We can all agree that taking a walk or a stroll with our dog is one of the healthiest ways of spending some quality time with our four-legged friend. Not only do walks increase our health by keeping us on the move but, it can also have a very positive impact on managing stress. I,…
I am in the kitchen waiting for Deuce and Rio to finish their breakfast; this morning it was served in their bowls. Deuce appears in the kitchen while Rio beelines to Deuce’s dish just in case he has left something behind. Once she realizes there is nothing left, she comes into the kitchen. I give…
One of my colleagues and I are having a conversation about the state of affairs in the world of animal training- specifically, we are talking about dogs. We both have reached the conclusion that hearing about misconstruction, inhumane methods of training in the name of helping animals wears really heavy on us. We agree to…
A while back I had a client’s dog staying with us for board & train. As I was attempting to play with Deuce and Rio and our friendly visitor, I realized that the lab is running hard after the “sacred” orange ball. Deuce and Rio are also running and now I am worried that the…
A while back I had a dog named Roxie for board & train. I was teaching her how to use the doggie door that will give her access to our back area to go eliminate, sun herself, and just take a walk of some sort. We try the doggie door by having my dogs coming…
I am exercising the dogs this morning and I notice that Rio is sort of inspecting the whippet (toy) instead of playing. We had to change toys because the last one basically tore away from the whippet. Now instead of playing by chasing the toy she is smelling and looking at it – perhaps making…
Our dogs do not shake our hand or hug us when they want to say hi. Instead, they jump on us because they want to access our faces and mouths. This goes way back to their wolf past. Wolves regurgitate food to give to their pups so pups learn to lick their parent’s mouth to…
Over the weekend, I spent the time upping my Frisbee game with my dogs. Playing Frisbee is: A. A fantastic way of exercising the dogs in just a short time since it is a highly aerobic form of exercise and …B. Much more technical than people give it credit. There are so many skills the…
I am having dinner while both dogs are chewing on their nightly chewy. Rio is sort of waiting for Deuce to finish his so that she can go explore to see if there is anything left that she can have. I notice this from the corner of my eye as Deuce comes into the kitchen…
It is Friday afternoon and I am wrapping one more work-week. I turn my attention to my own two dogs. What can I teach them next? My inspiration in working with my own dogs might vary slightly to what I do day in and out with client’s dogs. It is true that on occasion I…