Maria Cecilia Martinez

For more than four decades, I have developed and refined what is now known as the Southernwind Developmental Exposure Protocol™ (SDEP™)—a purposeful system designed to strengthen body awareness, environmental confidence, problem-solving, adaptability, and recovery in developing puppies.

A dog’s reaction is real. Our interpretation of that reaction may be completely wrong. That distinction matters, because labeling someone as dangerous, dishonest, or evil merely because a dog barked at them is not science. It can also be unfair, discriminatory, and dangerous.

Dogs can experience grief, distress, social loss, emotional withdrawal, and depression-like changes. Science supports that. But a dog who appears depressed may also be sick, injured, living with pain, losing his hearing or vision, developing cognitive dysfunction, or suffering from a disease that has not yet been diagnosed.