Counsel Your Dog? Well NATASHA can do it best

here is her mail. rush to her with your doggies. 


From: Natasha Chandy <natasha.chandy@gmail.com>

I am a trained Canine Behaviour Counselor.

No.... I dont sit the dog down on a couch and offer him tissues to weep into. They don't communicate and function like us, of course! They do have their own way - its unique and amazing. Every bark means something! Every wag of the tail means something!

From dogs who have behaviour like constantly catching their own tails to dogs who just wont eat unless fed by their human companion - if you think its a problem and need help - contact me - I can figure ways to set it right.

Please pass on this mail to everyone you know who might need help as well.

09632221061
natasha.wags@gmail.com
www.facebook.com/natashawags

 

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Natasha Chandy <natasha.chandy@gmail.com>
Date: Mon, May 17, 2010 at 9:18 AM
Subject: Times of India, 16th May, Sunday
To:

COUNSEL THE DOG

Now counselors for dogs help correct their behaviour

Jayashree Nandi | TNN 

    Have a depressed dog? Get him/her counselled. Just like there are counseling psychologists for humans, now there are counsellors for dogs. The trend is just picking up in India including Bangalore and may go a long way in dealing with suffering pets or even dogs in shelters.These specialists are not dog trainers but counsellors who do not use force or instil fear to correct behavioral disorders. 
    Dogs are not humans. Obvious as it may sound, many people including ardent pet lovers misunderstand dog behaviour. The 'canine counsellors' focus on the innate behavior of dogs and their instincts to find out what went wrong. 
    According to canine counsellor Natasha Chandy who has completed her course in canine behaviour recently, dogs can feel high levels of fear, can have severe phobias, separation anxiety, food-related problems such as being fussy eaters, eating their own feces, stealing. 
    Dogs can show behaviours that are a result of low to high levels of stress, dogs can suffer from obsessive compulsive behaviours; they may bark and chew up things due to boredom or to seek attention. Instead of losing hope on the 
pet, abandoning it or even contemplating putting it down, counselling is worth a try. 
    The counsellors treat the dog by tracking its innate behaviours. For instance, like wolves, their innate instinct is to hunt or to chase. If that is curbed then they develop behavioural problems. 
    For instance, if your pet dog is on the terrace and wants to bark at other dogs passing by and if you stop him, he might develop stereotypical behaviours such as chasing his tail non-stop or licking his skin to the point where a medical condition known as the 'Lick Granuloma' gets formed. 
    The counsellors, unlike oldfashioned dog trainers who use force and instil fear in them, use other methods to rectify such problem behaviour.The dog usually has to be taken to the counsellor once for a couple of hours. Then the counsellor creates a customized solution and gives it to the owner that he has to practise at home. "The tools and techniques used to help the owners and their companion canines are based on latest research done on the canine species. All the latest teaching techniques are based on the principle that trust established between the owner and the dog is key to resolving the problem. The owner implements the programme given to him by the counsellor to resolve the issue," adds Natasha. 
    According to Shirin Merchant who specializes in canine counselling in Mumbai and is an associate of The Northern Centre for Animal Behaviour, England, the trend has just started picking up. "People are now more accepting of the fact that dogs have behavioural problems. Veterinary doctors, dog trainers and groomers are plenty but counselors are relatively new. Groomers or trainers are not qualified in dealing with behavioural problems. Wrong advice can ruin a dog. There are many selfstyled behaviorists who try to treat by reading books or looking online. It's not a good idea," says Shirin. The concept is popular abroad though.