One reason why celebrity dog trainers and other self-appointed “experts” are so quick to tell you what your dog is thinking or feeling is this: it’s difficult to prove them wrong.

As you may have noticed, dogs can’t communicate verbally.  So they’re never going to explicitly tell us what’s going on inside their heads.  Instead, when trying to determine what dogs are thinking or feeling, we’ve largely had to settle for the inexact science of observing their outward non-verbal behaviors and making quasi-logical inferences about what those behaviors suggest about their internal mental states. Read More

Perhaps you’ve heard a little Mexican-American fella with a meticulously coiffed goatee and rollerblades tell you that the three fundaments of successfully managing unwanted canine behaviors are “exercise, discipline, and affection — in that order.”

Well, if you’re reading this blog, chances are that you’re a bit more skeptical than the average bear.  If you’re anything like our authors, you’re not so inclined to accept the advice of self-styled “experts” without first understanding the evidentiary basis for their advice.

Maybe, despite his fame, success, and undeniable charm, you won’t blindly accept Mr. Millan’s opinion that exercise is a critical part of managing unwanted canine behaviors.  (If this is the case, you’re in pretty good company.  To say that the veterinary and animal behaviorist communities “have issues” with Mr. Millan is to grossly understate the severity of their criticism of him.  Check out these links, which are really just the tip of the iceberg on the subject.) Read More

For a doggie-centric lesson on why you shouldn’t always trust advice given by “experts” (be they of the self-appointed or certified variety), try this easy three-step exercise:

1.  Google “canine personality types”;

2.  Record the number of different (and inconsistent) canine personality-type paradigms that are discussed in just the top-three search results; and

3.  Record the total number of scientific studies cited in these results.

Depending on your personality type (see what I did there?), the results should either stagger you or induce uncontrollable laughter. Read More

You want to make your dog “happy,” right?

Of course you do.  Maybe you buy my argument that, due to the emotional bonds that you’ve developed to your dog, it’s in your self-interest to do so.  Or maybe you’ve got another justification.

And maybe you agree with me that most humans know precious little about how their dogs perceive and experience the world (i.e., whether their dogs are happy).  Or maybe you don’t.

But if you live with a dog — if you feed him, give him shelter, take him for walks, buy him toys, finance his expensive medical procedures, scratch his belly, and let him sleep in your bed — you’d have a hard time making the case that you simply don’t care about “making him happy.”

So here’s the $64,000 Question: What does that mean? Read More

"What the &%!? is going on?"

Your dog does not understand the concept of holidays. She doesn’t have any idea what all the seasonal decorations collected in your house are meant to represent (although she probably enjoys smelling all the fragrant trimmings).  She doesn’t know that a bunch of humans she rarely sees have gathered together for the purpose of celebrating their love for each other. She isn’t aware that her very presence at a holiday gathering is supposed to make her feel loved, safe, and socially-connected. Read More

Over a charming photograph of a squat English bulldog, the cover of the New York Times Magazine recently asked its readers “Can the Bulldog be Saved?”  The accompanying article was written by the immensely talented Benoit Denizet-Lewis and it reflects both the warmth and thoroughness which ordinarily characterize his journalism.

The New York Times Wants You To Save Your Bulldog, But From What?

    Working dogs serve modern society in a variety of diverse ways — as search and rescue operatives, as guards and protectors, as trackers, and as drovers, just to name a few.  We rely on them in these capacities and we have every interest in ensuring that they perform their duties to their full potential.  It should therefore come as little surprise that we have looked to modern science with increasing frequency in recent years to help working dogs and their handlers to optimize their performance.  
Read More