Karen Pryor Clicker Training Library

Resource guarding among dogs is an extremely common and normal behavior. Dogs are pre-programmed not to want to share valued resources with others. For pet dogs, resources may include food, toys, or even the owner's attention. In most households, resource guarding is limited to simple communication, but sometimes the behavior can escalate in frequency or intensity and injuries can occur. If you are ever concerned about aggressive behavior in your dog, related to resource guarding or not, it is best to contact your vet or other qualified professional for help before proceeding on your own.

101 Things to do with a Box: A Good Exercise for an Older, Suspicious, or Previously Trained Dog

This training game is derived from a dolphin research project in which I and others participated: "The creative porpoise: training for novel behavior," published in the Journal of Experimental Analysis of Behavior in 1969. It has become a favorite with dog trainers. It's especially good for "crossover" dogs with a long history of correction-based training, since it encourages mental and physical flexibility and gives the dog courage to try something on its own.

For trainers of all skill levels, proofing a behavior for reliability despite strong environmental distractions is one of the most elusive training goals. But hope is on the horizon. Here are 10 techniques that can set up both you and your dog for successful distraction training.

Sibling rivalry

Getting a new puppy is exciting—at least for the humans in the family. Sometimes, however, the dog of the house doesn't think the pup is a welcome addition. Many people believe that the process of adding a puppy to the family will be harmonious and that the current dog(s) will also be excited. They are disappointed when that doesn't happen. Expectations are often unrealistic but, in most cases, what the human family members see instead of those expectations is entirely normal.

Holidays are fun, right?

The holidays are nearly here. Visitors, music, food… what could be better?

A dog’s nose is an amazing thing to behold. Dogs have the ability to: wiggle each nostril independently, breathe in through the holes in the front of the nose and exhale through the side slits, and discern individual odors making up what we could call a “scent.” Humans have about 5 million cells devoted to smelling; dogs have up to 220 million. Not only that, but dogs have four times the brain power devoted to processing scents! We smell “vegetable soup,” but a dog smells each individual ingredient. Dogs’ noses are so powerful they can detect one tablespoon of sugar in the amount of water it would take to fill two Olympic-sized swimming pools!

February means Valentine's Day, a happy time for me as a child. I lived with the principal of our school, Mrs. Sturley, who set up a card table in the parlor so I could spend hours pasting together the paper, lace, stand-up figures, and stick-on hearts and lovebirds to make twenty-one special valentines for my twenty-one classmates. Sometimes I signed mine; sometimes, daringly, I wrote "Guess who?"

Animal lovers find great joy including their animals in as many holiday celebrations as possible.

Splash?

Pet caregivers  often wonder how to keep pets active without having to walk in 90-degree weather. Swimming, and other games in and with water, can be fun for both people and dogs, especially during hot summer days.

What’s “SUP?”

What is your dog’s favorite time of the day? For my dogs, it’s mealtime! If I had my dogs rank their favorite things on a scale of 1-10, I’m sure eating would be a 15.

There's nothing like a new year to inspire a fresh start with goals and resolutions. Need to lose 30 pounds to make it easier to get around the agility course? This is the year for it. (True, the last five years have also been the year for it, but this year is different—really!)