Canine Confidence

09/03/2026

Meet Moose and Frankie! These boys are wonderful, but need some help fine tuning their skills with distractions 😉 I think their Mom and Dad are doing a wonderful job and will see progress fairly quickly with consistency! 💜 I can't wait to see them again!

09/02/2026

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One of the biggest mindset shifts in dog training is this: dogs are allowed to be dogs. They're allowed to notice the deer. They're allowed to feel the pull of a scent. They're allowed to want to chase something that runs.

But somewhere along the way, many of us were taught that a "good dog" should look like constant obedience — switching off every instinct, ignoring every rabbit, staying perfectly calm next to the one thing they were literally bred to chase. A level of self-control most of us don't have either (let's be honest — the impulse buys, the emotional eating, the one-more-scroll, the lottery ticket… same brain, same reward system).

So when our dogs struggle with it, we jump straight to punishment instead of support. Not because we're bad guardians, but because it's what we were taught.

The goal was never a switched-off dog. It's helping a dog learn to be a dog — safely, with us. Chasing isn't disobedience. It's genetics. And it's not something to punish. It's something to work with. 🦌

And if you've ever wondered "Ok, but HOW do I actually stop the chasing — without hurting them, without an e-collar??" — that's exactly why I made my free Mythbuster Webinar. Watch it here: https://www.predation-substitute-training.com/mythbuster 💛

And if you train dogs for a living and want to teach this, my PST Instructor Course is opening soon — join the waitlist here: https://predation-substitute-training.com/predation-substitute-instructor-waitlist/ 🐾

08/31/2026

Last week I worked on surfaces with Oscar (and some of the other kiddos at daycare)! It doesn't look like much, but this is great socialization to help build confidence and body awareness 😉 It also helps me teach 'up' and 'off' behaviors. He was a little unsure about the platforms at first, but still the most confident of everyone I worked with! You can do this with anything - a cardboard box at home, a bench at the park, a shelf at the store, etc. We want to start with fairly stable items first to help build confidence and maybe some muscle, then work our way up to more difficult surfaces.

*The important thing is to NEVER FORCE them onto it. There are times they might need a little nudge in some way, but for the most part we want them to figure out how to so something on their own and something good happens as the result 💜

08/29/2026

🚨 STOP punishing the growl! 🚨

🧩 A growling dog can be scary, but do you know that is one of the ways they communicate? If I told my hubby I was scared of something and he told me to shut up, that would not make me feel better about the thing. It might make me stop telling him how I feel, but I still have those feelings.

🛑 If we punish a dog for growling, we can end up with the dog that 'bites out of nowhere'. If they feel like they can't growl without fear of being punished, they use the next best thing they know how.

📝 The goal is to find WHY they are growling and help them feel better. Are they lacking confidence? Do they need a more predictable pattern of behavior? Did they have a bad experience? Do they just not understand the situation and what is expected?

⏳️ There are typically warning signs even before the growl that are missed because they can be subtle. Side eye, hard staring, lip licking, yawning, appeasement licking, lifted paw, ears back, belly up, tense face/body, stiff tail, etc. If you notice these and help them BEFORE they escalate, you may never hear the growl 😉

08/27/2026

🚨 Anxiety is real in dogs. Sometimes it comes out in ways we don't think about, and sometimes it is quite obvious.

💡Not everything is solved with training alone. Sometimes I see anxiety in dogs who simply don't have their needs met (unspent energy turns into anxiety), and meeting those needs helps. Sometimes I see underlying pain that can cause anxiety and sometimes it's just bad genetics or life experiences (or lack of).

🩺 This is where it is very important that the trainer and veterinary team work TOGETHER to help these kiddos that have zero voice. Trainers see things the veterinarian doesn't, and the veterinarian sees things the trainer doesn't. I do need to get better about working with veterinary staff proactively so when an issue arises we can get it addressed quickly. One of my new goals 💜

✨️ My biggest goal is always helping dogs AND their humans, but sometimes we do need additional expert help to give them what they need to be successful.

08/26/2026

I will NEVER use pain/discomfort, fear, or intimidation in the name of training. The American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior agrees and recently shared their updated guidelines when choosing an animal trainer. In a world where anyone can call themselves a dog trainer, please be careful. These animals deserve the best 💜

08/24/2026

🚨 I want to talk about what a calm dog looks like. SO many people get it wrong, and it scares me to see how much people don't understand subtle body language. People see a dog sitting/laying on a a cot or a platform and trainers call it 'calm'. MOST of the time, they have not been given other options. They are frozen on this platform in fear of being punished, being shocked, being cut off from air, etc. They are never truly calm. They have tight lips, side eye, ears back, tense body/face, eyes darting around, etc.

✅️ This is what true calm looks like. Mind at rest, feeling safe enough to take a short nap, trusting nothing bad will happen, zero force, etc. People think that positive/'force free' training means permissive. My dogs still have rules and boundaries, but they have been reinforced for good decisions so they know how to make decisions on their own (for the most part, we all make mistakes every now and then 🙃).

🐕‍🦺 It is so much easier to have a dog who WANTS to do something rather than being forced to. Does it take time to build that trust and reinforcement history? Yes. Is punishment a 'quick fix'? It can be, but not one I am interested in given the risks involved. When you know better, you do better 💜

08/23/2026

I think Dexter wins most pitiful look ever! We were working on our 'leave it'. Clearly, he was exhausted from playing with his friends, but he still did a good job! My goal was waiting for eye contact, which he wasn't thrilled about 🤣 Great job buddy, thanks for the enthusiasm! 🧡

08/22/2026

🐕‍🦺 Does anyone have a dog that zig-zags while walking?! Did you know this is actually fairly normal?! Loose leash walking is probably one of my FAVORITE things to teach. It can be tough, but once it clicks it's so lovely to watch 😍 This is how my dogs look when we walk. They are at the end of the line, but not pulling which is acceptable for me and our goals.

🚨 In my mind, there is absolutely no reason you need a formal heel, unless you are competing in agility, rally, etc. This walking is natural, a formal heel is not. If I see someone coming I can call my dogs back to me, stand to the side and wait. Loose leash walking should be enjoyable for the owner AND the dog!

✅️ In the beginning for heavy pullers, I will suggest a *well fitted* harness that has a clip in the FRONT. I will also suggest you practice inside your home a BUNCH! If your dog cannot walk with you inside with low distraction, how do you expect to do it outside? Use yours dog's meal to reinforce walking because you will be reinforcing a lot! Practice a 'leave it' so you have that to integrate, and reinforce ANY eye contact you get! Also, a longer leash helps a dog be able to do their natural things without you feeling like they are 'pulling' 😉