The Dog Tutor

10/10/2026

Meet Nova. This 5 year old girl is all go and no stop. At only 45 pounds she is an absolute powerhouse when you let her really open up while playing tug. She could easily injure anyone that takes her on for a game. Her reactivity (though it sounds and looks highly aggressive) stems from a lack of emotional control. She is really easy to overstimulate, even during play. So far the score card reads Nova 4 / Raymond 0. I've recieved one hole in my face, one hole in my arm, one more in my leg and skin torn off of both of my ring fingers from a tug toy.
Nova is a great dog overall. We just need to install the "off" side of our "on/off" switch.
I will be attempting to document the training sessions from the first to the last. I expect to see great things change for this girl. More to come......

09/14/2026

Fear in dogs is so misunderstood. Most owners coddle their fearful dog WAY too much. This leaves a dog trapped inside its own mind...forever! Dogs can't think their way out of a freaful state on their own.
Understanding how much and when to push them through stressful situations will get your dog to understand that the world can be fun instead of scary.
Fear is equal to a mental pain. Help ease your fearful dogs pain.

09/13/2026

Don't overestimate what your dog understands, even something as simple as a "sit" behavior. When we teach a dog a behavior via a command we think (as humans), that they can do it everywhere we go. This is a fundamental flaw in human brains misunderstanding canine brain. Dogs don't generalize a behavior as quickly as we do because we process information differently. Humans have the ability of logical thought. Be fair to your dog everytime you go someplace with them that you've never been before and adjust your expectations accordingly

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09/11/2026

Neutering a male dog for behavior issues should be a crime.
Yes we have an overpopulation issue with dogs but if castration was the key we would have seen a difference by now.
Neutering does not make a dog less aggressive, it does not solve house training issues, or did not prevent cancer. It does have many fallouts associated with it that most vets don't discuss because they are not up to date with the latest scientific studies.

09/10/2026

If you own a dog then you are a dog trainer. Now the question is "What are you teaching your dog?". A dog learns from every minute that they interact with you. If you don't like the behaviors that your dog is giving you, then look in the mirror for the reason. If you don't know what the right things are to do then it's time to learn.

Reach out to a professional dog trainer that can teach you how to communicate better with your dog and take the stress out of your relationship with your furry friend.

Do it as a favor to yourself.

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08/27/2026

Happy National Dog Day. Take your dog on a special walk, someplace new, today to celebrate.

08/13/2026

Pulling on a leash is one of the major complaints of clients. So how does this bad habit start?
It starts when a dog owner takes their puppy for a walk before they teach the puppy how to respond to leash pressure. This is one of the foundational skills missed, that people tend to misunderstand and then when the pup grows up it becomes an issue.

08/11/2026

I know for some this may sound confusing but one of the very first things you need to teach any dog is an OUT behavior. This is what is commonly referred to as "drop it". This is a foundation skill that allows you to build on so many other behaviors, including the correct rules for structured games.
It can also save your dogs life. Fundamentally it eliminates conflict over possessions when taught properly, which reflects on so many aspects of a dog's life.

08/03/2026

Aggression in dogs is highly misunderstood. For most of history a dog showing aggression towards a human meant either heavy medication / rehoming or most likely euthanization. Today we know that we can do better for the dog.

Reactivity does not neccessarily equal aggression either, that is the biggest misunderstanding of dogs. In fact truly aggressive dogs are rare. Those are the dogs that are truly genetically broken, but like I stated it is very rare. I haven't been asked to work with one yet....maybe one day I'll meet one.

Dogs that have a bite history are not broken. They can be helped to live a safe conflict free life. Trainers are proving that fact over and over again successfully, and maintaining it for the life of the dog.

This truth is creating a major stress amongst the idealogical dog trainers that still promote medicating your dogs and/or euthanization before they would advise an alternative training methods. When dogs react poorly they are trying to tell us something. If you understand dogs enough to give them the answer they need to hear, then life can improve for everyone in the home.

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08/01/2026

DOES SPAYING OR NEUTERING REALLY MAKE DOGS CALMER?

For decades, many people have been told that spaying or neutering helps reduce unwanted behaviors. But a new 2026 peer-reviewed review published in Animal Reproduction suggests the science is more complicated.

After reviewing decades of research, the authors concluded there’s not enough consistent evidence to recommend spaying or neutering solely to change behavior. In fact, several studies included in the review found some dogs showed more fear, anxiety, or certain forms of aggression after being spayed or neutered.

Why? The review explains that reproductive hormones don’t just influence reproduction. They also play important roles in brain function, learning, memory, stress responses, and emotional regulation. Removing those hormones may affect dogs differently depending on their genetics, age, s*x, breed, and individual temperament.

One of the most interesting parts of the review is that the authors discuss hormone-preserving alternatives that prevent breeding while allowing the body to continue producing its natural hormones. These include:

🐕 Vasectomy – prevents male dogs from reproducing while leaving the testicles in place, so testosterone production continues.

🐕 Ovary-sparing spay – removes the uterus but leaves one or both ovaries intact, preventing pregnancy while preserving ovarian hormone production.

The authors suggest they deserve more attention because they can help preserve some of the health and behavioral benefits associated with natural hormones while still preventing unwanted litters.

The review doesn’t argue that dogs should or shouldn’t be spayed or neutered. Instead, it encourages veterinarians and pet owners to move away from a one-size-fits-all approach and make decisions based on each dog’s individual health, lifestyle, behavior, and risk of reproduction.