With summer coming to an end, many of our schedules are starting to ramp up. Gone are the relaxing days spent outside, be it at the pool, the lake, a friends BBQ or even just the extended walks down at the off leash park. Getting back into the full swing of work, school and sports, with the holidays looming on the horizon, you may find yourself pressed for time. As most of our summer activities can and usually do involve our companion animals, they can be greatly affected by this lack of time and energy we may now have for them. Sometimes this can lead to a few behaviors rearing up that we are not used to seeing; damaging items in the house, excessive barking at outdoor stimulus, chewing on paws or licking at the forearms, whining or yowling at night and digging (looking at you, Huskies) are just a few. As many pet parents are not able to put a full stop to their increasingly busy schedules, we would like to recommend some tools and solutions you can add into your animal's feeding routine that can greatly impact their digestive and mental health.  The first items we would like to recommend are puzzle toys that can be used to dispense treats, or even whole portions of food. Our favorite this summer has been the Toppl by West Paw. This deep bowl style toy can be filled with raw or canned or even softened kibble. Pet parents can layer them with food, liquid additions like goats milk or bone broth, fresh or frozen fruits and vegetables and then choose to feed them as is, or freeze them for a few hours to add an additional element come feeding time. Karlsson (pictured) took a whopping 47 minutes to finish his Toppl! By having your animal lick, chew, and have to problem solve how to get all the last little bits of their meal out, you are engaging certain instincts that they may otherwise be left untouched. Though it is a bit morbid, our domesticated animals still have many of the same instincts as their wild cousins, who catch and break down their prey.  A second highly beneficial tool we think pet parents should have in their arsenal (whether you have dogs, cats, ferrets or even rabbits) is a snuffle mat. These come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and skill levels. The main goal of a snuffle mat is to provide different textures and layers of fabric in which treats and food can be hidden. By choosing to feed your animal part or all of their meal concealed in the many pockets and rivets within the snuffle mat, this triggers your animal's foraging instinct. As you may know, our animals have a significantly better sense of smell than we do; while humans experience much of our world visually first, our animals often rely more on their noses. Experts have stated that 20 minutes of sniffling/snuffling can be equivalent to an hour-long walk in terms of mental enrichment. This is not to say that we believe you can skip walks or playtime all together, but snuffle mats are a great solution to when you are running low on time certain days of the week and you need a way to keep your four legged friend distracted for a while.  Our final recommendation is for the animals who inhale their meals. If you have one, you know what we mean; you can barely set the dish down and step back before your animal has dove in, only to finish eating in record time. This is incredibly unhealthy for your animal for a variety of reasons. Animals who eat like this are more likely to have unhealthy weight gain, which can lead to joint pain as they age. Another common issue when an animal eats too quickly is that their stomach actually rejects the meal and they end up throwing it all up again. Purging is different from vomiting and is often due to the speed at which an animal eats. A slow feeder bowl or a lick mat will be your best friend in these situations. With different grooves and nooks, food can be spread, smeared or scattered in the dish or on the mat. Animals then must lick at their meal, preventing them from getting large mouthfuls.  Our animals have much simpler lives than we do; their days are focused around observing the world from windows, napping, eating, spending quality time with us and spending some time outside, exercising and playing. Whether you find yourself short on time, lacking the energy to go for a walk or play vigorously, or if the weather is interfering with being outside (from heat domes to below -40), finding new and interesting ways to feed your animals their daily meals can greatly enrich their lives and take some of the pressure off of you. We’d love to help with that.

Training our companion animals is an essential aspect of pet ownership, it fosters communication and understanding. Whether you have a playful pup, a curious cat, or even a clever parrot, teaching them behaviors that align with our expectations and household rules is crucial to a harmonious relationship; one effective method is clicker training. This positive reinforcement technique not only facilitates learning but also strengthens the bond between pets and their human counterparts. Today, we'll explore the benefits of clicker training, the practical methods for implementing this rewarding approach and even teach our pets to wear a hat! What is Clicker Training Clicker training operates on the principles of Operant Conditioning, where desired behaviors are reinforced through positive stimuli. The clicker, a small handheld device that emits a distinct sound, serves as a marker to precisely indicate the moment your pet performs the desired behaviour by triggering the amygdala in the brain. Think of this as taking a snapshot of the precise moment in time when your pet is executing the desired behaviour. This clear and immediate feedback helps pets understand exactly what action led to the reward. Reinforcement through positive stimuli is the treat, toy, or praise that immediately follows the click sound. Clicker training is not limited to cats and dogs, it can be used with birds, horses, dolphins and more! Tip: A retractable pen will also work if you do not have access to a clicker. It is also a good alternative for fearful animals as the click sound is much softer and easier to muffle. Enhanced Learning and Communication Research has shown that pairing a distinct sound, such as the clicker, with a reward strengthens the association between the behavior and the consequence, leading to accelerated learning. The clicker offers precision and consistency in communication during training, as opposed to traditional verbal or physical cues. This method of training provides a flexible framework that can be tailored to meet the unique needs of each individual pet, allowing them to be always set up for success and reducing the likelihood of confusion or frustration. Our pets, much like us, thrive on positive reinforcement!  Strengthened Bond A fundamental aspect of successful training is the ability to maintain desired behaviours over time and behaviours taught through positive reinforcement methods are more likely to persist over time. Clicker training is a powerful method to foster a strong bond between pets and their owners. Through the shared experience of learning and earning rewards together, pets develop trust and confidence in their owners, while owners gain a deeper understanding of their pet's abilities and preferences. This mutual trust forms the foundation of a positive relationship built on communication, respect and cooperation. Conclusion Whether teaching basic commands, addressing behavioral issues, or shaping complex behaviors for specific tasks, pet owners can effectively harness the power of positive reinforcement to teach their animal companions new skills and behaviors while deepening their relationship. It doesn’t matter if you are starting with a new puppy or seeking to enhance your pet's training repertoire, consider incorporating clicker training into your routine for a rewarding and enjoyable experience for both you and your pet. Basic Steps to Wearing a Hat Implementing clicker training with your pet is a straightforward process that requires patience, consistency and a willingness to reward desired behaviors. Here are some practical steps to get started: Introduce and Load the Clicker: Begin by associating the sound of the clicker with positive experiences. Click the device and immediately offer a treat, toy, or praise to your pet, whichever is of the highest value to them. Repeat this process 10 times until your pet learns to associate the clicker's sound with the anticipation of a reward. A “Marker Word” can also be paired with the clicker sound, such as “Yes”. Do this at the start of each training session. Use rewards of higher value to ensure greater rates of success. Not all animals are food motivated, some have a favourite toy and a very small few only want praise.  Choose a Target Behavior: Select a specific behavior you wish to teach your pet, in this case, wearing a hat! Break down (shape) the behavior into small, achievable steps to make learning easier for your pet. Every pet will require a different level of breakdown for each behaviour, this is just the simplest form and these steps can be broken down further to allow for success in every training session. There is no correct amount of time that each step should take, every pet learns and becomes comfortable at different rates, allowing your pet to set the pace. 2a) Hold the hat in front of your pet. Click and reward when they interact (look/touch/smell) with the hat.  2b) Bring the hat above their head. Click and reward for them being comfortable with it above their head. 2c) Put the hat on their head and immediately take it off. Click and reward for having it on their head. 2d) Increase the time the hat is placed on their head until you reach the target time duration. Once your pet can successfully wear the hat on their head, give them a cue or command, such as “hat” or “wear”. Animals don’t understand words like we do, to them, they are just sounds associated with expectations. They only know “Sit” means to put their bottom on the ground because we taught them that’s what it means. Cues or commands can be any word that works for your house for a desired behaviour. Another method of clicker training is called Capturing. This is when your pet spontaneously performs a desired behavior, such as sitting or lying down. Exactly like with shaping the behaviour of wearing the hat, promptly click the clicker to mark the behaviour and follow up with a reward. This method of training can be used to give cues to cute behaviours animals exhibit on their own, such as tail wagging, yawing, or sleeping in silly positions. Capturing can also be used on animals who are struggling to learn normal behaviours on cue, such as laying down. Many animals lay down to relax, so clicking and rewarding when they do it on their own is a method to teach that behaviour on cue. Generalize and Practice: Once your pet has mastered the target behavior in a controlled environment, generalize the behavior to different settings and distractions. Practice in various locations, both indoors and outdoors, to reinforce the behavior under different circumstances. Animals are really great at learning to only exhibit the behvaiours in the places they were taught.

Here are some feeding tips for helping you transition your dog to a new diet, introducing a different flavour from their current or different brand, or to simply elevate their current diet. Every dog has taste preferences, just like we do, so don’t be discouraged if after you feel like you have tried everything, they still are not interested. That being said, some dogs can be very stubborn and hesitant to change their diet, so here are some pointers that have helped in the past. Raw If your dog eats canned food, try mixing it with a small portion of raw food. Slowly increase the amount while decreasing the canned food until your dog is eating an exclusively raw diet. If your dog eats kibble, try offering the raw food on its own, and outside of mealtime. This can reduce the pressure to immediately eat the new food. Freeze Dried/Air Dried Offer it as a treat outside of mealtime. Both freeze dried and air dried foods are generally highly palatable to dogs Use bone broth or goat’s milk to rehydrate, if feeding freeze dried Canned Try mixing a small amount of their new food into their favourite old food, this will help them get a little taste of the new food, without being overwhelmed by it; slowly increase the amount until your dog is eating the new food. Kibble Offer as a treat outside of mealtime; it reduces the pressure to immediately eat, and allows them time to investigate Mixing a small amount with their current food, and slowly increasing until they are eating mostly their new food.