Dr. Ian Dunbar is a veterinarian, animal behaviorist, and dog trainer who received his veterinary degree and a Special Honors degree in Physiology & Biochemistry from the Royal Veterinary College (London University) plus a doctorate in animal behavior from the Psychology Department at UC Berkeley, where he researched the development of social hierarchies and aggression in domestic dogs.
He has authored numerous books and DVDs about puppy/dog behavior and training, including AFTER You Get Your Puppy, How To Teach A New Dog Old Tricks and the SIRIUS® Puppy Training video.
In 1982, Dr. Dunbar designed and taught the world's very first off-leash puppy socialization and training classesâ€"SIRIUS® Puppy Training. Subsequently, he created and developed the San Francisco SPCA'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).
Additionally, Dr. Dunbar has consulted on a variety of moviesâ€"full-length features, documentaries and animation (including Pixar's UP) and he has twice spoken at the prestigious e.g. Conference.
Over the past 35 years, Dr. 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.
After he founded the Association of Pet Dog Trainers in 1993, Dr. Dunbar was inducted into the Dog Fancy Hall of Fame along with four of his heroes, James Herriot, Konrad Lorenz, Lassie, and Balto. Currently, Dr. Dunbar is President of the Association of Pet Dog Trainers Foundation, Top Dog of the Center for Applied Animal Behavior and Vice President of www.dogstardaily.comâ€"a free online, multi-media puppy raising and dog training website.
Biography
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Dr. Dunbar was born in England April 1947 and grew up on his family’s farm. He went on to study veterinary medicine at the Royal Veterinary College (London University) and animal behavior at the University of California in Berkeley.
Dr. Dunbar joined the Society for Veterinary Ethology (now the International Society for Applied Ethology) over 35 years ago, at which time he was the only member specializing in dog and cat behavior problems. Later, he was involved in the establishment of the American SVE (now the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior).
Dr. Dunbar has written numerous books, including How To Teach A New Dog Old Tricks, the Good Little Dog Book and a series of educational behavior booklets on the most common pet behavior problems. He also developed, and for seven years wrote, the American Kennel Club's Gazette behavior column.
In 1993, Dr. Dunbar founded the Association of Pet Dog Trainers (APDT) in Canada and the United States and arranged their first two annual conferences. The APDT is now the largest pet dog training organization in the world. Subsequently, Dr. Dunbar helped establish APDTs in the UK, Australia, Japan, France, and Spain. In 1996, he was inducted into the Dog Fancy Hall of Fame. His current project is the creation of the K9 GAMESâ€"a spectator event featuring fast-moving, motivating, competitive games for dogs and owners.
Education
Dr. Dunbar received his veterinary degree and a Special Honours degree in Physiology & Biochemistry from the Royal Veterinary College (London University) and a doctorate in animal behavior from the Psychology Department at the University of California in Berkeley, where he spent ten years researching olfactory communication, the development of hierarchical social behavior, and aggression in domestic dogs.
Associations
Dr. Dunbar is a member of the Royal College of Veterinary Surgeons, the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior, the California Veterinary Medical Association, the Sierra Veterinary Medical Association, and the Association of Pet Dog Trainers. He is also the vice président of the French association MFEC (Mouvement professionnel francophone des éducateurs de chiens de compagnie) : www.mfec.fr The French association promote friendly and positive training with dog.
For several years, Dr. Dunbar has been an honorary member of the International Association of Canine Professionals and has accepted entrance into their Hall of Fame. (http://canineprofessionals.com/Professionals/ContentPage.aspx?PageID=1137)
Sirius
In 1980 Dr. Ian Dunbar founded Sirius Dog Training, the first off-leash training program specifically for puppies. The program emphasizes the importance of teaching bite inhibition, 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.
Currently
Dr. 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.
Dr. Ian Dunbar's wife, Kelly Dunbar, is a cofounder and the executive editor of Dog Star Daily and a contributing editor at DogTime.
Dr. Dunbar also serves as a dog behaviorist expert and on the advisory board for DogTime.com
Dr. Ian Dunbar is also the founder of the K9 Games where he organizes those games at the international level world-wide. He promotes the K9 Games in Europe with Catherine Collignon, director of the company ANIMALIN. (www.animalin.net).
References
External links
- TED Talks: Ian Dunbar on dog-friendly dog training at TED in 2007
