Midtown Mutts

08/22/2024

07/25/2024

Have you seen our in house line of biothane leashes? Biothane often referred to as vegan leather is durable, water proof and doesn’t get stinky after getting wet or adventuring. Custom leashes and color combinations available too!

05/26/2024

Training client, Lucy, showing off her best “leave it” skills. She has been practicing to help keep her safe from food dropped by her human siblings during meal times.
Practicing “leave it” can be an important skill for our pups. You never know when you will need your dog to leave an item that is unsafe for them.

04/29/2024

Chewing on unwanted items is a common puppy "problem". But it's a normal, natural behavior for our dogs to chew. Giving our dogs plenty of appropriate things to chew on, can help by giving our dogs an appropriate outlet for a behavior they are likely to enjoy doing. It can be helpful to find chews that have a similar texture or feel as the type of things they like chewing on. Example- if they like chewing on the legs of your wooden coffee table, providing them a chew that is wood based like a coffee wood stick or a is more likely to keep their attention than someone that feels very different for them.

03/28/2024

Let's meet a Midtown Mutts trainer!

Joanne has always had a love for dogs and animals, but it was starting to volunteer at her local shelter while in high school that really sparked her passion to help improve the lives of dogs and their humans. She found she was especially fond of the shy dogs that needed a bit more help learning to trust others and the world. After working in the shelter environment off and on for many years and gaining skills in how to help enrich the lives of those staying in the shelter, she decided to turn her passion into her career when given the opportunity to become a dog trainer. Joanne is a graduate of Victoria Stillwell Academy. Since becoming a dog trainer, she has found true joy in teaching dogs and their human guardians how to learn and grow with each other.

03/24/2024

Training and management go together like peanut butter and jelly. They are most successful when we are utilizing both. If you are training your dog to greet guest with all 4 paws on the ground, but they get to practice jumping on them a bunch before they eventually get rewarded for all 4 on the floor, its going to take a lot longer to get to our end goals (if we ever get there!)

If your pup wins the jackpot and gets that fresh pie cooling on your counter, you best believe it's going to be even harder to train them to ignore the food on your kitchen counters moving forward.

When we manage the environment, we set our dogs up for success, while also preventing them from finding the reinforcement that the environment might provide them. Some of the many examples of management could be a crate, a baby gate, a leash, putting food away off of counters, using a trash can with a pet lock on it, using treat scatters to distract our dogs from distracting things they see on walks.

03/20/2024

Hazel would like you to know that she is happy about this weather situation. Have have you been spending this gorgeous week with your dogs?

03/16/2024

Isn't it amazing how some dogs can spend what seems like eternity sniffing a single blade of grass? A dog has around 300 million scent receptors as suppose to our human 6 million and their brain can analyze smells about 40x what we can! It's pretty amazing!

When our dogs stop to sniff a bush they are collecting important information about their environment. Sometimes it feels like they are being "stubborn" when they refuse to move along from a smell... but imagine watching a beautiful sunset only to have someone come up and put a blind fold on you. You probably wouldn't classify your self as pulling that blindfold off to take another glance as being stubborn.

So don't forget the next time you take your dog out for a walk, to let them take in the smells.

09/23/2023

Did you know about or do you participate in cooperative care with your pets?

08/26/2023

Happy National Dog Day, from my family to yours! Though everyday around here feels like a National dog day. Today we’ll be celebrating with walks, extra snacks and our favorite chews. How will you be celebrating with your dog?

08/19/2023

Make a snuffle basket for under $10! Sniffing is a great enrichment activity to help your dog wind down. It activates the seeking part of their brain and releases natural dopamine which can help reduce stress and anxiety. Give it a try and tag us!

08/19/2023

Make a snuffle basket for under $10! Sniffing is a great way to engage your dog’s seeking brain. Sniffing and searching has great benefits as an enrichment activity and to help your dog wind down. Tag us in any snuffle baskets you make!

08/05/2023

We often get asked about how many treats me use in training. Treats are a great foundational way to get your dog working with you and understanding that great things happen when you’re around but what’s next?

There are so many alternative ways you can reward your dog aside from a small piece of food straight from your hand. You can engage in play whether with a toy or just with your hands. You can give them more access to explore the environment. You can give them some love. Still wanting to use food? Try a treat toss, a snuffle mat, or a licki mat!

No matter what you do to spice up your rewards, remember that your dog decides what is rewarding. Let us know what you do to let your dog know they’re doing a great job!

07/13/2023

Whoopie!

07/11/2023

Our last couple of posts talked about our group class membership program but what if your dog gets overstimulated by or is reactive to other dogs and people? Well that’s where our private training option comes in! We also have a lot of clients that start here and work there way into group classes as they get more savvy about dog body language and how to manage a more stimulating environment.

Not sure if it’s for you and your pup?
Schedule a FREE 15 min phone consult to learn more! Link in bio.

07/07/2023

Yesterday, we introduced you to Hound Culture, our dog training membership. Here’s more information about what it is and why you’ll love it!

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07/06/2023

Have you ever wanted certain things from your dog but struggled to achieve it? Join our Hound Culture membership for flexible and fun training!

Here are some typical things we hear from our dog training clients when they tell us about their training goals. We’ve created the Hound Culture Membership with you in mind! You pick the time, day, and training topic meaning you get to work on your specific needs with the flexibility and ease of a day and time of your choosing. Contact us today with the link in our bio and stay tuned for more information!

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07/04/2023

Happy Fourth of July! 🎆While this holiday may mean fun festivities for us and our human friends, it is often a dreaded holiday for our furry ones.

Here are some things you can do to help prepare your pups! Please don’t forget to check your dogs’ collars and ID information as this holiday is known to scare our pets into running off and getting lost.

06/30/2023

Let’s talk about summer safety! Keep you and your dogs safe during the summer heat with some of these tips and tricks. If you’re looking for something new to do, stop into our shop for some fun indoor summer activities to do with your dog too!

06/11/2023

Hanging out in our puppy socialization class! In class our puppies learn to interact and play with other puppies and their people. But that’s just a small part of class. Our main goal for socialization is helping our puppies be comfortable and confident in the world they’ll live in with us and not be concerned about the sights, sounds, smells or textures of the things they encounter.

05/12/2023

Let’s talk about enrichment!

There are so many fun and creative ways we can provide our dogs with enrichment. While there are a lot of fun enrichment toys and videos out there, our dogs decide what is valuable and enriching for them so follow your dog’s lead and look for signs of frustration or disinterest. If frustration occurs, we can opt for an easier form of enrichment. If our dogs seem disinterested, we can look for enrichment that lets their favorite innate behavior shine!

Comment below your dog’s favorite enrichment activity and stay tuned for more enrichment content!

05/10/2023

Become your dog’s snack leader! Stay tuned for more posts about how to enrich your dog’s life and nurture a happy hound 😊

05/04/2023

We’re so excited to show you the new home of Midtown Mutts, our training space and our little boutique! Come celebrate our opening this weekend and our 11th year in business! 5524 Elvas Ave, Sacramento

04/13/2023

Is your pup getting ready for their first day of school? Our classes in our new facility start next week!

03/21/2023

Big changes coming soon! We are excited to announce we’ve signed a lease for our new dog training facility in East Sacramento and will be moving in this April! We’re so excited for all the fun classes and events we’re planning for the space. Stay tuned!

12/25/2022

Feliz Navidog! Wishing everyone a furry and bright Christmas from our pack to your pack❤️🎄

11/24/2022

Happy Thanksgiving!🦃 We are thankful for all the furry friends we have made🧡