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Leadership
Aggression Toward Babies Skunk Wash Formula
Proper Leash Use
Leadership, or Who Let the Dogs Out First?
Most social organizations have levels of hierarchy to make them run smoothly. When we emphasize humans as “Leader of the Pack” vis-à-vis their dogs this does NOT involve force or physical control. Traditionally, in most canine and human societies, the leader is the one who controls all goods and services – food, play, toys, outside, social activities, etc. AND the Leader is the one who takes care of the family/pack.We hear a lot about showing our dog that we are their leader by being dominant. The behavioral definition of “dominance” refers to hierarchy in a social organization, not an implicit personality trait or forcefulness. Example: your boss is dominant in the workplace because he/she is in charge of working hours, your tasks, what you get paid, time off, etc. However, it could be illegal or just unpleasant if your boss used force to support the hierarchy of the workplace. The good boss that has a good leadership relationship with his/her employees explains the order of the workplace at the beginning then he/she uses incentives, bonuses, and commissions to reward employees for work well done. Yet, even with this kindness and guidance this good boss remains in the “dominant” leadership position.
To build a good leadership relationship with our dogs –
We need to teach solid boundaries – like our boss expecting us in at nine – if we’re not; we lose pay.In the end it doesn’t matter if your dog walks in front of you or goes out the door “first” –
We need trained behaviors we can request from our dogs – like our boss would ask us to perform our job.
We need to respect our dogs – like the good boss respects that you can’t work 24/7; you need enrichment time.
It matters that your dog is not pulling you because you have taught them it pays to walk on a loose leash = Trained behaviors and boundaries.To be a good leader for your dog, your relationship needs to be built on understanding, guidance, and respect; and you must take responsibility for Learning, Teaching, and Reinforcing.
It matters that you can ask your dog to go ahead of you because maybe it’s easier for you at that moment = Requested trained behaviors.
It matters that maybe this is your dog’s free time to sniff and have some fun = Freedoms you allow because your dog needs enrichment, too.
Q: Professor Boo, I have an 11 year old female german shephard and a 10 month old baby at home. My dog has always been friendly towards my baby girl and usually kisses her and licks her a lot. My baby is always after the dog, using her as a "ladder" to stand up, grabs her tail and face and usually my dog just walks away but today was the first time she growled at her and showed her teeth when my daughter tried to grab her(my daughter was in my dog's sleeping area). Does that mean she might bite her? I love my dog dearly but my baby comes first. What do I do?
A: This is fairly common when little ones begin to toddle around and use the dog as a walking “helper” as it were.Please remember all dogs can bite anyone if they feel they have no other way to stop something that either scares them or hurts them. Cute as it may be to see baby loving the dog, most dogs are not really comfortable with this kind of grabbing as most little ones don’t have really good grip control and can hurt when they pull and tug on an dog especially an older dog.
It should not have to come down to a choice for you between the dog you love and the child you love. It really just has to come down to always remembering that baby doesn’t know she may be hurting the dog and your dog is telling baby with a growl “please stop.” Your job is to stop baby before doggie gets to the point where she feels the need to “correct” the baby. There are some simple rules that will help.
Please start out by thinking of your dog like an open pool in your back yard. You would never turn your back on your baby around an open pool. You would never let her dangle her feet in the pool without you right there next to her. You would always be right there to catch her if she fell, etc…
So in light of that – please follow these rules:
a. Dog and baby are never alone together and you are always right between them for nowIn addition to all of these I would suggest some review of basic skills especially the recall command. Very often parents find it easier to call the dog away from baby then to ask baby to stop advancing on a resting dog. This may mean some new or review training either individually or in a classroom.
b. Baby can only touch dog when you are right there guiding baby as to how to gently touch dog
c. Dog is never used as a walking helper for baby
d. Dog is never chased by baby – not with walker, not with toys and not on her own
e. Baby never wakes the dog, pokes the dog or lands on the dog when dog is sleeping
Too many dogs are euthanized each year because they are viewed as aggressive to their toddler. Much of this can be avoided if we try to understand that for most dogs toddlers can be scary. Most dogs try to warn the toddler away and too many parents punish the dog for the growl. This leads to a dog who feels like they have no alternative but to bite.
Please remember “the 1st rule to keeping your child safe from your dog is keeping your dog safe from your child.”
Your dog has given you a great gift – she has told you she is uncomfortable with some things baby is doing. Take that gift and return the favor to your dog by following the rules above and teaching or reviewing some really basic skills to keep everyone safe.
Summer Encounters with Skunks,
or Love Stinks
A: Being the intellectual, female skunks are generally more attracted to my wit and outgoing personality than they are to the in-your-face physicality of my brother, Dante. While I'll regale them with stories about studying in Paris, Dante will sprint toward them to say "hi!" and more often than not ends up with a mouth full of skunk spray.
When that happens, we happen to have a homemade Skunk Wash formula that works just as well as any store-bought solution and is made out of ingredients nearly everyone has in their pantry:
Skunk Wash FormulaBecause I enjoyed answering this question, just for fun I'll pass along a Professor Boo Fun Fact: In French, the word for shampoo is "shampooing" and is pronounced sham-PWAN.
1 quart of 3% Hydrogen Peroxide
1/2 cup of Baking Soda (Sodium Bicarbonate)
1 teaspoon of liquid soap
Mix together to make a shampoo for your furry pal.
Rinse well to remove the shampoo from the fur after vigorously shampooing.
You may need to double or triple this recipe depending on the weight of your dog.
Leashes – The Good, The Bad, The Ugly…
A Leash is to the Dog-Human connection like a seat-belt is to the car-driver connection. Both are safety devices and often mandated by law. Just as we never use a seat-belt to drive our car, we should not use a leash to “drive” our dogs. A leash allows us a safe and effective connection to our dogs in case of surprises, emergencies, or situations where attention is hard to get or keep. Once we have trained for Attention and other Skills a loose leash actually offers us the best control of our dog, and least frustration and stress for our dogs.Your dog spends most of their time in the yard – Do you need to worry about a leash? There are many times when your dog needs to be on a leash – trips to veterinarians, groomers, walking adventures, classes, etc. Groomers and veterinarians are necessary for obvious reasons. Walking adventures outside their own backyard and classes are necessary too because dogs who don't experience these things can be under-socialized which often leads to behavioral problems.
To use a leash properly we want to use the right tools wisely so we don't do damage to our dogs or ourselves and we don't want to inadvertently teach the wrong things:
The Good – Standard leash is a 6 foot nylon, cotton or leather leash (leather is easiest on human hands; avoid chains as someone usually gets hurt by these). Longer leashes are not standard walking leashes. They are used for training long distance commands.Good leash skills come with awareness, practice, patience and a solid understanding of what a leash is meant to do for you and your dog.
The Bad – The Tight Leash – All too often the human-dog team becomes accustomed to constant tension on the leash = tight leash. A dog can be stressed and frustrated by a constant tight leash which can often lead to behavioral problems.
The Ugly – The Flexi Leash is almost always a constantly tight leash. In addition to stress and frustration for the dog it actually TEACHES the dog to pull. The Flexi Leash leaves the dog at risk for a variety of injuries and stress responses that can lead to behavioral problems. It also leaves the human at more risk of injury than any other leash.
(This article appeared in the South Putnam Animal Hospital “Paws For a Moment” newsletter in May 2006.)
