Simplifying Shelter Behaviour

About this Episode

In this podcast episode, I’m Joined by Dot Baisly, Executive Director of the IAABC and all-round shelter expert, to discuss the critical topic of dog behaviour assessments. Dot and I explore the importance of accurately evaluating dogs to ensure their suitability for adoption and to enhance their chances of finding forever homes. The conversation delves into various assessment methods, highlighting both behavioural observations and environmental factors that can influence a dog's behaviour and how we can best collect and utilise this data. Assessments is one of the most discussed areas of shelter and rescue behaviour. This conversation serves as an introductory podcast episode, with further episodes coming soon! During this episode we cover, what assessments are, different types of assessments and why we might use them, gathering information at different parts of the dogs journey and how to use this information to support the individual moving forward.

About Dot

Dot Baisly is the Executive Director for the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC). Dot also holds a master’s degree in Animal Behavior from Tufts University and is a certified dog behavior consultant (CDBC), certified cat behavior consultant (CCBC), and certified shelter behavior specialist (CSBS). Most recently she was the director of behavior for Northeast Animal Shelter where she built a behavior program and transformed the organization’s approach to behavior as a result of her leadership. Prior to this she was also the lead behavior staff at the SPCA of Westchester and then the Animal Rescue League of Boston.

Dot also worked as a consultant for Paws With A Cause, working with service dogs and the clients they serve for over 10 years. She has been working in animal welfare, veterinary care and behavior for over 20 years, both in animal welfare and rescue organizations and as a private consultant. Dot has consulted with private clients since her initial certifications, working with owned cats and dogs on a regular basis.

In her private practice, Dot specializes in working with dogs and cats exhibiting significant behavioral concerns, including human-directed aggression. She also provides consultations to shelters across the country where she has evaluated dogs, educated staff and volunteers and continues to be recognized as a key leader in the animal welfare and shelter behavior community where she is sought out for her expertise, compassion, and skill in leading change efforts.

Links

Building Better Bonds- https://www.buildbetterbonds.com/

IAABC- https://iaabc.org/

No better than flipping a coin- https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S1558787816300697#:~:text=%E2%80%9CThis%20means%20that%20even%20under,the%20basis%20of%20such%20test

Adopter- dog interactions at the shelter: Behavioral and contextual predictors of adoption -https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=view_citation&hl=en&user=QzzG6YUAAAAJ&citation_for_view=QzzG6YUAAAAJ:u-x6o8ySG0sC

Preference assessments and structured potential adopter-dog interactions increase adoptions - https://scholar.google.com/citations?view_op=view_citation&hl=en&user=QzzG6YUAAAAJ&citation_for_view=QzzG6YUAAAAJ:p2g8aNsByqUC

In this episode we are joined by Zazie Todd author of Wag, Purr and now Bark! These books do a great job of combining stories, science and tips and tricks for owners and care givers. In this episode we talk about Bark! The what’s, whys and how’s. Exploring the book, Zazie’s reasonings behind it and how she hopes it will help explain the things they need to know. To make living with an Anxious, fearful, or reactive dog.

About Zazie Todd

Zazie Todd, PhD, is an animal behaviour expert and award-winning writer who loves nothing better than helping people resolve issues with their pets. She covers dog training and behaviour, cat behaviour and training, animal welfare, the relationship between people and their pets, and books about companion animals.

Todd is the author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. Her highly-anticipated third book, Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog, will be published in October 2024.

Todd is the go-to pet expert for many media outlets and has been mentioned in The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Daily Telegraph, The Atlantic, Newsweek, The Globe and Mail, The Vancouver Sun, CBC Radio, Radio New Zealand, and many more. She is the creator of Companion Animal Psychology which she started in 2012 to explore the ways in which science can help us to have happier cats and dogs. The Animal Book Club followed in 2016. Todd's podcast, The Pawsitive Post in Conversation, is co-hosted with Kristi Benson and features interviews with authors, scientists, dog trainers, and cat behaviourists.

Links

Zazies Site- https://www.companionanimalpsychology.com/p/about-zazie-todd-and-companion-animal.html

Books- https://www.companionanimalpsychology.com/p/books.html

Hey that’s mine with Jean Donaldson https://open.spotify.com/episode/1XmKKmdczRb8N8j3C5BiPM?si=8zAG9vCpTp2QAmJ342oUBA

Safe haven- https://www.facebook.com/share/v/18F46cSRFA/?mibextid=UalRPS

Red amber green for owner expectations- https://www.facebook.com/share/v/13wS437hxx/?mibextid=WC7FNe

Grisha Stewart academy bites and fights panel- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/dogbitesfights?ref=352ff9

Bark fest- https://youtu.be/mJyQ7S2XCm4?si=B6RIZwOTz0BYw074

Dog behaviour conference- https://www.vsdogtrainingacademy.com/dog-behavior-conference/?utm_medium=referral&utm_source=speaker&utm_campaign=dbc&utm_term=Tom&fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR0Ea34iYTU8Rm5ZqpJMq0dBZ9P0V6T4rExkBzCxdyYlbxl4JdtA-0dY2P0_aem_lCmGNZuTYaLtZIdhVxMqeA

In this episode we look at different ways we can support the transition from the shelter/resuce to the home, specifically for our feline friends. We know that cats can often be sensitive to changes in their environments so as a shelter, and adopter we want to take supportive steps to assist our cats be successful in their new homes.

About Katenna Jones

Animal Behavior is not a new field for Katenna nor a hobby turned into a career - it's all she's ever done. While earning a bachelor’s degree in biology, she became a shelter volunteer in 1998, then went on to earn a Master's in Psychology, with a focus on animal behavior, from Brown University.

Katenna is Rhode Island's only Associated Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist and Certified Cat Behavior Consultant, and is also a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant, and is Certified Fear Free. Katenna works virtually with families and their cats and dogs and also provides professional development and coaching services locally, internationally, and online. The has recently relocated to the Syracuse, NY area where she will offer in-person services as soon as she is settled.

Links

https://www.feliway.co.uk/

https://www.battersea.org.uk/pet-advice/cat-advice/cats-sense-smell

https://www.jonesanimalbehavior.com/

https://www.jonesanimalbehavior.com/articlesandrecordings

https://school.grishastewart.com/bundles/noseworkcatsbundle?omnisearch__query=cat

https://hippocampusonline.com/all-courses/

In this episode we are joined by Bobbie Bhambree (CDBC, CPDT-KA) and Ferdie Yau (MA, CPDT-KA) to discuss resilience in shelter dogs and more specifically how we can use the resilience framework to support rescue dogs. The Resilience framework is an amazing creation from Bobbie and Dr Kathy Murphy, that can be used to take a holistic approach to supporting mental and physical wellbeing.

Resilience is the ability to bounce back from stressful events and supports dogs in a stressful experience and environments, so we know this is super important when were working in a shelter environment! We want to help our dogs to do as well as possible in our space so that we can support their adoption as quickly as possible.

If you enjoyed this episode and you want to have a look at a specific case study of the resilience framework in a shelter environment you can join me on 20th of October with educanine use code SSB for 10$ off!

https://educanine.thinkific.com/courses/tom-candy

About Bobbie

Bobbie started her career in 2003 as a pet behavior counselor with the ASPCA Animal Behavior Center. While there, she implemented behavior modification programs for dogs who had been surrendered by the public or seized by Humane Law Enforcement. In 2007, Bobbie joined the Humane Society of Westchester, spending the next nine years as their shelter trainer. She created and implemented training and enrichment programs for the dogs, counseled adopters, trained volunteers, participated in community outreach programs, and performed evaluations.

In 2016, Bobbie joined the North Shore Animal League America in Port Washington, NY as the Director of Pet Behavior. During her tenure there, she managed a team of canine and feline trainers who focused on developing behavior modification and enrichment programs for the animals in the shelter. She also deployed for the ASPCA Anti-Cruelty Behavior Team to work in the field, supporting the team with dog fighting busts, puppy mill cases, and hoarding cases. In addition to this work, she founded and directed her own company, DogCentric Dog Training, helping people whose pet dogs experienced a wide spectrum of canine behavior issues.

Ferdie Yau (MA, CPDT-KA) is an animal trainer and wildlife biologist helping families in Westchester since 2009. Ferdie has been working with animals from penguins to pit bulls since 2003 and specializes in treating complex behavior cases, drawing on his experience and skills refined through decades of practice. In addition, he is a former ecologist for New York City with a Master’s in Conservation Biology from Columbia University. In his free time, Ferdie studies NYC's urban coyotes with the Gotham Coyote Project – his intricate knowledge of urban coyotes gives him a unique perspective of canine behavior. His compassionate and multi-disciplinary approach incorporates principles from ethology, psychology, evolutionary biology, and neuroscience. The upshot: Ferdie's positive training makes an often overwhelming and challenging process safe and fun…while empowering you to create a happier life for your dog.

Links

Ferdie- https://sitsnwiggles.com/

Resilience Framework- https://journal.iaabcfoundation.org/the-resilience-rainbow/

Pattern Games-https://open.spotify.com/episode/0pgxfbWoN9OxGS3jDsXVOm

LATTE pattern game- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/latte?ref=352ff9

Pattern games Trauma- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/patterns?ref=352ff9

Camp Maddie Behaviour- https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ljXtG02rYYk

Puppy resilience- https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/pandemic?ref=352ff9

Ttouch and Bat together, empowered Body awareness-https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/ttouch-bat?ref=352ff9

CATCH Canine!- https://catchdogtrainers.com/

Worry less Wag more https://open.spotify.com/show/6ynv2qT8xwzARLtAhgQNrQ

About this Episode

In this episode we discuss Applied Behaviour Analysis, what it is and how we can use it to support dogs in our shelters. Join myself and Dr. Friedman as we discuss general ABA principles and how ABA can aid us in behaviour modification. Including problem solving reactivity and a case study of a cocker spaniel who’s worried about his harness.

About Dr. Susan Friedman

Dr. Susan G. Friedman, Ph.D. is a professor emeritus in the Department of Psychology at Utah State University. Susan has co-authored chapters on behaviour change in five veterinary texts, and her popular articles have been translated into 17 languages. She teaches seminars and courses on animal learning online (How Behavior Works: Living & Learning With Animals), with students from 63 countries so far. Susan also consults with zoos and animal organizations around the world. She was appointed to the F&WS California Condor Recovery Team from 2002 – 2010, after which time the team was retired due to the success of the birds in the wild. She is the Chairperson of the Scientific Advisory Committee of American Humane Association (AHA) Film and TV Unit, and a member in good standing of ABAI, ABMA, IAATE and IAABC

Links

https://www.behaviorworks.org/

Susan Friedman: Why Animals Need Trainers Who Adhere to the Least Intrusive Principle https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/hierarchy?ref=352ff9

In this episode we talk about ways we can physically enrich our dogs outside of the normal walk structure, I’m joined by Andrea and Kyla from City dogs in Canada to talk about alternatives to walking for our shelter dogs and dogs in homes and how this effects our dog’s day to day lives.

Key themes

Enrichment, Arousal management, Opening up the world

About Andrea and Kyla

Andrea’s specialties lie in helping dogs and their guardians navigate the canine-human relationship to assure success in training no matter the age of your dog nor the issue at hand.

Andrea’s main goal is to make training fun, effective and motivating for dogs and humans through evidence-based training methods.

Each dog is looked at as an individual; what works for one may not work for another. With Andrea’s experience and education, she has a variety of ways to achieve training goals focusing on setting up you and your dog for success, utilizing what motivates your dog and effective communication.

Andrea Dinan and City Dogs was the recipient of the following awards through the International Positive Dog Trainers Association:Dog Training Excellence Award, Excellence in Boarding and Sitting Award Andrea also received the Toronto Star’s Reader’s Choice Platinum Award in 2021 for Dog Training.

Andrea is also the Founder of EduCanine,

Kyla is a passionate and dedicated dog trainer with a deep love for animals. Her journey in the world of dogs began in 2015 where she worked in several dog daycares in Toronto, immersing herself in the world of canine behavior and training. Inspired by her experiences, she ventured into entrepreneurship and successfully established her own dog walking business, while earning her dog training designation through the prestigious Karen Pryor Academy.

Continuing to follow her passion for making a positive impact on animals’ lives, Kyla dedicated three years of her career to the Toronto Humane Society. There, she served as a certified animal trainer, working tirelessly to rehabilitate and train animals in need, ensuring their successful adoption into loving homes.

Driven by her commitment to providing the most effective and ethical training methods, Kyla has sought out additional training and certifications to enhance her expertise. She completed Michael Shikashio’s Aggression in Dogs course, demonstrating her dedication to understanding and addressing complex behavioral issues. Kyla also completed the Fear Free Trainer and Fear Free Shelter Trainer courses, emphasizing her compassionate approach to working with animals.

Through her experience, education and dedication, Kyla is committed to helping both dogs and their humans build strong bonds and live harmoniously together.

Links

Dog Parkour

General introduction- https://fb.watch/uv2Tx7K4Xm/

UK association- https://www.dogparkouruk.com/

International- https://www.dogparkour.org/

Urban Herding

https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/sports/treibball-this-sport-isnt-just-for-herding-breeds/

https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL7kSQ4pRRYOtp6U_la9rYMb4kParLkycE

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8n_31T5tUrU

https://www.facebook.com/watch/?v=1066014770704332

Other Links

https://citydogs.ca/

https://educanine.org/

Dogs in city conference- https://educanine.org/2024-conference

The rescue plan - https://educanine.org/the-rescue-plan

Kyla- https://consideringcaninebehaviour.ca/about

https://www.instagram.com/considering_canine_behaviour/

In this episode were joined by Melissa McCue-McGrath, author of Considerations for the City dog, to discuss the overlap with rescues/shelter and city and urban environments for our dogs. We know that the dream home in the country are few and far between for our rescue dogs so understanding what considerations we should be making, as well as how we can look to support our dogs who go to live in the city!

About Melissa

Melissa McCue-McGrath is a dog trainer, behavior consultant, presenter, and author. She earned her dog training certification through CCPDT in 2008 and has been working with dogs in sports, manners, and behavior since 2005. She served as the co-training director of the New England Dog Training Club, the oldest AKC obedience club in the United States, from 2012 – 2023. She is most proud of the work she did that allowed her and her dog, Captain Love, center stage to talk nerdy about dogs for three weeks to thousands of visitors to the Museum of Science in Boston in February 2020. She has focused her work in recent years on the effect of the environment on companion dogs and wrote the book, “Considerations for the City Dog.” She is the creator and host of the BewilderBeasts podcast (now in its sixth and final season) and has been invited to speak about dogs at Tufts, MIT, Barks form the Bookshelf, Raising Canine, the Pet Professional Guild and more. Her approach to training, which is evident in all the classes she teaches at AWS, is based on humor and science.

Links

https://melissamccuemcgrath.com/

https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC5O9eHnj4VnB695MRiJeKmQ

the book-https://melissamccuemcgrath.com/store/

Supporting pain management in rescue dogs with Dr. Hannah Capon

This week we are talking about pain management and shelter dogs, we look at how we can identify pain in dogs in our care, make changes to support painful dogs and working along side veterinary professionals to best help dogs who maybe in pain or discomfort.

Pain has a large negative effect on welfare and dog behaviour, so we are really grateful to Dr. capon for joining us and all the work Dr, C and her team do with canine arthritis management.

Remember! The amazing CAM team are offering rescue and shelter dog adopters free access to the owners course, to give dogs being adopted out with painful conditions the best opportunity.

About Dr. Hannah Capon

Hannah Capon MA Vet MB MRCVS, winner of the 2019 Ceva Vet of the Year and finalist in the 2019 Petplan Vet of the Year is a first opinion veterinary surgeon in the UK. Recognised for her tireless work on Canine Arthritis Management (CAM) an online education and support service for owners of arthritic dogs and professionals that care for them.

CAM began as a simple Facebook page in 2015 where Hannah would promote earlier identification and thorough multimodal management plans. Now it boasts a flourishing service run by a team of veterinary professionals who volunteer their time and expertise to help owners. CAM has become an unstoppable force. A respected website full of downloads, like the unique Home Safe tool (#itsmyhometoo), A large social media presence through Facebook, Instagram and twitter. An online shop stocking awareness merchandise, owner education and other canine essentials. An education provider for first opinion practices, as well as dog groups, paraprofessionals and owners. An inspirational campaign group to raise awareness of the serious nature of this disease (#yourdogmoreyears)

CAM has worked with numerous industry partners but are especially proud of recent work with Hills Pet Foods and their UK OA roadshow, where they educated 300 vet nurses at 6 events around the UK.

Hannah currently works at Greenside Veterinary Practice, Scotland, where she is working in regenerative medicine and rehabilitation, as well as exploring novel ways we can improve management of this common debilitating disease

Links

https://caninearthritis.co.uk

https://www.facebook.com/share/X8z8X4CcdcgZVmq1/?mibextid=LQQJ4d- CAM Facebook page

https://youtube.com/@caninearthritismanagement?si=fU5yC4X1j8M0APwN

Cam YouTube!

*New podcast alert- making difficult decisions in shelters and rescue with Amanda kowalski*

In this episode we discuss a very difficult but important topic around difficult decision making, including euthanasia. This is not an easy conversation to have but we know is a reality of rescue and shelter life. Recognizing and respecting the difficulties these cases and decision making is key for us to bring a supportive shelter network.

Join myself and Amanda Kowalski as we discuss approaching euthanasia decisions in multiple ways drawing on a wealth of experience.

At the start at this podcast, I also introduced our new discount code for the PPG British Isles simplifying30 which gives you 30% off the in-person summit October 3-6th 2024.

If this episode is a difficult listen, please reach out to a trusted person or friend, for more tips on emotional wellbeing for animal welfare professionals you can listen to episode 12 with Tamsin Durston. https://open.spotify.com/episode/2txO0lMkJND7sbU4iW8Dlm?si=_SAi3Xf1QmWjixEf7LBUVg

Loosing lulu can also be a great resource as well as the blue cross helpline in the uk

About Amanda

As San Diego Humane Society’s vice president of animal welfare, Amanda ensures consistency and excellence in all of our animal welfare services, facilities and staff and guest experiences.

Amanda is dedicated to animals and has a passion for research, education and collaboration. She is known for loving “crazy ideas” and encourages her team to innovate, be creative and think big. Amanda specialized in behavioral care in shelters for more than 15 years before taking on this role, including seven years leading our Behavior Center, which has helped more than 4,000 shelter animals — who otherwise would have been out of options — since its beginning in 2013. She also played a crucial role in designing the new state-of-the-art Behavior Center facility, which opened in 2019 as the first of its kind in California and was the first vice president of behavior programs at San Diego Humane Society.

Amanda holds a Master of Science in animals and public policy from the Cummings School of Veterinary Medicine at Tufts University along with a certificate in Applied Animal Behavior from the University of Washington. She is a certified animal welfare administrator (CAWA) through the Association for Animal Welfare Advancement, a Fear Free-Certified Professional Trainer, a Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT-KA) and the vice president of the board of directors for the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers.

Links

PPG British Isles summit

https://www.petprofessionalguild.com/webinars-events/webinars/pet-professional-guild-british-isles-summit-2024/

San Diego humane

https://www.sdhumane.org

Five domains

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7602120/

https://www.petprofessionalguild.com/webinars-events/webinars/a-life-worth-living/?fbclid=IwZXh0bgNhZW0CMTEAAR2jUI-30LZHFyRncXNTeosL2HLGFzKuboS6g9Qu_WhAaOQsHrp6q_PRYy4_aem_K-_yW0O_2Ba8D3XSPcKkHA

Resources for community grief

https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/grief-ritual-resources?ref=352ff9

Developing Behaviour modification programs in difficult environments

https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/behaviorplans?ref=352ff9

How to human- thrival skills for people who love dogs

https://school.grishastewart.com/courses/human?ref=352ff9

Emotional wellbeing for animal welfare professionals

https://open.spotify.com/episode/2txO0lMkJND7sbU4iW8Dlm?si=_SAi3Xf1QmWjixEf7LBUVg

Loosing Lulu

https://www.facebook.com/share/1VdCjwkb9HGnFDiz/?mibextid=K35XfP

Blue cross pet loss helpline

https://www.bluecross.org.uk/pet-bereavement-and-pet-loss

Improving photos to promote shelter animals

This week we are joined by Jessica McGovern to talk about how we can improve the quality of our photos in order to improve rehoming and reach of our shelter animals. Not strictly a behaviour topic but still super important when rehoming trickier or longer stay animals. We discuss top tips for pictures and videos, and how to get others involved in taking great pictures!

About Jess

Jessica McGovern FBIPP FSWPP is a Creative working at the highest level in business, marketing and photography through her multiple successful businesses surrounded by an epic hand-picked full-time team. As a CIM Level 6 qualified multi-channel strategic marketer, established graphic designer, 2018 nominee for CodeGirls, one of Hull’s Inspirational Women in Tech and multi-award-winning photographer across a number of different genres, Jess is skilled over a wide variety of mediums.

Having achieved three Fellowships to date, over 200 image recognitions in international competition, launched and developed the renowned online photography tuition platform “That Tog Spot”, and had work published in a number of different online and offline publications, Jess is also a petrent to the dogs Pippi, Alfie, Bryt and Ren, along with her horse, Tuna.

A non-stop whirlwind of quick wit and a fierce desire for students to develop and grow, she’s helped over 500,000 photographers to improve, and counting. You can contact the team to book Jess to speak, teach or judge

Links!

The website- https://thattogspot.com/about/

YouTube!- https://youtube.com/@thatphotographyspot?si=4hVLX2Ss_exGheS9

https://youtu.be/TVPAUzoYmyU?si=2eLRficYj9jXYf2f

Facebook-https://www.facebook.com/share/tiYMNo2wf96XxGsL/?mibextid=K35XfP