Happy K-Nine Dog Training

09/11/2024

24/10/2024

Trunk or treat with Paws As Loving Support (PALS) Assistance Dogs

08/10/2024

02/10/2024

The reactivity recipe:

-Start with poor relationship dynamics. You want your dog to view you as a soft, permissive doormat, that way you can truly encourage their worst behavior/personality tendencies and provide no incentive for them to offer their best. This is a foundational necessity to creating truly explosive issues on walks. If you mess this critical piece up, all the following advice might be for naught, so tread extremely carefully here.

-Ensure the rules, structure, and leadership inside the house are super loosey-goosey. You’ll struggle tremendously to get truly intense reactivity if 90% of the dog’s life is filled with healthy rules, structure and believable leadership. Be sure to let chaos reign in the home if you want the good stuff outside of it.

-Start the walk with some solid excited encouragement of “Anyone want to go for walkies?!?!”, or something similar. Although all the other predictive cues for an upcoming walk are already working their arousal-inducing magic, if you want to play in the big leagues you’ll have to go the extra mile for maximum chaos.

-Do not, I repeat, do not use any training tools which offer you any kind of control or ability to positively affect your dog’s behavior. I’d recommend a flat collar, or even better a harness, and while a 6’ leash held at the handle is a good start, the truly committed will trade up to a retractable leash and show the dilettantes what’s really possible.

-Of course anyone who knows anything knows that training your dog to walk at your side, at your pace, without zig-zagging, dragging you to trees/bushes to smell/mark, and stopping your dog from being able to constantly pull for that deliciously relaxing workout—knows this will ruin everything. Avoid this at all costs, because a polite, calm, rule-intensive, highly structured walk is almost guaranteed to ruin, or at the very least, tremendously reduce the reactivity you’ve worked so hard to cultivate.

-A few bonus tips for the true reactivity addicts out there:
*If you see another dog, ask if your dog can say hi. On leash meet and greets are a great way to foster tension, arousal, mistrust of other dogs, and if you’re really lucky, perhaps even a wee scuffle. Don’t let these opportunities slip by.
*If your dog is staring and loading on another dog or trigger, be sure to give them ample time to load up to the maximum level. Any type of correction given too early in the escalation sequence can have extremely deleterious effects on your dog’s ability to properly load and explode. You want to wait patiently and let nature take its course.
*If you DO choose to correct your dog (Yes I’m judging), be sure it ONLY occurs once your dog is fully committed to the behavioral explosion. If you’ve timed this properly, your dog should be barking/snarling/spinning/lunging and your perfectly timed correction should take what was your average, run of the mill reactivity meltdown, and transform it into something truly crowd stopping.
*An often overlooked component of the reactivity recipe success, is leveraging some hyper-emotional responses. Be sure to add an edge (or more!) of panic, fear, and anxiety into any verbal exchanges you share with your dog. Don’t underestimate the transformative value of a hysterical human feeding an already amped up/stressed out/aroused dog the extra emotional inputs needed to achieve full lift off.
*I know we all know this one, but can it ever be said enough? Please, in the name of all things holy, keep your arm iron-stif and in some unnatural position, and keep that solid, frustration-inducing tension on the leash at all times. This is an easy one for most, but I’d be remiss to overlook it.
*Lastly, remember this is your dog’s walk. This isn’t about you, or your comfort or safety. If you truly care about your dog being fulfilled and happy, I would hope you’d be willing to make the appropriate sacrifices to both body and mind. And what’s best is that you know that by doing so you’re also gifting your dog with the same psycho-physiological benefits you’re enjoying. We call that a win-win.

Of course there’s more—there’s always more—but this should be a solid start for those looking to make their walks an extraordinary, nail-biting adventure which you can later regale friends, family, and even future generations with, and which sadly most owners will never know the pleasure of.

Go get ‘em! ❤️

16/09/2024

Two girls gallop full speed on sheep in Cornwall, England 1969

09/08/2024

In a day and age when we have access to an incredible abundance of quality information as well as superior tools and talented trainers, and yet we have more dogs and owners struggling than ever… one should be inclined to ask an obvious question.

Like: “Why?”

The answer isn’t difficult to find.

Regardless of the resources available, if the mindset of those who have this access is one that is crippled by societal programming pushing us all to view weak and enabling behavior as virtuous, sophisticated, and healthy, and eschew accountability and leadership as unkind, unfair, and unsavory—then all the resources in the world will be for naught.

Which is why I’m always talking about mindset first. You’ll never find the resources, nor behave in a fashion that will actually help you and your dog as long as you believe that these “other” resources and this “other” behavior is detrimental or un-good.

For we only find that which we’re willing to see. And at the moment, an enormous portion of society is absolutely unwilling to see, never mind actually embrace, the reality staring back at them from their highly dysfunctional dogs that are the byproduct of their highly dysfunctional relationship, which are the byproduct of their highly dysfunctional mindsets, which are the byproduct of our highly dysfunctional societal programming.

All the resources in the world mean nothing if the minds that could use them have determined them invalid.

01/08/2024

Attention all No on Measure J supporters! Mark your calendars for Thursday, August 15th, from 6 to 8 pm at Sally Tomatoes in Rohnert Park. 🍇

Enjoy an evening of delicious hors d’oeuvres, local beer & wine, desserts, and refreshments. This event is free and open to everyone, but donations are greatly appreciated! 🍷🍰

Hear from local leaders:
- Congressman Mike Thompson
- Senator Bill Dodd
- Assemblymember Jim Wood
- Supervisors Lynda Hopkins and David Rabbitt

Let’s unite to stand against Measure J and protect Sonoma County’s future! 🌿

📧 MUST RSVP HERE:
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/campaign-kickoff-event-for-no-on-measure-j-tickets-966429004167?fbclid=IwY2xjawEYyBRleHRuA2FlbQIxMAABHWx6pz2tk04hbr9WQSt4wa7ieee2ZngxymTBXs08RzsCaY6mEEkbPmp8Vg_aem_RnTOSt7BkajOIxxash6fgg

01/08/2024

It’s easy to blame and critique those in the positive only/force-free world who sell snake oil rather than results.

But no one sells snake oil unless there’s demand for it and plenty of benefits. Benefits like reputational safety, status elevation via false virtue, and of course money.

And so if we’re going to be honest, and take responsibility for our part, we have to acknowledge that the monster eating the training industry—and causing countless dogs to suffer needlessly, be doped up on ineffective psychotropics, and yes, be euthanized (because *shock* training approaches which don’t align with reality aren’t able to help)—then we have to take a hard look at the part we’ve played in creating the demand that those who are either unscrupulous, opportunistic, naive, or indoctrinated—or all of the preceding—are happy to fill… at your’s and your dog’s expense.

Perhaps it’s time we shift our scorn and derision from those providing what’s demanded to those doing the demanding? Zak, Karen, Ian, Victoria, and the rest of the charlatan crew are simply providing what you’ve asked of them.

And the truth is, bullsh*t only survives as long as it receives the support and nurturing and “oxygen” it requires. And the reality is, we all know better. You’re just prioritizing your feelings over your dog’s wellbeing.

You know, choosing the gift of suffering wrapped up in the pretty outer packaging of toxic and superficial empathy and kindness.

Is it the drug dealer (supplier of delusion) or the drug seeker (pursuer of delusion) who’s to blame? Because we all know you don’t get the former without the latter.

09/06/2024

This..

Passerby with a chaotic, crazy, barking dog on a flexi-leash: “Hi, can my dog say hi to your dogs? He’s super friendly!”

Me: “Sorry m’am, that’s a hanging offense in these here parts. Good day.” 😂

01/06/2024

THIS

🥰...!

01/06/2024

Yay Charlie!

28/05/2024

Done both. The former beats the hell out of the latter.

21/11/2023

He's got our attention ❤️😂

15/11/2023

Does This Funny-Looking Object Look Familiar To You?
Continue Reading Below first comment👇👇

28/09/2023

www.WineCountryAnimalLovers.org