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Recognizing Stress In Your Dog

Do you understand what your dog is telling you through their body language?  I feel it is a great disservice to our dogs if we only expect them to learn what we want through training, but not look deeper at what our dogs need through their body language. Keep in mind, behaviorally, anything our dog does is information to us.  For example, if your dog barks and lunges on their leash, they may be telling you they are scared of something in the environment or frustrated they cannot be free to say hi to another dog friend that they see. To understand if your dog is scared or frustrated in this situation, you can look at their body language. When I teach classes, I train students to recognize stress in their dogs. If your dog is stressed, it’s very hard for them to learn in that state of mind. If a dog

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Recognizing Signs Of Stress In Your Dog

Do you understand what your dog is telling you through their body language?  I feel it is a great disservice to our dogs if we only expect them to learn what we want through training, but not look deeper at what our dogs need through their body language. Keep in mind, behaviorally, anything our dog does is information to us.  For example, if your dog barks and lunges on their leash, they may be telling you they are scared of something in the environment or frustrated they cannot be free to say hi to another dog friend that they see. To understand if your dog is scared or frustrated in this situation, you can look at their body language. When I teach classes, I train students to recognize stress in their dogs. If your dog is stressed, it’s very hard for them to learn in that state of mind. If a dog

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6 Tips to Gaining Your Dog’s Attention

If you find yourself saying ‘I just wish my dog would pay attention to me more’ try these simple tips to help. Bonus, keep in mind #6 when you OR your dog are learning anything new. Engage with your dog Your dog knows when you are not paying attention. I will often tell students, “if you are not engaging with your dog, why in the world would your dog engage with you?” What do I mean by engage with your dog?  Talk to your dog on your walks or when you are out and about. Yep, be that crazy dog owner who tells your dog about your day, praise your dog for walking next to you and paying attention to you. Make your walks unpredictable to keep your dog guessing where your next move will be. For example, if I am walking a dog, I will randomly turn to the

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How to Get Your Dog’s Attention

A big question I receive is “how do I get my dog to pay attention to me. No matter what.”  I feel the ‘Look’ exercise is underused. If past students tell me their dog is starting to bark on their leash, I’ll remind them to use the ‘Look’ exercise. Here are some other examples of how I use this exercise: To redirect your dog from other dogs To redirect your dog from cats To redirect your dog from something they are afraid of such as skateboards or bicycles To stop your dog from pulling To stop your dog from smelling  And so much more! A word of caution: training a reliable ‘look’ takes time, practice, and patience. You must start this training in a quiet, non-distracting environment. As your dog gets better, you can increase the distractions and your expectations. Always remember, consistency over time gets results! Take a look

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Try This Before Your Walks

Did you know that the way you start your walks with your dog can set a precedent to how your walks will go?  If you allow your dog to pull you out the door at the beginning of your walk, it is more likely your dog will pull you during the entirety of your walk. Consequently, it will take that much longer to gain their attention.  I quickly learned that if I allowed a dog to jump all over me while putting on their leash, or allowed them to pull me out the door, it took me and my furry companion much longer to get anywhere without them pulling. I’m not sure about you, but I do not find walking a dog that pulls me to be fun, at all.  One of the first things that I do when training one of our Board and Train or Day Train dogs

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Helpful Tips For Your Recalls

Is your dog not responding to their recalls like you would like?  Do they look at you when you call them to ‘come’ but continue to turn and run the other way?  If you find you are having a hard time with your dog coming when called, apply these helpful tips.  When applied you will see results immediately! 1.        First and foremost, set your dog up for success.  Do not give your dog freedom until they are coming to you reliably– unless you are in a situation where you do not need them to come when called.  The reason for this is because every time you call your dogs to ‘come’ and they do not, they are learning to ignore your requests.  People hate to hear ‘keep your dog on leash’ until they know better.  They envision their dogs running free and coming back to them at

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Taming The Tooth Monster

Some dogs take treats too hard. As in, they manage to scrape your hands painfully when they grab the goody. Usually these dogs weren’t taught as puppies what is an acceptable amount of pressure for big pearly canines on human skin. They are not trying to hurt us; they just never learned to regulate jaw pressure. Sometimes this tendency is exacerbated by excitement (Ooh! My favorite treat!) or stress (Yikes, another dog is close by and she might also be interested in my favorite treat). What to do about it Stop letting go. Get a good hold on a treat before you offer it and only release the treat if your dog uses a soft mouth, i.e. light pressure or, preferably, all lips and no teeth. If your dog grabs too hard, say, “Too bad” or “Bummer” in an oh-what-a-shame tone of voice and pull the treat away. As long

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Building A Lifelong Relationship

The American Veterinary Medical Association defines the human-animal bond as “a mutually beneficial and dynamic relationship between people and animals that is influenced by behaviors that are essential to the health and well-being of both.” So, what are the behaviors in question? Being a responsible caretaker is at the foundation, of course, and includes providing food, water, shelter, and safety, as well as medical care when needed. But aside from that, what influences a person’s relationship with her dog? What takes it from good to great? In the human world, psychologist John Gottman spent four decades studying couples to find out what makes marriages happy and lasting. His major takeaway was that a deep sense of connection and trust is built between couples that make many “bids”—verbal or nonverbal requests for attention and connection—and offer positive responses to those bids. Positive reinforcement training shows us that the same principles apply

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Bichon Frise

This cheerful and companionable powder puff hails from the Mediterranean area; bichons traveled widely as companions for sailors, minstrels, and circus groups. Beginning in the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance, they found favor with one royal European family after another, from Spain to Italy to France (King Henry III of France reputedly carried his bichon in a basket hanging from his neck). Bichons are the star performers of the dog world. Consummate entertainers, they love attention and can play and clown around for hours. The well-socialized bichon is friendly, resilient, and quick to learn. This, combined with a sturdy build, makes him an equally great buddy whether traveling or lounging at home. Despite his classification as a nonsporting dog, the bichon is a terrific little athlete that, with training, can excel at agility, K9 Nose Work, and Rally obedience. To give a Bichon Frise a home, search online for

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Water Rescue

Water rescue is the umbrella term for the lifesaving feats of dogs like Newfoundlands and Portuguese Water Dogs (PWDs). Newfies are legendary in this area, crowding the history books with acts of courage in aid of humans. PWDs were primarily bred to work alongside fishermen retrieving nets and even herding schools of fish, but have in modern times also been highly successful partners in lifesaving teams at beaches and watersports destinations. Both breeds are strong working dogs with extraordinary lung capacity and swim-stroke propulsion, webbed feet, muscled tails that act as rudders, and waterproof coats that protect them in icy water. A healthy, fully trained Newfie can swim over two miles and can keep a drowning victim afloat for more than an hour. He can bring a lifeline or rescue tube to a victim or tow an inflatable rescue boat with 10 people to shore. Where a human lifeguard must

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