Canine Coach Mike

20/06/2024

Got a question about our Drying Coats?
Fire away! We're an open book! 🔥

28/05/2024

My girl Rizzo turns 5 years old today. Here is a handful of pictures to share. As you can see she was always in the middle of her two big brothers Stanley and Sidney.

29/04/2024

25/04/2024

It can be difficult to find a dog walker that you trust with your beloved pup. Here are some tips to help you choose the right one.

25/03/2024

Happy Monday! Come train with us and

15/03/2024

Yes!

The APDT Conference is the premier conference for professional dog trainers. Join us in Riverside, CA, September 18-20, 2024.

08/03/2024

On the run

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05/03/2024

                I don’t pretend to be able to keep up with all the dog/animal behavior books being published right now, but two books got my attention this week that I thought you might find interesting. In some ways, they couldn’t be much different from each other. Who’s […]

04/03/2024

Time is ticking! Don’t miss your final opportunity to dive deep into the world of canine behavior with our Forensics of Aggression course. Expert guidance, practical insights, and the chance to transform your understanding of dog aggression await. Enroll before it’s too late!

https://iaabcfoundation.org/courses/forensics-of-aggression/

[ID - Tan colored Shepherd type dog in a bow stance with elbows on ground, toenails dug into ground, mouth retracted back, teeth bared, ears back, furrowed brow, and head slightly tilted. Text to left of image reads, "The forensics of aggression: working with and evaluating canine aggression with Jim Crosby M.S., Ph.D., CCBC-KA, CDBC."].

21/11/2023

📸 Watch this video on Facebook https://m.facebook.com/story.php?story_fbid=10220416981403978&id=1514333462&mibextid=v7YzmG

09/11/2023

It's National Animal Shelter and Rescue Appreciation Week (November 5-11, 2023), and it's time to recognize the incredible work of shelters, rescues and dedicated individuals who care for and protect animals across the country. From rescuing and rehabilitating dogs to reuniting lost pets with their families - the work that they do is invaluable and so incredibly important. They serve communities by saving animals every day. The Association of Professional Dog Trainers is also incredibly thankful for the work that they do and will be launching a new membership category in 2024 as a way to support and welcome them. Let’s show our appreciation for all the incredible workers and volunteers at our local shelters and rescues. Tag someone who works or volunteers at a shelter or rescue below and thank them for all they do!

08/11/2023

😎

05/11/2023

Cod and more 🐟 Cod. The smelliest is the tastiest!

26/10/2023

25/10/2023

25/10/2023

IPTPA 👍

20/10/2023

Amazing time with so many wonderful people!

19/10/2023

They were amazing!

18/10/2023

APDT 2023 has begun!

17/10/2023

The APDT Team has arrived at the Northern Kentucky Convention Center and is getting ready for the 2023 APDT/CAPDT Educational Conference and Trade Show! We can’t wait to see everyone! Registration opens tomorrow at 4pm. Safe travels to all!

13/10/2023

Living with old dogs is a vast array of clunky chaos. You might wake up one day in a puddle of piddle. Or you might avoid the piddle that day but wake in a panic running for the dog nose-shaped inhaler; where on dogs’ earth did you put it?

Trips to the vet’s cost not only hard cash when you live with old dogs, but they also cost your state of mind and heart. You go through the highest and lowest emotions in a single vet trip. You never really know whether this is the time you’re getting the bad news. Is it operable, or is it just a fatty mass? Do the teeth need pulling? How’s the heart sounding?

Stairs to the sofa are purchased. Steps to the bed bought and installed. House moves are made – old dogs are better off in bungalows, don’t you know? Floors become patchworked with rugs to save little old legs from trips and sprains. Food is served at different heights, as is water, as is love.

Home becomes rest home, becomes nursing home, becomes hospice. Routines become rigid and can’t change because confusion grows in change, and old dogs get confused; often, they do.

One thing about old dogs is this. They were not always old; they were young, free, busy and bold. The dogs were bouncy, speedy, jumpy and keen. Younger bodies are kinder to those who wear them. Years pass by fast when you live with dogs. Puppyhood flies past in the blink of an eye, and suddenly, the brown turns to grey. The nimble legs become stiff, and the pools of those eyes become foggy and blue.

We have a lifetime of love with a dog, you see. Whether they join you at six weeks or six years, if we allow them to, they teach us. If we don’t learn from our dogs, we’re doing life wrong. That’s what they’re here for to teach us to love and live and learn. That’s why their lives are so short, and it serves to remind us of our own limited time.

My old dog taught me so much, so very much. Chips is his name. Chips taught me what dogs need from people. He showed me all my crunchy sides. He opened my heart right up to share that with the world. So, I shared it and continue to share it. The lesson of Chips. The lesson that makes dog lives better everywhere.

I know he’s not going to be around forever. He’s already fourteen. My beautiful dog is doddering. He needs stairs for the sofa and steps for the bed. He needs sleep, lots and lots of sleep, and he needs short, short walks. Yet, as I write this, he’s snoring under my desk. Thank goodness he is. One day, this dog will be gone and yet his legacy will stay.

And as he sleeps in my heart, I’ll stay grateful that we ever crossed paths at all.