I love to ask the question, "what is the fastest way to get your dog to meet your expectations? Modify your expectations." That oftentimes makes people scratch their heads, but it is motivating to see the light bulbs go on. The morphing from "my dog does bad things" to "my dog is not meeting my expectations" to "I need to evaluate my expectations about my dog" is a fascinating journey. Thank you for leading that charge.
"Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (Harper Perennial Modern Classics)" - July 1, 2008 by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - thanks for the recommendation! Really enjoying this chat.
A really interesting conversation - thank you! It's good we're having this conversation about moving away from micro-managing dog's lives and instead help them learn to make good choices and develop good coping strategies. While I grew up as a 'free' kid in the 70's, I wouldn't say it's total nirvana - one could argue, many of us were raised with not enough guidance. We may look at millennials who are now adults and feel they were 'over protected' - however, I'd say they are my favourite clients. It's much easier talking to this new generation of dog owners about their dog's emotional welfare and they are much more willing to move away from the 'operant model' and think about the overall welfare of the dog. I hope as these conversations evolve we can find the right balance between providing 'freedom' and 'learning how to make good choices' with providing secure loving homes for our dogs.
I am just continuously amazed to have the opportunity to be a fly on the wall when people I have so much to learn from share their wisdom! Thank you so much for sharing these very necessary conversations with us!
Simon: “I don’t know, it’s a [human] lifestyle issue.” (re: the modern day dogs’ environmental challenges). It’s both a gargantuan undertaking AND an amazing opportunity - to further promote humans’ quality of life through the lens of doing what might be better for their dogs.
I love these talks! And I blush sometimes, as I am bursting with opinions and wanting to explain them, and realizing that I am just like everybody else and trying to spread my own "religion"....
I'm just going to try to comment as I watch this video. Not sure yet that I will get through in one session, though. Anyway, I'm almost 8 minutes in. So far, it's a really good talk. 👍
Kim I like so much your down to earth insight and looking forward to read your book. Nothing strange the Flowconcept it's a natural way to be happy and do what is your passion and even better said your soul mission. My experince is that more federal or even dogs with more genetic diversity are often in flow and the purebred dog with their complex traits these days are less in a flow. And being in flow has nothing to do with stress or nervous chewing a ball for example.
Hi Kim, Good talk! Not sure where your located but I'm a dog behaviorist in LA some of the questions you pose I can answer. I think if we can get to a place where we stop making this a zero-sum and remove our personal opinion and feeling a lot of stuff will change.
I agree that this is all really a human issue. Would love for you to invite an Anthrozoologist with a background in Anthropology to this conversation - the human systemic issues really need to be addressed. I don’t actually believe that evidence-based dog trainers are in disagreement with you - I think they’re just adapting to systems of injustice - at the point of pets (ownership, control, commodification, sexism, racism…); often with a lack of education in the broader spheres of the social and biological sciences because dog training education still takes place in separate schools (ugh!). Within progressive communities, though, talking to clients is 75% normalizing the behaviours of our pets (especially cats!). Interestingly, it’s the same progressivism that turns us off ethology which can tend towards positivism - though, let’s be honest, mostly because of certain ethologists 🤭.
We must pull back so Normal can be redefined to acommodate the ballooning human population. All animals are losing their normal habitat & space to move about in. In the 1970s there were 1 billion people on Earth. Now there are about 8 billion humans. Not enough room for anyone to act as they evolved or were selected to act - normally. We need new methods to navigate the artificial environment that this over-crowded world has become.
I love to ask the question, "what is the fastest way to get your dog to meet your expectations? Modify your expectations." That oftentimes makes people scratch their heads, but it is motivating to see the light bulbs go on.
The morphing from "my dog does bad things" to "my dog is not meeting my expectations" to "I need to evaluate my expectations about my dog" is a fascinating journey. Thank you for leading that charge.
"Flow: The Psychology of Optimal Experience (Harper Perennial Modern Classics)" - July 1, 2008
by Mihaly Csikszentmihalyi - thanks for the recommendation! Really enjoying this chat.
Terrific talk! Thank you!
A really interesting conversation - thank you!
It's good we're having this conversation about moving away from micro-managing dog's lives and instead help them learn to make good choices and develop good coping strategies.
While I grew up as a 'free' kid in the 70's, I wouldn't say it's total nirvana - one could argue, many of us were raised with not enough guidance. We may look at millennials who are now adults and feel they were 'over protected' - however, I'd say they are my favourite clients. It's much easier talking to this new generation of dog owners about their dog's emotional welfare and they are much more willing to move away from the 'operant model' and think about the overall welfare of the dog.
I hope as these conversations evolve we can find the right balance between providing 'freedom' and 'learning how to make good choices' with providing secure loving homes for our dogs.
I am just continuously amazed to have the opportunity to be a fly on the wall when people I have so much to learn from share their wisdom!
Thank you so much for sharing these very necessary conversations with us!
Simon: “I don’t know, it’s a [human] lifestyle issue.” (re: the modern day dogs’ environmental challenges). It’s both a gargantuan undertaking AND an amazing opportunity - to further promote humans’ quality of life through the lens of doing what might be better for their dogs.
I love these talks! And I blush sometimes, as I am bursting with opinions and wanting to explain them, and realizing that I am just like everybody else and trying to spread my own "religion"....
I'm just going to try to comment as I watch this video. Not sure yet that I will get through in one session, though. Anyway, I'm almost 8 minutes in. So far, it's a really good talk. 👍
Kim I like so much your down to earth insight and looking forward to read your book. Nothing strange the Flowconcept it's a natural way to be happy and do what is your passion and even better said your soul mission. My experince is that more federal or even dogs with more genetic diversity are often in flow and the purebred dog with their complex traits these days are less in a flow. And being in flow has nothing to do with stress or nervous chewing a ball for example.
Tank you again, brilliant chat love that Releasing Stimuli, that alone will help me help others
Hi Kim, Good talk! Not sure where your located but I'm a dog behaviorist in LA some of the questions you pose I can answer. I think if we can get to a place where we stop making this a zero-sum and remove our personal opinion and feeling a lot of stuff will change.
I agree that this is all really a human issue. Would love for you to invite an Anthrozoologist with a background in Anthropology to this conversation - the human systemic issues really need to be addressed. I don’t actually believe that evidence-based dog trainers are in disagreement with you - I think they’re just adapting to systems of injustice - at the point of pets (ownership, control, commodification, sexism, racism…); often with a lack of education in the broader spheres of the social and biological sciences because dog training education still takes place in separate schools (ugh!). Within progressive communities, though, talking to clients is 75% normalizing the behaviours of our pets (especially cats!). Interestingly, it’s the same progressivism that turns us off ethology which can tend towards positivism - though, let’s be honest, mostly because of certain ethologists 🤭.
Does the guest ever get to talk?
We must pull back so Normal can be redefined to acommodate the ballooning human population.
All animals are losing their normal habitat & space to move about in.
In the 1970s there were 1 billion people on Earth. Now there are about 8 billion humans.
Not enough room for anyone to act as they evolved or were selected to act - normally.
We need new methods to navigate the artificial environment that this over-crowded world has become.
Far too many resources wasted into dogs who have desire to self preserve!