Slow Down
Dogs help us live in the present moment.
They have a lot to teach us about slowing down, enjoying things fully, and never passing up a moment to soak in the sunshine.
Squirrel Chasin' in the Rain
Lumps will risk it for the biscuit. 🐿⚡️
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Your Dog Has All the Answers
Everything your dog does communicates how they are experiencing life.
The more you see your dog’s behavior as honest feedback, the more their decisions (good and bad) will transform into valuable information.
When you become a student of your dog, their authentic expression will help you course correct quickly and without frustration.
The Practice: Treat Everything Like an Experiment
Every dog is a puzzle. By making creative and conscious changes in your dog’s life, then paying attention to how they adapt, you will start to get a sense for how your dog learns and what they need to be fulfilled.
Another way of saying this is, if what you’re doing isn’t working, try something different. If that doesn’t work, keep experimenting until you discover something that does work.
Your dog has all the answers. It’s up to you to ask the right questions and listen to how they respond.
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The Secret to Effective Dog Training
The secret to effective and easy dog training...? Is to always start by Looking to Yourself. 👀
You control everything in your dog’s life.
Where your dog lives, what they eat, who their friends are (dog and human), the amount of exercise they get, and what learning opportunities they have, are all determined by you. When things are going well and when things are going poorly, the likelihood that your choices play a role in these outcomes is very high.
The Goal: Meet your dog's needs.
Since dogs have a wide variety of physical, mental, and social needs, if the life you are creating for them is not meeting these needs, your dog will begin to suffer and struggle. If you want to earn a leadership role in your pack, it is your job to create a fulfilling life for them.
The more your dog sees you as the source (rather than an obstacle) to what they need, the more they will want to be in a cooperative state with you.
FOLLOW US FOR MORE RELATIONSHIP-BASED DOG TRAINING. 🐕
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"Contrafreeloading"
"Contrafreeloading" is an observed behavior in which an organism, when offered a choice between provided food or food that requires effort to obtain, prefers the food that requires effort.
This means your dog will actually enjoy their food MORE if you make them "work" for it.
This could include asking them to do tricks before a meal, investing in a puzzle feeder, or playing "go find your food" before meal times.
Remember to have fun with it! 🐶
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Lead by Being
The 1st principle we teach people when they come to work with us is that a good leader LEADS BY BEING.
This is different than lead by example. That motto stays too surface level. It's only about your actions.
LEAD BY BEING is about who you are as a person. It goes a level deeper, which means it affects all of the decisions you make.
This matters to your dog because you are the source of everything in their life. Not only their food, their shelter, and basic needs. But you're their example of how to be in the world.
Can you be calm, patient, and listen well? If you can't... how can you expect your dog to be that way?
Are you brave, open minded, and generous? Not until you can embody these things can you expect your dog to even know what it looks like to be that way.
Want an awesome dog? Start with you. 👍
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Paws In Challenge
Paws In Challenge ❤️
Lumps will never not be "in". 😂
What is leadership?
Leadership is the process of earning your pack’s permission to influence their decisions.
Read that again.
The role of leader is given to those who make daily decisions which prove to their pack that they are capable and caring. True influence is only ever the consequence of demonstrating that you have your pack’s best interest at heart.
There is no finish line to leadership. It is an ongoing way of showing up in relationship to your pack that creates mutual trust and respect. If you are skipping this step and simply trying to gain influence with control, you aren’t leading. You’re managing, and no person or dog wakes up in the morning looking forward to being managed.
FOLLOW US FOR MORE RELATIONSHIP-BASED DOG TRAINING. 🐕
What is success?
Success is not about crossing an imaginary finish line. Nor is it solely about winning.
To become "success-full" means to have a life filled with a succession of attempts, both effective and ineffective, made in the direction of goals that matter to you.
This is why forming strong, healthy habits is so important. Goals are simply benchmarks that help us measure our progress and keep us moving forward.
Whether we achieve, or fail to achieve, a goal is an outcome based on a process. If I have a goal of losing weight but a habit of eating ice cream and pizza at every meal, no amount of goal setting will fix the problem. Even if someone manages to meet the goal of losing weight, but does not make a habitual change to their lifestyle, achieving this goal will not lead to sustainable improvements in their health.
When we say leadership is a process, this is what we're referring to. Taking one step forward, paying attention to how our pack changes as a consequence of that step, and making the proper adjustments based on what we’ve learned.
Clients often ask us, “How long do I have to do the things you’re teaching me?” Our answer is always the same, “For as long as you care.”
Relationships don’t ever reach a place where we can simply coast on the investments we made before. They are living, breathing experiences that require attention and effort in order to remain meaningful.
🐶 FOLLOW US FOR MORE RELATIONSHIP-BASED DOG TRAINING.
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POV: When your dog is more than a dog
Who else is obsessed with their fur baby? 😍
It's such a blessing to see Lumps as a member of our family. To learn from her every single day.
She has so much forgiveness, passion, and love to give. Every day that we get to spend with her, we try to be more and more like her.
Follow us for more relationship-based dog training. 🐾
#ilovemydog #furbaby #morethanadog #ourchild #staffylove #inspiration
How to Train "Look"
Follow us for more relationship-based dog training advice and insights. 🐶
Training is going to be most effective with your dog if you break it down into small steps.
"Look" is an essential part of our training curriculum and daily life with our dog, but we teach it a little differently!
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Why timeouts dont work...
Follow us for more relationship based dog training! 👍🐶
Timeouts aren't the best way to teach your dog (or your kid).
It threatens their secure attachment to you, and since they are dependent creatures, that can lead to more problems than the one it temporarily "solves".
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Dogs Have Language
What do you think about this guy? 😬
Needless to say, we don't agree with him.
Dogs obviously have language. They communicate with each other, with us, and us with them every day.
And "this isn't helping"? What does that even mean? This video got over 19,000 likes...
We believe that dogs have feelings and truly do have a unique bond with humans.
It's a dream team 15,000 years in the making. Cue the sappy music. 🫶🐾
Be Careful of the Story You Tell
Be careful of the story you tell yourself about your dog.
If you believe your dog is not friendly, then you will probably only manifest more unfriendliness in them.
You should still take precautions if your dog is struggling, lets say, with dog aggression. We don't ever want to push our dogs into something they're not ready for or something that won't end up being a good experience for them.
BUT, if we realize our dog is struggling (like being confused about the threat of other dogs) yet believe there is more to them than that, like deep down really wanting some doggie friends, then there is something positive for your pack to move towards.
You give your dog the opportunity to change and grow, rather than being stuck in a story about who they are.
What unexamined stories do you tell about your dog? 🤔
Dogs Can Feel Jealous, Too
Dogs can feel jealousy. 😡
This is because they are dependent social creatures.
However... if they feel secure about their place in your family, then you probably don't have anything to worry about if they smell another dog on you!
If you are meeting their needs and spending time with them, they are probably feeling confident as your #1 canine companion.
Do you think your dog acts jealous at times?
Take a moment and check in: have you been busy? have you spent less time with your dog this week? not gone on as many walks?
Your dog will tell you if they need more from you! You just have to listen.
👍 Like, follow and comment questions below if you want more relationship based dog training.
Warning: Don't Play Soccer with Your Dog
What's your dog's favorite sport? ⚽️
When you find the thing your dog loves, make time to do that thing!
Not only will it provide them with a sense of fulfillment, but hopefully, you also have fun with them in the process.
Lumps loves seeing her Kong ball come out, and she always tears it up out there!
She's probably a better soccer player than both of us. 😂
Need a ball like this for your pup? Shop through our link in bio.
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How would your dog do at the zoo? 🐶🐯🦁
How would your dog do at the zoo? 😂
We brought Lumps with us because dogs need novelty. Just like humans do.
Don't go on the same walk every day. Don't feed your dog the same food every day.
Mix things up. Do something really special every once in a while.
You'll have a happier dog because of it.
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Believe it or not, but squirrel chasing can be made manageable!
If your dog has a high prey drive, then there's a 100% chance they want to chase tiny prey animals.
Most of the time, this desire is met with frustration, discouragement, and scolding.
But what if you flipped the script, where "chasing" was encouraged and even requested?
Teaching your dog to chase in a SAFE way is completely doable.
Yes, it requires a series of steps, but training that part is easy.
The significant part is realizing this is a need your dog has that isn't being met and you're capable of CHANGING that.
Once you and your dog go on regular, safe chase missions, it is way easier to ask them to NOT chase when it's not appropriate for them to do so.
Want to learn how to get started? Read our book on dog training leadership. Link in bio.
(No squirrels were harmed in the making of this video. 🐿)
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Why Do You Need to Follow Through?
WHY DO YOU NEED TO FOLLOW THROUGH?
Your dog is pretty smart. They are going to quickly figure out if your words have meaning or not.
If you try to set a boundary and then do nothing to enforce it, or let things slide and then try to enforce it only when it's convenient for you, your dog is going to walk all over you.
When you set a boundary, you're really setting it for yourself. You are the one who needs to follow it. Do that, and your dog will trust you wayyyyyy more.
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Your dog deserves to eat real food. At least every once in a while...
We were spending about $100/month on a high-end, grain-free dog kibble.
Making this new REAL food blend has been about $120/month.
If spending $20 more a month means Lumps will feel better, go to the vet less, and live longer... we think it's worth it!
Where are some opportunities you could feed your dog some nutritious real food?
Even if it's as simple as adding bone broth to their kibble as a topper, it will make a difference!
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