Let me tell you about one of the most humbling (embarrassing?) moments of my dog training career. It involved a Halloween costume, a jack o'lantern, and Gertie making a break for it while I stood there in my front yard yelling something I thought I'd never...
We have a tendency to give puppies a pass. They're young, cute, still learning and "just being a puppy." And yes, some puppy behavior is completely normal and does settle with age, consistent training, and appropriate socialization. But some of it doesn't....
A while back I wrote about the importance of interval training in dog training. The idea of mixing higher-intensity practice with periods of rest is something I encourage all my clients to use, especially when working through separation anxiety or fear-based...
My pet loss grief journey, two years in, reflecting and sharing heartfelt lessons to help you heal.
Behavior is never random. It is also not a slippery slope. Dog-dog issues do not predict dog-human issues, and vice versa. There are plenty of dogs who are completely comfortable with other dogs but fearful of strangers. And there are plenty more who are...
If you are struggling with your dog’s behavior, I want you to hear this first. You are not failing. You are not behind. And you absolutely deserve qualified help. But I want you to also know that the quality of information you get and who you hire matters. A lot....
A little over a year ago, we adopted a new dog, Gertie. Full name: Gertrude Wigglebottom, because if you've seen some of my videos of her...well, it's obvious. If you’ve been here a while, you might remember that just four days after making her adoption official,...
Do you ever feel like your dog listens to you better than your spouse? Do you wonder if you're just lucky or maybe the dog "likes you better"? Sure, your dog might be more attached to one person over the other, but maybe instead of luck, it's the matching...
Professional licensure is not required to call yourself a dog trainer nor is there any industry specific government regulation. Anyone can wake up tomorrow, print business cards, make an Instagram account, and call themselves a trainer or "behaviorist." There is no...
Over the holidays I watched a new movie, whose premise was a couple that had broken up and were sharing custody of their dog. But when the dog was only with one of them, he was "depressed" as the vet diagnosed him. I'll spare you the whole rom-com plot - I'm...
If you have ever picked up a bag of dog treats and found yourself squinting at the ingredient list, you are not alone. A lot of commercial treats are packed with fillers, vague ingredients, and things most of us would never intentionally feed our dogs. And...
First things first. Unless your dog is sick, if your dog is eating and managing to stay alive, then he is food motivated enough to walk over to a bowl or figure out how to get calories some other way. I could stop here, but I won’t. I was recently...