Dogs and Fireworks!

We’re approaching firework season in some parts of the world. So you need to work fast to be able to help your dog on July 4.

If your firework season doesn’t begin for a while - ours here in England is mainly from November to December - that gives you plenty of time to adopt some of these ideas to help you next time round.

There’s a lot of advice washing about the internet about what you should do to minimise the effect of fireworks on your dog. Some is good, some is awful, some is just ineffectual.

So I was interested to see a study which actually assessed various treatments.

They started out with popular practices promoted for firework fears, and - ooh, how interesting!

  • Environmental modification (e.g., providing a hiding place, keeping windows and blinds closed, and playing music)

  • Feed/play (providing the dog with chews, play, and food during fireworks in general, as well as contingent on loud bangs)

  • Alternative (use of calming nutraceuticals, pheromones, herbal products, homeopathic products, Bach flowers, and essential oils)

  • Interaction (allowing body contact, petting, and talking to the dog when loud bangs occurred).

 

Of the four management methods, only “feed/play” was statistically associated with an improvement in fear responses to fireworks.

 

Note that “Feed/play” of necessity includes interaction with the owner.

How very interesting …

 

Firework strategy effectiveness

Then they delved more deeply into actual strategies.

In a nutshell, they found that the percentage of surveyed owners reporting effectiveness was this:

Prescription meds: 69%

Non-prescription remedies: 27-35% - no better than a placebo.

Pressure vests: 44%

Noise CDs: 55%

Relaxation training: 69%

And the winner is …. 🥁🥁🥁

Counterconditioning! At 70% this method scored most highly.

And those of you who are understandably reluctant to opt for prescription meds (which have all sorts of caveats) you should be delighted to see you don’t need to spend a bean on helping your dog!

Relaxation training and Counterconditioning are the way to go.

 

Fears are all much of a muchness

Counterconditioning is THE tool par excellence for helping to alleviate fears. And not just in dogs. All animals (we’re animals) respond well to counterconditioning. A very basic, instinctive, response in a parent to a fearful child is to soothe and cuddle them, turning the scary experience into feelings of warmth and protection. The cuddling may work with some dogs in some circumstances, but soothing via the instant delivery of treats will definitely work.

The treats may drop out of their mouth to begin with - they’re too overwhelmed to eat. (Would you tuck into some offered cake when a mad axeman appears to be heading for you?)

But at some stage the dog is going to start tasting them. Then chewing and swallowing them, and eventually, looking for more.

Huzzah! They have detached from the fearful thing in favour of your attention!

It really is as simple as that.

And demonstrably, so effective!

What you need (apart from quick access to soft well-scented treats that you know your dog loves) is

P A T I E N C E 

Rome wasn’t built in a day.

It can take many, many, iterations to get to the stage of your dog leaving the fear and choosing your treats.

But you will get there!

 

Counterconditioning for any fear

And does this work only for fireworks?

No!

What about the dog who’s afraid of:

 

🐾 Other dogs

🐾 Noises

🐾 Planes

🐾 Birds

🐾 Slippery floors

🐾 People

🐾 Children

🐾 Visitors

🐾 A knock on the door

.. you name it

 

You can adopt the same simple practice to help with all fears.

Pick one that worries your dog, load your pockets, and give it a try!

I’ll be interested to hear how it goes for you.

RESOURCES

Effectiveness of treatments for firework fears in dogs

My dog’s NOT afraid of fireworks! But why?

Talking dogs!

I’ve been reading some interesting studies on talking dogs recently. You’ll find the links in RESOURCES below.

(Don’t worry - I’m not expecting you to plough through a doctoral thesis - though you can if you like! There are very good Abstracts that give you the speedy details.)

In one, Chaser

🐶 learned and retained the names of 1022 toys. (Over a thousand!!)

🐶 She demonstrated independence of meaning of names and commands.

🐶 She learned common nouns that represented categories. 

🐶 She learned words by inferential reasoning by exclusion.

🐶 She demonstrated referential understanding of nouns.

And in the other, Rico

🐶 learned 200 words

🐶 He learned new words by “fast mapping” - on one exposure.

🐶 This system was previously thought exclusive to humans.

 

Well, both Rico and Chaser are Border Collies 😊 - but that does not mean that other dogs cannot do the same! Once you open this door in their mind, ANY dog can start learning.

I’m teaching Yannick to communicate using our words (more upcoming in future posts!) - a process practiced by every kind of pet dog and cat, horses, goats, and guinea pigs.

We’re not as clever as we thought we were!

Or, rather, animals are a lot cleverer than we’ve ever given them credit for.

The studies mentioned indicate that their subject animals can communicate clearly, using words we give them. They clearly understand the words’ meanings and use them correctly.

How can I get my dog to “speak”?

Be sure you’re not confusing him.

If you want to refer to his favourite green teddy bear, choose ONE name for it - “Ted”, for instance.

Not “Where’s your green toy?” “Get your bear,” “Find Teddy,” etc.

Speak the word slowly and clearly to start with, and always make it the same word. You can layer on as much feeling to these words as you like! “Find Ted!!”

In other words?

Now that doesn’t mean you can’t chat to your dog!

An example: If I say SIT, and no sit happens - rather than repeating the word and nagging, I’m likely to say quietly, “What should you be doing?”

This is simply a way to get the dog to focus and remember that he was asked to sit.

And so much better than “Sit, SIT, I said SIT!” etc.

You’ll see from a quick glance at the abstract of the studies listed in RESOURCES below, that dogs can have a phenomenal grasp of language.

If you speak to your dog as if he were a toddler, maybe about 3, you’ll do fine!

Let clarity be your watchword.

And remember that this is a two-way process - you have to make space so you can listen to your dog.

Teaching your dog through play

The quickest way to get started with this is through play. With you.

Play is so important to our dogs! We can use it wherever possible to teach.

Your dog will be fully engaged and eager to work out the game with you.

Now, I can’t guarantee that there’ll be any green teddy bears, but you’ll find a splendid selection of interactive play toys here.

Dog play for fun and learning!

Playing with your dog is the most important thing you can do.

There - I’ve said it!

It’s not “training”, “correcting”, fighting to get his attention … It’s a way for your dog to see you as the most exciting thing going.

You can be relied upon to respond to him with a game at any time - and this builds adulation in your dog!

How to play with your dog

Now, there are do’s and don’t’s of play.

Endlessly chucking a ball will gradually destroy your dog’s shoulders and can bring on early arthritis.

And we don’t waggle a toy in our dog’s face and expect him to join in. Would you - if I waggled a toy in your face?

What we do is get our toy to behave like prey - that’s what’ll get your dog fired up and engaged!

That’s why I love chaser toys and flirt poles. They’re irresistible to dogs - and they’re a wonderful way to teach impulse control.

After all, your dog won’t be catching any rabbits if he simply flies off whenever he sees one. There’s stalking to be done, stopping still, eying the prey, then - when the time is right - explosive running and a grab.

Now, while you’re twitching your toy about in the grass, as it looks for all the world like a furry creature, you want your dog to WAIT till the right moment. In this case, you decide when that moment is, you give your release word (Gettit! Is mine) and your dog can start the chase.

Here’s a video that shows you the level of impulse control you can build into even the most excited dog by using a chase toy.

You’ll see that the dogs mostly stay in position on the picnic table, can release the toy (Cricket the Whippet finds this hard!) and are fully engaged with the toy when it’s their turn.

You can also see Coco Poodle becoming more thoughtful as racing after the toy fails to work. He develops a new strategy of waiting for the right moment - and that works!

What sort of dog toy?

Chase and tug toys are great for

  • Harnessing instinctive drives

  • Using the strong hunt-kill sequence to teach self-control

  • Focus in high arousal

  • Start ‘em young - very young puppies can learn fast

  • Exercise!

  • Turn-taking to avoid scraps in multi-dog households

.. and it so happens that I’ve found the best chase toys available and arranged a discount for you!

Go to Dog Toys and watch some more detailed videos of me using high-quality toys to teach my dogs, and see how you can do this yourself. (And snatch your discount!)

You’ll see in these videos how fast and furious a “training session” can be - and how much you can achieve in a very short time.

Lessons for you

And for step-by-step lessons for all the skills demonstrated there, check out the free Workshop here and find out how to get the best out of your dog!

 

Have you got a reactive, anxious, Growly, Dog?

🐾 Are you one of those people who creeps about in the dark walking your dog, for fear of meeting … anybody?

🐾 Are you fed up with the snooty looks and snide remarks about “that vicious dog”?

🐾 Are you frustrated by finding only ‘trainers’ who want you to do nasty things to your dog, rather than loving them - as you do?

If so, I want to draw your attention to From Growly Dog to Confident Dog.

And rather than me saying what a wonderful program it is (well, I would, wouldn’t I!) I’m letting some of my long-term students say what they think.

Many of my students have been with me for years. Why?

Because this system works!

So here are pieces from three very different students with very different dogs:


See what you make of what they say! And if you are inspired to learn more, start with our free Masterclass for Growly Dogs

Brilliant Family Dog


When Lois was a puppy, I always dreamt and hoped she would be a cute little dog, a “well-behaved” little dog, that I could proudly walk down the street with - my calm, well-trained, obedient little “Angel”.

I soon realised that wasn’t to be!

She became a fearful, reactive dog. Nothing bad had happened in her life to provoke this behaviour, it’s just how she was. I dreaded walking out with her as her reactivity soon became unmanageable - ferociously barking, screaming, lunging, growling at every dog and child we came across. Taking her into pubs, cafés, shops, any public place, was unthinkable. She was a total nightmare. “What have I done” I would often think. Many tears were shed.

But then I discovered Beverley Courtney .. and after being misled by so many trainers prior, Beverley was our lifesaver. First I read her books, and I was so impressed. This type of dog training was kind, I loved it!

So then I worked through her brilliant courses. I soon learned how to understand WHY Lois behaved as she did, and how to manage her behaviour, and to be respectful, and be her advocate. Working slowly through Beverley’s modules, at our own pace, and never skipping anything, or starting midway, Lois and I became a team. Beverley was .. and still is .. there for us every step of the way. Her support is immense, and her willingness to share her knowledge is incredible.

Lois and I began to understand each other - she is encouraged to make her own choices in life, and she is NEVER forced into situations where she feels threatened or frightened. Yes it has taken time, hard work, and lots of patience, but she is now the calmest of dogs. And I can confidently walk out with her, knowing that she feels safe and comfortable with me, by using the strategies that Beverley taught me. I manage Lois’ reactivity in the kindest of ways. We get so many compliments now, and being with her gives me the most pleasure in life.

If I could wave a magic wand and change Lois into a non-reactive dog, would I do that? Absolutely NOT! I wouldn’t change her for the world. She is unique, she has character, she trusts me, and that’s what I love. She is Lois. 🐾

This is all thanks to Beverley ❤️ She has saved us from a life of misery and regret.

Carol Russell

Brilliant Family Dog

I am so relieved and grateful to have found the Growly Dog Program. Before joining Dudley was so anxious and reactive, and we wanted to find someone who would help with kindness and care.

This is exactly what you get from Beverley!

Apart from her many qualifications and experience she truly has the dog's best interest at heart. The step-by-step course is easy to follow and the monthly calls are invaluable. Questions are answered fully with great advice. The community is there so you can get help at any time with supportive people who really understand. 

Dudley is a much calmer happy dog. Thank you Beverley!

Sue Wright


I was very frustrated with my dog’s behavior, and honestly did not know where to begin.

I joined Beverley's Growly Dog online program in 2019, and my dog's improvement has been remarkable. As I write this, my reactive dog is lying on his bed chewing on his bone … what is amazing about this scenario is there are workers in the next room drilling! Prior to taking the course, my dog would have been running around the room barking nonstop causing us both a lot of stress.

Other areas of improvement include walking by my side instead of pulling; greeting people we meet on our walk, returning to me, and lying down by my feet as we chat; lying down beside me when people are visiting at our house; no more jumping, pulling, lunging, and nonstop barking.

I cannot overemphasize the amount of ongoing support offered by Beverley and her two trainers. You can ask questions in the online community and monthly Zoom coaching calls. You receive personalized advice specific to your needs. There are several other available resources that you can explore on her website.

My relationship with my dog has improved so much. He has grown more confident and less fearful by playing the training games I learned in the course. I have also grown more confident by learning strategies I can use to manage the situations we may encounter.

Sue Brandenburg

Read enough to tickle your curiosity? Watch the Masterclass to get a feel of how this program works so well! Any questions, just ask in the chat on the Masterclass page.

We’d love to see you there and help you and your dog enjoy a calmer, more fulfilling, life.

So you can reach the level that Sue, Carol, and Sue reached for their dogs.

Holidays with dogs! ⛺️🦮


I’ve just returned from a wonderful holiday with my three dogs! And if you’ve ever thought it couldn’t be done - think again!

I know you can get pet passports and travel all over the place with your dog, but I’m a stick-in-the-English-mud and would rather spend my holiday in the sort of place I like best - the countryside.

Usually it’s the campervan for us, and with care and some light fencing it’s an easy option.

But on this occasion I didn’t want to chance potentially awful March weather, so we booked a cottage. There are loads of dog-friendly places you can find. Ours had a fully-fenced garden, and an exercise field as well as miles of footpaths, so we were in clover!

Keep it simple!

The key to a successful dog holiday, I have found, is to keep things as constant as possible.

The dogs are very happy in their van crates, so that was no problem. But I brought their beds and plenty of their usual toys so they knew exactly where they could lie down and what they could chew or play with. So their sleeping arrangements were the same as at home. Also, the feeding - I took plenty of their usual raw food in a coolbox, and the cottage had a freezer - whoopee!

It’s important to keep their food broadly the same as usual, to avoid potential tummy upsets - imagine the horror of that in a rented place! 😳

Most of the time the dogs stayed with us, so they were never stressed. And - with my old dog’s failing sight and hearing, I thought it important never to leave them alone in the house - risk of serious anxiety here!

But with the comfort of their van crates, and all the ventilation necessary, along with choosing shady places to park, it was possible for us to wander off to do non-dog things for a while, knowing that they’d be happily sleeping off the last walk and looking forward to the next one.

One thing we had to pay particular attention to was the amount of rest my young collie got during the day. He has a tendency to be on alert all the time, but enforcing quiet time on those comfy beds - with curtains drawn - meant he was able to deal with the surprises and visitors and new experiences easily.

He even got to make some doggy friends!

It’s not a holiday from training!

We actually got a lot of training done - not in formal training sessions mostly, though there were some short ones of those - but in All Day Training In A New Place.

The dogs come to understand that the same rules apply when the environment is totally different; that they are safe and loved and protected; that they can join us in enjoying our expeditions.

Overall, the holiday was very restful for us and fun for the dogs.

And despite my fears, the March weather came up trumps, giving us the hottest equinox day in over 50 years!

The wellies and coats stayed in the corner the whole time. 

Prepare for your trip

Overall, I’d say the most important part of your dog holiday is in the preparation. Making a list will ensure you don’t forget a vital teddy bear, or one of your leads.

Get it all sorted in advance so you can all relax when you get there.

If you've gained value from my content or downloaded a free resource, and you'd like to show your appreciation, here's a simple way to support me! Thank you for helping keep me fueled and inspired!

 
 

Can dogs have ADHD?

So many people say their dog has ADHD, or is autistic, or something else.

And what they really mean is that in some way it’s the dog’s fault that he is as he is.

After all, it’s much easier to say that your dog behaves badly because of some obscure medical condition - rather than lack of proper nurturing - as in poor food, lack of exercise, lack of stimulation.

Far easier to say that, than to admit that you’ve fallen down on training and can’t manage your dog!

While dogs don’t have autism or ADHD, there is a thing. It’s called Hyperkinesis, and it’s VERY VERY RARE in dogs.

I only came across it myself for the first time recently.

It involves complete inability to settle, inappropriate responses (sometimes aggressive), chaotic behaviour, from puppyhood on.

You’d know if your dog had that - you’d really know!

This diagnosis is only given after extensive testing. And I was interested to read that in addition to medication it is universally recommended to use non-aversive reward-based training.

We already know that!

What about my hyper dog?

Some of us have very active dogs, some of us have shut down dogs, but very, very, few people in the world have hyperkinetic dogs.

This is good news!

So what do you do if you have an apparently uncontrollable, mad, dog who never seems to settle and seems to want to defy you all the time?

Double down on the training - especially All Day Training!

What’s All Day Training? It’s those little things you teach and expect all the time, like waiting patiently at doors, standing still to have a harness put on, sitting for a visitor, and so on.

It’s not a formal training session. Rather like we teach our children, it’s just little reinforcements of good behaviour - All Day Long.

And we must always 

🐶 be clear

🐶 be consistent

and it’s helpful to have set routines so your dog knows what’s going to happen next. He knows when he’s going to be fed, he knows when it’s playtime, he knows when it’s bedtime - throughout the day.

Enable your dog to tell you what he needs!

First … CALM!

Something that helps a lot of people is teaching their dog how to relax. Fully. Anywhere.

“I have been teaching my dog the Magic Mat technique from your Calm Down! book, and it's been great! Thanks for writing such a great and helpful guide!” JS

“Thank you, I've just read through the first 4 chapters of Calm Down! and I'm feeling excited to get started tomorrow, I love the way you write and explain everything!” WR

“Thank you so, so much for the Calm Down! book. It's already going brilliantly, it's like you're a dog mind-reader, you really know your stuff!” LN

By the way, if you are medicating your dog you must always combine this with a behaviour modification program designed by an expert in force-free training. This would ideally be a Veterinary Behaviourist, who can manage the dosing at the same time as the training.

 

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