My Hero Dog Training (& Sports)

My Hero Dog Training (& Sports) Offering a variety of classes to enhance your relationship with your puppy or dog by using the power Call or email for more information
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07/02/2025

I LIKE TO LICK YOU!
Dogs just love to lick - themselves, other animals and people. Have you ever wondered why, though?

Whether you love it and it makes you smile or you hate it and it makes you run for the soap and sanitiser, licking people is a very normal, natural behaviour for dogs.

Historically, dog licks were considered to be medically beneficial to humans. Dogs were used in Ancient Egypt to heal injuries and cure diseases.
Fisherman in Fiji allowed dogs to lick their wounds, believing this practice would speed up healing.

The French have a saying: “langue de chien, langue de médecin” which translates to “a dog’s tongue, a doctor’s tongue.”

Gentle licking of some types of wounds may help to remove dirt or debris that slows down healing as the tongue catches foreign matter, which then sticks to the saliva and is removed.

Although dog saliva has some antimicrobial properties, allowing dogs to lick either their own wounds or ours can lead to serious infection from the bacteria found in their mouths.

Whether or not to allow your dog to lick you (when you don’t have wounds!) is a completely personal choice. I personally don’t mind occasional licking as long as it’s not my face and it doesn’t become excessive.

06/25/2025

DON’T GET A DOG!
Unless you can make a commitment.

In an ideal world dogs would be included as a member of our family and we would share our time and life with them in the relatively short time they have with us.

In an ideal world, we would take the time to learn about how dogs communicate through body language, be aware that there are emotions beneath behaviours – we would meet their needs and keep learning about updated, modern, force free, pain free methods to understand or modify unwanted behaviour.

In reality, dogs are often seen as just another item of property, an object, a commodity to be bred and make money from, a cheap, replaceable security system, a garden decoration, a toy to play with when the kids are bored or an accessory that looks good while out walking, running or taking selfies.

Just like us, dogs are sentient beings with the capacity to feel a wide range of emotions. They are naturally social beings that need to spend time with their humans.

A life spent confined and isolated with little or no human companionship, with nothing to do, is not a life.
Dogs need love, attention, mental stimulation and exercise. They need routine, consistency and predictable patterns. Dogs need us to meet their needs and they need to feel safe and secure in our world.

Having a dog requires commitment, understanding, patience and dedication.

It’s hard work, it’s sometimes messy, dirty and stinky, it’s often expensive and requires that we make changes to our lifestyle.

It’s a decision that shouldn’t be taken lightly and without making a long-term commitment, but the rewards of forming a secure bond with another sentient being can bring so much joy and enrichment to both our lives and theirs.

06/18/2025

WHY DO DOGS TILT THEIR HEADS?

Some dogs have a really adorable way of tilting their heads to the side when we speak to them or when they hear certain types of sounds.

It’s thought that dogs that are more social are more likely to perform a head tilt to encourage and engage our interaction, but the most likely scientific reasons are to improve the accuracy of sight, hearing and interpretation.

Tilting the head changes the shape of the ear canal and positions the ears for a more accurate determination of sound direction. Head tilts are also seen when dogs focus on specific frequencies and tones in a person’s voice.

Their muzzle gets in the way, especially when looking at something in front of them. Tilting allows them to see around the muzzle and get a clearer picture.

We may not realise it, but dogs notice our facial expressions and may tilt to get a better view of our face and interpret any expressive cues.

Some other reasons are to obtain and process more information when they find something curious or interesting or simply because it’s a behaviour that has been rewarded with attention so the action will be repeated.

Head tilting with no apparent trigger, may be due to a health problem like an ear infection or vestibular issues which requires a vet check.

Interestingly, in human body language, we subconsciously perceive another person to be a good listener, be more empathetic, more trustworthy and are more drawn to that person if they tilt their head whilst engaging with us. Maybe dogs have instinctively known this all along - after all they are the true experts when it comes to communicating through body language !

06/13/2025

What's better than a cool spring evening and agility? Luffy says, "Nothing!"

06/04/2025

Aidan Hutchinson took social media by storm with a shocking announcement: he's investing $20 million to build a "paradise" dedicated to rescuing stray dogs, promising love and homes to thousands of abandoned puppies.

06/04/2025

JUST SHAKE IT OFF

A “shake off” is one of many types of body language and is one of the easiest ones to notice.

The shake off can provide us with important insight as to how our dogs are feeling.

Besides being a very effective way to get rid of dirt, bugs or water - dogs can remove up to 70% of water in one single shake off - the shake off is often seen just after something that a dog needs a mental reset from.

It’s a way to flush out adrenaline and could be compared to us taking a deep breath to reset our nervous system and calm ourselves down.

Dogs instinctively know they feel better when they just shake it all off!

It’s their way of saying “Phew, I’m glad that’s over, now I can put it behind me and move on”.

Shaking off is a positive way to calm down, reset and cope with stress – be that negative or positive stress.

It’s a healthy way of transitioning from one emotional state to another.

It’s important to be aware that shake offs may sometimes be caused by an underlying medical issue like an ear infection, allergies, itching or pain.

If you notice a shake off, look at what has just happened beforehand. This will provide a good clue as to what it is that your dog feels they need to reset from.

06/02/2025

CLASS CANCELLED TONIGHT June 2 due to an emergency at the hospital. ( NOT Allan ), but it did screw up our schedule. Sorry for the very late notice

05/30/2025

It's sad to see people being told to invade all areas of their dogs life. Let's assume that like us, they want agency, undisturbed rest and that they have the right to manage their meal without strange human interruptions.

05/09/2025

A WORD ABOUT WAGS
Contrary to popular belief, a wagging tail doesn’t always mean a dog is happy.

Dogs communicate through so many different types of body language, but the wag and the tail position are probably one of the easier to notice.
As with most things it depends on the individual dog. Some breeds naturally carry their tails in a different position and some breeds wag their tails differently to others.

Wags and tail positions should always be looked at in context and together with the rest of the body language. Body language should always be looked at as a “video” and not as an isolated “picture”.

Noticing how your dog’s tail usually looks or how the tail behaves when they’re happy to see you or relaxed and contented, provides a good base line to interpret other types of tail language.

I often watch my dogs’ tails with fascination as they stalk or hunt for something, bark at something outside or see another dog approaching while out walking.

The type of wag and position of their tails gives me so much information about their emotional state.

I have definitely noticed wags to the right in my own dogs when they are happy and wags to the left when there is arousal, uncertainty, predatory behaviour or other types of emotional states.

Not only is the tail an important method of communication but it also plays a role in balance, counterbalancing, stability and general movement when a dog changes direction suddenly.

I believe that tail docking destroys an essential part of a dog's ability to communicate with other dogs by creating a distinct social disadvantage or misunderstanding as tail signals can’t be read.

People with working dogs believe that tail docking is necessary to prevent tail injuries or improve performance, but many countries have banned this practice either completely or only under specific medical circumstances.

Start taking notice of what your dog is doing with their tail - you may find it interesting and it may open up a new way of understanding how your dog is feeling.

Here is a link to a graphic by Melissa Jackson - CPDT-KA. CPCN from Junipertrails that provides some images of different tale positions and wags and what they may mean –
bit.ly/JuniperTrails

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3285 Martin Parkway Ste. N110
Walled Lake, MI
48390

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