As part of our Season of Pet Happiness, we’ve got four awesome Happy Pet Experts lined up over the coming weeks to tackle your questions and share their best tips.
First up is Rob Kuty, a Certified Master Dog Trainer, President of San Diego Pet Training Inc, and the Director of Animal Training at the Helen Woodward Animal Center.
Here’s the deal:
Pop your questions for Rob as a reply to this post by Friday, August 9th - we’ll be closing this post to new submissions at 11.59pm BST on that date. Then, on Friday, August 16th, the Forum team will drop his answers for you!
Whether you’ve got a burning question about training your pup or you want some expert insights about your pet’s routine, this is the spot to ask!
Just a heads up - while we’d love for Rob to answer every single question, it might not be possible depending on how many we get.
With over 23 years of experience in professional animal training, Rob really knows his stuff and has worked with all sorts of animals—dogs, cats, pigs, pigeons, and even exotic birds.
So fire up those brains and submit your questions!
I have a cat who startles easily. If she’s on my lap, and my husband sitting nearby sneezes loudly, she’ll leap off and race away, making as much galloping noise as she can.
FWIW, she doesn’t seem to be actually frightened, or maybe she just enjoys being “frightened” like kids enjoy roller coasters and haunted houses. She is completely capable of ignoring loud nearby noises when she’s cozily asleep in some sunny spot and doesn’t want to bother with jumping up and racing away. Honestly it seems like she does this for fun and for performative reasons. Unfortunately every once in a while the leaping off from my lap involves inadvertently catching me with her back claws.
Do you have any advice around separation anxiety in pets - particularly any short term help if you’re taking care of someone else’s pet who is missing their owner a lot?
Some cats like to play with your arm, holding it with their paws (nails retracted) and sometimes they start a “love biting” play. I have read that love biting should always be avoided. I just wonder if that is also the case when the cat is not at all aggressive and is clearly in a peaceful play mode, with soft, slow movements and enjoying the moment, when it’s not a case of overstimulation but the cat is approaching you to snuggle up.
Thanks.
Any tips for getting a dog to walk to heel rather than pulling? I’ve done a number of sits where dogs either haven’t been taught to walk nicely alongside, or are just more used to being off-lead and seem to have forgotten anything they might have learnt!
Hi Rob! What would you suggest for a dog who LOVES to bark? It’s not just when there’s a knock at the door, it can be when he’s excited too - I don’t mind him being vocal but I’m worried about the neighbours and tips to redirect his noises into something else? Thanks!
Do you have any tips for welcoming a new cat into a home where another cat (7yrs old) already lives? He has been used to living with another cat for the majority of his life but it’s been a little while since there’s been another cat in the house.
I have an 18-month-old Mini Dachshund, Gus. We live in Amsterdam city centre, so he is very much a city dog which means there is lots on the road to eat. He is pretty good and doesn’t eat most stuff, he understands ‘leave it’ and a little tug on the leash and then he ignores it. But occasionally he does go for something and once it’s in his mouth he gets super aggressive, growling, snapping and has even bitten us when we try to remove it. It’s scary because we don’t always know what he has eaten, and in the city there are a lot of drugs on the ground and toxic things. How do we stop his protective aggressive response to us trying to get things out of his mouth? FYI, he doesn’t resource guard his food, treats, chews or toys ever. We can take any of those away from him no problem and so can other dogs.
How can you tell if a very floofy cat is underweight/ overweight ?
If a cat is always looking for more food does it mean that they are underfed or is it behaviour / instinct ( a cat that was previously neglected and abandoned )
What suggestions do you have for the best way to treat a well fed cat that frequently meows very loudly for more food ? Ignore / distractions like play / other ???
Hi Rob I’m dog sitting at the moment- one cheeky pup and sweet old boy. The puppy (1 year ish) will barely let me give the older one any attention, jumping in front or even onto him. Do you have any tips to help me make both get some love?
They’re used to a family of four and now there’s just one of me!
A short lead is beneficial, it stops the dog getting ‘leverage’ against the walker.
Thats how i trained my two dogs, leads were so short, they literally couldn’t leave my side.
Hi Rob,
I am wondering what helps anxious dogs to cope with a pet-sit & the absence of their pet-parent? Are there ways to prepare a pet for a sit even before a sitter arrives and prevent or reduce potential anxiety?
and tips to redirect his noises into something else? Thanks!
I’m dog sitting at the moment- one cheeky pup and sweet old boy. The puppy (1 year ish) will barely let me give the older one any attention, jumping in front or even onto him. Do you have any tips to help me make both get some love?