Colorful Compassion Dog Training

11/04/2024

I earned my CPDT-KA title!

I am so thankful to everyone who helped me prepare, study, and practice.

This was such a hard exam, and I spent over a year studying for it. I passed it with a score of 718 out of 800!

I'm so excited to continue to learn, grow, and share my knowledge with everyone.

06/26/2024

A lot of you know that I love working with the reactive and anxious dogs, and that is why I work with most of you all 🙂

Scully is a big reason why. I understand the frustration and struggles that can come with having a reactive dog.

But that also gives me the fun perspective of being able to celebrate the wins and recognize just how important they are, where someone else might just write off the win as “normal.”

Today, Scully and I were able to go on a trail run where we encountered people with big hats and another dog and she didn’t bark at them! She just acknowledged the trigger and we kept going.

This has been a little over 2 years in the making because her anxiety has its ups and downs, it took a bit to find what meds worked best for her, and her reaction to triggers wasn’t consistent.

I share this win because the same way I got here with her is by using the pattern games and counterconditioning that I do with all the dogs I work with, so it’s nice to see the light at the end of the tunnel :)

05/06/2024

Hi all!

My shared posts have been getting reported as spam, and I am getting strikes against my account.

Because of this, I'm not going to be sharing resources on here anymore to hopefully lessen that.

If you all need any help or advice, especially in regards to what I usually post, please feel free to send me a message :)

Send a message to learn more

05/04/2024

04/30/2024

Giving dogs a solid reinforcement history for behaviors that we want to see is an awesome way to prevent behaviors that we don't want to see.

In addition to that, we gotta let our dogs be dogs! I have a kitty litter box full of dirt for my dogs to dig in so they don't dig in the garden, chews that I rotate out so they're always exciting to prevent them from chewing on chair legs, and a super long line for them to run with if they can't go in a fenced yard.

04/28/2024

One of my favorite things for my dogs to do is absolutely nothing!

They get plenty of exercise, enrichment, and adventures during the day, but sometimes it’s hard for them to “turn off and chill” at the end of the day.

(One of the side effects of having multiple high energy dogs!)

It has taken a few months for them to get this point, but thanks to a reinforcement history of rewarding calm behavior we get to enjoy these nice days on the porch just settled down :)

04/24/2024

Look at this cute basket full of the tasty treats I use during training sessions!

Plus, the winner gets a lesson with me :)

Check out the event details on their page.

Here’s The Raffle Basket For Sunday! It’s Valued at $200 and includes a 1hr private dog training session with Colorful Compassion Dog Training!
Hope to see you all there Operation Paws for Homes
The OPH Family

04/24/2024

I love teaching fun tricks as confidence boosting cues :)

Here is Geo showing off learning how to “sit pretty” with a lure.

He did so well!

03/12/2024

Hi all!

I have sent out and responded to all messages for Spring schedule changes to everyone it applies to.

If you were waiting to start training, please get back to me to confirm start times and dates.

I am excited that I’m almost all full now that the weather is warming up :)

03/06/2024

ARE YOU WORTH COMING BACK TO?

I often cringe when I watch people trying to get their dogs to come back when they call.

They call and call and get increasingly angry and frustrated as their dog keeps ignoring them.

When their dog eventually does come back, or has been chased and "captured” by the now really angry person, they get screamed at, yanked about, smacked or punished in some way for taking so long and not listening.

Why on earth would a dog want to return to someone who does this to them!

Genetics may play a big part in this when an environment is far more stimulating and exciting.

Coming back to you is often the last thing a dog may want to do when genetic instinct is triggered.

An exciting scent or seeing something to chase can all override a response to recall.

Genetics aside, the most common reason that dogs don’t come back when called is because it’s not a positive experience.

Make coming back to you worth it by always making it a rewarding experience and keep practicing this throughout a dog’s life.

Have a little patience if it takes longer than you would like, let your dog finish what they’re doing before calling them, practice in different locations and environments and never reprimand or punish them for coming back.

There is never a guarantee of a perfect recall each and every time, but making it a rewarding experience will greatly improve the rate of success.

03/06/2024

This is a very good explanation on doggie meds and why I recommend talking to your vet about them.

When a trainer asks you to speak to your vet or a veterinary behaviorist about whether your dog may be a candidate for anti-anxiety medications:

Our goal is not to sedate your dog.

Our goal is not to turn your dog into a zombie.

Our goal is not to remove your dog’s personality.

Instead, our goal is to give you more tools to help your dog cope with the world. Our goal is to give your dog a better chance at recovering from sometimes pretty severe behavior problems.

There is still a HUGE stigma around giving dogs behavior medications, but the truth is that much like some humans, some dogs are born with brains that literally cannot create the chemicals needed to cope with life’s stressors. And some dogs go through such trauma that their brains change to the point where they also cannot cope.

If you went to a medical professional and they diagnosed your dog with diabetes, would you refuse insulin because maybe a diet change might work? All the while knowing your dog was physically unwell?

If your dog broke their leg, and you brought them to the vet, and they prescribed painkillers while your dog healed, would you withhold those painkillers because you feel like your dog should be able to heal without them?

Honestly, the chronic stress that sometimes effects our dogs can seriously impact their quality of life, and this stigma of “anxiety meds bad” is doing a lot of harm.

And if you’ve tried meds before but didn’t like how your dog was when they were on them? Have a dialogue with your vet, or seek out the help of a boarded veterinary behaviorist! There are a multitude of options available out there, and like in humans, some meds work better for certain individuals than others! Don’t let one bad experience sour you on all anti-anxiety medications, that’s like throwing the baby out with the bath water!

The last thing I wanted to say:

If you try anxiety medications for your dog you have NOT failed them. You are not “giving up”. It doesn’t make you, or your dog, weak, or bad, or less than. In fact, you’re a rock star advocate for your dog, and I applaud you for doing right by them.

Some dogs can’t produce enough of their own serotonin; for those dogs, store bought is often best ❤️

02/23/2024

These are some good walking tips :)

I love to walk my dogs in areas where there are plenty of smells for them to take their time to sniff.

02/16/2024

Hi all!

Some of you know I have been in the hospital since Monday morning.

I am out now and feeling much better :)

I am getting back to everyone’s messages, and I appreciate the patience while I get through them all.

02/05/2024

Wondering how to choose a trainer? Remember this!

02/01/2024

My favorite part of walks is watching dogs happily sniff and explore. It’s so good for them emotionally and physically.

Sniffing is not just a simple act; it's a profound way for dogs to gather information, communicate, and even experience joy.

Restricting this natural behaviour can hinder their cognitive and emotional development, potentially leading to stress or behavioural issues.

Moreover, it respects their autonomy and acknowledges their unique sensory perspective.

Ethically, permitting dogs the freedom to explore their environment through sniffing is akin to allowing them a voice and understanding in their world.

Want to work with dogs, ask your questions below.

01/19/2024

This is super important to note!

When we have anxious and reactive dogs, we want to help them feel better as quickly as possible.

But to do that safely and truly change their emotions around triggers instead of just suppressing their reactions, sometimes it takes a long time. There can be ups and downs in training where we need to reevaluate what is going on and adjust our pace.

And that’s okay :)