Mindful Hearts Dog Training

08/25/2025

10/02/2024

This author is so great! If you have an anxious pup, please check this book out- it's wonderful

Today is the day that my new book, Bark! The Science of Helping Your Anxious, Fearful, or Reactive Dog is published. I am so excited to share this book with you! There are so many fearful and anxious dogs in the world, and so many people who struggle with what to do to help them. I wrote this book to make a difference. I am so honoured that it includes a beautiful, beautiful foreword by Cat Warren, whose writing I just adore. And I am also honoured to include quotes and stories from many amazing colleagues that will help you to understand what it's like for fearful dogs and why we need to work so hard to help them feel safe. Thank you so much to everyone who spoke to me for the book, and to everyone who has supported me while I wrote it. If you don't yet have a copy, it's available from all good bookstores, including Amazon. And if you're local to me, don't forget to come along to Black Bond Books in the Valley Fair Mall in Maple Ridge on Saturday from 12 until 2 to say hello and get your signed copy!
Amazon: https://amzn.to/3XwQo2F
Bookshop: https://bookshop.org/lists/books-by-zazie-todd-phd
UK Bookshop: https://uk.bookshop.org/lists/books-by-zazie-todd-phd

09/23/2024

Have you noticed that your dog zigs and zags on walks? Your dog isn’t trying to drive you crazy. They’re following their incredibly powerful sense of smell, which is how dogs experience the world!

Humans have 6 million olfactory receptors, compared to dogs, who have up to 300 million!

Those zigzags (and let me tell you, Finch is the zig-zaggiest) are your dog following scent trails, catching up on neighborhood gossip, and gathering information. (If only they could share what they learn with us!)

If you start to feel frustrated on walks, remember that sniffing is essential to your dog’s happiness, enrichment, and well-being! ❤️

Alt text: A small gray dog on a blue background with a speech bubble that reads, “Walking in a straight line is more of a human thing.”

09/01/2024

We are not.
With Victoria Stilwell

11/15/2022

Last month I finished my CSAT program. It was a lot of work, but well worth it to be qualified to help poor pups with isolation distress to feel safe alone💙💙💙

07/28/2022

All my Goldens at work today💛 Thank you for being a friend!

04/15/2022

I finished a book, so I got a Personal Pan Pizza (something I picked up in childhood😂). We reward our dogs for behavior we like, and it goes up in frequency! Don't forget to do the same for yourself!🍕🎉💯

03/25/2022

We use a lure to begin teaching a behavior, then fade it out so your pup can do the behavior without having to see the reward beforehand.

L is for 'lure.'

Lures are simply prompts that manufacture behavior before a cue is installed. They sometimes get a bad rap when trainers conflate the fading of the lure with the fading of reinforcement.

For example, if a trainer is transitioning a sit-for-a-lure to a sit-for-a-hand-signal, he would make the same motion as the lure, but with no food in the signal hand. It is CRITICAL that the trainer pays the dog with food when she sits. Otherwise, the dog will learn, "Oh! Only sit when I can see the lure first; got it!"

Trainers sometimes interpret this as a problem with lures, when it's really a problem with (lack of) reinforcement. At The Academy, students install basic behaviors with lures, and then fade them systematically.