This workshop will talk about how dog breeds and types have been developed, as well as how individual dogs develop and what this means for the people working with them. This will give an insight into why a ‘one size fits all’ training and behaviour approach won’t work, and instead how to recognise all dogs as individuals and give them the best chance to succeed.

1. Carolyn Menteith DipCABT, KCAI
Breed Specific Learning

2. Dogs are not wolves…
They have evolved into different
breeds and types in order to
succeed in a wide variety of very
different jobs
www.wwuk.org

3. Clever…?

4. Stupid….?

5. Why such diversity?

6. Canine Predatory Sequence
Eye - stalk - chase - grab-bite - kill-bite - eat

7. Retrievers
Eye - stalk - chase - grab-bite….

8. Herding dogs
EYE - stalk - chase…….

9. Terriers
Eye - kill-bite!

10. It isn’t just the predatory sequence…
Stamina - they don’t just want to do it, they want to do it all the time!
+
We have created dogs who are reactive, fearful or who behave in certain
ways - because it suited us

13. New stuff = potential danger!

15. What is behaviour…?

16. Behaviour doesn’t just happen - it is the
symptom of an emotion

18. If a behaviour continues, it is being reinforced emotionally
It is providing the dog with feelings of either pleasure or
relief

19. Dogs only do what works

20. Positive reinforcement = pleasure = a
behaviour that will be repeated!

21. What will impact on behaviour?

22. Includes:
• Novelty (place, people, sights, sounds…)
• Stress
• Pain
• Fear
• Frustration
• Inability to succeed
• Triggers…

23. Triggers are like wine! They add up!!
+ + +
Doesn’t =

24. It equals

25. Pain
Bite
threshold
Strange
place
Strange
place
Noise
Trigger stacking
PainNoise

26. Behaviour maskers
• Tester (either intimidating or good handling skills)
• Lack of interest in resources (breed specific)
• Inappropriate resources (breed specific)
• Learned helplessness/shut-down
• Stoicism (especially if pain present)

27. Levelling the playing field

28. • Recognising breed and type (and individual) differences
• Check for pain
• Assess stressors and reduce where possible (these will
be individual for each dog as well as BS)
• Give chances to succeed (R+ = pleasure) before any
assessment

29. • Always look for positives as much, if not more, as
negatives
• Do NOT push until there is a response (lose-lose)
• Find appropriate rewards for each individual
• Breed specific enrichment - in short and long term to
reduce frustration before assessment and provide a
‘base-line’…

30. • Have at least two different assessments with different
testers (or ongoing with different people)
• Test/interact at different times of day and in different
locations (triggers are not always obviously apparent to
us)
• Consider environment (especially if dog is nervous,
stressed, frustrated or shut down) - as behaviour is often
very different in a different environment

31. It is only when we understand why dogs are all different
that we can give them the best chance to succeed in the
often challenging world we have brought them into - and
expect them to share with us

32. “People are always looking for the single magic
bullet that will totally change everything. There
is no single magic bullet.”
Dr Temple Grandin
In the same way, there is no ‘magic bullet’ that
will work for all dogs

33. And knowing that with dogs, one size doesn’t fit all….

34. Carolyn Menteith
www.dogtalk.co.uk 2015