Author Archives: Marika S. Bell

Top Ten Misunderstood Behaviours Part 1: Raised Hackles.

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

I decided to make raised hackles the first in my new series on misunderstood behaviours because of an experience I had earlier today. I was at the dog with Ripley, and he and another German shepherd were saying hello. The … Continue reading →

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Socialization the Right Way

Posted on May 8, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

Socialization is often a misunderstood term.  The connotation stresses  the ideas of  play or party too much, pushing people into situations where their dog or puppy becomes overwhelmed. As trainers we are at fault for this, we have spent so … Continue reading →

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Fear Factors or Is My Dog a Danger?

Posted on May 1, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

Understanding what drives a fear reaction can not only help us with a behaviour modification of the dog, but also with the behaviour modification of the clients. These are common drivers of fear across species according to Janis Bradley in … Continue reading →

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Nella! Dog of the Week!

Posted on April 29, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

Let me introduce you to Nella. She is a LARGE Boxer and like all boxers she plays hard. Unlike some dogs, however, she knows how to calm down. I have been working with her regularly on her basic obedience and … Continue reading →

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Conflict Behaviours

Posted on April 24, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

Conflict Behaviour is demonstrated by a dog experiencing inner conflict. The dog is happy and nervous or anxious and excited at the same time. These behaviours are most noticeable when a dog wants to greet someone but is nervous about … Continue reading →

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Easy Shaping Part 10: Always End on a Positive Note!

Posted on April 17, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

Top Ten Ways to Shaping a behaviour…  We have finally made it to number ten, probably one of the easiest criteria for us to understand but sometimes not always the easiest to follow through unless you have been doing all … Continue reading →

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Easy Shaping Part 9: Regress When a Behaviour Deteriorates to Refresh Your Dog’s Memory

Posted on April 10, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

1. Raising Criteria (successive approximation) 2. Breaking Down the Behaviour 3. Vary the Reinforcement 4. Relax Old Criteria When You Add New Criteria 5. Plan Ahead 6. Don’t Change Trainers Mid-stream 7. Be Flexible! When necessary, Change the Plan 8. … Continue reading →

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Book Review: Chill Our Fido! How to Calm Your Dog by Nan Kene Arthur

Posted on April 8, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

Its funny, the thing I liked most about Chill Out Fido! was how validated it made me feel with my own training program for dogs with reactivity issues.  I loved how Arthur  organized the book  so that you could easily … Continue reading →

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What is a Whisperer?

Posted on April 3, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

The term ‘Whisperer’ has its first major public debut when the move The Horse Whisperer came out in 1998. The term “The Dog Whisperer” had been used by Paul Owens for a number of years before that. The “Whisperer” term … Continue reading →

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Body Language: The Look Away

Posted on March 29, 2012 by Marika S. Bell

A “Look Away” is the dog equivalent of saying “You’re being too pushy”. I see this behaviour a lot during greetings between an older dog and a much younger dog, where the younger dog comes on a bit too strong. … Continue reading →

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