Kaviani trades California for canines at Hampton Bays shelter

Dog whisperer Mike Kaviani began putting his passion into practice as a teenager while working at the Irvine Animal Care Center in his hometown of Irvine, Calif. During his tenure, he spearheaded the care center’s Third Chance for Pets Program, which enabled overcrowded shelters to transfer pets slated for euthanasia to his care until they could be placed in permanent homes.

Today, Kaviani is director of behavior and training at the Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation in Hampton Bays, a private not-for-profit that took over day-to-day operations from the Town of Southampton in January.

He recently spoke about his background, his role at the shelter and his passion for animals.

Q: How did you end up in Southampton, coming from Southern California?

Mike Kaviani: In 2008 I attended the [Humane Society of the United States] Animal Care Expo, where I met Aimee Sadler, who is affiliated with the Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation. Two years later, I received a phone call from Susan Kelly, the foundation’s personnel director, and the rest is history. After flying to Southampton to see the facility, and more importantly to meet the foundation employees, the decision to come here was really a no-brainer.

Q: What would you say is the most important thing to know about dogs in the sense of communicating or relating with them?

MK: The way a dog behaves is simply a product of its environment and ultimately of our actions. I always like to say it’s as simple as a good owner equals a good dog; a bad owner equals a bad dog. Dogs communicate with us through body language, and you can generally know a dog’s needs and emotions based on what they are trying to tell us in their own way.

Q: Is there a difference between working with, or training, shelter dogs as opposed to the average dog that is someone’s pet?

MK: This is actually a topic that we are always quick to point out, that shelter dogs are no different than pet dogs. The most crucial difference is that the dog does not have an owner who is devoted to it. Most private training for pet dogs relies on the relationship between the dog and the owner. The difficult thing for us in the animal shelter is that if a dog needs behavior modification, we don’t have the same type of relationship that an owner can rely on. Therefore, our training methods must result in every dog performing safely for a large pool of adopters, not specifically for one owner.

Q: Can a shelter dog that is aggressive -- be it with people or other dogs -- be rehabilitated?

MK: Our goal is to save as many lives as possible, and I am proud to say that we are extremely successful in that effort. We must observe the behavior to figure out what triggers the aggressive response. Once we know what the dog’s trigger is, we then attempt to change the dog’s state of mind through a series of counter-conditioning exercises. If we can give the dog a more appropriate behavior to perform when in the presence of his aggressive trigger, while also changing his mindset to a positive one during this experience, we can successfully rehabilitate canine aggression.

Q: Are there alternatives for certain dogs that can’t be rehabilitated as pets, such as training them as some type of service or working dogs?

MK: If we recognize a dog with service or working potential, we do reach out to professional groups in an attempt to allow that dog to live up to his highest potential. There is no better feeling than to see a dog whose owner has given up on him now flourishing and contributing to society as a service/working dog.

Q: Since the Michael Vick dog-fighting case there’s been a lot of attention on pit bulls. Did any good come out of that?

MK: This was a landmark moment for the breed, actually. For the first time, pit bulls confiscated in fight busts were correctly portrayed as the victims of a barbaric human-created problem. The Vick dogs themselves have continued to be in the spotlight, and their success stories continue to show that pit bulls, even pit bulls abused by dog fighters, are individuals and when given the opportunity to simply be a pet dog they are as safe and loving pets as any dog.

Q: What makes the Southampton Animal Shelter Foundation special?

MK: We have a Special Needs Department, which specializes in the rehabilitation of any animal with physical or emotional trauma. We also offer free training support for all of our adopted pets and their families. Over the next couple of years, I envision the Southampton Animal Shelter becoming a national model for progressive and successful animal sheltering.