Are dogs self-aware? Do they recognize themselves as individuals, distinct from others?Other Animals Have It: Although rather tricky topics of study, animal self-recognition, self-awareness and consciousness have been examined by scientists for decades. Animal consciousness is neither a new idea, nor is it a radical way of thinking. Lucky for us, we no longer live in the age … Continue reading Does this Smell Funny to You?
Canine Cognition
Do Dogs Have a Negativity Bias?
Negativity bias - We all suffer from it. This is the phenomenon in which we naturally pay more attention to and give more weight to negative information and experiences compared with those that are positive. It is this particular cognitive bias that causes us to be more hurt or discouraged by insults or criticism than we are … Continue reading Do Dogs Have a Negativity Bias?
Missing the Point
Dogs are talented observers of human body language. Dog folks attest to this via boatloads of anecdotal stories and home videos that we are happy to share (and over-share) with others. But more importantly for the purposes of The Science Dog, it is the results of an additional boatload of controlled research studies that support our belief that dogs are paying attention to us. … Continue reading Missing the Point
“Only Have Eyes for You: Exploring Canine Research with The Science Dog” – Kindle Edition Now Available!
The Kindle edition of "Only Have Eyes for You: Exploring Canine Research with The Science Dog" is now available! Click on the image below for more information and to order. Book description: In her second Science Dog book, Linda Case tackles commonly held beliefs about canine nutrition, pet foods, behavior, social cognition and training. Each of the book’s 32 … Continue reading “Only Have Eyes for You: Exploring Canine Research with The Science Dog” – Kindle Edition Now Available!
I Feel Your Pain
Many people who live with multiple dogs have had the pleasure of experiencing two dogs who become great friends. Call the relationship what you will - bonded pair, social partners, housemates, doggy pals - I personally prefer friends, but hey, tomato/tomato, agreed? Regardless of what you label it, it is without question that dogs are highly social, that they … Continue reading I Feel Your Pain
Just Show Me A Sign
Like many dog trainers, I use both verbal and gestural (hand) signals as cues with my dogs. With our students, we introduce both verbal and physical cues at the same time, but generally emphasize verbal signals because this is what most pet owners prefer to use with their dogs. All of our classes include instructions for … Continue reading Just Show Me A Sign
I Bow for Your Play
At AutumnGold we have an informal group of trainers and dog friends who get together regularly to do a bit of dog training, go for group walks, and give our dogs free time to play. During play time, we take care that the dogs who are loose together know one another well, are comfortable together and demonstrate … Continue reading I Bow for Your Play
The Inhibited Dog (Its not what you think)
We recently started a new Beginner class at my training school, a course designed for dogs who have had little or no previous training. Generally this class is composed of young dogs less than one year of age and a few older dogs who have been recently adopted from a shelter or rescue group. We … Continue reading The Inhibited Dog (Its not what you think)
Manners Minder and Me
In the previous essay, "Doggie See, Doggie Do?" I discussed research showing that dogs may be capable of learning new tasks simply by observing another dog being trained. I mentioned that when I work with my own dogs, I rotate among them by training each dog to perform a down/stay on the pause tables located on the side of our training … Continue reading Manners Minder and Me
Doggie See, Doggie Do?
At my training center, AutumnGold, it is not unusual to enroll students who live with and train more than one dog. A common question that these clients have is how to arrange their training sessions to allow them to train one dog while the other dog "waits his or her turn". In most of these cases, the student laments … Continue reading Doggie See, Doggie Do?
Do You Know What I Can See?
Chippy, our Toller, is a terrible food thief. (Of course, the use of the word terrible is one of perspective. Given his impressive success rate, Chippy would argue that he is actually a very good food thief). Chip has become so proficient at his food thievery that our dog friends all know to "keep eyes … Continue reading Do You Know What I Can See?
With a Little Help from My Friends
There is a large body of research showing that dogs are quite capable of noticing and responding to human communication cues such as body language, tone of voice, and various forms of pointing. Dogs also will initiate eye contact with people and respond to human gaze. We are well matched in this respect because humans, of course, use eye contact to communicate … Continue reading With a Little Help from My Friends
Only Have Eyes for You
Eye contact is one of the first things that I teach to my own dogs and is a basic behavior that we teach to all of our students at my training school, AutumnGold. In our training classes, we introduce eye contact very early because it is easy to teach and provides rapid and positive results to owners who are … Continue reading Only Have Eyes for You
The Science Dog 