ScienceDaily (June 14, 2009)’ What dog owner has not come home to a broken vase or other valuable items and a guilty-looking dog slouching around the house? By ingeniously setting up conditions where the owner was misinformed as to whether their dog had really committed an offense, Alexandra Horowitz, Assistant Professor from Barnard College in New York, uncovered the origins of the guilty look in dogs in the recently published Canine Behaviour and CognitionSpecial Issue of Elsevies’s Behavioural Processes. Continue reading What Really Prompts The Dog’s ‘Guilty Look’
Category: Behavior
Dogs and Prostate cancer
Dogs can be trained to correctly identify certain prostate cancer cell-derived volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in urine, according to new data from researchers in Paris. These promising new data were presented on June 1, 2010 during the 105th Annual Scientific Meeting of the American Urological Association (AUA). The session was moderated by AUA Public Media Committee Chair Anthony Y. Smith, MD.
Continue reading Dogs and Prostate cancer
Problems with aversive dog training
Welfare Organisations Join Forces To Highlight Problems With Aversive Dog Training Techniques, UK
23 Dec 2009
The British Veterinary Association (BVA) and British Small Animal Veterinary Association (BSAVA) have joined forces with several UK animal welfare, behaviour, and training organisations (full list below) to warn of the possible dangers of using techniques for training dogs that can cause pain and fear, such as some of those seen used by Cesar Millan ‘The Dog Whisperer’, who has announced a UK tour next year. Continue reading Problems with aversive dog training
Sensory, emotional & social development of young dogs
Puppy Development:
This article has been published extensively, with images and charts, in The Bulletin for Veterinary Clinical Ethology, Vol.2, n1-2, pp 6-29, 1994 (Brussels).
http://nwk9.com/dehasse_pupdev.htm Continue reading Sensory, emotional & social development of young dogs
AVSAB help for pets with behavioral problem
Finding Help for a Pet with a Behavioral Problem
AVSAB position statement on punishment for behavior modification
The AVSAB’s position is that punishment (e.g. choke chains, pinch collars, and electronic collars) should not be used as a first-line or early-use treatment for behavior problems. This is due to the potential adverse effects which include but are not limited to: inhibition of learning, increased fear-related and aggressive behaviors, and injury to animals and people interacting with animals.
Continue reading AVSAB position statement on punishment for behavior modification
AVSAB statement on effects of punishment
American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior
Position Statement on Adverse effects of Punishment
http://www.avsabonline.org/avsabonline/index.php?option=content&task=view&id=118
Adverse Effects of Punishment
Punishment can be effective in specific cases, but it must be used carefully due to the difficulties of performing it properly compared to positive reinforcement and due to its potential adverse effects. The following is a description of the difficulties and adverse effects that one should be aware of when using punishment (aversives). Continue reading AVSAB statement on effects of punishment