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A Better Dog

Offering specialized dog training that works around your schedule. Our focus is to give you the tools to improve your relationship with your dog.
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ABD seeks to improve relationships between dogs and their owners through focused, attentive training sessions to address a variety of issues including pulling, lunging, jumping up, resource guarding and aggression.

12/18/2024

Living with fear….. name withheld for privacy.

Working with a fearful dog is very challenging. The 1 year old dog in this case is afraid of many things including the dark and blowing leaves. This dog is overly attached to one of the owners and has become reactive as well. The dog has also struggled to share space with a young child in the home leading to some aggressive responses from the dog.

We started with stabilizing the situation by using a slip lead inside the home for the owners to have direct control and influence over this dog. By reducing the dog’s options (responsibilities) the dog was able to calm down. This allowed us to use food to shape new responses to things like wiping off the dog’s feet without the usual conflict.

We practiced claiming personal space so the dog could learn that it’s ok to be separate from the owners. This also helped reduce conflict between the dog and the child over the same people.

We also added more walking to the “to do” list to increase engagement and leadership for the owners.

Update…… two weeks later.

I received the following client update with some photos. I’ve creatively edited this photo of the dog with the child for privacy (no comments on my editing please).

“I just wanted to say thank you and this is the best gift I’ve received all from your help I am so grateful for all you helped me through so far this is how they are doing so much better lots more work to come but this is amazing”

All of the changes we asked the owners to make focused on increasing engagement & leadership for the owner and more structure for the dog. Progress is the goal here.

12/09/2024

Tonka is a 4 month old Dane who’s always on the go. She accompanies her mom to work (salon), walks between client appointments, and takes trips to pet friendly stores. The amount of interactions Tonka was having with the public started to cause a new problem. The dog was now seeking / expecting attention which made a young, good sized dog, harder to manage.

We met at a local park to work on our leash manners before moving to Home Depot where we sat just inside the door. Why? We practiced watching the public pass us by. The number of people who got to pet Tonka…ZERO.

We discussed a future where Tonka has a more balanced use of the “gas & brake” of socializing the dog.

12/02/2024

I wanted to share with you some details about our time spent working with Jango Animal Rescue Project
I happened to be at the shelter the same day Jango arrived (11/23). I met with him daily for the next week. In this short time Jango has learned to wait at thresholds, like exiting his kennel. He’s started loose leash walking and crate training as well. Jango will sit to get his leash on/off and has shown zero issues with body handling. Remember, all of this training is done in a very distracting environment.
I have also had time to observe Jango around my 10 year olds in the play yard at the Rescue. The kids stood calmly in the yard when they first met the dog and then ran and played with him in the yard a few days later, all off leash and without issue. I’ve also seen him exposed to other dogs without getting overly excited.
Jango is a super sweet dog that has improved each and every day I’ve seen him. He as shown to be motivated to work for both food and affection which is a big training plus. Jango has even taken to smiling at me when I show up (“submissive grin”).
If you’re interested in meeting Jango contact ARP. If you’d like me to be there when you meet Jango, please feel free to shoot me a message to make arrangements.

11/28/2024

Happy Thanksgiving!!!🦃

We volunteer our training services Animal Rescue Project in Kalamazoo. We usually spend our time addressing a variety behavioral issues but today we took a more casual approach. Our entire family spent time with several different shelter residents sharing time and attention with as many dogs (and cats) as we could.
Contact ARP to volunteer/donate or apply for any of these sweet faces!

11/20/2024

What this picture doesn’t show……

Resource guarding (dog protects an “item” from other dogs &/or people) is Elka’s go to move. This has resulted in injuries to her people and to Mango, as well as an increased level of stress for all.

Mom is one of those resources,so we showed her how to claim her personal space; not allowing Elka to “claim” mom. Elka was very quick to pick this up.
We also introduced an understanding of trading. Elka would no longer get affection from Mom just for being Elka. Instead, she would have to sit, down, recall, etc first. An important shift in her relationship dynamic.

We added structure and leadership through increased crate usage, Place training and suspending “lap time” with mom. The close proximity to mom and elevated position for Elka were a bad combination.
Additionally, we took away any “like to have’s” such as bones that contributed to resource guarding and aren’t necessary.

The goal is a calmer existence for both dog(s) and human!

11/03/2024

“At what age should we start training?”

This is one of the most common questions we get asked. These videos feature 9 week old Maverick. First, we tossed some of his food into a pool full of plastic bottles. We used his food motivation to overcome his initial hesitation to get into the pool.

Listen closely to the pool video. You WILL hear the dog using his nose. You WILL NOT hear any talking from the owner. The goal of this exercise was to have the dog work through this drill on his own. Mission accomplished. 👍🏻

We also worked on changes to aid in potty training and improve leash manners.

After some much needed down time, we introduced Maverick to Recall, Place and crate training.

Initially he wasn’t happy about taking a break in the crate, but after a bit of training, he learned the crate could be a calmer place. You can actually hear Maverick snoring during his nap. 💤

Remember, your dog is never too young to learn, grow and be challenged. All involved will be better for it.

10/19/2024

Let me tell you about Ty…

Ty came to his new family via Detroit Animal control. I first heard about this two year old when Ty’s mom called the second night he was in their home. Ty had displayed some aggressive responses to some very unusual triggers. After talking with mom we made some suggestions about how to proceed in the immediate future and set a training date for a few days later.

I am happy to report that by the time training day came, those aggressive responses were history. Admittedly, the dog had very unusual social queues and was hard to read. These unusual responses left us wondering how things would go.

After seeing how well Ty did with Structured walking and Place, we decided Ty was “deceptively intelligent” 😬.

We regularly hear from owners who use words like “awesome” or “great” to describe their dogs followed by the phrase “except for..”.
Ty appears to be well on his way to just being awesome!!

10/15/2024

Investing in Karma…

Karma is a 3 yr old rescue who got off to a tough start in his forever home. Let’s go through the ABD process with him.

First, the Pre-Training Interview (PTI) where we talk with every client about important background information. In Karma’s case, we learned about a laundry list of reactive triggers and general unease in certain encounters. Based on our conversation I asked the client to move away from free feeding and crate the dog more.

Next, we met for our first session focusing on Place, Structured walking and tips for introducing new people to Karma.

Over the next two weeks we answered client questions and analyzed multiple videos of Karma’s behavior via our free phone support.

During session number two we got to slow things down and practice on addressing poor behavior choices as they were developing, helping the dog understand the yes & no of his choices.

The picture of Karma by the fire shows how far this dog has come. Initially, this dog was barking at anything that passed the house, both on the street in front and the water in back. He was even too scared to be out in the dark.

By focusing on limiting his “responsibilities” and increasing his engagement with his owners, Karma is learning he can be calmer in a greater variety of situations, even the ones that once scared him. Bravo.

10/06/2024

Ms. Phoebe had been giving her mom a bit of a hard time. She favored lunging at cars and pulling when it came time to go for a walk. These choices led to a very stressful experience for Phoebe’s mom.

We spent our session focusing on increasing leadership and engagement.
Phoebe was a great student who showed her mom how quickly changes can happen!!

A couple of days later we got the following update from the client….

Hi, Phil

I wanted to provide you with a brief update on Phoebe's progress. We started practicing your lesson immediately and our walks have been totally stress-free every day since. What a change!

Phoebe consistently walks slowly and politely, and I am so proud of her. You have no idea how nice it is to walk without all the straining, jumping, and lunging. I am now looking forward to our daily excursions rather than dreading them.

My worries about meeting other people on the street have disappeared, and I am no longer anxious when other dogs are nearby. Most importantly, I don't worry about dislocating my shoulder from her pulling on the leash. LOL!

Thank you so much for turning my puppy into a better dog!

Julie and Phoebe

09/29/2024

Usually we post about the issues a client has and a particular training component or two that we worked on.

I wanted to introduce you to Lance, just so you could see the face of pure joy. Lance had an eye infection that led to it being removed, but that has not dampened his spirit. I first met Lance at Animal Rescue Project. Little did I know a former client would adopt him later that day.

We did work a bit on walking during our session, but honestly, Lance needed little help from me.

Lance is a young dog who first lost an eye and then ended up in rescue before finding his forever home.

As a trainer, I’m often learning valuable life lessons working with families and their dogs.

When your day might not be going as planned remember Lance’s story….things have a way of working out.

09/23/2024

https://www.facebook.com/share/r/TcUWQgeHWkKxSpjJ/?mibextid=qDwCgo

Enjoy…

09/19/2024

The value of a good first impression…

Let me introduce you to 2 yr. old Athena. This gorgeous lady has been less than awesome around both people and dogs. She’s even lunged and nipped at family friends.

Now, years ago we started limiting off leash introductions with dogs to reduce conflict right out of the gate. This helps dogs that are nervous, excited, fearful, aggressive, etc(and their owners) by reducing the dog’s choices during the first few minutes of our arrival. With no option to jump, nip, growl, urinate or make other bad choices, the dog calms quicker and starts to pattern new behavior choices.

Athena was introduced on slip lead. We asked her mom to correct her for barking (which was already less intense than usual) and in a few minutes, we were off for a structured walk. I was actually able to take the leash shortly after getting outside, which caused no issue for the dog.

When we got back from our walk, we were working Place with no one handling the dog on leash. She was an angel, just like her mom described.

With training, Athena will not need the slip lead during introductions, but remember, it’s not a race to get to that point. Respect your dog’s timeline when it comes to learning new behaviors.

09/18/2024

This one year old Aussie Shepherd was giving his family a bit of trouble. Not listening, nipping the kids, and barking/ lunging at anything that moved topped the list. Another issue was the client lived almost 80 mi. away 🤔.

Timing could not have been better as we were going to be 15 mins away for a family wedding this past weekend.

We got started with Tater going on a structured walk. Next, was claiming space around the kids when getting ready for school and while sitting down (this often led to nipping and general out of control behaviors). We also introduced Tater to Place before we left.

Tater was quick to learn the new rules (boundaries) which helped him interact with all of his family members in a calmer way.

After a quick outfit change, it was off to my niece’s wedding, where a great time was had by all.

We are often asked about how far we would travel to train with a client. My answer always is, “ it depends.” We have family, friends and places of interest all over the state. We will do our best to make any training session happen. Just ask.

09/12/2024

How do you feel about exposing your dog to stress?

This young Weimaraner started a board and train recently. During the drop off, I informed his owner, he'd be living under some different rules at my house than what he'd been used to for the past few months of his life.

He would be subjected to some "healthy stress.”

Among other things, he would be sleeping in a crate at night, learning to walk nicely on a leash, and participate in proprioceptive exercises to build body awareness.

Essentially, he would be learning some problem solving skills and because of it, develop greater resilience.

The first day here he found himself stuck on the opposite side of a pole than the side I was on.

Can you guess what I did?

I did nothing. I stood there, not moving, not applying more pressure to the leash, not coochie-cooing him...I just waited.

It took him about 90 seconds of wiggling, and whining to figure out what to do to get himself free.

Once he did, he was darn proud of himself, prancing about for a few seconds and then we moved on and enjoyed a short game of fetch.

The stress was short lived. He learned how to relieve it and was proud of himself as he discovered his power to problem solve.

We do our dogs no favor by immediately bailing them out of every little problem or struggle they encounter.

So often I hear, "My dog doesn't like the crate,” or "My dog doesn't like to be brushed,” or "My dog won't potty while on leash.”

As a woman who has raised two (now grown) children, I could not have imagined saying to my kids dentist..."well, they don't like having their teeth brushed so we just gave up." 🤣

I have news for you, there are very few dogs that immediately enjoy their crate, or being brushed and bathed, or being restrained on a leash.

It's our job to teach them to tolerate the realities of life in the human world.

For most things the teaching recipe is simple:

A bit of skill, applied over time, mixed by a healthy dose of patient persistence.

If you don't have the skill, the time or the patience, you can pay people like me to do the foundation work for you. It is like having the dentist clean the kids teeth...but if you don't maintain what the professional did, it's not going to become good habits that serve for a lifetime.

The main thing to understand is that stress and learning will be part of life. There is no avoiding it. It is how we learn to work through it that makes the difference.

By taking time to teach your dog how to tolerate some stress and learn to problem solve, you set them up for increased confidence, improved manners and an overall healthier mindset.

09/12/2024

Look what my dog can do…..

As many of you know we have a 7.5 yr. old Working Line GSD named Emma who we got as a puppy.

Emma is trained to do a lot of different things but these pictures show her excelling at a very important skill…doing nothing at all. Emma happens to be attending a “performance” put on by one of the kids and her stuffed friends.

Having an off switch for Emma took a bit of work. We incorporated down time into our daily routine since she was little. This is often an overlooked skill since many owners put a lot of time and effort into teaching their dog new things to do.

Don’t forget that other side of life. Having a balanced dog is not only good for their mental health. It’s good for yours too.

09/03/2024

We recently received a 7 paragraph text message looking for help. This 10 month old had been showing signs of aggressive behavior. The family had no idea what was going on.

From a training perspective we are always trying to find the motivation behind choices the dog makes (good & bad). We’re looking for the “why.”

During our pre-training interview, I learned about some practices that I suggested the family change immediately. I asked the client to start crating the dog a bit more when they were home with him, and not allow the dog on the furniture, increasing structure in the dog’s daily schedule.

When I arrived for the in-home session, these changes were well underway. The dog started the session in the crate and one small change made ALL the difference.

On the morning of training, the dog was let out of the crate and nipped his mom. When I arrived, I talked mom through a permission- based crate release straight to a slip lead. The ability for the dog to exit the crate and act like a dip💩 was gone. This one change in how the dog began his interaction with all of us extended through the entire session.

He made ZERO attempts to guard his mom (which led to many problems). The dog was much calmer and easier to handle all around.

We feel that privileges, like allowing the dog into your intimate space (ie. on the furniture) should wait until your relationship with your dog has a solid foundation and your dog is mature enough to make good choices with the privileges you allow.

Are there dogs that can handle these privileges earlier than others? Yes, but there is no need to hurriedly give these to your dog . They won’t love you more and you’re not hurting their feelings by making them earn them.

Play the percentages. Take your time to learn who your dog is with rules and structure in place. Having a dog is a marathon not a sprint.

……..Update…….

When I reached out to the client about this post, I received the best news! Here’s part of the client’s response….

The dog has made significant improvements! He has done fantastic! We took him on vacation with us last weekend. He went to the cottage and he did perfect! He was exposed to strangers (several), and dogs, and he was so good! We rented a cabin on a lake, and there were several cabins around us and there wasn’t one issue! His listening and recall has been so good! Phil, he is a different dog!

Great job!!!👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻🙌🏻

08/29/2024

ADOPTION OPPORTUNITY!

This is Tay. She’s a sweet GSD mix who about 3 yrs old.

I have been working with her at Animal Rescue Project in Kalamazoo. I was hoping to give her a running start to find her forever home but honestly, she’s making me look good.

In just two sessions we’ve been able to work on: sit, down, recall, “out”, “leave it”, Place training, thresholds and loose leash walking.

While it’s best to begin working with a dog in a low distraction environment, that just isn’t possible for her right now. Despite these distractions, you can see how easily she can maintain her sit on the cot, even with dogs barking and walking by.

Tay has shown me a very stable temperament and has no issues with body handling.
She’s not fond of cats.

Please reach out to ARP if you’re interested. You can also contact us if you have any questions about our interactions with her.

Thank you! Let’s find her a forever home!

08/26/2024

The best part about being a dog trainer is meeting people who want a better life for their dog (and themselves).

I wanted to take a moment and share this story about a family who’s going above and beyond.

One day a woman was driving when an adult Dalmatian ran into the road causing her to stop. That dog then led her to two young puppies and another adult Dalmatian that had all been discarded. The woman gathered up all the dogs bringing them to her home.

We spoke a couple of days later and, once things settled a bit, we met for an in-home session. We spent time working on a game plan for this family that was now “plus 4”.

We went over crate training, engagement strategies and even introduced the adult dogs to some leash walking.

Seeing a family willing to take on this enormous responsibility and change to their lives was something I’ll always remember.

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Oh no, Littermates!! We were contacted to help 6 month old littermates with basic manners and leash training (something they hadn’t done yet). Getting littermates is often extremely challenging due in part to the bond between the puppies that can make bonding with the owner difficult. Our first visit was a bit chaotic, especially when we introduced Ace & Bella to walking on leash. By our second visit three weeks later, things vastly improved. The video in the post came from the client just two weeks after our second visit. I’d like to take credit for the tremendous improvement but that wouldn’t be the whole story. The family did all the heavy lifting. Each dog had a dedicated human sibling who worked very hard to give these two dogs the structure they needed to bond with the entire family. Great job to you all. 🎩🎩 #ABetterDog #dogtraining #puppytraining #leashtraining #dogbehavior #portagemichigan

Puppy training with LILO and her family!

Puppy training with Lilo and her family.

Ms. Lilo is a four month old who likes to use her teeth to communicate. This was made even more challenging by having two young children in the home. We got involved and worked towards adding some boundaries, structure and engagement. Following our session the clients were kind enough to post a recommendation to our page. A couple days later we got a great update with videos. Here is part of that update….. “Wanted to send some videos- our quality of life has literally improved! Thanks again…” “Lots of progress with her being more calm in general and that’s really helping build some positive interactions with the cats. We really appreciate you! Have a great weekend!!!” We can’t say it enough! We love what we do! #ABetterDog #dogtraining #puppytraining #portage #michigan

Meet Charlotte

CHARLOTTE 4yr old GSD This is the face of a nervous, anxious and dog-reactive dog who was attacked twice by dogs last year after… We met for a Walking session where Charlotte introduced herself by hitting the end of the leash expressing her displeasure with me being there. After… Lunging and barking at passing dogs during our walk. After… We implemented a structured walk where she could follow instead of lead. After… Charlotte learned to trust us. The client said that Charlotte has always been skittish and anxious and that she would “jump as high as 4ft in the air and pull away to get to a dog.” We wanted Charlotte and her owner to know that this can get better and it took one session to prove us right! This isn’t a one and done session. It’s a step in a new direction towards a “new normal” that Charlotte and her owner can both enjoy. This short video shows what a truly sweet dog she is. ♥️ #ABetterDog #dogtraining #dogbehavior #germanshephard

“How much time should I spend on training?” For us, “training” is a combination of time spent on specific behaviors and making teachable moments out of our daily interactions with our dog. This videos of our dog Emma is an example of the latter. Occasionally we have a family member hide for Emma to sniff out. It’s super fun for Emma as she loves using her nose. During a moment of playing ball, I added our “easy” command, which means Emma has to take the item (toy or food) gently. Emma has learned that play and listening go hand in hand. Look down in our comments too for another example with Emma.👇🏻 These spontaneous interactions go a long way toward improving your relationship with your dog. #ABetterDog #dogtraining #dogbehavior #familytime #lifewithadog #portage #michigan

What to do at the Vets office….

For many dogs, including mine, a trip to the Vet is not their first choice. While waiting to be seen I got Emma focused on some nose work by hiding treats in different spots around the room. This video is hide number 5 or 6, so she is having trouble with residual odor in the small space. You can see at one point she decides to cheat and just go to the treat container👎🏼. I got her back in work mode and a few seconds later she found the last treat. Getting Emma on a task that she loved, in an environment that she didn’t, reduced her stress by giving her brain a job to do. She was very proud of herself I must say.

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Puppy training with Lilo and her family.

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