There are respected, successful, talented, effective trainers at nearly every point along the spectrum of “hardness.” (Personally, I think the very best trainers tend to have superb balance of the various principles along the majority of the spectrum, and can shift themselves as the animal and situation demands, but that is a topic for another day.) Those nearer the “hard” end tend to espouse messages around strong leadership and boundaries, and not letting your animal become pushy, spoiled, wild—they tend to be big on clarity and firm authority. Those nearer the “soft” end tend to espouse me ..read more

There are many articles on the internet about neutering: pros, cons, optimal age, etc.… And there have been many interesting studies worth perusing, and considerable research about the physiological factors including joint issues and cancer. (I am not including links because this is an ongoing area of research and new studies appear regularly) I do not think there is a single correct, or incorrect, answer, but here are a few of my thoughts that may be helpful to anyone contemplating this question:   First, let me separate, absolutely, the question of neutering from breeding: I am going to ..read more

Over the past few years, a bit of a disconnect has developed between many veterinarians and their clients, and I wanted to share a slightly different perspective on the problem and suggest that it might be somewhat ameliorated by vets rethinking some of how they operate: Many articles and memes have been written about how challenging the veterinary field has become: the depressing suicide rates; the crazy student debt; the unkind, entitled, and unappreciative clients; the long hours that are never enough; the unfair expectations… All of that is true and valid, and I will continue to support t ..read more

There are many trite inspirational sayings and anecdotes about embracing challenge and struggle in life, for it is in these moments that growth occurs. (One of my favorites is the story of how a reporter asked Muhammed Ali how many sit-ups he performed, and he answered that he had no idea, because he did not start counting until they started to really hurt, for those were the only ones that mattered…) Often, these platitudes sound great in theory, but in the moments when they really matter they seem hollow. One of the great lessons in animal training is, perhaps, that it is precisely the impe ..read more

For most of the last twenty-five years, if you had asked me to define my training style, I probably would have identified myself as a “joy trainer.” My central defining characteristic as a trainer has been to find and develop joy in playing the game; to determine ways to ensure that doing whatever behavior I wanted was the most fun option imaginable, and that the animal was demonstrably, actively engaged and enthused about the process and the outcome. Over the course of training thousands of dogs, cats, antelope, raccoon, skunk, lemur, crows, chickens, lions, tigers, bears, snakes, and nearly ..read more

Your veterinarian is a crucial part of the team keeping your pet healthy, and they have extensive knowledge and expertise that should be heard and incorporated diligently if you want to do what is best for your animal. However, many people seem to imagine that vet school or a few years of practice has rendered veterinarians as experts on all things animal, and so people often accept advice given to them by a veterinarian without thinking or questioning. Vet school covers a lot of information in 4 years, so many topics, particularly those that are peripheral to medicine, are covered very quick ..read more

A friend asked recently what was the best technique I have found for coping with the grief of losing a beloved pet, and in the instant of loss I had no great advice other that to reassure her that, in time, the pain and grief subside a bit and all the joy and love remain and fill our hearts. But, from a slightly longer view, I do have one general suggestion… In some ways, losing a pet has more visceral impact than losing a person—while we may love people dearly, our relationships with most people take place to a large extent inside our heads—they are based in part on ideas, dialog, and shared ..read more

I have written many times about how and why education is critical to the life of an animal. How it builds confidence, develops intelligence, strengthens bonds, etc.. How learning begets more learning, and understanding begets comfort, relaxation, and joy. I go on and on about this from the animals’ perspective because it is one of my deepest passions and areas of expertise. Recently, however, I have had a series of experiences that made me want to share one distinct reason for teaching your pets a wide variety of skills that may not seem essential in the moment: things change. Several people ..read more

I hear often from people whose pets “hate” baths, or having their nails done, or some other activity, and when I ask them to show me or tell me more, it is immediately obvious that the animal is not objecting to the activity per se, but to being restrained.  So I wanted to discuss restraint… Please take a few minutes to genuinely consider restraint from the animal’s perspective: for millennia restraint has meant injury or death.  An animal’s ability to fight or flee is one of its most basic instincts, and restraint means the loss of these defense mechanisms.  Most animals natur ..read more

One of the great gifts animals give us is helping us learn to be vulnerable, and to love without reservation or fear of loss. I was chatting with a friend who had not had a pet in many years, and he explained to me that he had owned a dog, it had died, and he had been devastated and decided he would never again set himself up for that sort of pain. For me, the lesson is just the opposite: each animal I have loved has grown my capacity to love with abandon—to know that there is an end coming and that the loss will be profound, but to leap in anyway, to savor every moment, pour everything I hav ..read more