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Monday 10am - 6pm Tuesday 10am - 6pm Wednesday 10am - 6pm Thursday 10am - 6pm Saturday 10am - 6pm Sunday 10am - 6pm

A Matter of Manners Behavior and Training

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United States
Santa Fe, NM
A Matter of Manners Behavior and Training

We believe in force-free training and behavior modification that uses rewards to build, strengthen, and modify behavior. Dog and cat training.

Whether you want your furry friend to learn basic manners or crazy tricks, I can help you! I am a graduate of Jean Donaldon's The Academy for Dog Trainers (CTC), and a Certified Professional Dog Trainer-Knowledge Assessed (CPDT-KA) and have experience training dogs of all shapes, sizes and temperaments. From puppy socialization to advanced tricks and everywhere in between, A Matter of Manners is ready to train.

11/13/2026

It's been too long since I have given a Myles update and we've had a big couple of weeks with him.
1. The biggest and best update is that the lung cancer still has not come back! We took a bit of a break from his cancer maintenance x-rays so it was a bit nerve-wracking waiting for the results. However, everything looks great in his lungs and there is no return! Huge relief! His prognosis was one to two years if it came back and that was almost 3 years ago! 💪💪💪💪🥳🎉
2. Unfortunately a small tumor was discovered and an aggressive cancer (agasaca) could not be ruled out through cytology, the risk was high enough that it was malignant that he got referred to his same surgeon from a few years ago. I took him in yesterday for the surgery consultation and much to my surprise, they were ready to get him in the same day! Myles is 15 so every time he goes under anesthesia is scary but he did GREAT! They took his left a**l sac and sent the tumor out to pathology. He came home the same day and is recovering with a fancy new haircut. He's of course not feeling 100% right now but is such a trooper, he's doing great. This recovery will be so much less intense and difficult than the last one.
3. He was diagnosed with kidney disease last year and thankfully, that has not progressed (he's on renal support food and supplements) which is wonderful!
He is the very best boy, my heart and soul, and I'm so proud of him. He's overall so healthy and strong and acts so young!
Now the second part of this update is that I'll be moving sessions around and canceling Puppy Social Club while he recovers, just for a couple weeks. You'll be getting an email if you are booked with me in the next 2 weeks.

11/03/2026

I just saw a video of a "trainer" forcing a dog into a crate by choking it with a leash through the holes of the crate while the dog panicked and choked and tried to escape. Apparently, eventually the dog went into the crate and the trainer considers this a success. People in the comments were celebrating this success and saying, "well, how else would you get a dog in the crate who doesn't want to go in? At least he eventually learned to do it!" Or several iterations of this thought.
In the dog training world, there are many "trainers" who believe force, coercion, fear, and intimidation is ok, and just about anything goes as long as the dog learns to do what you want (and don't get me started on the "but can you get a high drive dog to recall off all wildlife all the time without a shock collar??" old argument).
So let me be super clear in my stance on this. Dog training and behavior modification is NOT just about the results. "As long as the dog eventually does what we want" is absolutely not enough and not the right consideration and full of ego. I actually care much less about the end result and much more about what was done to get there. Obviously I care about helping clients reach training goals, but I also care about lowering their expectations to live happily and realistically with a happy and confident animal in their home. The process and methods used when training animals matters way more to me than whatever results people want to brag about ("trainers" parading scared, shut down dogs who will do anything they say...I'm not impressed).
The dog training industry is completely unregulated which means anyone can take your money, tell you what to do with your dog in the name of training, all without any actual formal education in animal behavior, or the science of animal learning.
I wish I hadn't seen the video, I already know dogs are being abused like this every day in the name of training.
NO dog or breed needs a heavier hand or harsher methods or more severe "discipline" (no, not malinois, German shepherds, cattle dogs, or "red" dogs with severe aggression, or dogs who might otherwise be euthanized).

11/02/2026

Happy Halloweeeeeeen (belated🎃)! Wilma did SO great, we were able to hand out candy for over an hour and she nailed the photo shoot. And as usual, Myles was feeling festive and got to meet lots of trick or treaters. We even had a dog come all dressed up. Hope everyone had fun!
🎃

10/30/2026

Party at Puppy Social Club (clips from last week and this week)! Look at these beautiful puppies and oh my gosh this stunning Borzoi girl. 😍 We had a special guest this week, Claude the adult Portuguese Water Dog. It's important to introduce your puppies to nice, friendly, tolerant adult dogs and Claude was such a fantastic helper!
Remember, socialization is more than just exposure! Positive experiences are a must when socializing!
Puppy Social Club is every Tuesday at 11am for puppies starting at 8weeks old (first round of shots with one week buffer required).

10/28/2026

October 27th is Dia de los Mu***os for our beloved pets who have crossed over. We welcome them back and remember and honor them. Diego, Mei Mei, and Ruckus sit atop our offrenda but so many dogs I loved and worked with (and friends' dogs and cats) passed away this year (and over the years) and I am remembering them today as well.
Today I am especially missing Diego so, so much, but I am so grateful for the years we had together. My beloved angels, please feel free to visit!
💀

10/26/2026

November classes are starting soon! Go to amatterofmannersdogtraining.com/classes to read more or to sign up!

Tuesdays November 3rd - December 15th (NO CLASS November 24th)

Angsty Adolescent is a 6 week Life Skills for Teens class which includes off leash play.

Bows and Wows is a 6 week TRICKS class which has no on or off leash greetings and can be appropriate for dogs with some reactivity or issues with other people/dogs.

There will be another class that I'll add later which will be Cooperative Care, but I have not determined the dates yet. Don't forget about PUPPY SOCIAL CLUB every Tuesday at 11am!

Go to amatterofmannersdogtraining.com/classes to read more or to sign up!

10/24/2026

Halloween is almost here! Are you preparing your dog for all the fun but spooky things that come with Halloween? Don't wait for the 31st!
Things Wilma has been learning since moving in with us to prepare for our family Halloween traditions (and general spooky season things):
1. Learning that Halloween decorations are fun and safe, not scary! They predict treats and won't eat you (a fear of hers at first), and you don't need to scream at them.
2. Learning how to pose for pictures because if you know me, this is very important. 🤣 Posing at a distance from the camera/me in different poses (posing, staying, looking at camera), especially a paws up or up up on an object.
3. Learning to like wearing things on her body, both for her Halloween costume AND because she's a small little Chihuahua who will need coats and sweaters! Remember, we don't just throw stuff on dogs and hope for the best. Teach them to enjoy it!
4. Learning to wear a headpiece/wig 🫣🤣 In this house, it's very important haha! I wouldn't expect her to love it naturally, I've slowly been teaching her to put one on and that it's fun and treat predicting to wear something on her head.
5. Learning that people are generally cool and you don't need to tell them all to G**O. We are going to attempt to hand out candy as usual so we've been learning that kids/strangers predict good things.
I'm including some extra pictures of her just being cute and of course Myles, the best big brother. He's been enjoying all the training and wanted to show off how a dog pulls off a wig. I think Wilma was impressed.
Train for what you want!

10/11/2026

Girl crew! The pool is the cool place to party at Puppy Social Club. We've got a great group of puppies and people right now! Puppy Social Club is every Tuesday at 11am for puppies as young as 8 weeks (first round of shots a week before first social required). The younger you get started socializing, the better! Click the link in my bio or go to amatterofmannersdogtraining.com/classes to sign up! You can come every week, you can come one time, you can come every other week, just join when you can!

10/05/2026

I usually keep my running and fitness stuff separate but to explain why I've been so unavailable this summer (along with just being really busy), some of you know I was training for my second marathon and this Saturday, I finished the St. George Marathon!! Those of you who knew about it have been so supportive, even as I vented and complained about how poorly my training was going and how frustrating and scary my second running induced anaphylaxis ER visit was, y'all were so encouraging and supportive and understanding.
And now, it is finished!! I cannot believe I managed to finish it (5 hours and 39 minutes was my official time) and now I can have a little more time for other things in life. 😂
Dan absolutely smashed it but we both felt this was waaaaaay harder than last year's Duke City Marathon. Pictures also show the fireside start line where we hung out for 2 1/2 hrs before the start, and our really amazing Waterhole Canyon excursion in Page the day before the race. Quick weekend trip to Utah and back!
Thank you all so much for your amazing words of encouragement! I told a lot of you I was probably gonna have my first DNF but your girl FINISHED the damn thing! And hated it almost the whole time BUT, finished it. 😂💃

09/25/2026

Everybody shut up and look at this tiny girl. Most of you know by now that I LOVE Chihuahuas, so when I get to work with them I'm thrilled. And this little girl is just, oh my gosh delicious! Javelina has some issues around grooming and as you can see, she has beautiful long locks that do need to be brushed. We're working on cooperative care and a few other things and I'm just happy to have the honor to be in her presence.

Address

Santa Fe, NM
87507

Opening Hours

Monday	10am - 6pm
Tuesday	10am - 6pm
Wednesday	10am - 6pm
Thursday	10am - 6pm
Saturday	10am - 6pm
Sunday	10am - 6pm

Website

http://www.amatterofmannersdogtraining.com/

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