GM News - October 2021

Our one-to-one lessons in public parks are back! And we're hopeful that Play+Train will be able to resume after 26 October (Victorian Government Roadmap, 70% of 16+ fully vaccinated: "Fully vaccinated up to 10 people outdoors").

We're almost there - Hang on :-)
Amanda, Rodna, David and Ruth
Gentle Modern School of Dog Training

Desexing

Many of you will have dogs of an age where you are considering desexing. There are a range of issues associated with the decision:
- whether to desex,
- at what age to do so,
- what method; surgical or non-surgical
Sarah Stremming in the most recent edition of her Cog-Dog Podcast, Spay/Neuter Considerations, hosts Dr Jessica Hekman, a Vet specialising in genetics and behaviour, for a discussion on all things related to desexing.

Ever pondered why some people like dogs and some people not so much?

Stanley Coren in Modern Dog Magazine recently reviewed research examining that issue, reporting
". . . genetics and environment play about equal roles in determining our affection for dogs and our desire to own one. . .

In other words, approximately half of the desire we feel to have a dog - or not - is influenced by our DNA. The other half is influenced by environmental factors, such as our personal histories or culture."
A significant study of Swedish twins ("The reason why the twin registry was so important is because the most powerful way to determine if a particular factor is influenced by genetics is to use twins.") headed by Tove Fall, a Professor of Molecular Epidemiology at the Department of Medical Sciences and the Science for Life Laboratory at Uppsala University, examined the genetic factor.
The full article by Stanley Coren is titled 'Why We Love Dogs'

Recipe - Sweet Potato Dog Chews

Top Tip
Unwanted Behaviour in the Dog Park

Back in the June edition of GM-News, we looked at general safety at the Dog Park. This time we're looking at 'bullying'.
In my experience, dog fights are relatively rare but bullying is reasonably common.
The term "bully has a very negative connotation but, as Steve Duno in Dog Park Bullies - How to recognize bullying at the dog park and what to do if your dog is targeted points out, "most [bully dogs] simply don’t possess the proper social skills needed to get along with other canines in an off-leash environment. A bullying dog doesn’t usually display overt aggression, but instead acts in an extremely pushy manner, with relentless jumping and nipping or incessant chasing and barking."
If your dog is bullied

Call your dog,
Wrap your arms around your dog, using your body as a block as appropriate (Note - this isn't a strategy to use if your dog is being attacked.)
Enlist the help of the pushy dog's person
Put your dog's lead on and move away

Is your dog bullying?

Train a reliable recall response and a “leave-it” so you can interrupt and redirect your dog when they are causing stress to another dog (We can help you with this.)
Off-lead time with dogs who don't have a compatible play style are situations ripe for bullying behaviour to come out. Focus on play-dates with pals who enjoy your dog.

And the absolutely critical thing in either scenario is your behaviour - keep your eyes on your dog in the dog park. In that way you can intervene before any interaction becomes tricky.

Reckon your dog has long ears?