Passion4Paws

07/08/2025

Mr. Buggs during our Walk & Train session today! 🥰

🐕🐾

07/07/2025

✨ Important Update ✨

Hi everyone! 👋🏻

I wanted to take a moment to thank all of you for your continued support this training season! 😁

Due to an upcoming medical procedure, I will need to step away and end the 2025 training season a bit earlier than expected, and won't be able to schedule my final round of classes (July 22nd - August 30th) as planned.
✨ This will NOT have any affect on my current Handler-Dog teams, but it may have an affect on my Walk & Train regulars. ✨

While this decision wasn't easy, it's necessary to ensure I can provide the best service possible in the future. I appreciate your understanding, patience, and kindness during this time.

My waitlist will stay intact, and I will contact those who are immediately affected.

Thank you again for being a part of this journey with me. I look forward to getting back to what I love once I’ve had time to recover. 💜

Take care,

Deanna Dostaler
Owner, Certified Master Dog Trainer, Certified Trick Dog Instructor, Certified Canine Conditioning Fitness Coach & Certified Stunt Dog Judge

Gigi, Kiki, Tito, Juju-Bean & Mojo
Canine Coaches & Furry Facilitators

Passion4Paws

🙋🏻‍♀️🐕🐕🐕🐈‍⬛🐕

07/05/2025

At the end of the day, how you live life with your dog is entirely up to you. If a couple of daily walks around the neighborhood (embarrassment-free), playtime in a fenced-in yard, and cuddle time on the couch, all suffice to fulfill yours and your dog’s needs, kudos! I’m happy for the both of you!

However, if an all inclusive, FREER life lived outside of your immediate experience is the expectation, how you live with your dog INDOORS will dictate how your time is spent OUTDOORS.

Rules for right or wrong have to be at play WAY BEFORE you step foot outside! That is, if you would like to expand the amount of freedom you and your dog are currently experiencing. The rules we set for our dogs are precisely what keeps them safe while ensuring that they have the greatest possible FREEDOM and enjoyment from life.

Dogs are being forced to carry the burden of self-mastery without ever having been coached within their home. Owners who decide to forgo leadership, or who use it incidentally, sentence their dogs to much smaller lives filled with stress, anxiety, worry, over-arousal, uncertainty, pressure, and way too much responsibility.

A dog’s behavior, and freedom, can be measured by the extent of leadership that is at play. A HOME-LIFE void of rules will have you both struggling when outside of it.

07/04/2025

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07/04/2025

Rules without consequences are merely suggestions.

We all know when rules are soft, or a consequence sounds more like an empty threat, even our dogs.

“We’re leaving the park if you throw one more piece of mulch at your Sister!” (But you just got there, and turning around to go home is more hassle so you let it slide, again).

“No more electronics for 2 weeks!” (But your kid will not sit and be quiet for even a minute so you can gather your thoughts, so you hand him your tablet to shut them up).

Any crack in our believability, invites opportunistic susceptibility.

An impeccable Heel that turns into sniffing, then pulling again. The “Stay” that was enforced without debate that no longer is. Or the single call from the back yard that now requires 5, 6, or 8 “Come’s” before the dog finally returns to you.

All it takes is one teeny tiny lil fissure in your rule setting for the dog to seize its opportunity to fulfill its own desire.

Here’s the thing…

Dogs don’t want to Heel, or Recall off of the rabbit, or “Stay” when something enticing flashes before them. They will only perform these tasks when their person demands the standard, consistently.

Rules without repercussion become debatable propositions. And anything debatable in the face or more enticing temptation is easily dismissed.

07/04/2025

The Owner-To-Dog association can be a powerful force. So much so in fact, that it can lead to some extremely unhealthy habits, which can be easily assimilated to a drug addiction.

Owners “unintentionally” become their dog’s trigger, or cue, to elicit destructive separation anxiety, hyperactivity, and manic arousal, where the mere sight or scent of them reminds the dog of how he feels about the owner, and how they spend their time together.

When your relationship with your dog is heavily skewed to one side, that of play time, lap time, treats, food, and a ton of affection, he sees you in the only perspective you’ve to offered— soft, fun, and ready to be taken advantage of. This one-dimensional relationship fuels his stress and anxiety, while he worries about where you are at all times, or if that stranger is getting a bit to close to his prized possession. His addiction grows so intense that it is nearly impossible for him to listen or learn when in your presence.

When your relationship with your dog is based in compounded allowances and a lack of believability, it needs to be recalibrated and rebalanced from the lopsided, one-dimensional relationship you currently share.

How?

By sharing the other dimension necessary for true balance—Leadership.

Removing unearned privileges and excessive freedoms can shift the way your dog currently views you. A dog used to getting away with whatever he fancies will need a complete reversal in how he is managed in order to change his perception of the softy he was so habituated to taking advantage of.

The assertive side of the coin paves way for all that easy, fun stuff we give excessively and so freely. Once that perception of you changes, and depending on how bad things have gotten, you can let the pendulum start swinging to the softer side. But not a moment before you see the respect, manners, and healthy choices on a reg.

07/03/2025

Doesn’t it just feel so gooood to give your dog their every heart’s desire! AND to be the source of all that pampering! I mean, the sheer joy they bring when they perk up out of something we offer is unmatchable!

But what if what your dog actually desired didn’t feel so good to you, but was what they desperately yearned for in order to feel safe, content, and happy?

So oftentimes, what our dogs need for true wellbeing isn’t what we humans feel is fun at all!

For example:
— Can I crate you (even though I secretly hate putting you in a cage), because I know that this confined space brings you peace of mind to be able to tune out the chaos of the world around you.
— Can I make certain you spend time on Place (even though I’d much rather you be in my lap) because all this skin-time is creating an unhealthy attachment that seems to be getting worse.
— Can I restrict your free roam (even though I feel freedom would seemingly create the ultimate happiness), because I see it heighten your anxiety. You wouldn’t be pacing otherwise!
— Can I enforce the Heel command on our walks (even though chasing lizards & squirrels, and zig-zagging seems way more fun), because I know deep down that you feel unsafe and scared when your human isn’t leading you at all.

The human interpretation of HAPPY — gobs of treats, loads of affection & attention, unsupervised playtime, and unrestricted freedom — isn’t a one-size-fits-all approach to ensuring happiness.

On the contrary, this misinformed, yet easy assumption, oftentimes will create the exact opposite for the pup that is more emotionally challenged — higher stress, increased anxiety, heightened arousal, hyper-territorial, overly protective, and intensely possessive.

What’s easy (and feels good to us) isn’t always what’s best for the dog.

Dogs carrying any emotional instability need a more personalized, counterbalanced version of LOVE — one nuanced with a balance of soft when earned, and stern when appropriately necessary.

Each dog requires a tailor-made version that serves both the needs of the dog, as well as the needs of the human. OUR job is to know where the dog falls on that personality spectrum, and to provide a very balanced approach to expressing our LOVE, and as a result, creating true happiness.

07/03/2025

The scariest thing a dog owner can say is "I don't judge a dog by its breed, it's all in how you raise them"

No.

Genetics matter, immensely.

Retrievers retrieve,

Herders herd,

Terriers hunt,

Hounds bay,

Guardian breeds guard,

The list goes on.

For example... Sure you can train a dog but you can't take a gamey pit bull who loves to fight and expect to love the drive to kill or maim other dogs (or animals) out of them, you will lose.

It's also extremely irresponsible, ignorant and a disservice to the dog in question to ignore what their breed purpose is...
How that may affect their temperament, drive, biddability and in turn, your lifestyle and your capabilities as a dog owner.

*EDIT*

Wow! This post sure got some attention...

This post DOES NOT support BSL or anything remotely close. It supports unbiased education on what dogs were bred to do so people (including families) are better prepared for the dog they invite into their home.

Purpose bred mixes are a great example of genetics in dogs at play. They are mixing two purebred dogs to complement each other's genetic predispositions that are commonly seen within its breed. Take bull lurchers, bull herders or other sport mixes... They are mixing these specific purebreds with specific genetic traits for specific purposes. Certain breeds excel at certain sports, activities and lifestyles.

Take a hunters lifestyle versus a ranchers lifestyle versus a sport competition lifestyle; each of these requires a specific type of dog to fit in well with it.

Then consider your lifestyle.
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07/02/2025

What happens when you get used to something being there? What happens when that thing disappears? Loss, anxiety, fear, uncertainty.

Here’s what so many owners don’t realize: by trying to “love” their dogs, and by trying to fulfill their own needs, they end up creating massive contrasts... toxic ones, in fact.

In the dog training world, these toxic contrasts get the label of “separation anxiety”.

But it might be easier (and more helpful) for owners to see how these unhealthy states are created, rather than simply attaching a term that almost implies something that came to be without human help.

When a dog gets used to constantly being touched, talked to, close to you, laying on your lap, sleeping with you, following you everywhere at every moment...you’re creating a very clear expectation...

That all of the above will be a constant and can be depended on. You’re literally programming the dog to expect all of the above and to rely on it being there.

But what happens when, after all that programming of expectations, something changes? What if you suddenly have a life change? A new job, a new partner, a new child?

Or what if that change is simply the dog’s dependency deepening? What if all was fine until it wasn’t? What if the dog who used to be able to tolerate your quick run to the store, dinner, or errands suddenly hits the breaking point?

What happens is that you get a toxic contrast. An enormous contrast between what your dog was taught to expect and what reality is now delivering. And what you typically see is a dog falling apart.

You might see destruction, crate breaking, soiling, self-mutilation, constant barking or whining, but most clearly, you’ll see a dog who has been made so dependent on you, it can no longer comfortably exist.

It’s really not complicated. If you teach a dog to expect your presence and interactions constantly, you have to expect your dog to fall apart once you break the toxic deal you’ve made.

Or, you can ensure both you and your dog are healthily independent while still enjoying all the beautiful benefits of the human/dog partnership.

07/02/2025

Over and over we see owners bribing, pleading, negotiating, and finally giving in and tolerating their dog’s terrible behavior all because they’ve convinced themselves they are today’s “modern,” sensitive caretaker. Not wanting to hurt their dog’s feelings, suppress their individuality, or ruin their bond, owners withhold the very thing necessary for a healthy, stable life...

Clarity about right from wrong.

I get it. We humans are hardwired for connection. When we don’t get it from our own species, we turn to the next best thing… the dog. We crave connection so much so that we forfeit rules and accountability for the euphoric feeling of love and sharing.

But here’s the funny thing — Clarity creates trust. Trust deepens bonds. Love is about wanting what’s best for the Other, not about how the Other makes US feel. Overindulgence in any capacity, always comes at a very high cost — ill behaved dogs, nervous and frantic dogs, disrespectful dogs, stressed out dogs, and yep, even dangerous dogs.

A lifestyle void of clarity and consequences for bad choices, is a life where bad choices are made time and again. And worsen!

Our dogs are in desperate need of true and honest direction. Without it, they never learn self control, manners, or how to navigate life in a healthy fashion. It’s time we all examine today’s distorted definition of caregiving. When we confuse allowance with nurturing, are we being selfish, or are we really wanting what’s best for the dog?