Barefoot Paws - The Podcast

In Season1 Episode21 we look at Enrichment strategies that will - ultimately bring the juice back into your relationship between you and your dog. We look at Symptomatic Vs Root Cause treatment plans Driving out of Defense Ditch and into Social City Building Confidence in you in your dog and between both of you Using Luring, Agility, Chairs and Ladders to provide enriching challenges to rise to How to exploit adversity in an adaptive and civil manner This episode is about removing our supporting role from the trigger and becoming part of the solution for our reactive dog. If you are affected by your reactive dog - lets face it, you should be - please do get in touch with me today: Email: Stu can be mailed here Web: Home Page Facebook Discussion Group: Join us with free lives, tutorials, advice and support 24/7

Help! My dogs reactive! What do I do???? This is an episode where we explore your reactive dogs mindset - "mood" - when they are being triggered and how we can plan on making some strategic decisions about whether to push on with or pull out of the session. For all questions related to this episode and others come over to the Barefoot Paws Discussion Group Doing it alone with a reactive dog is risky. Really risky! I would love to help you out or at least recommend you to someone near you who can help! Reach out to me at: Email me now! Come and see me at: Barefoot Paws Homepage

Is your dog reactive? Listen to this episode as we start a journey into looking at our dogs reactivity and how we can manage, handle and rehabilitate a reactive dog. If you are affected by your dogs reactivity it can be isolating, anxiety inducing and frightful. Take a positive step forwards in dealing with your problem by listening to this episode. Together we can make a difference in you and your dogs life. To contact me directly email me at: barefootpaws@mail.com You can find out more about me at: Barefoot Paws homepage We would love to see you over at the FREE community group: Barefoot Paws Discussion Group

Welcome to Episode 18! This week we are taking the social systems of dogs under the magnifying glass and looking at some way in which we can reduce the risk of aggravation around the home. We highlight how dogs are driven towards specific goals and that each dog has their own different agenda. Also discussed is what to look for in yourself and how to gauge what your capable of managing and resolving. Dogs are social animals with some similarities to their wild kin, however through artificial selection they have a behavioural range very different to those wild cousins. As such, we have to look at our dogs differently and impose tighter management and lifestyle choices externally that our dogs otherwise would not. This ensures that we are able to reduce the risk of dog fights, maximise the harmony within our household and enjoy our dogs better in general. This episode is the genesis for a deeper dive - over the course of multiple episodes - of the social aspects of dogs. To contact me directly email me at: barefootpaws@mail.com You can find out more about me at: Barefoot Paws homepage We would love to see you over at the FREE community group: Barefoot Paws Discussion Group

Training Overview Part2 Concluding last weeks deep dive into what makes a solid training plan we finalise the training plan with a couple more phases. There are plenty of ways to train a dog to perform a specific skill, however there are few ways to get a student dog to deliver effort, enthusiasm and execution for life. To discuss this episode come over to our FB community at: Barefoot Paws Discussion Group If you want to find out more about Barefoot Paws, visit us at: BarefootPaws.com.au To reach me directly, email me at: BarefootPaws@mail.com

Training Overview Part1 We had some questions which where voted on in the Discussion group that I answer here. The questions are: How do I deal with a stubborn dog? How do I choose the right trainer? And, Does Training ever stop? These are some pretty good questions and there is some meat behind them. I provide a pretty descriptive overview of how training occurs, how we go from nothing to something. Starting with learning to build a motivated dog through to the completion of a trained dog...and how to keep them being a trained dog. To discuss this episode come over to our FB community at: Barefoot Paws Discussion Group If you want to find out more about Barefoot Paws, visit us at: BarefootPaws.com.au To reach me directly, email me at: BarefootPaws@mail.com

PRESSURE We are all susceptible to pressure and we are all victims of pressure without even realising it. From the fear of missing out, to scarcity to rolling over while your sleeping. We are under a constant and inescapable barrage of different pressures at any moment in time. Learn how to effectively and strategically use pressure to affect your dogs behaviour and manage a training session. I even break down one of the most effective and least invasive tools to deploy in a social setting such as a day care yard to affect an individual or an entire group of dogs. Irrespective of your training philosophy, we all use pressure to get the job done. Being able to use pressure in the most subtle of way means we can maximise our output for a minimal input. This makes our training and husbandry much more efficient. Efficiency means greater benefit for our students and teachers. To discuss this episode come over to our FB community at: Barefoot Paws Discussion Group If you want to find out more about Barefoot Paws, visit us at: BarefootPaws.com.au To reach me directly, email me at: BarefootPaws@mail.com

Markers, aka Bridges, are signals that allow a dog to understand a specific concept attached to their actions. In dog training we use markers to drive into or away from behaviour. Markers make training far more efficient, much calmer for you and much more exciting for your dog. Markers allow you to rehabilitate a dog with problematic behaviours such as fear, aggression, superstitious behaviour and improve lifestyle choices and affect day-day life with greater efficiency and efficacy. This episode will present a complete system of Markers with which you can teach any dog, anything, anywhere. We also look at some more advanced concepts such as lag reinforcement, differential reinforcement and a few others. PS: It is worth noting that a Marker can be anything that your dog can perceive. Pavlov researched this in great depth and published many finding in his work Conditional Reflexes. You can use visuals (QR codes, playing cards, shades of the same colour, hand signals), sounds (whistles, clickers, voice etc), touch (vibration, e-collar, stick etc)...the imagination is (almost) your limit. PPS: An example of a marker is your doorbell, the doorbell rings, your dog runs and barks at the door. Another example is the appearance of your car, the individual sound and feeling of your car coming up the driveway elicits excitement from your dog. These are accidental markers, we have them everywhere around us. When we begin to use this natural predictive response strategically we are able to allow our dogs to live their best possible life. To discuss this episode come over to our FB community at: Barefoot Paws Discussion Group If you want to find out more about Barefoot Paws, visit us at: BarefootPaws.com.au To reach me directly, email me at: BarefootPaws@mail.com

Barefoot Paws teaches your dog to want it, so that when you need it, there is no doubt! This episode unpacks what is arguably the most polarizing and triggering topic in the K9 industry. Indeed in all aspects of Behaviour Punishment is viewed as brutal, inhumane, archaic, outdated, traditional abuse. If you use Punishment your sticking your neck out for your peers to slice at. Episode 14 will teach you how, when, where and why to use punishment and when, where and why not to use punishment. We discuss the limitations of punishment. I am often asked "When can I be nice to my dog after punishment?". In Episode 14 Punishment I explain the difference between apologizing and sucking up. You will learn how to switch your dog from a defensive mood back to a social mood. You will also learn about some old school - but still promoted - false positives. Lastly we go over some tools that will help with the application of punishment. BE WARNED: This Episode is focused purely on Punishment both Positive and Negative, Permanent and Temporary. If you are triggered by the content...don't listen. As always, to discuss this topic please come over to the Barefoot Paws Discussion Group You can reach out to me directly at: barefootpaws@mail.com You can also reach out at my website at: barefootpaws.com.au PS: Don't forget to rate, review, subscribe and share the Podcast around! The more we share it, the more people get to listen!

This episode deals with the variety of conversations that dogs have when in a social setting. If you are involved in Day Care, Dog Meets, Socialisation classes and have a multi-dog household then this episode will give you plenty of information to be able to navigate your dogs interactions and give you some ideas on what is cool and what is not! Types of Conversations: Social Hierarchy Inclusion Exclusion Defensive Stop that Go away Its mine Predatory Chase me Chase you Possession/Celebration Role-swapping v Bullying Frustration Tolerance 3rd Wheeling Unwanted refereeing Desired refereeing Redirection Punishment Reinforcement If you want to ask more about this episode, you can reach me through: The Barefoot Paws Discussion Group on Facebook Via email at: barefootpaws@mail.com Through my site at: BarefootPaws.com.au

In this Barefoot Paws Podcast Episode we talk about how I put together Training and Behaviour packages and programs. Every dog must be able to show the desired level of Attention to their team mate and their people. At home, out and about and at Trial. We are called to build a level of independence which allows our dog to stay at home, endure isolation in general and work without our interference. The oil that keeps the machine running well is the type of relationship you have with your dog. Enabling your dog to live at liberty and being able to build an enjoyable, productive and positive relationship. Your training should be part of a complete package. When you start to grab pieces from other areas and shove them all together into a basket, you risk creating a basket case in your dog. Learning to fulfill your dog with a holistic training plan that is able to take your dog to a concise end result is key to reducing anxiety, increasing clarity and having a great journey with your dog together as team! For feedback and a great little community of listeners come over to: The Barefoot Paws Discussion Group To find out more about Barefoot Paws: Hit the homepage Or shoot an email to: barefootpaws@mail.com

Season1 Episode11: SCENTWORK In this episode I introduce the broad topic of Scentwork, we open a massive and delicious can of worms and dive right in! Scentwork can be broken down into: Trailing Tracking Detection Whilst different breeds have a better bias for specific work - my own Malamute and Hound are two examples - each individual will have their own aptitudes. I hope that this episode give you the encouragement to try something new out with your dog. For talking points about this episode (and others) head over to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/barefootpawsdiscussiongroup To contact me directly: barefootpaws@mail.com To check me out: barefootpaws.com.au

Odd title...common material! In this Episode we will look at safety, training and working equipment for skills, sport and behavioural applications. Harness', Halters, Collars and Leads. What to pick, when to use, why to use them and what to avoid. Heather Beck from K9 Lifeline has a tagline: "Its not the tool, its the fool!" It really is true! Learn how something simple like a lead works, learn about different types of harness and differing types of collars. If you want to join us over at the Discussion Group (a place where you can swap stories, share success' and be a part of a rockin' community of likeminded dog nerds) get on over to: https://www.facebook.com/groups/barefootpawsdiscussiongroup To contact me directly: email me at barefootpaws@mail.com Come over and look at whats on offer at: barefootpaws.com.au

Resource Guarding is when your dog is defending something (anything) with the intent of driving away the would be competitor. Much of the issue is built around the ill advised notion that you should be able to tear anything away form your dog and they should simply deal with it. Well...then your dog starts to learn, whenever your near my thing, I better drive you away. It builds a defensive reaction which can result in some pretty extreme attacks. There are even dog sports that use this natural behaviour and they evaluate and score a dog on their ability to fend of would be thieves! If you have a dog that is exhibiting Resource Guarding, be sure to get in touch with a professional trainer who can both start and stop behaviour in your dog. For more information head over to: barefootpaws.com.au You can contact me at: barefootpaws@mail.com

Socialisation is a massively under-valued aspect of raising a puppy to be a healthy, enriched and adaptive dog! This episode sees us unpack Socialisation (and its cousin Habituation). We also talk about Day Care for your dog. Or Learning Centers as I prefer to call them. We talk about what to look for, how to select a center and how to match suitability for your dog and their stage of life. Fair trigger warning...I tell you to take your young puppy (8-14weeks) out into the public...no way! Contact me at: Email: barefootpaws@mail.com Website: barefootpaws,com.au

Season1 Episode 7 We open up the book on some learning theory in this episode. Looking at Punishment, Reinforcement, Operant Conditioning, Consequential Learning, Associative bias and how we can strategically use them and mistakenly also. This episode is the tiered format. We look at the material in a circular fashion, always revolving deeper into the subject matter. Rate, Like and Subscribe! Leave a review! Share with someone you like! Send all questions direct to: barefootpaws@mail.com You can reach out to me on my website at: barefootpaws.com.au

In Season 1 Episode 6 we discuss: Arousal Excitement Overarousal Overexcitement We look at the topic down to 3 different levels, Owner, Handler and Trainer, we discuss the topic in increasing detail and technical nuance so that we may become more subtle in our interaction with our dogs. Sensitivity to afferent stimulus elicits a physiological change in the body. This change readies the body for action, relative to the stimulus. In plain English, we discuss how arousal allows the body to ready itself for action and most importantly, how overarousal can lead to overexcitement. Naturally we also discuss methods on regulating that excitement. You can contact me at: E: barefootpaws@mail.com W: barefootpaws.com.au Excitement is a juggernaut in behaviour, teaching your dog independent regulation of their excitement is key to the best chance of staying with you forever!

Predatory Expression – How we can all benefit from our beloved Savages Hey Welcome to the Barefoot Paws Podcast, where we teach them to want it. This weeks it is Predatory Expression – How we can all benefit from our beloved Savages The Savage Brain – Refer to Ep1 about the Savage vs Civil aspects of our dogs. Limbic system, instinct, survival based responses to environmental/perceived stimuli. Theoretical Model of Emotional Control – Different areas of brain active to increase the productive response to a stimulus What is a Mode Mood, emotional framework which makes a specific topography of responses most likely We focus mostly on Prey, Social and Defense They are survival based instinctual expressions, innate and variable between breed and kennel What is Drive Maximum potential of mood expression Genetically biased Environmentally influenced (inhibitory/excitory) What is a threshold Reactivity potential of dog towards afferent stimuli High Threshold = low potential to react Low threshold = high potential to react What is Social Familial bonding Social Bonding (possibly also exclusion when we look at the effect of Oxytocin – the Us and Them drug) Separation Stress/Anxiety Triggering Emotion - Security What is Defence Response to perceived threat Flight Fight (Defensive Aggression, Protection) Freeze/Appease Triggering Emotion - Fear What is Prey Search Stalk Eye Chase Grab Kill Dissect Consume Triggering Emotion - Excitement What happens with High Drive dogs whose needs are not met? Neurotic behaviours and maladaption Social Reactivity to passers by SA Defence Reactivity Defensive Aggression Prey Reactivity Light chasing Examples of their use: Social – Heeling, recall, stay Defense – An object guard in ringsport, flock protection for LGD Prey - Scentgames To contact me, reach out to me at: barefootpaws@mail.com OR barefootpaws.com.au

First Trimester – Relational Engagement During this module you will learn how to discern polite and impolite manners of your dog, learning to read your dog now will enable you to address any issues later Safe spaces, for both dogs and babies are identified Recreational activities are strategized that will enable your dog to be alone for longer periods of time This is a foundational module to engage both Social and Prey modes in your dog to provide both improved relationships and emotional releases in a positive manner Second Trimester – Behavioural Evaluation Behavioural assessments take place with ample time to address any issues identified Social skills of your dog are improved through exposure techniques in secure conditions Lifestyle changes initiated This module builds off of the previous work with you and your dog's relationship to alter any major or minor issues that have been found that could result in unnecessary stress or conflict once the baby comes home. Third Trimester – Extended Relaxation Safe place Stay Father takes over majority of canine husbandry, Mother reduces interaction to simulate post Birth changes and also reflects the physical changes within the mother's body and capacity Pet Care fall backs The familial relationships have been firmly entrenched and both you and your dog are confident in moving towards expanding the family unit. This module sees you extend the relaxation time of your dog to allow for extended periods of social isolation. The periods can include feeding, sleeping, midwife/medical visits, family visits, naptimes etc. Week 1 – Bringing Baby home Scent Articles, Possession and Isolation are covered between your dog and baby This is the first week that the baby is at home, usually an unsettling period of artificial silence, reduced activity and energy levels of mother and father for our dogs. Week 2 – Social Activities Grooming, Relaxing, Walking and any other undertaking, done in a formalised setting using Separation between dog and baby Building on the 3 trimester's work of Social interaction with our dogs, you will engage in activities with your dog in a Social context Week 3 – Formal Introductions Sight-Sound-Scent of baby paired for your dog Having habituated our dogs to the new baby we can now safely introduce them to each other. Formal introductions using sequential exposure For more information please visit me at: https://www.barefootpaws.com.au Alternatively email me directly at: barefootpaws@mail.com

Like drinking water from a Firehose! This episode takes us through the first 12months with your puppy. Listen to this and you'll learn how to make the Formative months the best foundation for yourself!

We dive into how to create a functional coping mechanism for your dog. Be they a pet or performance machine. Through the building of skills we are able to artificially select (aka Train) our dogs to do specific things when they meet a perceived threat. This is useful for reactive, nervous and aggressive dogs as well as sporting and working dogs! From couch potatoes to conservation dogs! For more great information come and visit us at barefootpaws.com.au!

Find out a little background about Stu and how I got started with dogs, most importantly what this podcast means for you.

What this...another dog podcast? But there isn't one like this! Here you will learn how to get the best out of your pet dog and put the best into them! From teaching fundamentals to ensure you have their attention through to solving fear based issues such as separation stress we have you covered. For those that are looking for a hobby with their pupper, look no further! The IRO UO/GW test is the obedience/agility standard for K9 Search and Rescue dogs and it is the foundation upon which Barefoot Paws is built. Here you can learn how to achieve your dog training goals from Sociability, Scent and Service!