by Kate LaSala | Aug 28, 2023 | Dog Training, Dogs and Babies and Kids, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs
FEAR IS NOT DISOBEDIENCE. Yes, I’m screaming. If I could reach my rooftop I’d scream this from there. As someone who specializes in fear and aggression cases, so often I come across clients who are frustrated with their dog “not...
by Kate LaSala | Aug 14, 2023 | Dog Training, Dogs and Babies and Kids, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Pet Loss & Grieving, Rescue Dogs, Resource Guarding, Separation Anxiety
Companion animals are family for me, as they likely are to you. And thinking about or dealing with their loss is often a topic that just isn’t talked about. And as a society, we tend not honor pet loss with the same gravity as losing a human. Or we do for a very...
by Kate LaSala | Aug 7, 2023 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs, Separation Anxiety
Today I’m recapping a (slightly late) mid-year review of my top 5 most visited posts from this year, so far: Is Your Reactive Dog Fearful, Aggressive, Excited Or Frustrated? Sociability and Social Maturity In Dogs 5 Myths About Shock Collars Train Manners And...
by Kate LaSala | Jul 31, 2023 | Dog Training, Dogs and Babies and Kids, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Pet Loss & Grieving, Rescue Dogs, Resource Guarding, Separation Anxiety
As someone who specializes in fear and aggression cases, a few times a year, I have clients who are facing the consider of rehoming, surrendering or behavioral euthanasia. I am also a certified companion animal end-of-life death doula, so I am uniquely qualified to...
by Kate LaSala | Jul 17, 2023 | Dog Training, Puppy Training, Resource Guarding
I’ve written in the past about resource guarding prevention, and what to do if you have a puppy or a new dog who doesn’t resource guard and how to help teach them that people approaching is good, not threatening. You can see that post and videos...
by Kate LaSala | Jul 3, 2023 | Dog Training, Puppy Training, Rescue Dogs
Bringing home a new dog, whether a puppy or an adult, is exciting. But, if you have a resident dog already, you may be a little anxious about the best way to introduce them and how to make things go as smoothly as possible. It’s up to us to set both your new and...
by Kate LaSala | May 22, 2023 | Dog Training, Resource Guarding
Over the years I’ve had clients come to me sheepishly asking for help because their dog doesn’t like when they are getting intimate or showing affection like handshakes, hugging or kissing with other humans. And kudos for them being brave enough to...
by Kate LaSala | May 8, 2023 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs
People mean well. I know they do, but there’s many old ways of interacting with dogs that we were once thought to be the right way, but aren’t. One of these myths is that when we meet a dog we should present our hand “for them to sniff.”...
by Kate LaSala | May 1, 2023 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs
Full disclosure, I have a strong bias against big dogs playing with and living with small dogs. There, I said it. Sure, many big and small dogs successfully do play or live together, but for me, the risk of something going wrong, just isn’t worth it. Many...
by Kate LaSala | Apr 17, 2023 | Dog Training, Puppy Training, Rescue Dogs, Separation Anxiety
As someone who focuses on fear cases, I have a disproportionate amount of people who view their dog’s fear issues as behavior “problems” that need “fixing” instead of recognizing that fear is not disobedience. The more I was...
