Watching Behavior

     When  I tell people I am a Behavioral Consultant for Canines, there is always a pause.... and then they ask "So what, you train dogs?"  Well, that's part of it. I began my journey as a Dog Trainer.

Directing Brutus to run in a particular direction.

     An Animal Behavioral Consultant needs to have a solid foundation with many different forms of training not only to know what works, but also why.  Only by working in the field (of dog training) can one gain the necessary experience to accurately identify what types of methods will most likely be most effective for a particular dog.  Not all learning styles are compatible to all canines OR their owners.  Part of what I do is clarify for clients what methods are most complimentary to the handler, dog, and household structure.

     Today the norm is positive reinforcement training.  I wholeheartedly agree that this is the correct way to begin bonding and teaching your dog.  When praise and rewards are given consistently, stellar results can be achieved!  Some canines only have minimal response to this method however.  Others have only been partially exposed to this style, but not consistently enough to have reliable behavior, and there are many unfortunate dogs that have obstacles in their past that must be overcome in order to be able to learn new information.  This is where I come in.  Alternate methods are available, but the correct method must be chosen per dog, and per household.  It then must be implemented correctly to be effective.

     Another aspect of my career is to evaluate canines.  An evaluation is not just for rescue dogs.  It is useful information for all dogs and their owners. It is typically more accurate because it is an objective view of the dog's reaction to stimulus.  When an owner says "Fifi doesn't like her crate!" it sometimes means the owner doesn't like the crate.  A behavioral consultant has enough background knowledge that they can correlate behaviors to innate canine reactions- not human projections of emotions.

     What happens in an evaluation is not a "test", it is simply observing and recording reactions of the canine to stimulus in a structured environment.  The reasons it is typically more accurate than an owner's observations are two-fold.  An evaluation is stripped of emotion.  It is an assessment of what is actually happening- how the dog is moving, where, at what speed, etc.  In a professional evaluation there is no mention of "How the dog feels" about something, so no assumptions are made.  The other reason is that the environment is controlled to the point where only one stimulus is encountered and recorded at a time.

The puppy flattens her ears and approaches slowly.

     An Evaluation delivers unbiased observations of what the dog was seen to do at that time.  In my evaluations I also include explanations of what the behavior demonstrated means in the context it was displayed, and what training may benefit the animal based upon what I had observed.

     Most trainers are only well versed in one particular type or style of training, and thus accustomed to seeing a certain set or sets of behavior.  A Behavioral Consultant can assess a wide variety of behaviors in different settings.

     If you would like to understand more of your dog's behaviors, please feel free to contact me!