Why Treat Training Is Not Bribing

Every once in a while I get pushback from someone who doesn’t want to do treat training for their dog.  They feel that is bribing the dog and somehow, miraculously no doubt, the dog should be thankful that it has a nice home, read all the schizophrenic signals an owner can produce and still find and save Timmy who fell down a well…all without any positive reinforcement whatsoever.  I always ask them if they would work for free.  Usually the answer is “No but that is different.”

Why is it different?  You are asking your dog to perform a job albeit a job to become a “good” dog.  Your dog is learning to do the jobs you want him to do like sit or lie down or not jump on people when he is excited and meeting new ones.  In the dog training world you will hear your trainer ask you what motivates your dog?  For some dogs, they could care less about treats but are driven by toys or the freedom of running in the yard or being able to sniff while taking a long walk with their owner.

Today, though, let’s talk about treats and what are high value treats, lower value treats, when to use and when to pass on them.  I’ll give you some examples as to what we do at Kritter Keepers Club and how we work with our canine students and human students.  And, last but not least, I’ll describe how we eventually move the cues from being treated each successful time to a once in a while treat.

When we start a new class, we always do a “taste test” with the participating dogs to see which treats have the highest value for them.  We set out a variety of treats we use for training – from hotdogs to cheese to baby carrots to cheerios and we allow the dog to choose and eat their favorites.  It gives an owner an idea of which treats their dog will eat (or not eat), which treat their dog wants the most and which treat is just ok for them.

When teaching new behaviors to a dog, it is important to reward them with the highest value treats.  As much as your dog loves you and wants to do stuff for you, learning which stuff you want them to do is another thing!  Using high-value treats helps your pup learn quickly and consistently that these are the behaviors you want.  At the end of the day, a dog doesn’t recognize the emotional tie of performing a behavior because he loves you and wants to please you.  In my opinion, Lassie and other highly trained celebrity dogs really did a number on us human companions!

According to Jean Donaldson, author of The Culture Clash and leader of the Academy for Dog Trainers, “Dogs do what works.”  Think of it this way, you go to your job and at the end of the pay period you expect a paycheck.  When you are trying to get your dog to learn it is doing work so using positive treat training is like giving them a paycheck.  If they understand that when they perform the behavior they have a high probability of getting great treats, well, they will perform those behaviors more.  Just like you keep showing up to that job because, well, the paycheck.

So, dog wants cheese…needs cheese.  You keep giving them cheese when you mark a behavior with a click or a word (we use YES!) and then they get cheese.  So now the dog’s brain starts clicking…if I do something and I hear the word “Yes!” then I will get cheese?  Heck yea!  Cheese!

So what is the likelihood that your dog will continue to offer the new behavior?  I would say pretty good because it is a high value treat that he really wants.  Now that he is associating this behavior with a great treat you can add different nuances like duration, distraction and distance.  To make sure your dog generalizes the behavior have others in your family ask him to do it.  Ask him to perform in all rooms of the home and indoor and outdoor.  The high-value treat is rewarded to him each and every time he completes the ask.

Once your dog has developed the “muscle memory” of the cue then you can start looking at putting him on a reward schedule.  I like to have my students train with their dogs in sets of five asks with rapid reward deployment once the cue has been performed.  So instead of rewarding on all five asks, start rewarding on the 1st, 3rd and 5th ask.  Then move to the 1st and 3rd and then finally use a random schedule for rewarding and once in a while give your dog a “jackpot.”

Ever wonder why people will sit an a slot machine and feed it quarter after quarter after quarter.  It might take $50 of quarters and then suddenly the slot machine producing a winning combination.  The winnings could only be $15 or $20 but it is enough to keep the slot player engaged with the potential of hitting it big.  The same concept is applicable to treat training your dog.  As long as there is potential that a treat may be rewarded, your dog will perform the ask.

Think of treats as a currency for your dog to do business with you.  It’s not bribing to pay him for work well done!

KRITTER KEEPERS CLUB BRINGS FITNESS, FUN AND EXPERT CARE TO COBB CANINES

My dreams coming true!!!

Kritter Keepers Pet Services

–West Cobb training, boarding and doggy daycare facility opens Sept. 18.

MARIETTA, GA. (9/11/17) – Pooches and pups in West Cobb are getting a doggy “sports complex” designed to bring out their strengths—and keep their tails wagging.

Kritter Keepers Club, which opens Sept. 18 at 2380 Powder Springs Rd., puts a canine-centric twist on training, boarding and doggy daycare, says owner and head trainer Kasey Collins Litt, a Certified Professional Dog Trainer—Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) and graduate of the nationally renowned CATCH Canine Trainers Academy in Little Falls, N.J.

“At Kritter Keepers Club, we want dogs to be dogs and to develop the skills they were bred for,” Litt said. “That’s why we’re so focused on doggie sports like agility, nose work, Flyball, Treiball, lure racing and other activities that dogs absolutely love.”

Located on more than an acre of land, the 6,200-square-foot facility, conveniently located close to downtown Marietta and…

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Match Game – Adopting the Right Dog Part 2 — Adjustments and Accommodations

Sometimes, there is that moment when your eyes lock onto an adoptable dog’s eyes and there is an instant bond just like in the movies but that is a rare occurrence.  For a majority of the animals in a shelter you are going to see a sometimes shut down, scared or anxious dog.  It’s loud, often smelly and, did I mention, loud in shelters.

Then there is the cuteness syndrome…there are reasons we ooh and ahh when we see a cute animal or human baby.  When we see those cute little faces, our brains are washed in a wave of dopamine which is the same chemical reaction we have when we fall in love, have sex or use drugs.  So, the cuter the dog, the more our brain tells us we need that animal. Big eyes, round, bulbous foreheads, wrinkles of skin…all these trigger this thing in our brains that makes us feel good and want to protect these “babies.” Some of the cutest dogs I’ve known have been extremely fear aggressive and are not a good match for anyone but the most experienced dog handlers and guardians.

So, as hard as it might be, we need to fight off the dopamine and cuteness factor when choosing the right right dog for the family.  When you find the right dog for you, I guarantee he will be the cutest looking after a while.  All human babies, to me, look like Winston Churchill with their big bald heads and rolls of fat but human instinct of the moms always say their baby is the cutest.

One of my friends, Laurie, went out to shelters one weekend looking for a Yorkie or Silkie Terrier or something that was scruffy and fluffy.  She came home with a large, red, short-haired dog that looked like a Vizsla or Rhodesian Ridgeback mix. and has since adopted three more largish, red dogs!  The point is that looks are really only a small part of that bond you will establish with the dog in your family.

This is the advice I give people who are visiting a shelter to choose their next family members:

1. Look at less subjective things about your new family member rather then how cute he is.
   1. Energy level – I always use the example of a border collie who is adopted by a family of couch potatoes.  Neither dog nor humans will be happy in the situation.  The dog wants to work and herd whatever it can.  The people want to lie on the couch and watch sports or movies…not participate in them!
   2. Sociability – if you are looking for a furry companion that loves all people and dogs and can join your family on outings and vacations then you probably don’t want the dog cowering at the back of the kennel who is terrified of all around. But, please, keep in mind, that shelters often are scary and a dog is not himself there.
   3. History with Children – if you have kids or grandkids then you want a dog who can be around them and interact with children.  Some dogs are so frightened by children that they shut down so you want to make sure your new dog is comfortable and unphased by the lively antics of a kid!
2. Ask if the rescue or shelter has a “Foster to Adopt” program.  This allows you to see how the dog lives in your environment and allows the dog to show you their true selves.  But there is generally about a two-week “honeymoon” period when bringing home a new dog.  This first two weeks is where everyone is on their best behavior and not quite accustomed to their new situation.  Humans aren’t habituated to their new family member and the dog is getting adjusted to this new life.  As an adoption counselor I want to make sure my adoptions stick so if there are any variables in the situation like other pets, disabled individuals in the home, etc. then I suggest we try a Foster to Adopt first.  One couple came to adoptions and fell in love with a lovely pitbull mix we had available for adoption.  They let me know that the husband had done several stints in Iraq with the Army and is now suffering from PTSD.  We knew that the bond was already starting to form with him and this young girl pup but we all wanted to make sure that the daily stress of keeping a dog wasn’t going to make the husband’s PTSD worse.  I’m happy to say it was a match made in heaven and they are all living happily ever after.
3. If you can take a few days off when you get your new dog everyone will be happier! There are a few days needed for adjustment period for both you and your new dog. You can ease that adjustment by taking a few days off to acclimate your new best friend to your house and your rules.  We see a lot of new puppies in the spring/summer time and that’s a great time for adoptions during vacations!

Bringing a new family member into your home is not something that should be a spur of the moment event.  You want the best family member you can get and your dog wants the best family he can get!  Do your homework and you’ll soon have a great new member of your family.

Need advice on training, dog selection, behavior or dog sports?  Hit me up and maybe your question will be my next blog!  –the Kritter Keeper

Match Game – Adopting the Right Dog Part 1 – Knowing Your Family’s Needs

Recently a good friend of mine wanted to pull the plug and adopt a dog for the family. The twin boys have been asking for a dog as long as I could remember and Dad, my friend, was pretty enamored with the idea too!  Since he’s a writer, he tends to research everything so I was thrilled when they came to me to ask the best way to match up a dog to his family.

As an adoption counselor for Mostly Mutts Pet Adoption and Rescue in Kennesaw GA, I see a lot of families fall in love with a dog that just doesn’t suit their family based on how the dog looks or acts at an adoption event.  I gave Joel some questions to think about before he went to Mostly Mutts to look at available dogs.

1. Puppy or Adult?
   1. A puppy is a mixed bag.  It is a lot of work and not always for the new dog owner but a family that has done a lot of research on bringing up a new dog and has the time and energy to devote to bringing up a new canine citizen of the world could have an awesome experience raising a puppy.
   2. An adult dog may already be house trained, may already be obedience trained and may already have moved out of his destructive phase!
2. Adopt or Shop?
   1.  Your local shelter will have a plethora of choices.  My rescue pulls animals from local, county-run, kill shelters.  We have a huge number of foster families as well as space at the shelter for the dogs but when you have a dog that has been fostered, we can provide more detailed information on what training needs, health needs, or husbandry needs the dog has.
   2. If you are adamant about a specific breed, find a good breeder.  Visit the AKC site for that specific breed and find a breeder recognized by them.  Or, if you really would like to rescue, contact a breed-specific rescue organization.  There are lots of circumstances surrounding why a dog is homeless and they don’t mean the dog is broken!
3. What is the energy level of your family?  To answer this question, think about your calendar and there is a Saturday that is totally open — no commitments, no plans, no family visiting. What do you and your family do with a whole day?
   1. Movie Day!!!! Rent a bunch of movies, make popcorn, and marathon the media.
   2. Waterfall Hike — find the nearest hiking trail that has a waterfall and get the family ready for an outing.
   3. Everyone on their own – you are in your reading nook catching up on that novel, the kids are playing in the back yard, and your spouse is gardening.
4.  What is the activity level of your family?
   1. Kids are involved in every activity under the sun
   2. One or more adults work long hours
   3. Never home
   4. Good mix of family time at home and activities out
5. What size dog can you see in your home?
   1. Extra large like a Great Dane
   2. Large like a German Shepherd Dog
   3. Medium like a Beagle or hound dog
      

      Private is a boxer-mix available for adoption through www.mostlymutts.org

   4. small like a Chihuahua or aYorkie
6. What degree of grooming?
   1. Weekly Baths, brushing every day
   2. Bath, what bath?
   3. Monthly visit to the groomer to keep that puppy cut fresh
7. What activities do you plan to do with your new dog?
   1. Daily walks around the neighborhood — I need an exercise buddy!
   2. Take him everywhere with us, ball park, vacations, etc.
   3. Snuggling on the couch
   4. I’ve got a map of all the great hiking areas in the state I want to go to with him

Knowing the answers of these questions before you even start the physical search for your dog can help you narrow down your choices.

 

Who is the Kritter Keeper…

I’m not sure how many of you have looked at the tabs on this blog site but I hadn’t looked at the tab Who is Kritter Keepers in a while.  In fact, this is one of the first things I wrote four years ago when I first opened my business.  I’m reposting this with some updates as lots of things have changed in this Kritter Keepers life and we’ve added to the posse of Kritter Keepers so I’d like to also highlight them as we continue on the journey to help people keep their kritters!

Who is Kritter Keepers?

Kritter Keepers is the accumulation of a life long passion for animals.  Today, I’m a professional pet educator giving advice to pet parents through my Kritter Keepers blog, Pawbly.com, community speaking engagements and my Kritter Keepers clientele.  I am an active volunteer at Mostly Mutts Rescue where I am an adoption counselor, foster mom, social media helper and photographer.  I am that crazy dog lady that lives, eats, breaths dogs!  To understand how Kritter Keepers was born, I have to go back to the beginning!  Update:  still volunteering at Mostly Mutts but I’ve also added training to my skill set.  In 2003 I started with an online dog training school, CATCH Canine Academy and in 2005 I went to a six-week, hands-on training class hosted at St. Hubert’s Animal Shelter where I did so many things including:

• Slept in a dorm room for six weeks
• Studied like crazy with ten other crazy dog people in the class
• Handled a variety of dogs but worked mostly with very strong pitbulls
• Helped out at the ASPCA center where they rehabilitated scared and an anxious dogs generally pulled from horrible situations
• Worked with two amazing trainers, Pia Silvani and David Moriello (founder of CATCH)
• Graduated with a CCPDT – Certified CATCH Professional Dog Trainer certificate

I’m either the last year of a Baby Boomer or the first year of Generation X depending on what you are reading!  My affinity for dogs and animals started at an early age when I refused to go down for a nap unless I was sleeping curled up in the belly of our Collie, Blaze.  There were always multiple pets in my household, both dogs and cats.  When I was old enough to go to school that’s when I found out that I have secret animal radar!  Every loose or stray dog and cat followed me home.

By the time I was 12, I’d rescued a lot of animals and replaced lost dogs and cats to their rightful owners.  One day, I was walking home from school by the lake and I saw a man throw two squirming trash bags into the water.  It was the middle of winter but that didn’t stop me from wading in and pulling the plastic bags out.  I also had the wherewithal to write down the man’s license plate number.  Inside the squirming bags was a mama dog — some kind of spaniel — and her four adorable pups.  My parents helped me contact the police and give the license plate number.  I was a big hero with my picture in the paper but best of all, I got to keep one of the pups.  Evidently the daddy was a poodle and the dog, whom I named Bickford Dellvechio or Bicky for short, turned into a lap dog devoted to my Mom.

I wanted big– I wanted labrador!  My wish was granted at my 16th birthday with a trip to the pound (we didn’t call it an animal rescue or shelter back then) and a beautiful, shiny lab whom I promptly named Boo Boo (and my father secretly named Big Rose).  Boo Boo was an awesome dog and probably should have received a college diploma as she attended as many classes as I did!  She was one of the smartest labs I have ever had.  She could open doors, unlock gates, do many tricks including opening the refrigerator door!  I just couldn’t quite teach her how to open a beer!  Everyday during football season, we’d walk from our student slum apartment off of West Pensacola Road in Tallahassee up to the football training field.  Almost everyday, Bobby Bowden would come over, pet Boo Boo on the head and say, “That’s a fine looking dog you have there Missy!”  After college, Boo Boo stayed on with my roommate’s family as I had moved to the big city of Washington DC in a no pets allowed rental.

it would be four years before I would have another animal. My roommate and I were young professionals working many hours and still trying to have a social life.  One day as we were bringing in groceries to our Brownstone in Capital Hill, a very pregnant cat walked into the house and made herself at home.  It was cold out and she looked like she was going to pop any minute. So she became Phoebe (I seem to like that name) and we were soon a cat household with five kitties — mama and four babies.  Phoebe would take her babies everyday and put them in the big picture window in our front living room where they could get the benefit of the sun shining into the house.  Neighbors used see Phoebe carrying out this unusual ritual.  One morning, we opened the front door to leave for work and there was a little baby orang kitten who couldn’t have been more than a day old.  We took him to Phoebe and she immediately began to care for him and allowed him to nurse.  He was about four weeks younger than the rest of the litter.  We were able to find homes for all but decided we would each keep one — two boys so we thought.  We had a short-haired tiger with a striped tail and a mask around his eyes named Coon and a plump, fluffy grey kitten I named Sid Vicious.  We soon found out from the vet that Sid Vicious was a girl!  So she became Sidley Anne.

A few years later when I left Washington DC and my roommate we kept Coon and Sidley Anne together.  My roommate decided she had enough of DC too and moved to the mountains in New Mexico with the kitty siblings.  I moved to New York/New Jersey area to be with my then boyfriend (now husband for 19 years).

Update:  Most of you all know I lost Andy to a car accident in January 2016.  On September 3rd we would have been married for 24 years.  It’s been a difficult journey after his death 

I longed for a pet of my own and started volunteering at the Bergen Countyanimal shelter in New Jersey.  I really had my heart set on another lab and missed Boo Boo terribly.  We lived in an apartment in Hoboken, NJ that had two different dog parks.  Our landlords were dog lovers themselves and had given us permission to get a dog.  One day a man came in with a purebred chocolate Labrador retriever.  I was his intake person.  He had a total of three labs, two males and a female, and he had been breeding them.  But now he had a toddler in the house and the dogs were fighting over the female so he wanted to get rid of at least one.

Duke was a handsome hulk of a dog but did not have any leash manners and I could barely hold him.  Knowing my husband had no dog experience and that we were going to require at least two outings a day to the dog park, I asked if the female was as powerful as this guy.  He said no and he was willing to give her to me instead of this guy if I wanted to follow him home .  Of course I did and as soon as my eyes met this dog’s eyes we both felt as if we’d come home.  She ran past her owners (her name was Duchess at the time and the other choco lab was Duke her brother) and lept into my arms.  She was coming home with me.  And luckily my fiance agreed!

That was more than 20 years ago and my household has not been without at least one dog, usually multiple dogs and other pets.  We’ve fostered animals, found animals and kept animals we’ve found.  I have a 14-year old red-eared slider that I saved from getting run over when he was just a baby with an egg tooth.  Red-eared sliders, by the way, are not indigenous to Georgia but that’s another story.

Update:  technically I’m the proud guardian of six terrific dogs — my old ladies, Phoebe, Bailey and Sophie and my young “guns” Oscar, Bubba and Hunter.  Because of fostering, clients, and acquisitions made by my adoptive daughter Mel,  The Litt Palace of Puppy Love has had as many as 10 dogs!  Something we can do in a pinch but not how we would like to live.  

Oscar was a foster dog that I had for over a year.  He’s got some issues for sure but he’s extra special because the last anniversary that Andy and I celebrated, Oscar was my 22nd anniversary present and the last present from Andy.  Bubba came a few weeks after Andy’s death and from the moment I met that little puppy/baby/monkey face, I knew he was my soul dog, my heart dog. Hunter was a client but when his owners couldn’t handle the 7-month old Vizsla pup AND four human children under the age of seven, I couldn’t resist keeping him.  He’s in training right now to help me out as an emotional support animal and eventually as a service dog for some severe anxiety issues I have.

Mel adopted her own dog Beau and Phoebe has defected to the MelPPL.  

In March 2013 I finally opened my business Kasey’s Kritter Keepers, www.kritterkeepers.com.  I specialize in pet sitting, dog walking, training and pet photography.  I continue to enjoy volunteering or animal rescues and am now attending dog training school with CATCH Canine Academy.  My goal is to open an indoor activity/training center specializing in Doggie X games like Agility, Dock Diving, Flyball, Treibball, and nose work classes to name a few.  I want my center to be a place the entire family comes to play with their dogs

Update:  I graduated from CATCH, added training to my Kritter Keepers services.  This spring, I tested for and achieved my CPDT-KA and my CPACP.  In Fall of 2017 we will be opening Kritter Keepers Club where a dog can be a dog and we focus on a curriculum of dog sports and activities.

 

Life is full!  Life is good!  Life is dogs!

Rescue, Breeder or Both?

This is a very tough question because I’m personally involved in rescue but my love of dogs and the individual breeds makes me also a prime candidate for a pure bred.  The truth is I have both.  My two pure breeds (a lab and a vizsla) are rescues of a sort as the families that owned them couldn’t deal with or handle them.  So Lesson One is that there are sometimes pure breed dogs available at your rescue.  At Mostly Mutts, we’ve had Shelties, Boxers, Pomeranians, Great Danes, English Bulldogs, Chihuahuas, Pugs, Shih Tzus, Beagles, Lhasa Apsos, Poodles, Miniature Pinschers and the list goes on.

But most of those dogs were not puppies so what do you do when you want to get your pure breed puppy?  Lesson Two is that if you want a pure breed, do your homework and find a reputable breeder.  So today, I’d like to talk about what to look for in a reputable breeder.  In my profession, I see a lot of puppies that are in homes because someone walked by a pet store window and knowing nothing about the breed but spying this little package of puppy goodness, they had to have it.  Getting a puppy is not an impulse buy! Here are the Kritter Keeper’s rules for getting the right puppy for your family.

1.  Research the breeds and what the right fit is for you and your lifestyle.  If you like to lie on the couch all day then you should not an Australian Shepherd as Aussies like to work all day running around and herding everything!  Maybe look at one of the less active companion breeds like a Chihuahua or Brussels Griffon.  If you are looking for a larger dog, believe it or not Greyhounds are big couch potatoes or something giant like a Great Dane or Mastiff.
2. Research the breeder.  I would prefer to work with a breeder that is acknowledged by the AKC and fits their standards.  There is a laundry list of things I want from the breeder.
   • Certificate of Health — I want to know that some of the genetic things that a breed is prone to are not in the genes of her line.  For instance, hip dysplasia in a German Shepherd or blindness in a Dalmation.  To know what health risks a breed is known for see #1 on this list.
   • Home visit with at least Mom if not Mom and Dad on site.  I want to make sure I am not supporting puppy mills so I’m going to want to see what environment my puppy is growing up in and I want to check the temperament of Mom and Dad.  I  want to see the puppies before I choose and how they interact with the rest of the litter and the parents.  I also want to make sure that the breeder is providing an interactive experience for the puppies to help them with their cognitive functions.
3. Understand the genetic lines of the dog — maybe the breeder has more of a show dog line versus a pet dog line.  If you aren’t going to show then perhaps you would be better suited to a pet dog line.

Whether you get your new puppy from a rescue or from a reputable breeder, enjoy all the puppy kisses!

 

What does CPDT-KA Mean?

In my field of pet services there are not any hard and fast rules as to who can put out their shingle advertising their services as a dog trainer.  Sometimes you luck into finding a wonderful trainer who has read everything under the sun, has many years of experience and has a wonderful rapport with the animals.  And sometimes you find a “trainer” who taught her own dog to sit so therefore she’s a dog trainer. So I became a Certified Professional Dog Trainer – Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA).

Since there is no legal standard, the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT) was established in 2001.  The CCPDT is the leading independent certifying organization for the dog training profession. The CCPDT is the leader in the development of rigorous exams to demonstrate mastery of humane, science-based dog training practices. Thousands of dog training professionals worldwide maintain the CCPDT’s certifications as a mark of high professional distinction.

Before I could even sit for the test, I had to prove I had the following qualifications:

• A minimum of 300 hours’ experience in dog training within the last 3 years.
• Provide a signed attestation statement from a CCPDT certificant or a veterinarian

The last requirement was to sign the CCPDT’s Code of Ethics.  This, to me, was one of the most important pieces of becoming a CPDT-KA.

A certificant of the CCPDT pledges to abide by the following:

1. To operate as a certificant without discrimination on the basis of race, color, ethnicity, national origin, gender, disability, physical limitation, marital or familial status, sexual orientation, religion, or political beliefs.
2. To assist clients in establishing humane, realistic, training and behavior goals in accordance with the CCPDT Humane Hierarchy Position Statement.
3. To understand and fully comply with the CCPDT Training and Behavior Practices Policy.
4. To use training and behavior modification methods based on accurate scientific research, emphasizing positive relationships between people and dogs and using positive reinforcement-based techniques to the maximum extent possible.
5. To always provide for the safety of clients and animals in training programs and behavior consultations.
6. To act with honesty and integrity toward clients, respecting their legitimate training and behavior goals and the autonomy of their choices, provided they conform to societal and legal standards of humane treatment for their pet.
7. To refrain from public defamation of colleagues, respecting their right to establish and follow their own principles of conduct, provided those principles are ethical and humane according to the CCPDT Humane Hierarchy Position Statement.
8. To provide truthful advertising and representations concerning certificant qualifications, experience, performance of services, pricing of services and expected results; to provide full disclosure of potential conflicts of interest to clients and other professionals.
9. To refrain from providing guarantees regarding the specific outcome of training.
10. To use properly authorized logos and credentials provided by the CCPDT when marketing in print or electronic media.
11. To obtain written informed consent from any client prior to photographing, video or audio recording a dog training session.
12. To work within the professional boundaries of the CCPDT certifications and individual expertise and refrain from providing diagnosis, advice, or recommendations in areas of veterinary medicine or family counseling unless certified to do so. This does not preclude referring the client to a veterinary or behavior consulting professional.
13. To maintain and respect the confidentiality of all information obtained from clients in the course of business; to refrain from disclosure of information about clients or their pets to others without the client’s explicit consent, except as required by law.
14. To be aware of and comply with applicable laws, regulations, and ethical standards governing professional practices, treatment of animals (including cases of neglect or abuse), and reporting of dog bites in the state/province/country when interacting with the public and when providing dog training or behavior consulting services.
15. To keep accurate and complete records of clients, their animals and the training and behavior services provided; to ensure secure storage and, when appropriate, confidential disposal of such records.
16. To continue professional development as required for maintaining the CCPDT credentials in accordance with the policies of the CCPDT.
17. To refrain from making material misrepresentations as part of the application for certification or recertification.
18. To maintain and respect the confidentiality and security of the contents of any and all certification examinations of the CCPDT including, but not limited to, refraining from: stealing portions of, or the entire, examination(s); removing written examination materials from a test or meeting site without authorization; reproducing and/or disseminating examination materials without authorization; using paid test takers for the purpose of reconstructing an examination; using improperly obtained test questions to prepare person(s) for the examination; cheating during an examination; impersonating an examinee or having an impersonator take an examination.

If you are looking for a dog trainer in your area and you can’t come to see me please go to the CCPDT website to find a certified dog trainer in your area!

 

The Pros and Cons of Board and Trains

As much as I like to portray a gruff personality, the truth is I can’t say no, especially when it comes to animals.  Opening Kritter Keepers Club is a dream come true for me because it will allow me to say, “Yes!” more.

I’m saying yes to board and trains where I can exclusively work with a dog 5-7 times during the day at their lessons. Board and trains are great for learning basic obedience, housetraining, puppy basics but I don’t feel like they are good for extensive behavior modifications for aggressive or fearful dogs.

Lately, those are the clients that want a board and train. Depending on the dog’s triggers, being in a strange environment can send him over the edge. When a dog shuts down there is not a whole lot of learning going on and what can happen is the opposite of what trainer and owner really want — now the dog’s fears are associated with a facility or the trainer or the method of training. Then there’s what happens when the dog gets home…

We are always learning more and more about how our animals learn and retain information which is a great boon for the dog training world.  Misconceptions about fear-based or aversive training can be argued against using data from studies rather than emotions.  So what we do know is that consistency is key so when a dog returns home from a board and train it is essential that the humans are trained as well as the dog is!

Everyone should be using the same verbal cues, same visual cues.  A dog’s humans should practice these newly gained behaviors all over the house.  And don’t forget the rewards!  If you want to get a dog to continue to do these behaviors rewards are a must!

At Kritter Keepers Club, we will offer board and trains in our dog-sports oriented facility. To help facilitate the transition to the family environment, we will have different Kritter Keepers working with your dog and we will proof each behavior.

Board and trains are not inexpensive so before you sign up, make sure you understand what you are getting.  You should not only understand how much one-on-one training your dog is getting but how much time he’ll be alone, how much time will be dedicated to teaching the humans and and how long you have to follow up with the trainer if issues occur.  Your board and train trainer should be able to provide you with a schedule of what your dog is learning and that should coordinate with the skills you are trying to build with your pup.

Make sure you get all the info you need and make the best decision you can!

A Full House at the Litt Palace of Puppy Love!

 

Mike and Carol Brady have nothing on me.  I am up to the same number of kids the Brady’s had plus a few others longer and shorter term guests.  In other words, there’s no room at the inn!

We’ve now divided my home into the LPPL and the MelPPL — my roommate and adopted adopted daughter Mel’s space.  I also have to report that although technically I own six dogs on paper, one of them, my soon-to-be 13 year old lab, Phoebe, has defected from the LPPL and hangs out in the MelPPL.  So here’s the LPPL line up:

Oscar!

Bubba!

Sophie!

The baby, Hunter now known as Topher

Bailey (Bai Bai)!

Phoebe! Defector to the MelPPL

 

On the MelPPL level we have her guy Beauregard Lee, adopted from Mostly Mutts and came to us via a hoarding case in NW Alabama.  We also have Lucy, a beautiful shepherd mix who has been staying with us while her family gets adjusted to live in South Carolina.  And then there is the defector Phoebe.

Lucy is a short term tenant!

Beauregard Lee is missing color pigment around his right pupil.

Phoebe! Defector to the MelPPL

 

There are some adjustments that need to be made.  We use a lot more crates now!  Because of temperament we do keep some separation when the humans aren’t home to supervise.  I do not recommend this living environment for the faint of heart!  You’ve got to be very dedicated to keep everyone and everything clean, happy and loved!  But, what they give back to us is worth the hard work.

Where Have I Been? Eating Ice Cream!

Is the Litt Palace of Puppy Love closed?  Not at all…but things certainly have changed for us.  I’ve taken time out of the blog world to lick my wounds and get back to a manageable mental status after the death of my husband.  I was (and still am) the move forward and ask for forgiveness later person.  He was the guy that researched everything before making a move.  We were a good combo together.  But now I feel like I did when I first moved out of my parents home.

Remember the first time you had that dirty little pleasure of eating ice cream before dinner…or better yet eating ice cream as dinner?  And guess what? There was no one to tell you that is not right.  You were your own boss and you could do whatever you wanted.

I had my share of ice cream for dinner this past year…several puppy fosters of really difficult puppies and finally found their forever homes.  I also adopted a puppy who has become my heart and soul, Bubba.  Bubba is the ice cream, the hot fudge and the cherry on top!

From a business perspective, you may recall I compromised with my husband and was going to take a job out in Kanab, UT with Best Friends as a trainer in Dogtown.  I was very excited about the opportunity to work for this great organization but I really wanted to open my own training center.  Andy knew me as a great technical consultant (I was an IT consultant for 15 years of our 22-year marriage), but he just couldn’t see me giving up that career to run my own business so our compromise was to work for a few years at a non-profit as a trainer and then open my business with that experience under my belt.

Well, needless to say, I couldn’t leave my framily in GA after his death — I needed all the support I could get living on my own.  So I focused on expanding Kritter Keepers. We now have two great Kritter Keepers in addition to myself – Jessica and Mel.  Angela has joined the team and will be working on marketing and other business-y stuff.  The biggest thing for Kritter Keepers is that we’ve purchased a property and are working to make our dream come true of having a dog sports – oriented training center, doggie daycare and boarding facility.  We are converting a human daycare. Designs have been finalized and we are hoping to start the remodel very soon.  That has to be a banana split for dinner!  It is both the scariest and the most exciting move I’ve made in my career.  I believe in myself and I know that Kritter Keepers Club will be a success!

I also bought a brand-spanking-new, six-miles on the odometer, Chevy Colorado.  This is a two scoops of the fudgiest, most indulgent ice-cream ever.  Andy didn’t think a pick up was practical especially for a girl!  And he hated General Motors because they cancelled our GM reward card when we built our first house — not because we didn’t use and pay promptly but because we had too many credit inquiries (first home buys suck up credit report scores due to the number of inquiries!).  He never forgave and forbid anyone in our family from purchasing GM products.  So this is a first for me and I LOVE my truck.  It is the perfect vehicle to express my personality!

The year has not just been about eating ice cream for dinner.  It’s been emotional and really could have been so easy to fall down that rabbit hole of depression.  I think being a little naughty and rebellious helped me.  When Andy and I used to argue, my favorite thing to fight back with was the “You’re not my father!” battle cry of the rebel-without-a-clue that I am!  So each little step forward, each scoop of ice cream, is not without an internal conversation with Andy. In his own way, I think he would be proud of what I’ve done this year even if he didn’t agree with some of events.