Episode 95. Cooperative Care: Simple Steps to Stress-Free Nail Trims, Vet Visits, Grooming & More! with Deb Jones, Ph.D.

Today we’re talking to renowned trainer Deb Jones about Cooperative Care - the most important skills you’re (probably) not training your dog to do!  Also called Consent Care or Husbandry, I’m referring to the procedures needed to keep dogs healthy such as veterinary care and grooming.

If you’d rather get a root canal than take your dog to the vet or if you can’t trim your dog’s nails without needing a drink afterwards, then you won’t want to miss this conversation.

Deb is the author of the book Cooperative Care: Seven Steps to Stress-Free Husbandry.  Her methods encourage our dogs to become willing partners in the training process rather than using heavy-handed forceful practices that can damage our relationship with our dog and hurt their trust.

Deb shares with us what she learned from dolphin trainers that will help our dogs, what to do if you accidentally “quick” your dog while trimming their nails and how to handle those times when your dog needs immediate care to avoid causing a setback in your training and relationship. We’ll also hear the #1 most common skill that veterinarians wish Pet Parents trained their dogs to do!

While Deb’s former “day job” was as a Ph.D. Psychologist who taught in colleges, it’s fascinating how her work intertwined with her dog training passion. And as someone who’s been training dogs for 30+ years, Deb has so much insight to share about her experiences in the dog training world and the changes she’s witnessed in how we treat dogs as a society.

You can also find Deb teaching online training classes and in her Cooperative Care with Deb Jones Facebook Group.

Deb & I discuss:

  • Her childhood experiences with dogs;

  • How her psychology career intertwined with her dog training passion;

  • Deb’s groundbreaking work with agility dog training;

  • How society’s relationship with dogs has changed since Deb started training in the early 1990s;

  • Defining husbandry and cooperative care;

  • The steps to cooperative care, how long the process takes and when to start;

  • What Deb learned from aquarium trainers;

  • The #1 most important skill for your dog to learn for vet care and grooming;

  • How to build trust and resiliency with our dogs;

  • What to do if you accidentally “quick” your dog during nail trims;

  • How long to train and structure a cooperative care session with your dog

Where to Find Deb:

Links Discussed:

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