Behaviour Change Programme

Aggressive behaviour such as growling, lunging, snapping and biting is a serious problem that threatens the safety of you, your family and your community. Dogs displaying aggression are often experiencing emotional distress, and react by showing aggression to cause the trigger to move away. A common scenario is when a fearful dog is approached by a stranger. The dog bites to cause the stranger to withdraw. Overtime, the behaviour strengthens and gets worse because it is a very effective strategy from the dog’s point of view. Aggression will often intensify as the behaviour is reinforced, causing deeper and more severe bites and/or reacting more quickly without showing warning signals.

We refrain from using any punishment or aversive stimulation when modifying aggressive behaviour. Not only is it dangerous for everyone involved, strong evidence from research indicates that punishment is unlikely to resolve the issue and can even make the problem much worse. Educated professionals harness the power of behavioural sciences to change behaviour humanely by modifying contingencies and changing the environment to achieve lasting/resilient outcomes, and there are many techniques currently available to do this in a gradual and positive manner.

“Quick-fixes” such as using a training/electric/prong collar to suppress the aggression may appear to work at first, but could quickly become useless (e.g. when the dog develops a pain tolerance) or create new behaviour problems (e.g. generalised anxiety from experiencing an unpredictable, intense aversive stimulus).

It is advisable to seek help as early as possible to minimise chances of injury to others. Chances of success are often higher when the problem is tackled early.

Resource guarding or aggression around valuable resources such as tasty food, bones, toys, territory and even their favourite people, is a common problem in dogs. The characteristic signs of resource aggression around their protected items are sudden freezing, showing eye whites, baring teeth, growling and snapping. This usually occurs when another person/animal approaches when the dog is holding on to the resource.

While this behaviour is considered inappropriate for pet dogs, from an evolutionary standpoint, it is beneficial for dogs to fiercely defend valuable and scarce resources. As such, in some cases the dog develops resource guarding naturally, but in other cases the dog may be accidentally ‘trained’ to aggress after it learns that people/other dogs will forcefully take away their items or intrude into their safe space. This is why puppy education and preventative training is so important to prevent such issues from developing. If your dog already has this problem, all is not lost – as we can help to properly address and manage it with rewards-based behaviour modification techniques.

Many dogs suffer from fear and anxiety-related conditions that are left untreated until they become a more serious problem, manifesting as aggression, generalised anxiety, and severe phobias (e.g. storm phobia). Sometimes, fear and anxiety can also lead to health problems and a shortened overall lifespan. From scientific literature, we know that genetics can increase the risk of dogs developing fear and anxiety issues, and certain types of dogs are much more prone to these conditions. Early, positive exposure to potential triggers during a puppy’s sensitive socialisation period is crucial to significantly reduce fear and anxiety in adulthood and build behavioural resilience.

It is important to recognise that dogs with these conditions are often experiencing a poor quality of life, being afraid and anxious every single moment of their lives. Imagine a person trying to get through life this way! It is our duty to address and alleviate suffering through the appropriate methods, usually in conjunction with veterinary/therapeutic support.

Separation anxiety as the name suggests, is a type of anxiety. It deserves a category on its own due to how widespread it is – especially after Covid-19 lockdowns around the world. The dog is fearful of being left alone or separated from you, and becomes anxious whenever it sees signs that the you’re about to leave the home. The dog may vocalise (bark, whine or howl) for hours on end until you return, disturbing neighbours and causing you much grief. It may also destroy the home and toilet inappropriately in its panic.

Outdated methods of resolving separation anxiety such as providing food toys and crate confinement does little to solve the problem, although it may provide temporary relief. It may even worsen the condition and significantly compromise the dog’s welfare.

Learn more about how we treat separation anxiety using modern, effective methods of training. 

Is your dog a slave to its impulses? It may be uncontrollable, always jumping on people in excitement, or pulling hard on a leash whenever you go for a walk. The dog may not have learnt how to control its emotions, and is used to get what it wants, whenever it wants. 

We can help to teach your dog how to settle down and be calm. We also teach the concept of delayed reinforcement, where it pays off to wait patiently for whatever it wants. Your dog will become much more manageable and pleasant to be around, once it learns how to behave appropriately in a range of environments. 

Dogs bark to communicate and express their emotions. However, excessive use of barking quickly becomes a problem in our densely populated society. Dogs can bark for a variety of reasons – to communicate their displeasure, when they are afraid, to get your attention or when experiencing severe anxiety. We will conduct a proper assessment on the motivation for the barking before developing a behaviour modification plan to effectively target the issue.  

It is possible to teach dogs to be quiet using welfare-friendly, rewards-based methods. Using an anti-bark collar to punish and suppress the barking via electric shocks/aversive sprays is dated and can cause harm to your dog’s emotional and physical health. Such methods do not last and the dog often reverts back to the original behaviour once the collar is removed. Hence, we focus on creating long-term change that doesn’t result in harmful side effects.

Toileting is part of daily life and can be frustrating when your dog ‘just doesn’t get it’. Your dog may be peeing/pooing on the floor, or refusing to go when you are nearby! Many young dogs need instruction on appropriate places to go to the toilet, and this can be taught in a positive way.

Toileting issues may also be a symptom of a larger health problem, or an anxiety-related condition. We will conduct a proper assessment to dissect the problem and develop a plan to help you and your dog overcome it.