Genetics

Let us take you by the hand and lead you up the staircase that makes the famous double helix. Come out the other side with a proper understand of what DNA, RNA and genes are as well as why understanding them may totally change the way you view dogs.

When it comes to the nature vs nurture debate many dog behaviour practitioners have focused intensely on the science and application of the nurture part but paid little attention to the other side. Your dog is coded, in a way that makes everything from the curl of his coat to the sound of his bark to his ability to walk nicely on a lead or the likelihood of him biting an intruder, in many ways predictable. Learning to read this code, learning what impacts this code along with learning the ways in which in which our actions can rewrite this code is paramount to understanding how to give realistic prognosis in behaviour cases as well as working out when you need to step up prevention efforts. It’s also imperative to be able to view this see the world through this filter when looking the various protocols we use in behaviour to modify our dogs thoughts, patterns and actions because sadly its not all in the antecedents.

This verse is so much more than a boring science lecture (I mean Nando is presenting the mainstay so…) but we include practical demonstrations that explore concepts in this paradigm, we delve deep into the fascinating world of doggy DNA breed testing with surprising results as well as interview a Harvard canine genetics researcher and Darwins Arc geneticist. We also travel through the weird world of polymorphisms and breed specific gene mutations along with testing our own dogs and critically analysing whether the malinois mutation really is satan´s little helper.