Fidelio Dog Works

03/22/2024

That’s why we tell clients your session began as we watched you exit your vehicle and ends when you enter it on the way out.
We want them to understand it’s not about the classroom but how you interact throughout the day.
Training is constant in some form or fashion.

08/25/2023

Summertime is the most common time for pets to overheat, but did you know it's easily preventable? Dr Armstrong offers tips to avoid heat stroke in your dog on KXAN. Watch here: https://bit.ly/3R5A1sn

03/10/2023

The below post needs to be on repeat and posted on the reg! Understanding how you are reinforcing the behaviors you despise, is the first step to correct what's going on with your dog. Better yet, get started with a trainer before you bring a puppy or rescue home! Training starts the minute you have the dog with you but prep prior to getting the dog is highly recommended! Thanks Lionheart K9, Dog Training in Maryland! Thankful for your posts!

DogFolk have their own vernacular about certain behaviors, like "What you allow, will continue", "You get what you pet", etc.

It doesn't require much; stroking the dog, reassuring him with mindless chatter (that essentially makes the handler feel better, but really does nothing *positive* to the dog), allowing the dog to escape to the ends of the leash in an attempt to acquire space, or abandon it.

Those actions rarely alleviate the dog’s concern. They actually reinforce it.

Handwaving freakoutery every time a puppy opens its mouth to grab a pant leg or sample a fingertip is more easily resolved by not allowing the behavior to begin with, from the time the pup is tiny as he learns how to make better choices.

Since that is rarely the case, by the time we get these pre-adolescent miscreants, the pattern of 'approaching hand = defensive action' is fairly well-established.

Dogs learn by the examples we practice most often.

Young dogs require a little effort. It really beats waiting until that dog is a mature adult before addressing what was once considered 'cute' behavior in the puppy, and is now full blown defense in the adult.

Sorry, your groomer, vet or other caregivers aren’t going to wait until your dog is asleep to administer to them, groom them or transport them.

Just because you have the luxury to sit with your dog on your lap and wait for it to fall asleep so you can cut a toenail a day doesn't mean that your other caregivers will grant you the same latitude.

And I'm here to tell ya, it is universally a matter of permissiveness without consequence that has reinforced these things.

Smarten up. Nobody has the time for your dog's BS. Nor do they have the patience.

This is no longer a world where defensive/aggressive behavior is tolerated, nor should it be.

02/28/2023

02/01/2023

Your daily anecdote:

Public access for your non-service dog is a privilege, not a 'right'.

When you see dogs in public; in stores, on public transportation, where dogs are generally not allowed, it is becoming difficult to discern whether or not they are service animals or just accompanying the person they are with.

The Americans with Disabilities Act is very specific on their requirements for dogs permitted in public spaces. A service dog must be able to mitigate the disability of its handler. A merchant cannot ask what the disability is. All they can ask is if the dog is a service dog.

The waters get even muddier when merchants cannot distinguish between a service dog, a 'therapy' dog (a dog that provides comfort to others), and an 'emotional support dog' (which provides comfort to the owner).

Therapy dogs are given *no* rights by the ADA, and their presence in a public place is generally by agreement with the facility; like a hospital, library, nursing care facility etc. An 'emotional support dog' is granted access to public transportation, and owners cannot be denied housing because of the dog, but they are not permitted the same protections or access as a service dog.

I have no problem with well-mannered dogs in public. I have personally been responsible for the "No Dogs Allowed" signs and policies to be changed in a variety of locations in at least 3 different states within the last 40 plus years and have written extensively about why public access should be granted to obedient, clean, un-obtrusive dogs.

What I have a problem with is the cavalier attitude of a needy public that tow their ill-mannered animals into a public space and allow it to defile property or invade the personal space of other patrons.

The folks that operate that public space, whether it's a store, restaurant, or bank, have extended you the privilege of occupying their space, often against corporate policies.

Accord yourself respectfully or lose the privilege forever.

01/21/2023

This is so difficult for a lot of clients to grasp. Walking into a home with baby gates everywhere, torn up furniture, and humans at their wits end with a puppy and still refusing to crate a dog. The crate is The Way to a calm neutral and wonderful companion that is both safe for the dog and safe for your stuff! Thanks for the post

Your daily anecdote:

Crating your dog is not a violation of the Geneva Convention. It is neither cruel, nor inhumane.

When owners tell me their dog 'doesn't like' their crate, I ask them if they ever raised children. From infancy into young adulthood, human children display resistance for a lot of reasons, and when humans are small, often they are placed in contraptions that are designed to keep them safe, from themselves, and the environment.

Conditioning your dog to a crate is fairly easy. Put the dog in it. Walk away. Let him have his WalMart hissy fit and return when he is quiet. Don't let him out when he's screaming, because that is going to teach him the more he protests, the faster he gets attention.

Don't be that guy. If your dog doesn't need to go to the bathroom, doesn't need to eat, and has had adequate exercise and enrichment, just like your kid, you can 'send him to his room' with a reasonable expectation that he will be (or become) cooperative with the prospect of confinement.

Is there such a thing as 'too much time in a crate?" Absolutely, but what we are addressing here is conditioning a dog to accommodate a crate, so that the humans in their life can have some peace and quiet, just like you did when your kids finally went down for their naps, or bedtime each night, before you poured yourself a belt of whisky and sat down for the first time all day.

Crates are tools, not torture devices.

01/01/2023

Love this! Great message to start off 2023! Let us know how we can help. Happy new year!

2022 has finally come to a close.

Every year, I usually take a look at my inquiries and see what types of issues most folks contact us about training for.

No surprise, the biggest complaint(s) were *Generalized Disobedience* with our second- most common complaint of *aggression*.

Housebreaking/crate training issues came in a solid 3rd place.

Several of our metrics that indicate different manifestations of 'aggression' show that they are *identical in frequency* to our overall stats for *Generalized Disobedience*.

I always find it interesting that people want to break things down into atomic sub-particles when in fact, most dog behavior complaints center around maybe two very solve-able issues.

Dogs are given too much freedom too soon.

Dogs are allowed to engage in at-risk behavior without consequence as a result of having been given too much freedom, too soon.

Everyone wants to make a big to-do over a dog behaving aggressively, or assign some deep meaning to it's fearful behavior. Nine times out of 10, the dog is simply responding to what is occurring nearby.

Generalized disobedience is solved pretty easily with a little bit of forethought and the perseverance to see a training plan genuinely completed, not abandoned because "too time-consuming", "too hard", or "too boring".

"It's not that fun" is another one that gets me. Well, neither is that lawsuit you're gonna get when your dog bites the neighbor kid in the face.

All of that beautiful new furniture you just bought? Yeah.

Crates aren't cruel. Not in the way an expensive obstruction surgery is going to be.

Or death.

The problem is, nobody comes to trainers *before* they start seeing indicators that something is not right with their dogs behavior.

For years now, people have been told that dogs "...will grow out of..." their behaviors. Well, they don't. They grow *into* them.

For years now, people have been deluded into thinking that cookies and no negative consequences is somehow a superior method of dog training, when in fact, growing dog bite statistics, more aggressive legislation and breed/size specific restrictions worldwide belie that trope.

It's simply not true.

It's a new year, and a golden opportunity. Don't be a statistic.

06/14/2022

Solid! Dave Kroyer saying it like it is...

04/21/2022

Well said. This is a hard conversation to have with clients. Love your dogs! But...give them what THEY need, not what you need.

03/20/2022

Central Texas peeps

02/22/2022

Well said NWB Dogs! Over the pandemic, the number of adoptions was off the charts. But, so were the 'stories' about past history of a “rescued dog”. This discussion happens all the time with clients that adopt a dog and are struggling with how to truly help rather than make an excuse.

"He's afraid of X, so he must have been abused by/with X."
🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾🐾

In rescue, a lot of dogs come into care with unknown histories. Many of these dogs present with specific or generalized fear and anxiety.

It can be easy - so, SO easy - to attach a story to their behavior. In fact, it's becoming increasingly common for people to adopt dogs BECAUSE of their story. The more tragic, the better. 🐕

The problem with this is that it tends to freeze dogs into their neuroses. Their owner becomes so attached to the story, so emotionally invested, that they themselves cannot move past it. When the owner gets stuck, so does the dog.

Then the story becomes an excuse.

He's aggressive to the postman because one must have abused him.

He's leash reactive to other dogs because he was a 'bait dog'.
He runs from us when we grab the fly swat because someone has hit him with it.

In most cases, these behaviors are caused from a lack of exposure in the critical period of "socialization". Their inexperience and lack of exposure can present itself as fear, anxiety, stress and aggression; mechanisms they develop over time to cope.

But what exactly caused their rescued dog’s behavior is irrelevant. It's a fool’s errand to try to figure it out; an addictive oxytocin-fueled quest to justify a lack of action.

He's afraid of men? Make men = good things.

He runs from the fly swatter. Pick the damn thing up and throw the dog a handful of steak a few times. See what happens. 🥩

When we adopt a dog, we're making a commitment to BETTER their life. Holding on to their past is doing the opposite. Show them they're in a better place by overcoming their problems, not nurturing them.

Are you in need of help training? Give us a shout!

📲509.281.3015📲

📧[email protected]📧

💻www.nwbdogs.com💻

02/09/2022

Thank for sharing Complete Canine Training and for writing it up Pound Patrol! Great convo I have with new puppy parents all the time! The visuals are powerful!

10/02/2021

Had to repost this. This topic comes up with clients all the time. IMO, too many read the label on food and use that as the only guide for feeding a dog. There are many things to consider and quantity is just a part of the equation. Lifestyle and how the dogs get out an move through the day is a huge factor as well. If we can ever be of help to get things going in the right direction, please dont hesitate to reach out.

06/25/2021

Pretty cool. Science!

06/19/2021

A great video on physical handling drills. I spend some time watching Mark (K9 Command) and was reminded by his post today how critical this is for new puppies and their owners. Your veterinarian and groomers will appreciate your efforts!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?app=desktop&feature=youtu.be&v=odt7fL73khA&fbclid=IwAR1huQCuSjkNubB2jEVi5mTzxRP8LnYNMFm6m1FB9n5Zcx7SbZPpm1j5ol8

05/18/2021

Great information!

03/28/2020

05/27/2019

04/30/2019

01/25/2018

Clicker training goats at Inside Outside School today.

Third graders are learning operant conditioning and the basics of Skinner. Wow.

They are training the goats to do different tasks.

01/25/2018

It seems like everyone in Austin got a puppy for the holidays this year.

See what Fidelio has to say about that!

http://www.fox7austin.com/good-day/fidelio-dog-works-talks-puppy-training

Fidelio Dog Works shows how training can help a puppy and the pet parent too!

01/16/2018

Had a great video shoot with wonderful clients last week. The puppy was not nervous at all about the camera....unlike the trainer!

11/10/2017

Filson has a new ‘shop dog’ named Rudy. We were working on his new shop manners this morning.

Rudy is a rescue C**n hound and should be at Filson regularly so stop in, say hi to him, and help with his training.

08/19/2017

See, Your Border Collie really is smarter than you!!

https://www.wired.com/story/what-a-border-collie-taught-a-linguist-about-language/amp

The whistles that a shepherd uses to command her dog sound a whole lot like human language.

08/03/2017

And.... we're done. Nice work Henry.

08/02/2017

And stage three completed.

08/02/2017

Phase two of this weeks job. Stay tuned for more