What is the Humane Hierarchy?

Addressing behavior from a professional lens means approaching change from a systematic and humane process. While you can read a little about my training philosophy on my Frequently Asked Questions and in this blog post, generally speaking when looking at behavior change I will recommend you review the Human Hierarchy of needs for your dog.

This structure emphasizes physical and mental welfare, and changing behavior by setting up successful interactions with positive reinforcement driving preferred behaviors. I am always cautious before including any behavior in a training plan that may exacerbate frustration or distress for your dog, and will work to avoid creating fallout and mistrust in your training program.

Guild Hall is a client portal within my website - you’ll find classes and events available only to past and present clients there, as well as discounts on certain future services. You’ll also find recommended outlets for your dog, including sports, events, and sniffspot information.

“Your Canine Community” is my client Facebook group - a spot where you can find folks also working on similar challenges with their dogs, ask questions and share resources.

Your google drive is available to you to reference your contract and contact and care form, make updates to your dog’s care information, upload vaccination records, as well as share videos and photos with questions or for feedback!

Parker had a lovely first week, and is absolutely a little bit of a scared, anxious pup. With dogs for whom fear is a factor, it is doubly important that reactivity work moves methodically and that they are able to first build their skills in a way that isn’t additionally emotional. I know this first handoff session was short, but I wanted to make sure that Parker wasn’t unnecessarily stressed on his way home. Next session we may want to plan on a drop off session so he can both work in his own neighborhood but also retreat home when he’s had enough!

Decompression is the first priority I want to emphasize with Parker. Since his reactions are varied and immediate, it is doubly important that he has a chance to spend time outdoors away from those triggers. This can mean a school field after hours (chain link fences collect smell and tend to be great spots for this!), mowed power lines, or Sniffspots with lots of space around them. Routine time without triggers can make an enormous difference for dogs with strong responses like Parker.

We focused on a few introductory skills over the week that we will continue to expand on and utilize throughout his next three weeks here. The first set are more stationary or acclimation behaviors:

• Food Scatters

• Up/Down (Offered Attention)

• Look At That

And the second set put behavior into motion

• Ready - Get It!

• This Way!

• 1-2-3

All of these behaviors can be practiced in the house or yard so Parker can start building up muscle memory for this. We spent most of our time this week introducing these behaviors indoors, and only started to bring them outside in the last two days. My recommendation is to always trail a step behind, so for the weekend focus on decompression opportunities and practicing behaviors indoors!

Please feel free to send videos and questions as you have them, and let me know how the weekend goes! Looking forward to seeing Parker back here on Monday morning!