I am meeting with first-time clients regarding inter-dog aggression in the home. This is one of those instances where I brace myself for potentially delivering news that the owners most likely do not want to hear. As I read through their questionnaire, I realized that their situation is not an easy one and that a…
Category: Solutions at home
Return on Investment
John and I are spending some time cleaning the leaves from the outside plants that are now living in our living room for the winter. I take a cloth with some water and I wipe off some white residue that stubbornly returns to the leaves even after we have sprayed them with some benign mix…
Sharing Popcorn
I am about to make some popcorn – one of my favorite snacks – as John is out walking with the dogs. I pause to think of what to put on the popcorn. Not so much because I am undecided about what I want, but because I normally share the bag of popcorn with Deuce…
Traveling With Pets – Some General Guidelines
Whenever vacations are in the horizon, the question about bringing our pets along or not come up. There are times, of course, where the vacation or the trip might not be conducive to bringing our pets in tow, but what about those vacations that we get to plan ourselves? The biggest mistake I think people…
Asking for too much?
As part of my ongoing education, I attend monthly webinars that touch upon different topics surrounding behavior and training. This month’s topic 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 topic…
What our dogs can offer us
I love to take time in the morning to hang out with my dogs. In fact, anytime when I get to just watch them is precious for me. Many times I try to watch inconspicuously wishing that I could fly or hover unnoticed by them as I take away every secret of their “doginess”. This…
Feedback Loop
I am reading an article in Outside magazine “The Metric System”, October 2015 (pg. 50) about exercise gadgets and studies as to why most people abandoned the gadget all together. I won’t spoil it for you, but one of the reasons why this happens according to John Bartholomew, professor of Health Education at the University…
What is Puppy Socialization?
Dog parents have learned about the importance of taking their pups to puppy classes to ensure their puppy will not only be a delight-of-a- dog to be around, but also one that is comfortable and thriving in all sorts of circumstances. In other words: well socialized. But what is socialization? Socialization is the process of…
Decide How You Want To Spend Your Time
I am working with a client who has three large dogs. We are practicing waiting at the door. He tells me that his newest addition to the family has escaped twice from the front yard. One of those times it was when he was taking the three dogs on leash to get in the car….
Work Your Plan at the Front Door
This is the second installment of front door chaos or lack of it – hopefully. The following advice is for people whose dogs tend to get over excited when someone comes to their home because they love interacting with people and not because they are concerned about who is in their home or dogs that…