The Animal School Dog Blog

Winnie’s Disaster

alexandramorgan — Thu, 30 Sep 2010 14:36:23 +0000

A few weeks ago, a loving dog owner took her Papillon to a local branch of a chain owned pet store that offers dog grooming. She had been there many times before, and had good experiences with the groomer who cared for her dog. This time, however, it was not her usual groomer, but a different woman. Trustingly, she handed over her little dog.

A couple hours later, she received a phone call from the groomer, saying her dog was matted and she wanted permission to shave her down. Furthermore, she said, the dog was crying, struggling and peeing. The woman was surprised, since her other groomer had always said the Papillon was easy to groom, never fearful or hard to work with. Nevertheless, she gave permission. Half an hour later another phone call from the groomer said her dog was ready to go.

Arriving, the dog was handed to her over the counter, with the comment that she was “quite a little drama queen”, and had cried and struggled constantly. When they arrived home, the dog was whimpering, moving oddly, and obviously in pain. She peed in her bed, and did not want to walk. The next day, her worried owner took her to the vet, who discovered a large area of dark bruising on her flank and side. The dog went home with pain medication, but was no better.

A day later the woman noticed blood beginning to seep from the little dog’s side, and went back to the vet. This time the vet shaved her down to the skin, and what was uncovered was horrifying. A massive injury, bruised and seeping blood, skin beginning to slough away. The vet was not certain what could have caused such an injury – it had qualities of both a terrible burn and blunt trauma. To try to heal her, the little dog endured two massive surgeries to attempt to debride the wound – that is, remove the dead tissue and try to close the wound. Even after the second surgery, the wound would not heal, and her condition continued to be critical. The vet decided to send her to the specialists at Ocean State Veterinary Hospital.

At OSVS, her tiny body went through two more, similar surgeries, and even after the fourth one the sutures continued to tear free from the weakened flesh and skin. Finally returned home after a week in intensive care, with a bandage stitched onto her body to protect her, she continues to be in terrible pain, and still has a long road to recovery. She returns twice a week to OSVS to have her wound checked and a new bandage stitched on. Because she has lost so much skin and muscle, she will probably always move with difficulty and pain, stiff and sore. She will always have terrible physical scars, and her fur will never regrow properly. As for her emotional scars, and those of her loving owners, only time will tell.

And now you might be wondering, what could possibly have caused such extraordinary injuries as the result of a simple grooming appointment? If it was some sort of bizarre accident, and not deliberate abuse on the part of the groomer, why did she not tell the owner about it immediately, and ensure that the dog got treatment as soon as possible? Why did neither of the other two groomers present that day have a word to say? And what is the management of the store doing about this appalling situation?

They were informed immediately by the dog’s owner, and did not respond until she contacted them again a couple weeks later. As of this writing, the groomer is still working at that same store. The management claims they are conducting an investigation of the incident, but so far the dog’s owner is still waiting for answers to her questions. And all of us are left wondering- what really happened that day to almost kill a trusting little dog?

Happy Holidays and Welcome to Dog Bite Season

alexandramorgan — Tue, 17 Nov 2009 15:52:35 +0000

I get more calls about dog bites from Thanksgiving through New Year’s than at any other time of year. What is the matter, you might wonder? Don’t dogs have the appropriate Holiday Spirit? Are they irritated by the seasonal muzak? Why are they so prone to aggression at this time of the year?

There are several factors that combine to create this problem.

The weather gets cold and it gets dark early. People are busy with holiday parties, shopping and preparations for festivities. The result is dogs get walked less, exercised less, less attention in general.

More visitors – many households that have almost no visitors all year DO have visitors at the holidays. If the dog is unaccustomed to visitors this can be very stressful, and can lead to bad behavior that ranges from over-enthusiastic greeting to barking and even biting.

Click here to continue reading this article.

Time Flies…

AMAS — Wed, 11 Nov 2009 21:24:00 +0000

It’s already the middle of November. About this time last year, Alexandra and I were scouring the area looking for a suitable location to open the newer incarnation of Alexandra Morgan’s Animal School. For those of you who don’t know, Alexandra Morgan’s Canine Behavioral Center used to exist on North Broadway in East Providence, from roughly 1997-2001. Recently, I have been doing a little cleanup of all the documents, graphics, and files I’ve accumulated since starting work on the Animal School website last summer.

One of the files I found today is a newspaper article written about the first Animal School. It’s sort of humorous to read that the whole concept of “Doggie Daycare” is exactly the same; I also laughed that the prices for daycare at Animal School back then were higher than they are now at our new location! Click here for a PDF of that newspaper article.

I’m finding it hard to believe that we’re quickly coming up on our one year anniversary. It’s been a pretty good year so far, and we hope to finish it strong now that we’re able to offer Social Boarding and In-Board Training services. Of course, we are going to have to start planning an anniversary gathering for all of our past, present, and future clients!

-Will

Now Boarding!

AMAS — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 16:48:12 +0000

We have some great news to share with everyone.

Last week, the town zoning board approved our request to permit supervised overnight boarding in our facility! This is incredibly exciting for us, as we have a number of new services we can now provide to all of our current and future clients.

There’s one word that makes us stand out from your ordinary, average boarding kennel: SOCIAL. That’s right. Social Boarding is slightly different, because rather than dogs being confined and bored they are allowed to run, play, socialize, exercise, and burn off excess energy during the day. At night, they are tired – and more importantly – NOT all stressed out about being away from home. To learn more about Social Boarding, do feel free to call us anytime or send us an email. I will eventually be updating our website with all the new information!

Since we are now a fully licensed 24-hour Dog Care & Training Facility, we will again be offering In-Board Training. This type of training may be recommended in certain cases as the best method for correcting behavioral issues. Again, if you are interested in learning more about In-Board Training please call or email.

It looks like we’re going to be in for a busy winter here at Animal School! If you’re planning on going away within the next few months, and would like to check out our accommodations, simply let us know. We are offering Social Boarding for as low as $23 per day! Space is limited, and I expect our calendar will fill up fast.

All the best,
Will

Defining Separation Anxiety

alexandramorgan — Thu, 08 Oct 2009 12:22:52 +0000

Separation Anxiety is a term used to describe the behavior of a dog who becomes extremely distressed when left alone. Dogs who suffer from this condition show their distress in a variety of ways – howling, whining, barking, drooling, panting, chewing objects, chewing or scatching at doors and windows, and urinating, defecating or vomiting. Some dogs show all of these behaviors when left alone, some only a couple. Some dogs show several of these behaviors when left alone, and yet do not suffer from separation anxiety – they just aren’t housetrained and enjoy chewing!

Because dogs are pack animals who would always prefer being with their friends to being alone, almost all dogs suffer from separation anxiety to some extent – they are always sad to see you leave, delighted to see you return, and would rather come along than be left behind. However, most dogs adjust well to our daily absences and do not develop aberrant behaviors as a result. Determining whether or not your dog actually has clinical Separation Anxiety can be difficult, and solving it is even harder, so if you suspect your dog has it I recommend you call a behavior expert to help with the diagnosis and treatment.

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“Let’s Go!”

alexandramorgan — Fri, 18 Sep 2009 17:00:30 +0000

One of the most common problems faced by dog owners is being dragged down the street by an enthusiastic dog. This is not only unpleasant and potentially dangerous for the person, it is also unpleasant and potentially dangerous for the dog! Because many dogs decide that pulling makes you go faster in the direction they want, dogs will put up with a great deal of pain to try to accomplish this. Trachea and cervical injuries are common in dogs who pull hard.

“Walking Politely” means exactly what it says – no pulling, jumping or tangling around your legs. When walking with my dog, I don’t need her to “Heel.” I don’t care whether she walks in front, behind or beside me, or changes around a bit, so long as she doesn’t interfere with my own ability to walk easily. Walking with your dog should be a relaxed, enjoyable experience for both of you. “Heel” is more like ballroom dancing – formal, super-attentive, and (hopefully!) elegant.

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Dominance Theory

alexandramorgan — Thu, 03 Sep 2009 20:00:02 +0000

Don’t Throw Out The Puppy With The Bathwater!

Until a few years ago, most dog trainers believed that dogs lived in a rigid social structure, in which each animal was either dominant or subordinate to the other dogs – and to the humans – in the family. Many of the training methods used were based partly or entirely on this idea. This “dominance theory” evolved from some studies that had been done of wolves, who seemed to show just such a rigid social structure. Since dogs are wolf descendants, trainers thought it was logical to interperate all dog behavior along these “wolfy” lines, and to imitate the wolves’ behavior in our own interactions with pet dogs. This certainly seemed to make sense, especially since we also have extensive research showing the importance of dominance and submission in several other species of animals…including humans! Dog trainers taught that humans had to “be the boss”, the alpha, the pack leader, or else successful training could not occur, and peaceful dog-and-human family life would unravel into chaos and aggression.

Recently, however, new research has been done, and the old research has been re-examined, and many scientists and trainers have now come to a very different conclusion.

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Rescuing animals from high-kill shelters is already hard enough…

alexandramorgan — Tue, 21 Jul 2009 21:57:40 +0000

At Alexandra Morgan’s Animal School, in Warren, RI, the staff not only train animals, they also help out with various aspects of rescue and rehoming for both dogs and cats. In late June, they took in 13 kittens who were shipped up to them from a very high-kill shelter in Georgia. The intention was to keep them for a week to ensure they were not coming down with any illness, and then find them all good homes locally. They had been told the kittens were all in good health, and had been checked by a vet and given first vaccines. The note that arrived with the kittens said only “Need to be wormed.” If that had been all they needed, all would have been well.

Click here to continue reading this Examiner.com article

Sorting Through The Murky Language of the Psychology of Behavior

alexandramorgan — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 12:30:27 +0000

One often hears both dog owners and dog trainers using the terms “positive reinforcement” and “negative reinforcement” when talking about training dogs. These are terms that have been borrowed from human psychology and are frequently misused and misunderstood by both owners and trainers. Thus when dog trainers try to talk to each other about these concepts they often become hopelessly lost in a swamp of misunderstanding, all based on murky language. I hope this article will help to clear up the confusion…and in the process show why these terms are not good choices and we dog people need to come up with new ones!

People tend to think that “positive reinforcement” means giving the dog a treat as a reward for doing the right behavior, and this is basically correct. However, in the psychological jargon the word “positive” is not being used to mean “good” but rather “to add or apply” – like a plus sign in mathematics. The popular understanding of “negative reinforcement” is doing something that the dog dislikes – something aversive. But in the psychological jargon “negative” is not being used to mean “bad” but rather means “to take away or withhold” – like a minus sign.

These two terms are part of a group of four which are used by psychologists to discuss different aspects of learning theory. The confusion really becomes apparent when one hears the next two terms, namely “negative punishment” and “positive punishment” To the average person, this sounds absolutely ridiculous – how can a punishment possibly be positive ?! And doesn’t “negative punishment” sound like something truly dreadful?

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Punishment Is Not A Dirty Word!

alexandramorgan — Fri, 29 May 2009 21:00:07 +0000

The use of “Punishment” in dog training is an extremely controversial and misunderstood subject. In the past, punishment and praise were all that was used to train dogs. As a result, many dogs were labeled “untrainable” because they could not respond well to these force-based methods. Then, in the early 90s, came the revolution in dog training, and people moved towards better, reward based methods. However, for many trainers this meant eliminating ALL previous methods, the good and the bad alike. In reality, there is a place for the use of punishment in training, but it needs to be clearly understood and skillfully applied.

The confusion starts with the definition of “punishment”. Unfortunately, even dog trainers have trouble agreeing on our vocabulary and meanings, and this adds greatly to the pet owner’s confusion. In the Wikipedia dictionary of psychological terms, it states “In psychology, punishment is the reduction of a behavior via a stimulus which is applied (“positive punishment”) or removed (“negative punishment”).The definition requires that punishment is only determined after the fact by the reduction in behavior; if the offending behavior of the subject does not decrease then it is not considered punishment. …an aversive that does not decrease behavior is not a punishment.”

In simpler terms, this means that A PUNISHMENT IS ANYTHING YOUR DOG DISLIKES SO MUCH THAT SHE WILL CHANGE HER BEHAVIOR IN ORDER TO AVOID BEING PUNISHED AGAIN.

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