Zoë? Taking a break? Unheard of.
Yet the rumours are true! I’ll be back in office on August 3rd to answer all emails and calls. Reception will be spotty and we charge our phones with solar chargers (very unreliable depending on weather) so unless I take a boat to hog the Tim Hortons wifi, you likely won’t hear much from me 🙂↕️
I’ll see you all soon with a sunburn and a skip in my step 🏝️
It was a struggle to get a good headshot of Thea for an introduction so why not a reel that shows off her goofy personality!
The goal with training is for dogs to always maintain their enthusiasm and personality, but with more self control for themselves and some new tools to help their owners communicate with them. If your dog turns into a different dog (in not a positive way) then something is wrong with the method of communication and training for them!
Follow along over the next three weeks to watch how this silly girl learns some manners and skills without losing her spunk!
How could I even begin to thank everyone that has supported me on this insane first year of being a business owner? From friends enduring my odd work schedule of animal care and lessons, to my lovely clients that are putting their all into bettering their life with their dogs. From my family who have supported me from the moment I said I wanted to lean into working with dogs as a profession, to the mentors that got me there. I never considered myself a business savvy person, but the support of a community should never be doubted.
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This journey has been such a wild ride of ups and downs and figuring out how a business works as someone that “just wanted to work with dogs” … but I think in the end it can truly be described for me as Ikigai.
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The Japanese word “Ikigai” means a life’s purpose. It refers to defining your personal meaning of life in relation to your talents, your passion, and your profession.
Working with dogs is gruelling work, especially when you work for yourself. It has odd hours, poop smeared kennels, making your own social media content, constant barking, physiotherapy appointments for my back and shoulders from pulling back on leashes, making more content, a messy car, paw prints on your clothes, nose prints on your windows, responding to every call and email that shows up, making more Instagram content, and just when you think it’s settled down someone throws up on the rug.
And yet… I couldn’t see myself doing anything else.
The rewards are so much greater than dragging a dirty kennel up the stairs at 3 am in the winter to wash.
I’ve laughed with clients, cried with clients, and hit goals with clients that we didn’t even think were possible until we tried. I’ve worked with aggressive little dogs, gentle giants, foreign breeds, more local breeds, and everything in between.
When I was 6 years old, I used to reply to chain emails amongst my friends that my top three dream jobs were to own a dog kennel, be a dog tr
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Voice overs aren’t usually my thing but I thought it could be interesting for this case.
I actually took this video initially to watch back on her body language but then realized it would be good to demonstrate the power of markers, reward placement, and PATIENCE.
Dog training isn’t always fast, instantly rewarding, or flashy. Sometimes it’s sitting in front of a crate chucking beef liver and saying yes for 17 minutes.
As long as the goal is accomplished with the least conflict and pressure possible, the patience pays off.
PS it’s cleaning day 😅
10 minutes cut down to 1 minute. Recall from food, foundations for the piece of cake “leave it” method, heeling, muzzle training, desensitizing to touch around sensitive areas…. And some snuggles.
Sunshine and puppies, what more could you ask for?
💃🏻 Every day is a dance party with our overnight boarding crew 🕺🏻
The first day of any board and train is so important. It’s about the decompression in a new environment, the foundations of your relationship as a trainer with a dog, being able to evaluate them on a one on one basis (that’s right, as soon as the leash is handed over some dogs can become VERY different out of their comfort zone). There’s obviously so many things that are left out in this 15 second video that’s fit to a trend. With a dog like Rosie who’s 6 months old and just here to learn some manners and foundations, here are some of the ways I like to introduce her to her new environment in the least stressful way:
🐾 letting them sniff around potty/explore their new environment
🐾 playing with them if that’s something they want to do. Rosie loves Chuckit balls and playing fetch allows her to explore her new environment without fixating or worrying about new things too much while building some value in me.
🐾 finding the right treats for her to use as reinforcers. For some dogs, kibble ain’t it and that’s ok. Beef liver can be your friend and getting some easy snacks for sitting or giving engagement is easy to do for them!
🐾 crate time to decompress with some water after they’ve stretched their legs and tired out a bit. Being in a new place with new people can be stressful and the crate can be a great familiar place to decompress away from all the new happenings. If it’s taught right, it can be a great safe space and Rosie went right in, took a drink, and settled down for a nap. We don’t want to overstimulate our new friend or make the adjustment more stressful than it needs to be!
Every dog is different but these are just some of the things that helped Rosie to settle in. What are some ways you like to help your training clients or your own dog settle in a new place?
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Tomorrow, we’ll start learning and building our relationship further but today is all about structure and settling in.
It sounds funny that my favourite part of a board and train is when they go home but there’s just something so rewarding about seeing my clients and their dogs be reunited and watching them learn the ropes. With a Leo, seeing their reaction to his transformation from nervous and on edge to calm and trusting was well worth the six weeks of work!
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Follow me on TikTok! Do I post there frequently? No. But when I do it’s good I promise.
Doing a bit of luring and reward with Miss Daisy this morning for her breakfast. I wanted to see where she was at in understanding her commands in a low distraction environment for reward. A lot of it comes back to making sure that foundation of understanding is super solid so that when they’re in a high distraction environment they still know how to comply!
Of course, we can’t forget the decompression snuggle after we’re done. A seven minute long fast paced training session is a lot of mental work for a 9 month old puppy!
Oh to be a dog raised by a cat…
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Looking to play in the snow off leash with your dog? Check out our December promotion on civilcanine.com or send us an email at [email protected]!
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Bandana by Outlaw Canine Apparel - @outlaw_canine
