Whole Dog Camp

01/09/2026

01/09/2026

Sunday 10:30 am intro to skijoring! I have room for 2 more! It's so much fun and you can use the same skills when hiking with your dog, you don't need to ski!

01/07/2026

Every cue has a beginning, a middle and an end.

The beginning is not the first thing we train, but it is the verbal or physical cue that stimulates the behavior, for example "sit!"

The middle is the part where dogs know they are earning reinforcement for performing this behavior. This is generally the first thing I teach . So the dog lays down, I click "that's it! you just won a prize!" and deliver a treat.

The end is the most important part, but it a part that pet owners in general rarely understand. It's where we end the behavior. We might end the behavior with a release cue like "okay!" Or we can end a behavior by delivering a new cue, for example I can end a sit by saying, "go find a toy."

People often end behaviors in ways that cause problems. For example the dog is sitting and they throw food. If I ask MY dog to sit, I want them to keep sitting even I drop food, even if I throw a ball, until I tell them to "get it."

01/07/2026

If you are communicating preferences/opinions with your representatives/senators, here's something you might try (from an animal trainer's perspective): Ask open-ended questions rather than state opinions.

For example:

Will NATO continue to defend the USA if while we are threatening military force on Greenland? Does the President's foreign strategy mean that we are leaving NATO? Does this Rep support leaving NATO?

These are just quickie questions to make my point that asking questions may be a more fruitful way of communicating with representatives and senators. Ideally choose questions that the aides will need to research by asking the Rep or Senator.

www.5calls.org

01/07/2026

NEW VIDEO!!
Reactive or worried dogs don’t need to be pushed — they need a voice 🐕💬

In this video, I introduce Requested Approach Training (RAT), a powerful concept from Leslie McDevitt’s Control Unleashed program. It’s a force-free, choice-based way of helping dogs feel safer, more confident, and more in control of their environment.

If you work with dogs who hesitate, worry, or react in certain situations — or you support guardians navigating those challenges — this approach can be a real game-changer. Thoughtful, practical, and grounded in behavioural science 🧠✨

🎥 Watch the video now and explore how choice and predictability can transform learning and emotional responses.

https://youtu.be/T1W5WZJI_nk

01/06/2026

So a funny thing with my border collie, Maggie. She really learns from watching what other dogs do. So, I have a guest dog who sometimes just loves to stay outside ALL THE TIME, no matter how cold, and so that led to that post about how to get dogs inside when they don't want to come in.

Maggie used to come running in good as gold, but after watch the guest dog, she's decided it's actually kind of fun to see what I will do if she doesn't come when called.

This means, somehow whatever I am doing when she stands there and stares at me is reinforcing her behavior of standing there and staring, because that behavior is increasing!

So just now, she gave me a sly little eye and I realized, she is playing with me! I decided, I better not say ANYTHING, and so I stood there and looked at the door and willed myself with my strongest willpower to just believe that she was on her way, shoulders relaxed, no facial expression, just peaceful normal face while the temperature is 25 degrees and I'm not wearing a coat, and ...

of course she came trotting right in!

01/06/2026

Skijoring group class Sundays mornings through January 10:30 am, snow or shine! $35 to drop in, (or free for Whole Dog Camp. members). The skills you learn in class useful for hiking, walking, bikejoring and canicross too! You dont need skiis, but if you've got them bring them!

01/06/2026

Behavior changes when expectations change.
Emotion leads. Behavior follows.

This is why we focus on how a dog feels, not just what they do.

(Psst... This is the topic of our free live class on January 6th!)

01/03/2026

Kindness is the best medicine.

01/02/2026

Things you can do if your dog doesnt want to come inside.

1. Leave a collar and dropped line on so you can just go get him/her and not call when she might ignore you.
2. Have a small dooryard where you can safely let him hang out for as long as he wants in the cold, and get him back inside easily.
3. Practice calling inside for a treat and then sending right back outside, so coming when called seems like a win/win game.
4. Hide. Absence often makes the heart grow fonder.
5. Leave a bone inside in their crate or bed, make sure they know its there before they go outside.