A Mock Nose Work Trial

Yesterday was a beautiful day for nose work in the Pacific Northwest! It was an unseasonably warm day with a brilliant blue sky.  Pongo is getting ready for another nose work trial this Saturday.  He's hoping to earn his Nose Work 1 (NW1) Title from the National Association of Canine Scent Work (NACSW). They say the third time is a charm, right?

My friend Mary set up a mock trial at her house for us to practice.  If you've read other blogs, you'll remember that Mary and her dog Crosby are longstanding nose work friends who are part of a practice group we've established. Crosby earned his NW1 title in Sandy, Oregon in November.  See "Pongo's Second Nose Work 1 Trial" posted on November 9, 2014.  I noticed a pattern in Pongo's behavior at this trial. Pongo starts off highly distracted and seems to need more warm-up time than just the trial boxes that are set up outside in the parking lot at trials.  Both times Pongo has competed, he has failed the first element (different elements each time) and passed the final three.  There are always four elements in a NW1 Trial: boxes, interior search, exterior search and vehicle search.  Your dog must pass all four to earn a title.

Knowing Pongo's tendency to a slow start, Mary planned five blind searches for us.  Each one was timed according to NW1 element standards.  The first one was an indoor search to get him warmed up.  Pongo circled the room, and was clearly working intermittently, but gave up easily and began looking to me.  Mary gave us the 30 second warning, then Pongo found the hide just before the time ran out at three minutes.  It was hung in a bag underneath a corner table.  Pongo was showered with lots of praise and cut up pieces of chicken Dog Joy Treats made by Freshpet.  Positive reward is important in training dogs for nose work to maintain their motivation.

Interior search with distractions.

Next, we went outside for a 3-car vehicle search.  Pongo was focused and quickly found the hide.  Pongo and Crosby took turns searching.

Crosby alerts to a find hidden in the wheel.

After the vehicle hide, the boys did a box search in Mary's garage.  There were lots of distractors with filled garbage cans, a parked vehicle, and shelves of your run-of-the-mill items stored in garages.  Boxes is where Pongo typically excels.  He got his best time on this element, finishing in less than fifteen seconds.  Pongo gave me a clear alert by pawing the box with the odor.  I love it when he does this on boxes and wish he'd do it on all hides!  But Pongo's alert is different depending on the situation, putting more pressure on me to make sure I read him correctly.  This is a team sport after all! 

Next, the dogs did an interior search in the living room.  This search area was full of lots of distractors.  It had some of Crosby's toys, a dog bed, a throw blanket tossed on the couch, etc.  This one proved to be very difficult for Pongo and was the only one he didn't find.  Mary hid the odor between the cushions and Pongo walked past multiple times without showing any signs of alerting to the odor.  But this is why we practice!  

Our practice session ended with an exterior search. Pongo found the odor hidden on a metal cat statue with plenty of time to spare.  What a fun day!  Many thanks to Mary for putting together a great practice session.  I'm so grateful for good friends.

    

       Pongo alerts on a metal cat statue.

Wish us luck! 

Happy trialing, Pongo!

Stay tuned for results this weekend.

Need for Mental Shift of Pet Ownership

A week ago, I was working with one of my sixth graders who is in our Deaf & Hard of Hearing program.  He has a cochlear implant and wears a hearing aid in the opposite ear.  We were using an app called Sentence Ninja where sentence parts are jumbled.  The student has to put the words in the correct order.  It is common for students with hearng loss to struggle with English word order and so I spend a great deal of time teaching sentence structure.  One of the sentences we encountered that day had the word "litter" in it.  My student easily put the words in the correct order, but when he signed the sentence to me, he used the sign "little."  Although the picture that went with the sentence showed trash spilling out of wastebasket, he had not understood the word litter.  It occurred to me that the words "little" and "litter" look exactly the same on the lips and would be indistinguishable to him.  In addition, ls and rs are phonetically very similar. 

After the student's session ended, I went to the internet to print out a set of minimal pair pictures to work with him the next time.  Minimal pairs are words which vary by only one sound and are often used in speech therapy.  I frequently use Google Images to create visuals for my students when we are working on unfamiliar vocabulary.  But photos on the internet can be dangerous.

Innocently, I typed in the word "litter." The first two pictures showed what most would typically call trash - fast food wrappers and cups, paper, etc. in an outdoor environment.  But the third picture made my stomach turn.  It was a photo of a dog on a beach with his head wrapped in pastic and duct tape.  I couldn't get away from that photo fast enough. Under "litter" was a whole subheading of "animals."  I couldn't look at it. My day turned from joy to despair.

The idea that dogs are commodities is all too prevalent in our society.  I hear more and more often of individuals who decide to breed dogs for the lure of money.  Many of these dogs are sold for hundreds of dollars when they are not papered and their lineage is unknown.  Dogs are kept in deplorable conditions for the purpose of breeding for money.  On the otherhand, other dogs are viewed as an accessory similar to a Coach handbag or Jimmy Choo shoes.  When the dog develops undesirable behaviors, it is disposed of (relinquished or euthanized) or traded in for a new one.

After I adopted Pongo, I became very interested in shelter animals. Why do so many people give up their dogs? I wondered.  As I began to do research for my book Rescuing Pongo, I looked for data that would answer my question.  I came across one article in The Journal of Applied Animal Welfare Science titled "Understanding Animal Companion Surplus in the United States: Relinquishment of Nonadoptables to Animal Shelters for Euthanasia."  Published in 2001 by a group of veterinarians who compiled their data via questionnaire at local animal shelters, the very title refers to animals as a commodity in economical terms.  While the largest percentage of people who relinquished their dogs for euthanasia cited "old age" as the reason, other reasons included aggression toward people or animals, disobedience, excessive vocalization, escape, fear toward people, destructiveness inside or outside the home, house soiling and hyperactivity (jumping on people). 

Sadly, most of these behaviors can be changed through education, exercise, and positive behavioral modification with a qualified trainer.  Living in a society of excess, we need to shift our thinking.  Pets are not a commodity that can be tossed out as trash. They are living beings with heart and soul. 

Rescued With Trust - Guest Blog by Heidi Steinbeck, CPDT-KA

A NOTE FROM EVA:  Here are some startling 2012 statistics.  According to www.statisticbrain.com, a website that publishes statistics and financials of organizations in the U.S, 5 million companion animals enter the shelter system annually.  60% of dogs and 70% of cats are euthanized.  Other sad statistics from another source include the fact that 20% of dogs relinquished to a shelter were adopted from a shelter. Reasons for return are most often due to dog behaviors that the owner doesn't like or can't deal with.  

Education about dog behavior and training is essential to change these dire statistics.  This is an issue very close to my heart.  It is essential that we stop looking at dogs as disposable. 

With this in mind, I asked Heidi Steinbeck, CPDT-KA, to share her thoughts on rescue dogs and the importance of using positive training techniques.  Heidi is the owner/trainer of Great Shakes Dog Training, educated to train dogs through Jean Donaldson’s Academy of Dog Trainers and serves the areas of Gig Harbor, Tacoma and Port Orchard.

Rescued with Trust

By Heidi Steinbeck, CPDT-KA

Training dogs cooperatively and compassionately is currently accepted as modern dog training.  It is  

backed up with a pile of well done research and successful training for all manner of dogs by those skilled in positive reinforcement.  These methods are not new but change is slow as molasses to humans because of emotion, past investment and belief systems among other reasons.  I am wanting to put that statement out in front of the rest of this blog because all dogs can and should be taught without coercion.  These humane training methods are increasingly being adopted by zoos, pet dog trainers, police, Schutzhund and hunting dog trainers and more resulting in dogs that are more emotionally stable and enjoy the learning process.

Now let us talk about rescued dogs which may include those gathered in raids from hoarders and puppy mills, strays, feral, or surrenders.  Many have had to find ways to survive in unhealthy and dangerous environments, many have never seen the light of day or the interior walls of a home.  Some have been reared like chickens in cages or lived a whole life on the end of a chain, while others had the comforts of a home they thought was their own only to be discarded and left confused in a shelter.  So many wonderful rescue organizations are working tirelessly to get these lives into the more “normal” environments of foster or forever homes to reduce the greater trauma of prison life that is riddled with stress and for many or most, resulting in death.  Many of these canine individuals have been trying to eke out a living on their own, learning that humans and new things may be dangerous to their survival.  Whatever the case may be, they come to their adoptive homes quite often with varying levels of fear, stress, PTSD, health and behavioral problems and gaps in their learning.  

 Now let’s get back to my first paragraph.  Why-oh-why would  anyone choose to interact with these fragile souls using efforts other than those which will instill trust and reduce fear?  I ask myself this question over and over again.  I can’t nail it down except to say that unlike our forced acceptance to advancements in technological science, we are resistant to adopt advancements in learning science.  There is no greater urgency for non-coercive training for any life, be it a puppy, happy adult dog or a stressed out rescue dog.

Any dog can be brought to fear through the process of abandonment, horrid life beginnings, dubious genetic offerings, maternal stress or by just plain scaring or hurting them to get the sought after behavior.  As for humans, most of us equipped with the ability for empathy, the question of why we don’t employ compassionate methods that are readily available and effective is unfathomable to me.

Our dogs are great at camouflaging true emotions.  It is not in their best interest to “show” their fear, since in the wild this would make them easy pickings for predators.  What is often seen is aggression, not the fear kindling underneath or their avoidance in an effort to disappear.  Another way to gain respite from terror is to not do the thing that causes it to happen.  In science this is called behavioral suppression and is quite effective for the dog when trying to avoid the choke, prong or shock of a collar, getting yelled at, hit or being forcibly rolled and pinned on the side.  Looking guilty has also been a great get-out-of dodge maneuver for many as it often keeps the giver of bad things from giving the bad things, even if the dog didn’t doing anything about which to feel guilty in the first place.  When re-habilitating our canine friends, previously reared coercively, it can be a task just to get them to offer a new behavior.  In their minds they weigh the odds of success and failure and frequently offer nothing as this may be the safest choice.  The behavior of an adopted dog may be suppressed for the first month or two before you start see the real personality emerge.  Sometimes what you see are just more of the behaviors that you have been inadvertently reinforcing during that period or other behaviors that could be of greater concern.  What is important is to recognize a dog that is behaviorally “in trouble” and to seek the immediate help of a trainer skilled in modifying behavior without the use of force.  An investment early on can save a life.    

We also assert, beyond any shadow of doubt, the contribution to learning suppression by way of brain chemistry.  It is not disputed by anyone who knows behavioral science and any research article known to neuro-chemistry that during chronic stress our brains prepare us for mere survival and produce a marinade that allows for fight or flight and not much else.  So let me put this in human terms.  If I walk to my car and out of the dark I am suddenly grabbed and held by sinewy heartless hands at knife point with the cold, sharp metal pressing firmly into my quickly pulsating carotid artery, I can assure you I will not be able to answer the question, what is 9x8?  My brain will be too busy preparing for survival and cannot be bothered by silly questions.  If a dog lives this way, day after day, week after week, month after month or year after wretched year must I then explain to anyone why new learning is a struggle without first addressing the underlying issue of chronic stress?  This is a repeating saga in the lives of rescued dogs as well as dogs reared with fear.  The stress is already there, we do not have to add any deposits into that stress account.  In this scenario we must make withdrawals and transfer funds, instead, into the trust account.  Then with regular deposits, the stress account becomes more depleted and the trust account begins to yield dividends in the form of a dog who isn’t waiting for the next shoe to drop, isn’t as afraid to encounter new things or people, isn’t paralyzed when trying out a new behavior and can rest in a more peaceful state.

So, just as we would be with one another, let us be with all dogs.  Let’s teach rather than force what they will benefit from learning in order for them to live with us in our human world more comfortably and cooperatively.  As we become better educated and better consumers, we will, I’m sure, drum out the old coercive methods and lobby for the safety and wellbeing of our charges.  Do it without force, without fear and without pain.

All of the photographs in this post are of dogs who were rescued by force free trainers.  The two dogs above are Lilly and Ringo.  The stories of Hazel and Bernie, written by their owners, are below.

Hazel was surrendered because her owners could not afford on-going treatment for her mange.

She caught the eye of a few volunteers who were drawn to her because of her sad disposition. Believing that she would not make it out of the shelter without foster care, a volunteer reached out to my husband and I and we went to meet her on May 9th. We brought her into foster car the following day. Hazel spent several weeks healing from her mange, secondary skin infections and an upper respiratory infection. Once she had healed, we began working on training and officially listed her for adoption.

  

 Hazel was adopted for one week and returned to us. At that point, we decided that she would stay with us, as we had deeply bonded with her. Since that time, Hazel has proven to us how amazing she is time and again. Reward-based training has turned this once sad, scared little girl into a superstar whose ability to learn and to make us smile never ceases to amaze us!

 

 Bernie was left in a house when people moved out, he was eight years old. His foster family told me that he had been alone for about 2 weeks. I went armed with turkey meat to pick Bernie up. Bernie

was very thin, and had flaky dry coat, he was timid, afraid of small dogs and cats, vacuums and apparently didn’t like water. He also seemed withdrawn and kind of sad.  Every time he approached me on our initial meeting he was given a nice helping of turkey. This helped him to warm up to me and he has followed me around ever since. Bernie has thrived in the 3 years he has been with us, his coat is stunning and he is always, always happy. He has learned to trust people and is now good around small dogs and even sleeps when I vacuum.

  

 Heidi Steinbeck, CPDT-KA

Owner/Trainer of Great Shakes Dog Training

Nose Work in the Cold New Year

After ringing in the new year, Pongo had a nose work practice date with doggie friends Crosby, Lincoln and Daisy.  We met at Allan Yorke Park on a cold, Sunday morning.  The temperatures were in the low 30s and the ground was crisp with frost.  We tethered the dogs while we set up hides on the children's playground.

Pongo barks, "Let's get this show on the road!"

It was decided that Pongo should go first, since he was eager to get started.  There were seven or eight hides, all birch.  We had put out a combination of low and high hides, including some in the ground.  The odors were mostly hidden in metal, magnetic tins that we were able to attach to play equipment. But we also used some small, hollow, plastic stakes which hold your scented Q-tips and can be pushed directly into the ground.  Because it was a new search site for all of our dogs, we paired each of the hides with a treat. 

Pongo and I hadn't practiced in over a week and I was concerned that he might be a little rusty.  So I was amazed as he quickly located one hide after another.  We began to speculate:  does the scent pool stronger in the cold?  The answer is yes!  Air and scent molecules become more dense in cold temperatures, pooling in a higher concentration per square inch.  Here is a wonderful article that explains the science of scent in simple terms:  http://dogcare.dailypuppy.com/dogs-smell-scents-better-cold-4799.html.  Check it out for more info!

Crosby went next.  Crosby, who is about the same age as Pongo, has recently begun to lose his hearing.  While he used to do agility, he can no longer hear verbal commands.  His owner, Mary, started him in nose work last year as it does not rely on vocal trainer directions.  Crosby enthusiastically got right to work.  He, too, had quick success.

Crosby works scent on the ground.

 Crosby follows his nose up the stairs.

It was a wonderful way to start the new year with our dogs.  Though my friends and I are still novice nose work trainers, we are learning from our dogs each time we get together to practice.  Pongo and I look forward to more nose work in 2014.  Did Pongo make any New Year's resolutions?  Of course he did!  Pongo's goal is to start competing and earning titles this year.  But he's got to train mommy some more, who is still learning to read his signals. 

,

Wishing You All The Best With Your Canine Friend In 2014,

May Your Year Be Full Of Outdoor Exploration Together!

Pongo and Eva

Private Nose Work Lesson - Thunderstorms & Intro to Anise

Yesterday, we had our second private nose work lesson. We arrived early, as I had to drop off my daughter at school for summer band practice.  I parked about a half hour early at the training facility, then Pongo and I went for a walk for twenty minutes.  It is a general rule that you should always let your dog relieve themselves before begining nose work, but I also thought it would be good for Pongo to let some energy out. 

It has been raining off and on for much of the past week, but just as I put Pongo's harness on and was getting ready to start him on a search of boxes, we heard a big clap of thunder.  The training facility is an enormous building with high ceilings and feels more like a barn.  The rain that started was loud on what sounded like a metal roof. 

I gave him the search command hoping that if he could focus on nose work, maybe he would forget the thunder.  But Pongo only walked along the line of boxes, heeling at my side, panting.  He wasn't doing any sniffing.  There were a few more thunder claps and I tried treating him, telling him, "You're such a brave boy!" But he only pushed the treat away with his nose, a sign that he was too anxious to focus on anything else but the storm. 

"Oh, he's shaking," our trainer said.

We decided to stop and talk for a while.  I had brought my nose work log book and had written down some questions so I took this opportunity to ask them.   I learned:

1.  When working with odor in boxes, you don't want to treat directly on the box, or it contaminates the box with food odor.

2.  During a trial or an ORT, you can treat your dog.  So you should get in the habit of offering your dog a treat near, but in front of the box.

3. When hiding odor in a small cloth bag, also treat right next to the bag.

While we talked, I kept offering Pongo treats and telling him he was a brave boy.  Soon, he calmed down enough that he started accepting treats and so we decided to see if he could shift back to working.  To my surprise, he did!  He went back to work.  Our half-hour lesson went quickly.   Although we worked with birch the entire time, she sent me home with a bottle of anise, the second odor, for us to begin on our own.  I love the smell of anise.  It evokes wonderful memories of eating licorice from my childhood. 

This morning, I decided to start Pongo's introduction to anise.  Our trainer indicated that I should either pair it with food, or pair it with birch, since he is already recognizing that odor.  In competition, dogs don't have to distinguish BETWEEN odors, they only have to alert to the three odors taught.  Once your dog recognizes one odor, it is easy to introduce the others.

Here I put both birch and anise in a box marked "O" for odor so I can recognize which box has odor and I don't contaminate other boxes.  I've got the birch and anise Q-tips in separate containers, then they are also easy to take out and do hides without the boxes. 

Then I arranged a line of boxes along our hallway.  Pongo found the box every time!

Next, we worked without boxes in the living room.  I had him work birch in the purple bag, and anise in the plastic container, (not at the same time), placing them at different heights, and sometimes pairing them with food by placing a treat next to the bag or on top of the plastic lid. 

 

Here is the bag hanging from one of our side tables.  We are working on finding hides at or above Pongo's nose.  Last week when I tried hanging the bag from a door handle, it was too high, and Pongo wasn't getting it.  This is at his nose height and he easily found it. 

 

Today our challenge was that our orange kitty, Dewey, became interested in the game Pongo was playing.  He lay by the coffee table next to the couch, watching.  Although the odor was hidden at the end of the couch and Pongo had one clear path to it, he wouldn't sniff near Dewey.  Then Dewey started playing with the end of Pongo's leash (I had let it drop) and I had to untangle Dewey, who didn't want to let go. 

 

Rule of thumb for nose work:  remove all cat distractions!