What “spoiled” means to me… as a dog trainer
What if I told you, a majority of the dogs I meet that have a large list of behavioral problems live a very “spoiled” life? To me, there’s nothing wrong with spoiling your dog. But there’s a healthy way to do this, and and unhealthy way to do this… Spoiling in the unhealthy way can look like 👇🏼
• Buying your dog an insane amount of new toys all the time (they don’t need that)
• Allowing your dog on all furniture whenever they please - or zero boundaries in general in the home
• Sitting at your feet begging for food all the time - then getting rewarded for it
• Sleeping in bed with you every night
• Never crate training your dog & allowing constant freedom
These are just a few of the ways people “spoil” their dogs without knowing it could be the root cause of certain problems. Now, just like everything in dog training. This is not black & white. Some dogs have access to all of these things but don’t really have any behavioral problems and that’s great if that’s the case for you!! Now, I’m going to list ways I “spoil” my dogs in a healthy manner👇🏼
• LOTS of biological fulfillment daily - off leash running, swimming, trick training
• All three dogs have comfy dog beds placed on the floor & are not allowed in our personal space 24/7.
• Our youngest still sleeps in her crate, older two sleep on dog beds in our bedroom. They have earned that freedom over time.
• Place & settle training daily to practice a calm, happy mindset
• Occasionally a digestible long lasting chew to fulfill those chewing instincts! We like Pork Chomps or Bully sticks!
Like I mentioned, there is nothing wrong with spoiling our dogs! But remember, finding a healthy balance is super important. If you do have quite the list of complaints about your dog’s behaviors, think about what YOU might be doing to create or encourage them! Find ways to spoil them in ways that are more beneficial to their daily needs, not yours! 🤍
#dogt
The Country K-Nine trio never fails to make us smile & laugh 😂🐾
This is an issue in the dog world that needs to be brought to light more often. Obesity in dogs greatly affects quality of life. While so many people believe their dog is happy in this state, I can guarantee you they would be so much more playful, and happy with less weight on their poor joints • “obesity is linked to a whole raft of health problems including arthritis, chronic kidney disease, bladder/urinary tract disease, liver disease, low thyroid hormone production, diabetes, heart failure, high blood pressure, and cancer. “We think it’s very important that people understand this isn’t just a cosmetic issue,” says Dr. Ward. “There is a physiological consequence to this.” • Fat shaming isn’t possible with dogs, because WE control their health & food intake. So many people compare their pets weight issues to humans loving food too, and it SHOULD NOT be compared, as we can eat whatever we want, when we want. We supply our dogs food. And food ≠ love. • I understand some dogs have underlying health issues & diseases, but a majority of obese dogs do not, and are just completely over fed and under exercised. We need to do better for them, as they already live short enough lives as it is 🖤🐾#dogobesity #overweightdog #dognutrition #bloodhound #houndsofinstagram #canineobesity #fatdogs #fatdog #dogsdeservebetter #dogtrainer
Just a few small snippets from Phoebe, Archie, and Lucy’s training journeys with us. I already miss them so much! They all three did absolutely amazing and working hard back home with their owners now. If you want to see detailed before & after’s of all three of them - hop over to our instagram story highlights! 🖤🐾
Before & After 🤩 Going to miss these boys! They did sowell with their training. Can you tell I just did I ton of impulse control training with them, threshold training, and biological fulfillment? If you work the brain, and add structure, they thrive! Can't wait to watch them live the"good boy life" at home now 🐶🐶
Luna & River update
Nice little update on Luna & River’s progress at home. They are doing great, and plan to follow up with me to fill some small remaining gaps. Board & train’s have continued support from me when they leave here, and receiving video updates of the dogs I work with brings me so much joy! Dropping off your dog here, doesn’t just fix all issues and magically make your dog a perfect robot. It’s a foundation to start incredible communication with your dog, and the owners have to keep that all up once they go home! Super proud of these clients of mine for putting in the work, and continuing to reach out for help! 👏🏼🖤
Frustration —> Something I see a lot of dogs having that are confined to a leash, home, or fenced in yard. Dogs are not meant for this, they are meant to enjoy life to the fullest without constant confinement —> A lot of times, poor behavior and confinement can go hand in hand. I see dogs misbehaving because they never truly get to stretch their legs and explore their environment, but I also see a lot of dogs being confined because they can’t be trusted off leash and have not been properly recall trained —> I also see and hear a lot of owners/trainers saying certain breeds can’t be trusted and can NEVER be off the leash. (Hounds, terriers, hunting breeds, etc), and this is simply not true. With the proper training, and if you have a healthy relationship with your dog it is ALWAYS possible —> Of course there are can be a lot of exceptions to this. And there must be rules followed like never allowing them off leash in public places that have leash laws in place, or if you have an aggressive dog where other dogs may be running around. There are many more variables —> But all in all, dogs are truly happy with earned freedom. I have never personally worked with a dog that couldn’t be off leash trained in a controlled environment safely —> If you do not have resources to this, or have the proper training on board, contact a trainer, and get them out with a long line to let them run and sniff in the meantime. Let’s stop micromanaging them and HAVE FUN WITH YOUR DOGS! 🤍 #dogtraining #balanceddogtraining #dogtrainingtips #offleashlife
6 benefits of teaching your dog new skills 🙌🏼 This is typically considered an “extra” and not usually something trainers focus on because we are more about modifying behavioral issues, so it tends to get overlooked! BUT IT HAS SO MANY BENEFITS ⠀✨ Creates engagement - find what motivates your dog the most. Frisbee, ball, food. My girls is a ball. Instead of just keeping play boring by throwing it back and forth, start using it to get more engagement and doing different skills! ✨ Builds confidence - have a dog that’s unsure of a lot of things, and isn’t reaching their full potential? New skills can really bring out another side of your dog you never knew was there! ✨ Strengthens your bond - this goes hand in hand with building confidence! Once your dog gains confidence in you after teaching new skills and getting them out of their comfort zone - the bonding becomes UNREAL! ✨ Tires the brain - Teach your dog a new skill = more tired afterwards than going on a walk or run. ✨Heightened Focus - when you see dogs doing all those flashy skills with their owners, do you notice how in tune with them they are? That’s due to the dog having fun and wanting to please their owner! ✨ Makes training fun! - THIS IS A NO BRAINER! 🌟🙌🏼 #dogtraining #dogtrainingtips #balanceddogtraining #dogtricks
Dog boarding shouldn’t be stressful for you or your pup! We make sure it’s ✨ Vacation ✨ for them, instead of boring kennel time. Your pup will be part of the family while staying with us in our home! Contact us for any inquiries!
Maternity leave update!
Hi all ☺️ some Updates! 👆🏼
BOOK NOW! The schedules filling up fast for both board & trains and regular boards all the way into the summer. Can’t wait to spoil your pups again with lots of love and structured training!
How does your walk with your dog(s) look like? Do you come home exhausted and your dogs not even tired from pulling you everywhere? 9 months pregnant and able to get out and move my body with all three stress free. It is possible!!
I plan to share some tips shortly on ways we are preparing for our new arrival with our pups through training! So stay tuned if that may be you right now, or plan to in the future! ☺️🦮🤱🏼
Updates!! Don’t hesitate to contact me with any questions! Super thankful for all of you! 🖤🐶
Updates!! No further bookings for board and trains and private lessons for the rest of 2023. However, regular boarding is still currently available. Don’t hesitate to contact me for any questions you may have! We appreciate all of you so much! 🖤🐶
This is not an ad but when you have 3 large dogs, live in the country, and take them swimming in lakes a lot…. bath time needed to be easier and more time efficient for me. So I just wanted to share with you all my favorite bathing products if you’re in the same boat! I’m using the (Pup Jet Dog Wash Hose Attachment, 8-in-1 Sprayer Mode Garden Hose Nozzle with Pet Grooming Glove) from Amazon! I also absolutely love skouts honor products because they smell SO good and leave my houndy girls smelling fresh in between washes. Their honeysuckle is my personal favorite, followed with their dog of the woods deodorizer 🧼🐶🖤
Before & after behavior modification
We love a good before & after 🖤 This handsome boy came to us for some major behavior modification, and he left with such a better mindset and we couldn’t have been happier to help this family. He was a major leash puller, reactive, a car chaser/obsessor, and had no handler awareness when out and about. We focused on his mindset, getting him fulfilled mentally and physically, and then layered it with some awesome obedience and impulse control. Now he’s a much calmer, and stable boy for his family. We can’t wait to watch you continue to succeed Whiskey, we’ll miss you!
Here's a few tips to help prepare your pup for their stay with US:
*Since we have board & train students with us daily, we only take regular boarders with specific training and manners on board.
1. If your pup sleeps outside of his/her crate at night, start crating them again a few weeks before his/her stay. As much as we love your pup, we will NOT be sleeping with them in bed or letting them free roam our house haha we don't want it to be a shock to them, and we enjoy a bark-less nights sleep as well! If they have never been able to settle and chill in the crate without barking/screaming, WE WILL NOT BOARD.
2. Inquire ASAP!! We are much more personable than large scale boarding facilities and book up very fast with limited space available, so call as soon as you know you'll be leaving town!
3. Start feeding their meals to them inside the crate! We always feed in crates for safety reasons so it helps us if they are used to doing that ahead of time!
4. Make sure all vaccines are up to date! (Rabies, distemper bordatella, negative fecal) if they are not UTD, we will not accept them!
5. Make sure you pack enough food, meds if needed, tools, chargers, etc! We supply the crate, toys, bowls, etc!
We love being a small, safe, and personable place for your pup to stay at while you are gone, but unfortunately have to have rules in place to keep it organized and zen for our daily living and for the board and trains!
More of our boarding details are listed on our website located in our bio. If you have any questions or would like to book with us, don't hesitate to message ☺️
UPDATE!!!! SPOT HAS BEEN FILLED
Shoot me a message if you’re interested in the opening! ☺️
“Kirby, what’s the most important piece of advice you give to people when it comes to dog training”
✨ IF IMPULSE CONTROL AND STRUCTURE DON’T EXIST IN YOUR HOME AND OUTSIDE THE HOME, THINGS WILL NEVER FALL INTO PLACE LIKE YOU WANT THEM TO ✨
Some tips on adding fresh food to your pets kibble 😊
We’re loving us some Micco!!! 💕🐶
