Ian Dunbar (born April 15, 1947) is a

veterinarian A veterinarian (vet) or veterinary surgeon is a medical professional who practices veterinary medicine. They manage a wide range of health conditions and injuries in non-human animals. Along with this, veterinarians also play a role in animal r ...

, ethologist, and dog trainer. He received his veterinary degree and a Special Honours degree in Physiology & Biochemistry from the

Royal Veterinary College The Royal Veterinary College (informally the RVC) is a veterinary school located in London and a member institution of the federal University of London. The RVC was founded in 1791 and joined the University of London in 1949. It is the oldest an ...

(London University), and a doctorate in ethology from the Psychology Department at

UC Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after the Anglo-Irish philosopher George Berkele ...

, where he researched the development of social hierarchies and aggression in domestic dogs.

Career

In 1982, Dunbar designed and taught the world's very first off-leash puppy socialization and training classes titled ''SIRIUS Puppy Training''. Subsequently, he created and developed the San Francisco

SPCA A Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (SPCA) is a common name for non-profit animal welfare organizations around the world. The oldest SPCA organization is the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, which was founded ...

's Animal Behavior Department, the American Kennel Club's Gazette "Behavior" column, which he wrote for seven years, and the K9 GAMES, which were first held in San Francisco in 1993 and continue as annual events in Japan and France. He hosted the popular UK television series Dogs With Dunbar for five seasons and has appeared on numerous radio and television programs, including the Today Show (US) and Dash Village (Japan). Over the past 35 years, Dunbar has given over 1000 seminars and workshops around the world for dog trainers and veterinarians in an effort to popularize off-leash puppy socialization classes, temperament modification, and owner-friendly and dog-friendly dog training. Additionally, Dunbar has consulted on a variety of movies—full-length features, documentaries and animation (including Pixar's UP) and he has twice spoken at the prestigious e.g. Conference. After he founded the Association of Pet Dog Trainers in 1993, Dunbar was inducted into the Dog Fancy Hall of Fame along with four of his heroes, James Herriot, Konrad Lorenz, Lassie, and Balto. Currently, Dunbar is President of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers Foundation, Top Dog of the Center for Applied Animal Behavior and Vice President of dogstardaily, an online, multi-media puppy raising and dog training website. He has authored numerous books and videos about puppy/dog ethology and training, including ''Before and After'' ''Getting'' ''Your Puppy'', ''How To Teach A New Dog Old Tricks','' and the ''SIRIUS Puppy Training'' video series. Dunbar is currently Director of The Center for Applied Animal Behavior in Berkeley, California, where he lives with his wife Kelly, plus dogs Claude, Hugo, and Dune and cats Ugly and Mayhem. He is the founder of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers started in 1993. Dunbar also serves as a dog ethologist expert DogTime.com Expert
, DogTime.com Ian Dunbar Expert Profile and submitted articles. and on the advisory board for DogTime.com Dunbar is also the founder of the K9 Games where he organizes those games at the international level worldwide. He promotes the K9 Games in

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

with Catherine Collignon, director of the company ANIMALIN.

Methods

Ian's dog training method focuses on rewarding positive behavior with affirmation and treats, rather than trying to correct negative behaviors through forced submission. His study of dog behaviour has led him to conclude that dogs seek out the attention of people and will do things that will earn them favor with humans. This an evolutionary trait that allowed them to co-exist and benefit from the scraps of food humans shared with them He does not believe in asserting dominance over your dog, or that dogs should be actively punished if they do something wrong, rather dogs should be rewarded for correct behaviour. His dog training program typically starts by using treats and effusive praise to reward behaviour you want repeated. Once the dog is comfortable with the action, treats are slowly weened and only the use of positive affirmations are needed to keep the wanted behaviour. Since dogs need to repeat actions over and over before understanding a pattern, establishing a pattern of positive rewards for positive actions allows them to please their owners. He is also a proponent of crate training for puppies. In 1982 Dunbar founded Sirius Dog Training, the first off-leash training program specifically for puppies.Puppyworks: Fun and Games and Extreme Quantification in Dog Training
/ref> The program emphasizes the importance of teaching

bite inhibition Bite inhibition, sometimes referred to as a soft mouth (a term which also has a distinct meaning), is a behavior in carnivorans (dogs, cats, etc.) whereby the animal learning, learns to moderate the strength of its bite. It is an important facto ...

, early socialization, temperament training, and simple solutions for common and predictable behavior problems, as well as basic household manners, to dogs under six months of age.

References

External links

TED Talks: Ian Dunbar on dog-friendly dog training
at TED in 2007 {{DEFAULTSORT:Dunbar, Ian American veterinarians Dog trainers Living people 1947 births