How do we know when it is and whether it’s important? You’ve probably heard that puppies need to be socialized, but how do we know this and what do we know? Most of the ground breaking studies were done in the 1950’s and 1960’s, one of which was performed by co-authors, David Freedman, John A. King and Orville Elliot and published in Science in 1962. They carried out a classic study using the methodology that had already been established for determining critical periods in other animals such as ducks, guinea pigs, chickens, and sheep. They took 5 litters of cocker

When I think back to when I was a student in college majoring in Biochemistry I remember my professors constantly stressing that school was more than book learning. It was about getting an education so that we could see the world more broadly and understand how the information we were learning fit into real life. I took their advice and looked for connections between my classes in everything I did. When I exercised, the glycolysis and Kreb cycle pathways ran through my head, watched TV commercials psychology and classical conditioning came to mind, and whenever I waited in a slow

Question: What exactly is the program, and how long have you been doing it?  Answer: In 2007, the Broad Ripple Animal Clinic opened Bark Tutor School for Dogs, a family-focused, dog-friendly training school designed to address the behavioral health needs of the clinic’s patients. The majority of canine students range between 10 weeks and 18 months old, but the training programs are designed for companion dogs of any age.      Question: How is this program different from others in terms of the overall structure?       small-dog_webgm Answer: The program is different from other training programs, at least in Indianapolis, because of

When pet owners and trainers think about the Treat&Train®, generally what comes to mind is how they can use the program for training their pet to behave better or for enrichment and training fun tricks. Another completely different but equally cool area where the Treat&Train is being used is in animal behavior research and as a teaching tool for animal behavior students! For instance, one professor, Dr. Christy Hoffman at Canisius College in Buffalo, New York, uses her dog, Santiago, and the Treat&Train in her class called Research Methods in Animal Behavior. Canisius College is one of a handful of schools in the US

Story 1 Katie Kelly enlists the help of her neighbors to use the Treat&Train to help counter-condition her dog. Dog has a blast. In this story, Katie Kelly explains how she trained her dog, Minnie, to be comfortable and calm around Apartment Noises which had previously frightened her. Her full description was originally published in the Paws Abilities blog. I have used the Treat&Train with my dog, Minnie, to help with our recent moving situation. Previously, we have always had the luxury of private life in a house setting. However, recently we had to move into an apartment, which was an

One of the perks of lecturing around the world is that I get the opportunity to meet researchers and hear about their incredible studies. These are studies that shed light on how animals learn and perceive our world and consequently how we can better communicate and interact with them. These experiences are even more exciting when I find that the researchers are using the Treat&Train®, a remote controlled treat dispenser which I developed in 2004 to be used, especially where precision is needed in training. So, last year when I visited the Clever Dog Lab at the Messerli Research Institute in Vienna as well