Fwd Congres 2023
On the 17th of September 2023, the 6the annual Friendly with Dogs conference will be held in Belgium. This year, recordings of all lectures will be available in English after the conference.
If you sign up for the video-version of the conference, you will have access to all recordings for at least 6 months. Bear in mind that it might take some weeks before all recordings are edited so not all of them will be available at the end of September.
Take a look at the invited speakers and the topics they well take about.
Note: The English version of the 6th Friendly with Dogs Conference gives you access to the recordings of the sessions after the conference. This access will be available for at least 6 months after the videos are released (this release is scheduled between the end of September and the end of November 2023, depending on the session). There will not be an option to follow the conference online on the 17th of September. The video version only offers the recordings after the conference.
€147,00 incl. btw (€121,49€ excl. btw)
Amber Batson (UK) on Who “nose” the value of the nose: the physiology and learning behind the power of scent activities:
This lecture will take a look at how the nose is connected with the dog’s brain and dog’s gut This one hour lecture will take a look at how the nose is connected with the dog’s brain and dog’s gut and what this means can happen when a dog undertakes sniffing based activities.
What impact can there be on the brain? What impact can there be on the digestive system? Why does this matter for behavioural and medical well being of the dog and for the dog undergoing any behavior modification programmes.
Amber will take a brief look at medical conditions and medications that may impact on the dog’s ability to experience scents through sniffing.
She will then tie all this together looking at how smell as a primary sense in the dog allows them to gain information about their world including the “context” and how by understanding the learning of the dog, we can help our dogs find their way in the human orientated pet or working dog world more effectively whilst still allowing crucial “dog time” for species specific activities for both their, and our benefits.
Note: this lecture will be available online at the beginning of October 2023.
Kirsty Grant (UK) on ‘Using enriched environment for dogs… in practice!’
From puppy classes to behaviour consultations, day care to dog groomers, hydrotherapists to vets,… enriched environments are an invaluable tool for understanding, teaching and healing dogs. In this lecture we will delve into the reasons why enriched environments are so effective, learn how to use them in a way that is safe for the dogs and appropriate to your dog profession. Kirsty will use case studies, video footage and photographs for trouble shooting common problems and how to make the best use of the facilities and space available to you.
Els Vidts (BE) on Self Regulation in Dogs (theoretical and practical session)
Self regulation is the ability to adjust your own behaviour, thoughts and emotions, in accordance to a personal goal and in line with context and social engagement. Without self regulation there is no calmness and no balance in thoughts and emotions and it is difficult to stay goal directed.
Children with good self regulation perform better at school and have better social skills. For dogs self-regulation is just as important as for people, it boosts learning capacity and the necessary skills to engage in social contact. If we can guide our dogs from puppyhood on to develop good self regulation this will prevent many behaviour problems and have dogs grow out to mentally and emotionally sound individuals.
In this lecture we will dig deeper in what SR really is and what is needed to support it’s development in a dog. We will also look at what skills the human needs to go beyond obedience and impulse control training. Encouraging the development of SR in dogs takes a very individualized approached, but this can be successfully done in dog schools and group classes as well.
Els will provide us with an English version of her talk. The recordings of this session will be available around November 2023.
Els will also offer a practical session on self regulation in dogs. This will be in Flemish, however we will provide a translated transcript in order for you to be able to follow this practical session. The recordings of the sessions of Els will be available around November 2023.
Sofie Callens (BE) on a perfect recall (practical session)
Lots of dogs can’t run free because they like to hunt and don’t come back when called… sounds familiar? However… by using a whistle, clear steps, understanding the dog’s body language and simple guidelines for the dog’s handlers, you can ensure a perfect recall. This ensures that dogs can just be dogs and enjoy the freedom they deserve and avoids frustrations and problem behavior. During this practical session, Sofie will demonstrate and practice the full step-by-step plan. She will provide additional tools to decide whether or not it is safe to let a dog run loose.
Sofie’s session will be in Flemish, however we will provide a translated transcript in order for you to be able to follow this practical session. The recordings of the sessions of Els will be available around November 2023.
Michelle Vrolijk (NED) on Dog & Pain
Michelle is the initiator of the Dogs&Pain courses. Like no other, she has an eye for pain as an underlying reason; as a cause or ”not-helping-factor” in problem behaviour. During her presentation she will show video material and case studies to give practical information that we can use every day in our work with dogs. This will make the lives of dogs, humans and environment better, safer and more fun.
Michelle will provide us with an English version of her talk. The recordings of this session will be available around November 2023.
Sprekers
Amber Batson
Amber Batson graduated from the Royal Veterinary College in 1999 and has worked in clinical veterinary practice ever since.
Many of the medical cases she saw seemed to have a behavioural “flavour” so in 2002 she began studying the way the environment impacts on health and disease, an area of medicine known as psychoneuroimmunology. From there she spent a number of years studying behavior and welfare in dogs, cats and horses, so that in 2007 she set up her own business Understand Animals. The goal was to link emerging science with a practical application to help animal care providers improve the health and well being of the animals they cared for and lived with.
Alongside work in veterinary practice, Amber has also provided behavior and welfare education for a wide number of dog and horse international organisations. She also offers private vet behavior consultations for dogs, horses and cats. Today, Amber blends her family life with continuing to provide animal behavior education all over the world, along with working as a legal expert witness in animal welfare cases and working medically and behaviourally in clinical practice.
Kirsty Grant
Kirsty opened the first of its kind, indoor enriched environment for dogs in 2018. Developed from the work of Turid Rugaas, she provides a safe, secure, all-weather space for dogs to exhibit natural behaviour in The Dog Nose in the UK. Kirsty learns dog professionals how to use those environments to help dogs with behavioural issues. She is an Animal Behaviour and Training Council (ABTC) Animal Training Instructor (ATI).
Els Vidts
After studying for 11 years in the field of physical therapy for humans (physiotherapy, manual therapy and osteopathy) Els’ interests shifted to canine behaviour and she followed courses with Turid Rugaas and Amber Batson.
Now she is combining all these different fields in her own Belgian-based business FreeDogz. Els is an international speaker, she has given lectures and workshops in several countries. The main topics have been the anatomical reasons in a dog’s neck to use harnesses and sensory integration for dogs, a new look at behaviour and behaviour modification. Above all, she is passionate about sharing her insights to help dogs and their owners.
Sofie Callens
Sofie has been coaching people in raising their dogs for 15 years while she strives to take the well-being of every dog to the highest level. Sofie strongly believes that looking from the dog’s point of view is most powerful as listening to the dog often gives the answer that people have been looking for for a long time. Thanks to her first Vizsla Pauline, Sofie was introduced to positive hunting training. After countless trips to England, Sofie can proudly say that she was the first European to successfully complete the training of The Gundog Trainers Academy in 2019. With her Vizsla Pippa she continues this path and keeps learning.
Michelle Vrolijk
Michelle is a dog behaviourist and initiator of the Dog&Pain courses. Like no other, she has an eye for pain as an underlying reason; as a cause or ”not-helping-factor” in problem behaviour.