My Story How I Become a Dog Psychologist

 

As you all know by now, I am Dr. Stephanie Laurens the Dog Psychologist. Many Dog Psychologist don’t have their own PhD degree and thru their experienced, but they have PhD Knowledge that’s why I wanted to help get their recognition to be earned by their hard work and get title for their own role as Dog Psychologist. 

Many Dog Psychologist have been mistaken as a ‘Dog Trainer’ but they are highly trained well with dogs but on the other side a Dog Psychologist are more highly experienced with working on aggression on dogs and stray dogs than what you also called known as a ‘Dog Behaviourist’ which cover on same experience but haven’t studied intensively on canines like a Dog Psychologist that holds a PhD degree. 

A Dog Psychologist role on the other hand specialised in working more on the Aggression side of dogs and to rehabilitate dogs with aggression behaviour issues. 

We have animal Behaviourist here in this world, but animal Behaviourist consultant don’t specialise in one specific animal but in a variety of ones which makes it hard to solve most cases in canine aggression for their title of the role. That is the reason why I pursued my career as a Dog Psychologist and many are not known yet or been popular role to this world yet and still need a PhD degree that’s why I dedicate myself into opening my own university where the course of a PhD for Canine Psychology and Behaviour Management can be recognisable for anyone who wanna pursue a career as a Dog Psychologist.

When I first started my independently research thru my high school without in class professors where you normally attend an institute, I went beyond my research with only two online professors that everyone called them dog whisperer and other dog trainers to gather the basic work on dog aggression. The method I now gathered and use on many dogs that have aggressions to resolve the problem and that took me 12 years to completed where I then graduated thru God mom when I passed her god exam where I gained my very own PhD academic award in Canine Psychology and Behaviour Management which I worked so hard for, but it was worth it in the end. So proud of myself for what I had done in Canine. Yay!

But I wanted to understand the deeper knowledge more than just gathering reports of data to pick up my resources from any school so I dedicated myself into monitoring on canines each day for answers and decided that I would do that thru gather my practical skills and good eyes into reading dogs for what type of aggression signs and picked up on their body language on how they express towards dogs and humans. Every day I do that where my experience gotten better that now I can pick up on 5 type of dog aggression.

So I will place 5 types of dog aggression for you to pick up on.

FEAR AGGRESSION 

1 Canine aggression is Fear aggression where the dog is nervous barking loud and fast with their tail curled inside then body is dwell and then they start running away in circles and ears back and head turning sideways to avoid and eyes contact looking away of the threat or back hair stiffs up high and barking at the threat to go away with a freeze body stare. You mainly see this when you encounter a dog that are fear base because it is genetics or happen to be unsocialised when they were younger. 

DOMINANT AGGRESSION 

2 Canine aggression is Dominant aggression where the dog tail is stiff up high for confident wagging and the body is tense and the head is looking broad nice and straight and eyes up staring at the threat and back hair stiff up high where they are barking with a mouth and teeth are open wide to attack charge. You mainly see this when you encounter a dog that’s dominant base because of the breed or base on their temperament.

FRUSTRATION AGGRESSION 

3 Canine aggression is Frustration aggression where the dog blows up thru a leash or harness where tail is high confident wagging and body looking stiff and ears are up and mouth open with snarling teeth open and charging at the target threat. You mainly see this when you encounter a dog that’s frustrate on leash known as a reactive dog and this is because lack of exercise or no structure on leash manners. 

TERRITORIAL AGGRESSION 

4 Canine aggression Territorial aggression where the dog marks their base land on barking loud and fast and charging at their threat with a tail high wagging and stiff body and eyes stare and ears up and mouth wide open with snarling teeth ready to attack threat to go away. You mainly see this when coming to homes to encounter this territorial base and it happens when you see dog is being dominant and it is part of breed or temperament.

RESOURCE GUARD AGGRESSION 

5 Canine aggression Resource guarding aggression where you see a dog guard its highly value such as food, toy, objects and humans and animals mainly you see the tail up high wagging and ears up and a growl and then a snap bite freeze, and the body is stiff and whale eyes. You mainly see this when encounter a dog that resource guard base and it is common from their ancestor wolf encounter but mainly this happens when you haven’t established yourself as being the Packleader means Boss inside home. 

So, after you read the 5 points of dog aggression you now then have an idea of a better understanding of what aggression Behaviour to look for in dogs that I have encounter thru out my research I can decide to share you my own personal experience with dogs as I was growing up so I will share it to you anyways of how I have gotten this far.

Since in my early childhood I always loved animals, so we used to have chickens and I loved the chickens. I named the brown fat rooster cheekymeal and the other skinny white rooster Sally. They always fight and I loved watching them in cage fight. It was funny. 

We also had a Hen Lisa and she lay eggs for us every day. But sadly, all the chickens died when I was growing up so then my dad got me a dog but that dog bite me because I wasn’t acknowledging the dogs body language for signs that he was nervous and anxious at the time, and I was still young at the time to see it coming so I then told my dad that night that the dog bite me, so he then gave it away. 

It was sad news but then good news. Sad news is I don’t have a pet dog anymore and good news is he taught me some experience while I was a kid which is don’t touch a dog and must build trust first.

But I forgot his name though but that was the moment I first encountered a dog for my life. 

So, when I was 15, I then gotten myself a dog and her name was Roxie she was a Labrador cross German Shepard. I raised her when she was a puppy, and I was good at obedience training at the time for her. Roxie was a rebellious dog she gotten into trouble many times and pee over the house, and it was a nightmare for me as a first-time dog parent that didn’t have any info into raising a puppy, I thought I was hopeless but now I’m not anymore. 

Sadly, I had to give her away because she was a nightmare because my mom wanted to get rid of her, but I think she had separation anxiety during those times I was away from her. She did teach me to be a better dog mom in the future where I had my second dog name Nico. 

When I had Nico at 23, he was a pure golden Labrador, and he was the last litter in the box where I got him from this breeder. He was such a chubby boy when I first got him. So adorable and cute too. 

So, I raised him, and I was a very strict mom that wanted him to be my A+ son so we went to dog school together and I found out it was a rubbish school system where I teach Nico better and I self-taught him to pray to Jesus where he then ends up doing that every day before his mealtimes well, I was proud of him. 

I was happy that the Priest when I met him where I show a video clip of Nico praying to Jesus. The priest loved it and then told me after I seen him that my only gift was to be with dogs with the lord Jesus. 

Sadly, I had to give up my only best child to this family where I trusted them to raise my boy and I was super very impressed that his new mom gave him more training and taught him math's. Nico was a Clingy dog even I crate train him all the way from little he still has separation anxiety from me because I know he misses his strict mom the most. 

But ever since raising him he gave me a purpose with dogs and it’s to rehabilitate aggressive dogs with humans. Why did I pick aggressive dogs because not many Dog Trainers and Dog Behaviourist and Dog Psychologist are experienced with dog aggression so that’s why I pick this field to study and research on that which gave me the best outcome especially saving dogs on death row or from meat farm.

The adrenaline the kicks in when working with aggressive dogs that gave me an idea of how to resolve their behaviour. But I’m happy that I made my choice and it’s to work with aggressive dogs. 

And this was my childhood experience when I become a Dog Psychologist when I gotten to where I am today. 

I hope you all enjoy reading this side of my story where I gotten myself where I am now, and I hope I inspired many of you that love dogs that wanted to help sick dogs that needs help for a good home and resolve aggression case on canines. 

Again, thank you for reading my story as I am Dr. Stephanie Laurens a Dog Psychologist with intensive 10 years experienced working with aggressive dogs.