Gentle Touch Dog Training

11/20/2025

Ah...something to think about for dog's wellness

** Important Message from our Director of Studies, Jo Middleton **

Today I’m heading to the House of Lords for something that feels genuinely historic for canine welfare ... the official launch of the Innate Health Assessment (IHA) Tool.

For as long as I can remember I have advocated to end the cruelty that humans have inflicted up dogs through breeding for aesthetics.

To be blunt, we have bred suffering into generations of animals who never asked for it.

Flat faces.
Spines that don't flex.
Bulging eyes.
Compromised breathing.
Painful skin, joints, and neurological issues.

All because, somewhere along the line, how dogs looked and our human egos became more important than welfare.

But today marks the beginning of a shift.

The IHA Tool, brain child of the All Parliamnetary Group for Animal Welfare, is launching.

This 10 point assessment is built from 15 years of RVC research and supported across the veterinary and welfare sectors. It gives everyone, including breeders and prospective guardians, a simple, accessible way to assess what healthy, innate conformation truly looks like.

And I’m incredibly proud that International Institute For Canine Ethics, Canine Principles and The International School for Canine Psychology and Behaviour - ISCP are supporters of this work amongst many others like our Canine Principles partners the BSAVA, RVC, the Kennel Club, Dogs Trust, Blue Cross, Battersea, Wood Green, Hope Rescue and many others ❤️.

Education and compassionate positive action at this level are truly powerful.

This tool empowers ordinary people to make extraordinary change.
It removes the guesswork.
It removes the excuses.
And, if used widely, it will save countless dogs from a lifetime of preventable suffering.

Today isn’t about blame.
It’s about progress.
It’s about choosing better for the dogs of tomorrow and giving people the knowledge to do so.

I completely get that many might look at this with scepticism and think, "people won’t use it." I know that not everyone will. But this is a MASSIVE leap of progress. And every guardian or breeder who does use the tool is one step closer to preventing a lifetime of suffering for a dog.

A breeding revolution has officially begun.

And I’m beyond excited to be standing in the room where it starts.

Link in the comments to for more info 👇👇👇

11/20/2025

Yes, the cheek rolls ... last a long time

The best chew bones and treats for dogs offer a combination of durability, satisfaction, and safety for your dog to enjoy.

11/20/2025

Good advice about stressed/fearful dogs and ...guests

🍽 Holidays can be stressful for us even though we look forward to gathering with family. For your dog, who is wary of strangers, this is a terrifying time.

Their home is no longer their safe space. It’s a place where scary people are moving around and talking (and trying to talk to her to assure her they mean no harm), making people scarier and more unpredictable. 😱

🐶 Create a second safe space (see previous tip) away from guests. Be sure this space is in a quiet part of the house where guests aren’t likely to accidentally come into contact with your dog. 🏡

Make the day more pleasurable for your dog by playing music 🎶 or having the TV 📺 on to help cover the noise from your gathering. Provide her with a marrow bone 🍖, stuffed/frozen KONG, beef knuckle, or whatever her favorite long-lasting treat is. 🐾 Take your dog out to play and potty 🚽 BEFORE everyone arrives so she doesn’t have to walk past guests to go out. 🌳

🐕 If you need to take your dog out while guests are over, ask them to gather in one room away from where you will be taking your dog, so they don’t have to see or come in close contact with guests. 🚪

⚠️👉🏻 Don't feel guilty that your dog isn't with everyone. They doesn't want to be there. 🐾💕

11/20/2025

Fitness moves!!

11/20/2025

VITOS thinking game ...

Our Cyber Event kicks off today, and we’re celebrating with something big for dog owners, new trainers, and agility champions. Your dog already believes in you, so let’s build on that with a warm-up that’s fun, thoughtful, and seriously effective! 🐾✨

Grab your FREE 3-Part Skill Accelerator Video Series featuring Vito’s Thinking Game 🎉 It’s quick to learn, fun to play, and sets the foundation for everything from great manners to high-level sport performance.

Dogs love it. Handlers love it. And it’s ready for you right now with videos and PDFs. But heads up… access closes Nov 27, so don’t sleep on it! ⏰

🤫 You’ll also get the full scoop on our Cyber Event, our biggest online shopping celebration of the year, opening Monday, Nov 24, with the opportunity to join or gift your favorite program with major savings. 🎁🐶

👉 Start your free series here: https://dogsthat.com/fb/cyberevent

11/17/2025

Many people automatically pet their dog as a reward, but is it a reward to the dog and how would you know? Well, think of how you react if something is rewarding to you? Pleased, you'd like to continue interacting/or doing whatever it was/is. Sooo...if your dog ducks away and goes off to do something else, it's likely that whatever you did, wasn't actually rewarding.

Why does that matter? Well, hopefully you want interactions between you and your dog to be pleasant for both of you, not just for yourself. And if you're aiming to teach you need an attentive student. And if what you, as teacher are doing makes them less attentive, that's a problem.

Food or games are often the highest rewards we can provide with our interactions. Dogs have food and games preferences. Petting, although liked by many dogs is often more situational, as far as being something they want. As in: 'I'm busy here, and don't particularly want to be petted.' Or 'I like petting under my ear, but not on top of my head.'

Photo: Attentive

11/14/2025

For those of you who are interested in nose work... and also finding something that your dogs will like.

Anise is sometimes called “dognip” because it generates excitement and interest similar to the effect that catnip has on cats.

11/13/2025

Learning and paying attention to body language is extremely important...

The key to dog body language is recognizing stress signals, and understanding what our own body language communicates to our dogs.

11/05/2025

Clipping nails...

A great video on why agility dogs in particular but all dogs in general can enjoy great health benefits by their owners keeping their nails trimmed short! Dr. Leslie Woodcock, a specialize of performance dog's rehabilitation shares amazing insights.

11/05/2025

STAR PUPPY class graduates ... last night was the final class. Congrats! Next STAR PUPPY class scheduled to start Nov 11th...we need some more members!

10/30/2025

Here's a bit of what we did in the last Novice Tricks class... enjoy!!

Final Novice Trick dog summary performance for Chelsea and Jade. In order to achieve an AKC Trick Dog title 10 novice level tricks are required. However, in ...

10/29/2025

Next STAR PUPPY class starts on Nov 11th, 6:30-7:30 PM. Reward-based, small class size. One hr/wk for 6 sessions. $200.

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