Model SITIzen Canine

04/04/2025

Bam Bam!

04/04/2025

Mr Odi!

04/04/2025

Go Nera!

04/02/2025

A solid day of training today!

04/02/2025

Allllll the pups today! Featuring Theo, Ozzy and Leo, Miss Nera, Baby Jay and Mr ODI (also featuring his awesome little mohawk)

03/31/2025

Theo and Jay are also here this week! Fully enjoying off leash freedoms!

03/31/2025

Ozzy and Leo are here for the week brushing up on their leash manners!

03/31/2025

Welcome Mr Odi to Model Sitizen Canine! This cool little dude is here to work on his basic obedience skills with an added bonus of a smidge of leash reactivity due to overstimulation. He’s not a mean boy by any means but he gets so overwhelmed when he sees other dogs that he just can’t regulate his little noodle.

03/31/2025

Welcome Miss Nera! Nera has worked with me through day trains and lessons learning the language of the leash for a bit now. She is extremely proficient in her understanding of verbal cues and leash so she is here to learn ecollar to give her parents another layer of communication. They have done a STELLAR job laying a beautiful foundation at home so now we are going to overlay a new language using the one she’s extremely sure of.

03/20/2025

Precision Dog Sport dropping solid knowledge!

Is Your Dog’s Behavior a Reflection of You?

Ever feel yourself getting triggered often?
Struggle to walk away from difficult situations?
Find yourself constantly battling internal frustration?

What if I told you your dog is mirroring those emotions?

Dogs are more than just pets—they are emotional barometers, reflecting the energy we carry within us. Anxiety, stress, frustration, insecurity—these human experiences don’t exist in isolation. Our dogs pick up on them, absorb them, and display them through their own behaviors.

❌ Frustrated handler = reactive dog.
❌ Anxious handler = uncertain dog.
❌ Inconsistent handler = confused dog.

And yet, when we see these behaviors in our dogs, we label them as problems that need to be “fixed”…without ever looking in the mirror.

The truth? Our dogs don’t just need training. They need us to regulate.

✔️ The more we find calm, the more they relax.
✔️ The more we hold clarity, the more they find certainty.
✔️ The more we regulate our emotions, the more they settle their nervous systems.

Want to change your dog’s behavior?
Start by changing your own.

03/06/2025

Happy and content is NOT obnoxious and ill behaved….

If there’s been one constant I’ve seen over all these years of training dogs, it’s this sad reality.

Well intentioned, but misinformed owners who want their dogs to be “happy”, but don’t realize what truly makes dogs happy create precisely the opposite of their goal.

Perhaps they’ve been misguided by positive-only/force-free training professionals, or they’ve simply followed their superficial emotional compasses (this feels good to ME and my dog looks happy IN THIS MOMENT) — but wherever it comes from, these owners end up being permissive, enabling, discipline-free caretakers who create dogs who are chaotic, problematic, horribly behaved creatures with inevitably small lives.

These dogs go on fewer or no walks because their pulling and reactivity is overwhelming. They cant be taken to an outdoor cafe or coffee shop because they bark and lunge at people and dogs. They only go for rides in the car when it’s absolutely necessary because they bark and pace incessantly. They can’t go for on-leash hikes because they’re even worse in tight spaces than they are on regular walks. They have to be kenneled or locked away in another room when guests are over because they’re either too chaotic and annoying, or they’re actually dangerous. And forget about any off-leash excursions — because not only are these dogs unpredictable behavior wise, but once off-leash, they’ll be long gone, and who knows if you’ll get them back?

Some happiness.

The truth is this. Poorly behaved dogs have very small, and often very isolated lives. The stuff they most want — the stuff that truly makes them happy, is to be with you and do things with you. But their behavior (which came from your behavior) makes this happiness impossible.

On the other hand, well behaved dogs; dogs who are polite, predictable, and enjoyable, have big, included, truly happy lives. They go anywhere and everywhere with their owners, and their joy and fulfillment is obvious.

The irony of all this is that the stuff which truly makes dogs happy, and gives them access to far bigger, and included lives, is precisely the stuff so many are loathe to share. You’ve heard it all before: the rules, the structure — and yes the accountability (aka negative consequences) that makes the rules actual rules rather than suggestions, and makes the structure firm and reliable.

But that stuff makes dogs unhappy for the moment, and that momentary unhappiness makes owners unhappy. And so humans, being humans, we choose the option that creates a nice short-term feeling, but a longterm unhappiness, and we avoid the option that creates short-term discomfort but enables a longterm true happiness.

And who pays? Well, the trite response is: your dog. But the real answer is: both of you.

Discipline equals freedom, inclusion, and happiness. The lack of it creates the precise opposite. But you know that.

03/03/2025

Are You Leading Your Pack the Right Way? 🐕👥

A healthy pack—whether canine or human—functions as a structured, harmonious unit where every member understands their role, respects leadership, and contributes to the group’s well-being.

What Does a Healthy Pack Look Like?

🐾 Dogs:
✔ A calm, confident leader sets the tone.
✔ Clear rules and boundaries create stability.
✔ Energy synchronization—your mood affects the pack.
✔ Respect and cooperation over dominance.
✔ Emotional balance—react, adjust, move forward.

👥 Humans:
✔ A leader guides with clarity and trust.
✔ Defined roles and expectations create stability.
✔ Emotional regulation—your energy influences others.
✔ Communication & cooperation build strong relationships.
✔ A strong leader provides stability, not control.

Your Role as a Human Leader:

✅ Lead with calm, balanced energy.
✅ Set clear expectations and boundaries.
✅ Communicate with clarity and respect.
✅ Provide structure and security.
✅ Regulate your emotions first—your dog (and people) will mirror you.
✅ Foster cooperation over control.
✅ Understand the power of the pack.

🔹 Whether leading a dog or a team, leadership isn’t about dominance—it’s about trust, consistency, and balance. Lead well, and your pack will thrive.

💬 Tag someone who needs to hear this today!

02/26/2025

You have to step up and lead or someone will do it for themselves…

Insecurity in Multi-Dog Homes: How Coddling Creates Chaos

In a multi-dog household, leadership is everything. Without clear structure, insecure dogs don’t just “find their place”—they create coping mechanisms that often spiral into reactivity, guarding, and tension between dogs.

And one of the biggest mistakes owners make? Coddling insecurity instead of leading through it.

How Weak Leadership Creates a Mess

When a dog is insecure, they don’t grow out of it—they just find ways to adapt that usually make things worse. Instead of truly becoming confident, they:
❌ Attach to other dogs for emotional stability instead of learning self-regulation.
❌ Take on a false “dominant” role because they feel unsafe in uncertainty.
❌ Start controlling access to people, space, and resources to create structure for themselves.

And when the owner reinforces this behavior with affection, reassurance, or emotional reactions, the dog learns:
💡 "My insecurity is correct—this situation is unsafe."
💡 "My behavior gets attention, which means it must be right."
💡 "I need to control my environment because my human isn't leading it."

That’s when you start seeing reactivity, guarding, and pack instability.

Signs of an Insecure Dog in a Multi-Dog Home

🐕 Always shadowing other dogs, but not leading in a stable way.
🐕 Plays too hard or over-engages in social situations as a coping mechanism.
🐕 Becomes reactive or possessive over the owner.
🐕 Shows unpredictable behavior changes as they mature.
🐕 Overcompensates with pushy behavior to avoid feeling vulnerable.

What Strong Leadership Looks Like

✅ Stop using affection to “soothe” insecurity. Instead, give structure and guidance.
✅ Teach independence. The dog must learn to exist without relying on the pack to regulate.
✅ Interrupt possessive or guarding behavior calmly and clearly. Don't add emotion to an already unstable dog.
✅ Lead, don’t enable. Dogs need direction, not emotional reassurance.
✅ Reward confidence, not insecurity. Praise neutrality, not clinginess or overreaction.

Your dog doesn’t need coddling—they need a leader who shows them how to exist confidently.

Structure creates stability. Leadership creates trust. Everything else falls into place from there.

02/25/2025

Reactivity is a Leadership Problem

Reactivity in dogs isn’t just about bad behavior—it’s a leadership issue.

Dogs thrive on clarity, structure, and confidence. When those things are missing, they fill the gaps with their own instincts—often leading to reactivity, anxiety, and over-responsibility.

Many owners unknowingly create or reinforce reactivity through poor leadership habits like:

1. Inconsistent Boundaries → Inconsistent Behavior

❌ Leadership Mistake: Sometimes enforcing rules, sometimes not. Letting the dog pull on the leash one day but correcting it the next. Allowing them on the couch one minute but scolding them for jumping up the next.
🐕 Dog’s Reaction: Confusion, insecurity, and a lack of trust in your direction. This leads to uncertainty-based reactivity—barking, lunging, or freezing in unfamiliar situations.

2. Emotional Reactivity → Emotional Dog

❌ Leadership Mistake: Getting frustrated, yelling, or reacting emotionally when the dog misbehaves. Nervously tightening the leash when another dog approaches.
🐕 Dog’s Reaction: Matching your emotional state. If you’re anxious, they assume there’s something to fear. If you’re reactive, they learn to react before you do.

3. No Clear Expectations → Overreaction to the Unknown

❌ Leadership Mistake: Not teaching a dog what’s expected in different situations. Hoping they’ll “figure it out” without consistent guidance.
🐕 Dog’s Reaction: Hypervigilance. If they don’t know what’s expected, they take control—barking, guarding, or lunging to create their own sense of structure.

4. Allowing the Dog to Make Decisions → Overload & Stress

❌ Leadership Mistake: Letting the dog choose when to greet, when to walk, or when to react instead of guiding them.
🐕 Dog’s Reaction: Taking control in overwhelming ways—charging ahead on the leash, barking at strangers, guarding the home obsessively.

Reactivity is the Symptom—Leadership is the Solution

Dogs don’t want to be in charge. They want to feel safe, secure, and guided. When leadership is strong, reactivity fades.

✅ Set clear, consistent rules.
✅ Stay emotionally neutral—be the calm your dog needs.
✅ Teach them how to navigate situations instead of leaving them to figure it out.
✅ Take back control of the leash, the home, and the walk.

Your dog is mirroring you. If you don’t like what you see, it’s time to step up your leadership.

02/22/2025

This questionable dog wisdom has circulated and been championed, without question, for years.

And while I get the sentiment, and the simple logic behind it, it’s one of those training concepts that’s leaning heavily on a short-sighted, superficial view.

What owners (and many trainers) miss, is that you can actually condition/train a dog to learn how to be calm, chilled, and relaxed, even without having run a marathon. We train this all the time. Duration work actually conditions the dog to turn off and relax, even when their batteries are fully charged. Along with that, simply having rules, or standards of acceptable behavior—which don’t get a pass because the dog hasn’t been exhausted yet—rules and standards which are enforced, teach a dog that good behavior is required, even when they’re brimming with energy.

Yes, a dog who’s too tired to misbehave might be considered a “good” dog while he or she is incapacitated, but as soon as the battery is recharged, the same “not good” dog will be present. And if repeated enough, the refreshed dog will gain stamina and strength, and what’s needed to make them “good” will only increase.

PS, no, this isn’t a suggestion (or excuse) to NOT exercise your dog. Exercise is a critical aspect of having a healthy, happy dog. What it is, is a reminder that good behavior shouldn’t be dependent upon your dog being exhausted—it should simply be the standard. Your dog is capable, and there will be many times in life where exhausting them won’t be possible. Teach them how to be good regardless, and then you’ll be good regardless.

02/18/2025

Welcome Mr Schmidt!!! This young man is here to learn some stellar obedience and a bit of impulse control! We have a habit at home of yelling at the tv when we’re overstimulated, so calming his little noodle is paramount.

Schmidt has an interesting combination of genetics so we will be working hard on figuring out what makes him his best dog and what motivates him to succeeded. He’s a cool little dude who is very very people friendly but has to learn a little bit of social boundaries when it comes to other dogs. As a young puppy, he is typical in that he’s just a little pushy when he wants to play.

Looking forward to seeing this dude thrive with a little bit of motivation and some clear communication!