The Curse of Knowledge – What Force-Free Trainers Need to Understand
The last two years have truly been a blast. I love sharing what I learn as I improve my dog training skills and have enjoyed your support and encouragement. 2014 has brought new realizations to me and so the blog will be taking a bit of a twist. As I learn about dog training, I’m…
My New Laissez-faire Attitude!
I’m fed up with micromanaging. I’m learning that at some point, you just have to let things go and hope for the best. I can’t get caught up in every little thing the dogs do that might not be “appropriate” or correct. It’s exhausted me and brought me to this point. I’m Done Babysitting For…
Smart Dogs Fake Relaxation
It may or may not come as a surprise to learn that dogs will try to fake relaxation – especially those who know how to manipulate their behavior to get rewards (dogs who love clicker training). My dog happens to be wicked smart. I jokingly call him my “socially awkward nerd.” He is reactive on…
Professionalism & Networking
This week has been really fun and exciting! I’ve had the chance to meet some new people who are leaders in the dog training industry. Like in other industries, I think being a professional involves meeting and making connections with other people in your field. Dog training can be a tough field to network in…
The Missing Link – Training My Reactive Dog
Over the past year, I’ve been working really hard to change my dog’s behavior towards other dogs, but I feel I’ve made little progress. He has mastered his obedience skills, but he still can barely control himself at the site of another dog and he will react if the other dog is anything but calm…
What Do Dogs Find Motivating?
This post is a follow-up to this post: My Response to a Reader. The reader’s question was this: “How you have used the principles and processes that form the foundation of clicker training, especially when your original approach using C/T doesn’t work.” Click/Treat is about way more than a click and a treat. Every dog has their…
My Response to a Reader – What do you do when clicker training doesn’t work?
I have this survey I give my email subscribers to find out more about what they are working on with their dogs and how I can help them. If you haven’t taken it yet, go here to give me your feedback! Here’s the latest question from a subscriber: “How you have used the principles and…
On-Leash Reactivity: Sometimes the Best Thing is to Do Nothing!
This past week several things reminded me that doing nothing and teaching your dog to just “do nothing” is incredibly important in hyper-active and reactive dogs. Relaxation for On-Leash Reactivity The first of these reminders was watching a DVD by Chirag Patel called Aggression: From Brain to Bite. I’m over half way through and I…