Underdog K9 Services

10/14/2023

New blog post!! One of my favourite things about dog training is getting to watch the relationship grow between owner & K9 companion. Training is about fostering mutual respect, understanding and creating a peaceful coexistence.

Building a Stronger Bond: The Transformative Power of Training Your Dog

06/01/2023

Never underestimate the velociraptor stage 🦖

03/12/2023

First lesson with River today!

This pretty lady is a 1 year old rescue working through some dog reactivity.

She’s doing a great job with her heel and will become a master of walking past other dogs in no time!

02/13/2023

Who knows a good human trainer?

01/08/2023

Great job to Archie (left) and Ruthie’s (right) humans!!! 🙌🏼

Both owners started training focused on dog/leash reactivity and recall reliability.

Today was Archie’s 2nd and Ruthie’s 3rd lesson so we decided to use a group lesson to increase the distraction level and to work on reactivity with both dogs at once.

I’m super impressed with both pups and their ability to heel nicely past other exciting dogs and sitting patiently with high-value distractions.

Next up is reliable recall, stay tuned ✌🏽

11/02/2022

Screaming this from the rooftops 📣📣📣

They are 15 years commitment ..

10/09/2022

So thankful to get to work with such amazing people & dogs. ❤️🤍🖤

Underdog K9 Services shared a post on Instagram: "We have so much to be thankful for, but ultimately I’m thankful for every single person I’ve gotten to meet, every dog I’ve gotten to work with and the opportunity to do what I love thanks to all of you 🤍❤️ I’m thankful for my original...

10/05/2022

Love this 🙌🏼 so true and so we’ll written.

IS IT OK FOR DOGS TO BE ON THE COUCH?

It depends.

YES if:

✅ Your dog is calm while on it.
✅ Your dog doesn’t display aggression towards you.
✅ Your dog doesn’t resource guard.
✅ Your dog isn’t destructive.
✅ Your dog gets along well with their housemates.

NO if:

🚫 Your dog treats it like a jungle gym.
🚫 Your dog displays aggression towards you.
🚫 Your dog resource guards.
🚫 Your dog is destructive.
🚫 Your dog fights with their housemates.

The couch is a privilege, not a right. And while this privilege doesn’t have anything to do with most training topics (ex: it doesn’t have anything to do with being “alpha” or how well your dog listens to you) it is an important factor to consider in these certain situations listed.

To clarify… If you have a puppy, or an active adolescent who is playbiting excessively, jumping on top of your head while on the couch, or running across your face while you’re lying down … it’s not safe to have them on the couch. You or someone else will get hurt (inadvertently). It’s better to wait until they are older, more mature, and have learned how to settle before getting access to the couch. If your dog displays aggression towards you as the owner, your dog should never be at eye level or above you for safety reasons. If your dog resource guards, elevated surfaces can increase the value of coveted items and therefore could increase the likelihood of displaying aggression. If your dog is destructive, it will be tempting for them to scratch/bite/tear cushions and pillows. In that case it’s better to wait until they learn to have their needs met in more appropriate ways before being allowed access to the couch. And if your dog fights with other dogs/cats in the home, any elevated surface can potentially be seen as competition, so removing access can limit opportunities for fights as well.

It all depends.

09/28/2022

It always cracks me up when I get the post-train text messages like these.

Mental stimulation is exhausting! With each lesson your dog is learning and taking in so much new information it often leaves them “Knackered” or “Pooped”! 😂

I’m sure I’d sleep like a baby after a 1 hour-long math test, dogs really are just like us.

08/27/2022

Happy International Dog Day to all our favourite furry friends!!

It’s been a busy summer of working with lots of new Underdog K9’s.

I’m so happy that I get the opportunity to work with each and every one of you ❤️

06/29/2022

Doubt they’d even make it 2 hours 🤷🏼‍♀️

LMAO

06/04/2022

👏🏼👏🏼

My dog doesn't want to say hi.

Period.

Full stop.

No, it doesn't matter that your dog is friendly.
No, we don't care that you've owned dogs your entire life.
No, I don't owe you an explanation for why he needs space.
No, I don't need to defend my dog's boundaries to satisfy you.

My dog needs space. That's a complete sentence. That's all you need to know.

It's your responsibility as a human to hear that and respect that. There could be 100 different reasons why I am making this request - those reasons don't matter.

Please respect our space. Respect our words. Respect our boundaries.

My dog doesn't want to say hi.

04/03/2022

Website Update 📣

The Underdog K9 Website got a fresh new face for Spring.

It's puppy season and we're gearing up for lessons every Sunday and Monday!! Group lessons coming soon... Spread the word 🤩

P.S. We added new puppy pictures, is your dog featured on Underdog K9?

www.underdogk9services.com

03/23/2022

Love watching these two work together!!

Marshall is 9 months old now and is starting to get more stubborn, excitable, and strong in his teenage years. His owner did a GREAT job adjusting their leash communication and techniques.

Their walks are already improving ☺️☺️

03/14/2022

Did you know that dogs can go through “The Terrible Teens” too?

Last time I saw Gracie she was just a baby! Now she’s a stubborn teenager who doesn’t want to do her chores (aka sit on command 😂)

It can be an unexpected speed bump for first-time puppy owners. Just like humans, dogs go through many different growth phases. Nervous puppies, curious youngsters, stubborn teens, insecure adults, even cranky seniors. They will always be adapting, growing and changing - just like us!

That’s why training is a life long commitment. Every day is a new day with new opportunities for things to learn 💯

02/14/2022

Merlot, the 5.5 month old Bernadoodle has been picking up training so fast!

Our third lessons together and she’s mastered heel, sit/down and recall. We’ve also worked on some confidence building and sniffy games for her to keep her mind busy.

Tired puppies are non-destructive puppies 😉

Swørn • Butterfly

12/25/2021

Merry Christmas from our pack to yours!! 🎄🎅

11/21/2021

Awesome session with Gracie and her humans today!

Worked on some basics; Heel, Sit, Down, recall and some socialization/playtime to finish the day off. 💪🏽🐕

11/01/2021

New blog post released 📣

Are you a dog or bringing a new into your home?

Check out these tips for how to create a strong, life-long bond and make the adjustment period stress-free! ❤

Just like people, all dogs are unique and will respond to change in their own way. Some adopted dogs will instantly acclimatize to their new life while other dogs may take a lot of time, effort and most importantly, patience. A good rule of thumb is the 3 by 3 Rule; adopted/rescued dogs take approxi...

10/31/2021

First lesson with 12 week old Gracie and her humans!!

The first puppy lesson is always the basics; top 5 commands, food luring, crate training, and socialization tips to get started.

Building a solid foundation is how you create a stable, well behaved adult dog 💪🏽

There’s no such thing as starting too early

10/28/2021

Weird how well behaved you are when you know I have treats in my pockets 🤔

10/26/2021

What I imagine they were talking about:

Ollie: “you okay dude?”
Kingsley: “yeah I just really have to sneeze”

10/20/2021

This made me too happy not to share!! ☺️

Training boils down to 3 core elements: Tools, Technique, and Time.

🔺Find the right Tools that work for you. Don’t be afraid to try new collars, leashes, prong collars, e-collars, etc. Learn your dogs motivators; food, toys, sounds, affection, etc.

🔺Learn the right Techniques. Get a trainer, watch videos, do your research, do what it takes to learn how to handle your dog.

🔺Put in the Time. Nothing happens over night and you will not see results without consistency.

This client had great technique (understanding corrections, timing, motivators, etc.) and was consistently practicing/training but wasn’t seeing the results they wanted.

The only missing piece? The tools. A flat collar was holding them back from their goals.

Every dog and human is unique, it’s all about finding the right combination of tools and techniques that work best for you both💪🏽💪🏽

10/20/2021

Everybody welcome Kaia to the walking fam ❤️

Kaia is a 10 week old Lab who loves treats, her squeaky snake toy, and harassing her feline siblings.

The puppy fever is real… 🥺

10/07/2021

Constantly impressed with these two ❤️

2 years ago Kingsley (left) was highly reactive and dog aggressive especially with male/dominant dogs. And here he is walking alongside another young, male dog.

10 months ago was my first walk with Chester (right). He pulled at distractions, tried to force interactions with other dogs and marked constantly, and here he is walking in a perfect heel next to his pal, Kingsley.

Whatever your goal is, you CAN get there.

10/06/2021

Ollie & Chloe killed it on their first training lesson today! 💪🏽

Ollie has been giving his humans a really hard time with leash pulling and distractions during walks.

Today we switched his harness for a prong collar, fine tuned his heel & sit commands and worked on leave it for distractions.

Check out the immediate difference thanks to the right tools and techniques 😍

09/23/2021

With so many new puppy clients recently, there's been a lot of talk about puppy socialization. 📣

Properly socializing puppies from 8 weeks to 6 months old is one of the best things you can do to be proactive about creating a calm, well-behaved, and happy adult dog.

Check out our most recent blog post to learn more about puppy socialization do's & don'ts!

Socialization has become a buzzword in dog training, but most people have a misconception of what socialization actually means. So what is it? How do we do it properly? This article will teach you what puppy socialization really is and share some useful tips on how to properly socialize your pup! Wh...

09/18/2021

Had a great time working on puppy socialization with Marshall & Ellie today ❤️

Today’s focus:
🔺What does safe play look like?
🔺What boundaries should there be during playtime?
🔺What does body language look like during play?
🔺 How can you tell if the dogs are getting too escalated?

You can learn so much by learning to read your dogs subtle cues!

09/14/2021

It looks like 🌧 🌧 is back!

Can’t be mad when my clients look this cute in the rain jackets though… 🥺

09/03/2021

New blog post released!

Check out the newest post for some of our favourite treats, tools and accessories 😎

When it's time to go pick up your new puppy, there are a million articles about the must-have items: the collar, leash, dog tags, beds, feeding bowls, crates, puppy toys, etcetera. Once you've acquired the essentials, what about the fun stuff? In this article, we share some of our favourite toys, tr...