by Kate LaSala | Jul 27, 2026 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs, Separation Anxiety
Every single day, we ask our dogs to be something they were never designed to be. We ask them to be less dog. Walk on a leash and don’t pull, even though dogs naturally cover far more ground than any human. Don’t bark, even though barking is one of the...
by Kate LaSala | Jul 20, 2026 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs, Separation Anxiety
First, let me start by saying this post comes from a place of care and education, not judgment. Most people doing the things I’m about to describe love their dogs deeply but they may not know better. As I’ve written about before, love isn’t...
by Kate LaSala | Jul 13, 2026 | Dog Training, Pet Loss & Grieving, Rescue Dogs
If you’ve ever sat with your aging or ill dog and felt a wave of sadness wash over you while they were still right there beside you, still breathing, still warm, still yours, you were experiencing anticipatory grief. I did it. When Barbo and Boo were both...
by Kate LaSala | Jul 6, 2026 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Pet Loss & Grieving, Separation Anxiety
If you share your life with a hard dog, whether they’re reactive, fearful, anxious, aging, or struggling to with strangers or your child, there’s a version of your life you’ve quietly let go of. Maybe you stopped having people over because your dog...
by Kate LaSala | Jun 29, 2026 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs
As a trainer who specializes in fear and aggression cases, I’m regularly asked by private clients and rescue organizations about sending dogs off to a “sanctuary,” and I want to be clear about how I’m using that term here. I’m referring...
by Kate LaSala | Jun 22, 2026 | Dog Training, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs
As a behavior consultant who specializes in fear, aggression, reactivity, and separation anxiety, my primary goal is to help families work through their dog’s behavior challenges. I’ve helped thousands of dogs and their people navigate issues that...
by Kate LaSala | Jun 15, 2026 | Dog Training, Separation Anxiety
When people think about separation anxiety, they usually picture a young dog, maybe a newly adopted rescue still decompressing, or a pandemic puppy who never learned to be alone. Separation anxiety as a senior dog problem doesn’t come up nearly as often....
by Kate LaSala | Jun 8, 2026 | Pet Loss & Grieving
Everyone expects you to grieve your pet. Even the people who don’t fully understand it will acknowledge, at least on some level, that losing an animal you loved is hard. But what nobody prepares you for are all the other losses that come with it. These...
by Kate LaSala | Jun 1, 2026 | Dog Training, Dogs and Babies and Kids, Fear, Aggression and Reactivity, Rescue Dogs
It’s that time of year again. School is out, kids want to earn a little money and community social media groups are filling with posts from parents offering their child as a dog walker. It makes me cringe honestly. So it’s a great time to revisit this...
by Kate LaSala | May 25, 2026 | Dog Training, Puppy Training, Separation Anxiety
One of the most common things I hear from new clients is some version of this: “My dog has separation anxiety. He freaks out every time I put him in his crate.” I understand why those two things feel connected. In many homes, confinement and being...
