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Lexi & Melissa in Frank Sinatra Park
This post is an extension of my latest for PsychologyToday.com.Lexi & Melissa in HobokenIn Unified Dog Theory XIV: The Importance of Understanding Attraction and Resistance, which was posted...
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Don't Say "No!"
I recently got a question from a student of mine asking me how I feel about using the word “No!” to correct dogs. So I dug into the archives (yes, I have archives, tons of them), and found these two...
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Separation Anxiety/Distress: Its Causes & Cures
Here's a little insight into what causes and cures separation anxiety.Dogs learn to navigate their lives with their owners by suppressing some of their instinctual urges and energies, the urge to bite...
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How Wolves Hunt Bison & Why Dogs "Steal" Food
Here's the post the got me kicked off the PsychologyToday website. The Perfect Laboratory for Studying Stress in CaninesIn a recent episode of the PBS series Nature—Cold Warriors: Wolves and...
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Hierarchy Without Dominance: The Pack as a Flow System?
Two days before PsychologyToday.com deconstructed my blog, they also pulled this guest post by Kevin Behan, author of Natural Dog Training& Your Dog Is Your Mirror. “It is difficult to resist the...
View ArticleDr. David Mech on the Term "Alpha Wolf"
Why the term "Alpha Wolf" isn't ususally appropriate. (2008)LCK“Changing the World, One Dog at a Time”Join Me on Facebook!Follow Me on Twitter!My Puppy, My Self (archived)
View Article"The Pushing Exercise" - Videos
Here's a short video of me doing "The Pushing Exercise" with a white boxer named Fancy. I'm doing a couple of things wrong here. First of all, I'm taking too much time with the preliminaries, probably...
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Can Outdoor Play Cure Depression in Dogs?
Do You Know a Depressed Doggie? Play May Be the Cure!Originally published in slightly different form at PsychologyToday.com, August 27, 2009.Can dogs suffer from depression? My Dog Isn’t Depressed, She...
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The Importance of Play, Part II
Here I go, dipping into the archives again. This was culled from an online discussion group (Doggie Bag online), discussing the question, "Do Dogs Play?" The moderator (for whom English is a second...
View Article"The Eyes" Exercise
Here's a video of me doing "The Eyes" Exercise with Fancy.What a good doggie! She's very advanced at this. Note how I can almost bounce my hand off her face and she still (mostly) stares at me instead...
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A Simple Formula for Understanding Aggression
Looking at Aggression From the Dog's Point of View Originally published in slightly different form at PsychologyToday.com, June 22, 2012.“The primary purpose of aggression is not to hurt and maim but...
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Is the Urge to Bite the Key to Canine Intelligence?
Why do some dogs know the names of all their toys? Originally published in slightly different form December 5, 2012 at PsychologyToday.com.Bite-ables vs. ComestiblesIn The Intelligence of Dogs (1994),...
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SeaWorld Is Giving Its Star Performers a Raw Deal
If Conditioning Is a Business Transaction, Orcas Are Getting Screwed Originally published in slightly different form on March 10, 2010 at PsychologyToday.com. It
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Dogs Have a Theory of Mind, But Whose Mind Is It?
If Dogs Can't Think, How Do They Know What We're Thinking? Originally published in slightly different form on July 30, 2010 at PsychologyToday.com Fancy Holds a StayDognitive scientist Brian Hare's...
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The Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness
Holding a Mirror Up to Science and Nature Throwing Water on His Enthusiasm When “The Cambridge Declaration on Consciousness” was made on July 12th last year, I refrained from making any critical...
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Wolves, Scrub Jays, & the Feeling of Being Watched
Do animals know when they’re being watched? Originally published in slightly different form at PsychologyToday.com on July 26, 2012.“Oh, grandmother! What big eyes you have!” “The better to see you...
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Do Dogs and Wolves Form Dominance Hierarchies?
I Stand by What I Wrote—And Here Are 3 Reasons WhyOriginally published in slightly different form at PsychologyToday.com on January 1, 2013“If you want to go fast, go alone. If you want to go far, go...
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Lack of Cooperation Found in Some Wolf Packs
Why Does Cooperation Diminish as Pack Size Increases?Originally published in slightly different form on Nov. 9, 2012 at PsychologyToday.com. Should the Principles of Economics be Applied to Wolf...
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How Do You Stop Your Dog From Humping?
Is Humping a Sign of Dominance or a Symptom of Frustration?
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Dance With Me, I Want to Be Your Partner
Increasing Your Dog’s Social Attraction One of the most important training innovations that Kevin Behan brought in his book Natural Dog Training, was the idea that dogs experience the world through...
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Charles Darwin and the Dominance Meme, Part I
Do Dominance Hierarchies Run Counter to Darwin's Theories? Two wolves playing in the snow.“I aimed for a modest presentation. I would demonstrate simply and directly that male Pumphouse baboons did not...
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Charles Darwin and the Dominance Meme, Part 2
Does Human Observation Create Dominance Hierarchies?“Although it has been shown that in horses … dominance hierarchies are so poorly developed as to be invisible, needing artificially created...
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Thoughts on Being a Dog Trainer
Why Have So Many People Suddenly Become “Dog Trainers?”To me, being a dog trainer is a gift and a calling. It’s not something you can learn overnight, or become skilled at simply by hanging out at the...
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Dominance, Reward-Based, or Drive Training?
Which Method Makes the Most Sense?In the FlowThere are 3 main models for training pet dogs: 1) The dominance (or pack leader) model, 2) The reward-based (or operant conditioning) model, 3) and drive...
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Free Play vs. Rote Learning
Are We Putting too Much Pressure on Puppies to Learn Obedience too Soon?Originally published in slightly different form at PsychologyToday.com, on 11/12, 2010.“I have spent the past few years puzzling...
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