Paw And Order

08/28/2026

Tigger 🐅
This sweet little Shetland Sheepdog (Sheltie) gentleman hit a jackpot when he bounced into the world - bred and raised by an impeccable breeder and placed in a dream home with experienced Sheltie lovers (and one heck of a good dog handler). He gets to enjoy an acreage, "help" with chickens, and share a partnership with his dear human in a variety of sports. He is a bright, peppy little guy and I've always been a big fan.

Unfortunately, a few years ago the Worst Thing happened - Tigger was attacked (a word I never throw around lightly) while on a leashed walk, by an offleash dog, at a Nelson area park. He was seriously injured and he and his person were traumatized. The healing process was long and the reasonable anxiety about strange dogs locked in.
It has been a long and thoughtful journey with Tigger, first making his world small and predictable and safe and then starting to expand it again and rebuild their confidence, in each other and in public spaces. I am so, so proud of him and his person and how far they've come - they are remarkable.

This is why I care *so much* about leash laws. Your dog may be a wonderful, obedient, socially savvy member of society - you may have said or secretly thought "well, MY dog is awesome so s/he doesn't even need a leash, we can break this little rule because we aren't the problem, we aren't hurting anyone". I've had people say this to me about my dogs. I leash anyways.

The thing is - some dog+human team that is walking in the same place you are doesn't know your dog, or you, and it's unfair and unkind to assume they'll just see "it's fine" and deal. They might be hyperventilating and looking for exits, trying to assess if your dog is a risk - and this is exactly why they're walking somewhere leashes are mandated. It's supposed to be an agreement between us - because your dog might be fine, but the guy with the sketchy dog is going to see yours offleash and think that if you can, they can. And why wouldn't they.

Please obey leash laws. There are so many places your dog can be offleash, and so few where these bylaws are in place. Do it for Tigger ❤️

07/15/2026

07/01/2026

Beans 🫘
This lab x border collie was adopted by a great human at about 4-1/2, just shy of 2 years ago - he thought he knew a thing or two by then which was great because a sensible grown dog was exactly what his new best friend was looking for. Beansy was cool with that but like any relationship between 2 adults with life experiences informing their decisions, they didn't agree on everything.

Beans needed some practice dialing down his risk assessments, and his new bestie didn't get a dog so she could teach one to keep it together when some guy with a backpack walks purposefully towards you on a single-track. However, she did immediately enlist a professional whose ENTIRE job is doing things like that, and usually fairly efficiently - especially when Beans indicated he would be happy to take directions, but if not he'd be giving them. Coaching a dog to have better skills and THEN sliding their human into the director's seat can be a really helpful way to teach everyone better moves with minimal frustration.

Beans has pulled it together a lot in the months we've known each other and has been greeting and passing smoothly - we're now in the maintenance/higher challenge phase of asking him to be the bigger "person" and walk away from a dog or human that makes him tense.

There is no manual delivered when we add a dog to our homes, and it's ok to outsource to an expert! I don't fix my own truck, teeth, broken bones, roof, plumbing... But I find an expert who does, and follow their directions for maintenance in between tune-ups (figurative or otherwise) as needed. If you got a dog with no intention of becoming a professional dog trainer, find a licensed/certified one nearby and ask about day training!

06/16/2026

Tango, Gidget and Annie all agreed that laying on the floor and holding still was dumb, when they started school last week. Then these young dogs showed up last night and stomped it, showing off their humans' week of skills practice and playing the training game so well that we could do exercises in week 2 that usually don't happen until week 4! Cookies for everyone 👏🏽 🍪 🦴 🤩

06/10/2026

Charlotte 💐

This little Coton De Tuléar made the big move from Ontario to BC this spring at 6 months old. Her world went from very, very small to incomprehensibly huge in an instant, and this sweet and sensitive girl didn't know what to make of it all. After hotels, flights, car travel and strangers becoming family she got to Nelson and pulled the e-brake on all this change. She wasn't housetrained and was terrified to go outdoors, after her early months in an indoor pen with her littermates. She trusted her new mom (and to a lesser degree, dad) to keep her safe, and everything else was suspect.

Charlotte couldn't have been luckier in where she landed - her people are kind, patient, bighearted, and have experience with fearful wee dogs - though they were hoping not to need it. They created safe enclosed outdoor spaces for her to access, and met her where she was at. They were even willing to forego an important family event rather than force her to travel, or leave her scared and confused with someone else. They remain willing to move mountains for this dear girl.

Luckily, Charley has shown she is in fact inherently resilient, whether genetics or her own special spark. It is not all in how we raise them, or she might still be the dog I met in April. Instead, thanks to carefully orchestrated opportunities and with the support of trustworthy dogs she can model after, this little floof has started to relish her forest walks, trips to the neighborhood park, and training games at home. She has been housetrained, groomed, and is going to be just fine with her visiting dogsitters for a couple of weeks. We were prepared for many months of slow progress - and sometimes it's giving up on timelines that hustles them along. It's a privilege to see her come out of her shell and to now be greeted with wags and sassy smiles.

There is no one I respect more than those who will bend their lives around the beings in their care - and I truly love to get to help them not have to bend quite so much. We get dogs to enrich all our lives and if having one is making your world smaller, reach out for help 🩷

06/01/2026

June classes start next week and there is still a bit of room! A separate post will come about Pints & Puppers as this one is scheduled a bit differently, but Well Rounded Hound and Sports Bar are at as usual!

04/28/2026

Stay! This one can be tough for dogs, especially adolescent pups like these who want to be a part of the action at your side - and then once distractions come into play it's a whole other ballgame.

Want to know the #1 thing you can do to level up and lock in those stationary skills?

*Return to Reward*

Instead of calling your dog to you after a stay, go back to them and reward/release from there. Help them learn that "stay" means "until I get back" 90+% of the time, so they're less likely to seek those little indications that maybe it's go time. You can see Birdie, Catriana, and Tucker really locking this one in here - these are NOT dogs that turn down a party, but they're figuring out that if you can develop a taste for broccoli the cake arrives faster.

My dog can hold a stay while I drop food, do a silly dance, break into a sprint... As well as when dogs, cars, and livestock are running around her. It's a safety skill, but training it can also be fun!

04/08/2026

April classes! 🐾 🎓