A Better Dog

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.

08/21/2024

Living with a nervous/anxious/fearful dog…

The family got this 8 yr old male 2-3 months ago. Recently he’s shown an increase in aggression, resulting in two human bites.

We focused our time on helping the owner increase their level of leadership with the dog.

In the pictures below you see this dog hiding behind his mom and peeking around her to look at me when I first arrived. This is a very stressful (or exciting) time for many dogs. We had mom keep the dog with her using a slip lead. This took away from the dog the decision to engage or flee.

During this time we had mom not talk to or pet her dog. Instead, we had the dog “find me” with his nose. This helps to limit the arousal of the initial encounter.

We did eventually go on a productive structured walk as well as work on Place. We also discussed increased crate use to allow the dog some down time.

After nearly two hours of complete structure and leadership from mom, the dog was let off leash in the home.

The dog chose to come over and sniff me on his own and pass by me several times as he moved normally around the house.

With dogs like this, we encourage our clients to move at the dog’s pace, not theirs or that of their guests.

At no time did I touch or handle this dog during the session. It’s what was best for the dog.

Changes in behavior are common as the dog makes its way through the “break-in period”. If you start to see these changes, don’t hesitate to seek professional help.

07/25/2024

An exercise in fear…..

With every new client we do a Pre-training Interview (PTI) to hear the client describe their dog to us in their own words.

We learned some truly sad things about 6yr old Ollie.
The dog has to be forced to go outside. Ollie’s aggression has kept the owners from having friends over since they got Ollie 4 years ago!! Ollie hates sudden noises. He’s so anxious that he drools and whines. He also goes crazy barking at ANY person or dog that passes. Oh, he also guards his owners. 🤦🏻‍♂️

Ollie did not disappoint. When I arrived it was all barking and growling. But I had an advantage. I had given mom a slip lead to provide her more control over Ollie and correct him (yes, correct this anxious dog) for his poor choices.
Giving Ollie clearer guidance on the Yes & No of his actions brought calmness to him.
Next, we went outside for something new, a walk. With Ollie’s new mindset I was actually able to take the leash and start him on the walk!! Now, the walk wasn’t perfect but it was a step in the right direction.

When we got home we worked on a very important concept; guarding. Teaching the owners to claim their space was especially challenging when sitting down. We showed them how to teach Ollie to stay on the floor and not on the furniture right next to them.

Since our session I’ve learned that the walking is continuing in short amounts and that Ollie no longer barks out the window now that he’s not on the furniture anymore. Bravo

I’ll tell you the same thing I told the client. Your love for your dog will not free them from their fear and anxiety.
Dogs like Ollie need Clarity and leadership to improve. Luckily for him he’s got the owners who are willing to put in the work. 👍🏻👍🏻

07/21/2024

We don’t have to deal with this often….

Willow is an all around great dog. She does however, like to bark at anyone LEAVING the house. Oh, and bark at animals on TV too.

We began with addressing the first sign of arousal from Willow. This happens to be when mom picks up her bag to head out. Making the bag a non issue is key. (Handle or carry the bag at times mom isn’t leaving).

Next, we interrupt the “loading” phase by limiting Willow’s ability to follow her mom to the door. With spacial pressure and obedience Willow is several feet away when mom goes out the door. Leaving a quiet, and calmer dog behind. It’s a win, win.

Mom did accuse me of somehow sprinkling magic dust on her dog when this worked the very first time we tried it🪄.

There was no magic involved. Just clear communication. 👍🏻

07/15/2024

We were contacted earlier this year to help with 5 yr. old Sammy. Mom wanted help teaching her dog how to be calm around people and dogs. The list of issues included:
Nipping at guests
Barking at passing dogs
Men in hats
Terrified of new things
Getting more aggressive.

Sammy did great during our session and obviously mom has been putting it the work as we just got the following update..

Client text….

Hi Phil. Just have to share that we are up north this weekend around hundreds of people and a ton of dogs. Check out this chill guy who hasn’t snarled, pulled excessively or barked at a single dog. He’s hanging under the table while we eat outside just watching everyone go past us…..
First sunset cruise on lake MI and exploring lighthouses.

Getting a dog should make your life bigger and better. Sometimes it just takes a bit of work to get there!

07/10/2024

One client’s journey….
(Name withheld for privacy.)

First, the back story. This client had a new puppy, and a very ill spouse that required a lot of attention and medical appointments. Add to that the fact that they all barely made it to safety when the tornado passed through damaging their home.

Now about the dog…This 4 month old was a handful. It bit the client regularly leaving multiple scars and was generally hard to control. (Note the client wearing long sleeves and gloves to walk the dog).

This client would need a few sessions to get to a place where they felt comfortable and safe with their own dog. Due to those frequent doctor appointments and dealing with everything around getting their house repaired, things had to be done differently. The client did not have time for the usual home session of around two hours, so we agreed to meet for shorter times at a lesser rate. Also, we needed to meet early for the client to have any time to train. This meant starting a couple of sessions at 6:45 and 7am. You have to admire the owner’s dedication!!

I created A Better Dog to help teach owners how to train their dogs. All we want is for our clients to be successful and we will “meet you” whenever and wherever you’re at to make that happen!

07/04/2024

Wishing you and your furry family members a Happy Fourth! 🇺🇸🐾

06/28/2024

I normally work alone…..

Recently I was working with a GSD that had an issue with reactivity. During our walk through the neighborhood, I passed one of my favorite Huskies, Ziva and her mom who were also out for a walk.
I worked with Ziva several years ago and would often visit with her and her mom when I’d see them out and about.
Later, the client and I caught up to Team Ziva again. This time I asked to borrow Ziva. Her mom agreed and took a few photos to boot.
Ziva’s energy had exactly the effect I hoped it would. It showed our client that being reactive wasn’t a necessary response to seeing (and being close to) another dog.

It was a great way to end the session. Thanks Ziva (and Pam too)!

06/18/2024

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. 🎩🎩

06/13/2024

Recently we were contacted to help with Chloe, an anxious and aggressive 1.5 yr old.

Chloe’s home currently is a seasonal campground in Allegan county, so away we went.

We learned that Chloe…
* guards her mom
* pulls and reacts on walks
* is triggered by hats & hoods
* has nipped at a neighbor

We took Chloe off a splitter leash (dogs out front👎🏼) she shared with her pack mate and got her on a structured walk all by herself. All of that foolishness from before was gone. It was replaced with structure and personal accountability.

We returned to the camp site to work on Place and help the family recognize when Chloe was showing signs of stress. Luckily we had a neighbor willing to “visit “ to put Chloe to the test. Chloe did so well even the neighbor was asking how these changes could come about in one session.

Kudos to Chloe’s mom who worked hard with her dog to show her there is a new (and better) way of doing things.

06/07/2024

This little fella is Meatball aka Meaty 😎.
As you can see he’s super cute, but kudos to his owners for recognizing that his mouthiness needed to be addressed sooner than later.

We hear from owners all the time, some version of “I thought my dog would out grow it” when the truth is they actually grow “into it” by repeating the behavior over and over.

As soon as “Meaty B” took notice of me he started to target my shoes and didn’t like being told No.

We moved quickly to using food in trade for better choices like, sit, down, Place and recall.

Of course with puppies it’s short training sessions followed by some down time.

We are expecting big things from this confident, smart GSD!

06/03/2024

05/26/2024

I had to kick a dog tonight.

Moose and I went for a walk in a residential neighborhood with friends and their ex-reactive GSD as well. About half way through, a young dog came out of nowhere and ran straight up on Moose. In the nick of time, I was able to deliver a Croc to the dog’s face which kept him from pursuing again, although he did stand about 6 feet away trying to figure out how to come say hi without me impeding again. Of course the owner took his sweet ass time coming to retrieve his dog.

While I apologized (honestly because I was worked up), I am not sorry and I never will be. Moose has struggled to take a peaceful walk for years. His owner has struggled to get him to exist around dogs for years. And now Moose is better. He’s rocking. He never even so much as let out a peep when the dog ran up or even stood there pondering my existence.

I will never not protect the dogs in my care. I don’t give a s**t what it takes. Neither Moose nor I was in the wrong, and I won’t EVER allow a dog on the other end of my leash to suffer because someone can’t be responsible for their off-leash dog. And I will NEVER be sorry for making a dog think twice about their stupid decisions, which is exactly what happened.

I guarantee you a boot to this dog’s face was kinder than the greeting he would’ve received from Moose.

Leash your dogs. Train your dogs. PERIOD.

05/22/2024

All dogs can benefit from training regardless of age or size.

Here are the stats…..
Marley is a 21 lb., 12 year old mix breed whose hobbies include being anxious and whining constantly for attention.
During our session we focused on structured walking, Place and enforcing boundaries such as mom’s personal space. By the end of the session Marley was in a calmer and quieter state. 👏🏼

Ms. Lilly is a 12 lb., 10 yr old from New York who came to town to visit another client. When her owners saw how good our client’s dog was doing they asked us to help with Lilly’s love of attention barking. With in the first few minutes of meeting her Lilly had learned that all that barking was a “no” and just put herself in a down while we talked.
We also worked on improving her leash manners since she had previously tripped up her owners resulting in facial injuries. Again, mission accomplished.

Romeo is a 8 yr old, 16 lb. Terrier mix whose talents have recently grown to include reacting to other dogs while walking.
We introduced this little guy to structured walking and the change was immediate. Gone were the poor decisions he made when he used to walk out in front of his owner. By walking “with” his owner he no longer had to feel responsible to address other dogs and the walk was immediately better for all involved.

Regardless the age, or size of the dog changes can be made to make your life with your dog better.

05/20/2024

We first met Penny this past January right after she was rescued as a 1 year old ( see Feb. 11th post).

Over the last few months her owners have gone above and beyond to get (and keep) Penny going in the right direction, even building her an agility course in the back yard.

Our latest session focused on getting Penny ready for regular weekend trips to the family’s seasonal camp site up north.
The family wisely decided to go to their site before camping season really got going. We discussed exposing Penny to “bite size pieces” of this new weekend activity. This would allow her a better chance at being successful in the new environment. Great job!

Before heading up north, I suggested we try something to challenge Ms. Penny. Home Depot here we come!!

With little effort, Penny took on all the challenges the store had to offer👏🏼👏🏼

Penny had some serious aggression and guarding issues shortly after arriving.
When we got involved we asked the family to focus less on providing Penny affection and comfort and more on teaching Penny how to make better choices and consistently hold her accountable for her decisions.

A well behaved dog has the opportunity to make your life (and theirs) bigger.

Ms. Penny now has that opportunity as you can see in this picture from up north!🙌🏻☀️

05/13/2024

Murphy is a 6 month old “puppy mill” dog that lived in a barn prior to finding his forever home. This little guy is scared of people and dogs. When he gets scared at home he can often be found hiding under the kitchen table. No one what’s their dog to live a life like that.

I wanted to challenge “Team Murphy” so we met at a local trail that was sure to be busy.

We got Murphy on a structured walk right away. We encountered joggers, bikers, other dogs and even a turtle. We also got Murphy around the water and railroad tracks. I asked his mom to focus on leadership and not affection or comforting Murphy when he became anxious or unsure.

By the end of our time together there was a new level of trust between Murphy and his mom that allowed Murphy to do something he had refused to do previously…. stairs!!!

Was this stressful and uncomfortable for Murphy (and his mom)? Yes. Progress often is!!

Great job Team Murphy!

05/05/2024

I wanted to share this text I recently received from a client…..

Good afternoon Phil.

I used your services just over a year ago for my dog Tito. I thought he was showing too much aggression and stubbornness.

Thanks to the techniques you taught I was able to gain his trust and show him I was in control.

He is like a dream dog now.
Super obedient and overall pretty incredible.

He is the best dog I have ever had and a neighborhood favorite.

Thank you,

Eric Kime

I also asked Eric to send me an updated photo of Tito to include in the post. What I got were photos showing that a well behaved dog can make your life bigger and better.

04/26/2024

Names withheld for privacy…

Recently we were asked to help with a re-homing situation. This 2 yr old female GSD was going to be making the acquaintance of the family’s 7 yr old female boxer mix.

We are big fans of meeting on a walk in a neutral location, so that is exactly what we did. We got our steps in while each dog took turns being the leader and being on different sides of each other. This all went on without a hint of trouble.
Fast forward a day or two later and things are going great.

When it comes to introducing a new dog to your current dog(s) don’t leave it to them to just “ figure out”. Start with structure and leadership instead. 👍🏻👍🏻

04/22/2024

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!

03/17/2024

The following is a heartfelt message we received from a longtime client, and they kindly gave us the permission to share….

“Hi, we were wondering if we could possibly schedule some time with you? We have decided it’s time to put 🦮down and we are trying to do all the things he loves to do. He’s always really loved working with you. “

Upon reading this I flashed back to when I first met 🦮 out with their family on a trail walk several years ago. We worked together over the years helping the family navigate a dog that had been re-homed several times. It wasn’t easy but the family said from the start they would never give up on 🦮 and they didn’t.

We met up with everyone this past week and walked the same trails where we met all those years ago. It was a struggle at times for 🦮 but the dog kept going.

We were very humbled by the request to meet up one last time and very thankful to get to see 🦮.

In-home dog training brings with it a sense of connection that’s sometimes hard to put into words.

All we can say is thank you for allowing us the opportunity to train with you and your dogs.

Sincerely,
ABD

03/07/2024

For a change of pace…..

My oldest son joined me at Animal Rescue Project to see Matrix, a 7 month old Malinois/Shepherd mix.

We got to spend some time with this very sweet boy. I left my son with Matrix and went to check out another dog at the rescue. When I came back, I found Matrix was quick to make a new friend.

Although our time with him was brief, we found him to be quick to engage. We even got to play a little tug.

If you’re considering a dog, I think Matrix would be worth a look.

To support Matrix we will provide a training session at a discounted rate.

03/03/2024

I’m starting this post with something 1 year old Aussie Shepherd Hariett is terrified of, and she’s never even seen it. It’s walking out the front door!

Hariett is blind and deaf. She is also scared of having a collar or harness on and has NEVER been on a walk.

Now, we got her out the door but she flattened out on the porch. I had her mom carry her to the grass to get that nose going and boy did that work! We walked into the wind so Hariett could more easily follow me with her nose. At times we added leash pressure and physical touch to keep her moving.

Eventually she moved up next to me and would continually bump me with her nose for reassurance. Hariett continued her good form when mom took over leash duties👏🏼👏🏼.

Next, we started the process on introducing Hariett to the crate.

Hariett really kicked butt during our session!!

Sometimes it just takes a bit of professional help to unlock your dog’s potential. I’m excited to see what the future will bring for Hariett and her family.

02/28/2024

Murphy is a 3 yr old Dutch Shepherd we initially worked with a couple of years ago.

Last week we got a video of Murphy walking while out with his new friend Raeah. His mom was hoping Murph would hit it off with his new “friend” but instead, Murphy did his best to make things difficult for his mom by pulling on the leash, whining and jumping on her during this first meeting/walk, which kept the dogs from getting to be near each other.

MURPHY’s mom was looking for assistance in diagnosing the issue.

We decided to get both dogs together for a walking session. We discovered that Murphy had no issue with Raeah. In fact, they walked side by side for almost the entire session. The issue was in leash handling. We worked during the session to improve correction timing and eliminate unwanted leash pressure, which led to improved clarity for Murphy. With a clear channel of communication now open, Murphy was free to enjoy Raeah’s company.

02/20/2024

Sheldon is a 6 yr old Maltipoo who has a bit of a Jekyll and Hyde personality. He’s a smart, sweet dog until he gets a hold of a sock or tissue and then he’s all teeth. The family was truly at a loss!

During our session we found a dog that was very engaged and eager to train. We noticed the more we worked his brain the calmer he got. Sheldon worked on things like recall and place, which gives the owners more leverage in dealing with Sheldon’s poor choices.

By the end of the session, you can see (in the picture) Sheldon was eagerly looking for his next opportunity to engage instead of picking up the tissue near his feet.

Sometimes all it takes is a little help to move you and your dog in the right direction. 👍🏻

02/20/2024

Great information here.

02/11/2024

Ms. Penny came to her forever family as a 1 year old rescue just over a month ago. After a few stressful weeks of aggressive/reactive behavior we were contacted.

During our home visit we saw first hand Penny’s less then awesome choices and recognized changes that had to be made.

Fast forward a couple of weeks and the family reached out with some questions about how to proceed with a vet appointment the following day. Penny’s previous vet visits had not gone well.

We made a few suggestions on how to set Penny up for success but that didn’t seem like enough so I met the family at 8am the next morning at the appointment.

I am happy to report that Penny did remarkably well. The staff were very complimentary of the new and improved Penny and the work the family had done with her. 👏🏼

When I started this company I wanted ABD to be something different in the dog training space. From day 1 I wanted our clients to feel respected and supported.

We will go wherever you need help with your dog whenever that may be. Even at 8am😬.

02/09/2024

When it comes to introducing a new dog (or puppy) to your pack, we prefer to take our time.

Having worked previously with this client, we were thrilled to be asked to assist with introducing Pippa to her new sister Ava.

We were able to be at the clients’ home before the two met for the first time. We put Pippa in her Xpen and had Ava come into the room off leash. We stood back silently as Ava checked her new sister out. Ava was a bit unsure but otherwise tolerant of Pippa.

We then put the puppy on leash and had her lay on her cot while Ava chose to lay on her own bed. This allowed us to advocate for Ava by keeping the puppy at a “comfortable” distance.

Over the next several minutes, Ava would reposition herself on her bed. She first faced away from the puppy but as time went on Ava became comfortable enough to face towards Pippa. 👍🏻

Remember to consider how both dogs are reacting to this change. These introductions are better treated as a marathon not a sprint.

Interested in 1:1 training at your home? Simply send us a message or fill out the form on our page.

02/07/2024

Want to take advantage of the spring-like weather? ☀️
Great news! We have added additional training slots to work on leash walking!
Send us a message to claim your spot. Let’s do this! 🙌🏻 🐕