Great Expectations K9 Training

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Great Expectations K9 Training

Peoria board & train program specializing in behavioral reset. New puppy/rescue? We can help!
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09/05/2022

Using a specific tool will not damage your dog’s relationship with you.

I was reading a post by a FF trainer this morning, and she described how anytime you use an ecollar or a prong collar, you are damaging the bond with your dog. This is 100% absolute nonsense. I have seen firsthand how correct training (regardless of the tools) opens doors for dogs and allows our pups to have amazing lives. How tools like ecollars save lives and create communication lines for disabled or struggling dogs who otherwise wouldn’t have that. How clear expectations help puppies like Jax here thrive and become mature decision makers.

I’ve had some severe cases of dogs come in who growled at me through the kennel for the first several times I went to go get them out. By the end of their three week stay, they were my best friend and SO excited to see me and work with me (and vice versa 😋)

It’s not the tool that determines the outcome of your relationship with your dog. It is the consistency, the dedication, the communication, and the compassion you put into your dog. THAT is what makes or breaks your relationship.

05/05/2022

Consistency is key! Bili (like most dogs!) learns best when the expectation and communication is consistent.

04/05/2022

Venom is looking for his forever home! This handsome boy would love a working home where he has a job and a person who enjoys spending one-on-one time with him. The best way to describe him is GOOFY! He has a silly personality that makes you smile and is such a pleasure to work with. He is not a “hard” or “serious” dog, but he LOVES to work and is very handler driven. He is medium energy for a Mal, but high energy for dogs in general. Anyone who has shepherd experience and wants to dabble into sports or any kind of work will LOVE him!

He is great with other dogs and resides with my pack of four. He is a submissive male who came to me with a lack of experience and some excitement-based reactivity. We’ve worked through that, and I only ever see it come out with the aggressive GSD that this dude in my neighborhood is *barely* able to walk (we avoid them as much as possible - I don’t blame Venom). When I picked Venom up, he was in a neglect situation and left in his kennel for an extended period of time. I’ve worked him back from this and love where he is at now!

Ven has all his basic obedience, walks on a prong, had a wonderful off switch, is crate and potty trained. No ecollar training, because he responds wonderfully to vocal cues. He is an extremely willing dog!

If you are interested in Venom, please DM me or fill out an adoption application with Pepper’s Pals Rescue .pals on their website.

03/05/2022

Leave the story behind. Rescue dogs often come with sad backgrounds of abuse, neglect, or abandonment. The issues they have often stem from these experiences, and it’s natural for us to want to feel sorry for our pups. We never want them to feel that way again!

The problem is that dogs follow our cues. If we approach our dog with the mentality of “he’s scared of loud noises because he’s a rescue,” then we are sending the message to our dog that “you are scared of loud noises.” That is the only expectation we set forth for the them, and so the dog remains content to be anxious and fearful.

If instead we approach our dogs with the mentality of “he needs to build his confidence around loud noises,” then we are creating the expectation of our dog to overcome that fear.

This isn’t to say we should ignore behaviors or expect immediate transformation. Look at behaviors - not in the context of the dog’s past - but in relation to what your active training goals are. How can you actively counteract your dogs anxiety or fears? That should be our approach. Leave the story behind.

02/05/2022

Bili strikes some cute poses, like this one here! Her ecollar work is also coming along beautifully. This week is proofing week for her, so now we get into the more hard core stuff for her. I’ll challenge the skills she’s been developing while here to see how well she’s able to handle herself moving forward.

01/05/2022

Oakley was here for a SNP to brush up on his walk work.

29/04/2022

Meet Jax! This cutie is a handsome who is here to learn a solid young adult foundation. It’s so much fun to work with him, as his work drive is off the charts 📈 He’s been coming along fantastic, and we are going for our first *real* walk today! Wish him luck!

21/04/2022

Meet Bili, the who is here for resource guarding and manners at the door. She is coming along super well, and her owners have given her a great foundation to start with.

20/04/2022

Boop the snoot!

17/03/2022

Sedona, in all the stages of going through the drive through.

17/03/2022

Service dog Luna was here for a Stay N Play yesterday. We focused on brushing up her public access training to ensure good behaviors while out and about with her disabled handler.

17/03/2022

Working with Luca the to reduce his anxiety about doorways and new people. So we people watch through the front door! Great for reinforcing Place, downstay, off switch, and my expectations of him.

16/03/2022

We just missed but Luna is always down for giving us the cutest expressions (especially when she wants to play)!

30/01/2022

Oreo came for a Stay N Play today! He’s always so much fun to have in. His dad said he’s been playing a lot of scentwork games with him, and I think that’s great to hear. Dogs like Oreo with natural breed drives love the opportunity to fulfill those drives.

29/01/2022

She is definitely a cuddle bug, and loves running around with me on the grass in between training sessions. It’s important to have a balance, even in training!

28/01/2022

Little Dog Chill

So often, I see dog owners encourage little dogs to always be beside them, on top of their laps, or underfoot. What this does is create a dog that feels it is unable to be apart from its human, and therefore cannot think or act appropriately. Or when around their human, the dog lives in a hyper-excited state of mind 24/7. That’s not healthy for a dog, either! My goal with Cocoa here is to give her the tools to chill out and be a thoughtful dog that makes good decisions. The second half of this training will be for her owners: teaching them how to interact with Cocoa in a way that promotes a healthy mindset! For now, she is doing great learning to relax on Place.

27/01/2022

New year, new pup! This is Cocoa, and she’s here to learn some good manners, as well as curb some pottying issues, separation anxiety, and just overall be a wonderful pup to her family. This Cavapoo is learning very quickly! She’s been a fun dog to work with, and I’m excited to continue her training.

11/12/2021

Poppy is staying for a little bit! I’m super happy to play around with this sweet girl again. It’s so much fun for me to see the difference in my B&T dogs from when their owners first dropped them off for training versus again for boarding.

Especially seeing the confidence and communication this girl now has makes my heart swell. Looking forward to having fun with her!

10/12/2021

Communication goes both ways!

For dogs like Luna who can easily get overly excited, it’s important that they learn how to properly communicate with us. Rather than Luna being in the mindset to react, I always encourage her to slow down, look to me for guidance, and proceed thoughtfully. This helps her to better regulate herself and enjoy experiences like the walk.

08/12/2021

Boop the snoot! Joy had a huge breakthrough in her training sessions yesterday. I’m extremely proud of her of critical thinking skills and how she’s been applying them to the new expectations. Joy is testy at times, but this is only because she’s trying to figure out what boundaries are to be expected. She’s really clicking with the ecollar, and I’m excited to use our communication to further her confidence building.

05/12/2021

Walnut is doing great on the walk! This handsome young man has a big personality and loves to share it with everyone. Unfortunately for Walnut, his self-regulation is lacking, which leads him to push boundaries and engage in hyperactive behaviors.

By making sure he has clear expectations for behavior in the house and taking him on regular structured walks outside to burn off excess energy, we can help Walnut to be an awesome family dog!

04/12/2021

Luna is back!

02/12/2021

Joy is coming along nicely! She is mastering Place work, as well as building confidence. It’s important that she learns to make level-headed decisions, especially when in an excited mindset. Obviously, we want to set her up for success by helping her calm down overall. But giving her the tools she needs to regulate herself will benefit her for years to come!

25/11/2021

Happy Thanksgiving from our pack to yours! Featuring the cute duo who are staying with us this week.

24/11/2021

Bayley and her brother Brock are here for Thanksgiving! They are both sweethearts who love to play with each other and hang out with me while I get work done on the computer. I tend to walk both of them separately (I should be getting video of that today). They are both goofballs and being me so much joy!

Not pictured is Brock, who much prefers to make a game out of “bet you can’t photograph me” 😂

22/11/2021

This beautiful girl is Joy, and she is here for her board & train. I’m so excited to be spending Thanksgiving with this pretty girl.

Joy is such a sweet dog, but she struggles with a ton of anxiety. She doesn’t like being away from people, and she has a very high energy association with humans in general. I’ll be working with her to become a more thoughtful, confident pup!

27/09/2021

Poppy playing in the rain!

It rained this weekend, and the pups all got to take advantage of the cooler weather.

25/09/2021

Daisy goes home tomorrow. She looks pretty excited!

24/09/2021

Tired pups after their walk! We had a great walk today with Finn and Bodie who are here for their Stay N Play. We switched between a structured walk and a decompression walk to encourage them to relax and process the world around them!

Both boys did great and passed out on Place soon after. We’ve got some more fun activities planned for them later today. But first? It’s nap time!

23/09/2021

Kenickie has been working with other people this week to get experience taking commands from a variety of humans. It’s common for dogs to bond strongly with one person, but in a family dog setting, it’s vitally important that a dog like Kenickie be comfortable with all her humans.

It’s been so much fun to see her growth over the last several weeks!

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Excitement-based Reactivity Gone on the Walk

Pompey conquering the short leash and loose leash walk! From excited-reactive to calm and cruising, this fun dud is a joy to walk now that he has a great foundation for communication.

What does it mean to socialize your puppy? Canines do not socialize the same way humans do. Parents have kids join clubs or participate in extracurricular activities. We do so to help them learn how to interact with other people and to be well-rounded. However, canines don’t engage in this kind of socialization. Think of a wolf pack. They are family units, and they live their whole lives within that pack with very little to no outside interaction of other wolves. They don’t say “Hey, lets go visit with Full Moon Pack today.” All they have is their pack, but somehow, they are able to speak “canine” well and maintain a balanced, healthy lifestyle. Why? The key is that healthy, balanced lifestyle. If you give your puppy structure, create positive calm associations, set boundaries, time your affection right, and encourage a balanced mindset, your dog will be able to interact respectfully with other dogs without problems because your dog is in the right mindset to make correct decisions. It’s not about “meeting other dogs,” it’s about making good decisions. THATS what “socializing” a dog really is about. Typically when clients come in with reactive dogs, I’ll find that they were “socialized” in a human way (well-intentioned owners take them to puppy play dates with strangers dogs or dog parks or allow on-leash meets while walking). The dogs learn to associate other dogs with a higher excited state of mind and then do not make the best decisions because they are not thinking through their interactions. Sometimes this can lead to a “surprise” scuffle which may startle and then scar a young dog. Unable to understand why this happened, a young dog can grow weary or over-excitable when meeting other dogs. Xander here is 9 months old. He has had very limited/FEW canine interactions. His mom has given him a great foundation and sought training for him at a young age. This is his 1st time meeting a dog in a while. Look how well he’s able to interact and play with Bugatti!

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