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‘You’re soft’. Thank you!!
I’ve been told a time or two that I’m soft with dogs. It was meant in kindness but the intention was to suggest that I needed to be harder on the dogs. I used to be offended and hurt by this co...
September 6, 2016Pressure on +R Dog Training: Don’t give in to it.
In 2001, I wasn’t as knowledgeable about dog behavior as I am now or as confident so during a visit with a friend’s dog, a dog that had gone after my puppy on more than one occasion, I caved in...
August 25, 2016
Egos, Choices and Mirrors
‘Its just behavior’ she says! Working with dogs for many years, I’ve experienced allot of behavior that I could have taken personally. From humping, lunging, nipping and outright jaws clamping ...
August 1, 2016
Puppy Nipping: Normal & Not Personal Pt.2
In my last post, I talked about how to get proactive to help yourself and your puppy get through the nipping stage that ALL puppies go through. This stage in a pups life is a very short one but get...
December 9, 2015Puppy Nipping: Normal & Not Personal Pt. 1
Something you need to know before you get a puppy: They Bite! They can bite hard. It can hurt. It can look like aggressive behavior (its not). It can be very frustrating if your not prepared and...
November 20, 2015Brain Games
My favorite exercise for dogs is engaging them mentally. In addition to exercise and spending some time together outside, the ‘find it’ game engages Sadie Mae in a deeper way on our walks. I ...
February 10, 2015
Premack Principle: Give the dog what he wants in order to get what you want!
The Premack Principle Definition: more probable behaviors will reinforce less probable behaviors I love the Premack Principle. I’ve really taken to applying it to Sadie Mae’s training and teachin...
August 21, 2014
Dog Parks: The Good and The Bad and The Ugly
You might think I don’t like dog parks judging from the title of this post. I own a reactive dog so dog parks are the last place she and I would like to visit. Having said that, I think they ha...
April 10, 2013Training the Reactive Dog with the “Chuck It”
I’ve made a video to show you how I play fetch with Sadie Mae. She’s always been a ball chaser but the “chuck it” triggers her excitable behavior. I believe dog training is happening all the ti...
March 13, 2013
Dog Behavior: Labels and Perception
Dogs have come along way from living on the outskirts of human settlements to sleeping on our beds. We plan holidays around them, we feed them gourmet food and we carry them in purses. Sometimes we...
February 5, 2013The truth about ‘Positive Methods’
When you look for a dog trainer these days, you often read “Positive methods” somewhere in their marketing literature. Yes, positive methods can mean treats and praise but what it is not is th...
January 2, 2013