Help! My puppy has a rude play style! A client recently reached out with concerns about her five month old pups “over the top” play style. Petunia rushes up to dogs, uninvited, making fast physical contact while standing on her hind legs biting at their faces. Petunia becomes quite activated and persistent in her play […]
How can we help Petunia? Read More »
Certified Dog Trainer, Dog Training, Leash Training, Positive Reinforcement, Puppy, adoption, dog training, puppy training September 2007, Chester, my 8 week old foster pup.Can you feel the connection in this photo? I fostered Chester with his three brothers (one was Pablo) for the ARLGP. This photo was taken the day before I let Chester go
Online Relationship based Dog Training Read More »
I can tell you with confidence that dogs can tell if you are treating them fairly. They know through visual awareness if you gave another dog one extra treat. They know through olfactory awareness if you gave another dog different toppers on their food. They know if you toss the toy to the other dog
Do dogs know if you are fair? Read More »
Understanding your dog’s needs When your dog is on a leash, you may see a change in your dog’s body shape or hear vocalization when approached by an unfamiliar person. The changes in your dog’s body shape tells you how she is feeling. These changes may be dramatic and occur quickly, showing a large change
Understanding your dog’s Sociability Read More »
A Memorial Weekend to remember – Meet Daisy! My dad turned 90 years old and invited nearly 100 friends and family members to celebrate with him in May 2022. He asked for a companion dog from his children. You see, he lost his Oscar of 12 years just 3 weeks before. Dad is fortunate to
How I found a dog for my dad in 3 days Read More »
With Dogs Drake and Jade, my two German Shepherd Dogs, welcomed my daughter’s rescue pup, Ollie, to the family. Ollie is a 10 month old Shetland Sheepdog or “Sheltie”. He is very emotional, noted by his passive, hesitant behavior to move forward. When there is something important to him, however, he becomes pushy and in
Ollie joins the family Read More »
Jade shows a relaxed, confident expression in this photo. This is Jade moments after she recovered from an emotional barky greeting with a scary dress! As Jade and I were sitting on this bench, I noticed Jade close her mouth, narrow her eyes somewhat, and track a women across the road. The young woman had
Purposeful Socialization Read More »
Reactivity Defined: I will define another category of Reactive Dogs. In the past, I have written about dogs who are very social and react because they are “Persistent Players” and love to play with dogs. Our canine friends have different reasons for reacting at the sight of another dog. Once you are able to identify
Every Dog Trainer needs a Pablo Read More »
I continually see the need for more education in cases of dog aggression towards humans. For some reason, when a dog growls at a human, the human’s response is to yell, hold them down or force it into confinement. Many clients admit this scolding has caused an increase in stress when the dog is near unfamiliar people.
Not all Dogs Want to be Social Read More »
Modern trainers use clickers to train their dogs because it aids in the animals understanding of what is rewardable. The animal quickly learns that when it offers the behavior again, it will be rewarded. This positive reinforcement approach will often cause an immediate “wow” moment for both handler and animal.
The clicker is a small hand-held gadget that emits a sound when you press it. The sound the clicker makes is a signal to your dog that the behavior it just offered is rewardable. This “click” is always followed by a food reward. Think: Click and Treat! Note, the clicker is NOT for getting attention.
What is clicker training? Read More »
