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.

Our private lessons are a great option for families with busy schedules that still want a unique and personalized training experience. Are they the right fit for you?

When we think of socializing our dogs, most people assume this means getting a young puppy around as many dogs and people as possible. What I’d like to challenge you to think about today is if those encounters are actually beneficial, and if there’s more that we can do to help make our dogs well-rounded. Check out our thoughts on a (dare I say…) better way to socialize your dog to give it a solid foundation so that it can thrive in any environment.

Let’s talk about the importance of having a solid heel command. Is it always necessary? No. Is it incredibly useful when you need it? Absolutely!

We went camping last weekend with our dog, Copper. We got a morning hike in before the heat hit, and halfway through the trail we noticed that we were surrounded by poison ivy and stinging nettles.

Now typically Copper is allowed to wander with a loose leash on hikes. The goal is to enjoy our journey and I want him to be able to do the same. But as soon as we saw what was in our path, I called him into a strict heel for the remainder of our hike. This means he is walking tight at my side with his right shoulder in line with my left calf, and he regularly checks in with me.

Having this skill allowed me to focus on the path and my own footing without worrying about what he was getting into. And we finished our hike without incident.

We don’t always need to have our dogs in a strict heel position on walks, but we do need to know that they can get into this position immediately when asked. Can you imagine walking a mile through poison ivy/stinging nettles with a dog that has no concept of where his body needs to be? Unfortunately, I’m guessing many of you can. And I bet that would be an incredibly stressful mile.

Train for the unexpected moments like these so that you can enjoy anything that gets thrown at you!