Ira Maksymiv - Dog Behavior Specialist

27/11/2022

Another awesome students with great results.
Thank you guys for your trust 🐶

23/01/2022

⁉️🐕🐾 WHAT TO DO WHEN APPROACHED BY AN OFF-LEASH DOG 🐾🦮⁉️

Having a loose dog approach you and your dog while you’re out enjoying a walk can be a nerve-racking experience.
Is the dog friendly or will they bite? Are they a stray or did they escape from their yard somewhere nearby? Where is their owner? Are they wanting to come to play with your dog or are they protecting their territory?
This scenario happens more than it should and it can be terrifying, especially if your dog has had bad experiences with off-leash dogs in the past or you have a leash reactive dog who needs their space.

‼️REMEMBER‼️: Whether a dog has gotten loose from their owner (or the owner has decided to just ignore leash laws in the first place), or if it's a stray dog wandering the area, an off-leash dog coming to investigate a leashed dog is a situation that you should try to avoid at all times.

✅ Understand ✅

The dynamics between a leashed dog and an off-leash dog are different than if both dogs were leashed or both were off-leash. Being on leash removes a dog's ability to move away and add distance from the other. This leaves them feeling more defensive and reactive, as all that's left is either shutting down (helplessness) or the fight response. It’s best to save the greetings for another time, when both owners are present, the dogs are either both leashed or both off-leash, and after you’ve had a chance to find out more about the other dog’s behavior and health history.
So what should you do if you’re out on a walk with your pup and you see a loose dog approaching? There is inherent danger and risk to having a loose dog coming towards you and your dog. The following techniques may help keep your dog safe but every situation is unique. Use your best judgment. You could be putting yourself in harm's way in order to try and protect your dog. Hopefully, the approaching dog is friendly and no one gets hurt.

✅ Stay Calm and Examine Dog Body Language ✅

This can be hard! But the calmer you are, the calmer your dog will be. The earlier you see the dog approaching, the easier it is to prevent any problems.
Take stock of the approaching dog's body language. A dog who is happy with friendly intentions will have a very loose and bouncy body, relaxed ears and face, an open (panting) mouth, and a relaxed "full-body wag" of the tail. Even if the approaching dog seems to be friendly, it's still better to avoid having your dog greet it. It's a nightmare for owners of dogs who are reactive towards or fearful of dogs to have a "friendly" dog approach.
Friendly dogs can become unfriendly if your dog reacts defensively, and you can't be sure if they're up-to-date on their vaccinations or have other transmittable health issues. However, it's usually easier to get these dogs to stop and leave you and your dog alone using cues, body blocking, or tossing treats away from you.
A dog that is approaching in a more intense fashion, exhibiting body language such as staring at your dog, closed mouth, forward ears, high and tight tail wag, stiffness, and stalking movements, is a dog that you should be more worried about. That intense body language means they are hyper-focused on your dog and might view them as a threat that needs to be dealt with or a prey animal that they should go after. In these instances, you might need to rely on the block and startle techniques to keep you and your dog safe.
The body language of the approaching dog (and your own dog's reactions to other dogs while on leash) will determine the urgency and intensity with which you will need to act.

✅ Move Away and Place Your Dog Behind You ✅

If you have time and enough distance, simply walk a different way with your dog. Use a treat to distract your dog and keep their focus on you as you walk away. Stay aware of where the loose dog is as you make your way out of the area. Avoiding contact with the off-leash dog is the best option!
However, if the dog is coming too quickly towards your dog, you might not have time to escape the area without first distracting the approaching dog.

✅ Stop or Block the Dog's Approach ✅

There are a few ways you can try to stop a dog in their tracks as they are coming towards you.

1️⃣ Step forward and put your hand out in a stop motion. Use your body to block space and access of the approaching dog. Continue to stay between them and your dog as you make your way out of the area.
2️⃣ Throw treats at the dog as a distraction. If a dog is approaching rapidly you can even throw the treats directly at their face to break their focus. While they are searching for the treats on the ground, you have time to get away with your dog.
3️⃣ Pretend picking up a stone from the ground and throwing at the dog (works well against stray dogs).
4️⃣ Block and startle. You can carry an umbrella and pop it open in the direction of the approaching dog. Often this startles them enough to scare them away. Then use the umbrella as your shield.

✅ Be Prepared ✅

The most you can do while out walking your dog is be prepared for the possibility of an off-leash dog encounter. Beyond being mentally prepared with a plan of action, bring a f***y pack along on your walks with the following supplies:
* Dog treats
* Automatic umbrella (popping it open towards the approaching dog to startle it away, however, do be aware that your dog will need to be conditioned to such a loud and potentially scary thing as well, so introduce and build a positive connection towards the umbrella before using it outside).

✅ Be A Responsible Dog Owner Yourself ✅

“It’s okay she/he’s friendly!”
No it’s not okay! Never let your off leash dog approach an on leash dog! Your dog may be friendly but the dog on leash may be in training, nervous, not like other dogs invading their space etc. Even the friendliest of dogs don’t appreciate dogs sprinting up to them while they are on leash! It’s also a great way to ruin a dogs trust and create leash reactivity down the track!

I've had a few encounters with off-leash dogs while out walking mine, and it doesn't get any less scary each time. However, by learning to read dog’s body language and being prepared, I've been able to keep my dog safe and prevent a dog fight.

‼️If your dog has had a bad experience when approached by off-leashed dogs, connect with a certified dog behavior specialist to get help. It's important that both of you can learn to enjoy walks together again and stay as safe as possible!‼️

28/10/2021

🐕🐾 MUZZLE TRAINING THAT EVERY DOG WILL LOVE IN 6 EASY STEPS 🐾🐕‍🦺

Step 1: Building an interest;

Step 2: Making a positive connection;

Step 3: Putting a muzzle on dog's snout + Muzzle feeding;

Step 4: Making the dog to put his snout into the muzzle on his own + Adding a command "Muzzle";

Step 5: Fasten the muzzle around dog's neck;

Step 6: Fully put the muzzle on and gradually increase time in the muzzle.

🚀 TIPS 🚀

Tip1: If your dog gets worried at any point, take a break and then start again from the previous step. You may just have been moving too quickly.

Tip 2: If you’ll only be using the muzzle at the vets, put it on your dog for short periods randomly at home or when doing something enjoyable. This means your dog won’t just associate the muzzle with the dreaded vets!

Tip 3: Use a basket muzzle and not a fabric muzzle. A basket muzzle is safer for those around as it’s fully enclosed and better for your dog as they can open their mouths more fully. This means they can still eat, drink and pant, so they’re more relaxed. The gaps also allow you to pop small treats through to carry on rewarding good behaviour.

Tip 4: Make sure you have the basket muzzle the right way up. The shorter length sits on top of their nose with the longer length underneath their chin.

🐕🦮 Peace and Love 🐕‍🦺🐩

23/10/2021

There are times when we need to go somewhere, but can’t take our pooch with us. And then we are put in front of many options where to leave our pet. But which one to choose? What are the advantages and disadvantages of each place? And the most important question: How to prepare your dog and make that experience less stressful?

So here are several ideas, but the one to choose really depends on a particular dog and its mental state.

1) Leave at your reliable friend’s house.
+ This option has many benefits as the dog will live almost the same life as he did before, will have a walking and feeding routine, will be taken care of and continue the training.
- If the friend doesn’t know anything about dogs and their training needs, the dog’s behavior may really worsen, and the anxiety level may grow very fast. Also if the friend doesn’t know how to walk the dog and how to deal with other dogs and people, then the other problems may arise like dog fighting or even your dog biting other people that will have a very sad outcome.
WHAT TO DO PRIOR: Teach your friend about how to walk your dog, explain the importance of routines, etc; bring the dog to your friend for few times, walk your dog together, feed and massage your dog at your friends house, then bring him home - do this as often as you can before giving your dog away. OR hire me and I will teach your friend everything ;)

2) Leave the dog at home and invite someone to stay in your house and take care about the dog.
+ The dog is left in a familiar environment, so doesn’t need to adjust to a new place.
- The dog may be more stressed due to your absence as it got used to you in the house, and your absence may trigger more anxiety and stress in the dog. So this way may be only suitable for dogs who have lived in a big family, surrounded and taken care by many people. IT’S NOT SUITABLE FOR ANXIOUS DOGS.
WHAT TO DO PRIOR: As above - teach the person who will take care after the dog everything OR hire me to teach. Start leaving your dog for a day and night with a new person, then for 2-3-4 days etc, and then come back, so the dog understands that you will eventually come back and you didn’t leave him. But again, it will be more stressful for the dog than leaving it in a different place as a new place won’t be connected to you.

3) Leave your dog at the pet hotel.
+ The dog has a chance to interact with other dogs, so it may be very interesting to stay there. All dogs are kept in an enclosed area, so the dog won’t be hit by car or be stolen by the dog thief. In YuppyPuppy for example the staff always interact and play with dogs. Also in pet hotels dogs got groomed and bathed. The space where dogs are kept has an AC. They will send you photos and videos with your dog daily if requested.
- The dogs are kept in cages (that for my opinion are quite small) during the rest time and overnight. The dogs are left alone overnight so if the dog has a health problem or anything it won’t receive an immediate help. Most of the staff is incompetent in how to train and deal with dogs, so there are often dog fights where dogs get injured, and dogs may even receive a negative experience towards people if they are approached in a wrong way. The routines are totally different to what your dog get used to. The dogs are most of the time not walked on leashes, have no rules to follow and are left on their own in making the decisions that may cause big behavioral problems in the future. The dogs may be given the wrong amount of food and be fed with treats that you normally won’t give to your dogs that may cause digestion and health problems. Most of the pet hotels don’t have a garden with real grass, so your dogs are forced to go to toilet on fake grass, peepads, diapers or on the tile floor, that is very mentally hard to do for dogs who used to the parks and grass (as my dog for example), so dogs may hold and don’t go to toilet for a long time that may lead to health problems. In all hotels in Vietnam there is no requirement for bringing health certificates and dogs are not checked if they are healthy, so the dogs may get some very serious skin infections and viruses from each others. And if your female dog is not neutered, she can easily become pregnant as dogs are not controlled all the time.
WHAT TO DO PRIOR: Bring your dog to the pet hotel for few times, make him familiar with the place and the staff, try different places and see which place your dog likes the most. Leave the dog for a daycare first, then for overnight and see how it is in the morning. Talk to the staff and give them a printed paper with all your requirements and recommendations about the amount of food and what food should be avoided, medications needs, any behavior problems that your dog has and the ways they might be avoided, grooming needs, and restrictions for the staff like what they shouldn’t do (e.g. shaving your dog, etc). When you decide on the pet hotel, get their routines plan and start gradually changing your dog’s routines to their timetable.

4) Leave your dog at the breeder (some breeders have their own pet hotels) or at the “training” school.
+ Dogs can interact with other dogs. The open area is very big with real grass, sometimes even with a pool, that will make going to toilet easier. At “training” schools dogs receive basic training like walking on the leash and do some commands, etc.
- Almost the same as in pet hotels PLUS dogs are kept in outdoor cages without AC, dogs spend more time in cages and are let out twice or three times a day, dogs spend less time with people, trainers are not qualified enough to properly train that may lead to worsen the behavior.
WHAT TO DO PRIOR: The same as in pet hotels.

I really hope that this information will help to make a right choice suitable for your particular dog. Please when choosing the place think about your dog’s personality and special needs.

🦮🐩Love and Peace🐕‍🦺🐕

P.S. Little Rambo is learning how not to be aggressive towards other animals (yes, before coming to me, he was very aggressive and didn’t allow any animal to come close by), making connection with my dog and cat in order to peacefully stay with me over the summer.

19/10/2021

🎉🥳Onion’s graduation🥳🎉

Thank you Skye Maconachie for your trust in the training and your feedback, you both did an excellent job 🚀

07/10/2021

🐶 FEEDING TIME WITH FULL CONTROL AND ZERO AGGRESSION IN 4 STEPS 🐱

Step 1: Before feeding don’t talk to your dog and don’t excite him/her.

Step 2: Put the “mental” boundary at least 2 steps from the feeding zone and make the dog calmly wait there;

Step 3: Take the food and put on the floor. If the dog rushes to the food bowl, raise the bowl up, then push the dog back to the place where he was told to stay. Repeat as many times as needed. Be calm and patient.

Step 4: With the open hand and word “NAME, Yes/Ok“ invite the dog to eat.

🚀TIPS🚀

Tip 1: In order to teach the dog not to be food aggressive, feed him from your hand, then keep the bowl in your hands every single feeding for at least 6 months. - Helps to prevent the food aggression or to correct if a dog sometimes growls at you.

NOTE: Don’t try to deal with severe food aggression on your own and ask for help from experienced dog behaviorist.

Tip 2: If your dog eats too fast without chewing the food properly, take the food into your hand and make him slowly lick the food out of your fist OR you can use a rubber kong toy the same way, covering the smaller hole with your hand for the food not to fall out and let your dog lick the food out from the bigger hole.

🐕🐩 Peace and Love 🦮🐕‍🦺

26/09/2021

Trimming dog nails at home is very easy but a very important task.

You’ll need a dog, correct size nail trimmers (I recommend one made by Trixie) and a lot of treats.

Steps to train your dog to like to the process:

1) Make your dog to sit and give him to sniff the cutters, then give a treat and hide the cutters behind your back. Repeat the process for several times: sniff the cutters - gets a treat;

2) Take the dogs front paw and start touch his toes with your fingers and later with cutters for few seconds. If he is calm, give a treat. Repeat as many times as possible with all paws until he is comfortable.

3) Have the leash on the dog so you can easily stop him from running away or calm if he starts panicking, but when this happen, take the clippers away and don’t push the dog.
Take his paw and cut one nail. Immediately reward with the treat, so the dog connects the click sound with the treat - the same principle how the clicker works. Repeat if needed, but after every click you give a treat.

Tips:
1) Cut front paws in sitting position and back paws in standing or laying;
2) Have medical powder ready in case you cut a bit more and need to stop bleeding;
3) DON’T HURRY AND PUSH THE DOG! Take time and train steps over a week or two or more if needed. The dog must have a fully positive connection with clippers.
4) Don’t panic 😱
5) If you see the dog starts nervous, just stop and continue later.
6) Start cutting just the small ends. When you get more confidence, you can cut shorter.
7) Enjoy the process ;)

🐕🐕‍🦺Peace and Love🦮🐩

30/06/2021

🐕‍🦺🐶 What people say about my dog training skills 😻🦮

25/06/2021

🥳TIP OF THE DAY🥳

# # # 4 reasons why washing your dog’s paws is important after each walk # # #

1) While washing your dog’s paws you remove the dirt collected on the street. Hanoi streets are very dirty: trash, rats, animals’ and people’s excrements, rat poison, etc. We don’t walk outside without shoes and we don’t walk inside in our house in shoes, so we need to clean our dogs’ paws in order to remove the dirt and not to spread it in our house. (Some people (not my students of course 😉) even allow their dogs to sleep in their bed or lay on the sofa with dirty paws 😵‍💫).

2) While washing your dog’s paws you can examine your dog and find any abnormalities faster like cuts, infections, broken nail, etc (That is the reason daily brushing is important as well).

3) While washing your dog’s paws you build a connection with your dog and gain its trust. It will help you later to do other procedures like trimming your dog’s nails, bandage the paws if needed, fully bathing your dog, brushing its teeth, etc.

4) While washing your dog’s paws you build a patience in your dog. Your dog will be less nervous while busing a vet or a groomer.

# # # How to make your dog to love the process # # #

1) Make sure the water is slightly warm (especially important during cold weather in the winter). NOTE: no need to use dog’s shampoo as it will over dry the skin, on daily basis just water is enough.
2) Use a leash and tie your dog (in high position) as in grooming salons so it can’t run away and you can use your both hands to clean the paws;
3) After washing each paw reward your dog with a delicious treat (could be skipped later).
4) Dry your dog’s paws with a towel (better to have separate towels for paws and for bathing).
5) Give a big treat and release a dog.
6) Be consistent and do it every time after each walk so it becomes your dog’s routine.

# # # NOTE # # # If the floor in your bathroom is very slippery, use a rubber carpet so your dog doesn’t slip and hurt itself.

🐕‍🦺🐩 Love and peace 🦮🐕

23/06/2021

# # # IMPORTANT # # #

I receive many messages in which you ask for recommendations on how to eliminate the undesirable behavior of your pets.
But the information about the dog in the messages is extremely scarce.

My work is based on the analysis of dog behavior. Each dog is individual, therefore, the approach to each of them should also be individual.

There are many factors by which the strategy for behavior correction is determined, and in your messages you write about your problems and your desires, but the dog's behavior is not in this description, although it is a key!

Based on the information that you give me, it is impossible to form a correct idea of ​​the problem.

If you have a desire to help your pet, you need to describe in more detail the entire problem, situation and the actions of the persons involved.

I think the video version is the most effective description. It will show both the behavior of the dog and the behavior of the owner.

Film what you would like to get rid of. This description will give me the opportunity to provide you with effective assistance!

If you ask a question of your concern on the Internet, then you will receive generalized answers.

I prefer to work with a dog, relying on its individuality, I have to see the dog! The solution to the problem comes the moment the dog is in my field of vision.

And for those who simply ask how to get rid of this or that problem, I will try to help with advice, but it will be based on assumptions!

You can get a face-to-face consultation or a video consultation in real time via Skype/WhatsApp/Messenger. I will be happy to help you solve your problems!

Cheers,
Ira Maksymiv

23/06/2021

23/06/2021

23/06/2021