#defensive behavior

[mindinthevoid]

We are all here to learn.

[alien-slushie]

Another Maribat prompt! I tried to write this one but it wasn't working out for me 😭, so I thought I'd post the idea here so maybe someone would have better luck than me.

Another "Marinette is shipped off for BioDad!Bruce Wayne" storyline because I really like those ones, but with a little 💥flare~💥

Prompt: Because shes constantly getting in trouble Sabine and Tom send her to Bruce to straighten her out. Bruce read her school files but didn't look too deep because he didn't think a school would be so incompetent not to research bullying, and thievery claims, and he is not impressed. Right out of the gate, before Marinette can even enter the house, he lays down the rules. And of course he told the others, warning them so they wouldn't be swayed. So, there Marinette stands, in a unfamiliar country, in a unfamiliar house(manor), with unfamiliar people staring at her like shes a wild, unpredictable animal(they didn't even give her the decency of letting her prove herself) after her parents, friends, and school basically turned their backs on her, and something just snaps.

She was Marinette Cheng, upcoming fashion designer, and weilder of (and Gaurdian of) the Miraculous. If they wanted to treat her like a wild, unpredictable animal, fine then, she'd give them what they wanted! But it was well known that if you corner a injured animal, they will fight, and fight she does.

Marinette is coldly polite with them(except Alfred, Jason, and Seline who she happily greets, and chats with because they treat her normally), until they treat her badly, and then all gloves are off. And boy does she know how to hit them right where it hurts. They hurt her? Well shes going to hurt them right back.

Bruce watches her likes shes going to steal something from the manor when she just stopped to gaze at a picture? She loudly wonders what her 'grandparents' would think about the untrusting, emotionally shut off batchelor Bruce had become. Damian sneers at her while she sketches in the garden? Marinette gushes about how lucky she was that her parents had at least kept her around because they loved her instead of seeing her as a weapon for their own means. Dick suspiously questions where she got the money to afford 3 MDC originals? Marinette cant help but wonder what it feels like to be continuously replaced by stronger, smarter, and blood related siblings. Tim questions why she would take answers to a test when she could get high marks if she just tried after it's his turn to check her homework? Wow Marinette sure is glad she doesn't want any part of Wayne industries because she would hate to be used as a pack mule who's only use is to do the paperwork Bruce doesn't want to do.

But sometimes the injured animal, after fighting for so long, just can't fight back anymore, at which point they can either surrender, or run.

Bonus Points if: Marinette is the Black Cat and Gaurdian rather than the Ladybug, and Cat Woman + Marinette bonding both in and out of the suit.

A/N: You can change this in your rendition of this prompt, but I have a reason that Alfred, Jason, and Seline were spared. Alfred knows all and treats Marinette like he would anyone else, Jason is really carefree and can tell when someone is just trying to defend themselves(plus watching his families insecurities get poked at by a little girl is hilarious), and Seline warned Bruce not to go in guns blazing and recognized her defense mechanism for what it was as soon as she had seen Marinette's eyes during the first interaction between Bruce and Marinette(plus Seline + Marinette step mom and daughter bonding).

Like with all the prompts I post, this is free to use, but PLEASE send me the link to the finished project so I can check it out.

[dogsaremypatronus]

Resource Guarding and Reactivity

This is, I think, one of the most common questions I seem to get, and the one I am most loathe to answer online. I want to preface this post by saying that nothing I say here is to be taken as concrete training advice, or even necessarily applicable to your dog, and that if you have the suspicion that your dog may be resource guarding or showing signs of reactivity, please do not just read a blog entry on a website, but seek out a trainer/animal behaviorist immediately. 

Putting advice regarding resource guarding on the internet is comparable to putting instructions on how to make your own firecrackers online. Are the instructions correct? Well, yes, but the likelihood of you blowing your own fingers off is extremely high if you don’t know what you’re doing. In the same way, we don’t want to see you get your face bitten off because you’re trying to apply a few paragraphs on the internet to a dog who may or may not follow those same steps. 

That being said, I do feel that there are some things I want to explain about resource guarding and how to handle it, while keeping in mind that this is not a “how to” for dealing with a reactive dog. 

What is resource guarding? Many people have been led to believe that resource guarding is a dog’s way of establishing dominance over the rest of their “pack”. Common “solutions” that are presented are “eat your own food in front of him and make him wait for his”, “mess around with his food while he eats. Take it away and then put it back. Teach him that you are in charge of his food and there’s nothing he can do about it.” 

None of this is true. Period. Resource guarding is brought on by fear that the food will be taken away--a fear that you are reinforcing every time you mess with his food and remove it. 

So then there are two ways to handle resource guarding. You can prevent it by teaching your dog that your hand gives him food, but does not take it away. You can help remove his fear by gently affirming that the food is his and you will not take it away from him, and that you are not a threat to him or his food. 

The point here is that resource guarding stems from fear, and the belief that you are a threat to his resources. It is only logical that you cannot treat that fear by increasing the threat, but only by showing him that there is nothing to fear and that you are not a threat. 

Whatever course of action you take, and whatever your trainer recommends, your underlying goal should always be to remove your dog’s fear, not increase it. Your dog is not trying to own you, he is simply trying to survive. Your job is to convince him that you have his best interest at heart, and that is best done with patience, kindness, and love. 

This is an excerpt from my work-in-progress book, where I will be going much more in-depth in illustrating signs of resource guarding and defensive vs. aggressive behavior.  

[letsgowild]

Armadillo Girdled Lizard

Only found in southern Africa, the armadillo lizard is not an armadillo at all;  it’s a lizard.  Like an armadillo, when threatened, it rolls into a ball.  The lizard also grabs its tail with its mouth and the posture expands its thick scales.

This lizard used to be common in the pet trade, but no longer. Wild populations are considered vulnerable to extinction, and it is no longer legal to collect them for sale in the pet trade.

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[techandtea]

I ran across this recently

http://www.informationisbeautiful.net/visualizations/being-defensive/

I thought you might find it an interesting infographic, formidophiliac

[iheartvmt]

brezifus said: Oh no! what a precious baby ;-; Barred owls are my favorite kind, I’m glad you were there to help it!

I'm glad, too!

I'd actually never seen a barred owl irl before! lol It certainly was cute, especially when it was clacking its beak. Clacking beaks are both terrifying and adorable, imho.