Training Philosophy
Resource Guarding Towards People
Has your dog growled or snapped at you before when around food? Have you seen your dog stiffen or exhibit aggressive behavior when they have a toy or something in their mouth? If your dog is resource-guarding, we can help! Resource guarding can be directed at both people and other pets in the home. Oftentimes, there is confusion surrounding this behavior as it happens due to the wide variety of conditions that bring on this aggressive behavior. Our team uses a unique system, led by Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, Dr. Echterling-Savage, to assess and create a personalized treatment plan. Using this system, we have treated hundreds of dogs that show aggressive behavior around all different types of resources. Our Austin resource guarding dog training program is here to create harmony in your home by reducing or eliminating your dog’s resource guarding and aggression.
Resource Guarding Towards Other Dogs
Is your dog growling, lunging, or attacking your other dog? Is your older dog becoming stiff and territorial over food, toys, or bones whenever your new puppy approaches? This may seem like normal behavior but often develops into a very dangerous living environment. If you have two dogs fighting in your Austin home over resources, our Austin in-home dog training program is for you! It starts with the completion of our Indirect Assessment of Canine Behavior. With this, our pre-training team, led by Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, Dr. Echterling-Savage, develops a personalized training program for your dog. At Beyond the Dog, we only utilize the latest research in dog behavior in our dog resource guarding programs. Our Austin in-home dog training programs are scientifically proven to reduce or eliminate dog aggression using a combination of positive reinforcement and classical counterconditioning. We will also teach your dog specific obedience behaviors to help manage your dog’s behavior around resources and your other pets.
Training Programs
This Austin dog training program is specifically designed to reduce or eliminate resource guarding. Our programs focus on the following:
If a dog’s resource guarding is left untreated, the behavior is likely to worsen. Dogs can develop resource guarding for many reasons including breed, genetics, early environment, history with aversive training techniques, and the behavior of other animals in the home. Using our unique system, our team designs a personalized treatment protocol for each dog. We reduce or eliminate resource guarding with a combination of classical counterconditioning and positive reinforcement. Function-based treatment using classical counterconditioning is highly effective in treating resource guarding in dogs with results that last long after treatment has been performed, as demonstrated in research by Merhrkham et al. Dogs learn to be less concerned about resources and start happily looking forward to being approached by loved ones. According to our resident CAAB Dr. Echterling-Savage, “I’ve seen resource guarding cause families immense levels of stress and concern. Luckily, it is very treatable with proper function-based training.”
The All-Inclusive Program encompasses 20 training sessions across five intensive weeks with two follow-up sessions, spanning a total of 22 training sessions over eight weeks! Your Austin dog training program will be customized based on the Indirect Assessment of Canine Behavior that you will complete pre-training about your dog’s history, behavior, and training goals. Our pre-training team then creates a personalized training plan for your dog. After a training plan is in place, your behavior consultant will work with your dog one-on-one for three 1-hour sessions during the week. The fourth session each week is dedicated to your training! After the five-week-long training, there are two follow-up sessions to support your progress. Please note that our indirect behavior assessments will confirm your dog’s behavior and goals. If your dog’s training program requires additional oversight from our Animal Behavior Experts, a small additional fee may be required.
If you are a pet parent with an insurance policy covering behavior modification, our resource-guarding dog behavior modification is likely covered. When behavior training is under the direction of a CAAB or a Board Certified Veterinary Behaviorist, most companies with behavior policies such as Trupanion will cover behavioral training.
Want to learn directly from our experts how to manage and reduce your dog’s resource guarding without leaving your couch? In our 1-hour virtual consultations, our CAAB Dr. Echterling-Savage, or one of our Austin behavior consultants under Dr. Echterling-Savage’s direct supervision will provide expert training advice on exactly how to modify your dog’s behavior. After you complete the Indirect Assessment of Canine Behavior, we will recommend one or multiple sessions with Dr. Echterling-Savage or with one of our other behavior consultants. Pricing for 1-hour virtual consultations with Dr. Ectherling-Savage is $375. Pricing for a 1-hour virtual consultation with one of our Austin trainers is $150.
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We’ll get back to you in two wags of a dog’s tail!
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