The Improper Bostonian. May 2007

"Pet Enlightenment"

    Fresh air streams around Gordon Fontaine, a certified dog trainer who practices Aikido in full-flowing fashion.  It’s all about Zen energy with this guy, whose pet philosophy eschews punitive collar yanking and “bad dog” scolding in favor of positive reinforcement.  Like the dolphin trainer who famously wrote of treating her husband like one of her animal charges, only affirming agreeable behavior, Fontaine teaches his clients to strategically, cannily reward good deeds, using varying voice tones.  “Interrupt, redirect and provide a legal alternative” is the mantra of his elegant interventions.  And since pooches live in the Zen present—not relating a punishment now to a pee incident then—he capitalizes on the approach.  Fontaine has owners attend to body language (“a dog’s first language”), teaching ritualized actions, such as “sit to greet” people and “down, stay” before going outdoors.  Treats are carefully meted out to yearning Fido—and thus internalized as a gold star, the thinking goes.  Zen Dog offers private consultations and makes home visits.  Group options include a six-week puppy package.  For real rascals, there’s Naughty Dog, a one-on-one training series that tackles tougher issues. 
 

DogBoston's Best of 2007
Best Dog Trainer:

Zen Dog Training- The positive style training technique is the way to go, and the key to Zen Dog’s Success. Their training teaches your dog to respond out of understanding — not fear. SPCA recommended methods are used by animal trainers around the world.
 

South End News. February 2006

 "Gordon the Dog Trainer Cometh"

    While it has not yet been proven that the South End is the canine center of the city, the truth of the matter is that there are a lot of dogs in the South End.  With all those dogs, there are bound to be some behavioral problems – incessant barking, making dog messes in places where dogs shouldn’t, aggressive behavior toward other dogs, just to name a few.  Enter Gordon Fontaine, founder of Zen Dog, a recently launched “fear-free” dog training company that has been directing its efforts to the South End.
    “The methods I use have been scientifically proven, have been proven by science to be effective and repeatable by other people,” said Fontaine, who has his certification in training and counseling from the San Francisco SPCA’s Dog Trainer Academy.  
    “I don’t want my dog to obey out of fear, I want them to have a choice,” he continued.  To achieve this dynamic in a humane and “fear-free” manner, Fontaine uses motivation and behavioral reinforcement.  “Dogs do what works.. if it doesn’t work, dogs are quick, they’ll do something different.”  
    “Some dogs are luckily food-motivated and that’s an easy way to communicate with them.  Some dogs are not, and that’s a little bit harder,”  he continued.  “When I’m training a dog, I treat [give reinforcement] the dog for the behavior I want.”  Bad behaviors, on the other hand, are punished with things like a “time out”.  “A dog loves attention and when you separate them for five minutes, it’s just as strong as a choke chain.”  
    So, no choke collars, no swats on the nose with a rolled up newspaper – meaning happier dogs and a better dog-owner relationship.  As part of his training package, Fontaine does a free 20-minute phone consultation with prospective clients, to discuss their dog’s problems.  If the dog’s behavior is excessively aggressive – for example, a dog who only attacks men with beards – then he refers them to specialists with experience in that.  If the problem is one that he is trained to handle, he then sets up a game plan, typically with a minimum of a 90-minute in-home consultation with dog and owners and a 30-minute follow up.  He charges $75 an hour for his services, but will work out packages with “new parents” – newly initiated dog-owners – or tailor packages for a dog’s needs, depending on the nature of the problem.  
    Different humans raise different dogs, but Fontaine is confident that he can help most owners cultivate a good relationship with their dogs.  “If I can get to the dog and parent when they’re young, I can change the way people are thinking about the animal and improve their relationship,” he said.
  --Linda Rodriguez

Journal of the American Veterinary Medical Association.  February 2008

“Veterinary Behavior Society Announces Position on Punishment”

    In Response to the popularity of television shows such as “The Dog Whisperer,” the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior has issued a position statement and guidelines on the use of punishment for dealing with behavior problems in animals.
    The guidelines clarify that while punishment can be effective in specific contexts, it also has an association with many adverse effects.
    “A major problem with using punishment is that it suppresses behavior temporarily but does not necessarily modify the underlying cause of the behavior,” said Dr. John Ciribassi, AVSAB president.
    Also, punishment may interfere with the human-animal bond.  Owners tend to punish pets inconsistently and as a consequence of anger, so punishment may occur long after the bad behavior and may be intense.  Dr. Ciribassi said, “We can have a problem with the pet not trusting the owner because it is unable to consistently anticipate what the owner is going to do in any given situation.” 
    The pitfalls and possible adverse effects of punishment include the following:
    - Timing punishment correctly is difficult
    - Punishment can strengthen the undesirable behavior
    - The punishment must be strong enough to be effective, but intense punishment can lead to physical harm
    - Regardless of the strength, punishment can cause some animals to become extremely fearful, and this fear can generalize to other contexts
    - Punishment can facilitate or even cause aggressive behavior
    - Punishment can suppress behaviors, including those behaviors that warn of aggression
    - Punishment can teach the animal to associate the owners, other animals, specific contexts, or environments with bad experiences
    - Punishment often does not address the underlying cause of behaviors or teach alternate behaviors
    The AVSAB’s position is that punishment is not appropriate as a first-line or early-use treatment for behavior problems.  Modification should focus on reinforcing desirable behaviors, removing reinforcement for inappropriate behaviors, and addressing the emotional state and environmental conditions driving undesirable behavior.
    The AVSAB position statement and guidelines are available at www.avsabonline.org