Smart Dog Training

08/26/2024

Happy International Dog Day from Smartdog Training Team! 🐶
🐾 Share a picture of your furry friend in the comments, and let’s fill this post with tail-wagging happiness!

08/26/2024

Zephyr is taking a little break from training.

Training your dog for 1-2 minutes and then giving them a little break before their next 1-2 minute training session will help keep them wanting more and absorbing the most information.

08/21/2024

Titles and Brags from our AAC trial this weekend.

Congratulations to everyone for some beautiful moments. These teams managed to string moments together to gain titles and ribbons. Well done.

Cindy Thomas and Ziggy Agility Dog of Canada
Nancy Heath and Walter Expert Bronze Gamble
Marti Lembke and Sindri Masters Gamble Dog of Canada
Philippa Sloan and Idgie Expert Bronze Gamble
Brianna Horel and Tipper Masters Jumpers and AtCH! :)
Kim Gorely and Stream Masters Jumpers and AtCH :)
Lisa Cianci and Dyson Starters Games Dog of Canada
Nancy Heath and Little Joe Masters Jumper Dog of Canada
Erin Parsons and Gordon Expert Gold Snooker
Gabrielle Veto and Freddie Advanced Agility Dog of Canada

08/21/2024

If your pup loves toys, they can be used to reinforce behaviour instead of food. Mango thinks toys are great reinforcement!

08/19/2024

Join SmartDog Training Community!🐶🐾
🐾 Enhance your pup's skills with our Basic Classes led by certified trainers!
We have a few spots left in our Aug 28th class. Don't miss out on the final opportunity to enroll in our puppy classes at a 20% discount!
https://smartdogtraining.dogbizpro.com/public/registration/index.aspx?schedule=1247
Remember that starting early with training tends to result in a much faster resolution of issues

08/19/2024

That's a wrap folks.. made in the shade AAC trial was definitely part sun, part shade and part lightning - in the sky and on courses. Big thank you to Ivy Marie and Anna Lupacchino for keeping us thinking, learning and stringing some brilliant moments together!! Your courses were fun, your company lovely and your wisdom and humour much appreciated. Brags and titles to come tomorrow or Tuesday.

As many of you know life gets in the way sometimes... we missed Margaret a lot, and hope you are recovering well Margaret Parkinson. People came forward in ways that were so inspired.. I know life is getting in the way for many of you too.. So many things to do and yet you still find a way to show up.. Thank you old friends and new ones too. I am deeply honoured to know so many thoughtful, hard working and fun people.

Swift my new puppy survived her health scare and despite my lack of sleep Saturday night and concern for her Sunday the trial finished successfully and early. Thanks again so much for the extra hands at the end of the day. You people get stuff done!!

We didn't quite get as many photos as sometimes but i do have a little video of a very few snippets of what i get up to on a typical Friday morning before a trial. .. I always hope the footing, the courses, the light is as good as it can be for you and your fur friends.

08/11/2024

🎉 Congratulations to Our Recent Graduates!🎉

A big shoutout to Sam, Yogi, Maïka, and Hildy for doing a fantastic job and graduating from our Basic Class! 🐾👏 We're so proud of the progress you and your pups have made.

🐶 **Interested in joining our Basic Class?**
We still have a few spots left in our upcoming session on **August 14th at 6 PM** at our McTavish location. (This class is still 20% off, valid only for August classes)
Register here: https://smartdogtraining.dogbizpro.com/public/registration/index.aspx?schedule=1241

08/07/2024

We finished Intermediate Class with some dog tricks! This is Loki learning how to spin. See the comments for a video of Griffin learning how to weave legs.

Training should be fun, not just a chore. Teaching tricks to your dog is one more way to engage them and have fun with them!

08/04/2024

Ode recently had an eye infection and needed eye drops every 8 hours. With time and patience, it's possible to teach a dog to willingly accept necessary care. Ode now sits calmly through the procedure and gets a yummy food reward!

07/31/2024

Can small dogs be trained to leash walk? They sure can! Four-month-old Mango is practicing his simple leash walking skills. Since little dogs have little tummies, we use soft and smelly food that can be broken down into tiny little bits, or even their kibble if they're motivated to work for it. Good job, Team Mango!

07/22/2024

This amazing team won a ribbon for the Sit Challenge from our basic obedience curriculum.
Way to go team Soleil!!! 🥇

07/19/2024

When assessing unwanted behaviour a skilled dog trainer will look at the function (or purpose) of the behaviour.. so why does the dog want to lie on the dishwasher door? If we know what function lying in dishwasher serves we can easily start to change her behaviour. I have some clues as to why she is doing this.. If anyone can guess why this naughty puppy is lying in dishwasher door you can get $10 off your next purchase with SmartDog.. So trial entries, arena rentals, classes, privates etc..

07/17/2024

Indy (4.5 months old) practicing a beginner's recall. We sometimes call this the Kindergarten Recall because it takes time and scaffolding of the training to build up to a University Recall (recall out of playing with other dogs or in another scenario that the dog finds exciting). Kindergarten Recalls are easy, short successes where the dog comes running full speed when called, in a location with very little distraction. Indy is well on his way to graduating to Elementary School Recalls, which we'll start in class next week!

07/16/2024

We like to tire out our puppies before work shifts. A nice walk, some training and then we didn't want her to sleep before we were ready to work so I call this 'tired puppy with blueberry'.

What have you done to keep a puppy awake a little longer?

07/11/2024

🎉🐶 Celebrate Our 20th Anniversary with 20% Off Puppy Classes! 🎉🐶

We're happy to mark two decades of helping puppies and their families! As a thank you for your support, enjoy 20% off our puppy classes.

Register now and give your puppy the best start!

https://smartdogtraining.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

(No need to calculate—the price is already adjusted)

07/10/2024

Who has a dog that makes instant friends? For those of you whose dogs don't make instant friends, what does your dog need when meeting a new dog to make the encounter friendly? (Bonus points for sharing a photo of your dog with a dog friend!)

07/03/2024

Normal puppies have no idea how to walk on a leash. It's not really normal for them to walk at a steady human pace.. So, like you they can feel a bit frustrated, (and/or playful too) ... Have patience. This stuff is normal and teaching a puppy to walk on a leash can take a lot of practise. If puppy is like the one in the video here - just take a break if you can..take the puppy off the leash if possible, or carry puppy to safe area to take a break. We teach the puppy to stand still in the leash walking position first, before starting to walk around, as this is an easier way to start!

07/02/2024

🤭

06/28/2024

Dewey was not done training even though the humans were done and heading inside.

It's good to have a consistent cue letting your dog know when a training session is over.

06/26/2024

06/25/2024

"Normal" puppy behaviour does involve investigations of objects in the mouth. Of course we want to keep our puppies safe and don't want them ingesting dangerous things such as poisonous mushrooms. A lot of the time young puppies investigate and let go. If people begin taking everything out of the mouth, it can actually create swallowing and some guarding. If your puppy has something safe in their mouth such as a leaf, consider observing what happens. If they chew on it for a bit and spit it out - wonderful!! Safe items are usually paper, pine cones, kleenex, and grasses. The more puppy is allowed to investigate with their mouth, usually the faster they drop things. This puppy learned quickly that thistles were not that fun to grab!! Also, puppies in our classes learn an easy and quick exercises for trading items we don't want them to have.
Keep watching for more 'normal puppy behaviour '. Some of them should be fun because biting, barking, peeing can all be considered normal. 😊

06/12/2024

Tired of tripping on your dog in the kitchen? A foundational part of our Level 1 Basic class is teaching the dogs to settle on a mat, bed, or in a crate when you're doing things like cooking, cleaning up, eating, etc. No more dogs underfoot in the kitchen!

06/05/2024

🐾Join our socialization session for small dogs!🐾We will be looking at the body language and cues your dogs are giving, discussing ideal social interactions and helping your dog to increase confidence and social skills with other small dogs. Register here: (June 19th at 4:30 pm)
https://smartdogtraining.dogbizpro.com/public/registration/index.aspx?schedule=1236

05/29/2024

Chappie (lab) and Charlie (aussie doodle) leash walking in our Intermediate class. Both these dogs are extremely social adolescents! Not only are they walking past each other, they are also walking politely past other humans, including me crouched down holding the camera.

After some polite leash walking they were given the opportunity to say "hi". In this case, both dogs thought it was more interesting to check out the other human! Great job, Chappie and Charlie!

05/28/2024

https://www.facebook.com/share/91aCS9gUwqcRt4y6/?mibextid=xfxF2i

📣 Several studies have explored contagious yawning in dogs, which occurs when dogs yawn in response to seeing a human or another dog yawn. Here’s what we know:

Contagious Yawning in Dogs

💡Evidence: Research has confirmed that dogs are more likely to yawn when their owners yawn. This phenomenon mirrors contagious yawning observed in humans.

🤝 Social Bond: A study from a University in Tokyo found that dogs yawned twice as often after watching their owners yawn compared to watching strangers yawn. This suggests a social bond associated with empathy might be behind this behavior.

🗣️ Debate: However, other studies have not conclusively established a direct connection between contagious yawning and empathy in dogs1. A meta-analysis of 257 dogs did not find strong evidence for this link.

💕 Emotional Connection:
Dr. Brian Hare, founder of the Duke Canine Cognition Center, suggests that dogs who yawn when their owners do may be more emotionally connected to them. Dogs understand humans better than any other animal, including primates.

🥱 Contagious Yawning Prevalence:
Dr. Hare’s research found that only about 5% of dogs yawn contagiously. However, this data comes from an online test called Dognition, which differs from other studies that observed dogs for longer periods after their owners yawned.

In summary, while contagious yawning in dogs remains an intriguing area of study, the exact reasons behind it are still being explored.

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0071365

Joly-Mascheroni, R., Senju, A., & Shepherd, A. (2008). Dogs catch human yawns Biology Letters, 4 (5), 446-448. DOI: 10.1098/rsbl.2008.0333

Matthew W. Campbell, & Frans B. M. de Waal (2011). Ingroup-Outgroup Bias in Contagious Yawning by Chimpanzees Supports Link to Empathy PLoS ONE, 6 (4) : 10.1371/journal.pone.0018283

Harr, A., Gilbert, V., & Phillips, K. (2009). Do dogs (Canis familiaris) show contagious yawning? Animal Cognition, 12 (6), 833-837 DOI: 10.1007/s10071-009-0233-0

O’Hara, S., & Reeve, A. (2011). A test of the yawning contagion and emotional connectedness hypothesis in dogs, Canis familiaris Animal Behaviour, 81 (1), 335-340 DOI: 10.1016/j.anbehav.2010.11.005

05/20/2024

Join SmartDog Training Community!🐶🐾
🐾 Enhance your pup's skills with our Basic Classes led by certified trainers!
Secure your spot today.
https://smartdogtraining.dogbizpro.com/public/registration/index.aspx?schedule=1218
Remember that starting early with training tends to result in a much faster resolution of issues.

05/16/2024

Thanks to everyone at our recent AAC Trial . We raised 259.75 and i bumped that by $230.25 for an even $500 donation to the Canadian Red Cross. Doing amazing work in Ukraine, Gaza, our own devastating Canadian wild fire zones and so much more.. thank you everyone!!

05/13/2024

What a big list of achievements.. Congratulations to everyone who earned titles at our AAC Agility trial this weekend!!

Madeleine Hamza and Troy – Masters Steeplechase Dog of Canada
Bobbi Leach and Jett – Starters Games Dog of Canada
Meredith Reeve and Geordie – Expert Bronze Jumpers and Bronze Versatility
Deedra Ferraro and Gypsy – Expert Bronze Jumpers
Deedra Ferraro and Onyx – Masters Steeplechase Dog of Canada, Expert Bronze Snooker
Ali Edgell and Sally – Advanced Games Dog of Canada
Ali Erskine and Loot – Agility Dog of Canada
Heather Graves and Skye – Advanced Agility Dog of Canada
Ray Bronson and Kai – Agility Dog of Canada
Robin Miller and Carmela – Masters Snooker Dog of Canada and Agility Trial Champion of Canada
Patrice Abbott and Koa – Starters Games Dog of Canada
Erin Parsons and Rhoda – Starters Games Dog of Canada
Jill Brooks and Quill – Advanced Games Dog of Canada
Ayri Niemi and Buck – Starters Games Dog of Canada
Dale Storm and Cassie – Starters Games Dog of Canada
Sequoia Harmer and Moss – Masters Snooker Dog of Canada, Masters Gamble Dog of Canada, Agility Trial Champion of Canada

05/13/2024

Huge thanks to Paula Collins and France Beckner for a super fun filled AAC trial this weekend. So many brags we will do that in a separate post! Courses were fun and big with some good tests...The weather was perfect, the volunteerism was amazing and the runs were so interesting for bigs and smalls alike.. It was nice to see many handling options for same course..

Much gratitude to the steady, smiling volunteerism.. Someone was always there to help another fellow competitor have their turn..or train them to adjust the wall jump or rake the weaves.. even if it was late in the day or first thing in the morning. Thank you to those that go above and beyond. I see you and you inspire me to keep doing this.. .Also special thanks to @ Margaret Parkinson for being the best trial co-ordinator!!! and to everyone that came and helped set up or did take down... those are monster tasks and everyone that comes takes such a load off what does amount to be a very long weekend for Margaret and myself. If you came early or stayed late and did not get a thank you gift this weekend please let know!! Meredith Reeve... i actually owe you $ and have not forgotten! What an incredible group of people this weekend. Also shout out to https://www.facebook.com/barkmeowlove for helping to keep the volunteers motivated with your great prizes. See you all in Sept and stand by for some fun trials that are really needed so we can practise some skills and reinforce our dogs in action!!