SassyT Canine Academy

08/15/2024

THOUGHTS ON PUNISHMENT

Your dog’s world revolves around you and the way we interact with our dogs can degrade confidence and feed anxiety, stress and make our dogs LESS responsive to us, not more. If he regularly receives negative feedback during the majority of his day, he starts to think that something bad always happens, understandably developing or perpetuating anxiety.

When we scold them, speak harshly to them, loom over them with intimidating body language or micromanage them with their leashes on walks, we make their world a scary place. Think of building him up instead of tearing him down and he’ll worry less about everything else that causes anxiety.

Change your mindset and don’t only notice things your dog does wrong. Watch for him to do things you like and lavishly reward it with praise, attention, treats or life rewards. Stash some kibble in your pocket and make it your goal to reward or acknowledge correct actions 50 times a day.

We like to coach our human students to give instructions, not corrections. Telling your dog what not to do still leaves him with a question about what he IS supposed to do. Skip the middle man and tell your dog what you want before he does something you dislike, then reward him for it. Scolding or nagging reduces a dog’s focus and work ethic, and often creates fear, anxiety, and stress.

08/08/2024

EMOTIONAL REGULATION 🐶

Helping a dog regulate their emotions is imperative so they can be more responsive to their cues. Working through over-excitement, fear, anxiety, or frustration teaches your dog to default to your judgement when their adrenaline spikes. Addressing a dog’s emotional needs is sometimes the first step in training better manners, since adrenaline clouds the ability to think clearly.

We want you to be successful so we’ve designed our program to help you get a reliable and enjoyable family pet in the easiest and most efficient way possible. Using predictability and routine makes training clear and fast, and melds dog raising into your regular life and schedule. This is important because home is where real training happens. Dogs will repeat behaviors that get rewarded and abandon behaviors that don’t get rewarded. It's up to the humans to reward good behaviors and prevent rewards for bad behaviors.

We believe every dog can be a Wonder Dog!

Join us in one of our popular group classes:
-Agility 1: Fun-gility!
-Chill Out! Curb Your Dog's Enthusiasm
-Puppy 3: Manners for Teenagers
-Visit! Help for the Eager Greeter
-S.T.A.R. Solutions & Training for Anxiety & Reactivity

08/07/2024

Spending my birthday learning in TX. Got my boo and beagle buddy Freddy with me and I’m looking forward to the Congress Bridge bats leaving at sunset!! 🦇🦇🦇🦇

08/06/2024

HARD TRUTH TIME: 😲🍪

To build reliability around distractions, you need a solid understanding how tempting those distractions are. Trying to convince your dog to listen for a treat they don't want is dangerous ground to be standing on. If your dog is not interested in what you have, immediately change to something else or move away from the distraction.

Otherwise you are setting the dog up to learn two very undesirable things:

1- "My owner doesn't have anything I want, so it's not worth it to listen."
2- "I want to avoid interacting with my owner because when I'm not focused they stick a treat in my face, escalate their voice and leash tension to try to make me listen. Now I'll ignore them for that reason too."

Behaviors that are rewarded (either by food, indulging in a distraction, or relief of pressure from the owner) are repeated. Build teamwork and motivation by teaching him that listening to you earns a better reward than he could get by indulging in a distraction. This makes your dog want to listen to you every time!

Choose your treats wisely!! If all else fails, you are too close to the distraction for the choice of treats you have made in that moment. Back away 10-20 feet and try again. 👍

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08/04/2024

REFLECTION TIME 🤔

Use your crate as a training tool to help accomplish your goals. Crates are indispensable management tools but you must make sure your dog likes the crate first. Your dog's feelings about the crate are like software for your computer, it won’t work until you install it, and it will need the occasional update! Install good feelings about the crate by feeding meals in the crate, spending time with her while she’s in there, and leaving treats in it when she’s not looking (the crate fairy!).

PRO TIP: Don’t feed treats to your dog's mouth, make the dog think the crate has all the good things so you can attend to guests, make food, etc.

08/02/2024

We want to help you raise a well-adjusted canine family member, so you can enjoy all the great things our special place in the Pacific Northwest has to offer. Wonder Dogs prides itself on always using the latest research regarding canine development and behavior modification to develop the most up-to-date, modern training techniques. This makes our classroom successful, informative and fun!

At Wonder Dogs, we believe that dogs are truly amazing animals. We often underestimate their intelligence and learning capabilities only because we are unaware of how to tap into them. The jobs they perform, the companionship they provide and the place they hold in our hearts are only a small part of what dogs are truly capable of. Don’t limit yourself or your dog by thinking things aren’t possible!

07/31/2024

Our next Toenail Tuesday is August 13th!!! Bring your rascal to Wonder Dogs Training to learn how to create peaceful pedicures for just $30. 😃🐕👏

Just a little bit of training time can turn the most dreaded task into a pleasurable experience for all!😲😮🤩

Let us show you how to restart your dog's health & hygiene training!

While this hour will be geared towards improving paw handling and toenail trimming, skills learned can be applied to many different handling issues, including, but not limited to: brushing, bathing, wiping dirty paws, eye/ear cleaning, teeth brushing, and aversion to wearing equipment.

Register on wonderdogstraining.com ! Every dog can be a wonder dog!

07/17/2024

Fred found a friend at TJ Maxx. Does this count as socializing? 😆

07/15/2024

Toenail Tuesday is tomorrow!!! Bring your rascal to Wonder Dogs Training to learn how to create peaceful pedicures for just $30. 😃🐕👏

Just a little bit of training time can turn the most dreaded task into a pleasurable experience for all!😲😮🤩

Let us show you how to restart your dog's health & hygiene training!

While this hour will be geared towards improving paw handling and toenail trimming, skills learned can be applied to many different handling issues, including, but not limited to: brushing, bathing, wiping dirty paws, eye/ear cleaning, teeth brushing, and aversion to wearing equipment.

Register on wonderdogstraining.com ! Every dog can be a wonder dog!

07/13/2024

Nuthin but lovin with this sweet boy. He is finally back to his joyous playful self. It has taken almost 8 months to recover from his eye removal surgery. It physically healed beautifully and quickly. His spirit took much longer to heal and recover. I’ve been seeing glimmers of it here and there throughout the spring. But since the beginning of June I finally feel like he is BACK. He has regained the energy, the heart, the enthusiasm and his special blend of opinionated spunkiness. He is still tricky to feed, and he still won’t eat most things that he ate prior to his trauma, including playing tricks for treats 😩. But he is happy to go out on walks with me again and liberty lunge. Now we are ready to get back to our fitness work!
❤️

05/31/2024

Just a sprinkle of Wonder Dogs, here and there 🥰🐾

05/02/2024

Socialize your dog to a horse! 🐴🐶💚
Meet a horse that does clicker training tricks and manners! 😲
Play a game or Roger some snacks and scratches! 🍎🥕
We can't wait to see you, Roger loves all ages of people and dogs.
May 11th 12-2pm Come join us!!

03/18/2024

I looooove teaching this class! Come take it to the next level 💪💪

Register online: https://wonderdogs.dogbizpro.com/Public/Registration/Index.aspx?cls=56

02/14/2024

Happy Valentine’s Day to all my friends, family and canines near and far! ❤️❤️❤️

’sDay schoolSweetheart

02/12/2024

Izzy is slowing learning the household manners, like where we are supposed to be when humans are cooking in the kitchen 😄😁
Most the time Fred and Big are good influences, sometimes Izzy’s the bad influence 🙈🤦🏽‍♀️

,Oregon

11/17/2023

This is what my week at work looks like 😍😍

11/15/2023

11/07/2023

Mr Big likes to test his balance on top of doors. He will jump up on me to ask me to help him up there. Then he walks down my hands when he’s ready to be done. Silly boy!

10/26/2023

Cute spam!!! This sweet girl reminds me so much of Sassy! It’s got to be the white, furry eyebrows, the fluffy, perky, ears, and that spunky twinkle in her eye. Stella you made my week! I’m in love 😍😍😍


# ,Oregon ,

10/23/2023

Happy Early Birthday Terra, my love. You are with me every day still. You give me strength the way you always did. ❤️
❤️Happy 15th Birthday Terremoto. My earthquake girl. Thank you for rocking my world.

10/23/2023

Come walk with me Sunday evenings!! 🐕🐾

New Session starts Sunday October 29th at 4:30pm!

Join instructor Jenn for an hour group socialization field trip to walk, train and practice in real-life scenarios.

For graduates of Puppy 2, Essentials 1, S.T.A.R. Class or more-advanced classes.

Register online, link in bio.

10/23/2023

🥹🥹🥹

Walks are for dogs not us. I get that when we walk our dogs we get exercised as well but that’s not the point. The point is to allow dogs the freedom to be a dog and do what dogs do and that is sniff their world. Depriving them of this basic instinct is robbing them from a very important and necessary primal instinct.

10/10/2023

Shaping a retrieve in a zoom lesson with Jen Forbus this morning; it's one of my FAVORITE things to teach and train!! *happy dance*
Just give me some very fine criteria to split down to millimeters and I am a very happy trainer lady 😁😁😁

Notes from the field, in case you are also working on this:

"do it one more time and watch for the change in her neck posture as she heads toward your hand"

"count how many times you accidentally click when she's letting go. Adjust your criteria throughout your session so that she meets it twice that many times."

"most common mistake is to click too late."

"click for intention to touch the hand, not the hand touch itself"

"if you are always waiting for the goal criteria you will accidentally click them for dropping it"

"if they even come close to missing criteria, click sooner and drop criteria"

09/26/2023

Wohoo!! can’t wait to see my small dog peeps!

This Friday at 3pm!

Join instructor Jenn for a supervised hour of playing, relaxing, and training with dogs of all ages under 25 lbs.

Register online. Link in bio.

09/25/2023

Oh my god this sweet sweet girl. She has come into my life at just the right time. She is nurturing, sweet, and loving. She makes me laugh every day even when she’s being a ridiculously frustrating tenacious, little beagle. She has come into my life to be by my side through this next chapter of the unknown. I guess she is reminding me of that this morning by sitting on the steps while I soak in the hot tub. 🥹

09/23/2023

The real life of a dog trainer: walking your own dog in your pajamas while drinking coffee, eating a croissant, carrying a full p**p bag, and making a how-to training video at the same time 😂🤣😂🤣
Stay tune, for some really exciting and new things coming from SassyT Canine Academy and Wonder Dogs! I can’t wait to share it all with you!  👏👏👏👏



morning ,


09/22/2023

Someone had herself a good old fashioned muddy time! 😆😆😆

08/27/2023

Omg so disgusting! Freddy was occupied chewing on a turkey leg while I packed for Camp Unleashed, But after a couple of hours she was on to me! So she followed me all around the house and kept plopping down next to me with that gross thing! 🤢😆

07/30/2023

This is one of my favorite pictures of us. Just her NW1 title but it felt so good that day. She walked in like she’d done it a hundred times (meanwhile I was so nervous I had mixed up the trial dates in my head and had been panic-crying the day before thinking I’d missed it🤦🏽‍♀️). She blew through her searches, dragging me behind her and I remember her giving me a look as we headed back to the car… like “we’re done already? that was it?” 😄
❤️