Kate's K9 Academy

10/13/2023

Sweet, 1-2yr old female GSD seeking her forever home! She is a rescue but is already spayed and UTD on shots! From the same woman we got our sweet Karma from!!

This little lady has had no aggression issues and is reportedly great with people, dogs and cats! Wants nothing but human attention. Typical GSD personality! Driven, loving, and likely protective by nature. Will require an experienced, active and involved family to meet her needs!

I wish I could take her myself, but with Legacy eating here now, my budget is busting at the seams! LOL! But, I am willing to help with pick up and delivery, and I would even offer free training to anyone local or willing to travel to me on weekends!

Please reach out if you or someone you know are interested!!

06/12/2023

I love being able to work with so many different breeds, temperaments, and difficulties! I love training and it's been a passion for me since my Bruiser made it a necessity, rest his soul 🖤 Please always feel free to DM me for help! Every dog requires a different approach, but it's all the same basic concepts. It's a constant work in progress, but the reward always comes if you learn how to speak their language and are patient!

I love being able to work with so many different breeds, temperaments, and difficulties! I love training and it's been a passion for me since my Bruiser made it a necessity, rest his soul 🖤 Please always feel free to DM me for help! Every dog requires a different approach, but it's all the same b...

05/21/2023

Two years later and I still love to steal Smoke and go for adventures! This guy will always have a special place in my heart! 🖤 Working with wolves is a different ballgame and I absolutely love it!

04/30/2023

And so it begins... Miss Legacy is in heat and I have 3 intact males 🫠🙃 Thank God we train and have respect in this house, or I'd be totally up sh*ts creek without a paddle! I know it's only going to get worse over the next couple of weeks, and I will need to delay Legacy's surgery AGAIN!!! 🤦🏻‍♀️ But very thankful for the foundation we've built within our pack. It takes work to maintain this many attitudes and coexist peacefully, especially with those German bloodlines sometimes! If you know, you know! 🙈 But, I digress. Reason for this video is to show some body language and instinctual male behavior.

As Buddy approaches Legacy while in heat, he is essentially challenging Cannibal for her. Keep in mind, while he is not the head of this pack necessarily, Cannibal has established his place as top male here...so this is extremely disrespectful. And as you see, Cannibal wasn't about to have it. Please note there is not a raised hair in this photo. No growling. Just very quick, focused, tense, and intentional body language. Cannibal immediately places himself over Buddy as a show of dominance and a sign to back off. Note how Cannibal then pauses, waiting for Buddy to either retreat or accept his challenge. With Legacy in heat, Buddy would have likely chosen wrong here, and Cannibal could have easily hurt him. I immediately ask that Cannibal step down just by saying his name in that tone. Note how he turns to me instead of staying focused on Buddy. That is respect in that moment coming out over instinct. That is a direct reflection of the hours we've spent working together. I then tell Cannibal to get off the bed because while I appreciate his obedience, I do not appreciate this display and I will not have it. If he cannot coexist peacefully despite the instinctual challenges here, he will be removed. This rule of removing my dogs based off body language goes for any situation... dogs, kids, new people, I do not care. If my dog is tense, anxious, or displaying any behavior I do not appreciate or ask for, we deescalate first, and remove second. Those behaviors will likely lead to fight or flight responses and poor decision making, and I know how my Germans will respond.

Again, every technique you use should be dog specific, but body language is universal. Get to know more than obvious signs, because by the time you see raised hair and hear growling, your chance to intervene will have likely passed.

01/15/2023

Karma and I are heading to work at one of our favorite parks in Iowa Falls on this beautiful day! Whether you've trained with me before, or you've been watching and wondering about it, come join us! Let's make it a free training session... with plenty of play after, of course! 😉

If you're interested, message me! Don't want to leave and someone was on their way! ☺️

12/09/2022

Anyone I know looking to take on a 9 month old, female Husky? Would need lots of time and commitment to training. I'm offering training sessions for free if owners are local. Beautiful, sweet girl who's owners say she deserves better... meaning someone who can meet her mental, physical, and training needs. Serious inquiries only! Must have some kind of large dog experience! PM me if interested and/or for photo and more info!

08/01/2022

Some highlights from Ozzy's second session! This boy is coming along wonderfully! 🥰

07/31/2022

Meet Ozzy! My newest customer!

This handsome fella is soo excited to see the world and meet everyone, but that's also his downfall. Our main focus with Ozzy will be concentration, respect and basic obedience. We'd also like to get this guy off leash trained, so we've got our hands full! But I have a feeling this will be a quick transition because this boy is so eager to learn! 😊

07/24/2022

Smoke went to a big party today with lots of people and distractions. And boy, did he ace it!! He was an angel for me and even allowed me to put him in a down, drop the leash, and converse, all while people are moving about in all directions.

So incredibly proud of the progress this handsome fella has made! This stubborn brat has tested my patience, and ability at times, and has been by far my most challenging client. But watching/working him today made every minute of struggling worth it! 🖤😊

06/27/2022

Got to work with Smoke today! You won't believe how far he's come!

03/20/2022

Today we tested Smoke with lots of distractions and new encounters.

Believe it or not, Smoke has NEVER been exposed to kids before today. And yet, here he is following a 7 year old's command. (With maaaaybe a little help by a Dogtra 1900! 😉👌🏼) but regardless, he did AMAZING!

There were 2 dogs, cats, and people in the background. So I applaud his focus! He isn't perfect yet, but damn was I impressed with his progress today! 🙌🏼

Ps... GO LANE!!! 7 years old and commanding a WOLF with confidence! Thanks for your help, buddy!

01/18/2022

I present to you all: Smoke acting a fool!😂

Something, I'm not sure what, fell down a pine tree near by and Smoke decided that was more enticing than me and took me for a nice near fall slide across some ice! 🤦🏻‍♀️

First, let's talk about what I did wrong here....
I responded too late. I should have given him a "leave it" or "stop" command the moment he got too interested. My mistake was trying to see what was going on instead of focusing on Smoke and his response. I should have been reading body language and ideally responded before he even moved forward.

But how did I rebound? Small, straight forward commands. I put his obedience training to the test and calmly, collectively, and confidently commanded him. And, the key here- I FOLLOWED THROUGH. My corrections were precise, my pressure was consistent, and the intensity increased every time I had to ask again. (Ideally, you should only have to ask once, but that's why he's in training! Lol)

When I talk about pressure in this scenario, I mean e-collar pressure. I started with vibrate, moved on to stimulation, then increased that stimulation until I received the focus and obedience I was commanding.

Smoke, in a matter of seconds, gets his act together and we move on! I am extremely picky about his focus, placement, demeanor, etc., moving forward. I don't give him a single inch. This is to remind him of his place and what is expected.

But what I don't do is dwell on the bad experience. We get the situation under control, move on, and work to ensure that next time... it goes better! 😉

Welcome to the nitty gritty, folks!
Progress ain't perfect!

01/18/2022

Worked with this beautiful guy again today, and man did he give me a nice photo!!😍

Stay tuned for this video... you won't want to miss it! It shows me going for a ride courtesy of this brat! Lol. I will be showing you guys the nitty gritty part (aka- THE REALITY) of training where things DON'T go perfect and how to rebound and regain that focus! 😉

01/16/2022

Just a quick update on Smoke! 🐺

We've mastered our commands and have moved on to distractions! This is the first time I've introduced exercises like this and this handsome fella nailed it! It took ONE correction with the ecollar for him to understand that going for the ball was a no-no. These types of exercises remind them that despite distractions, the commands come first. This will roll over into real life situations with triggers. Ideally, once given a command, Smoke will ignore all triggers and focus on his handler and his duties.

10/31/2021

Continuing to make progress with Smoke, the wolf hybrid I've been working with since July.
He's a smart, stubborn boy, but man... is it so worth it to see how far he's come! I love this guy so much and working with him has truly been MY pleasure!! Thank you so much to DA and Cyn for giving me the opportunity to work with your beautiful baby and see what I could do with my first wolf! I'm so proud of his progress and I can't wait to see when we are finished!
..although, I'll probably still say I need to continue "working" him just so we can get together and have some fun! 😉 This guy will forever hold a special place in my heart 🖤😊

09/21/2021

Update on Smoke: he's KILLIN' it!
This week we mastered focus while out in the neighborhood, which was a huge struggle before. This boy used to pull his owner everywhere and needed to be walked on two leashes with 2 different collars because he would escape/break them off. Now look at this boy... focused, heeling, and dragging a 30 foot lead. This boy could have gone wherever he wanted, but he chose to tune in and follow instead! So proud of his progress! 🖤

09/12/2021

Okaaaay, I'll give a sneak peek😉
Smoke is doing great & is as goofy as ever! I couldn't be happier with our progress! Ultimate goal here is to get this handsome fella off leash so he can have the freedom his owners crave for him. 🥰

09/06/2021

We spent labor day working with Bruiser and Karma! Bruiser is 9 and a gsd mix. Karma is 2 and a purebred Czech gsd. Both are my dogs.
I also worked with Smoke today (the wolf hybrid)... but I've decided keep the suspense going and wait to do an after video 😉

07/31/2021

I worked with this stud again today!😍
Stay tuned for a little sneak peek into where we're at!

07/10/2021

Boy, am I excited for this one guys!!! 😁🤘🏼

Meet Smoke! My newest pal. He is a wolf/husky hybrid and the most beautiful guy! He's 1.5 yrs old and still very much a distracted pup, but we've got this one in the bag! He is eager to please and responds wonderfully to corrections, despite being a brat who likes to test his boundaries!😉
Stay with us on this journey! This may be my best success story yet! 😁

07/09/2021

Hey guys! I know it's been a while... I was busy with 9 puppies for a while and I just started a new job but rest assured our work HERE is not done! I have a HUGE surprise for you guys coming soon!! Stay tuned for my biggest challenge, and biggest "dog" yet! 😉

05/15/2021

This week I made a last minute trip to CT to work with one of my puppies from my litter six years ago, Diesel. Diesel was being a bit naughty for his momma so we are actively changing his attitude and reminding him that he follows and she leads. In the process, we are building up Deana's confidence when handling Diesel amongst distractions and triggers. She is doing phenomenal with this and is growing more confident every day!

It's important for owners to always have control of their dogs, God forbid the worst case scenario occurred, AND that they have the confidence to control them in those moments.

Feeling insecure with your dog when out and about? Reach out to me! We can build a solid foundation of trust and leadership and make you and your dog more confident and controlled during triggering moments.

04/12/2021

Today was (kind of) my final day with Bo. I will do one more session when his momma is available so I can make sure she has all the knowledge and tools she needs to continue on with his training at home.
But, for Bo and I, we finished up today and had a wonderful last day 😊 He did everything I asked, he responded well to e-collar pressure, AND he ignored strangers in the park!! This handsome boy stayed focused on me and his work instead of his usual downward spiral of leash reactivity. I cannot even express what a difference it was and what a huge step this was for him. And to think we never "worked" on this!
So how did that happen, right?
Confidence.
Leadership.
Thats what happened.
We focused on respecting boundaries, recognizing us as his leaders, trusting that leadership, and building up this boys confidence in the process. When he would display leash reactivity, I recognized it as fear based. This meant if we could get him to trust us and follow our lead, he would be more confident in those situations. And today proved that! 😁
CONGRATULATIONS BO! You've graduated! I couldn't be prouder of all you've accomplished! 🎓🐾🖤

04/12/2021

Now I can use this *previously* naughty boy as an example! I'm so proud of him and what he's accomplished!

04/11/2021

We've had a few days off because of weather but we were back at it today for day 5! Bo is doing wonderful and picking things up. As promised, we focused a lot on waiting in the car today since last time he made a liar out of me. Today however, he got to show off his hard work and show daddy what a good boy he can be by waiting in the car until released. We also did some beginner off leash work. The owners have expressed interest in doing off leash in the future, so it was exciting to do that type of work today and evaluate how he'll handle it when the time comes. Overall, I think we are all thrilled with his progress!

04/08/2021

Want to join this trend but... can't?
Obedience is a lot closer than you may think! Contact me today and let's get you and your sidekick scheduled for training! 😊🐾

04/07/2021

Day 4! Bo was AMAZING today!! In fact, he was so impressive that by the end I even trusted him off leash!
We focused on e-collar corrections and the "stay" command today and he did wonderful! We also did some work with the car and waiting to be called out. He did great with this when we were one on one, but he decided to make a liar out of me in front of his daddy! 😂🤷🏼‍♀️ it's ok though, we will just keep working on it! 😉

04/03/2021

Day 3 with Bo!
We mainly worked on the "stay" command today. Bo is definitely not a fan! He tried his best and got it a few times but this will take some more work. As far as leash work goes, I think he's doing great! He's mastered the heel pretty well and is walking gloriously for me. We also did a little work in the vehicle, making him wait until he's given the "ok" to exit. He's no professional yet but he's getting the idea! At the end of today's session we did some work at his house and found some key areas we need to work on. Bo tends to behave much better for me when his momma isn't around, so I'm hoping we can address this by working with momma next week. This will allow me to correct these poor behaviors and instill some much needed confidence in his momma!

04/02/2021

Day 2 with Bo!
Today we worked on more leash respect, focus, recall, and we introduced the e-collar. Bo took to the e-collar very well and I'm so pleased with his progress thus far. For it only being day 2, I honestly couldn't ask for more! He has progressed through everything I've taught him so easily. This is great because it'll allow us even more time for finetuning things!