a negative reinforcement or positive punishment training strategy. The dog has to perceive the sensation produced by the collar as unpleasant to some degree for the collar to function as intended. The dog should want to avoid the sensation produced by the collar, otherwise it's just extra (possibly unnecessary) information in the learning sequence.

    If we want to get real specific about terms here: If the collar sensation is applied before the behavior, (as in a negative reinforcement training setup,) it's likely functioning more as a "prompt," (something that comes immediately after a cue to teach what the cue means,) than a true "punisher," (consequence of behavior intended to reduce the behavior's frequency.) 

    That being said: Vibrating collars, (with vibration levels low enough not to cause an immediate startle/avoidance response,) can be super valuable for deaf dogs! If the dog initially perceives the vibration as a neutral stimulus and not uncomfortable, we can pair it with food and teach the dog that the vibration means "hey look at me!" In that example, it'd probably be more accurate to call the vibration a "cue," not really an interruption.



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    Devan Amundsen
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    Original Message


  • 4.  RE: Coaching Dog-Dog Interactions (Camp Maddie: Behavior Edition Day 2)

    Posted 04-03-2024 01:30 PM

    Unanswered question from the chat:

    "When dogs come in as strays and are disinterested in people and other dogs, how to provide that customer service adoption conversation with interested adopters?"



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    Maddie's University
    Maddie's Fund
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    Original Message


  • 5.  RE: Coaching Dog-Dog Interactions (Camp Maddie: Behavior Edition Day 2)

    Posted 04-03-2024 03:32 PM

    If someone is interested in adoption, (and you've determined that the dog falls within your definition of safe,) let's make it happen! 

    First things first: I'd want to consider assessing whether or not the shelter itself is the cause of this behavior.  Truly disinterested/neutral around people and other dogs sounds like a relatively simple behavior foster setup. "What we've seen in the shelter is that the dog doesn't care about people or other dogs when we've (explain how you've introduced them to other dogs.) I'm hoping that the shelter is the cause of that, and that going to a home would help us evaluate what's really going on here. Here are the resources we have available to support you in doing this. How do you feel about working on that?" (Make sure we set this up like a training scenario, creating a safe setup where the dog isn't going to hurt anyone or themselves if they change their mind in either direction.) 

    If the behavior continues outside of the shelter, we should consider that the dog may have a trauma history that is causing this response. At this point, we might want to look at whether our current available resources would support this dog post-adoption. Is there someone local who can help manage and then work through this with a potential adopter? What are our specific goals pre/post adoption? Do we expect the dog to be happy-go-lucky, going for walks to the cafe every day, meeting lots of other dogs, etc? Do we need them to "like" people?

    This is where we look at whether our current programs support this dog both short-term and long-term. If the answer to that is "we can't support this dog," then we need to explore other outcomes like rescue or euthanasia.



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    Devan Amundsen
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    Original Message


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