In some celebratory news, last month marked 3 years that I've been writing weekly blog content (except for a few weeks I took off!) and sharing it with you all. And a huge variety of topics, though some, like fear and aggression, separation anxiety, normal...
If I had a dollar for every time I’ve heard this, I’d be sitting on a private island somewhere retired right now. And honestly, before I was a trainer, before I knew better, I said the same thing about my BooBoo. It’s easy to jump to that conclusion if...
During this week of Thanksgiving, I'm reflecting on the many things I'm thankful for and that includes all of you. I am thankful for dogs, and their people, who care so deeply about them and want so desperately to help their dogs live a better life. I'm...
With Thanksgiving and winter holidays approaching (here in the US), it's likely you're gathering with friends and family and your dog is expected to seamlessly integrate into that chaos. While you may be out of time for training helpful skills like down/stay on a...
Social media is full of posts from people asking for trainers who are breed experts for their specific dog's breed. It's also full of terrible advice that certain breeds require certain dog training methods while other breeds need a different type of...
Download my free guide: 3 Reasons Not To Use A Shock Collar. I talk more about why not to use these tools, a deeper dive into regulation and give you citations to the research if you'd like to look at it for yourself. There are better, more humane, more effective...
I am not a betting person but if I had to bet, I'd wager you got a dog because you wanted a companion, a family member, something to love and nurture - not something to control with force, fear or pain. Whether it is out of desperation, poor guidance from...
Often during my family dog consults I get asked about when kids can walk the family dog alone. Many times a dog is added to the family to "help teach the kids responsibility" (by the way, not something I recommend) but usually parents are hoping they can entrust...
Confession time: I cringe when I see most videos online of dogs and kids. There, I said it. Why? Mostly because what people think is "cute" is really an uncomfortable dog asking for space. And that's what I see but people aren't aware of dog body language enough to...
When we first adopted Barbo, and left him alone for the first time, we came home and I started to make dinner and couldn't find the baguette I was certain I had purchased earlier that day. I checked the car, my receipt and just assumed maybe it got left...
I recently wrote about Using Non-Pharmaceutical "Calming" Supplements In Training so I thought it was a good time to revisit my original post on Behavioral Medication In Training and common myths that people have about medication, as part of this week's From...
Understanding how to read your dog's communication is the single most important thing you can to improve your relationship with your dog. Dogs very rarely "bite out of nowhere." More commonly, we've ignored (or in some cases, the dog has been punished for) earlier...