Change Your Pet's Behavior

Do you feel like you have no energy at the end of the day to decide what’s for dinner? You’re probably experiencing decision fatigue. 

This episode of the podcast is all about what decision fatigue is and how to experience less of it. I see decision fatigue in my clients all the time, and I used to experience it a lot myself.

If you have to make a lot of decisions regarding your pet’s training or medical treatment, or if you have to make a lot of decisions in your day-to-day life (which most of us do), then you probably experience decision fatigue. 

I believe that decision fatigue is a pretty big problem, but I also believe that it doesn’t have to be. In this episode, I’m teaching you how to make clearer decisions so that you don’t feel burnt out after a day of decision-making. 

The better you get at making decisions, the less of a problem it will be. 

If you want to find out how much good decision-making can improve your life, tune in to this episode! 

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.StephanieBeeson.com/podcast!

Do you know what it means to be an advocate for your pet? If so, how are you doing at that?

In this episode, we are diving into becoming an advocate for your pet and what that means from a behavioral perspective.

An advocate is a person who publicly supports a cause or a policy. I have my clients publicly tell their veterinarians, trainers, groomers, friends, and family that they are working on changing their pet's behavior. This is so they know you're working on it and they can give you resources, especially in the case of a behavioral emergency.

Changing your pet's behavior is a team effort. The more you can talk to people about what you are working on, the better results you're going to get as you work with the team of people who are responsible for helping you in having a healthy pet behaviorally, mentally, physically, and emotionally.

Tune in to this episode to learn how and why you should advocate for your pet so you can be on the same page with the other people on your team and make a great teammate for your pet as well.

Resources Mentioned:

Behavior Success Club: https://www.stephaniebeeson.com/behaviorsuccessclub

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.StephanieBeeson.com/podcast!

What is aggression?

Aggression is hostile or violent behavior or attitudes towards another, and/or readiness to attack or confront.

While some people reference aggression as a personality trait, it is a behavior by definition, and it is a normal behavior. It is important to remember that even with a very solid behavior plan, any animal can show aggressive behavior.

With that being said, it is still not desirable behavior, so in this episode, I am getting into what aggressive behavior looks like for pets, how to tell whether or not it is pathological, how to retrain a pet’s brain to respond differently or prevent it in the first place and more.

If you have friends that think you have a “mean” cat or dog, it is likely that your pet is stressed or uncomfortable. Being able to understand where their aggression is coming from and whether it is offensive or defensive is really going to help you, and whoever you are working with, define a treatment plan.

Tune in to this episode to learn more about this and what you should do if you experience this behavior with your pet!

Resources Mentioned:

American College of Veterinary Behavior: https://www.dacvb.org/ 

American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior: https://avsab.org/

Fear Free Pets: https://fearfreepets.com/

Low-Stress Handling: https://directory.lowstresshandling.com/

Behavior Success Club: https://www.stephaniebeeson.com/behaviorsuccessclub

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.StephanieBeeson.com/podcast!

Have you ever heard of zones of reinforcement?

Zones of reinforcement are used in training to help direct your pet’s focus. You can use them to provoke the behavior that you want from your pet in any situation. 

Humans have zones of reinforcement too which I explain a little in this episode, but mostly, we’re focusing on how to use them with our pets. 

This concept is used a lot in the sports dog world, but this episode will show you why it’s so helpful in any type of pet training. I’m sharing specific examples from training with my own pets to help you understand what I’m talking about and how to make it work for you and your pet. 

Whether this is your first time hearing the term “zones of reinforcement” or not, this episode has something for you, so don’t miss it! 

Resources Mentioned:

www.StephanieBeeson.com

www.stephaniebeeson.com/behaviorsuccessclub

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.StephanieBeeson.com/podcast!

How well do you know the signs of fight, flight, freeze, and fawn in your pet? How about in yourself?

If you didn’t listen to episode 9, you might not know what any of this means, but this concept is so important to know if you want to change your pet’s behavior. That is why I am replaying that episode now!

Here is what you can expect: I am talking about the sympathetic nervous system which is part of the autonomic nervous system. Don’t worry, we’re not getting into anatomy, but I just want you to understand the stress responses that these systems control. It will help you identify fight, flight, freeze, and fawn.

Does your pet lurch towards you when they are stressed or run away? This could be the difference between fight or flight. Do they go stiff as a board or act overly affectionate? There’s your freeze or fawn. Sometimes you might see your pet go through all four, and we do that too as humans! 

We’re looking at this from both a pet perspective and a human perspective because we often have exactly the same responses as them, and recognizing the signs in ourselves can make it easier to recognize them in our animals. 

If you already heard episode 9 and want a refresh on this concept or if this is all new to you, tune in to learn exactly when and what your pet is trying to communicate.

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.stephaniebeeson.com/podcast!

We all experience trauma in different ways and the same goes for our pets. 

Have you ever thought about how trauma is showing up in your training? This episode will help you identify it and figure out what to do about it. 

I work with trauma responses on a daily basis in the work that I do with pet owners and I think it’s really important to talk about it. I explain what I mean when I say “trauma responses” in the episode and go over some other definitions too. 

I’m talking about where trauma is showing up in the daily work of pet professionals and in the lives of pets and handlers. 

The most important thing for you to take away from this episode is that your feelings are valid and you are not alone. Whatever traumatic experience you might be trying to work through, there are people who want to help you. 

If you’re working through trauma or you have a pet who might be, tune in to this special  episode. 

Resources Mentioned:

Episode 1: How I Changed My Pet's Behavior 

Episode 9: How to Recognize Fight, Flight, Freeze, and Fawn in Humans and Pets 

www.StephanieBeeson.com

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.StephanieBeeson.com/podcast!

Is your behavior affecting your pet’s behavior?

In this episode, I am breaking down how your feelings as a pet owner lead to a physiologic response in your body which ultimately results in the ability or inability to change your pet’s behavior.

The best thing about this is that you get to choose how you want to respond to your pet's behavior, and that is how you create change!

I originally shared this concept in episode 3, but it’s so important to understand as a pet owner that it needs to be talked about more than once!

When I work with my clients, we work on creating thought processes that allow them to work effectively as a handler of their pet or pets through day-to-day life events. 

Learn how to do this in this episode if you haven’t heard this one already or tune in again to be reminded of how to work effectively with your pet!

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.stephaniebeeson.com/podcast!

Did you know that there are behavioral models that can help you with your pet’s behavior?

I am sharing this episode again because I want to remind you of the behavioral model that I like to use to break down behavior as well as walk you through some examples of how I do this!

I love this particular episode (it originally aired as episode 2) because behavioral models really focus on how your pet is perceiving the world around them and where you fall in their world. 

This is such an important concept to understand as a pet owner because it allows us to create a lot of understanding around their behavior and where we can impact it to create change. 

If you haven’t heard this episode yet, you are going to find it so beneficial in your training, and if you have, tune in again because you might pick up more tips this time around!

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.stephaniebeeson.com/podcast!

Have you ever heard of value banks? We all have them, even our pets. 

If not, you’re missing out on a super helpful tool to help with your relationship with your pet. 

A value bank represents how much access you are getting to the things that you value, and the same goes for your pet. It’s a transactional way of viewing your relationship with your pet. Are they getting what they value from you and you from them? Are you filling each other’s banks or emptying them? 

In this episode, I’m discussing how you can use this tool to build a better relationship with your pet. At the end, I’m sharing a story about how value banks come into play between me and my dog to give you an example of what I’m talking about. 

If you’ve been wondering how to improve your relationship with your pet, this episode is perfect for you. 

Resources Mentioned:

www.StephanieBeeson.com

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.StephanieBeeson.com/podcast!

What beliefs do you have about changing your pet’s behavior? You probably have some underlying beliefs that you don’t even realize are showing up in the way you approach your training. 

In this episode, we’re talking about behavior-changing beliefs. I’m going over some of the beliefs of my clients who have had success changing their pet’s behavior. These are beliefs that create big results, and if you can adopt some of them into your own belief system, they will create success for you too. 

I want this episode to get you thinking about your belief system. Notice what you’re telling yourself about your ability to change your pet’s behavior. If you’re sending yourself some negative messages, it’s time to make some changes. 

Tune in to the episode to find out what beliefs have brought my clients the most success, and how to adopt those beliefs yourself. 

Resources Mentioned:

www.StephanieBeeson.com

www.StephanieBeeson.com/workwithme

I would love to connect on Facebook or Instagram!

Show notes are available at www.StephanieBeeson.com/podcast!