Bubba’s PetCare

08/19/2024

Another tennis ball rescued from the tall grass by our hero, Memphis 🩷

08/02/2024

Happy Friday to everyone except trail runners who don’t announce themselves as they silently approach other humans and their dogs 🩵

07/23/2024

Happy 7th Birthday, Duncan! 🥹

07/19/2024

A Pig & his little muddy piggies 🥹

07/15/2024

This is fine.
I’m fine.
Everything is fine!

I miss you, Winter. Please come back 🙏

07/11/2024

A Maya appreciation post 🩷

I work with 13 dogs on a weekly basis & I have known 8 of them since they were puppies. 🥹

There’s something so special about bonding to a dog when they are babies and watching them navigate every stage of their development.

Maya is one of those 8 but she stands apart because I met her when she was only days old. Maya has always been resilient but her amazing guardian, quickly realized she needed some extra help. Heather rallied a team of people to cover Maya’s bottle feedings and we all watched her grow with her siblings. ❤️‍🩹

Maya fought so hard to survive and now she has a home with one of the most kind hearted humans I have ever known.

Maya is one of a kind. She has the most gentle and well intentioned spirit with just the right amount of wild mixed in. She is fearless, affectionate and so easy to please. Every day is the best day of her life and no human or dog is a stranger.

I love you so much, Ms. Maya 🩷
We are all better for loving you, sweet girl!

07/10/2024

Bernie and me whenever we hear an unfamiliar bird call 🧐

07/02/2024

Every time I work with Rooney, I have two different narratives in my head:

“I should advocate for wildlife and deter Rooney from stalking little critters.”

+

“Look how beautiful she is when she is in predator mode.”

Rooney has the same desire for murder as when we first started working together five years ago but she doesn’t quite have the speed required to actually make contact.

This old lady has worked so hard to limit her instinct to chase wildlife but sometimes she can’t resist.
And sometimes… I don’t expect her to 🙃

06/28/2024

I’ve gone through a couple of weighted vests over the years but I think this one is my favorite so far. 🩷

06/26/2024

Brave little Millie 💚

06/19/2024

I use similar cues in very different ways depending on the individual in front of me. Most of my friends have a solid reinforcement history with “no rolling” because sending home a dog covered in their favorite brand of stink is not ideal. 💩

Louie, however, uses his cue “are you gonna roll?” to help compose himself after an uncertain or exciting scenario.

We were approached by an off leash dog today and Louie handled it like a champ but the dog’s human made him uncomfortable. (It is possible he also picked up on my frustration with this irresponsible human. 🙃)
We got to a safe spot and wiggled our way back into a more balanced mindset.

I’ve tried to reinforce this cue with my other complex friends but Louie is my only success story so far. 🥰

06/14/2024

Highlight of our week: We ran into baby groundhogs on the trail 🥹

Lowlight of our week: We learned what baby groundhogs sound like when they scream at predators who have them trapped under their paw ☹️
(the scream was very effective and baby survived the encounter)

06/05/2024

Summer hasn’t even started yet but Maggie and I are ready for it be over 🫠

05/09/2024

05/07/2024

The most beautiful bromance I’ve had the pleasure to witness 🥹
🐾 Beau & Louie

04/11/2024

Celebrating one year of working with this little dust bunny 🥹

One year ago, Dougl’s list of triggers was pretty extensive. Dougl moves at the speed of light and that’s also how quickly he processes his environment. Our focus has been on slowing down his brain so we can evaluate our surroundings without reacting to our surroundings.

Dougl is a dog who has pushed me to the limits of my knowledge and forced me to learn more. He’s an excellent little adventure buddy and I’m so proud of his progress. 🩵

03/16/2024

Happy from a beautiful Barney 🩵

Barney is one of my most cherished feline friends and I am always looking to expand my circle!

I am currently accepting new cat sitting clients for May 2024-December 2024 ☺️

03/13/2024

May I have another cookie, please? -Bernie
vs.
Empty the treat pouch and no one gets hurt. -Millie & Louie

02/20/2024

Muddie buddies 🤎

02/01/2024

Today we are thankful for doggy wet wipes 🤎

02/01/2024

I love Vizslas because they are all exactly the same but also completely different from one another. 🩵
Rooney and Beau have very different personalities but they also have so many interesting similarities!

01/31/2024

**PLEASE SHARE**
Calling all Wisconsin Labradors!
Do you own a purebred Labrador Retriever who has AKC pedigree? Would you be willing to have them participate in a research study investigating the genetics of ACL rupture to confirm the accuracy of genetic risk testing for the Labrador Retriever breed? Do you live in Wisconsin?
If you answered yes to all of these questions, we would love to work with you to enroll your Labrador in our study!
We are currently looking for Labradors who have a confirmed case of cruciate rupture at any age, or Labradors that are 8 years or older who have not torn their cruciate.
Participation includes a short appointment at UW Veterinary Care for a blood sample, which will be at no cost to you. We will also collect pedigree information for your dog. For our healthy controls we will also require diagnostic radiographs that are non-invasive and do not require sedation - again, at no cost to you.
If you or anyone you know has an affected Labrador Retriever please email us at [email protected]!

01/12/2024

My goals for Bailey in 2024:
facilitate solid & dynamic friendships with other dogs,
promote squirrel watching instead of squirrel hunting,
strengthen our bond through play,
add value to her loose leash walking reinforcement history

Bailey’s goals for Bailey in 2024:
eliminate all squirrels everywhere

12/29/2023

Instagram vs. reality starring Dougl ❄️🩵

12/27/2023

Poisoned Praise

Lately I've been pondering experienced handlers who seem to be doing all the right things -enthusiastic markers, good technical personal play concepts, no obvious or heavy-handed corrections, good core training techniques- yet have dogs having a hard time.

From dogs who shut down to dogs who look bored to dogs that start to view the games we play with them as chores to slog through.

I'm not stranger to this myself. So what gives?

I believe a large factor (if not the largest factor) is poisoned praise. That although we've done all the right technical mumbo jumbo, that our dog doesn't believe our praise. Somewhere along the line we've poisoned it.

How? It comes in many forms, but these are the most common versions I see -and almost always there is a large combination of elements at play.

1) Frustrated handlers dealing out frustrated praise. We are trying to pass off a lie and they know it. If our praise feels like cloaked frustration, that's the end emotional result.

2) Drilling Skills. For all but a few dogs repetition kills enjoyment yet many of us continue to train and train and train to get something "right".

3) Focusing on Specific Skills too Early. Before we can truly get skill we need attitude, teamwork and communication. Many experienced handlers want to rush into skills. If you don't allow the dog to cultivate desire first, you're gonna have a heck of a time getting a great performance.

4) Obligatory Praise. As handlers we know we should reward our dogs. However if praise, treats or tug feels like a chore to the handler, the dog feels that in the communication. Just another chore on the training front today. Thanks.

5) Praise is Pressure. I could write a whole post on the topic, but in a nutshell as we advance skill sets praise comes with a level of pressure. When we earn an A on a paper we feel we should be able to earn similar again. Less than an A can make us feel defeated, even if we weren't prepared adequately. If we keep pushing the envelope on skills, sooner or later you are going to find a dog who has some level of pressure stress. Where pressure lives desire and joy get worn away. Couple this with the fact that there is handler pressure too and the dog praises us with the wanted behavior, the team can quickly be dealing with a heck of a lot of pressure.

6) End Goals are Prioritized Over the Process. Especially for handlers well into their sports, there is a conscious or unconscious push towards the end goal -getting on that competition floor. It motivates you, but it often also takes you out of the moment when you train your dog. Plan away, but not being present with your dog is a very, very good way to create disconnect and make your praise seem hollow and fake. Don't go through the motions.

7) Making Mountains out of Molehills. People -experienced or not- have the very odd ability to find a single great session amazing while completely unravelling with one off session. We all have set-backs, but I promise just like a few great repetitions isn't actually as amazing as you think it is, nor is a couple of bad repetitions as detrimental as you may believe. What we communicate is what's going to hold water long term. You don't need to be super duper happy about the set-backs, but save your mental breakdowns for when you're not playing with your dog. Honestly, it's just dog sports. You're not curing cancer.

8) Not Taking Time to Play. Interact like you mean it. Play for the sake of playing. Quit training and have fun (a lot of handlers truly don't know how to mentally entwine the two). Build muscle memory for joy, desire, messy speed. You can refine it later. You obviously have the skills to teach "stuff". Now teach yourself to have enough fun that your dog believes you.

9) Quest for Perfection. We all want our dogs to do it right, but I promise the quickest way to strip desire in a dog is to make them go back and fix their work. God what a chore! Like a teacher over your shoulder telling you the moment you get something wrong. What a nag! Keep flow. Keep momentum. Keep speed. Keep desire. Those are way the heck harder to train anyway. Don't worry at some point you'll have enough steam in the tank to fix things, but until you actually have that, keep moving. Poor finish -keep moving! Missed a jump -keep running! You do not need to make it "right" all in the same session.

10) Time Lines. Deadlines create pressure. If we want X by Friday, unless it's already close to ready, I will need to strip desire in favor of simply "getting it done". There are times I may need to do such, but if more than 10% of my training is rushed, that rushed feeling is going to start to poison things. Rushing kills the process, which kills joy. Marie Kondo would feel we should throw it out.

If you think you may have poisoned your praise I encourage you to take a training break. A couple of weeks or even a couple of months. Enjoy your dog. Begin to grow a new praise system -one they believe and buy into. Allow them to show you how brilliant they are and have them believe it. Let them be cheeky.

When they have some fire in their soul, then you are ready to try again, going slow, relishing each session as two teammates who at the end of the day really enjoy time spent together.

12/12/2023

It’s been nearly two weeks since I said goodbye to my old lady, Jolene 🌈

The support and kindness that my colleagues and clients have shown me has blown me away. 🩵

& how lucky am I to be able to navigate my stages of grief in the company of these incredible goobers? 🥹

12/05/2023

Dogs across the country are coming down with a new respiratory illness similar to kennel cough. We talk with two UW veterinarians about what we know. Plus, we hear how to keep our pets cozy in the winter and about the amount of sleep cats and dogs should receive.

11/15/2023

Don't forget about this Saturday's event with Divine K-9! Jorge will be taking you pet parents (leave your fur kids at home, please!) around Captial Springs Dog Park. He'll discuss what's being communicated between different dogs at the park. Learn about proper play and how to be a good dog park citizen. We have 2 separate time slots available, 12 -1 pm or 1 - 2 pm.
Join in on the fun: https://www.eventbrite.com/e/dog-park-safari-tickets-744742283217?utm-campaign=social&utm-content=attendeeshare&utm-medium=discovery&utm-term=listing&utm-source=cp&aff=ebdsshcopyurl&fbclid=IwAR24j9ORnFUeqDdyz58MX8ABL-biNPA62NcFFrLDV4tMRydS69Qyic0sun0

11/15/2023

Better together 👩‍❤️‍👨
Millie + Louie 🐶

11/09/2023

Dougl the treat seeking missile 🚀