Kool K9 Dog Training

31/12/2025

Happy New Year and here is to 2026 - spending more time with your dog, loving them, walking them, taking them to fun places where they can run and swim and spending some time training or starting a new dog sport to give you and your dog an outlet.

27/12/2025

I have 2 Border Collies that have a double coat and have never shaved them because I know shaving will upset the ability of the coat to thermoregulate. I also have a Lowchen that has a single coat and he needs his coat managed by clipping. Think before shaving your double coated dog as you are not helping it be any cooler!

🐾 Why You Shouldn’t Shave Your Dog: Understanding Double-Coated vs. Single-Coated Dogs 🐶☀️

This image shows why coat type matters and why shaving many dogs can actually make them hotter, not cooler.

🔍 What the image is showing

Stage 1: Healthy, groomed coat (left)

Guard hairs sit on top, undercoat is light and well-maintained

Cool air can move down to the skin

Sunlight is mostly reflected off the outer coat
➡️ This is how a coat is meant to work

Stage 2: Excess undercoat buildup (middle)

Loose undercoat becomes dense and compacted

Airflow is blocked

Heat becomes trapped
➡️ Dog overheats because of poor grooming, not because of too much hair

Stage 3: Shaved coat (right)

Protective guard hairs are gone

Sunlight hits close to the skin

Heat radiates directly into the body

Skin is exposed and vulnerable
➡️ Higher risk of overheating, sunburn, and skin damage

🧬 Double-Coated Dogs: Why Shaving Is Harmful

Examples: Huskies, Golden Retrievers, German Shepherds, Labs, Aussies, Border Collies, Pomeranians

Double coats have:

Topcoat (guard hairs): Reflect sunlight, repel dirt and moisture

Undercoat: Insulates against both heat and cold

💡 Key science point:
A double coat works like a natural temperature regulator. When properly groomed (deshedded, not shaved), it allows airflow while shielding the skin from UV radiation.

🚫 Shaving a double-coated dog can:

* Disrupt natural temperature regulation

* Cause heat to pe*****te more easily

* Lead to sunburn (dogs have much thinner skin than humans)

* Result in uneven or incomplete coat regrowth (coat damage or “coat blow”)

* Increase risk of skin infections and irritation

➡️ The problem is trapped undercoat, not hair length.
The solution is deshedding, not shaving.

✂️ Single-Coated Dogs: When Shaving May Be Appropriate

Examples: Poodles, Shih Tzus, Maltese, Yorkies

Single-coated dogs:

* Lack a dense insulating undercoat

* Hair grows continuously, similar to human hair

✅ For these dogs:

* Haircuts can improve comfort and hygiene

* Coat length can be adjusted safely

* Sun protection may still be needed if clipped very short

⚠️ Even with single coats, shaving too short can still increase sunburn risk.

☀️ Important Skin Facts

* Dog skin is thinner than human skin

* Less natural UV protection

* Light-colored or pink skin burns faster

* Sunburn increases the risk of long-term skin damage

* Shaving removes the dog’s first line of defense against the sun.

✅ Best Practices Instead of Shaving

✔ Regular brushing and deshedding
✔ Professional grooming during heavy shed seasons
✔ Keeping mats out of the undercoat
✔ Shade, hydration, and airflow
✔ Cooling mats or fans for hot weather

🐕 Bottom Line

✖ Shaving a double-coated dog does not keep them cooler
✔ Proper grooming preserves the coat’s natural cooling system
✔ Coat type matters — one approach does not fit all dogs

Understanding how a dog’s coat works helps us keep them healthier, cooler, and safer all year long 💛

Stating it very clearly ...... if your Border Collies feels cooler after shaving it is because you are not grooming them correctly &/or frequently enough, NOT because they have a "heavy" coat!

📣 Share this to help stop the “shave them to cool them” myth!

24/12/2025

A very Merry Christmas to you all!

19/12/2025

I have been working with Lola this cute pup. But she is not so cute when she is barking non stop, rushing at cars and showing reactive behaviour to people and dogs. Lola’s owner has seen some improvements so I will keep working with her in 2026.

16/12/2025

And it is a “wrap’ the very last Kool K9 class for 2025!

15/12/2025

The last Level 2 class for 2025 practicing their skills at Hamilton Lake

09/12/2025

This can be tricky to determine but always we need to think of the dog. If your dog is very excited or just not ‘listening’ when you know he knows the behaviour, stop and give the dog a break and the other bonus is you will not get frustrated. 🙂

Don't fight against it, work with it!⚡
There is a zone.
It's not mystical or magical, it's neurological and simply the best time to teach.

The "perfect" technique means nothing if we don't respect just how a dog is feeling before we start.
This is a little tricky to explain and seems a bit contradictory to many, but good dog trainers simply won't persist to teach when a dog is not in a true learning state.
That does not mean we give up, it just means we change the conditions first.
We attempt again after we have used those little tricks we know to reduce over arousal, anxiety or we have figured out just what this dog needs.
Even then, we may only get a few golden moments of engagement in.

Then we wait for the next opening.
We see it's coming, we see that arousal settling or that confidence builds again and "bam" we will get another few minutes in.
That's when we can really make a difference.
Those little moments we had together become more frequent and that relationship is building for us both. Perfect!

Find those little moments.
Find what makes your dog "spark" in those moments.
But, respect that sometimes those moments may be few and far between when a dog is either hyper or hypo.

Another point here. This is individual.
It doesn't mean that dogs wont engage with you when they are in those extremes.
There are always dogs that will, and happily!

The zone is there, it just shifts for each individual dog.

08/12/2025

A growl is not something we want to hear from our dog but if you do hear it you need to take notice - why is my dog growling, why is it worried? Then do something to help your dog. And by the way punishing does not necessarily mean physically punishing it can mean speaking harshly to the dog.

DONT PUNISH THE GROWL

We dont go through life being a ray of sunshine 24/7.

Let’s be honest,.nobody can be “perfectly pleasant” all the time. We all have moments where we need to set a boundary, say no thanks, or let someone know we’re uncomfortable or displeased.

Dogs are no different.

And yet… heaven forbid a dog growls.

Suddenly people panic, punish, or treat the dog like it’s “being bad.”
But here’s the truth: growling is NORMAL.

It’s communication, its designed to make something stop or go away.

A growl is a dog’s way of saying,
“I’m uncomfortable.”
“I don’t like that.”
“Please give me space.”
"STOP"

It’s the canine equivalent of a boundary.

You can work on adjusting certain boundaries, gently and thoughtfully, with positive reinforcement and trust-building.

But for the love of all things dog, do not punish the growl.

Punishing a dog for growling doesn’t fix the emotion behind it. It just silences the warning.
And a dog who’s too scared to growl is a dog who skips straight to a bite.

So ask yourself honestly:
What would you prefer a clear warning?
or a dog who feels they have no safe way to speak?

Let growls be conversation starters, not punishable offenses.

Your dog deserves to feel safe expressing themselves.
And you both deserve a relationship built on communication, not fear.

(Context matters when it comes to growling. Many dogs are vocal and growl during play as an example. Knowing how to observe and recognise communication is a vital skill)

08/12/2025

We talked talked about this in class tonight. Of course you need to be able to read your dog and if it is too excited and pulling forward or anxious or reactive and barking, you need to turn away and give your dog more distance- but let it look again from the greater safe distance.

Let them look !
They need to observe and see what is around them if they should learn to cope.
- looking without being disturbed by us
- time to digest and learn
- first at safe distance
That is how they learn about their environment.
Making them look another way might be more convenient for ourselves, but the dog does not learn anything., except following demands, which gives them no life skills.

So give them time to look and make their choices. They are so much better at being dogs. - polite, social and conflict solving - than we can teach them to be.

That is why my favourite thing on earth is observing dogs. It makes me happy

06/12/2025

Today I wore my ‘ other hat’ and coached a training day in a new sport called Hoopers. The dog in this video, Ice ‘nailed’ quite an advanced challenge. If you are interested in Hoopers pm me and I can give you information about it.

26/11/2025

This is Winston and he is a 6 months old Golden Retriever. We have been working on his recall because it wasnt too good! His main distraction is people that he wants to go and say hello to. He and his owner have worked hard and this is the result .if Winston came when he was called he was cued to go back to the person for pats as this was the reward he wanted.