Welcome Sweet Willow, the 1-year-old Bordoodle, to our 3-week board and train program! 🌟 Willow lacks confidence and finds the world a pretty scary place, leading to lots of barking. We're not only going to work on her obedience but also focus on building her confidence and showing her how cool the world can be! 🐾✨ #BoardAndTrain #DogTraining #ConfidentCanine #BordoodleLove #dogtraining #nova
I want give a shout out this family!!
They volunteer at a local rescue and fell in love with Shepard mix, Lawrence. Unfortunately , when they brought him home the first time these two had an altercation that left Grace with a couple of stitches.
Even though they elected to take Lawrence back to the rescue, they moved forward with the consult to go over what could have went wrong. We reviewed the videos together and discussed the silent conversations they were having that led to the altercation. Grace lacked boundaries that ultimately led to Lawrence snapping and losing his temper. We went over a game plan and rules for Grace first before we bring another dog into the home. After 3 months of implementing new rules for Grace and 2 more failed foster to adopts for Lawrence (Shepard ) they decided to try again.
This time brought me in from the start to help set the integration up for success. Lawrence came back with a lot more stress than he did in March and it wasn’t as smooth of a transition. The family have stayed dedicated to the process did everything I said. I got this video this morning of them playing together and I am over the moon to see relationship start to grow between the two.
Arya has some pretty Major aniexty about the car. I think about training like putting a puzzle together and like break down each piece that she has big feelings about into small successes. #dogoftheday #fredricksburgva #doodlesofinstagram #enrichedcaninetraining
One of the most important things we can do for dogs is teach them the boundaries at thresholds.
What is training like ? For us, it’s about building the best foundation through clarity in communication, obedience, relationship and play. We want to help the best version of your dog come through . Kona came in for reactivity toward people and dogs and at home, she was an unruly wild child. She also discovered a fun but dangerous game into chasing the family cat whenever she got the chance. With one week remaining, she has learned so much and she is investigating unfamiliar things instead of reacting toward them. Way to go Kona, we are so proud of the progress you have made already.
Sometimes starting with a long line in the woods is a great place to start a dog who lacks confidence within themselves. Don’t talk to them, give food or praise just keep the energy calm and quiet as I walk at steady pace. They are free to explore with no tension on the leash, I add in directional changes throughout this to get the dog pay attention to me.
I feel this approach can be a more organic way to create natural engagement and and following me as we move through an unknown environment together without all the extra pressure on them.
Meet little 8 year old Cesar. A little guy with big feelings about … well pretty much everything. Cesar has a host of negative behaviors that has made living with him very difficult and created a lot of tension in his family. Some of the thing include separation aniexty from his mom, resource guarding things ( bones, space, even his mom ) from me ever of the family and explosive reactivity to anything and everything. Whether it is cars, people , dogs, bikers or joggers … if it’s moving Cesar will sound his alarm!
His family desperately needed help so they can bring harmony back into the house. It’s never to late, even at 8 years young we can help Cesar learn to be an upstanding citizen and condition new emotional responses. I am not huge on social media but I do think it is important to show the process with the public. Stay tuned over the next few weeks and watch Cesar’s progress.
Daisy is here for a few days and is a regular lesson client. When she boards her mom likes to have sessions continue while she here. One of Daisy’s biggest struggles is the vet.
From the moment she steps in she is trying to get to the exit or pancakes or tries to hide. Although Daisy is food motivated, she goes into a state of panic where food or play is no longer a motivator for her.
Trigger stacking is a real thing for dogs.
It is combination of multiple stressful events in a short period of time, leading to an extreme reaction to a small stimulus.
the car ride- trigger
walking into the vet clinic - trigger
seeing veterinary staff-trigger
Seeing dogs- trigger
walking into exam room- trigger
door closing to exam room- trigger
Phyiscal handling- big trigger
Then explosive response (lunge, bark, bite) .
How do we help Daisy or dogs like her ? We break the sessions down into parts.
We provide clarity in our communication first and foremost. Then we can begin to teach. We help the dog work through each trigger individually so provide different associations to the triggers. By doing this, we give the dog a clear understanding about what is expected so they become more comfortable and confident with the process.
The first recall session with first recall session with Bri the Corgi.
