Feb 8, 2010
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Dog Behavior: Innate, Developmental or Emergent, with Ray Coppinger
Price: $395.00
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This seminar is accredited by the Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers for 19.5 CPDT Continuing Education Units

Dr. Raymond Coppinger, author of DOGS, A Startling New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior & Evolution, will be doing a three day long seminar at Wolf Park, in Battle Ground, Indiana. He will be talking about the evolution and history of dogs, as well as behavior, cognition and emotions in dogs. During the three days Dr. Coppinger speaks for 5-6 hours each day, and the Wolf Park staff fills out the day with visits with their resident wolves, and some talks on wolf behavior.  Participants also get to attend Howl Nights, and see the unique Wolf and Bison Demonstration up close on Sunday. (go to www.wolfpark.org for more info on Wolf Park)

Dr. Coppinger is a professor emeritus at Hampshire College, and is one of the world's foremost experts on dogs. His biography is below. He does not give seminars very often, and so anyone interested in the opportunity to learn from him, and to have time to talk with and ask questions of Dr. Coppinger should attend this weekend. The group is usually small, fewer than 25 people, so personal attention and interaction is guaranteed.

The seminar begins at 8:30 on Friday, and ends at about 6pm on Sunday.  The cost includes most meals. It does not include accommodations or transportation. To find out more or to register, go to www.wolfparkstore.com, or call Wolf Park 765/567-2265.

THE SEMINAR:

Natural History of the Dog
Dogs exist in amazing numbers around the world. Most of them are classified by the World Health Organization as Neighborhood Dogs. These are dogs that are loosely attached to people and are in continuous contact with the greater population of dogs. That means that most of the dogs in the world form a continuous population that feeds, reproduces and maintains their own lifestyles reasonably independently of people. Exploring the behavior of these village dogs gives us not only the dynamics of how dogs earn a living but also suggests how they evolved and adapted to civilization. It also provides an insight into dog behavior.

The Ethology of Dogs
There are many ways to study dog behavior. Ethology, sometimes called behavioral ecology and sometimes behavior genetics, is a biological approach to measuring behavior. Most of the people interested in dogs are interested in modifying their behavior. Behaviorism is one method that is popular now. Known as ‘click and treat,’ the technique is used to teach tricks or a particular behavior. In contrast, people who train pointers or sheepdogs or other hunting and working dogs rely on an innate characteristic. The exploration of these breed-typical behaviors s a job for ethologists.

Dog Cognition
Have you ever wondered, when a border collie herds sheep, for example, if it is conscious of what it is doing? If the behavior of herding is genetic, then there is little need for the dog to be conscious. And how does the dog compare with other animals in characteristics such as self-awareness and intentional behavior? Can they form images of missing objects? When one tells a dog to fetch its ball, does it form a mental image of that ball and can it generalize to other balls, or does it just learn the one and then searches for a familiar smell?

Emotions of the Dog.
Do dogs have emotions? Are they like people's emotions? Most scientists think dogs express fear and alarm but don’t see how they can feel guilt or love. For scientists, it is important to be able to measure quantity and quality of a behavior in order to demonstrate its effect. There is a chance that a model could be constructed that demonstrates a rich array of emotions in animals like dogs.


SHORT BIOGRAPHY of RAYMOND COPPINGER
Raymond Coppinger majored in literature and philosophy as an undergraduate at Boston University. His Ph.D. thesis in biology (at the University of Massachusetts) is on the effect of experience and novelty on avian feeding behavior. He joined the founding faculty at Hampshire College in 1969, where he is professor of biology. He teaches and does research on animal behavior, especially the behavior of canines.
Ray's first professional studies of dogs occurred on the runners of a dog sled. During a twelve- year mushing career, he progressed from a five-dog to a sixteen-dog team, won many races on the northeast (USA) circuits, and developed a new strain of fast, responsive sled dogs. Several of these were sold to drivers bound for the Alaskan championship races. His research projects with sled dogs include responses of racing dogs to the stress of heat retention, and the amount of energy required to pull a sled and driver.
In 1976, Ray and his wife Lorna founded the Livestock Guarding Dog Project at Hampshire College. This long-term investigation into the behavior of a new kind of dog for farmers and ranchers in the United States has resulted in greater understanding about early developmental
behavior of dogs, and how early experience (or lack of it) can affect their adult behavior.
Recently, Ray has turned his attention to assistance dogs. His first-hand knowledge of harnesses for dogs, the mechanics and physiology of pulling, and the relationship between experience, training and behavior give him a unique insight into the lives of the dogs which are being asked to enhance the lives of people with special needs. Ray (and his colleagues and students) have published over fifty papers on his dog research. His favorite publication, however, is the book Fishing Dogs, a humorous and iconoclastic look at dogs, fishermen and professors. His latest book, co-authored with Lorna Coppinger, is DOGS: A New Understanding of Canine Origin, Behavior, and Evolution (Scribner, NY, 2001; Univ. Chicago Press, 2002). His lecture trips around the world to talk about dogs are always supplemented by a day or two searching local waters for the perfect fish.


There will be hands-on experience with the Wolf Park wolves involved in this seminar.  Participants must be over 18 years of age in order to enter the enclosure with the wolves.

Call the Wolf Park office at (765) 567-2265 between 9-5 Mon-Fri for more information.

CANCELLATION POLICY
Wolf Park reserves the right to cancel a seminar if there are fewer than 5 participants registered as of 30 days before the start of the seminar.  In the case of cancellation, we will refund registration fees in full, or the participant can choose to transfer into a different seminar..