November 2013 KPA CTP of the Month
Christina Waggoner was eager and excited to be one of the first enrolled in the Karen Pryor Academy (KPA) Dog Trainer Professional Program. Now a full-fledged KPA Certified Training Partner (CTP) with her own training business, Deschutes River Dogs, she is also the Applications Coordinator for Karen Pryor Academy, the first person new applicants speak with after submitting their applications to any of the KPA courses.
Attending ClickerExpo in Los Angeles in the mid 2000s, Christina heard about the prospective launch of KPA. She had already begun to embrace clicker training professionally after reading Karen Pryor’s book Don’t Shoot the Dog. Clicker training was particularly useful in her work fostering Siberian husky dogs and preparing them to find forever homes. Christina was concerned that many families, smitten with husky dogs after seeing the Disney movie Eight Below, were giving up those dogs when they changed from “small balls of fluff” to “demanding adolescents.” She knew that with proper positive training dogs and their families could form longer and stronger bonds. Christina realized that “…self- teaching was just not enough. I wanted to reach the next level, and I was ready to do whatever it took to be included in the first year of [KPA] graduates!”
As she went through the KPA program, Christina found that learning about behavior chains impacted her most. Those chains “… made it clear that all behavior is just that—behavior.” With that lesson in her tool kit, Christina had the confidence “… to apply new skills to a service-dog organization and stay the course as a new trainer.” Christina is grateful for the science that supports her confidence. With a scientific foundation behind her clicker training efforts, Christina’s teaching approach has become more simplified and her efforts more effective.
To what ends does Christina use her confidence and clicker training skills these days? A lot of her work is with pet owners with special needs. She helps owners teach their dogs behaviors that can be helpful in accomplishing everyday tasks (for example, opening and closing cabinet doors, retrieving items, finding car keys). Christina has always been interested in cooperative work between dogs and people—a relationship that has existed for thousands of years in various forms, such as herding, hunting, and scenting, for example.
Since 2008, Christina has worked with Freedom Dogs, a San Diego-based organization that was one of the earliest to match dogs with returning military veterans who suffered from disabilities like PTSD (post traumatic stress disorder) and TBI (traumatic brain injury). Less active with the group now because of a move out of state, Christina eagerly encourages others to volunteer there or in a similar organization.
All of the service dogs in the Freedom Dogs program are taught using the principles of clicker training. It's a great way to hone your skills while doing a really good thing.
Karen Pryor Academy has led to some interesting professional opportunities for Christina. She has a strong following of pot-bellied pig owners who have found her home videos featuring her pig, Tofu, to be helpful! Christina also writes a blog for pet owners called The Dexter Diaries. She has presented to schoolchildren on behalf of Doggone Safe, to the Central Oregon Donkey Association, and to various support groups interested in the application of pet dogs as part of rehabilitation.
Next up is ClickerExpo 2014! Christina’s first ClickerExpo was in Los Angeles years ago when she learned about KPA. Little did she know that she would lead two Sessions at the upcoming conference: Urban Mushing and Keeping It Real. She gave a brief presentation on Urban Mushing in 2013 at ClickerExpo in San Francisco and was thrilled to be invited to speak again at ClickerExpo. Naturally a bit shy, Christina says that she has discovered another side of herself when she speaks about a subject she is passionate about. Christina’s two Expo presentations are largely drawn from a lifetime of living with impossibly energetic dogs (mostly Siberian huskies). Urban Mushing-Taming Your Wild Beast is all about fun. Christina says that mushing is an easy way to exercise an active breed in any climate, not just somewhere like Alaska! Keeping It Real is about client requests to eliminate problem behaviors that actually serve a normal biological or social function for dogs; digging, barking, chewing, and jumping are some very common examples. Christina aims to explain how to balance what are very natural impulses for one species (dogs) that clash with the culture and needs of another species (humans).
Christina continues to learn all she can about dogs and, especially, behavior. She says that “we have only touched the surface” of knowledge in those areas. Books, seminars, workshops are all part of Christina’s life; recent sources of continuing educations have included a trip to Shedd Aquarium for Ken Ramirez' week-long ? seminar on teaching groups of animals in a zoo setting, and Dr. Susan Friedman's online course Living & Learning with Animals: The Fundamental Principles and Procedures of Teaching and Learning.? As the mother of an autistic child, Christina is very interested in TAGteach. Level 1 TAGteach-certified herself, she would love to see TAGteaching implemented in every classroom and home.
As she works with children, veterans, KPA students, pet owners, and, of course, dogs, Christina Waggoner grabs every opportunity to learn and to teach. She is quick to point out that one of the advantages to her work with KPA is getting to know international students who are interested in KPA courses. She learns about the people, their culture, and the culture of dogs in other countries. “In Switzerland, for example, dog owners must take classes in dog ownership before even bringing a dog into their home,” Christina reports. Mandatory pet ownership classes conducted by Christina Waggoner, KPA CTP, would be lessons in positivity and pleasure.