Your Dog is not a Robot… They are a Living Sentient Being
Hi there! This is Krista with Episode #161 on the Wag Out Loud pawdcast. Just a reminder that you should probably check out all of the amazing trusted brands that I highly recommend. Now, you guys, these products are ones I've tried on my dog Winston and I've researched and I know like and trust. So these are probably products that will help your dog to thrive as well. So just go to https://www.wagoutloud.com/ and check out the trusted brands section. And I've negotiated discounts for most of the products, so why not see what can make a difference in your dog's life?
Have you ever wondered why dogs tilt their heads? Well, according to experts, they do it for a couple of good reasons. First, they may be attempting to read their owner's body language and speech patterns to figure out what their owner is trying to say. And the other reason would be to adjust the outer ears to better detect the source of the sound.
Welcome to the Wag Out Loud pawdcast, where we are obsessed with bringing you helpful tips on canine health care, nutrition, and overall wellbeing. If you'd like to support the show, check out the amazing online events, products and resources that I personally recommend on the Wag Out Loud website. I'm your host, Krista and I'm super excited to be bringing you yet another tail wagging episode.
Ana Melara has been working with dogs and their families for over two decades. She is a Certified Professional Dog Trainer and member of the (APDT) Association of Professional Dog Trainers and a member of (IAABC) International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants. She is advanced TAGteach Certified. Whether she is teaching basic manners, agility, puppy socialization, potty training, or addressing a dog’s aggression issues, Ana stresses to all of her human clients the profound importance that their gentle leadership plays in their dog’s training.
I would like to thank all of the dog lovers joining us today. Welcome everyone. I am thrilled to be joined by my guest, Ana Melara. And she is covering your dog is not a robot. They are living sentient beings. So Ana, I first want to thank you for joining us today. I'm so happy you're here.
Hi. I'm really happy to be here as well.
This is gonna be fun. So, Ana, do you mind introducing yourself and telling us how did you get started working with dogs?
Yes, yes, it’s such a fun story. And people are like what? Every time I talk about it. I'm a Certified Professional Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA®). I have been working with dogs and their families for about 25 ish years, originally in New York, and then out here in Colorado since 2001. In New York, I used to be an illustrator and graphic artist working in the fashion and advertising industry. So lots of high heels, lots of makeup and hair and really, really awesome clothing. And I started volunteering at a local pet supply store that had some rescue animals that they kept in the store. So, I cleaned cat cages and that kind of thing. And the next thing you know, I started falling in love with, you know, the really rough and tumble pitbulls that were getting rescued from fighting rings. And I was like, Hey, how can I get in on that? And so I started doing that and didn't know what the heck I was doing. And I learned from some other people, the methods way back then were quite aversive. So lots of choke chains and prong collars and stuff like that. And it just didn't feel good to me. So I was like, well look at what I can do with a cookie. And very quickly I started learning that, that you can actually get dogs to do stuff by luring and praising and that kind of thing. And over the years, I ultimately got off of luring. And now it's more relationship based. There's still plenty of cookies and rewards, and lots of play. Keeping everything really fun. Because one of the things that is scientifically proven is that when we feel safe, and we're happy, we learn much easier. And that goes for our animals as well. So in a nutshell.
Cool! Well, Ana, when we say sentient beings, are we just saying that our dogs are sentient because they have the same capacity as we do to feel joy, happiness, but also the negative emotions like fear, pain and sadness?
Are Dogs Sentient?
Absolutely, absolutely. The thing that there's so many things that haven't been proven and so many things that have and I remember way back when I first started, I'm like this dog feels sad to me, this dog feels worried to me. And we way back then we were told like no dogs don't have feelings the way people do and I'm like, okay, but I still kind of think this, right? And then fast forward to you know, to the past 10-15 years, we've been discovering more and more about emotions in dogs and how they contribute also to our joy and so, so yes, across the board, fear and pain, discomfort, anxiety, empathy that we feel to others. So like when you can see in someone's body that they're not feeling well or they're they they look or feel distraught, animals can do that very same thing. I work a lot with service dogs who work for… they’re service dogs for like, let's say PTSD, or, or are people that have anxiety or a panic disorder. And one of the things that I noticed that as much as I teach the dog to do things, the dogs get it. Right. So they see one one recently is a young dog. She's just a year old. And she's a service dog in training. The other day her dad was telling me about how uncomfortable he was in the grocery store when a lady just decided to pet his dog. And it's just him telling me the story. I could hear it in his voice. And the dog went over and sat on his foot and leaned her body against him. And so things like that, like I didn't tell her to do that. And we didn't fully train that yet. But she picked it up. And she's like, I feel like he needs me. So yes, I, I think they have so much more than we give him we give him credit for.
Yep, I totally agree. Well, I am super proud to be an American. But in some ways, I feel like we are so behind here in the United States. And what I mean by that is that our laws label dogs as property, like our cars or the kitchen table. But yeah, countries like Spain, and Portugal, France, Switzerland, Germany, and just recently, the UK has recognized animal sentience into law. So you know, the training collars that you mentioned that electrocute dogs, or pinch collars, they are banned, and new laws are being put into place to even tackle puppy or smuggling mills. So good for Europe. But why are we so behind here in the US recognizing dogs?
Dogs Viewed as Property in the US
You know, that's such a loaded question. I could just answer that question for forever. We still don't even get all of it. But I think that we have a certain way about us here in the United States where, where we want our rights to do whatever we want to. We see it in so many different ways. I think that so much of it has to do with that whole idea of property. And I'm free to do what I want. And that's kind of an angle that I kind of, honestly have the same question with you're like, come on, come on America, let's catch up. But I do believe that we're doing we're making strides. I mean, we're even looking at, like dog training as a career in general as as as a job as a career is an unregulated industry. And right now, we're actually going through the process of trying to figure out, how do we make it so we have to abide by a certain set of standards. And some of us are already getting certified in different ways. And I have multiple certifications under my name under my under my belt. But you know, we do have to get others on board. If everything is going to change.
Well, we know that this show focuses on advocating for our dog's health and wellness. And I know that you also believe in advocating for our pups, but not making excuses for them. What do you mean by that?
So when we have, let's say, a dog that is reactive or aggressive on leash when we're out, out in public, we have to be thoughtful about hey, you know, I as much as I want my dog to run free and go play ball and do all that stuff. I recognize that I can't just let my dog be off leash if he or she is not polite or friendly with other dogs. One of my dogs Tatonka, I love talking about him because he has just about everything wrong with him when I first got him some pretty severe aggression issues towards people towards dogs towards any little critter like bunnies or, or squirrels or anything else. And this dog, he he had a bite record on people and other dogs and one of the rumors was that he might have also killed a kitty. And so when I got him, I was like, alright, well, let's go ahead and see what we can do for you. But I'm not going to just go oh, he's my new perfect little angel and set him free on the world. There were a lot of clear boundaries that I had to set and I had to guide him through what to do and what not to do. All gently all in a way that he could absorb it. He had to feel safe before I could just start to let him, approach dogs or people and that kind of thing. But as far as the advocating for my dog, there were times I even remember when I first got him that people would say to me, he's so aggressive, you shouldn't have him out in public. And those were things that I had to kind of let it go in one ear and out the other because he has just as much of a right to be on the planet, and learn and grow. And he turned out to be such a lovely model citizen. He even went on to get his Canine Good Citizen, and even did some therapy work and did agility. And he also helped me raise lots of puppies, abandoned foster puppies, he was like, Oh, my God, this little anti dog. But, but yeah, you know, even though he didn't have it all together, when I first got him, he has every right to be on the planet. And I did everything in my power to keep everybody safe. So there were never any incidences over the 11 years that I had him. So yeah, I think it's important that you advocate for your dog, as well as make sure that you're responsible for, hey, you know, I've got this dog that doesn't do well off leash, I haven't trained it yet. Put them on a long line, or hire a trainer that's going to support you and guide you through it. But but not just Oh, well. Oh, well, the dog didn't come.
It's fixable.
Oh, yeah, a lot of stuff is fixable.
Well, and I know that you're an expert on how our dog's behavior is actually affected by their health and wellness. So that's what I would really love to dive into. So yeah, why don't we start with what are some conditions that our dogs have health wise that might lead to behavior changes?
Health Issues That Might Affect Behavior
Yeah, there's so this is, this is such a huge can of worms, right? This is one of those situations where I will, if I'm called to someone's home, like they got an aggression problem, fear problem, being handled or touched, or just any kind of issue, I will immediately get into, what is the dog eating? Where are they sleeping? How old are they? How are they walking? How are they sitting? And by just getting a few questions answered, and even watching them walk around, or how they sit down or lie down, then I can I can say, hey, you know what I see that your dog is, every time he sits down, he kind of slides his one hip under the other. And it's always the same hip. Have you ever had his back checked? You ever had his hip checked? And they might go oh, he's always been like that? And I'll say, Yeah, you know, sometimes things are always like that, but doesn't mean that they're okay, correct or comfortable. And so oftentimes I will send before I even start training, I'll send the family to go go ahead and see an animal chiropractor, or even their veterinarian depending on what I'm seeing. Sometimes we want to change the diet all together. We see dogs that are licking their paws or scratching a lot. And people might complain about oh, he doesn't come when called, and he doesn't listen when I tell him to stay or this or that. And I'll say, well, sometimes dogs just don't feel good. And they hear you but they're like, Oh, I can't even focus. I feel that we have to look at how are they feeling first because it absolutely does show up in their manners, in their attention, in their comfort. I have a little foster dog here. She's a little Corgi. And I went to visit with her two days ago in the foster family in the foster home. And one of the things that I saw while one of the fosters was petting her, she rolled on her side and then onto her back and you could see that her ears were in a comfortable position. Her eyes were really squinty, her mouth was loose, the little paws were all comfortable. And she even slid onto her back and it all looked really really nice. And then as the person's hand started to slide towards the dog's belly, the dog closed her mouth, tightened her lips, her ears got tight to her back, and her eyes got wide. She didn't growl, she didn't nap. But immediately I said stop petting her. And we thought, what's what's going on with her and but it was right as my friend started to put her hand on the dog's belly and said, let's go ahead and do something. Let's get a look a full blood panel. And let's also see about does she have maybe some digestive issues or a urinary tract infection? And so they have, they've made an appointment for us to get her in. Because she is uncomfortable and she has, on the occasions that she has bitten it has been when they have been petting her belly. And so it is somehow related and we don't know what it is. Right and so, so I think that that's, that's an excellent example of the things that we might like to say like an untrained eye might not catch that. Right. And, and they obviously didn't catch it because they did get bit. So they were patting her patting her. And she's, she probably very likely gave those signals but they didn't know what they were looking for. And so ultimately the dog you know bit the family that owned her and so she's now in foster care and we're going to help her communicate and without without having to put her teeth on people. But we also want to make sure that whatever's not feeling good starts to feel better.
Awesome. Well, Ana, this is a great place for us to pause and take a quick sponsor break so we'll be right back.
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Welcome back, everyone, we are speaking with Ana Melara. And what a great point that you made before the break is that you know dogs have feelings. And when they don't feel well, obviously, their behavior is going to change. See we're talking about pain or discomfort. And we know so many things could cause that in our dogs, arthritis, allergies, ear infections, dental issues, if I had that I'd be irritable as well. So that is such a great point. And, you know, hypothyroidism, I know can manifest one.
Yeah. You know, and now that you bring up thyroid, a lot of times, I've just learned this over the years, we often just clip our leashes to a dog's collar. And that constant pressure on that front of that throat, that's where the, that's where the thyroid lives. And we don't recognize until you know, the dog is five years old, six years old this constant pressure on their throat, every time they go for a walk. All of a sudden, we start to see like changes in their hair, changes in their diet ,in their in their appetite and retaining or losing too much weight and and then we look it up and you know, or get them checked out and we find out oh, the dog has a thyroid problem. I wonder how that happened. And it really has, it can have a lot to do with that constant pressure on the throat which is you know, something that was not even ever on my radar until I learned that a few years back.
Fascinating. Well before we move on, you know, as far as health and how they feel, their cognition, you know, as dogs get older, some of them do get dementia, so that would have to play into their behavior. And yeah, changes in vision or hearing, you know, there's so many things that we just don't think about, you know, we want a certain outcome and why isn't my dog behaving the way I want them to?
Senior Dogs
And oftentimes we get the we hear the comments. Oh, he's just so stubborn. in his older years. He's gotten so stubborn or defiant. Right and so that's really not the case. You know, if a dog if you're asking a dog to sit and he has always sat his entire life and you ask him to sit and he's older and he takes his time or he doesn't do it at all, or he decides to walk off and sniff he's telling you sitting hurts me or sitting’s uncomfortable I don't want to do it. Maybe he's not being he or she is not being defiant they're probably not not feeling it in their hips or in their whatever part of their body their knees or what have you and so, so I do give dogs leeway, especially when they're getting older. I really pay attention to know what's happening. Are you one example that like my Tatonka used to do is when he wanted to go outside to the to go to the bathroom, he would go to the door And as he got older, he would go to any door to stand there at the door and I'm like, sweetie, do you need something and he's like, I gotta go out and I'm like, Let's go this way. And I would sometimes tap him on the shoulder or, or kind of touch his tail or his booty. So he would go, Oh, what's going on? And like we're going this way. We have to be reminded. My Gracie when she was getting older, I would have to carry her down one step, in order to go for a walk. I would carry her and place her just two feet away from when he picked her up off of a step. And she's like, alright, let's walk and we would walk and then she'd stop. And she'd look at me like, can you carry me? And I'm like, alright, I'll carry you. We do have to listen and listen with our eyes. Watch what they're telling us watch what they're looking at. My Chihuahua is sitting right here. And I've got a turkey heart on the table here where I'm sitting, and she looks at the turkey heart. And then she sits down. And then she stands up. And she looks at the turkey heart they're really pretty amazing at telling us. And I do think that when they do get older, they get forgetful. Like my Tatonka, He would actually he would go to a door. And especially towards the very end, he would go to the door. Any door he was standing at like a kitchen cabinet door. I was like, Oh, sweetie, it's not that way. Yeah, he's like, yeah, it's the door, right? So you're standing by the door, and I'm like, Alright, let's go potty outside. And he and I guided him and he went, when poop right on the rug. I was like, alright, that's perfect. That's a perfect spot. Because we do have to recognize, you know that they're not doing it to be naughty, especially if they've been going potty in the right place for so many years. They don't all of a sudden just turn into bad dogs, you know, sometimes they forget, or they simply can't hold it the way they used to.
True. Well, Ana, you mentioned before quickly about their diet. So I have to ask you, do you think that the amount of dogs that are actually eating commercial processed food, kibble has brought on the surge of behavior problems? Does it come into play there?
Food and Behavior Issues
Yeah, I think I think it's a, I think it's a big factor. You know, because that because like I look at, like, if we were to just look at like the dogs that I've had in my career in my lifetime, I learned from only my second or my third dog that like he couldn't process highly processed foods. kibble very well at all, he had inflammatory bowel disease. He also had hip dysplasia. He was a like a Sable, Shepherd, maybe Malamute? Maybe a little wolf in there type of mix. He was he ran about 85 pounds, lean healthy weight. And so when I got him, I was like, gosh, I'm struggling with like, how do I get him to be more healthy? How do I get to a place where he can stomach different things so I would literally dive across the room to try and get a cookie out of his throat if somebody gave him something that wasn't on the menu, or for him to be able to process and, and so ultimately, I switched him to a cooked diet. And then finally a raw diet and the raw diet worked best for him. By no means am I saying that everybody has to get on a raw diet, but I I keep finding again and again and again. And again. I use the example of my my dog that his inflammatory bowel completely healed. Right. So it just it became completely non existent. Which also the only other veterinary care that he got, like super regularly. I mean, he did, he did see a holistic vet, but we saw an animal chiropractor on a regular basis. And so his wonderful muscle tone. You know, his his skeletal structure was great. His diet was really good. The allergies were gone. So the inflammatory bowel disease was gone. And then ultimately, we never, I mean, we were told by when he was diagnosed with hip dysplasia, we were told, okay, only walk him on grass. Only take him for really short walks, keep his weight really, really lean. And, you know, you have to use this medication that medication and keep him on this kibble. And I was like, Yeah, I'm not gonna do that. And this dog lived a super full, full life paddleboarding, swimming, running, playing, super athletic, and all of that muscle built around these not so great hips, but because he was in good alignment, and he had a great diet to support it. He just thrived. I mean, that dog lived to be 17 years old, you know. So it's kind of crazy, right? So, so I think, I think that if we do use diet as a good foundation, we're gonna see everything else that falls into place. Right? So like, because if you put good food in your body, I mean, you know, even ourselves, right? If we eat really well, we feel really good, we hydrate, we go to sleep and have a really good sleep. We wake up and we're alive and happy and lively. energetic and all of that. And so, but you know, I took a took a road trip last summer with my daughter for we went to New York for a month and on this road trip, but we ate a lot of junk food. And I was like, gosh, I could feel my body kind of like, muah, muah, muah…I had to check myself until you know what we've got to make grocery store stops and not just gas station stops for Cheetos and Mountain Dew. So yeah, it's tastes good. But it backs the effects of a really good having a really rock solid diet and hydration, and know stretching and playing and all of that. That's so valuable, I think across the board. Because if you're feeling good, you're going to make good choices. When you're feeling good, you're going to know to ask for help when something doesn't feel right. But if you're always not feeling good, that doesn't help you.
Well, Ana as we are winding down, we can't talk about food and diet without addressing a healthy gut. Because it's scientifically proven that your dog's gut influences their mood, which would affect their behavior. So, you know, with the right diet, and the proper bacterial balance in the gut. It's all essential for you know, as you mentioned, energy, mood, happiness, motivation, being content, and therefore trainability. And, exactly, I think that's why that fabulous organ known as the gut is also called the second brain. So I love that you're pointing this out, I just, I would never think of this, how much our health does affect our behavior. I love this love this. So what we're looking at is keeping our dogs healthy, reducing inflammation, therefore, lessening pain, increase their energy level, you mentioned it perfectly higher muscle mass increases confidence and mood. And I mean, it just goes hand in hand. So I just love this conversation.
So whenever I see somebody in their home, for the first time, we spend quite a bit of time just going through their dog cupboard, where I have them, their, their bag of dog food, or whatever it is that they're feeding, and all of the treats and stuff. And I have a very clear, unapologetic angle. When I come into it, I say, Okay, this is not a judgement, this is just education. And you can take it and adjust it to what fits your family, your budget, you know, what, what is available in your area, and so on. And so I always tell people this what you have right now, and this is something I would not continue to do, here are some options for some foods, or this is a store in your area that you can get XYZ food, I would go ahead and cut out these treats, and these treats would be better. And so I'll give some really nice guidance. And some people might go from, you know, bottom of the barrel food to top notch stuff, or, or even cooking for their own dog or what have you. And so they might go from bottom of the barrel to really wonderful stuff. And some people will go from your middle of the road to just one notch improvement. And all I care about is that you do your very, very best for your dog and then do your very, very best and then do your very, very best.
Yep, I totally agree. So we have to remember that the nutrients, amino acids and the enzymes actually help regulate the hormones and neurotransmitters that actually influence our dog's behavior. So comes full circle. Okay, Ana, we are running out of time, but I know that you wanted to offer our listeners Gracies Freezies. So can you tell us about that?
OFFER: Gracie’s Freezies
Yeah, absolutely. Gracie’s Freezies is something that I developed a while back. We're now we're now taking it a little bit bigger. Basically what we do is we have really those natural rubber toys that we've stuffed with yogurt, peanut butter and pumpkin. They're all organic. We freeze them, and we deliver them to your door. And your dog can have them throughout the week. And then the following week, you set out your empties, and we bring a new fresh batch to your door. Right now we're only offering it in Denver, Colorado, but our intention is to expand across the country, you can visit our website at https://gracedog.com/services/freezies/. And you're welcome to give us a call at our at our home office, which is 303.238. DOGS (3647).
Ana, where can everyone find out more information about you and Grace Dog?
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/GraceDogTraining/
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/gracedogco/?hl=en
Website: https://gracedog.com/
Perfect. Well, I will put all of these links and information in the show notes as well. Before we leave Ana, do you have any parting words for us?
Give your dog a cookie.
Awwww, so simple. Because your dog is waiting patiently.
Well, thank you, Ana. This was fabulous. And to your point, we could talk about this for forever. The science behind this is there and the studies. So I encourage all of our listeners to research further. And Ana, thank you so much for being with us today.
You're very welcome. Thank you so much for having me.
Thanks again to the team at Mayu Water for sponsoring this episode. Learn more by going to mayuwater.com and be sure to use the discount code WOL15 for $15 off. Treat yourself and your dog to natural, living water.
Thanks for listening. You'll find some helpful links in the show notes and if you enjoy the show, please be sure to follow and listen for free on your favorite podcast app. And please, please share your feedback. Visit WagOutLoud.com for great product recommendations with discounts, amazing online events and fantastic resources. That's also where to visit our Bark About It page where you can suggest topics, guests or products. Be advised that this show offers health and nutritional information and is designed for educational purposes only. You're encouraged to do your own research and should not rely on this information as a substitute for nor does it replace professional medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. If you have any concerns or questions about your dog's health, you should always consult a veterinarian or a nutrition expert. Have a tail wagging day and we'll catch you next time.
Hey Winston was that another tail wagging episode?
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