ANIMAL TRAINING PROGRAMSOur focus is to improve how we help pets and their owners bond and develop and enjoy a better quality of life. Our training programs are continually reviewed, expanding and growing, helping achieve this goal for all animals and their owners. We have a collection of training programs that operate both at our shelter and at our training facilities in the outer-eastern suburbs of Melbourne. Follow the links below for information about our training programs. ART Program™
Our Animal Rehabilitation Training Program (ART Program™) is proudly supported by the International Fund for Animal Welfare. We are an industry leader in developing an animal rehabilitation program which implements world's 'best practice. The program has received international recognition from groups such as World Society for the Protection of Animals (WSPA) and International Fund for Animal Welfare (IFAW). Gone are the days when there was a stigma attached to owning a shelter dog. Now owners are proud to say that they own a Shelter Dog. June 3, 2003 - Herald Sun - ART Program™ launched How the ART Program™ developed ART Program™ Finishing school a last chance for mutts
By Michelle Pountney (Herald Sun) Make eye contact, look appealing, do as you're told. Do not be naughty. These are the lessons being taught at one of Melbourne's leading finishing schools. A school for scoundrels, in fact. The rehabilitation program at the Animal Aid shelter in Coldstream improves mutts' manners and behaviour, thereby winning them homes. Early stages of the program have worked with dogs that kennel staff considered almost impossible to re-home - and it has had a 100 percent success rate. Desperate for attention, the problem pooches would bounce, bark and throw themselves at the door of their kennel whenever a human came near. Prospective owners would bypass these dogs as too excitable or too difficult to handle. "A dog has less than three seconds to make an impact on someone," said Monash University PhD student Linda Marston, who developed the training program with shelter staff. Some of these dogs are really nice dogs but they are so stressed they can't really function properly any more and can't present themselves well to prospective adopters." Volunteers train the dogs in techniques aimed to calm them down. "Quite possibly these dogs would never have got a home." Ms Marston said. "They would have bounced around and looked like an idiot. "People would have walked past them and they would never have got a chance to show "I'm a really nice dog but so excited to see someone I can't control myself." Ms Marston hopes the program will eventually become standard practice for all dogs at all shelters. Back to Top Training dogs is an Art form.
A very recent study by Monash University Department of Psychology has gathered statistics of reclaim, surrender, re-homing, and euthanasia, from three Melbourne animal shelters. As a Post-graduate student, Dr. Linda Marston, played a key role in conducting and interpreting the data gathered, offering new and insightful information into the behaviour of dogs in animal shelters.
This information prompted the Animal Aid to ask Linda to help design and implement a rehabilitation program for the dogs at the shelter. This new approach will enable dogs to leave here, with their new owner, better behaved and having suffered less stress during their stay. Understanding the rationale for this new training, and how it evolved, is critical for shelters like the Animal Aid to increase adoption and retention rates and decrease the number of animals surrendered by the community. MT: Can you define the issues researched, and what led you to decide to investigate such an issue?
LM: I'm a dog owner myself and have been involved in dog-training for about five years, and it's these interests that led me to investigate the human-canine bond for my research. I'm particularly interested in how this bond develops and believe that understanding this process will help us place more dogs successfully, with fewer returns. The initial stage of this project was establishing the status quo and this is why I tracked dogs through three shelters for a year.
Another important area of concern is the effect of shelter admission itself on dogs. Research has established that such admissions can have a significant negative effect on dogs, resulting in physiological and behavioural changes. However, there are strategies that can be used to reduce these effects and so improve animal welfare.
MT: What were the main results of the study?
LM: The majority of shelter admissions are strays dogs aged older than a year. The good news is that over half of all strays are reclaimed, due to the ability to locate their owners using microchip and council databases, and the majority of reclaimed strays are collected within 4 days. I must admit I find it difficult to understand the phenomenon of unclaimed strays. These dogs have obviously been part of a family for a year or more, are suddenly allowed to stray and then not reclaimed.
The major reasons for dogs being surrendered include behaviour problems including escaping, hyperactivity and barking as well as situations when providing for a pet becomes too difficult for some owners, i.e. when moving home. The fact that their dog escaped was a real issue for some owners.
One of the major reasons that dogs that are returned soon after adoption is that they don't get on with an existing pet and this emphasises the importance of correctly introducing the prospective pets before adoption. MT: Was there anything from the study that surprised you?
LM: A big surprise for me was identifying that Melbourne shelters have far fewer dogs returned after adoption compared to overseas counterparts. I was also surprised that despite incentives and awareness campaigns regarding the advantages of pet desexing, the majority of shelter admissions are entire animals, particularly males. I was also saddened to find that holiday periods dramatically affect shelter admissions, more unclaimed strays and surrenders occurring at this time, despite the 'Pets are not just for Christmas' campaign. MT: Can you describe the rehabilitation project undertaken at AA?
LM: In discussion with management at AA we decided to recruit a team of dedicated volunteers and provide them with some strategies to target behaviour that causes people to outright reject dogs for adoption: barking, jumping up and rushing the pen gates, for example. We used positive training techniques to achieve this. Positive methods have multiple benefits: the dogs learn quickly, stress levels are reduced, the human contact with trainers provides environmental enrichment and all human-canine interaction is non-threatening and pleasant, which is particularly important for dogs who have experienced abuse. MT: What has been the response from participating community members?
LM: Frankly I've been amazed. Introducing change is normally difficult. However, the enthusiasm shown by volunteers, staff and members of the public has been astounding. Volunteers are reporting greater satisfaction and feel that they are not only actively improving the welfare of these dogs, but also their chances of adoption. I think it's safe to say that even the staff were 'blown away' by how quickly the dogs responded to a minimum (10 minutes) of training. The staff have been able to use the same strategies when showing dogs to the public, which has also promoted interest in the training used. The increased interaction also means that we know more about the dogs' individual personalities and this should assist staff with matching dogs and new owners more effectively. MT: What has been the response to the new training at AA, in relation to canine behaviour and successful adoptions?
LM: Bearing in mind that the dogs we asked to work with were those displaying undesirable behaviour, it is wonderful to be able to report that all dogs that have participated in the rehab. program have been successfully adopted. These were dogs that had been thought of as hard to place before training, but were actually lovely and intelligent animals who were so stressed they had forgotten how to behave. MT: How has the training program been received by the AA?
LM: With enormous enthusiasm. I think the results are very difficult to overlook and in some cases what has been achieved so far has been quite dramatic using very minimal resources, which is always important in a shelter. MT: Will there be any follow-up research?
LM: What we have achieved so far is really only the start. There is so much more we can do to further improve the welfare of these animals. Besides the continuation of my research on the human-canine bond, AA has asked me to expand the rehab. program to other areas of behaviour. The next step will be to provide some 'in-run entertainment', in the form of Chew toys etc. for dogs that are still displaying signs of stress. There are many other types of behaviour that we will be addressing progressively over the next few months. We may also start applying some similar strategies to shelter cats as well. The Rehabilitation Team Project is really a 'work in progress'. But if we can do it at AA and have such a profound effect so quickly, then there is no reason it can't happen elsewhere. Stage 2
The program has now been in operation since late April, and has achieved a high level of success with all participants. Ongoing work with shelter dogs has enabled us to target behaviour that would otherwise prohibit adoption. The assessment process for animals scheduled for adoption ensures that new owners receive healthy active pets. When preparing for adoption, the animal is temperament checked to ensure that we do not pass on a problem animal and then health checked by our veterinarians. Assured there are no major health concerns we then make the animal available for adoption.
During the assessment process some behavioural issues that the ART program™ can address may be identified, and these animals begin rehabilitation when successfully vet checked. Once deemed suitable for adoption, all animals needing assistance of ART are withheld from adoption for at least another week, giving the staff a chance to work with the animal and increase its chances of finding a suitable home.
From the beginning of the program in late April up until late November 50 dogs passed through the program and of these 74% were re-homed. It is important to note that the rehabilitation program has focused on dogs that would be regarded as poor prospects for successful re-homing and who previously required very careful matching to find just the right owner. Our initial approach has concentrated on providing environmental enrichment in the form of toys and Kongs for the dogs, training using positive and gentle techniques to enhance behaviour and massage to de-stress the dogs. All these aids help the dogs to present themselves to the public at their best. The training also provides great opportunities for positive interaction with people. Some of the dogs sheltered at the Animal Aid have not experienced this before.
Also, with funding from IFAW (International Fund for Animal Welfare), the shelter has been able to build an assessment shed. The ART assessment shed provides an opportunity for: Puppy socialisation Animal assessment away from over-stimulating environments around the kennels or the vet clinic. This allows a dog to act as naturally as possible during the assessment and staff to gain a far more accurate impression of a dog's character. A quieter space for dogs where those over-whelmed by the shelter environment can take a 'breather'.
The toys serve as an important outlet for excess energy and relieve boredom whilst the animal is in the pen.
One of the first successes of the ART program™ was Spider, featured in our last issue of Animal Aid News. We asked Spider's new family for an update as to how he had settled in.
Spider has become an integral part of his new family. His young owners, Luke and Jordyn, adore him and have spent time training him to fetch and play with a ball. Six months after his adoption, Spider's new family still uses the training techniques that were used at the shelter, encouraging him with food rewards, hugs and attention.
As a result of the ART program™, Spider has landed squarely on his feet in his new home. Without the training he received at the shelter, he would not have presented well enough for prospective owners to consider adopting him. The training has also given his new family something to build on and continue in his home environment.
The Next Step
With the initial stages of the ART program™ now in place, the Animal Aid is expanding the program to target other behaviour issues of out-of-pen activity. Additions to the training will include: Walking on a loose leash Eliminating minor food guarding issues (major ones do not get through assessment) Building a better human-canine relationship, particularly in aloof/timid dogs
Other aims include: Expanding the program to all dogs at the shelter so that each receives 15 minutes of positive interaction with people every day. Facilitating safe socialisation sessions between dogs so that they are better able to integrate into multi-dog homes Building a dog activity area to offer a wider range of activities and provide more stimulating exercise times for the dogs. Improving the shelter environment by exploring ways to reduce noise levels in the kennels i.e. sound absorbent lining to prevent noise reverberation. Continue to teach staff and volunteers suitable training techniques. Create a 'home room', which will allow further de-stressing of anxious animals and enable us to familiarise some dogs with typical home noises and activities e.g. vacuuming. And in the longer term to provide post-adoptive support.
One of the major benefits that staff have noticed so far is the intimate knowledge they gain of each dog on the rehabilitation program: their likes and dislikes, their fears and quirks, and this has been a great help in matching the dogs with their new families.
The ART program™ is an integral part of the Animal Aid's work in re-homing abandoned and homeless animals. By targeting inappropriate behaviour at the shelter, these animals are given every opportunity of a new life with a loving family. Back to Top Animal Aid's ART Program™
By Matthew Tibble Many months ago, Animal Aid began its program to provide rehabilitative training to certain dogs at the shelter. Many of the dogs that have gone through the program have well and truly settled into their new homes, and are thoroughly enjoying their new life with their families.
Spider was one of the shelter's first students, with his over-active behaviour deterring many potential owners. After a few weeks of rehabilitative training with staff and volunteers, Spider learnt that to get attention from humans, he needed to sit still and  be quiet. Spider was a quick learner. Before long, he had found a new home, and has settled in very nicely.
"Dogs like Spider that have behaviour traits that can be trained out of them, either jumping and barking to gain attention or extreme shyness, now have a chance at a new home. As potential adopters visit the shelter, these dogs are now more appealing as pets. In addition to their basic rehab training, we educate the new owner in some of the techniques, so they can continue with the training when they get home", says Cindy Christensen, the ART program™ coordinator. With a success rate of 75% of dogs through the program, the Animal Aid has a winner on its hands. "When you consider that many of these dogs wouldn't get the chance of a new home, we are very excited about providing this opportunity for dogs like Spider". Back to Top | 
