Get your thinking caps on...

Suzanne Hetts, one of the most respected names in animal behavior, has teamed up with Petsmart to produce the "If Your Pets Could Talk..." pet behavior resource guide. I just had a look at it and it really is a great resource for both dog and cat owners. There are lots of video clips giving quick examples of dog and cat body language, quizzes for both dog and cat owners (delighted to say I got all the right answers on the dog one!) and some interesting exercises for folks to try with their own pets. It's an easy to navigate site, and a fun and informative way to spend a few minutes when you're online. Spread the word and tell your friends and family about it - the more we humans learn about what dogs and cats are trying to communicate to us via their body language and actions, the more harmonious our relationships with our pets will be. So what are you waiting for? Click on the link below and test your knowledge of what your critters are trying to tell you!

If Your Pets Could Talk...

Here's Norma!

Check out how quickly Norma, a hearing impaired dog, has learned Sit and Down!

How Deaf Dogs Learn

As trainers we often get asked: How does a deaf dog learn if they can't hear? The good news is that regardless if a dog can hear or not they learn the same way as able-hearing dogs do- via hand signals! What we sometimes tend to forget, is that ALL dogs are more keen at observing and understanding visual (body-generated) signals than words. As trainers and guardians of a deaf or hard of hearing dog, you need to come up with a vocabulary of hand signals.

Well what about recall? True, a bit more tricky with a dog that cannot hear you. The trick here is to teach your dog to constantly check in with you (as in when will the next treat be delivered or the ball be tossed). For longer distances there are collars that vibrate via a remote control, signaling your critter that you are calling him. This vibrating collar is NOT a pain generating collar, it just vibrates.

Now come to think of it, you might have a hearing dog with a terrible recall, who never comes to you even though he can hear you! So is there such a difference than teaching a hearing dog? The answer is ... you guessed it, not really!

Here is a video showcasing current ARF dog Ava. Herself and her sister, Norma, are both hearing impaired and, as you can see, learning readily!

Q. How many trainers does it take to write a blog? A. Four!

We're the trainers at Tony La Russa's Animal Rescue Foundation - Almudena, Gee, Kris & Lindsey, and we've started this blog as a way to keep folks informed of what's going on here in the Intake and Behavior Department. One of the things we all love about this job is that no day is ever exactly the same. Via posts, photos and videos we're hoping we can give you a bit of an insight into what we do here. There'll be adoption follow up stories, reviews of books or critter related products that we like, and information about topics such as: clicker training and T-touch for the shelter dogs and cats, how to make food puzzle toys for the dogs, training tips, ideas for keeping dogs and cats mentally and physically stimulated, things to think about when choosing a pet etc. We'll also keep you informed of any up and coming events or workshops - we just found out this week that one of our training and behavior heroes, Jean Donaldson, will be speaking at ARF's annual "Business of Saving Lives" sheltering conference in March 2010, she's an awesome speaker so we're really looking forward to that.

For more information on both clicker training and T-touch check out the links for them under "Stuff we like", to the right of this page...

We think doing this blog is going to be a lot of fun, and hope folks enjoy it. Check back in when you can to see what we're up to!