What does your leash cue to your dog? Have you ever thought about it? Or noticed? Does it depend on which leash, what environment? Dogs have an amazing ability to learn environmental cues. The leash will often trigger a reliable…
Dog & Boots
It’s winter, it’s cold, it’s snowy, it’s icy, it’s salt covered everything, what’s a dog to do? Wear boots of course! But as many likely have seen or experienced first hand, for many dogs boots aren’t something they understand how…
Connection
Connection: the relationship of a person, thing or behavior to something or someone else. Connection is an all the rage buzz word in the current world of dog training. In years past the word instead was “Attention”. Attention: the act…
Listen for Stillness
This is starting to look like the season of stays. With stay instruction and training working its way into many lessons. Stays are an integral foundation behavior and a part of nearly all performance sports. And the bare bones basics…
Freestyle Shaping
Materials: 1 kitchen chair 1 bored corgi in need of entertainment Handful of dog kibble or small treats 1 tired human 1 comfortable sitting place for tired human preferably warm and with cozy blankets Goal: entertain corgi in silliness and…
Role Models
This morning we joined a friend and her 5 month old lab pup on a walk. He’s a fun, bouncy pup. At that age where social graces are often a quite bit of a struggle. Observing him shift from in…
Where's the water dish?
I’m a big fan of modifying environments so you don’t have to train the dog. Or more a big fan of modifying environments so you don’t have to train the dog on niggly bits of life that go against what…
The Devil is in the Details
I’ve yet to work with a new agility student who didn’t start off thinking agility was about dogs doing obstacles. Little secret: it’s not. A few days ago I started with a great new student who has a really fun…
Not Being Terrible Cookies
The past couple of weeks have been busy and chaotic. Between a brief VT vacation around labor day, workshops to teach, a steady stream of extra dogs, starting a new volunteer gig (that is Amazing!!), agility trials and oh Tom…
Think about the Dos
When thinking or talking about a behavior your dog does that you want to change, do you think about the dos or the don’ts? The things you do want your dog to do? Or the things you don’t want your…