K9 Conservationists

By Kayla FrattScience Natural Sciences

K9 Conservationists episodes

June 29, 2021Hierarchy of Behavior Change for Working Dogs with Dr. Susan Friedman
Today I have the joy of talking to Dr. Susan Friedman about the hierarchy of behavior change for dog training. This is so central to what we do - ensuring that our dogs are excellent at the work they do while maintaining the highest quality of life possible for them.
I am SO excited to get to this interview, but first I have to remind you all that our field vehicle repair fundraiser is ongoing. As I record, the van is getting repairs for several damaged cylinders as well as fuel injectors - costs will total around $16,000. Find that link in the show notes on K9Conservationists.org.
Patreon plug but no reviews.
Dr. Friedman intro

What is the hierarchy of behavior change?

What drove you to outline it?

How can we use this in working dog areas?

Why does it matter?

How do you address questions about efficacy, especially with working animals?

Can this actually enhance the quality of work that our dogs do, aside from just enhancing their quality of life?
Thank you so much for listening. I hope you learned a lot and are feeling inspired to get outside and be a K9 Conservationist in whatever way suits your passions and skill set. You can find show notes and extra information on this episode at K9Conservationists.org and support our field vehicle repairs at our GoFundMe page. Until next time!
Show Notes Here
In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla and Dr. Susan Friedman discuss the hierarchy of behavior change with dogs. They discuss what it is and why it matters!
What is the hierarchy of behavior change?
Hierarchy of Behavior Change Outline

Why does it matter?
It creates an effective outcome with the interventions being as unintrusive as possible to the learner.

Can this actually enhance the quality of work that our dogs do, aside from just enhancing their quality of life?
Short answer; YES! An enhancement in quality of life will lead to an enhancement in quality of every aspect in their like, including quality of work.
Links Mentioned in the Episode:

The Hierarchy & Trainer Skills
Effectiveness is Not Enough: this is a PDF on BehaviorWorks, just Google the phrase and you'll find it. We can't link it.
Where to find Dr. Susan Friedman:
Behavior Works
You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.
K9 Conservationists WebsiteGo Fund Me
1 hr 5 min
June 15, 2021Using Dogs to Count Critically Endangered African Rabbits with Esther Matthew
Today I have the joy of talking to Esther Matthew about training conservation dogs for a critically endangered South African lagomorph: the riverine rabbit.
Questions answered by Ester: :
What was the goal of this study?

What other measures had been attempted?

Why did you have to use roadkill?

How did you measure specificity?

Can you describe the 3 phases of the study?

Some other trainers hesitate to use off-target species in proofing for training, which always seemed odd to me. You decided to use negative targets in training here. Can you explain why and what results you got?

You didn’t reward on unconfirmed hides. Did you do any training to help prepare the dog for the variable reinforcement? How did the dog respond?
Where to find Esther Matthew:
Youtube: Jessie’s Story
Facebook: Jessie the Border collie
Instagram: jessiethebc | estherexplorer
You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.
K9 Conservationists Website
Go Fund Me
40 min
June 01, 2021Muzzling for Wildlife Safety with Michael Shikashio
In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla and Michael Shikashio from The Bitey End of the Dog discuss muzzling. They cover why conservation detection dogs might need muzzles and the best way to acclimate your dog to wearing one.
Why is a muzzle a good idea for a CDD based on their work?
Muzzles aren’t just for biting, they can also protect the dog from ingesting things they shouldn’t.
Types of muzzles and what sort is best for a working dog wearing it long-term
Three things to look for are comfort, safety (biting, ingesting things, etc.), and function of the dog’s normal behavior

Materials are important to consider
Leather

Biothane

Hard/soft plastic

Metal

Vinyl

Rubber

Consider the construction of the muzzle
Does it have a safety strap?
Brands to consider are:
Baskerville

Jafco

Dean & Tyler

Bumas (custom fit biothane)

Trust Your Dog
Introducing the muzzle/Acclimating a dog to muzzle for long term wear
Create positive associations

Take your time

Go at the dog’s pace

Use positive reinforcers with your muzzle to create positive associations

Gradually increase the time

Careful with dogs that resource guard

Break down the steps slowly with the straps

Once the muzzle is on, start moving and reinforce

Slow and steady wins the race

After acclimation, always work with your dog in a level they can tolerate

Set your dog up for success, especially while wearing the muzzle
Links Mentioned in the Episode:
Muzzle Up Project

Pre-muzzling handling prep

Muzzle training 101

How to feed a dog through a muzzle
Where to find Michael Shikashio:
Website
The Bitey End of the Dog
You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.
K9 Conservationists Website
Go Fund Me
44 min
May 18, 2021Sourcing Odor with Stacy Barnett
In this episode of K9 Conservationists, Kayla and Stacy Barnett discuss sourcing. They cover what sourcing is and all you need to know about sourcing and nosework.
Links Mentioned in the Episode
Fenzi Courses: Scent Theory & Dynamics, Introduction to Nosework, Nosework Games

Where to find Stacy Barnett:
Scentsabilities Nosework

You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.

K9 Conservationists Website

Go Fund Me
56 min
May 04, 2021Consent in Training
For the final episode of Canine Conversations before we transition fully to K9 Conservationists, we're talking about consent with Erin Jones. We cover what consent is, why it is important, and how you get - and maintain - a dog’s consent to participate in training or a behavior treatment plan.
Links Mentioned in the Episode
Genealogy of Obedience
Erin’s website, Instagram, and Facebook
You can support the K9 Conservationists Podcast by joining our Patreon at patreon.com/k9conservationists.
K9 Conservationists Website
Go Fund Me
1 hr 12 min
April 13, 2021 Introducing: K9 Conservationists
Hello and welcome to the K9 Conservationists Podcast!
We've got a new name! As our loyal listeners know, we recently lost my beloved cohost Ursa. After giving it a LOT of thought, I've decided to pivot the focus of this podcast. Rather than focusing broadly on dog behavior, the K9 Conservationists podcast will focus on the field of conservation detection dogs. We'll interview wildlife biologists, community scientists, dog behavior researchers, and handlers throughout this amazing field.
I hope that you decide to stick along for the ride. I plan to bring the same level of enthusiasm, nerdiness, and dog-centric thinking to this endeavor. I've got episodes in the works: on the humane hierarchy with Dr. Susan Friedman, the body language of scentwork with Steve White, a fascinating episode on combining thermal imaging and scent detection dogs, and SO MUCH MORE.
I really, truly want to thank all of our listeners for the support thus far. I dearly love Canine Conversations and will miss producing it, but my long-term career goals are firmly oriented towards conservation detection dog work. Journey Dog Training will still be here to provide support in the form of phone calls, courses, webinars, and free blogs, but more and more of MY time will focus on conservation detection dog work.
To that end, I'm thrilled to announce the launch of the K9 Conservationists nonprofit. We just filed for 501(c)3 status and hope that you'll continue supporting this podcast and the nonprofit through Patreon. This will help us cover the costs of not only this podcast, but also our new field vehicle that lets Barley, Niffler, and I do our important work. Once we've paid off the vehicle, supporters of the nonprofit can expect to help us offer subsidies on our consultant services. That will help us get involved in amazing projects that might not have been able to afford conservation detection dogs otherwise!
So with all those announcements out of the way, let's do a quick refresher. What the heck IS a conservation detection dog? How do you get involved? What's the work like? How do you select a dog for this work? We'll cover all of this in much more detail going forward, but I'll get the basics out of the way here.
https://www.gofundme.com/f/fund-the-k9-conservationists-field-vehicle-repair?utm_source=customer&utm_medium=copy_link_all&utm_campaign=p_cp+share-sheet
28 min
April 11, 2021 61. Goodbyes and Hot Takes
Ursa is leaving the podcast for new and exciting endeavors. But before she goes, we're tackling a Patreon question and another round of HOT TAKES!
Patron Question Answered:

“In episode 34 you talked about using chasing squirrels as a reward for your dogs. Kayla said this made Barely more desperately want to chase squirrels but Marissa said this made Sully’s desire to chase squirrels go down. My dog is veryyyyy excited about squirrels and it is one of the things I’ve been trying to teach her to not lose her doggy mind over since she does not listen to me at all if she sees a squirrel. So basically, would using chasing squirrels as a reward for her impulse control or checking in with me help or with any other dog with a high prey drive? Or do you think any dog who is already extremely excited about squirrels have a reaction similar to Barely? Thanks!”
Hot Takes Answered:

Using dogs in a way that put them in harm's way (ie military and police dogs, livestock guardian dogs)
Training dogs to bite and latch instead of tackle
Rough play with humans
Which is better? Board and Train or Owner Train
Limiting shelter dogs and regulating breeders
1 hr 25 min
March 31, 2021 Shaping vs. Cueing with Hannah Brannigan
Today we’re talking to Hannah Branigan about cueing versus shaping in your training sessions. Now this might sound a bit nerdy - and it probably will be - but it’s actually really important for novice trainers! I know I personally got stuck on this a lot when I was starting out as a new trainer. And Hannah is EXACTLY who I wanted to talk to about this topic.
Hannah is the host of Drinking from the Toilet, one of my favorite training podcasts. She’s also the author of Awesome Obedience and its accompanying field guide. She teaches at Fenzi Dog Sports Academy and runs Wonderpups training. Hannah has a real skill for breaking down training into teenie tiny increments and creating clean loops of training. It’s one of the things I admire about her most.
1 hr 17 min
March 16, 2021 Ep. 60: Life Updates and Hot Takes Part 3
Kayla and Ursa provide updates on their life and play another quick round of hot takes.
They take turns pulling a topic from a hat, then they have 3 minutes to give their thoughts on it – then the other person has 2 minutes to add their thoughts.
Hot takes covered:
Praise based training
Head collars
Vibration collars
1 hr
March 02, 2021 Ep. 59: Conservation Training with Ken Ramirez
Discussed in this episode:
Creating plans for non-trainer dog handlers
Working with clients vs working with conservation problems
Elephant migration
Chimpanzee project
Remote conservation vs captive conservation
How to get involved with conservation training
Working with detection dogs
Using the “all clear procedure”
Maintaining enthusiasm in “no find” environments
Ensuring the learner has all their needs met
Putting the dog first
1 hr 10 min

About K9 Conservationists

From the publisher's feed

Welcome to the K9 Conservationists podcast, where we’re positively obsessed with conservation detection dogs! Join us every week as we discuss detection dogs, ecology, conservation, dog behavior, training, and much more.