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The Doggie Straight Dope

About
Professional Dog Trainers

Veterinarians

Veterinarian Behaviorists

Applied Animal Behaviorists

Today in America, there are four types of behavior specialists that treat dog behavioral problems. They are the professional dog trainer, the veterinarian, the veterinarian behaviorist and the applied animal behaviorist.

These specialists are qualified to help dog owners with their needs in the three most important areas of dog husbandry and maintenance:

• Obedience Training
• Behavior Modification
• Temperament Rehabilitation

We will compare and contrast the strengths and weaknesses of the aforementioned specialists in four important areas:

1. Academic education
2. Practical hands-on dog training experience
3. Behavioral treatment philosophies
4. Training methodologies

There is much confusion among the dog owning public about which professional is appropriate for what particular canine problem. Many times the specialist themselves are less than helpful, as there is much jealousy between each profession. It is important that you, the consumer, is aware of the strengths and weakness of each specialty. It is up to you, the informed consumer, to protect your dog's life and your wallet.

Hopefully, armed with proper information, you, the dog owner, can make an informed and educated decision as to which professional you wish to retain to help you meet your dog training goals.

Of all the professions dedicated to modifying the behavior of dogs, dog trainers have been around the longest: one hundred thousand years! For when the first wolf cub was brought into the cave of early man, the dog trainer was there to greet him

Of all the professions dedicated to helping the dog remain healthy and sane, the professional dog trainer, is the one and only canine specialist.

The professional dog trainer, alone of all of the dog professionals, has spent every minute, of every day, for decades investing his mind, heart, dollars and soul in learning as much as possible about just one animal: your dog.

Professional Dog Trainers/Dog Whisperers :

Dog Trainers tend to work with individuals and their dogs. Dog Trainers teach obedience, solve canine problems, and rehabilitate dogs with inappropriate temperament. They are trained to get to the root of the problem, not just to fix symptoms. Most consumers are offered a choice between individual lessons at a center, individual lessons in the home or doggie boot camps.

Professional Dog Trainers/Dog Whisperers help recondition and retrain appropriate behavior for both the dog and the owner. Professional dog trainers are extremely qualified to correct behavior problems such as chewing, digging, barking, aggression, house training problems and separation anxiety.

Professional Dog Trainers have trained dogs:

• to guard the home
• to go to war
• to lead the blind
• to be hands for those who have none
• to be ears for those who can't hear
• to gather the sheep from the field
• to bring the cows in to be milked
• to find bombs
• to retrieve fallen birds
• to track wounded game
• to rescue wounded comrades
• to detect cancer in humans
• to rescue drowning people
• to pull sleds
• and to help in almost any other chore that man and nature could devise.

Professional Dog Trainers tend to follow one of three routes for mastering their profession. Many trainers started out by learning their craft at their father's knee; dog training may have been the family business or the family's profit producing hobby. Others have apprenticed and learned training techniques from another trainer though hands on experience and coaching.

Then there is the segment that went to a professional dog training school, apprenticed with other trainers, and have learned the craft from both the academic as well as the practical end.  Regardless of how a professional dog trainer started out, the sign of a great professional dog trainer is on going continuing education either by attending seminars, reading books or going to school.

Most professional dog trainers join organizations that offer continuing education opportunities, some dog trainers go to a university and add to their knowledge base with advanced animal behavior classes, while others go to professional seminars and conferences to keep abreast of changes and improvements in the dog training profession.

At this point in time, there is no governing body on the state or local level that licenses or certifies dog trainers. At this time, Professional Dog Trainers are a self-regulating profession.

However, times are changing rapidly, and there are several dog training groups that are offering tests for dog trainers to pass. If the trainer passes the exam, he is awarded certification by that particular organization.

One of the issues that needs to be addressed, is that there are so many different, but effective training techniques that can be used to train a dog, but at this time no one organization offers tests that can evaluate each technique.

Many times, dog trainers develop a close business relationship with several vets, and will often work in concert to develop an appropriate treatment plan for behavior problems that have a medical origin.

WHAT'S THE DIFFERENCE?

• Vets and vet behaviorists, are medical experts for many, many species,

• Applied animal behaviorists, are theoretical experts for many, many species; or in the case of human psychologist, experts in human mental illnesses (but not canine),

• Professional dog trainers are the experts in practical application for one species, the domestic dog.

THE PROFESSIONAL DOG TRAINER: IMPORTANT POINTS

The most important point to remember is that a professional dog trainer, at the top of his game, knows what to do when the clicker, the cookies and the head halters won't work.

• A professional dog trainer knows what to do if the choke chains, the prongs and the collar corrections don't work.

• A professional dog trainer is not wedded to one training methodology, he has a well stocked tool box of scientifically based training techniques that will work on all dogs all of the time.

• Any trainer who rigidly and dogmatically adheres to one specific method of training should be considered inflexible, and perhaps even limited in training skill.  There are numerous ways to train animals, so as his/her skills and understanding of canine behavior and learning theory evolve, these ways should, no must change.

• The Professional Dog Trainer is the only one of the canine behavior professionals who will get a dog and right in front of your eyes, make it better, sometimes in a matter of minutes. No drugs, no gimmicks, no bribery.  It's like magic!

Remember not to ever take veterinary medical advice from someone who is not qualified in that field. A professional dog trainer is familiar with, and will always consider veterinary medical problems as a probable cause for behavioral problems, but he will not diagnose medical conditions or dispense medical advice, as it is both illegal and unethical.

Find a professional dog trainer who will teach you, the client, how to be successful. It takes a very short time to change canine behavior, in comparison, it takes much longer to change human behavior patterns, generally, between thirty and ninety days.

Remember unless the trainer can teach you, the client, how to master the new management and training techniques, both the dog and you may eventually revert back to old habits.

The relationship a client has with his/her professional dog trainer is a both a very intimate personal relationship, and a long-term business interaction that can continue for an extended period of time, so shop around for a trainer that fits both you and your dog's personality.

If you need to get advice from a vet, vet behaviorist, applied animal behaviorist or professional dog trainer, ask to see a sample of his ability to appropriately and practically apply learning theory for canine training.

Look at it this way, if you were going to hire a chef to cater your wedding, you would ask for a sample of his cake. Right?

Well, that same rule applies when you, the consumer, go shopping for dog training, behavior modification and temperament rehabilitation expertise.

Any professional who is in the business of changing behavior should have a "Demo Dog" available. The "Demo Dog" may belong to the professional or a member of his family, or may be the well-trained dog of a student or client. A "Demo Dog" is a living, breathing, example of the animal professional's skills at teaching a dog to master the behaviors need to meet the "Gold Standard".

The vet, vet behaviorist, applied animal behaviorist or professional dog trainer, must be able to demonstrate to you, right there in front of your eyes,  that his dog has the following skills:

• off-leash reliability

• off-leash precision in a distracting environment,

• in other words, practical and proper application of scientific behavior modification and learning theory.

If there is not a "Demo Dog" readily available, then the dog behavior professional should have a "green" or untrained dog available so that he can demonstrate his abilities to improve obedience and behavior in real time with a living creature.

• The "Demo Dog" shows you, the client, what the professional has accomplished.
• A "Green Dog" will show you, the client, what the professional CAN accomplish.

But, if there is not a "Demo Dog" or a "Green Dog" available, for you the paying customer to observe, what then? Ask for proof that this professional has the ability to train a dog to meet the "Gold Standard" in some professional arena.

The "Gold Standard" in dog training refers to 3 unalterable criteria that a dog must master in order to be considered well trained.

• off-leash reliability
• off-leash precision
• under intensely distracting conditions

There are three types of organized dog sports where the, "The Gold Standard", is applied to the competition guidelines. The dog is entered in organized events where an impartial judge or panel of judges rates the dog's ability to perform specific tasks in a manner that will reflect the "Gold Standard."   Most importantly, many different breeds of dogs with many different temperaments and aptitudes for learning new skills can be trained to compete and win in these venues:

• Competitive obedience
• Competitive hunting trials
• Personal protection

Titled dogs are not a necessary qualification for a canine behaviorist to have in order to be good at his job. Especially, if the behavior professional has dynamite "Demo Dog" or can demonstrate dog savvy with a "Green Dog".  But, if your professional does not have a "Demo Dog" or "Green Dog", your professional should have titled dogs in one of several organized sports. He should have earned at least a novice level title, from a recognized canine organization, in order to demonstrate his ability to modify behavior. :

• Obedience competitions (AKC or UKC competitions)
• Pointing/retriever-type hunting events (AKC, UKC, breed-specific club hunting trials)
• Personal protection events (German, French, Dutch)

Please understand that this is not a perfect approach to use to judge a professional's dog training ability, but it is much better than relying only on various sorts of initials that may be placed after an individual's name.

Finally the third and most important question, ask him what breed of dog he has "titled". The hard cold truth is that some breeds of dogs are easier to train than others; usually these breeds represent the top four breeds in number of participants and number of titles earned in a year. The top four breeds in the most popular dog sports in the last ten years are:

• Golden Retriever
• Labrador Retriever
• Border Collie,
• and Shetland Sheep Dog

These dogs are generally considered "easy" dog breeds to train because of the many factors related to the genetic make-up of these breeds;

• ability to bond with people,
• willingness to work with people,
• ability to perform repetitive tasks for long periods of time,
• and a softness of spirit.

For your information, there is a ranking of the 10 most trainable dog breeds that are found in America today.  Highest Degree of Obedience Intelligence. Understanding of New Commands: Less than 5 repetitions. Obey First Command: 95% of the time or better.

It is considered harder to train and title the more independent dog breeds. It takes more training know-how to motivate these independent, willful and aloof dogs to join ones team. Dogs such as scent hounds, sight hounds northern sled dog breeds, any terrier, most Asian breeds and most toy dogs.

Some professional dog trainers has deliberately set out to make a name for themselves and their ability to train difficult dogs. Such trainers pick dogs that rank near the bottom for obedience intelligence, such as Chows, Bloodhounds, Beagles, Salukis and Afghans.

Therefore, when these dogs are eventually titled, the trainer has earned many extra "notches" on his training belt, and in my humble opinion, rightly so!  It is harder to train some breeds of dogs to do behaviors that they do not do naturally, and it is equally as hard to train these types of dogs to stop doing behaviors that they would rather keep doing, instead of work with you.

Attached is a list of the 10 most difficult dog breeds to train.  These dogs are said to have  the Lowest Degree of Obedience Intelligence.

Lowest Understanding of New Commands: 80 to 100 repetitions or more. Likelihood of these breeds obeying you at the First Command: 25% of the time or worse.

If a dog training professional trains or has owned only one or two breeds of dogs, particularly if these dogs are "easy" dog breeds, such as Border Collies, Labs or Goldens or Shelties, and you don't have that breed, please proceed with caution.

NOTE: 

Usually trainers that stick to one breed of dog exclusively, especially if it is an "easy" breed, usually are not able to train the more difficult dogs, or are unable to fix difficult dog problems.

The second red flag that should send you to another professional immediately is an animal training professional that refuses to train particular dog breeds, such as German Shepherds, Dobermans or other big, exotic, tough dogs.

Watch out for professionals that deride a particular breed for low intelligence, such as Beagles. There are some trainers that will demean or demonize people who have chosen a particular breed, such as Pit Bulls. These are all signs of poor personal character and an indication of an inability to handle complicated training and behavior issues. This is not a person that you should trust with your dog or your money.

The veterinarian has to go through four years of college, taking essentially pre-med like courses, such as biology, physics, chemistry and mathematics. Courses in animal biology, zoology and the like are also required.

Then, the veterinarian has to go through four years of veterinarian school. Usually the curriculum is designed to foster conceptual thinking, to promote a problem-solving attitude, to develop a cooperative work style and to keep the students closely connected to their career goals as they pursue their education.

Sample course in the four year curriculum are gross anatomy, genetics and development, physical function and dysfunction, immunology, histology, parasitology, virology, clinical pharmacology, surgery, and pathology.

In general, the course work is divided in to Large Animal Care, such as cows, horses, pigs, commercial animal ventures, and Small Animal Care, cats, dogs, reptiles, birds and rodents. Some vet schools offer Exotic Animal Care courses.

Once the vet student has finished the majority of his required course work, most vets have to participate in clinical rotations in the various fields of veterinary medicine: dermatology, surgery, ophthalmology, pathology, radiology, small animal medicine and small animal surgery.

NOTE: As you browse through the curriculum of your local vet school, please note that veterinary students are not exposed to dog training, dog behavior, dog psychology, dog nutrition, dog health and wellness. In order to be accepted in to vet school potential applicants are not required to have ever owned a dog.  In addition, vet students are not required to own a dog or to demonstrate any ability or knowledge of training a dog to do anything, in order to graduate from vet school.

In America today, veterinarians are trained to be many things: medical-oriented scientists, medical-based researchers and medical detectives, and in my opinion, are the best animal medical experts on the planet. So, just like you would ask your doctor his qualification.

• Ask your vet how many dogs he has owned.
• Ask him what titles he has earned.
• Ask him how many puppies he has housetrained successfully.

You will find that vets are not trained to understand dog psychology or dog personality or dog learning patterns. There is someone who knows all this and more.

He trains dogs who have run out of time and chances.

He rehabiltates the biggest, baddest dogs around.

He is not a vet.

He is a dog trainer. 

He is Cesar Millan.

The veterinarian behaviorist is a brand new veterinarian specialty, which has only been around for approximately 10 years. Like the profession of Applied Animal Behaviorist, this profession has ridden the "Total Positive Reinforcement" or "clicker training" tidal wave that the writings of Karen Pryor created in the late 1980's.

The veterinarian behaviorists are veterinarians with a special interest in animal behavior. Please note that this is not just dog behavior, but cat, horse, cow, pig, bird, reptile and rodent behavior.

Some of these vets complete 1-3 year residency programs after graduation, while others take additional classes and seminars in animal behavior and others read textbooks.

For those who want to demonstrate that they have reached a very high level, they seek board certification as a specialist in behavior from the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists (ACVB). This is the organization that was established to set the standards is the American College of Veterinary Behaviorists (ACVB).

The ACVB was started in 1993, and at the same time it was recognized by the American Board of Veterinary Specialists (ABVS) of the American Veterinary Medical Association (AVMA) as the official certifying organization for veterinary behavioral specialists.

The veterinarian behaviorist's background in understanding the interrelation of behavior and medical problems is critical to accurately diagnosing conditions an animal might have. Their expertise in interpreting the results of diagnostic tests assists in determining what is wrong with a dog, physically.

Their training in pharmacology means appropriate drug selection based on the diagnosis.  Therefore, it makes perfect sense that most veterinarian behaviorists are trained to look for a medical origin for behavior problems and thus rely heavily on pharmaceuticals and psychotropic drugs to change and manage behavior.

The down side of this educational training, is essentially the same as for the veterinarian, a medical-based approach, with a heavy cultural reliance on chemical solutions to behavior problems, as well as dependence on devices that physically restrain the dog (harness, head halters, muzzles and so on)

The training methods and tools used to train and rehabilitate dogs are based almost exclusively upon "Total Positive Reinforcement" training method, popularized by Karen Pryor in her books on dolphin training.

Currently, the training tools of choice for veterinarian behaviorists, besides medication, are clickers, food and head halters. These methods tend to work nicely for some of the dogs some of the time, and on the whole are relatively benign, even when used inappropriately.

NOTE: As you browse through the curriculum of your local vet school, please note that veterinary students are not exposed to dog training, dog behavior, dog psychology, dog nutrition, dog health and wellness. In order to be accepted in to vet school potential applicants are not required to have ever owned a dog.  In addition, vet students are not required to own a dog or to demonstrate any ability or knowledge of training a dog to do anything, in order to graduate from vet school.

In America today, veterinarian behaviorists are trained to be many things: medical-oriented scientists, medical-based researchers and medical detectives, and in my opinion, are the best animal medical experts on the planet. So, just like you would ask your doctor his qualification.

• Ask your vet behaviorist how many dogs he has owned.
• Ask him what titles he has earned.
• Ask him how many puppies he has housetrained successfully.

You will find that vet behaviorists are not trained to understand dog psychology or dog personality or dog learning patterns. There is someone who knows all this and more.

He trains dogs who have run out of time and chances.

He rehabiltates the biggest, baddest dogs around.

He is not a vet.

He is a dog trainer. 

He is Cesar Millan.

This relatively young profession. It has been in existence for less than 10 years. An Applied Animal Behaviorist is first and foremost, not a veterinarian.   This means that this specialty does not have the medical training and the expertise in recognizing the medical origins of behavior problems of the veterinarian behaviorist.

As you will see, the primary qualifications for an Applied Animal Behaviorist are intellectual, scientific research-based skills and an intimate knowledge of the principles of learning theory. But, they do not practical hands on experience in training dogs or changing their behavior. There are some organizations that are now requiring a dog handling component, but the individual must work with an approved facility  or individual, and must graduate from an approved school; all of which are run by members only.

Or they are human psychologists, usually Ph.D.'s who are interested in accessing the pet industries 10 billion dollar a year animal services business. In general, they have little personal experience in training, handling, breeding or competing with dogs. Many don't even own a dog, but they decide to go into the dog behavior business to 'make money'.

Applied animal behaviorists have post-graduate degrees (either Masters or Doctorate) in any one of several subject areas. Applied Animal Behaviorist can have degrees in any one of the following disciplines:

The applied animal behaviorist must demonstrate expertise in research methods of animal behavior, data analyses, formulating and testing hypotheses and professional writing skills.

The successful behaviorist must demonstrate a thorough knowledge of the literature and scientific principles of animal behavior, and original interpretations of animal behavior information.  In addition, the applied animal behaviorist must show evidence of significant experience as a researcher, or intern working with a particular species, not necessarily canine, prior to working independently with the species, not necessarily canine, in a clinical setting.

As with vets and vet behaviorists, Applied Animal Behaviorists, are not required to have practical, hands-on experience training canines in order to finish their Master or Doctorate or to become an applied animal behaviorists.

Other Applied Animal Behaviorists have studied rare exotics like pot-bellied pigs, bats, dolphins, slugs, or parrots, until they decided to venture into the dog training market place to service the local pet owner.

The training tools of choice are clickers, food and head halters. These methods tend to work for some of the dog's some of the time, and on the whole are relatively benign, even when used inappropriately. But, you will not find any dog trained with these methods that is reliable off-leah, in the real world, without  a great deal of training equipment on them.

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DOG FACTS

STRONGEST DOG THAT EVER LIVED:

80kg Saint Bernard, pulls 2909-kg load, 27m.

Susitna, a Saint Bernard died many years ago but still lives on in the hearts and memories of dog weight pull enthusiasts.

His pull of 5,220 pounds at the 1976 World Championship Dog Weight Pull SM has not been challenged since and seems insurmountable to the many competitors who have since followed.

Susitna's brother, Kashwitna, often went head to head with Susitna, and on August 11, 1974, set a new world's record by pulling 6,000 pounds on wheels and won the title of World's Strongest Dog in the Guinness Book Of World Records.