Positive Reinforcement
Mikkel Becker, Fear Free
Mikkel Becker may be the daughter of Dr. Marty Becker, but she stands on her own. Especially when it comes to Positive Reinforcement. Mikkel utilizes this technique to train dogs AND cats. She'll share ways we can use Positive Reinforcement with our pets and husbands!
Mikkel helps us out with some dilemmas we have here with Ladybug, the Animal Radio Stunt Dog. For example, when the doorbell rings, she goes nuts! Surprisingly, Mikkel likes it when her own dogs bark and alert her to someone at the door. But what's more important is that when she asks them to be quiet, they stop barking. She has trained her dogs to do a "down-stay" at the door. As soon as the doorbell rings, the barking ensues, but then they go into a down-stay at the door and are quiet.
To get your dog to do this, first train them into a down-stay. You can have them stay on a mat or in a dog bed, just be sure that they have a place to go to. You need to practice this over and over again, without anyone coming to the door. You should also use treats and lots of praise for encouragement. Next, start opening the door without anyone being there. And then you can even try a family member outside of the door, without knocking or ringing the bell.
Gradually, your dog will automatically go into their own down-stay when someone does come to the door. You need to be consistent with the training, and only open the door when your dog is in the down-stay position. Be sure to give them lots of attention and praise when they do well.
What if you have a dog that likes to "mouth?' This is not biting, but the dog actually placing their mouth over your hand or arm, perhaps in a greeting. Your natural reaction is to pull away, but this can sometimes excite them even more, causing them to mouth more and becoming a fun game for them. When you first approach the dog, make sure they are in a sit-stay position and then praise them. If they do approach you and start to mouth, place your arms and hands in a cross position low against your body then stop and freeze like a statue, completely ignoring them. Look away and wait for them to calm down and then gives them lots of praise. If you have a dog that is very mouthy, like a Poodle, you can even have toys at the door when people come over, so you can redirect them and let them have something to carry in their mouth. Sometimes when they get nervous and worked up, they just like to carry something.
What about cats? Can you train cats? Mikkel states it is easier than you think. You probably already have a "come when called" trained cat. All you have to do is open the can of cat food and they come. You already have the beginnings of a trained cat. Cats can be trained to sit, come when called and to "target." Cat sit a lot, so if you hold a treat over their head and they sit, give them praise or use a clicker, and then follow it up by giving them the treat. If you have those three basics, you are going to eliminate a lot of behavior problems.
With a little persistence, patience and praise, you can have a well-trained dog or cat.
Visit Fear Free Happy Homes for tips on making your home fear free and to locate a Fear Free Veterinarian near you. Go to Fear Free Pets to become certified.
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Dare To Look!
Eric Meyer, Ripley's Believe It Or Not
For over 30 years Edward Meyer traveled around the world collecting unusual stories and unbelievable artifacts to fill "Believe It or Not!" books and museums. He is a walking encyclopedia of information, some strange, some gross - but all true! He has acquired over 20,000 different museum artifacts, everything from a pin valued at $1 million dollars, to a two-trunked elephant, to Marilyn Monroe's lingerie, to Lee Harvey Oswald's mortuary toe tag, to a meteorite from Mars. The list is endless. Edward has appeared on radio and television programs around the world as the Ripley historian and raconteur, the man with the world's best job!
We talked to him about the "Dare To Look" book, where you could find a little bit of technology. You just had to download the free 3D interactive book app. Once you had the app, there were 18 pages in the book that you could take a picture of with your Smart Phone. You just had to look for the red and green logos throughout the book, which stated "OddScan." Once you did this, you were exposed to more information, more photos, maybe an interview or a video.
We talked with Edward about some of the astonishing animal stories in this edition of Ripley's, which contains 256 pages with about 2,500 stories including over 500 photographs. One of the sections in the book includes a whole chapter on animals, of about 52 pages.
Some strange things you will see are a skateboarding cat; a rubber chicken launched into space; mummified pets; see-through frog; split personality cat - face color divided into two; cyclops goat; pig with two snouts & mouth; porcupine attack on Bulldog with 500 quills to the face; and a snowboarding Opossum.
When asked if Ripley's has even been "duped," Edward replied that he couldn't say that they had never been duped, but he certainly didn't think it had happened very often. He thinks most people want to be in Ripley's for their 15 minutes of fame and are excited about what they have. And if they don't have the real deal, Ripley's lets them know.
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16th Annual Life Saving Pet Adoption Tour
Susan Sims, Fido Friendly, Get Your Licks On Route 66
It’s that time of year again where FIDO Friendly travels down the Mother Road, stopping at shelters along the way to support adoption events.
They helped to place over 1,100 pets into new forever homes in 2023 bringing their total to over 19,000 pets finding the love they deserve. Join them this year as they continue to travel down America’s Favorite Highway, helping to save lives, one shelter at a time.
The 16th annual adoption tour is currently underway after starting in Los Angeles. Susan Sims checks in from stops along the way. Come on out to find your forever friend along America's favorite highway. They bring their giant spinning wheel filled with prizes provided by our sponsors where a donation gives attendees a chance to win fabulous prizes with all proceeds benefitting the shelters at the end of the day.
Actress Ashley Bell is the official spokesperson for the tour. Ashley lives with 3 rescued mutts. They consist of a Poodle mix and two Havanese/Dachshund mixes that she recently rescued. She also admits that she lets her dogs sleep with her at night!
The Get Your Licks On Route 66 Tour is sponsored Animal Radio with a special thanks to car wrap sponsor Signs2U. Other sponsors include:
Companion Sponsor: Pet King Brands
Cat Food Sponsor: Catit
Grooming Sponsor: HandsOn Gloves
Community Sponsor: Tito's Vodka for Dog People
Campground Sponsor: KOA
Spinning Wheel Sponsors: Buddy Belts; Bike To Leash; Brutus Bone Broth; Suzie's CBD Treats; Atomic Bubbles; Embrace Pet Insurance; Charlee Bear; Four Paws; Cadet; Nylabone;and BarkWorthies.
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The tour drives down America's Favorite Highway from Los Angeles to Chicago, stopping at shelters along the way to support adoption events.
Tomorrow they will be at the Nebraska Humane Society, located at 8929 Fort Street, Omaha, Nebraska.
Even if you are not looking to add a forever family member you can still join the fun by visiting one of their partner shelters and donate $2 to spin and win, with proceeds going to the shelter at the end of the day!
Can't stop by one of their tour locations but would love to support this life saving tour? Go online to FIDOFriendly.com and donate to the life saving pet adoption tour, Get Your Licks on Route 66®.
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Coyotes Stalking our Neighborhoods - Dr. Debbie
I saw a scraggly coyote in front of my house one morning - the second coyote sighting in my neighborhood in a week. I feared what could have happened if my 15 pound terrier was outdoors alone. Wildlife is beautiful, but when my little terrier, Boss, is in harm's way - my doggie momma protective instincts kick in. While not a threat to be exaggerated, the coyote nonetheless poses a risk to our pet's safety.
Coyotes are increasingly becoming a concern in urban areas - some are displaced by the urban sprawl that consumes their potential habitat. But other coyotes become urbanized savvy to living, feeding and thriving within city environments. Coyotes are born opportunists and dine on what they find available. They eat small animals like rabbits and rodents, but also consume ample vegetable matter with up to 40-percent of their diet consisting of seeds, grasses, fruits and flowers.
The most serious coyote concern for pets is injury and predation. As a veterinarian, I can recall many a client whose pet was brought in injured by unknown wildlife or whose cat just one day reportedly just vanished. While many might believe their cat was stolen, in reality these cats most likely fell victim to coyote predation. Likewise, small to medium sized dogs can be injured or lost to the same fate as their feline counterparts.
Steps to Keep Your Pet Safe
Whether you have pets or not, it's important not to feed coyotes. Intentional feeding of coyotes makes them dependent on humans and less fearful, which increases the chance of an unwanted, dangerous interaction with people or pets. Just leaving unsecured garbage is invitation enough for these opportunists. Secure all garbage in closing containers and avoid leaving bagged garbage at the curb overnight. Pick up uneaten pet food as soon as your pet has finished eating.
Pet owners should take precautions to keep their household pets protected as well. Keep cats indoors and maintain all pets on leash control when outdoors. Ensure your dogs and cats are up to date on their rabies vaccines. Even indoor cats that do not venture outdoors should be current on this vaccine for both pet and human safety.
Besides rabies, keep your pets current on other vaccinations, deworming and preventatives as recommended by your veterinarian. Coyotes are known to harbor carry skin mites, canine distemper virus, canine parvovirus, adenovirus and heart worm disease. So even if your dog never leaves your yard, there is potential for infectious disease crossover between wildlife and your pet.
These wild canids are masters at adapting to their changing world, and it's unrealistic they are going away on their own. As humans we are the ones that need to change to make urban areas less appealing, removing easy feeding sites, and by raising awareness to the potential crossover between wildlife and pets.
Featured veterinarian known as "Dr. Debbie" on national pet radio program, Animal Radio. Ebook author of "Yorkshire Terriers: How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend"; "Pugs: How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend"; "Mini Schnauzers: How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend"; and "Shih Tzu: How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend." Dr. Debbie's books.
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Animal Radio News with Stacey Cohen
Bogus Service Certificates & Vests
A service dog is highly trained to perform a specific task for its disabled owner. It's different from a therapy dog, which comforts the sick and elderly, or an emotional support animal, which soothes anxiety. For people wanting to take their pets wherever they go, a brisk business has developed in the sale of bogus service animal certificates and vests. There are many websites that sell certification paraphernalia. Customers can procure papers, patches and vests to make their dogs look official. They can even buy a prescription letter from a psychiatrist after taking an online quiz. The laws are broad enough to allow that. Unfortunately, while many websites sound official, there are no government-sanctioned registration agencies. Federal law does not actually require registration or identification patches. Property managers or airlines cannot mandate that service animals come with patches and they can't ask owners to produce ID cards.
Technology Reduces Animal Testing
A laboratory device that creates three dimensional cancer tumors can reduce animal testing by almost a third, scientists say. The technology is part of a growing movement away from using animals to screen drugs. Most drugs are initially tested on cells in 'flat' two dimensional culture plates before being evaluated in animals. It can be used to study drugs that block the invasiveness of cancer as well as its growth.
Drunk Driving On A Horse!
A Colorado man was in a heap of trouble for drunk driving while riding a horse. University of Colorado police said the 45-year-old man was taken into custody in Boulder after police officers found him on top of a horse visibly intoxicated. The man was apparently riding his steed 600 miles to his brother's wedding in Utah, and told authorities he had decided to travel by horse after he lost his driver's license. A search of his saddlebag turned up several beer cans and a small pistol. After spending the night in jail, he was released from custody and reunited with his horse to continue his trek. He faced drunk driving, animal cruelty and other charges.
Top 5 Dog Friendly Cities
The list is out for one of the most dog friendly cities. To make the list these things were taken into consideration: Vet costs, number of dog parks and walkability. Here are the top 5: #1, San Francisco, California; #2 Henderson, Nevada; #3 Denver, Colorado; #4 Albuquerque, New Mexico; and #5 Portland, Oregon.
Dog Rides Bus Around City - By Himself!
A woman in Italy said her dog learned how to navigate the city bus routes in Genoa all by himself. The owner stated that her 12-year-old dog had been riding the bus since he was a puppy. He spent his days riding around town and getting off at the stops where he knew he would find a treat. The owner said the pooch always took the bus to a local poultry shop, where he got a few handouts, and then returned home by the end of the day. Animal behavior expert Luigi Boitani explained that the dog wasn't really plotting out his bus routes, but instead using familiar smells and sights to figure out when to get on and off the bus. The dog's owner said she ordered a camera for his collar so she could see exactly what the four-legged traveler did on his adventures.
Listen to the entire Podcast of this show (#1295)
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