My Sensitive Tyke, LLC

07/11/2025

Some clients leave a lasting impact, and Dianne and Miss Frannie are perfect examples. Six months ago, moments like these seemed impossible. Frannie’s growth and love for life, people, and her mom shine through. She’s discovered a new sense of freedom with her mom, stress-free and happy. I’m filled with gratitude and pride working with them and witnessing Frannie thrive!!! Good girl Frannie! Great job Dianne!!

22/10/2025

Meet Aura, a bundle of joy I've been privileged to work with over the past few months. Aura and her mom have made incredible strides, and I'm honored to have been a part of their journey. With her big personality, love for her mom, and adorable quirks, Aura's captured my heart. As she navigates life with her sister Koa, Aura's learning and growing every step of the way – and I couldn't be prouder!

02/10/2025

She was and always will be a true inspiration to all of us who love and work with animals. RIP ❤️

When asked what her favorite animal was, Jane Goodall answered, "My favorite animal altogether is a dog because dogs have taught me so much and dogs are so faithful, and dogs give unconditional love, and I don't like to think of a world without dogs."

Rest in peace, Dr. Jane Goodall.
April 3, 1934 - October 1, 2025

27/07/2025

Meet my new friend Stormy!! Love this little gal. Stormy could learn new tricks all day!! Her happiness and enthusiasm is infectious! Can’t wait for our next session! Everyone did SO well!

08/06/2025

Meet Reba the red head❤️. This cute little pup has come a long way. Lots of love and support is just what this little gal needed!! Looking forward to our next session!! Great job 👏.

04/06/2025

Meet Lucinda ❤️. This perfect little tri-pup won my heart today!! She is amazing!! We are working on getting more confident on walks and she did great!’ Lucinda loves treats and playing, so this made walking around so much fun. Can’t wait for our next session!!!

24/05/2025

Meet Lexi! She is the sweetest little gal ever. Smart and just plan wonderful. Got to meet her and her wonderful parents yesterday. Looking forward to seeing you all again soon.

23/05/2025

Mabel and Dianne graduate from their Puppy One class with honors today!! This team is ready for Puppy Two! Can’t wait! Congratulations you two, great team work!

02/05/2025

Meet cute little Mable! This cutie started her four week puppy class today. Such a smarty!! She’s got down, find it & drop it just about perfect in only one session!! Can’t wait until next week!! Great job Dianne!!

17/04/2025

My handsome friend Ben 🥰This sweet and shy pup is doing amazing and so is his dad!! Very proud of both of them. Going slowly and at Ben’s pace has been a game changer for both of them. Can’t wait for our next appointment!!!

19/03/2025

Not misbehaving, not being stubborn, not being bad. No one can learn in moments of distress. This includes our dogs. Learn ways to help your dog when they are feeling anxious. Not by training them, let’s help them 🩷

WHEN TRAINING WON’T WORK

There is a common misconception that reactivity, anxiety or fear related behaviour can be “fixed” through training alone.

Barking, lunging, reactivity, aggression, constant hypervigilance - as though danger is waiting behind every corner, hiding or cowering away at the slightest trigger or sometimes shutting down completely are all signs of a nervous system that’s in overdrive and is unregulated.

This behaviour is not a training issue - it’s not bad behaviour, disobedience, stubbornness or some other type of negative label, - it’s a nervous system issue.

Although dogs and people have remarkably similar social and emotional brains, this doesn’t mean that dogs are able to think like we do, or have the words or means to process what is causing their stress or trauma.

When stress is not released, it remains stuck, keeping the nervous system in overdrive or in survival mode.

When a dog or a person is stuck in this state, the brain isn’t able to learn new things or learn to behave in a different way.

This is why trying to “train away” anxiety, fear or reactive type behaviour does not work. We first have to work on the nervous system.

Here are some links related to this subject that provide more information on how to help dogs that are struggling -

How to identify and remove triggers that keep a dog stuck in a cycle of stress and anxiety - Annie Phenix
https://phenix-dogs-canine-behavior-experts-llc.kit.com/7-steps

Creating a healing environment - podcast by Dr Laura Donaldson
https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/dr-laura-donaldson-compliance-is-not-cooperation/id1708279785?i=1000693042973

Trauma Informed Dog Training – Book by Sally Gutteridge
https://www.amazon.com/Trauma-Informed-Dog-Training-Professionals/dp/B0DS4T1W8M

What does it mean to be Trauma Informed - Dr Laura Donaldson
https://www.icbdogs.com/product-page/laura-donaldson-what-does-it-mean-to-be-trauma-informed

Ace Free Work – helps the nervous system relax, reset and rebalance
https://www.allpetseducationandtraining.com.au/ace-free-work.html