Shape A Pup

05/19/2024

It is with great sadness that I announce the closing of Shape A Pup. I enjoyed my time helping others with their dogs and sharing the knowledge I have gained from workshops, conferences and mentors. My return to the corporate world had me burning the candle at both ends and I no longer have the time to give the business the attention it needs. I appreciate all the support received on this venture and enjoyed meeting so many people who recognized the benefits of training and were open to embracing positive reinforcement. I hoped I helped in your journey in establishing and nourishing a great relationship with your dog.

With our closing, I have select things I need to part with so there will be a "grab and go" opportunity today between 3-4. The things available will be free and in "as is" condition. Some of the things available:
folding chairs
stools
used dog crates (wire and plastic)
folding tables
Keurig
small refrigerator
white board
printer
room humidifier
picture frames

These things will be first come first serve. Nothing will be held.

03/24/2023

Spring is here. If you are looking for something to do, then check out classes at Shape A Pup starting this weekend. There is something for everyone.

01/08/2023

We are a little more than a week into 2023 and I hope it is finding everyone happy and healthy. January is Train Your Dog month so there is no better time than now to pursue spending quality time with your dog learning something new or polishing up known skills. We have classes starting next week, January 14 and 15. The link below has the full schedule. Happy Training!

10/14/2022

Classes start this weekend. We hope to see you for the next round of classes before the hectic holiday season hits. Classes are 5 weeks and meet for one hour. The cost ranges from 140.00 to 165.00 depending on the class.

Saturday-
Exploration- use the dog's natural drive to hunt to build confidence and train impulse control. Great for any age dog including puppies that need a lot of exposure training.
Rally- a fun way to increase your dog's basics and build the next level of skills.
Follow My Lead- Leash work including handling tips and how to deal with distractions.
Give Me Space- for reactive dogs. If your dog lunges, growls, barks etc... at other dogs or people then this is the class for you. Help your dog change their response.

Sunday
Puppy- for dogs under 5 months with a focus on exposure to new things and preventing problem behaviors.
Foundation- for dogs of any age to learn basic manners
Flyball- a fun relay sport for dogs but great fun for all. Helps to build reclass and focus through distractions.
Rally 2- For dogs with a basic understanding of Novice rally and for advanced skills and course work.

07/26/2022

Looking for something to do with your dog out of this heat? Classes are starting this weekend.
Saturday
10:30 Follow My Lead- a leash skills class working on proper position, ignoring distractions, handling tips, and recalls.
12 Agile and Aware- this is a body awareness class that helps build relationship and confidence. We train many behaviors like spins and backing as well as do some concept training like over, around, on and through. This can be a good pre-agility class.
1:30 Foundations- All the skills needed for a well-mannered dog like sit, down, come, go to mat and many more.
3 Rally Skills- This class will help take your basic manners to the next level. There is a strong emphasis on leash work and focus to navigate an obedience obstacle course incorporating sits and downs with some unique moves like fronts and finishes.

Sunday
10:30 Puppy class- For dogs under 5 months with an emphasis on exploration and relationship.
12- Foundation- Manners training for dogs of all ages.
1:30 Flyball- A relay sport for dogs requiring dogs to work independently to take a series of jumps to get a ball and return back over the jumps. The class will build focus, recalls, retrieve and low jumps.
3 Rally Skills 2- For dogs and handlers that already have an understanding of Novice Rally signs and skills. This class will focus on Intermediate to Advanced signs and skills including working off leash.

The full schedule and enrollment is available here.

05/31/2022

Training Tip: Summer is upon us which is a busy travel time for people and many of us like to take our dogs so here are some points to consider.
If my trip means crossing state lines, then I get a health certificate from my vet. I make sure I have my vet records handy and easy to locate along with emergency contact information. Some people secure this to their dog's travel carrier but keep in mind if your dog can get to it and chew it.
In addition to the normal dog supplies, I include bottled water for my dog. Changes in water can cause stomach upset so it is an easy way to avoid issues.
Make sure to clean up after your pets at rest stops and at your lodging so they continue to be pet friendly which means packing clean up bags, paper towels and an odor enzyme cleaner, just in case.
I take a crate into the hotel room so my dog can be left in the room if needed. This means you will want to work on training some crate skills so your dog can be confined quietly. Not only will it help your dog rest while at a new place but you can also have freedom to explore a non-dog friendly activity. Most hotels will require the dog be confined if alone in the room.
Dogs can distract us while driving and can come to great harm if loose in the car in the event of an accident so keeping them secure is best. My dogs are crated and there are some crash tested harnesses and crates on the market. When reviewing products, there is a difference in crash tested and crash certified.
https://www.consumerreports.org/car-safety/keep-pets-safe-in-the-car/
In addition, I recommend training a wait in the car when the car door opens. I open the door and feed the dog inside the car or inside their crate so they don't rush out as soon as the door opens. This is a best practice even around town.
Most of us have pictures of our dogs on our phones but make sure you have a current photo for that worst case scenario of you dog getting lost. Make sure micro-chip information is updated and tags are present.
Traveling with our pets can be a great bonding experience but it will require some addition planning.

Want to keep your pets safe in the car while you're on the road? Consumer Reports can help with that.

05/12/2022

Training Tip: It is easy to say what you do not want your dog to do but the first step to changing behavior is defining what you would like your dog to do instead. This allows for us to think is a more positive way to work towards what we want instead of focusing on what we want to change. It is important for the dog to not practice unwanted behaviors since practice makes perfect. Then start training the replacement behavior. I will usually train the opposite behavior or an incompatible behavior. Here is an example.
Problem behavior- jumping on people
Replacement behavior- Four on the floor, keeping all feet on the floor in the presence of people.
Management to prevent practicing- Use of barriers or distance to prevent access
Training- Treat the dog as people get close so the dog's feet stay on the ground and focus stays on me. I can put the treats on the floor to help emphasize staying low. A treat toss to move the dog further away is also good and the dog will slow their approach anticipating the food toss.
It is easy to change behavior when we realize and work towards what we want.

05/06/2022

Weekly Tip: Socialization versus contact. It is great if you have a dog that plays well with others whether it is meeting new people or other dogs but it is equally important for dogs to learn that they do not have to meet every dog or every person, where new people and other dogs have become huge distractions calling our dogs away from us. I enjoy having my dogs in a social setting but not necessarily directly interacting. Any place where there are people or other dogs is socializing even if my dog does not "say hi" to anyone.

https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

04/20/2022

Training Tip: What do you do if your dog is not into food? First, consider how stressed the dog is because that will affect appetite. If I determine my dog is not taking food due to stress, then my first goal is to lower stress and get the dog eating before any training takes place. There are many things you can do to help mitigate stress but I usually start with giving the dog longer to acclimate if I am in a new environment, provide more distance from stimuli or change environments altogether. Sometimes the issue is not stress, the dog is just more motivated to play. There is nothing wrong with using play to reinforce behavior but food usually allows you to get in more repetitions in a shorter amount of time. To get my play motivated dog more into food, I simply pair taking treats with play. Offer a couple treats to your dog then play. Repeat many times and the dog will start eating better because it leads to play. Then I can ask for something basic and sometimes reinforce with food and sometimes reinforce with play. I will slowly have more repetitions reinforced with food versus play until the session is all food. Think of it like a diet change, you don't convert them all at once, it is done gradually over time.

https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

04/13/2022

This week's training tip. Make sure to reinforce your dog for good behavior. The last tip mentioned that animals are learning all the time which means we need to be more consistent in giving reinforcement whether it be praise, a favorite scratch or a treat when our dogs are doing what we want throughout the day. It is so much more enjoyable, not to mention easier, to acknowledge the good than clean up the bad. In short, look for a reason to praise your dog.
https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

04/06/2022

I thought I would share some basic training tips and the first one is simple. Keep planned training sessions short. I say planned because learning is happening all the time but we sometimes put off planned training sessions because we think we do not have time. Sessions can be as short as counting out 10 treats and when they are gone the session is over. Those treats can be gone is a minute depending on how we set criteria or the complexity of what you are training. You will be surprised how much progress can be made in very little time.

https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

02/10/2022

Classes start up again this weekend.
Saturday, February 12th
Give Me Space at 10:30 is for dogs that are reactive. Meaning they want space from other people or dogs and may exhibit behaviors like growling or lunging.

Leash Skills at 12:00 is for any dog that pulls on a leash. We work leash skills, recalls and distractions.

Exploration at 1:30 is for any dogs and utilizes a dog's natural hunt drive to work on a variety of skills from confidence, partnership with their handler and impulse control.

In Focus at 3:00 is for any dog. We use easy behavior patterns to build better focus and attention. It is a great class for easily distracted dogs.

Sunday, February 13th
Puppy at 10:30 for dogs under 5 months with a focus on introducing new things, problem behavior prevention and basic manners.

Foundation at 12:00 for dogs over 5 months and covers a wide range of basic manners like sit, down, come, polite greetings, door manners and much more.

Flyball at 1:30 is a competitive relay race for dogs. However, it is a really fun way to work recalls, jumping, working at distance while staying focused and retrieves.

Rally at 3:00 is a fun way to practice basic to advanced obedience while navigating an obstacle course in heel position.

Register here
https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

01/07/2022

Celebrate Train Your Dog Month and sign up for a class that starts this weekend. We have basic class like Puppy and Foundations on Sunday, along with Rally for a little more advanced work or Treibball if you want to try an off-leash sport. On Saturday, we have a leash skills class called Follow My Lead as well as Agile and Aware which is a body awareness, confidence class. New for 2022 is Say Cheese. Do you think your dog could model? It sounds easier than it really is but this class will teach the skills from getting comfortable in front of a camera, finding a mark, holding a pose with distractions and working for someone other than their person.

Check us out.
https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

12/24/2021

Merry Christmas everyone.

10/08/2021

It seemed we had a website issue about a week ago where the schedule was not available which is now resolved. Our classes will start next week. Rally will return on Sundays which is a fun class that works on the basics but adds some advanced skills. There are some new classes on Saturday like Tricks and Impulse Control to check out. Don't forget Treibball if your dog has a solid foundation and you want to try your hand at a fun sport. This is a great time to get started on some training or take a refresher right before the holidays.

https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

07/27/2021

Tuesday night classes are open enrollment. This means that you can start any Tuesday provided there is space. No more waiting for a class start date to roll around. Puppy class is at 6:30 pm and Foundation class is at 8pm. The classes are still 5 consecutive weeks for 140.00.

https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

06/03/2021

June classes start this weekend. You still have a couple days to get registered. There is also a new offering for July which is Day Camp. Day Camp is a day of activities for you and your dog to enjoy with lunch provided. This could be a great way to spend a day with your dog this summer.

https://shapeapup.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx

05/22/2021

June classes are posted. New in June is our Foundation Quickstart offering. If you have a hard time finding 5 weeks together to complete the normal format, then this is the offering for you. Come twice a week for 2 weeks to get the same information but in less time.