DoggEd

15/02/2025

A fitting love story for February. I'm grateful to have amazing, dedicated clients. Koda lives in New York State, I live in California.

(Lightly edited for brevity and to protect their privacy.)

"~Claiming the Progress~
We became a client of Mayuri Panse who is a dog trainer that specializes in behaviors of reactivity March 2023 with our German Shepherd Koda that was 1 1/2 at the time. We rescued him from Alabama and he had quite the history as a puppy.

Koda had difficulty adapting especially to people he did not know in or around our home and became very fearful and reactive. He bit several people and my husband B twice. It seemed when B would move around the house Koda would chase after him snarl and bit him a couple times. Yet at the same time, B said, “Koda has reached his forever home and we will work through helping him and that is what we committed to doing.”

My husband unfortunately was diagnosed with Parkinson’s in 2018 and also Macular Degeneration that same year. His eye disease was so advanced that today he is legally blind.

I really became very concerned and questioned if we were going to have to give Koda back to the adoption agency. The health of my husband was declining and Koda was getting more reactive. It was an awful spot to be.

Through Mayuri’s guidance, positive dog training games, understanding, compassion, help and time; Koda stopped doing those reactive behaviors towards my husband and improved his behavior around others away from our home.

It wasn’t until recently that Koda really started bonding with my husband.

Parkinson’s is such a cruel disease. It not only affects a persons mobility but truly changes every aspect of a person. To watch the cognitive decline is absolutely awful. To see the anxiety and altered state of reality in B at times is even worse.

Yesterday when we got home my husband was crying and felt absolutely hopeless. I did my best to let B know it would all be okay but, what happened next was what really surprised me. In the past Koda would pace, run back in forth, be visibly upset, act very anxious and just would not be able to settle.

Yesterday, when B was so devastated; Koda came right next to B and firmly pressed against him (like he was holding him up) with his eyes just watching B. What happened next, was something I witnessed that I thought would never happen. Koda very delicately raised himself up on his two hind legs and wrapped his paws around B's arm. Koda made this very quiet whimper I have never heard before but, instead of it being an anxious cry it was more of a consoling whimper. He saw that his Daddy was upset and it is like he wanted him to know he loved him very very much. Koda has pretty much not left B's side this afternoon and has been snuggly with him. I never thought these two would ever have this relationship together. In the past Koda’s bucket 🪣 would become so overfull with such experiences, that it would take him days to calm down.

Today that bond between them both was absolutely remarkable! It is like Koda is saying, it will be okay Daddy and I am here for you. B leaned over and kissed Koda and said, “I love you buddy!”

Thank you Mayuri for making that difference. Miracles truly do happen.
🐶🫂🐾❤️"

01/01/2025

I wanted to be around dogs since before I could speak.

Something about them fascinated me. I grew up in India mingling with, following, watching and soaking up everything the ubiquitous Indian street dog has to offer. I asked our veterinarian for books and learned to train dogs... unfortunately with discomfort, sternness and pain. I did that long enough to where I saw some dogs meet the criteria for success and others showed fallout from the punishment.

I got bitten several times before I realized I was CAUSING this. I wasn't fixing problems, I was creating far worse ones. After several detours to meet other people's expectations of me and my life, becoming a dentist, practicing many years, leaving to become a biomedical engineer and working in medical devices for another few years, I became serious about helping shelter dogs and decided to update my education. 2015 onwards I have steadily gained new knowledge, collected certifications and reflected on my experiences in India with free roaming dogs to now fully appreciate the thinking, feeling beings I work with every day.

I am so grateful to all the families that put their trust in me to help their dogs. I love teaching with games, play and fun. As I enter into my 6th year, my only hope is that I get to do this for many more years so I can continue to learn curiosity, resilience and forgiveness from our finest companions, our dogs.

If my 4 year old self knew this day would come, I can imagine her jumping for joy.

Happy New Year to you all! May we continue to grow in kindness.

11/11/2024

Truffles is a big boy and had big feelings about his toys and spaces. He had charged at and bitten his guardian a few times as she was walking past a table his toy was on because he thought she was going to take it.

After working with me for a few weeks, his guardian has reported that now, instead of taking his toys away from her the minute he sees her approach, Truffles has been bringing them over to her with a happy face and a full wiggle in his rear!

Instead of being afraid of losing his precious toys, he now wants to share. We have rebuilt the trust that was lost between human and canine and everyone is more relaxed around each other.

This was achieved with games, fun and play. No tools (prong/pinch/choke/electronic collar) or techniques that may cause pain, fear, discomfort or intimidation were used.

Play is a powerful agent of change and I am so proud of what Truffles and his guardians were able to achieve!

17/10/2024

There is a misconception I hear often that "strong-willed", "powerful" breeds with prey drive or chasing behavior need "strong leadership" which is a euphemism for heavy-handed punishment training which includes the use of electronic collars, prong, pinch or choke collars, some form of physical control or discomfort or pain, without which the dog won't listen.

This is my dog who is learning to come away from things he wants to chase. The cat is bold and continues taunting him. Even with his trigger fully present, with his brain in high arousal, with no way for me to physically control this dog, he makes the choice to come away with me instead of continuing his argument with the cat.

This is because we have built those skills of disengagement and thinking through things even when in high arousal first, and I have a strong relationship with him. No tools needed, just games, fun, food and toys! If you can reach your dog's mind and teach him to regulate his emotions, you won't need physical coercion. It's that simple.

26/08/2024

Indy from Los Angeles came to work with me because after multiple dog trainers and training techniques, she was so dog reactive that one of her guardians couldn't walk her without fearing for their safety. She showed heightened reactivity to small, white dogs and her reactions were so extreme that the guardians would jokingly call little white dogs "snacks".

As a big German Shepherd, there was nothing funny about Indy exploding at a dog, especially in close quarters, like at a vet office.

Her guardians have worked with her with the training games I teach and are seeing some incredible results

🦴 Indy is relaxed and happy around other dogs
🦴 She had a fantastic vet visit recently and look at her standing calmly next to a "snack"! 😂
🦴 She now goes to a dog-friendly office and frequents dog friendly cafes and restaurants
🦴 She is an amazing foster sister to the scores of puppies her guardians have fostered since. In the picture she's eating off the snuffle mat with foster puppies number 11 and 12 (something none of us imagined would be possible with Indy!)
🦴 She not only doesn't react badly to dogs herself, but if she encounters a dog barking and reacting to her, she maintains her calm

I couldn't be prouder of Indy, her guardians and their foster puppy factory! All of this was achieved with food, toys, games and fun. No tools (e-collar/choke/prong/pinch collars) or techniques that caused pain/fear/intimidation were used. Kindness, love and fun go a long way in changing behavior.

25/08/2024

Elqui is a very handsome young dog who came to me with a history of
❌ extremely quick over arousal
❌ fear of strangers
❌ Excessive barking and hyper vigilance to noises outside their apartment of people walking or talking
❌ inability to disengage from movements
❌ He'd already landed some nips and bites before his guardians found me

This meant stressful walks, visitors at home had to be limited and my clients couldn't even touch each other in his presence for fear of him launching at them instantly.

We've worked through some of his fears and Elqui now is beginning to feel safer in situations where he felt he had no choice but to react. Lately, he is

😊 Is a calmer, happier boy in general
😊 Acknowledges sounds outside the home but doesn't bark or stops quickly if he does start
😊 Walking calmly by neighbors
😊 Beginning to go to dog-friendly cafes and stores without incident
😊 One of his guardians takes him to the beach every week and Elqui barked at his two tall friends each time they joined the walk. The last two times, he didn't bark and just went about enjoying the romp at the beach
😊 For the first time in a long time, Elqui is learning to relax around strangers

While these are smaller wins, I have no doubt that these will snowball into bigger wins as we continue working together. Only food, toys, fun and games were used to see this success. No prong/shock/choke/stim/vibration/pinch collars or methods that cause fear, pain or intimidation of some sort are being used or ever will be.

09/08/2024

Blu came to me with a history of anxiety, excessive barking and biting strangers. For dogs like him, progress can be slow but dedicated guardians make all the difference. In his guardians words:

Celebrating a huge win for Blu that happened over the course of a week. We had a relative (smiley face in the picture) stay over at our house for 10 days and Blu did really well for the most part.

Initially, we were very hesitant to keep Blu in the house when a guest was over so we sent him to my sister's house. But he wasn't sleeping through the night so we brought him back home and took all the precautions to keep the guest and Blu apart (behind baby gate or my room and on leash at all times). We also warned our guest not to do anything that will trigger him.

Throughout the week, we let him sniff our guest's belongings, play DMT and give him lots of calming activities. From day 5 onwards, he was becoming less and less cautious of a stranger in the house and even nudged her to pet him. (This was day 1 of interaction. All the interactions happen under supervision and with leash on at all times)

I really didn't expect this interaction to happen but it's been such a blessing to see such an improvement in his behavior over the course of a year. We still have a lot to work on but I feel like we've hit a huge milestone for his condition. Thank you so much Mayuri!

01/07/2024

"Koda (in the past) has had an extreme fear and anxious demeanor when we encounter people.
Mayuri asked me to work with Koda on “magic boundaries” when we are out on our walks.
This morning on our five mile walk, Koda gave me a huge gift. I saw a couple coming towards us and were very close. Given, the situation. I put Koda in a down-stay. He not only stayed on his boundary, he was relaxed, focused on me and allowed the couple to walk right next to him and showed no signs of anxiety or fear. After words, I released him from his magical boundary and rewarded him heavily. This was such a huge win for us!

I sometimes cannot believe how well the games work. That moment, made me one proud Mamma. ❤️🐾"

24/06/2024

Sammy came to me with severe resource guarding issues. He resource guarded food, his bed and spaces that he associated with food. He would run up and bite family members when they moved into areas that he considered important which included the kitchen, dining and living room. No one in the home could relax around him so he spent a lot of time in his pen.

His guardians describe the "miracle" they are witnessing with Sammy relaxing and not feeling the need to resource guard and them being able to enjoy his company for the first time.

Sammy and his family are on the East Coast, DoggEd is on the West Coast. Like most dogs I work with, I will never meet Sammy or be in the same room as him. All training was done over video conferencing. A good training plan and dedicated guardians have turned Sammy's and their home life around.

16/05/2024

This is Sammy, a very loved miniature poodle and this happy smile here is rare.

In general, Sammy is a very anxious dog. His family came to me because Sammy
🥺 Barked at every noise, even the sounds of his family moving around in their home. Every day
🥺 Resource guarded food, toys, tissues
🥺 Attacked strangers and visitors
🥺 Bit family members routinely if food and movement was involved
🥺 Barked and lunged at dogs on walks
🥺 Would refuse to walk anywhere except a set route on walks. Refused to walk on the other side of the street or even change direction
🥺 Was anxious and unhappy most of the time and needed to be crated frequently

Halfway through our work together, Sammy has
🥳 Significantly reduced barking and become a more confident dog
🥳 During our last session, he came up to his guardian and happily gave her a garden glove which he previously would have stolen and guarded. (The look on her face was priceless!)
🥳 Has calmly received visitors without needing to be crated
🥳 He is relaxed around food and movement
🥳 Watches other dogs without completely losing his mind
🥳 Changes direction on walks!
🥳 Is happy and is spending so much more time with his family that dote on him

Good pups are made with play and fun!

All training was done with games, toys and food. No pain, fear, intimidation, force, punishment, prong/shock/vibrate tools, were used. Sammy and family are in New Jersey and I am in California. All training was done over video conferencing.

27/04/2024

This is Nugget. No, he's not a Golden retriever, just a fun mix of other things that make him look like one.
No, he wasn't always happy to be on a boat.

Nugget came to me with several issues
🛑 Fear of visitors
🛑 Uncomfortable with visiting dogs
🛑 Leash reactivity causing very stressful walks
🛑 Discomfort with proximity to the male guardian
🛑 Fear of anything new in his home and environment
🛑 Refeused to p*e anytime they traveled

We worked on his confidence and ability to navigate the world with more optimism.

Nugget has stopped rearing up on two legs and screaming at other dogs on walks. He's now able to take food on walks and walk past dogs that seem scary. He is able to welcome visitors to the home now. In fact, recently a visiting family brought two dogs and a baby and not only was he the perfect host dog, he even put himself to bed and went to sleep once he began to feel overwhelmed. He has become a lot more comfortable with new things and his latest adventure was being on a boat! He's clearly proud of his accomplishments and so are his guardians.

The one that felt like the biggest one for me though was the at with his new confidence, Nugget now jumps into bed with his male guardian and cuddles with him. He didn't do this before we working with me.

The cool thing about rewards-based training is that there are so many positive side effects of the dog learning to relax and have fun! It makes for happy dogs with vastly improved relationships with their guardians.

18/03/2024

What does it take to broker peace in a house with four Australian Shepherds that have conflicts?

My client's dream was simple, she wanted to be able to watch TV with her husband while the dogs chilled.

But with the fighting between the dogs that had happened in the past, it seemed like an impossible dream. When we started working together, the dogs were separated in four different parts of the house to prevent further fighting, a wise first step.

Once we started working together, we came up with games that would help the dogs start relaxing in each other's presence and learning to self-regulate when things felt stressful.

Only halfway through the program, I got this picture from my client, all four dogs relaxing on their respective beds while her husband and her watched TV. We have a long way to go to integrate all four dogs but this is a HUGE victory and I'm stoked about helping them achieve the rest of their doggy coexistence goals.

Dedicated guardians and a solid game plan equals unbelievable success!

This family is in Michigan, DoggEd is based in California. All training was done over virtually over the Internet. Like most of the dogs I work with, I will probably never meet these dogs.

21/02/2024

If anyone had told me when I first started working with Indy that she would be happily playing with foster puppies at the end, I would have laughed and said, "Dream on!"

Indy's guardians came to me after multiple trainers and having tried several training techniques to help Indy with her reactivity to other dogs that made every walk an anxiety-inducing ordeal. She lunged, barked and looked extremely menacing.

Once Indy's guardians learned how she was thinking and feeling and we helped her build skills with games-based training, Indy surpassed all our expectations and now goes to work in a dog-friendly office, goes on walks with other dogs, can hang out calmly in dog-friendly pubs, and best of all, is a great playmate for puppies her guardians are now comfortable fostering!

I couldn't be more proud of what Team Indigo has achieved!

Indy and family are in Southern California. I am based on Northern California. All training was conducted over Zoom video conferencing.

25/01/2024

This is why I do what I do and LOVE it!

This dog and guardian have struggled for a while getting a harness on. We started with consent behavior training so the dog could opt into wearing the harness. The dog not only caught onto the consent behavior, but he used it to ask for his collar to be put on him as well.

I'm so proud of this dog-guardian team!
(Video in the comments)

31/12/2023

13/12/2023

Lighting up dark, foggy mornings with

10/12/2023

Can a dog who's worried about the following things make progress towards becoming a service dog navigating public transportation? My answer was No.

Mango struggled with
❌ Going into her own crate, even with her favorite bed, blanket and treats
❌ Noise sensitivity to the point that any noise startled her and sent her into a barking fit
❌ Worried excessively about strangers and would whine, jump, bark and be unmanageable around new people
❌ Throwing up repeatedly in moving vehicles and whined and shook with fear

It took us time, a year's worth of work, dedicated guardians who followed instructions to a T and a lot of hope. Even though I started this journey with them telling them in no uncertain terms that maybe she would task at home but never become a service dog capable of moving around in public confidently, Mango surpassed all our expectations.

Watch the video to see where we started and where Mango is now.

She has now travelled in cars, flights, trains and buses with zero issues. This is why I love the work I do!

I am going to add this disclaimer below every post about Mango: Does this mean any reactive dog can become a service dog? I do not believe so. Mango's case shows what is possible with guardians that are committed and a dog that was struggling with the human world and needed the right direction. No pain, force, intimidation, or tools like prong / e-collars giving shock, "stim" or vibration, bark collars, pinch or choke collars were used in training Mango. All training was done with kindness, food, toys, games and love.

10/12/2023

It's 7 am on a weekend and our household is just waking up. I came across these two like this 😍🥰

This for me, is a miracle photo of my own two dogs ✨

When I got American Staffordshire terrier Raya home three years ago, I was ready to keep these two dogs separated from each other for the rest of their lives.

Rosie (pink jacket) was completely unreliable around other dogs. She was not only dog-reactive, she had started several fights and most mind-bogglingly (is that even a word?) used to attack dogs who were trying to de-escalate the situation by giving calming signals. Another dog giving avoidance or calming signal was a surefire way to get Rosie all fired up and launching a full blown fight.

Enjoying their friendship as it has evolved and grown over the past three years, is one of my big joys. Are there still days when tempers are flared? Yes, and those days still require care and vigilance.

But I never thought I would get to the day when she would relax and actually enjoy another dog's company. Now she chooses to cuddle up with him. This is as of November 2023. Many, many baby steps and very careful management and playing to each dog's strengths has got us here.

Miracles take time and effort but they do happen!