Progress 4 Paws

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Progress 4 Paws Connecting Dogs and People! Professional Dog Trainer
Alison Schaefer CPDT-KA,CSCC,ABCDT
CGC Evaluator

09/19/2026

Just like us, dogs need to move their bodies in different ways! 🐾
Changing up how your dog moves helps build strength, coordination, balance, and body awareness — and different exercises challenge their brains, too. 🧠💪

Brain + body work = a happier, more confident, well-rounded dog! ❤️

Had such a blast with this group in my Brain & Body Games class at St Pete Dog Works! 🐶✨

We had a blast at the ACT event today at the Dog Training Club of Tampa! Olive earned her ACT 1 Jumpers and ACT 2 Standa...
08/29/2026

We had a blast at the ACT event today at the Dog Training Club of Tampa! Olive earned her ACT 1 Jumpers and ACT 2 Standard titles. So happy she did her weaves!

Sunday Funday! How many retrievers do you spot?🐾🐾🐾The answer is 3! Harlow the Golden Retriever, Porter the Flat-Coated R...
08/02/2026

Sunday Funday! How many retrievers do you spot?
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The answer is 3! Harlow the Golden Retriever, Porter the Flat-Coated Retriever, and Olive the Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever. Hudson the Dachshund was an honorary retriever on today’s sniffari 🥰. So much fun!

06/07/2026

What is an AKC ACT? 🐾

Today, Olive earned her ACT 1 title by qualifying in two runs! 🎉 The AKC Agility Course Test (ACT) is an introductory agility program designed to help dogs and handlers gain experience in a trial setting while having fun and building confidence.

The ACT 1 course has 10-12 obstacles consisting of jumps, an A-frame, a table, and open tunnels. You can jump your dog at any height too.

For Olive, it was the perfect first agility trial experience—learning to work in a new environment, having fun, and even earning a title along the way! She did decide that visiting the person sitting in the ring was an absolutely essential part of the course on both runs 😅, but I was able to get her back on track each time. Thank you for hosting a great event ❤️🐾

05/29/2026

Teaching your dog a cue that means, “I’m done playing right now. Go find something else to do,” can be very useful.

It doesn’t happen overnight. At first, your dog may not really understand what the cue means and will keep trying to re-engage you. The key is consistency. Once you give the cue, play is over. No throwing the toy one more time and no restarting the game a few minutes later.

Sometimes it helps to give the cue and then walk away, or move your dog to a different area where the toys aren’t present. This makes it easier for them to understand that playtime has ended.

Olive is 18 months old now, and she consistently walks away when I give the cue. Occasionally she’ll come back after a minute or two and try again, but I simply give the cue a second time and don’t re-engage with play.

Teaching your dog how to entertain themselves and settle when play isn’t available is such a valuable life skill. It takes patience and repetition, but once it clicks, it’s incredibly useful.

05/05/2026

Today’s scent work challenge: suspended hides 🐾

This challenges dogs to locate odor suspended in the air rather than on the ground, requiring them to solve air scent puzzles, overcome inaccessibility, and ignore ground-level distractions. This was Hudson’s first try, so I kept it low and accessible.

They all did great!

I’m so proud of Olive for passing her ORT (Odor Recognition Test) this weekend! 🐾✨For those who aren’t familiar, an ORT ...
04/20/2026

I’m so proud of Olive for passing her ORT (Odor Recognition Test) this weekend! 🐾✨

For those who aren’t familiar, an ORT is part of NACSW (National Association of Canine Scent Work). It’s basically a test where dogs have to correctly identify specific target odors (birch, anise, or clove) hidden in containers. Passing means your dog is ready to move on to official scent work trials—such an exciting milestone!

I somehow only managed to record 2 out of the 3 searches 🤦‍♀️—but I’m just so happy I got to experience it and see her succeed.

I’m beyond excited to keep going on this scent work journey with Olive. She amazes me every day! 💛🐶

04/20/2026

There’s something special about a good pack walk 🐾

Pack walks aren’t just about exercise—they help dogs build better social skills, reduce reactivity, and create a calmer, more structured environment where they can move together as a group. It’s amazing to see how much more balanced and confident dogs can become just by walking together with purpose.

Thank you Pack Walk St Pete, we had a blast joining today!

It also reminded me that I *really* need to get a picture of my wife out on her morning walks with her own little informal neighborhood pack. There’s no set schedule or meeting spot—just 3 or 4 neighbors who happen to head out around the same time. Whenever they run into each other, they join up and finish the walk together. Honestly, it’s so cute.

It’s such a simple but powerful way to build community, get to know your neighbors, and let the dogs socialize naturally. 🐕💛

Teaching your dog to settle anywhere is a skill worth working on! 🐾Case in point: today my car broke down and we had to ...
04/02/2026

Teaching your dog to settle anywhere is a skill worth working on! 🐾

Case in point: today my car broke down and we had to wait for AAA 😅 Not exactly a calm, predictable moment. I was a little flustered trying to figure everything out, but Olive? Totally unbothered.

The second I put out her travel mat, she knew the drill. She laid down, relaxed, and just hung out until our ride came.

That kind of behavior doesn’t happen by accident—it comes from consistently reinforcing that the mat = calm, safe, settle.

Olive’s had the same travel mat since she was a puppy, and now at 16 months old, it’s second nature. The moment it comes out, she happily lays down and chills.

The ultimate goal? Your dog can relax anywhere—no mat needed. But a travel mat is such a powerful tool to get you there. It becomes a clear context clue and a safe space where your dog knows exactly what to do: settle.

When you take the time to build real value into that mat, you’re giving your dog a portable “off switch” they can rely on anywhere—coffee shops, parks, busy environments, or even unexpected situations.

If your dog struggles to settle in new places, this is a game changer!

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03/24/2026

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Largo, FL

Opening Hours

Tuesday 9am - 5pm
Wednesday 9am - 7pm
Thursday 9am - 5pm
Friday 9am - 5pm
Saturday 9am - 5pm

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