Emily Carey Canine Training LLC

08/11/2024

Sometimes being a dog trainer means training the human without the dog!

Jasper did a board and train program with us in June. His family has been so diligent in implementing the recommended lifestyle changes so that Jasper and his human sister, Abby, can live safely and harmoniously together 🥰

With lots of hard work, we are finally to the point where we are helping Abby confidently take Jasper out of his crate for a walk, with a muzzle as a backup safety measure to help Abby stay comfortable and safe! Jasper has been appropriately conditioned to the muzzle and it is being associated with things he loves so he doesn't mind having it on. The goal is to one day not need it, but for now, it helps ease some tension on the human end of the leash.

We did a lot of reps of Abby practicing putting the muzzle and leash on me so that she could form a routine that works for her as well as work through some of the potential problems she might encounter. Practicing with me as the dog allowed Abby to build confidence in what she is doing without causing Jasper any stress or damaging their relationship with improper technique. It's safe and harmless for Abby to make mistakes when *I'm* the dog!

So proud of them! The smile on her face says it all 🥰🥰🥰

08/04/2024

This special boy turned 11 today!!! (Which is no small feat for a Dane 😳)

Frank is Emily's brother's dog and just happened to be staying with us on his birthday, so we HAD to celebrate!!

We baked Frank a special cake for dogs and some little treats for him to share with all his friends here 🥰

Happy birthday, Frank!!!

01/12/2024

Always fun to try new things with the drivey dogs in the "Carey Clan" 🥰

01/02/2024

Starting 2024 off right with some biological fulfillment for The Carey Clan 🥰

Check out Emily Carey Canine Training's video.

11/21/2023

𝐃𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐄𝐪𝐮𝐢𝐩𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐃𝐢𝐟𝐟𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐧𝐭 𝐑𝐮𝐥𝐞𝐬

My husband and I took the floppy eared dogs out for a walk today and it was a really nice example of how we use equipment as context clues for our dogs. They understand that there are different expectations of them depending on where and how they feel leash pressure.

Ripto, our almost 8 month old American Pit Bull Terrier (APBT), currently gets walked on a harness. Harnesses are great for pulling, and we even encourage it in young, developing dogs! We want our puppies to just be puppies - we allow them to explore their surroundings so that they grow up to be confident adult dogs. So puppies get walked primarily on harnesses. This keeps the pressure distributed across their chest, rather than their neck - keeping them comfortable, but also allowing them to pull into leash pressure without muddying the waters for leash manners. Harnesses allow them to take potty breaks and go on outings without us having to focus on leash walking.

When we do a structured and intentional training session with young dogs, the leash goes on their collar, and we make sure to teach them the rules of leash pressure on their neck. In a training session, we are 100% focused on that puppy and what they are learning. We can be way more consistent with making leash pressure mean something than we can in real life scenarios.

As they grow and learn, we gradually start using the collar more to transition them to loose leash walking skills. We will still do “exercise walks” in a harness, where they can explore and burn some energy. But we also start incorporating shorter “training walks”, where the focus is not time or distance traveled, but on reinforcing the rules of the leash. Training walks may only be down a few driveways and back! We stay close to home. This way, if we start to lose the dog mentally, or an external stimulus out of our control makes for a difficult learning environment, we can easily end the session.

Eventually, exercise and training walks become the same thing, as the dog can now go long distances while still respecting the leash!

Róisín is 4 years old and able to walk nicely on a flat collar. She is not expected to stay in a focused heel position; I want my dogs to be able to enjoy their walk and not have to be “working”.

She can do as she pleases as long as she:
◾️Respects the leash. If she reaches the end of the leash and feels pressure, she should slow down and check in with me.
◾️Respects my space. She is not allowed to walk directly in front of me or cross behind me.

She can walk on either side, she can stop to sniff, and she can go ahead of me, as long as she follows those 2 rules.

Róisín was started the same way as Ripto and still understands the context of the harness, even though she doesn't wear it as often. When she runs on the slat mill or does weight pull, she wears her harness, because those are instances where it is ok and encouraged to lean into the pressure she is feeling.

Using a harness AND a collar, allows us to be inconsistent, as humans so often are. We can be knowingly and purposefully inconsistent, without creating conflict or confusion for our dogs. If I don't have time or don't feel like training, I can choose to walk my dog on a harness. But the second I clip a leash to their collar, I am intentionally and consciously choosing to enforce criteria and make sure that leash pressure 𝘮𝘦𝘢𝘯𝘴 something.

If you need help teaching your dog leash manners, shoot us a text at (224) 769-5078! We'd love to help you actually 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺 walking with your dog!

11/17/2023

Help us get our foster girl, Samara, adopted so she can spend Christmas in her forever home! 🥰🥰

Please LIKE 👍 and SHARE 🗣 the post to help get her seen by more people!!

Samara is hoping that she will spend Christmas in her forever home. She has  a goofy personality and enjoys giving kisses. She is good with people, dogs, kids (but would do best with older kids to her energy). She would do best in a home with no cats.

She is being fostered in Elgin Illinois by an awesome dog trainer.

Full bio: https://www.petfinder.com/dog/samara-60103109/il/chicago/mannered-mutts-rescue-in742/

Apply to adopt: www.manneredmuttsrescue.org

11/12/2023

Attention clients:

In order to accommodate more private lessons (*read: help more dogs!) and to help our schedules run a little more smoothly, we will be implementing drop-off/pick-up windows.

We will have a morning window between 7-9am, and an evening window between 7-9pm. You may drop off or pick up at any time within these windows, but we do ask that you let us know if you will be coming during the morning or evening window.

Pick-ups in the morning window and drop-offs in the evening window will be considered a 1/2 day for pricing.

We will also be implementing late fees for those who arrive later than 9am/pm. Respecting our time helps us serve you ALL better, which is what we are always striving for 🥰

Times scheduled outside of the drop-off/pick-up windows will be considered on a case-by-case basis, and a fee may apply.

Anyone who already has a scheduled time is fine, but we ask that you keep these time frames in mind for future reservations.

Thank you for all the love and support! We truly LOVE the community of dog people we are cultivating 🥰

💜 Emily & Jen

If you'd like to schedule a boarding reservation or private lesson, shoot us a text at (224) 769-5078, and check out our website for more info!

https://www.emc2training.com/

08/16/2023

Yesterday afternoon, owner/trainer Emily took the CGC test with her 4 dogs - all 4 passed and are now officially "canine good citizens"!

If you'd like to take the CGC test with your dog, we will be hosting a group class starting Saturday, September 9th, with an evaluator coming the last week. We'd love for you to join us!

See more info in the pictures attached and reach out to get signed up!

Call/text: (224) 769-5078
Email: [email protected]
https://www.emc2training.com/

08/12/2023

Is YOUR canine a good citizen?!

07/16/2023

Full house in the Dunkin' drive thru on the way to social this morning - with just over 400 # of dogs in the van! Gonna be a good day 🥰

07/15/2023

"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."

"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 behaviour. 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 behaviours are caused from a lack of experience in the critical period of socialization. Their inexperience can present itself as fear, anxiety, stress and aggression; mechanisms they develop over time to cope.

But what exactly caused their rescued dogs behaviour is irrelevant. It's a fools 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.

06/16/2023

Last Wednesday we added a member to the EMC2 Pack!

Please join us in welcoming Ripto! Rip is an 11 week old (Birthday 3/30/23) American Pit Bull Terrier. He is from Pine Curtain Bulldogs down in Texas - the same breeder as Shillelagh. Rip and Laylee actually share the same sire (Capo), making them 1/2 siblings!

We were presented with a unique opportunity - to raise and train a dog with the intent to eventually sell it as a working dog. Ripto will be trained completely opposite than what we've done with our personal dogs, as there are different end goals for him. This is a great chance to learn and practice new techniques and methods other than what we are used to - an opportunity for growth, which we don't like to shy away from!

While Rip is esentially an experiement for us to learn and practice with, he is loved and treated as one of our own! He will likely be with us for at least 2 to 3 years.

We've greatly enjoyed getting to know Ripto and observing him figure out the world around him.

We look forward to watching him develop and sharing his progress with everyone! Check out the video below for some highlights from his first week with us and stay tuned for more!

06/03/2023

We recently became a dealer for E-Collar Technologies and just recieved our 1st big order! It came SO fast (3 days from ordering 😳) Hit us up if you'd like to get your dog ecollar trained - it provides a whole new world of freedom and communication 🥰

06/01/2023

Tools are not the devil! They allow for freedom while still maintaining safety 🥰 We love prong collars, ecollars, and muzzles!! Not every dog needs them - but for some dogs, tools have been life saving 💪🏻

I can’t tell you how many pictures of my dogs and client dogs that I purposely don’t share on social media for one simple fact;

They’re wearing tools.

It’s a scary time for a dog trainer that utilizes tools. We are ridiculed left, right, up and down simply for choosing to use anything that isn’t a flat collar or a harness.

All from people who have never used them, or have tried to use them but did not know the proper way thus they did not get the results they wanted.

“Do not mock what you don’t understand.”

I have no shame in utilizing tools.

I can proudly say that I have saved many lives, both dog and human, with the help of these “torture devices”.

I have taken dogs with severe insecurity, afraid of their own shadow and turned them into confident, happy beings comfortable going into new environments with the help of an E-Collar.

I have had elderly clients unable to walk their dog (which in turn, causes a number of other issues) due to extreme pulling and helped them safely walk their dog daily with the help of a prong collar.

I have had severe human reactive dogs unable to go to the vet without being fully sedated and helped them learn that not all humans are bad with the help of a muzzle, slip leash and E-Collar.

When paired and conditioned correctly, they are absolutely amazing things to have in your tool bag and it’s a shame that we are so heavily criticized when (most of us) truly have the dogs best interest at heart.

If you can do all of what I mentioned above without the use of tools - that’s great! I’d love to pick your brain and be friends. 💜

05/28/2023

God bless the working dogs of the world who save us every day 🥰

Rest In Peace K9 Hudson - thank you for your service 🐕‍🦺💪🏻🇺🇲