Course Details
Behavior does not exist in a vacuum. What your animal companion does is affected by countless factors, some of which are more obvious than others. While many of us have been taught to focus on antecedents (what happens right before a behavior starts) and consequences (what the result of the behavior is for the animal), there’s more to the picture. How an animal behaves today doesn’t only depend on past learning. It is affected by many other factors. For example, an animal who feels a bit sick to their stomach is going to respond differently. So is an animal who’s “had a hard day” already. Behavior also depends on how that individual animal’s brain works.
What all of this means is that changing an animal’s behavior — especially when the animal you live with has a tough time coping calmly with day-to-day events — requires more than just management and training. It involves helping the animal develop different coping patterns The good news is that the brain has a lot of plasticity. With a bit of time and thought, you can change how your companion animal’s brain works to help them develop new patterns of behavior that make life better for them (and for you). Join Irith Bloom to learn more about laying the groundwork for a whole new way of living for you and your animal companions!
About the Instructor:
Irith Bloom (she/her), author, presenter, trainer, and teacher, owns The Sophisticated Dog, a company that provides both online peer-to-peer and trainer-to-pet-family services worldwide, as well as in-person training to select clients in Los Angeles and Ventura.
Irith has been training animals since the 1980s and has worked with animals ranging from chickens and rabbits to dogs and horses—not to mention humans. A biologist by training, Irith is fascinated by the science of learning. She is a sought-after presenter at conferences and seminars worldwide, and her writing has been published in countless online outlets, as well as in print media including her book “Your Puppy and You: A step-by-step guide to raising a freak’n awesome dog.”
Irith is a CPDT-KSA, CBCC-KA, CDBC, VSPDT, KPA CTP, CSAT, CBATI-KSA, and a Fear Free Certified Practitioner (FFCP - Trainer). She is also certified in TAGteach, a positive-reinforcement method for teaching humans, and is on the faculty of Fenzi Dog Sports Academy and Victoria Stilwell Academy for Dog Training and Behavior.
Irith has a bachelor’s degree in biology from the University of Pennsylvania. She is a Member of the Board of the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers (CCPDT), on the Advisory Board for Pets for Vets, on the Expert Review Board for Daily Paws, and Chair Emeritus of the Education Committee of the Association of Professional Dog Trainers (APDT). She also volunteers for National English Shepherd Rescue.
Irith lives in Los Angeles. She is between dogs at the moment, but shares her home with a well-behaved spouse.
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