I was fired, effective immediately. Through tears, I listened as the man who’d scouted and hired me for my dream job explained that because I was being let go within a 6-month probationary period of a position change (despite being at the organization for 18 months), I would not receive any details or explanations on the decision. My head spun. …
Tracking Jaguars With Rescue Dogs
I woke early, packed my bags and left the Airbnb in Ezcazú (a suburb of San Jose). I arrived bleary-eyed to a wagging lab and his handler, Stephanny. She warned me, “He jumps.” And jumped he did – Tigre left a few tiny bruises on my arms as he chomped on my wrists. He calmed down quickly, though, as we …
Why My Dog is More Danger Running in Latin America Than I Am
I thought that taking my dog to Latin America would keep me safe while running. I actually spend my runs defending him. Let me describe to you today’s run, a fairly typical one in the last few months that we’ve driven from Mexico to Costa Rica. As Barley and I head out the door, a neighbor calls to us, “Don’t go …
American Girl Drives Around Michoacan for 14 Hours Looking for Butterflies, Nothing Bad Happens
Written from the perspective of Barley the dog. Mexico City kind of reminds me of Denver. There are mountains nearby (though you can’t really see them), the city is full of cool bars, and Paula’s neighborhood feels bustling and energetic. Our daily walks are much more relaxing than in Guadalajara or La Paz, but not quite as scenic as Puerto …
Is Yosemite *Really* Dog Friendly? (Plus: A Dog’s Eye View of the Bay Area)
As we drove towards Yosemite last week, Kayla pulled up her phone. She knew that most National Parks don’t really allow dogs, but she wanted to see if we could do any hikes together. I don’t really like going to the boarding kennel and I REALLY like hiking, so we figured it would be fantastic to bring me along. All …
Playing Tug-o-War with a Log in the Smoke of the Stehekin
I tug, wrenching my butt up and bending my front paws. My teeth feel strong, biting into the flesh of this stick. My claws dig into the sand, and I wag my tail a bit. The stick doesn’t budge. It’s longer than I am, protruding from an underwater tree. I’ve been working at it for ages, up to my belly …
How Antecedent Arrangement Keeps Me Productive (And Safe)
In dog training, we talk a lot about the concept of antecedent arrangement. Essentially, this concept builds off of the concept that we’re more likely to do things that are easy. If I want my dog to stop stealing food from the counters, I might start by clearing the counters of all the tasty food before I leave for work. …
Things I Learned from Working in an Animal Shelter
Animal shelter work is not easy. As a member of the Denver Dumb Friends League behavior team, I spent my days dodging urine, blood, and teeth. My job is to use science-based behavior modification techniques to help traumatized shelter pets become safe companion animals. Rather, that’s what my job my job was. I’m leaving Denver Dumb Friends League in four …
Nudibranchs and Premack Principle: A Science Nerd’s Guide to Goal-Setting
I. Love. Goal. Setting. I don’t just mean New Year’s Resolutions, though I’m an avid keeper of those as well. Let’s look at my system for micro- to macro-goals as well as the strategies I use to stick to them. We’ll even take a sneak peak at my Annual goals for 2018! Daily Goals: Every morning, my boyfriend Andrew and I …
Staff Only – Bite Quarantine
I post plenty on social media about how much I love my job. There are cute fluffy kittens and amazing turnaround stories. But working in the animal behavior department at an animal shelter isn’t all puppies and inspiration. Today was hard. It started with a kitten that’s had 28 training sessions. My job was to see if she was ready …