Coastal Service Dogs

Raising and training our newest service puppy

Here is our newest raise and train Potato 🥔! He is learning to settle in his new house and yard! Sometimes we can forget that puppies when they first come home don't know that much. An important part of raising and training service dogs is letting them be happy, and confident in their surroundings. Hashtags #servicedog #workingdog #blacklab #labrador #servicedogsofinstagram #medicalalertdog #serviceanimal #disabled #workingk9 #dog #puppy #doginstagram #disability #k9 #cutedog #instagood

Take a breath, and enjoy your dog!

"May all of us experience the happiness of finding that perfect partner." - Leslie McDevitt Hashtags #servicedog #workingdog #blacklab #labrador #servicedogsofinstagram #medicalalertdog #serviceanimal #disabled #workingk9 #dog #puppy #doginstagram #disability #k9 #cutedog #instagood

What is Potato down for?

What do you think little Potato is down for, to kill someone or the apple orchard? Hashtags #puppy #blacklab #lab #instagood

Our new website is now live! We are still putting on the final touches so our Coastal store is still temporarily down. We are actively working on it and everything will be accessible by Friday! Check us out at https://coastalservicedogs.com/ Hashtags: #servicedog #workingdog #dogtraining #servicedogtraining #collie #labrador #cutedog #puppy

When training specific tasks, we like to break behaviors down even further. Great examples of tasks that may need to be broken down are mobility tasks, scent training tasks, and advanced response tasks. Here, Anya is learning her “Lead” task. We’re differentiating directions with different targets! A visible marker may be needed for some dogs and is a great example of “breaking down a behavior.” Though the targets will be faded out, they are needed to better her understanding. Some dogs may need basic tasks to be broken down to further their understanding. There is no shame in giving your dog a full instruction sheet if they need it and can actually help with problem solving in the future! Hashtags #servicedog #workingdog #blacklab #labrador #servicedogsofinstagram #medicalalertdog #serviceanimal #disabled #workingk9 #dog #puppy #doginstagram #disability #k9 #cutedog #instagood

Introducing the Staircase Game! In our Foundational Series, we want to showcase our favorite games for you to try out. Let us know down below if you’ve tried this one out and what your favorites are! Hashtags... #servicedog #workingdog #blacklab #labrador #servicedogsofinstagram #medicalalertdog #serviceanimal #disabled #workingk9 #dog #puppy #doginstagram #puppytraining #foundationalseries #disability #k9 #cutedog #instagood

Confidence Building is one of the most important things we work on when training a Service Dog. Service Dogs should stay level headed, cool, and confident in most situations—of course there are exceptions to this rule, but we should be striving to help our dogs feel confident in every situation we put them in. Confidence Building isn’t only playing on structures, riding on carts, or traversing through flooring with wobbly footing. It can also look like healthy socialization, counter conditioning, and setting your dog up for success! At the end of the day, all we want is a happy and confident dog. What are your favorite Confidence Building activities? Hashtags... #servicedog #workingdog #lab #labrador #servicedogsofinstagram #medicalalertdog #serviceanimal #disabled #workingk9 #dog #puppy #doginstagram #puppytraining #ConfidenceBuilding #disability #k9 #cutedog #instagood

Intro to our foundational series! What are some of your favorite games to practice with your dogs? Hashtags... #servicedog #workingdog #blacklab #labrador #servicedogsofinstagram #medicalalertdog #serviceanimal #disabled #workingk9 #dog #puppy #doginstagram #disability #k9 #cutedog #instagood

5 Key areas to remember to practice! Make sure to take time out of your day and spend just a few minutes training. Remember 5 minutes a day can go a long way. Recall - Practicing recall is incredibly important—and not just for service dogs! You can work on this with a longline in your house or in your backyard. If your dog has a more advanced recall skill set, you can always customize it to fit your dog’s needs! Remember to always reward your dog and make coming back to you a priority! Never correct your dog when they come back to you if they run away! Leash Manners - Leash Manners is a great skill for all dogs to have! Practice putting on the leash, walking with the leash connected in the house, and continue moving on to more advanced leash manners like loose leash walking and heeling. All of these new skills should be done in the house, but if your dog already knows these skills, always reward for check in’s at an appropriate time. Boundary Training - Boundary Training can be such a lifesaver! Does your dog run out the door when you open it? Grab a leash and practice only letting the dog out when you give them the release word. This skill should always be brushed up on and never assume your dog will just stay because you worked on it once. Greetings - Dogs should be calm, confident, and happy during greetings! Some dogs don’t like to be greeted and that is perfectly okay! Never force your dog to greet someone or something it might be feeling nervous about. If your dog likes to say hi to people, try waiting for a calm sit before the person is allowed to say hi! Settling - Settling can be so tricky for puppies and adolescent dogs, but with practice it can become second nature! Sit in a spot with your dog and wait for calm behavior. You don’t have to do too much with this one, just stop and take a few moments with your dog! Hashtags #servicedog #workingdog #blacklab #labrador #servicedogsofinstagram #medicalalertdog #serviceanimal #disabled #work