GM News - May 2022

We're so pleased to have you as part of the Gentle Modern community - we haven't said that in a while, but it's always true :-)

This issue of GM-News is about Extremes: extreme behaviour, tallest, oldest, most popular . . .

Amanda, Rodna, David & Ruth
Gentle Modern School of Dog Training

Chasing Moving Objects an Obsession?

UnChase! online classes are designed to support and guide humans through a process to end unwanted canine chasing of livestock, vehicles, etc. UnChase! was developed by Alexis Davison who lives and does in-person work in South Australia.

Excessive Barking

A good overview of understanding excessive barking is provided by Dr. Melody R. Conklin in How to Train Your Dog Not to Bark Excessively Dr Conklin covers:
> Why Dogs Bark - Barking is completely normal (but intolerable to some people). Excessive barking can be a symptom of mental or physical issues.
and
> How to Train Your Dog Not to Bark Excessively - Spoiler Alert: First, define why your dog is barking.

Mental Deterioration

Canine Cognitive Dysfunction (CCD) in old dogs has similarities to Alzheimer's Disease in humans. In The Dogs Most Likely to Show Mental Decline with Age Stanley Coren reviews a study of over 15,000 dogs (based on data obtained from the US National Institute on Aging's nationwide longitudinal study on canine aging and mortality).
Key findings:

"At any given age, dogs that have a history of neurological eye or ear disorders were found to be approximately twice as likely to be classified as having CCD."
". . . intact dogs were 64% less likely to be classified as having CCD"
"dogs classified as terriers, toys or in the non-sporting group [as per American Kennel Club designation] were more than three times as likely to be diagnosed with Canine Cognitive Dysfunction compared to the other breed groupings."

Prevention:

"Norton Milgram of the University of Toronto has demonstrated that by keeping aging dogs mentally active (in his lab he uses Beagles), the effects of age-related mental deterioration on learning and problem-solving can be greatly slowed, or even reversed."
"among dogs of the same age, health status, breed type, and sterilization status the odds of showing Canine Cognitive Dysfunction were a startling 6.47 times higher in dogs that were not active, compared to those who were very active." Taking a walk with the associated physical exercise and mental exercise processing the sights, sounds and smells is an easy form of activity.

Most Popular

Pet Lovers Club reported on the most popular dog breeds in Australia:
1. Cavoodle [so far this year we've worked with 8]
2. French Bulldog [so far this year zero, last year 2]
3. Golden Retriever [so far this year we've worked with 8]
4. Labrador [so far this year we've worked with 8]
5. Border Collie [so far this year we've worked with 3]
6. Mini Dachshund [so far this year zero, last year 4]
7. German Shepherd [so far this year we've worked with 1]
8. Maltese Crosses [so far this year we've worked with 2]
9. Staffies [so far this year zero, last year 3]
10. Groodles [so far this year we've worked with 2]

Tallest, Oldest, Bravest

A 2-year-old male Great Dane has been deemed the tallest living dog in the world by Guinness World Records. Zeus stands 1.05 metres high.
Chihuahua, TobyKeith, from Florida, now holds the Guinness World Record for the oldest living dog: 21 years, 66 days on March 16, 2022.
Jack Russell, Patron (which means "ammo" in Ukrainian), is credited with detecting more than 200 undetonated explosive devices since the beginning of the war in Ukraine in late February.

Let us know if there are issues we can tackle in GM-News that are important to you.