Let’s talk about how our attention affects our dogs’ behavior.

Your dog loves getting attention from you. All of the belly rubs, tug of war challenges, and late night snuggles are incredibly rewarding for both of you. You get the warm fuzzies when your dog is excited and happy to see you, and she feeds off of that happy energy. It lets her know that you’re happy with her, that she’s doing a good thing, and that if she does it in the future, she’ll likely get the same happy attention from you.

And there is the catch that I want you to really think about. Your dog is incredibly smart and knows that there are certain behaviors that will get your attention again and again. So when you give her that attention is critical. Lots of play, kissy noises, high-pitched greetings: they are all incredibly fun and tell your dog “let’s celebrate!”. The more fun you make it, the more reinforcing it is for her (meaning the more likely she is to try that behavior again so that she can have that fun again).

But do we always want a high-energy dog? What about when you’re about to sit down to dinner? I’m guessing you don’t want your dog bouncing around and getting underfoot, or trying to snuggle everyone at the table. And what about when you come home with an armful of groceries? If she’s used to you ecstatically greeting her every time you come in the door, you better be ready for her to rush into your bubble, whether you’re ready or not.

If we want to have calm behaviors, we need to practice them. And this comes down to only giving your dog the attention she so desperately craves when she is calm. Don’t throw a party every time you walk in the door, or she will jump on every guest that you have over. Don’t pet her as she barks at the dog outside of your window, or she will think that she gets rewarded for barking (and she’ll start doing it a whole lot more). Don’t wrestle with her two minutes before bedtime and then expect her to robotic-ly curl up in her kennel at night.

Your dog loves getting attention from you, so use that to your advantage by only providing it when you want to encourage more of that behavior. Not sure what this looks like in action? We’re here to help!

If your dog is amped up when you pull the leash out, get them into a calm state of mind before you walk out the door or you’ll be fighting with that energy for your entire walk.

Hank is getting the hang of this skill before we start on our morning walk! Great job, buddy.

Do you ever wish for more freedom with your dog; the ability to take them to your favorite places, introduce them to new experiences?

Let’s tweak how you communicate with each other. When you simplify, clarify, and set boundaries, your dog will be able to understand exactly what you need from her. Once you’ve mastered that, the possibilities are endless.

Do you want to:
-stop worrying about how your dog will react to the doorbell?
-stop avoiding that one house on your walk because your dog just can’t handle theirs?
-stop making excuses for your dog’s barking on conference calls?

Our board and train programs allow you to see huge and immediate changes in your dog’s behavior! We put in the hard work up front to teach your dog a new way of living: to look to you for guidance, to remain calm around distractions, to think before acting.

We then teach you how to maintain the training so that you can confidently go anywhere and do anything together.

Let us take away the stress that comes with having a dog that just won’t listen, and give you the tools to have the best dog in the neighborhood!

This is Stella, and man, does she love jumping in leaf piles! I bet there’s very little else that could grab her attention when she has the opportunity to jump in a big ol’ leaf pile like this.

What is your dog’s “leaf pile”? What is that thing that they love so much, that nothing else matters?

Once you figure that out, you will have an incredibly valuable tool for training.

Mistakes are going to happen. Whether you’re in a new and stressful environment, or your dog is just having an off day, we can take those experiences and learn from them. Find the areas that your dog struggles, and practice in those settings. The more you practice, the more prepared your dog will be for whatever life throws at them!

I ran past a woman and her dog this morning. The woman was happily stopped to let her dog sniff and explore and completely check out from her. I watched as the dog saw a bunny. He went from casual sniffing to stiff, ears back, getting into a pouncing position. Mom was still blissfully unaware. And then the dog lunged at the bunny and took mom with on a journey to hunt him down. Thankfully she held onto the leash and regained control, but her dog was a mess after that and kept lunging, whining, barking, all to get that bunny that was now long gone.

Where your dog’s attention is will determine their next move. Because the dog was allowed to stare at that bunny, he got himself more and more aroused until he lunged. If she had kept him moving, and had kept his attention on her, he never would have had the opportunity to load into that aroused state of mind, and he never would have yanked her through the lawn on a chase.

Attention = intention. Help your dog make the right choices by showing them where their attention should be: on you.

Are you thinking about adding a dog to your family? There is so much to consider when getting a new dog. Ask yourself these questions to help make sure that you are getting the right dog that matches your lifestyle.

Still unsure about what kind of dog would best fit into your family? Give us a call and we’ll help make sure that you are getting the right fit.