Bluff City Paws

11/24/2024

Don’t take for granted the love of a good dog by using force and pain in training. They are like a treasure chest full of diamonds and gold and will keep your heart rich in spirit.

“Once you have had a wonderful dog, a life without one is a life diminished. A dog can enrich your life in a thousand ways, providing companionship, adventure, and the comforting assurance that someone is always happy to see you. Dogs possess an innocence and an unconditional love that humans often aspire to but rarely achieve. They teach us about living in the moment, about loyalty, and about finding joy in the simplest of things. Losing a dog is like losing a piece of your heart, but even in their absence, they leave behind memories that are warm, enduring, and irreplaceable.”
Dean Koontz - A Big Little Life

Artist: Chris Butler - Labrador Puppy

Pairing by Whispers from the Heart

11/23/2024

Boy would we love to win a Klimb! They cost more than we can afford…..oh man!

11/23/2024

Dogs that are deaf make wonderful therapy dogs. They understand and read body language better than hearing dogs.

Sharing per request for a group of my very special friends.
“dogs and angels are not very far apart”

This is the Spotters most important role they had as therapy dogs. They sure loved her.

Granny Spotter wanted to share her story with our family, friends and dog lovers as long as it wasn't too sad. I think she is smiling down from Heaven. Who…

11/23/2024

Words of wisdom from my friend/ dog trainer/ & dog Mom

11/18/2024

Oh yes!

So often what I hear from people is they want solutions and suggestions for how to get their dog to NOT do something. And it's easy to get stuck thinking "How do I get him to not jump on me? How do I make him not chase the cat?" etc. But it isn't really helpful because it only addresses one part of the equation. The other half is what the dog should do instead. What would you rather he do in that moment? "Nothing" is not a behavior. It's not really something we can cue. We can't cue a dog to "not do something." But we can cue them to DO something else. We can cue him to sit instead of jump. We can cue him to down instead of chase the cat. We can cue a specific behavior. So when it comes to changing our dog's behavior, remember that asking them not to do something is a more ambiguous, unclear thing then to ask them to do something concrete. Ask your dog To Do!

11/15/2024

You are not just a dog owner to your dog. You and your dog are faithful life partners.

"The journey of becoming a dog owner is a promise of growth, as you learn to care not just for your dog, but for a faithful life partner."

11/15/2024

Friday funny!

11/14/2024

It’s never out of the blue!

TRIGGER STACKING – WHEN BEHAVIOUR HAPPENS “OUT OF THE BLUE”

We’ve all had those days when nothing seems to go right and one frustrating thing after another happens to us, leaving us feeling wound up, stressed and ready to explode at the next unsuspecting person who dares to ask us something.

This “unsuspecting” person may think we have a serious behaviour problem or need anger management therapy, when the truth is that we’ve just had a really bad day or even a few bad days and don’t usually behave like this at all.

Dogs are no different and a behaviour that seems completely out of character or happens “out of the blue” is often caused by “trigger stacking”.

A trigger may be anything that increases a dog’s stress levels and has a negative impact on their emotional, mental or physical state.

These may be small things that we may not even notice or seem insignificant to us, but they are all adding to an increasing “stack” of events that may culminate in out of character behaviour.

When stress levels reach a certain point, the next stressful event, however small, may cause an explosive reaction that is completely unexpected.

Instead of just focusing on a particular behaviour and seeing it as a problem that needs to be prevented, take a step backwards, look at the bigger picture, look at events, circumstances or environmental factors that may have played a role leading up to that behaviour.

Being aware of potential stressors and allowing your dog time to decompress, relax and unwind for a few days will often mean the difference between “normal behaviour” and a behaviour that seems completely out of character.

11/07/2024

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=OuTh47i3hOY

Visit our website: http://dogmantics.com/Become a fan on facebook:http://www.facebook.com/pages/Dogmantics-Dog-Training/75289166216SUBSCRIBE TO THIS CHANNEL ...

11/02/2024

Interesting webinar and it’s affordable!!

Does this sound familiar?

1. Cue the dog —
2. No response, dog stares at you blankly as if this is a new word in their vocabulary
3. Show the cookie (or other reward), and
4. Voila! Memory instantly restored and the dog responds correctly.

So what’s happening here? Is the dog playing you or trying to get away with something? Is this a ploy that will lead to world domination by your dog?

None of the above. This is simply the dog telling you what they understand about how you use rewards, and pointing out (with a wagging tail) where your reward based training may have hit the most common stumbling block in the training world.

Pro-trainer secret: A few simple changes can make your rewards more rewarding for your dog, and this webinar will help you find them.

The webinar will cover:

* What is a reward? Your dog’s mileage may vary!
* Intrinsic vs extrinsic rewards
* Creating the right pay-scale based on the dog, the task and the situation
* Putting dopamine to work for your dog – is a treat in the bush worth 2 in your hand?
* Mark and bridge – rewards here, there and everywhere

Join Suzanne for this fun webinar which provides practical information on using rewards effectively, with simple solutions to the oh-so-common “Show me the cookies!” challenge.

Register here: https://relationshipcenteredtraining.thinkific.com/courses/super-charge-your-rewards

This webinar will be recorded and you will have access to the recording for a year.

10/30/2024

Dogs with Big Feelings

With our next online conference being about Dogs With Big Feelings, we decided to put together this FREE resource full of training tips, reflections, and videos for all you dog parents out there!

Get the E-Book: https://tinyurl.com/49fx3ye4

And if you're navigating big feelings with your dog, be sure to check out the line up for the November 9th Dogs With Big Feelings 2.0 One Day Online Conference: https://tinyurl.com/bdfx7htx

10/30/2024

Introductions between cats and dogs