WKOW 27: Madison, WI Breaking News, Weather and SportsMadison's Dog Whisperer

MADISON (WKOW)-- As pet owners, we all run into some behavioral problem at some point. A Madison woman has helped cat and dog lovers solve their problems for more than 20 years. It makes Patricia McConnell 'Someone You Should Know.'

Certified Applied Animal Behaviorist, Patricia McConnell, is known around Madison as the dog whisperer.

"In a way, I sort of feel like a relationship counselor because I am translating between species to try to keep a relationship healthy" said Patricia McConnell.

Patricia opened Dogs Best Friend Training in 1988. But her message spreads far beyond Madison.

She now travels across the country and even the world as a speaker. Patricia blogs and has written 13 books on dog and cat training and behavioral problems.

"On your left we have Grover, center is Daisy and the other dog is Gretta," said Bob Lindmeier. "I know they are hard to tell apart but we can."

We put Patricia's dog sense to the test with one of WKOW'S Bob Lindmeier's and his wife Sheryl's dogs: Daisy.

Daisy doesn't like strangers or kids.

Patricia likes to use what she calls "The Trigger and the Treat" technique. It's all about positive reinforcement. Dogs, and cats for that matter, will learn the right behaviors after repetitive positive attention.

"They'll ring the doorbell, they'll open the door and just stand there and toss treats," said Patricia. "What you want to avoid is overwhelming the dog such that you scare them."

Patricia says humans approach dogs and cats the wrong way.

"We're primates and it turns out that all primates like to do a face to face greeting," said Patricia. "But that's incredibly rude in dog society."

"If you want a dog to come to you, you need to actually move away from it to give it space rather than blocking it like you're a traffic cop," said Patricia.