The Confident Canine

02/07/2024

Wednesday Mind Waggle :

🐾Tug games and aggression🐾

Contrary to popular belief, games like Tug of War do not promote bad behaviour or aggression in dogs.

Instead, when played correctly, they can be a great training tool and a fun way for dogs to release energy. Even if you're not quite ready to transition from food to a toy in training, you can still release pressure from any session with a good game of tug! I like to end all of my sessions, with all dogs and puppies by playing tug, and just loving on my dog. Playing with you builds a relationship, establishes trust, and can even build confidence in your dog.

Did you know you can use this game to teach a dog to always come to you, no matter how high value the possessed item is?

06/10/2021

Perhaps the most critical piece of the training puzzle which owners need to understand.

You wouldn’t expect your college professor to ensure you create a great life. That would be ludicrous. We all know that education is only the foundation, the starting point, and that what comes next is up to us.

Same goes with your dog trainer. A great trainer WILL give you a great foundation, but in reality that’s all they CAN give you. You are the one who will be living day in and day out with your dog. You are the one who will or won’t enforce the rules. You are the one who will or won’t take the time to use the tools, even if they’re a pain to setup. You are the one who will or won’t take the advice and do the hard work your trainer has laid out for you and your dog.

If you expect training to be an “event” that you pay for and it keeps running on its own, you’re going to be terribly disappointed. Because regardless of what your dog actually knows, and what they’re actually capable of, if you fail to “show up”, none of what’s possible will show up either.

06/07/2021

What did you teach your dog this weekend?

05/05/2021

I want to take a minute to talk with the online community about choosing a dog trainer. Chances are if you're finding yourself in need of help, you're also finding yourself overwhelmed with how to choose the right one. A good trainer can make your dog and a bad one can break them. As of late myself and other trainers have noticed and influx of "Trainers" hitting the groups on dogbook to recruite some easy $$. They're easy for us to spot- we've seen a thing or two, and we all know one another. It's a small world. Some of these new kids on the block, are literally that- kids. Under 18, unable to legally enter into contracts with adults. While I've met some stellar kids in dog sport, they're few and far between. The age of your trainer becomes relevant when they're boasting about schooling they've received related to dogs. When the minimum age to attend such training schools is 18, and you leave with a finished demo dog... yet your "trainer" is under 18, with no finished dog... it sends up a red flag.

So what do you look for?

☆ A demo dog! Every trainer should have atleast ONE demo dog to show you what they can teach a dog! If their demo dog isn't finished, or very young... they've likely not been training all that long. Make sure this is a demo dog they trained! There are people who import trained dogs, or send the dogs to another trainer and try to credit from previous work not done by them.

☆Videos. Whether on a page, or an actual web page- videos of them training a dog. While pictures are grand, anyone can take a photo of a dog sleeping in its bed and claim it knows "place".

☆They compete in the sports they teach! If they are not on the trial field, and they do not know the rules how can you expect them to prepare YOU for the trial field and to know the rules. Ask to see scorebooks or trial photos of them with their dog!

☆Using equipment properly. No this isn't the great prong vs ecollar vs clicker and treat debate! If you want a protection trainer look at their pictures and videos. Are they using sleeves, and bite suits, proper sticks and whips... or a fly swatter and oven mitts from MeeMaws kitchen? Are they running an actual agility course, or letting their dog goof off at will on children's play ground equipment?

☆Certification. Dog training is currently an un regulated field. Anyone, literally anyone can slap a sign outside and claim to be a dog trainer. If they boast Certification- ask to see it. Call the schools and verify it. If they do not have Certification, than ask for client references, ask to see demo dogs, ask about experience! In some cases a certificate trainer is less qualified than a non certified trainer. Experience 9 times out of 10 will outweigh a class room lesson.

Lastly, if you're in doubt ask. In a group, message other trainers... always always check. It is incredibly difficult to undo one of these pop up trainers "work" on your dog.

04/04/2021

03/30/2021

A short snippet of my personal dog Ryo, working on a competitive heel.

03/30/2021

Managing Thresholds.

We often cover this with a single sentence about giving your dog enough distance from its triggers, but managing thresholds is actually a BIG topic. Your dog’s threshold can be affected by things like:

》Distance
》Duration
》Intensity

But there are SO MANY OTHER FACTORS that can contribute!! Things like:

☆hunger, pain, tiredness or other body sensations 🤒
☆ # of other triggers seen recently (or even good, but overwhelming stimuli!)
☆surprise versus expectation/control😳
☆suddenness
☆hormones!
☆visibility- maybe at night when things seem more spooky 👻
☆weather! ☀️☁️☔️
☆other scary stuff in the environment (like a lawnmower next door)

And the biggest secret to managing thresholds?

THEY CHANGE.

Any of the factors above could mean your dog reacts to a trigger one day and not the next, or suddenly needs a lot more space than you thought. AND if you’re working on it, hopefully you’ll see your dog’s threshold getting easier and easier to avoid over time.

03/26/2021

Dog training tailored to the needs of you and your dog!

As a dog trainer I understand that no two dogs and situations are alike. I tailor my program to assist dog owners with overcoming everyday obstacles faced by the modern dog. Pricing is affordable, my pricing is neither the lowest nor the highest for the area. As we all know expensive isn't always better, and cheaper isn't always bad... so with competitive pricing I also have references and Demo Dogs to show you what I can do!

No breed bans here! I have experience with a wide variety of breeds and accept them all. Everyone is welcome whether you have a lovable mix, or a top-tier show dog: every dog deserves an education.

I work with several rescues, and occasionally have fully obedience trained dogs available to adopt. These guys include 4 free lessons with their families if they are local included in the adoption fee. This method of foster to adopt is proven to keep pets in their forever homes.