My clients often ask me which kind of treats I use when I work with their dogs. The secret is now out! You can purchase them here. Make sure you add code AO2995 as these fabulous healthy and very high value treats are ONLY sold via a pro-trainer. Disclaimer: I am reimbursed $10 when you…
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Daily Goal to Pay More Attention
Deuce and I are at our weekly sheepherding lesson, something we have done for a few years. Sheepherding is a lot like signing in that having talent really makes things easier but neither signing well or sheepherding are easy endeavors. People are familiar with herding dogs- especially with Border collies; but what people don’t know…
Living with a dog that’s fearful of people, Part 2
As I was describing in part 1, living with fearful dogs is not an easy task. It requires constant management of some kind, and constantly assessing how comfortable the dog is at a given moment when presented with the scary stimulus. There is so much that one can do (and I would argue should do)…
Living with a dog that’s fearful of people, Part 1
Living with a dog that is afraid, especially of people, is very hard. It is very hard for the people, and of course, a living hell for the dog. While every case is unique, there are certain things people can do to make everyone’s life better. I am working with a couple who have a…
Digging is a Natural Behavior
I just came from visiting with a family whose dog decided to take a paw at landscaping design. The dog was thrilled with the results; the owner not so much. As I explained to them, unfortunately for us digging comes naturally to dogs. It is part of their ancient wiring that frankly as all natural…
A Dog’s Most Pressing Motivation – Part 2
I am not a people psychologist. My comments then are based on my own experience as a dog behavior “pro” that gives advice to my clients as to how better understand their dogs (from an ethological perspective), as well as teaching and training their dogs. My other lens of investigation is my hands-on experience as…
A Dog’s Most Pressing Motivation
I am talking to my colleague about a recent case he had. We are discussing different possibilities as to why training or behavior modification might not produce the results we would like. We toss around ideas and I settle for three possibilities: 1. The technique or techniques employed are either not appropriate or they are…
Do Dogs Care For Halloween?
We all know how most kiddos feel about Halloween and the same would go for a large number of adults. All that mystery, sugar and walks to haunted destinations under crisp conditions can send chills down someone’s spine. But what about our dogs? Do they care for Halloween? I guess we will never know unless…we …
Expecting too much from our dogs
As part of my ongoing education, I attend monthly webinars that touch upon different topics surrounding behavior and training. A recent topic was related to the questions of: Are we asking too much of our pets? And, if so, what specific environments or concepts can put a pet’s well-being at stake? Funny that this particular…
Not a Match Made in Heaven
I recently had an inquiry from a potential client that needed to leave her newly acquired dog in good care while she traveled. I met with her and her dog, and based on what I learned during the Initial consult I was on the fence regarding her dog and mine being a good match. There…
What does it mean to get the “right dog”?
I am having a phone conversation and this is the question that is being posed to me. Well, I said: “I am bias to rescuing dogs versus getting a dog from a breeder.” In my mind, the only exception to my bias is when for whatever reason a person is really keen on a particular…