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Pitch Perfect Paws

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Pitch Perfect Paws

On this page, we will be sharing real journeys, real wins, and real cuddles along the way!

Christine Porter has been helping dogs and their humans build trust, confidence, and teamwork for over 25 years in obedience, agility, dog scouts and much more.

05/28/2026

You know how everyone jokes about wishing their dog would clean up after themselves?

…mine actually does. 😂

What started as accidentally dropping a sock turned into this puppy learning how to pick things up, carry them, and deliver them where they belong. I had intended to teach all this eventually, but apparently he's ready now!

Today’s accomplishment: p**p bag delivery service.

And before anyone asks:
Yes, this is absolutely trainable.
No, I didn’t start by handing him p**p bags. 😅

I’ll show the progression and how I introduced it tomorrow because it actually started in a really simple way.

05/22/2026

Fear Free Friday: "I'll go where he's going.”

I didn’t intentionally teach this.
It just quietly started happening.

Last night, we stayed in a cabin at the new Cozy Embers Campground. I looked around and realized the dogs were matching each other’s sleeping choices, even on opposite ends of the room.

If Zygi sleeps on the floor… puppy sleeps on the floor.
If Zygi picks a dog bed… puppy picks a dog bed.
If Zygi settles near me… puppy settles nearby too.
If Zygi relaxes quietly in a new environment... puppy relaxes too.

It was always a goal of mine to raise this puppy alongside the stable older dog. Dogs learn so much from each other — not just through play, but through observation, routine, and social bonding. The learning happens in hundreds of tiny moments that people don’t even realize are lessons. Puppies especially tend to mirror the dogs they trust. And apparently this puppy has decided Zygi is the expert on where one can nap safely in a new place.

Wherever we are, puppy’s answer always seems to be:
“Whatever Zygi is doing probably makes sense.” ❤️

Watching that trust develop may be one of my favorite parts of this whole journey.

05/21/2026

Thinking Thursday: my new alarm clock...

Every week, this puppy's personality gets bigger. And apparently we now participate in emergency broadcasts.

This particular refinery siren goes off every weekday at 8:00 a.m. The first few weeks he heard this sound, he just silently listened. Then he started moving toward the window, trying to process it.

Now?
Now he joins in...!

What fascinates me is that he starts with that little whimper and bark first. You can actually SEE the gears turning as he tries to figure out what he's hearing before deciding how to respond.

My guess? Probably something along the lines of:

“WHAT is THAT sound???”

pause

“…wait…I CAN DO THAT TOO.”

A lot of dogs seem genuinely conflicted for a second when they hear sirens as they try to determine: "Friend? Threat? Weird dog? Apocalypse?”

And then some breeds — especially vocal, social, or herding breeds — decide the correct answer is:

“I shall contribute vocally.”

Whatever he thought the siren was… he felt it required participation.

What are some sounds your dog responds to?

05/20/2026

Today, the puppy came up the stairs while Zygi was standing at the top. And instead of charging straight toward him, the puppy curved his entire body away as he passed.

That may sound tiny to humans.
But in dog language? That’s huge.

One of the most important skills dogs can learn is how to read other dogs socially — especially seniors.

Turning sideways, curving, softening approaches, avoiding direct pressure — these are all polite social behaviors dogs use to communicate peaceful intentions and respect each other’s space.

And puppies aren’t automatically good at this.

A lot of puppies bounce directly into older dogs faces, body slam them, or ignore subtle communication. Social skills are learned over time through guidance, observation, and appropriate interactions. And Zygi has been an incredible teacher. ❤️

Later, Zygi struggled to get his footing at the bottom of the stairs. And what I saw next made my heart happy: the puppy stopped his zoomie race around the yard to check in on his mentor.

Watching the puppy choose softness instead of chaos made me ridiculously proud. I love watching these small moments of social awareness.

Because good manners around other dogs matter just as much as sit, down, or stay.

Puppyhood isn’t just about learning commands. It's about learning compassion. ❤️

05/19/2026

Yesterday’s unexpected obstacle?
Accidentally finding a helicopter!!!

This is exactly why I train in real-life environments as much as possible. Because you just never know what you're going to find!

I went to this spot expecting a quiet, relaxing sniffy walk by the water..... Instead, we ended up next to a big, LOUD helicopter preparing for takeoff.

I wasn't really sure what puppy would think about this big roaring machine. But he looked at the helicopter… and then basically went, “Okay....anyway....” 😂

I was WAY more interested than he was!

The more positive, calm exposures dogs have to loud noises, strange machines, crowds, carts, sirens, or unexpected sights in the world around them, the more confident and adaptable they become when life throws something new at them.

He decided a helicopter wasn’t important enough to interrupt his day. And that’s exactly the kind of calm confidence we’re building.

05/18/2026

Yesterday at the campground, Puppy got to practice one of the most underrated life skills a dog can learn:

How to relax around human food without begging for it.

Right above his head on the table? A giant box of mac and cheese.

And yet… no staring. No pawing. No whining. No trying to nose in or climb up onto the table to investigate.

Just calmly settling while people ate nearby.

Teaching dogs how to exist peacefully around food is about so much more than “manners.” It creates dogs who are easier to live with, easier to take places, safer around children, and less stressed in busy environments. It also helps prevent unhealthy habits and constant snacking on foods their bodies were never designed to eat.

That doesn’t mean they never get treats or fun things. It just means we teach them that human mealtime isn’t automatically dog mealtime, which makes a HUGE difference in everyday life.

05/13/2026

Exciting news!

We found an indoor space in Sugar Grove! ❤️

Which means Pitch Perfect Paws will soon be offering classes! (And probably at least a little bit of chaos, snacks, laughter, and dog hair too.)

I plan on starting with puppy classes and everyday life skills classes, and possibly a sports sampler class, where you learn about and try various sports like rally, flyball, improv, and small scale agility.

But I want to hear from YOU!

What kinds of classes would you like to see?
What days/times tend to work best for you?

I’m still seeking a space for agility classes, so stay tuned for that…and if you know of a space – an outdoor field, a barn, or indoor area with non-slip flooring - I’d love to hear about it!

And for those of you following from outside the Warren area, I’ll also be offering virtual behavior consults!

My goal has always been to help people build better relationships with their dogs in ways that feel practical, supportive, and realistic for everyday life.

No intimidation.
No “perfect dog” expectations.
Just learning together.

More details coming soon!

If you’d be interested in classes or virtual consults, drop a 🐾 below or send me a message. And definitely tell me what interests YOU most — because these classes are for you and your dogs. ❤️

05/11/2026

Training isn’t just about teaching behaviors. It’s about preparing dogs for the unexpected things life throws at them.

Yesterday, Puppy and I were enjoying what I thought would be an afternoon of practicing quiet behaviors for his first fishing experience...but life had other plans.

A 10-year-old boy came over to talk about the fish, ask about Puppy, and naturally wanted to pet him.

At first, he reached over the puppy’s head — something Puppy isn’t comfortable with — but after a little guidance, he adjusted and gave him a calmer pet underneath instead.

Then came:
🎵 a VERY loud bird whistle that the boy was insistent on blowing repeatedly
🍟 barbecue potato chips
🎣 fishing rods moving around
🧒 unpredictable kid energy

And honestly? I was incredibly proud of the Puppy.

Each time something unexpected happened, you could SEE him pause and process:
“What was that?”
“Do I need to worry?”
“Okay… I think I’m alright.”

These moments are exactly why we spend so much time working through strange surfaces, noises, public outings, elevators, movement, people, and all the little “weird” things in life. Training various situations is not just for service dogs like the puppy is training to be. Training is for every dog because you can't possibly predict every scenario that will come up in your life…But when you train unusual things and something unexpected DOES happen, Puppy already has a pattern:
➡️ pause
➡️ process
➡️ check in
➡️ recover

And another little training win?
The boy kept trying to tempt Puppy with barbecue potato chips. 😂. This turned into a real-life lesson in:
✔️ impulse control
✔️ listening around distractions
✔️ ignoring food from strangers

Public spaces are unpredictable. You never know when a peaceful fishing trip will suddenly become a full training session.

That’s exactly why the small daily training moments matter so much.

05/10/2026

Happy Mother’s Day to all the dog moms out there 💜

The ones carrying treats in every pocket…
playing one more game of tug...
filling food bowls...
cleaning muddy paws...
giving late night potty breaks...
worrying over every little thing…
and loving these dogs like family.

You matter to them more than you know. 🐾

05/08/2026

Fear Free Friday 🐾 — Elevators... or:
“What is this weird thing?” – a 9 day journey.

9 days. Nine training sessions between the first clip in this video and the last one.

On Day 1, when the elevator doors opened, the Puppy immediately backed away and hid behind me. His body language was loud and clear:
🚫 “No thank you.”

And that mattered.

Because Fear Free training isn’t about forcing dogs through scary things.

It’s about giving them space to process…
letting curiosity replace worry…
and building confidence one experience at a time.

So, we took it nice and slow.
No forcing. No dragging. No “he has to get over it.”

The goals varied from:
👀 look at the elevator
👂 hear the sounds
🐾 step a little closer
❤️ feel safe enough to think

That’s what confidence-building really looks like.

Not instant success. Not flooding dogs with fear until they shut down. Not “making” them do it.

Just trust. And small wins that slowly grow bigger.

Until we reached the goal – the day we walked up to the elevator…and he calmly walked right on.

No panic. No backing away. No shutdown.
Just: “Oh. I know this now.”

Today, he walks on calmly, rides comfortably, and happily bounces off the elevator looking SO proud of himself. ❤️

That’s the beauty of Fear Free training.

Confidence isn’t built by forcing dogs through fear.
It’s built one safe day at a time.

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Warren, PA
16365

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