Enrichment, barking, whether dogs detect our stress, and questions about fearful dogs and cats

The Pawsitive Post in Conversation by Companion Animal Psychology

In this episode, Zazie and Kristi answer wide-ranging questions about both dogs and cats that were sent in by listeners.

We talked about brain games and the attention span in senior dogs; suggestions for new things to teach dogs; why dogs bark at e.g. people in hats or people going by the house; cooperative care for kittens; creating a local resource list for anxious and fearful dogs; enrichment and caring for fearful cats; the best tone of voice to use when speaking to your dog; whether dogs can detect our levels of stress; how to advocate for your dog; whether to teach a chin rest to cats for cooperative care; teaching cats to be wrapped in a towel for vet care; is watching TV good for pets,; how to teach cats to cooperate with having their claws trimmed; and we shared some tips on desensitization and counterconditioning for anxious and fearful dogs and cats.

This episode was recorded with a live audience.

Links and resources:

Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog by Zazie Todd is out now and getting rave reviews. It’s available from all good bookstores. https://greystonebooks.com/products/bark

Kristi Benson’s course on barking https://www.kristibenson.com/peace-and-quiet-barking-dogs

and on grooming: https://www.kristibenson.com/freshandfearless

The Husbandry project from the Academy for Dog Trainers https://www.academyfordogtrainers.com/husbandry-project/

Train Your Dog Like a Pro by Jean Donaldson is also available from all good bookstores.

Fear Free directory https://fearfreepets.com/ fearf

Debbie Jacobs Fearful Dogs https://fearfuldogs.com/

BC SPCA desensitization and counterconditioning for cats. You can find the infographic on Bailey Eagan’s website https://www.baileyheagan.com/resources

Companion Animal Psychology blog post on desensitization and counterconditioning https://www.companionanimalpsychology.com/2018/07/what-is-desensitization-and-counter.html

This episode was recorded in early 2024. Very sadly, Zazie’s cat Harley,

About the co-hosts:

Kristi Benson is an honours graduate of the prestigious Academy for Dog Trainers and has her PCBC-A from the Pet Professional Accreditation Board. She lives in beautiful northern British Columbia, where she helps dog guardians through online teaching and consultations. Kristi is on staff at the Academy for Dog Trainers, helping to shape the next generation of canine professionals. Kristi’s dogs are rescue sled dogs, mostly retired and thoroughly enjoying a good snooze in front of the woodstove.

Kristi Benson's website Facebook

Zazie Todd, PhD, is the award-winning author of Wag: The Science of Making Your Dog Happy and Purr: The Science of Making Your Cat Happy. She is the creator of the popular blog, Companion Animal Psychology, and also has a column at Psychology Today. Todd lives in Maple Ridge, BC, with her husband, one dog, and one cat.

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