If you don't want to ditch the routine entirely and keep regular mealtimes for your dogs, then ditch the bowl and swap for a lickmat or slow feeder instead to build calmness and provide natural enrichment.
This engages our dog in licking which is a natural behavior for dogs, and it can actually be beneficial for their health!
When dogs lick, they release endorphins, which are natural mood elevators. This can help to calm and soothe them, especially in stressful situations.
This is especially helpful for reactive and anxious dogs, and dogs that struggle to settle.
So swap that bowl and give it a try!
#dogbehaviour #dogs #doglovers #calmness #keepcalm #calmdown
I had the pleasure of training with this gorgeous pup this week.
She is struggling with excessive pulling on walks and a lack of engagement with her owner.
We already worked in building calmness and her Disengagement skills before now working on growing more focus.
We started off the session with her pulling, and being completely distracted sniffing.
We implemented Orientation and targeting games that help her to focus on us and this is the result after just a few minutes play. More engagement and a better focused dog.
Of course, this was only one session and it requires a lot more reward history for this to start being the new norm and brain pathways to rewire but it's a great win for dog and owner from which they can now build a solid foundation.
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #trainandtransform #games #dogs #doglovers
A good walk in the park session today - we had 4 dogs all with different challenges but they did really well. Even with the loose and uncontrolled dogs out for a walk that were testing their skills!
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #trainandtransform #games #dogs #doglovers #walkinthepark
Last week of the Naughty but Nice Workshop.
As we had storm Darragh, we focused on enrichment for indoors, and activities that can be beneficial to build confidence in reactive dogs.
Well done all!
That's my workshops wrapped for this year, but get signed up for the new year - starting with confidence and socialisation in January!
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #trainandtransform #games #dogs #doglovers #theresagameforthat #naughtydog #reactivedog
Middle - one of my favourite behaviours to teach because it is just so versatile and builds on so many skills
🐾 Proximity
🐾 Confidence
🐾 Body awareness
🐾 Flexibility
🐾 Focus
It is a great behaviour for naughty dogs and it has gotten us out of trouble many times. It is also a fantastic basis to build tricks!
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #dogs #doglovers #tricks #trickdog #naughtydog #trainsandtransform #gamesbaseddogtraining
It's very easy to provide natural enrichment to our dog's day simply by ditching the bowl and feeding their daily food allowance in many different forms.
Aside from using their daily food allowance for my training, my dogs get their food in a variety of ways, all of which are designed to be naturally enriching and, more importantly, to support one key skill - Calmness.
I see so many owners struggling with their dog not being able to settle, jumping, mouthing, and just being wired. A lack of calmness and having the ability to slow down is at the core of this problem.
By engaging dogs into naturally calming but enriching activities such as chewing, licking and sniffing, we can help our dogs with bringing their energy down and start being able to settle.
How are you going to ditch your bowl?
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #trainandtransform #games #dogs #doglovers #lickmat #enrichment #calmness
We want our dog to be able to make the right choice rather than having to cue them to do the right thing.
This is where the Get It cue comes in - if we are putting value in the release, and value in the waiting for the reward to come to our dogs, rather than chasing it, we already have a dog that is making a lot more correct choices than one that acts totally on impulses.
And this game is so easy to get started on building a level of impulse control, on top of which we can layer many other skills.
Want to know how to get started?
Check out my class schedule or get in touch for some 1-2-1 advice, either in person or online.
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #dogs #doglovers #trainandtransform #TrainAndPlay #selfcontrol #naughtydog
Many times, I see dogs that are heavily cued to 'behave', however, in the absence of a cue, they struggle to make the correct decisions.
That's why I love this 'Get it' came because it is so powerful in what it teaches our dogs. It teaches the dog to make the right choice, rather than relying on us to tell them to 'leave it' or to 'wait' - and how amazing is it having a dog where you don't have to worry about the outcome when food drops on the floor, or when there is a rabbit just crossing your path?
It's amazing.
And there are so many layers of learning to this game that we are not only teaching our dog that one skills, but actually, we are growing mutiple skills from self control to being able to listen in arousal and remaining calm.
Want to learn more? Than simply follow me, or send me a message to chat further.
#dogs #doglovers #dogtraining #dogbehaviour #trainsandtransform #gamesbasedtraining #selfcontrol #theresagameforthat
I'm having workers round at the moment putting flooring down in our new home.
It's been challenging having a stranger in the house as we haven't done a lot of work on visitors (I am so antisocial, I don't usually have any 😂).
So how did I set the dogs up?
I made sure they were all settled in a room before arrival of the workmen. Upon their arrival, they got a long lasting chew and then we DMT'd a lot of the noise that was going on until eventually, they all managed to settle.
However, that only lasted as long as I was in the room; if I left the room, or if I dared to speak with the workmen, they would set off again.
So it's not all rainbows, and we have a lot of struggles, especially being in a new home with no clear structure at the moment while there is boxes everywhere, but we need to take the wins where we can get them!
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #trainandtransform #games #dogs #doglovers #calmness #newhome
Another great lead strategy for reactive dogs is a skill called giving into lead pressure.
Rather than our dogs instictively pulling against the tension on the lead, we want to teach them to follow the tension on the lead - and that creates a natural disengagement cue for dogs that may like to pull on lead, or lunge forwards.
It is so powerful not just for reactive dogs, but those that struggle with lead pulling, and any other dog as it makes walks and life so much more enjoyable with a dog that works with me, rather than against me.
Want to learn more? Follow me for regular training tips or sign up to one of my workshops - online options coming soon!
#dogtraining #dogbehavior #trainandtransform #gamesbasedtraining #dogs #doglovers #theresagameforthat #reactivedog #reactivedogtraining
We all have those situations where our dog gets stuck on a distraction or even ends up barking an lunging - but how do we move them away?
Probably many of you are trying to coax them away, hanging onto the lead trying to get them to move in a different direction.
But in these situations, it's important that we take full control and are very deliberate and decisive in our actions.
This is where lead strategies such as A to B come in so important. When we have learned this skills, it is like muscle memory moving our dogs out of tricky situations - and our dog feels a lot more reassured because we know exactly what we are doing, and there is a reward coming away from the situation.
#dogtraining #dogbehaviour #trainandtransform #dogs #doglovers #workshop #reactivedog #naughtybutnice
I absolutely love this game because it is such powerful learning for the dogs and you can build so many other behaviours and skills from this.
Bowl to bowl is a shaping game, so the dog is driving the learning and they have to problem solve - this is very powerful, because they get to work it out themselves.
How do you feel when you have just worked out something by yourself? I bet you will be chuffed to bits - it is the same for our dogs, and the learning is so much stronger than luring positions.
It is great for building confidence in anxious dogs and growing the understanding that their actions impact the outcome - something that a lot of anxious dogs have forgotten.
#dogtraining #dogbehavior #dogs #doglovers #trainandtransform #anxiousdog #gamesbaseddogtraining
