Graceful Touch: Canine Training & Rehabilitation

06/21/2025

One thing is for sure!
When you start to see these signals, it opens your eyes.
Fully.
So how do dogs show they just aren't interested or need a break from interacting with another dog?
This shows some fairly common ways.
If we ignore these "no thanks" signals, it can cause issues for some.

I've said it before....no one likes a pest, and dogs are no different.

That dog that just won't give up?
Even when your dog may be desperately signaling their little heart out.
We have to intervene.

Are we "interfering" with their natural communication?
Yes we are, because that communication given is not being received.
If ever there was a time to advocate and intervene.....that is the time.

Over arousal/over stimulation is a very big cause of dogs not receiving clear communication well.

So we have to step in when the other dog "just doesn't get it".

06/03/2025

04/30/2025

Spoiler alert...

Even dog trainers aren’t running around every morning shouting, "I can't wait to do some training!"

Training isn’t always convenient.

But neither is living with the same struggles forever.

Small choices today lead us to a whole different life later.

04/28/2025

So many owners fall into this mental/emotional trap, and they take their dogs with them.

Here’s the thing: What you perceive as being firm, strict, a “joy killer”, oppressive, and perhaps even tyrannical — if shared correctly is anything but.

All the rules, restrictions — and their enforcement — become the foundation in creating your dog’s clarity about what is and isn’t healthy/desired behavior, which helps them become dogs who CAN be included in daily life, and who CAN go anywhere.

They also provide your dog proper intervention from you via direction and structure — and yes consequences — for unhealthy behavior and lifestyle patterns that are directly connected to your dog being a stressed, anxious, overwhelmed, and freaked out mess.

So from one shift in our view and beliefs and actions (let’s call it the unapologetic leadership shift), we impact not only the outward behavior that greatly limits their lives as far as freedom and inclusion, but also the deleterious interior effects that living a chaotic life has on their mental state and nervous systems.

This is your near constant reminder that what so many of you think grants the gift of freedom and happiness (a hands-off, permissive, laissez-faire approach) almost always does the precise opposite.

It creates extremely messy, uncomfortable, and even dangerous dogs, who live terribly limited lives — all because of a mistaken human viewpoint. Often one that comes from a place of wanting the best, but not being able to see far enough downstream the effects their beliefs and approach are having on that which they love dearly.

As I always say, well behaved dogs live bigger lives. But I’d like to add, they also live much happier interior lives as well.
Something to think about the next time you find yourself viewing your dog’s chaotic behavior as them just being happy dogs. I promise, It’s anything but.

PS, I never write/speak directly from the dog’s point of view. It’s a rhetorical device that’s abused in the dog world to manipulate/elicit emotions via the dog’s first person narrative. But in this case it seemed appropriate.

04/07/2025

04/07/2025

Words of wisdom from the late Mo Lindley.

04/07/2025

“Why is your dog wearing a muzzle?”

A question we love to answer! 🙂

Too many people still assume a muzzled dog is dangerous. That it’s aggressive. That the human on the other end of the lead has failed. But the truth? That muzzle is often the result of love, training, and responsibility.

🐾 Some dogs are muzzle trained because they get overwhelmed in busy environments.

🐾 Some wear one at the vet… because they’re in pain, and pain makes behaviour unpredictable.

🐾 Some have a history of trauma or reactivity, and a muzzle gives them safe access to the world.

🐾 Others have a habit of scavenging… things like chicken bones, trash, or even medications left on the ground.

🐾 And for many, it’s just about being prepared. Emergency situations happen fast, and a muzzle trained dog is safer to handle when things go wrong.

Pain, fear, stress, overstimulation… these are real, valid reasons a dog might struggle. A muzzle doesn’t mean they’re a threat. It means they’re protected.

The more we educate, the more we create empathy. 💕

The more we normalise muzzles, the more we protect dogs from judgment… and from situations that could cost them their lives. 💕

We muzzle because we care. Let’s start changing the question from “What’s wrong with that dog?” to “How can I learn more?”

Who is with us?

03/22/2025

You don’t have to *actually* train your dog to engage in problematic behavior, you only have to allow it — from there nature will do the rest.

It typically starts out as a small, “no big deal”, testing of the waters. And because the behavior is so small and seemingly benign, many let it go. But as the waters repeatedly permit the tiny, seemingly benign behavior to be repeated over and over, something strange occurs…

The once small, innocuous, “no big deal” behavior has now become anything but. It now occurs far more frequently, and it’s far stronger and firmer in its presentation.

This is the place where many owners reach out for help from professionals. And usually they will relay a story of the issues coming virtually out of nowhere. But that’s never the case. Problematic behavior always starts small (that’s the “out of nowhere part”), and always grows into something more if allowed.

So here’s one of the most important tips I can share with you. What you allow is what you train. And the reason you allow it is almost always because it doesn’t appear to be that serious initially. But then at some point it becomes something you’re no longer able to ignore. So instead of doing what so many do, and falling into the trap that so many fall into, work to see the small moments of unwanted behavior as your “go-signal” for addressing the issue. These are your chances to head problem behaviors off at the pass, and also to ensure your relationship dynamics never end up in the dysfunctional space that so many owners end up in.

And maybe just maybe, you’ll never need a professional to help — because you never allowed the small stuff to become the big stuff. :)

06/23/2024

So excited to start this! The changes fresh and raw feeding have implemented in my dogs have been immense. Time to up it another level!!

05/08/2024

03/26/2024