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Behavioural Work ...
Dogs displaying behavioural problems are seen on a one to one basis. Before any behavioural problems can be assessed the owner must have a referral from their vet. The reason for this is, underlying medical conditions can sometimes be the reason for the behaviour. Symptoms diagnosed as behavioural problems could be; Anxiety, Separation Disorder, Aggression, House Soiling/Damage, Fear, Phobias.
Here is a typical example of an aggression case.
‘Ollie’ a 12 month old Golden Retriever.
Ollie had grown up a youthful dog with a passion for doing things with his owners, the Harper family. The problem with Ollie’s behaviour began very suddenly. When a relative visited, it was, in Ollie’s mind, the last straw. He demonstrated fiercely, his disapproval of his owners giving a stranger what he regarded as ‘his attention’. What happened next became his way forward in gaining control of the attention he obviously thought he had lost.
Ollie is from a typical working Gun Dog breed, therefore he requires stimuli in his day to day life to satisfy his innate skills he was originally bred for, namely retrieving game and or items or perhaps scent work. His owners, although very responsible people, endeavoured to satisfy him with walks and the odd game but only just enough to keep him appeased. Below these limits, Ollie suffered frustration which ultimately turned into anger against his owners. Ollie quickly learnt that aggression produced an enormous amount of attention from his owners, consequently he repeated it and worse, he increased his attacks which in turn increased the response. Ollie had now become the demon within the family and repeatedly caused stressful situations towards his owners.
Once Ollie had been given the all clear by his vet, (in case his behaviour was being fuelled by a medical condition) I agreed to see the Harpers and work out a plan of action. Ollie was indeed a lovely dog he greeted me with affection and showed no aggression towards me whatsoever. Under my supervision and over the next six weeks, the Harpers worked with Ollie to increase his attention skills in a positive manner and offered numerous games and challenges to fulfil his canine needs. Using the EMRA model, (Emotional, Mood, Reinforcement Assessment) it was possible to understand his needs and formulate a custom built plan to provide Ollie with a lifestyle befitting his breed type.
I am pleased to announce that Ollie is now a reformed dog, benefiting from his training programme he has developed into a lovely contented dog.
Here’s what the Harpers say,
Dear Nic,
When we contacted you, we were feeling quite desperate and very concerned about Ollie’s behaviour. It is very difficult having an animal that you have given a huge amount of time, energy and love to, turn on you. We had read all the books we could find, and scanned the internet, but all the strategies we tried did not seem to make any change. I was concerned about my personal safety and we had stopped our daughter walking him for the same reason. It was also difficult because we relied on other people at times to walk him and the behaviour was becoming more generalised. No one we spoke to seemed to have experienced anything similar with their dogs.
The contact with you made a big difference. Firstly you obviously had considerable experience with dogs and their behaviour. Secondly you were very thorough in taking a history, so I was confident that you had understood. Thirdly I felt you were good at listening and I didn't feel that I was being judged for being a 'bad' dog owner. Lastly, you didn't immediately jump in with solutions but took your time to make some suggestions.
I think that what made the difference was establishing a working relationship, with your suggestions and our efforts at putting them into practice. Keeping a diary helped us to communicate with each other as a family and with you about what was going on. It was very helpful that you kept in touch by phone and made ongoing suggestions about how we could modify what we were doing. I felt overall much more confident in handling him, and feeling more in control produced its own results.
The aggressive behaviour has completely disappeared. He is more obedient and responsive to commands. It is a pleasure having him around. He can still be naughty and playful, but is still only a youngster and has a great zest for life.
Ollie is now once again a cherished member of our family, we couldn’t have done it without you Nic,
The Harper Family.