Autumn Lynn, MSW, CPDT - KA

10/20/2023

Our last profile feature is on the curious Clover, who is a littermate to Juniper!

10/05/2023

Competitive obedience titles have nothing to do with if a dog will be a good service dog or not. In fact many competitive obedience dogs don't have the type of temperament I consider suitable for service dog work in public.

It's also gatekeeping. Most people don't have the time, skill, or money to train to the competitive obedience level.

Under the Americans with Disabilities Act a service dog has to be task *or* work trained for their handler's disability, be house trained, and under control in public.

I offer a structured training program to help service dog teams get to where they need to be to work reliably in public.
From group outings to virtual lessons, if you need help tuning up or getting started, I want to help you achieve your training goals with your dog.

Contact me to schedule a free consultation! 🐶🐾

252 likes, 110 comments. “ with Also say excuse me and give people space when parading your dog around a food court, not everyone is comfortable with large, unleashed dogs….geez.”

09/23/2023

Why I don't agree with the label of "fake service dog."
Health care is very inaccessible in this country, so I'm very thankful that the Americans with Disabilities Act makes service dogs accessible for millions of Americans who may need one.

👉🏽 Sign Up For my FREE Dog Training Foundations Mini-Course: https://www.doggyu.com/🎉 JOIN the DOGGY•U Community! (100+ Exclusive Training Videos!) https:...

03/23/2023

The 2023 Review of dog training methods: welfare, learning ability, and current standards is now published on the AnimalKind website. Building on Dr. Joanna Makowska's 2018 review, Dr. Camila Cavalli has updated it with new research papers and new sections about welfare within reward-based methods, and public perceptions about training methods.https://animalkind.ca/wp-content/uploads/dog-training-methods-review.pdf

03/15/2023

🥰 I love working for Compass Key.
We also offer distance/virtual training!

Meet one of our trainers serving Central Colorado, Autumn!

Autumn brings over 14 years of experience in canine behavior, training, and care. They first started working with dogs through performance sports such as conformation, rally obedience, agility, and herding. Autumn then branched out into professional dog grooming, owning and operating a holistic dog grooming salon specializing in caring for dogs with unique needs such as fearfulness and reactivity. From there, Autumn began offering private dog training services, ranging from basic obedience, to therapy dog training, to service dog selection and training, which they continue today.

Autumn obtained a Bachelor of Science in psychology from Western Washington University, and a Master of Social Work from University of Denver. As a graduate student they concentrated in mental health and obtained a certificate in Animal-Assisted Social Work. They interned with organizations providing services to clients with disabilities, trauma histories, as well as organizations utilizing animal-assisted interventions such as service and therapy dogs. They have helped develop and run service and therapy dog programs for local and national organizations. Autumn also conducted academic research on topics such as stigma directed towards service dog handlers and worked as a graduate research assistant at the Institute of Human-Animal Connection, researching animal-assisted interventions.

Autumn knows how impactful service dog partnerships are, as they are a service dog handler themselves for over 12 years. They are incredibly passionate and dedicated to serving the service dog community by providing knowledgeable and empathetic training support based in positive reinforcement.

If you are interested in scheduling an Initial Consultation with Autumn, or any of our other trainers, please visit our website at https://www.ckdogs.com/ and fill out our contact form.

01/25/2023

This is a highly versatile task that I recommend most teams learn.

We'll look at a simple and effective way to train your service dog to help you exit a building. This is very useful if anxiety, panic, or just feeling overwhelmed makes it hard for you to find the exit.

01/16/2023

"When dogs had been trained with reward-based methods, they were more likely to play when the owner was in the room compared to when the stranger was in the room. The dogs in the reward-based group spent more time exploring the room in the presence of the owner compared to when the stranger was there. These dogs also engaged in more greeting behaviours when the owner came back into the room.

These results show that there was a secure base effect for the dogs that had been trained with reward-based methods."

Dogs trained with aversive methods are less likely to show a ‘secure base’ effect.

12/12/2022

Dominance is an outdated approach to dog training. Here's why you shouldn't use it, and what to do instead.

11/11/2022

HABIC Animal Trainer and Volunteer Coordinator Kate Miller and Postdoctoral Researcher Kerri Rodriguez collaborated on a pilot feasibility study that suggests a dog training intervention using veterans’ own pet dogs may clinically reduce PTSD symptoms.

Read more: https://col.st/8ZYWY

To those in uniform serving today and who have served in the past, we honor you today and every day. Happy Veteran’s Day! ❤️💙

09/30/2022

In an experiment, dogs were surprisingly accurate in detecting sweat and breath samples from people who were stressed.

09/30/2022

Military veterans with PTSD and their psychiatric service dogs spend an average of 82% of their time together, but how do these dogs specifically help?

We hope you enjoyed celebrating with us!

https://journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0269186

09/14/2022

*Read to the end for an exciting announcement.

There is a lot of misinformation on the internet about emotional support animals (ESAs) and documentation of ESAs for housing, employment, and travel.

Don't be fooled by advertisements like these.

ESAs are never allowed in restaurants, no matter if a letter from a doctor is provided. This violates health codes. Only service animals are allowed in restaurants.

ESAs are not granted public access, which includes travel on the ground (busses, Uber, trains, etc), travel in the air, or staying in hotels. While some businesses may grant pets such as ESAs the ability the travel with their owners, they are *not* exempt from pet fees.

Using a letter from a doctor to gain access to places of public access, such as stores that normally don't allow pets, is not covered under federal law, and in many states can be seen as impersonating a service dog which can result in fines.

Lastly, while ESAs are allowed in most housing that typically doesn't allow pets with proper documentation from a licensed health care professional, there are housing scenarios where they are not allowed, such as when the landlord is a private owner.

Knowing your rights is vital to navigating this often confusing legal system. Don't put your legal fate and wellbeing in the hands of internet businesses looking to make fast money through misinformation and loopholes.

I'm excited to announce that I will be working under the clinical supervision of Phil Tedeschi, LCSW, from the University of Denver, founder of the Institute for Human-Animal Connection, in order to provide people from our Colorado community written documentation for ESAs and other assistance animals (including service dogs).

As a Master of Social Work with a concentration in mental health and a graduate certificate in Animal-Assisted Social Work, you can feel confident that you will be guided through this process with extensive knowledge and empathetic support. Please contact me directly if you are interested in this service.

07/25/2022

07/09/2022

A secure, trusting bond is paramount to the working partnership between a service dog and their human partner. This is one reason why Autumn utilizes reward-based training, and does not use corrections or aversive tools when training psychiatric service dogs.

In this publication, reward-based training methods were found to increase the bond between veterans with PTSD and their service dogs.

https://vet.purdue.edu/chab/ohaire/files/documents/2019_LaFollette_S2DogTraining.pdf

07/03/2022

Service dogs must be stable and reliable in all kinds of different circumstances. But how do you get them there? It's important to take things slowly and build on positive experiences, but selection of the animal is just as important. Ganon's breeder followed an extensive socialization protocol since he was a tiny puppy, and that gave him a solid foundation to build from.

Book a free consultation to learn how Autumn can help you put together a detailed socialization and training plan, which includes selection, for your service dog prospect.

06/30/2022

July 4th is coming...
READ THIS: https://eileenanddogs.com/6-ways-to-prepare-your-dog-for-fireworks/ by Eileen Anderson

06/29/2022

Gatekeepers at businesses and other places of public accommodation can ask: 1) is that a service dog required because of a disability, and 2) what work or tasks does your service dog perform to mitigate your disability.
They cannot ask for certification, IDs, or any other documentation.
Thank you to the DOJ for upholding this precedent.

Department of Justice U.S. Attorney’s Office District of North Dakota FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Tuesday, June 28, 2022 U.S. Attorney’s Office Reaches ADA Settlement with Ulta Salon, Cosmetics & Fragrance, Inc. FARGO - United States Attorney Jennifer Klemetsrud Puhl announced that the U.S. Attorney.....

06/20/2022

If you become upset when you are away from your pets, you are not alone.

06/13/2022

Making sure our working animals have their species-specific needs met is imperative to their health and wellbeing.
One of the most important species-specific needs of dogs is the need to walk. But this isn't only for physical exercise. Canines, wild and domestic, need to explore their environment and receive vital enrichment this way! Not only do walks let them get out and see new things beyond their house and backyard, as a scent focused species they are also exposed to different scents, providing vital mental enrichment. You can encourage this by teaching your dog a cue to go sniff on walks, or setting aside a portion of your walk that is dedicated to letting your dog sniff.

It’s Review Time! Why take your dog on a Sniffari?

Sniffing is a dog’s primary means of collecting information about the world around them. Detecting and processing smells is enriching and energy-intensive. The ability to sniff freely and investigate the environment has been correlated with increased optimism and lowered pulse rates. We have discovered that dogs’ nostrils can wiggle independently, and that specific nostrils are used to investigate specific smells. Dogs have retained the ability to identify the scents of large predators even when they never have contact with those predators.

We have used sniff-related research to determine that dogs can identify the scent of a familiar person in their absence, and that the dog-human bond is strongly reinforced in dogs’ brains. Dogs can detect drugs, explosives, changes in emotions, and changes in human cell metabolism during illness like cancer and diabetes, and are currently being trained to see if they can identify Covid-19.

Rather than marching your dog along at a brisk pace on every walk, try some walks (or portions of walks) where you let your dog sniff freely. It can be enriching not only to them, but to you as well. Watch how your dog catches a scent in the air or on the ground, and the zany path they take following the scent. Watch to see what catches your dog’s attention enough to sniff deeply and intensely. See if you can notice your dog switching nostrils to sniff a specific smell, and if you can see their nostrils wiggle. Take a moment to ponder and appreciate the similarities and differences between the way we vision-focused humans perceive our world and the way smell-focused dogs do. At the end of the day, for both man and man’s best friend, a big breath in and a big exhale makes us all feel better.

06/11/2022

Curious about if you'd benefit and qualify for an emotional support animal?
Take a look at this article, and if you have further questions book a free consultation with me today!

Mental health challenges are reportedly on the rise and many pet owners are seeking to certify their dogs as official emotional support animals. Learn whether or not you and your pet qualify, what an ESA means (and what it doesn't), and the best resources for applying to get an ESA letter from legit...

06/01/2022

We have some new additions! These... semi-lifelike stuffed dogs will be used to assess dog assertiveness and focus in temperament evals, dog distraction work for service dog prospects, and in the future, Behavioral Adjustment Training (BAT) setups!
Who wants to help me name them? 😊

05/30/2022

As we transition to summer time, which means finals and other exams for many of us, don't forget about self care!
And remember, self care looks different for everyone, so whether it's going to the gym, taking a walk, a candle lit bath, playing some video games... or that good dead-to-world midday nap, you do you!

05/29/2022

Hi everyone! I'm creating this page in anticipation of my official business launch in 2 weeks, after which I will be officially accepting clients.