Good Dawg Training LLC

03/07/2025

Nominations are open 🐕🧡

Official 2025 Community Voting Awards Platform for Santa Rosa, CA. Where the community votes for their favorites every year.

02/28/2025

Bookings are open for mid March! For bookings, please go to the website. Link in bio ☝🏻

02/28/2025

You’re Invited to our “Open House” event to explore our new dog training facility and discuss the exciting services we offer.

This event is primarily for humans to enjoy, but you may bring your dog along too!
Dogs must be leashed, well-behaved around other dogs, and vaccinated. If in doubt, please leave your dog at home so we can discuss your dog training needs!
Only attendees at the Open Day may enter our Lucky Draw to win a prize:
1st Prize - one free one-hour private training session
2nd Prize - a 2Lb bag of Mosaic ostrich dog treats
3rd Prize - a free treat pouch & clicker
The Lucky Draw will be done at 5:30 pm on 3/17 and winners will be contacted via phone or email. The winner’s names will be announced on Good Dawg Training social media platforms.
Please share this event with all the dog owners/ guardians/ parents you know.
We are excited to see you there soon!

02/22/2025

A new Sensory Sniffari for dogs will be open from 3/17. Bring your dogs along for an adventure! For details on all services offered, please go to www.good-dawg.com

Good Dawg Training Sensory Sniffari In Santa Rosa, Santa Rosa, California - The adventure begins here. This fully indoor facility is clean, safe,...

02/17/2025

Yappy Hour for rescued (or older) dogs that don't get the opportunity to socialize. A rescue dog will need time, patience, and plenty of effort as they begin to adapt to their new routine in your home. It’s important to stay consistent and make socialization a fun and regular part of your dog’s routine.

Yappy Hour for rescued (or older) dogs. Your new dog will need time, patience, and plenty of effort as they begin to adapt to their new routine in your home. It’s important to stay consistent and make socialization a fun and regular part of your dog’s routine.

02/17/2025

Short, supervised, positive, and safe play sessions help puppies & adolescent dogs develop essential socialization skills and independence, while also allowing them to burn off excess energy.

Note two different age groupings.

Short, supervised, positive, and safe play sessions help young puppies develop essential socialization skills and independence, while also allowing them to burn off excess energy. Puppy parents must be present as it's an opportunity to learn about puppy behavior.

02/17/2025

Short, supervised, positive, and safe play sessions help puppies & adolescent dogs develop essential socialization skills and independence, while also allowing them to burn off excess energy.

Note two different age groupings.

Short, supervised, positive, and safe play sessions help young puppies develop essential socialization skills and independence, while also allowing them to burn off excess energy. Puppy parents must be present as it's an opportunity to learn about puppy behavior.

02/17/2025

Start Right Advanced group class is the next step after completing Puppy Start Right or Rescue Start Right.

We learn advanced techniques in impulse control, calming, and leash walking. This training is ideal for urban everyday life.

Start Right Advanced group class is the next step after completing Puppy Start Right or Rescue Start Right. We learn advanced techniques in impulse control, calming, and leash walking. This training is ideal for urban everyday life.

02/17/2025

Have you welcomed a new dog into your home or are you just looking to improve your dog's behavior?

This course will help you build and maintain essential behaviors to make daily life with your dog easier and more enjoyable.

Have you welcomed a new dog into your home or are you just looking to improve your dog's behavior? This course will help you build and maintain essential behaviors to make daily life with your dog easier and more enjoyable.

02/17/2025

Bookings are now open for March 2025.

Developed by veterinary behaviorists. We are the only service provider of this comprehensive course in Northern California.

Early puppyhood is a critical time for socialization and learning. Experiences during this time set the stage for the rest of your puppy's life.

Puppies should be between 7 and 12 weeks old when starting class.

Developed by veterinary behaviorists We are the only service provider of this comprehensive course in Northern California. Early puppyhood is a critical time for socialization and learning.   Experiences during this time set the stage for the rest of your puppy's life.   Puppies should be...

02/17/2025

Private training sessions offer personalized guidance tailored to your dog's unique needs. Choose from a variety of 4 week or 2 week courses, 1 hour classes or experiences.

Choose from a range of private training sessions.

02/14/2025

I’m starting a free dog puzzle exchange. Any contributions will be greatly appreciated 🐕🧡

02/14/2025

01/05/2025

Today is a sad day - the world has lost an iconic animal trainer, Karen Pryor. Karen Pryor Academy Karen blazed the trail for reinforcement based training across species. Her work formed the foundation training I received almost 30 years ago. Her work remains relevant and vital.
RIP Karen Pryor

12/31/2024

Fireworks can feel like the end of the world to our dogs.
If your dog struggles with loud noises, here are some tips to help them feel safe and calm when the fireworks start flying:
1) Get an exploratory walk in early in the day to avoid any accidental fireworks in the early evening.
2) Drown out the noise with classical music or a movie.
3) Reduce potty breaks to the bare minimum.
4) Give your dog a frozen Kong or a long-lasting chew to focus on something positive.
5) Talk to your vet about calming treats or sprays they recommend.
If you’ll be home, get some good snuggles in. You can’t reinforce an emotion such as fear, but you can help your dog feel comforted and safe with some extra snuggle time.
New Year’s is a time to celebrate, and with a little preparation, you can make it a more peaceful experience for your dog, too.

Be safe and have a Happy New Year!

12/26/2024

Exciting plans are underway for Good Dawg Training. We are planting roots in Bennett Valley!! (2700 Yulupa Ave in the lovely Annadel Center).
No new info is available on the website yet, but believe that we will have plenty unique and exciting opportunities for you and your dog to learn, bond, grow and have fun together!

Don’t miss out on news, signup to our newsletter! https://good-dawg.com/good-dawg-training

12/24/2024

8 ways you can reinforce your dog without treats.

While I use food to train specific behaviors - like a sit & stay or come when called - there are actually an infinite number of ways you can reinforce good behavior throughout your daily life with your dog.
Here are a few reinforcers, but the key is to know your dog and what they enjoy.
1) Sniff breaks on walks.
2) Verbal “good boy/girl!”
3) A door opening to access a new space (indoors or outdoors)
4) A toy thrown
5) A toy to tug
6) A game of chase
7) A good chin or back scratch
8) An opportunity to do another fun behavior
It all comes down to what your dog enjoys.

This isn’t always obvious to my clients so I can help you decipher their body language so we can really pinpoint the interactions and activities they’ll feel motivated to work for.
Positive reinforcement-based training focuses on identifying and then reinforcing behaviors you want to see more of from your dog.

12/22/2024

Why exercise isn’t the be-all, end-all for your dog’s behavior challenges…
It's common for new clients to come to me saying “she gets plenty of exercise, but XYZ is still happening.”

We’ve been taught that exercise is absolutely essential to a dog’s well-being and that exercise will solve all their problems and behaviors. If they’re tired, they won’t have the energy to do anything “bad.”
So while exercise is generally beneficial - much like it is for people - exercise alone is not a cure-all for unwanted behaviors.
Running more miles will not reduce their anxiety when you leave the home.
More games of fetch will not reduce their frustration-induced barking or chewing.
Doubling the number of walks will not make them less likely to counter-surf.

Behaviors are based in emotions and patterns.
As a trainer, I look for ways to change how a dog feels about a situation. I look for ways to interrupt patterns of behavior. The more a behavior has been repeated, the more likely the dog is to repeat that behavior.

Factors I consider outside of physical activity to get to the route cause of unwanted behaviors:

Medical - hair loss, excessive licking, a dog’s gait while walking, etc
Observable behavior - hypervigilance, barking, lip licking, panting, etc
Environmental changes - recent routine changes, diet changes, new animals or people in the home or near the home, etc.
Genetics & socialization - how was the dog raised & socialized, do certain behaviors run in their genetics, etc.
Mental enrichment - enriching activities to prevent boredom, new experiences, engaged problem-solving thinking, etc.

There are so many factors I can look to help identify the root of the issues and determine an effective plan of action. Every dog is unique.

I am in the process of creating exciting new experiences for you and your dog. Watch this space for updates soon!