Pet Behavior Associates, Inc.

15/08/2025

Puppy and adult dog training classes begin on Thursday, August 13. Six weeks of classes for $175.00. Learn how to train your dog to obey basic commands, learn how to use those commands in daily situations so that you have control over your dog's behavior and how to solve common problems. Bolster your dog's confidence and learn about dog behavior! Contact me @aol.com

14/08/2025

A new study in JAVMA finds a correlation between early spay/neuter (3 - 6 months) with overweight/obesity in some large breeds, especially Labradors and golden retrievers of both s*xes. Small breeds were not affected, and the results varied by s*x in boxers, bulldogs and German Shepherds.

Food for thought, hey? Kudos to the authors for doing this study; it is just one study, always reason for caution, but it’s a large sample size (over 200,000 dogs) and deserves attention.

Read the full study here:
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/40367978

08/08/2025

"When love is paired with leadership, reactive dogs don’t just cope, they transform." Indulgence is not the answer to helping a reactive dog. Leadership is.

Why Love Isn’t Enough for a Reactive Dog

Understanding the Fine Line Between Nurturing and Enabling

There’s no doubt that love is a powerful force in the human-canine bond. It builds trust, creates security, and helps dogs feel safe in a world that often doesn’t make much sense to them. But for the reactive dog, one who barks at strangers, trembles at noises, lunges at traffic, or clings desperately to their human, love alone is not enough.

This isn’t a message of coldness or cruelty. On the contrary, it’s a call for clarity, structure, and leadership. You don’t stop loving your dog but you do stop thinking that love, cuddles, and reassurances alone will solve deeply rooted emotional and behavioural issues. Because if your dog is reactive, anxious, or overstimulated, they’re not just being difficult or dramatic. They’re trapped in survival mode and what they need most is guidance, not indulgence.

Let’s unpack why.

1. Survival Mode Isn’t a Behavioural Quirk, it’s a Neurological Crisis

Reactive dogs aren’t “being naughty”. They’re not “acting out” for attention. What you’re witnessing is often a dysregulated nervous system. The dog is stuck in a constant state of alert, hyper-vigilant, jumpy, easily triggered, and unable to relax even in safe environments.

In this state, the sympathetic nervous system (the fight-flight-freeze system) takes over. Rational thought and learned behaviours go out the window. You might see:
• Pacing and restlessness
• Incessant licking or chewing
• Excessive vocalisation at minor noises
• Velcro-like clinginess
• Sudden outbursts at seemingly “random” triggers

When you respond to this with endless reassurance, stroking, soothing tones, offering treats, or picking them up, you may mean well, but you’re reinforcing that the world is indeed a scary place and that their behaviour is appropriate for the situation.

2. Reassurance Can Backfire

Imagine a child terrified of thunderstorms. Every time it storms, the parents scoop the child up, rock them, and whisper “It’s okay, it’s okay” repeatedly while panicking themselves. What message does that send?

That the storm is something to fear.

Now apply that to your dog. If every time they panic, you panic with them, cooing, cuddling, or bribing them with food, you become a mirror of their fear, not a model of calm. They start to believe that their panic is valid and justified because you’re validating it.

This is how well-meaning love turns into accidental enabling.

3. Emotional Indulgence Isn’t Emotional Support

There’s a big difference between supporting your dog emotionally and indulging every emotional outburst.

Support is calm, grounded, and consistent. It says:

“I know you’re overwhelmed, but I’m here, I’m calm, and I’ll lead you through this.”

Indulgence, however, says:

“Oh no, you’re upset! Let me do everything I can to make it stop right now, even if that means giving you what you want.”

The problem? The reactive dog learns nothing from this except that their nervous energy gets them attention, gets them treats, or gets them out of situations they find uncomfortable. That feels like kindness, but it’s emotionally confusing for the dog, and it erodes their resilience.

4. Reactivity Thrives on Lack of Boundaries

Many reactive dogs have too much freedom and not enough structure. They’re making decisions constantly, who to bark at, when to walk, where to go, how to behave, and those decisions are often driven by fear or overstimulation.

If you don’t set boundaries, your dog will.

And those boundaries may include:
• Barking at anything they deem suspicious
• Deciding when to pull on the lead or lunge
• Refusing to settle or switching off in the home
• Becoming overstimulated by guests, noises, or new environments

This is where leadership comes in, not dominance, but calm, fair, assertive guidance that says:

“I’ve got this. You don’t need to control everything. I’ll do the thinking, you do the listening.”

Dogs feel safer when someone else is in charge. Especially reactive dogs.

5. A Job Replaces Chaos with Purpose

Giving a reactive dog a “job” is one of the most effective ways to redirect their energy. When you ask them to heel, to go to place, to sit and wait, to track or scent search, you’re giving their brain something productive to focus on.

A dog can’t simultaneously lunge at a passerby and hold a rock-solid sit or down. You’re not just suppressing behaviour, you’re replacing chaos with clarity.

Jobs remove the burden of choice from the dog and offer predictability, routine, and purpose. That’s especially critical for anxious or overreactive dogs.

6. Dogs Need Rules, Not Just Love

Love gives your dog a reason to trust you.

Rules give your dog a reason to follow you.

The most balanced dogs are the ones whose owners combine love with fair structure, consistent boundaries, appropriate consequences, and a clear sense of purpose.

That means:
• Not fussing every time your dog nudges you
• Not giving treats just to stop the whining
• Not allowing clingy behaviours to go unchallenged
• Teaching the dog to switch off and rest when needed
• Building engagement through obedience, play, and calm interactions

7. Love Is Still Part of the Equation, But It’s Not the Only Variable

To be clear, none of this means you should withhold love. Quite the opposite. Your love is the foundation. But without structure, leadership, and training layered on top, your love can’t stabilise a dog living in chaos.

Think of it like this:
• Love is the anchor.
• Structure is the sail.
• Leadership is the wind.

One without the other won’t get the boat anywhere meaningful.

Final Thoughts: Love Them Enough to Lead Them

Reactive dogs aren’t bad dogs. They’re overwhelmed, overstimulated, or misunderstood. They don’t need more cuddles. They need clarity, jobs, rules, and an owner they can rely on to keep them grounded.

So yes, love your dog. But love them enough to stop pampering the panic. Love them enough to train them. Love them enough to enforce rest. Love them enough to say “no” when needed, and “not yet” when it matters.

Because when love is paired with leadership, reactive dogs don’t just cope, they transform.
www.k9manhuntscotland.co.uk

07/08/2025

How these basic commands can make a difference!

07/08/2025

Another great article that echoes my philosophy!

05/08/2025

I'll be there with shagbark dog training! Come and see us.

04/08/2025

While exercise is vital for dogs to maintain healthy muscles, joints, and mental health, too much exercise can cause joint injuries, heat-related illnesses, and exacerbate existing health problems. It's important for dog owners to tailor activity to their dog's breed, age, and health status, keeping workouts moderate and watching for signs of exhaustion or stress. Always provide water and rest, especially during hot weather.

02/08/2025

I have a vet like this.

I once stitched up a dog’s throat with fishing line in the back of a pickup, while its owner held a flashlight in his mouth and cried like a child.

That was in ’79, maybe ’80. Just outside a little town near the Tennessee border. No clinic, no clean table, no anesthetic except moonshine. But the dog lived, and that man still sends me a Christmas card every year, even though the dog’s long gone and so is his wife.

I’ve been a vet for forty years. That’s four decades of blood under my nails and fur on my clothes. It used to be you fixed what you could with what you had — not what you could bill. Now I spend half my days explaining insurance codes and financing plans while someone’s beagle bleeds out in the next room.

I used to think this job was about saving lives. Now I know it’s about holding on to the pieces when they fall apart.

I started in ’85. Fresh out of the University of Georgia, still had hair, still had hope. My first clinic was a brick building off a gravel road with a roof that leaked when it rained. The phone was rotary, the fridge rattled, and the heater worked only when it damn well pleased. But folks came. Farmers, factory workers, retirees, even the occasional trucker with a pit bull riding shotgun.

They didn’t ask for much.

A shot here. A stitch there. Euthanasia when it was time — and we always knew when it was time. There was no debate, no guilt-shaming on social media, no “alternative protocols.” Just the quiet understanding between a person and their dog that the suffering had become too much. And they trusted me to carry the weight.

Some days I’d drive out in my old Chevy to a barn where a horse lay with a broken leg, or to a porch where an old hound hadn’t eaten in three days. I’d sit beside the owner, pass them the tissue, and wait. I never rushed it. Because back then, we held them as they left. Now people sign papers and ask if they can just “pick up the ashes next week.”

I remember the first time I had to put down a dog. A German shepherd named Rex. He’d been hit by a combine. The farmer, Walter Jennings, was a World War II vet, tough as barbed wire and twice as sharp. But when I told him Rex was beyond saving, his knees buckled. Right there in my exam room.

He didn’t say a word. Just nodded. And then — I’ll never forget this — he kissed Rex’s snout and whispered, “You done good, boy.” Then he turned to me and said, “Do it quick. Don’t make him wait.”

I did.

Later that night, I couldn’t sleep. I sat on my front porch with a cigarette and stared at the stars until the sunrise. That’s when I realized this job wasn’t just about animals. It was about people. About the love they poured into something that would never live as long as they did.

Now it’s 2025. My hair’s white — what’s left of it. My hands don’t always cooperate. There’s a tremor that wasn’t there last spring. The clinic is still there, but now it’s got sleek white walls, subscription software, and some 28-year-old marketing guy telling me to film TikToks with my patients. I told him I’d rather neuter myself.

We used to use instinct. Now it’s all algorithms and liability forms.

A woman came in last week with a bulldog in respiratory failure. I said we’d need to intubate and keep him overnight. She pulled out her phone and asked if she could get a second opinion from an influencer she follows online. I just nodded. What else can you do?

Sometimes I think about retiring. Hell, I almost did during COVID. That was a nightmare — parking lot pickups, barking from behind closed doors, masks hiding the tears. Saying goodbye through car windows. No one got to hold them as they left.

That broke something in me.

But then I see a kid come in with a box full of kittens he found in his grandpa’s barn, and his eyes light up when I let him feed one. Or I patch up a golden retriever who got too close to a barbed fence, and the owner brings me a pecan pie the next day. Or an old man calls me just to say thank you — not for the treatment, but because I sat with him after his dog died and didn’t say a damn thing, just let the silence do the healing.

That’s why I stay.

Because despite all the changes — the apps, the forms, the lawsuits, the Google-diagnosing clients — one thing hasn’t changed.

People still love their animals like family.

And when that love is deep enough, it comes out in quiet ways. A trembling hand on a fur-covered flank. A whispered goodbye. A wallet emptied without question. A grown man breaking down in my office because his dog won’t live to see the fall.

No matter the year, the tech, the trends — that never changes.

A few months ago, a man walked in carrying a shoebox. Said he found a kitten near the railroad tracks. Mangled leg, fleas, ribs like piano keys. He looked like hell himself. Told me he’d just gotten out of prison, didn’t have a dime, but could I do anything?

I looked in that box. That kitten opened its eyes and meowed like it knew me. I nodded and said, “Leave him here. Come back Friday.”

We splinted the leg, fed him warm milk every two hours, named him Boomer. That man showed up Friday with a half-eaten apple pie and tears in his eyes. Said no one ever gave him something back without asking what he had first.

I told him animals don’t care what you did. Just how you hold them now.

Forty years.

Thousands of lives.

Some saved. Some not.

But all of them mattered.

I keep a drawer in my desk. Locked. No one touches it. Inside are old photos, thank-you notes, collars, and nametags. A milk bone from a border collie named Scout who saved a boy from drowning. A clay paw print from a cat that used to sleep on a gas station counter. A crayon drawing from a girl who said I was her hero because I helped her hamster breathe again.

I take it out sometimes, late at night, when the clinic’s dark and my hands are still.

And I remember.

I remember what it was like before all the screens. Before the apps. Before the clickbait cures and the credit checks.

Back when being a vet meant driving through mud at midnight because a cow was calving wrong and you were the only one they trusted.

Back when we stitched with fishing line and hope.

Back when we held them as they left — and we held their people, too.

If there’s one thing I’ve learned in this life, it’s this:

You don’t get to save them all.

But you damn sure better try.

And when it’s time to say goodbye, you stay. You don’t flinch. You don’t rush. You kneel down, look them in the eyes, and you stay until their last breath leaves the room.

That’s the part no one trains you for. Not in vet school. Not in textbooks.

That’s the part that makes you human.

And I wouldn’t trade it for the world.

29/07/2025

28/07/2025

A to Z Training tips! Incorporate them all!

A to Z of Training Tips

A – Attention is Earned
Don’t dish out attention for free; make your dog work for it to build value and focus.

B – Boundaries Build Behaviour
Clear, consistent boundaries give dogs the structure they crave to thrive.

C – Consistency is King
Say what you mean, mean what you say, every time.

D – Duration Before Distance
A solid stay starts with time, not walking away too soon.

E – Engagement is Everything
Without engagement, you’re just a human with a treat pouch.

F – Focus is a Muscle
Train it regularly, and it’ll grow strong under distraction.

G – Generalise the Behaviour
If your dog can only “sit” in the kitchen, it doesn’t really know “sit”.

H – Hand Feed with Purpose
Meals are missed training opportunities when given in a bowl.

I – Ignore the Nonsense
Not every bark, whine, or paw wave deserves a response.

J – Jackpots Boost Learning
Big rewards for big breakthroughs keep dogs motivated.

K – Keep It Simple, Stupid (KISS)
Complicated commands confuse, keep your cues clear and clean.

L – Lead Don’t Lag
You make the decisions, not the dog, leadership matters.

M – Marker Words Mean Clarity
“YES” means “you’ve nailed it” make it matter every time.

N – Never Train Angry
Your dog’s not trying to wind you up; emotion clouds good timing.

O – Observe Before You React
Your dog is always talking; learn to listen with your eyes.

P – Play Builds Partnership
A dog that plays with you stays with you.

Q – Quit While You’re Ahead
End sessions on a win, don’t train until it falls apart.

R – Reinforce the Right Stuff
You get what you reward, so pay attention to what you’re encouraging.

S – Structure Reduces Stress
Predictability makes dogs feel safe, randomness does not.

T – Timing Trumps All
Reward too late, and the dog thinks it was for scratching its ear.

U – Understand Your Breed
Know what your dog was bred to do, then meet that need.

V – Variety Keeps it Valued
Mix up rewards, environments, and exercises to prevent boredom.

W – Watch for the “YES” Moment
Catch that exact second they get it right, that’s your gold.

X – Xpect Plateaus
Progress isn’t always linear. Stay calm and train on.

Y – You Are the Constant
Tools, locations, and cues may change, but you are always part of the picture.

Z – Zoom Out Occasionally
Take a step back. Is what you’re teaching really useful for real life?

www.k9manhuntscotland.co.uk

25/07/2025

Teach resilience!

24/07/2025

Spoiling a dog is much like spoiling a child. If your dog is demanding .... you likely trained him to be that way by making him the center of your being!

Let’s Talk Entitlement: Your Dog Is Not the Centre of the Universe (And Neither Are You)

Right, let’s get a few things straight from the off:
Your dog is not a human. It doesn’t think like a human, speak like a human, or interpret the world in the way we do. And guess what? That’s not a fault, it’s a fact.

There’s a growing trend among some dog owners to treat their dogs like entitled little toddlers, fuelled by this fluffy notion that “they just want to say hi” or “they’re friendly”. That’s lovely… until your “friendly” off-lead dog barrels up to a dog that’s nervous, reactive, working, injured, or just plain wants to be left alone.

Your Dog Is Not Entitled to Say Hello to Everyone

Let’s put it bluntly: your dog doesn’t need to greet every person or dog it sees. You don’t wave and say hello to every stranger in Tesco, do you? (And if you do, people probably cross the aisle to avoid you.)

Dogs are the same. Some are social butterflies, others are more reserved, and some are just trying to keep their heads down and cope with the world. When you let your dog run up to another without permission, you’re not being nice, you’re being selfish. And you’re setting your dog up to get told off, either by the other dog, the handler, or both.

Puppy Classes and the Myth of Mass Socialisation

Doing puppy classes in group settings where every pup is allowed to run around and say hello to everything that moves? You’re laying the groundwork for a dog that thinks every encounter is a party. That’s not socialisation. That’s overstimulation. You’re teaching them that the presence of another dog or person means “excitement” rather than neutrality or calmness.

Later down the line, when your adolescent dog loses its rag every time it sees another dog, you’ll wonder why. Spoiler: it’s because you taught them to.

Let’s Talk Leads and Recall

If you don’t have a reliable recall on your dog, don’t let them off the lead. Simple. There’s no grey area here. A dog without recall is a loose cannon. If you can’t call them away from a squirrel, jogger, cyclist, or another dog, then keep them on a lead or long line until you’ve put the work in. Freedom is earned, not assumed.

Having a dog is a responsibility. It’s not a right to do whatever you fancy and assume everyone else will tolerate it. The world doesn’t revolve around you or your dog.

Respect Others. Control Your Dog.

You’ve no idea what that other dog is going through. It might be reactive, fearful, recovering from surgery, or in training. The person handling that dog might be managing trauma, anxiety, or just trying to enjoy a quiet walk. Your dog doesn’t get to invade that space just because you think they’re “friendly”.

If your dog lunges at others, pulls you down the street, barks at every passer-by, or flattens small children with glee, it’s not “cute”. It’s a lack of training. Own it, fix it, and stop making excuses.

The Bottom Line

Your dog is a dog. Not a fur baby. Not a social ambassador. Not a therapy dog in training because you read a Facebook post that said it has a “healing energy”.

Train it. Lead it. Be its advocate. And above all else, be respectful of the space and comfort of others.

Because your dog may be part of your world, but it’s not the centre of everyone else’s.

www.k9manhuntscotland.co.uk