Khris Erickson Dog Training

21/03/2025

Most people really don't understand what separation anxiety is and how it impacts the dog. There is actually a lot of research on how stress and anxiety impacts the brain, and this is a summary of how separation anxiety affects a dog's neurology.

18/03/2025

𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗶𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝘀 𝗔𝗹𝘄𝗮𝘆𝘀 𝗛𝗮𝗽𝗽𝗲𝗻𝗶𝗻𝗴—𝗪𝗵𝗲𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗠𝗲𝗮𝗻 𝗧𝗼 𝗼𝗿 𝗡𝗼𝘁!

Training isn’t just something that happens during dedicated practice sessions. It’s happening all the time. Every interaction with your dog is teaching them something—whether you mean for it to or not.

Dogs are always learning from patterns. If laying on their dog bed when you're eating dinner at the kitchen table means they might occasionally get a crust of bread tossed their way, they're more likely to lay on their bed.

And your dog is training you too. If they are reluctant to eat their kibble but eagerly gobble up a spoonful of wet food, you might start adding a topper to every meal. Without realizing it, you’ve reinforced picky eating. If they nudge your hand and you instinctively pet them, they’ve trained you to provide attention on demand.

The key is to be mindful of what behaviors you’re reinforcing. If your dog is always learning from you, make sure they’re learning the things you want them to repeat. Whether you realize it or not, training is always happening. The question is: are you shaping behaviors you want—or ones you’ll regret later?

17/03/2025

20 minutes is a huge milestone! Next we work on the goal of the family getting in the car and actually leaving. I have no doubt Zorro will get there!

If your dog has some separation related issues, I would love to work with you! You can contact me through the link to my website on my profile.

14/03/2025

I'm in the press! Newsweek contacted me to give my thoughts on allowing your pet to sleep in your bed. They used quite a few quotes from the information I gave them and I thought it turned out to be a really great article!

Experts say co-sleeping with pets depends on behavior, health, and owner preference.

12/03/2025

I am so excited to get started working with Teddie! He had a rough start in life, but is in the best home ever right now - He even has his own emotional support cat. 😁

With his committed humans, I know that Teddie is going to be able to be left home alone and relax as we work together.

If your dog has separation related issues I would love to work with you! Contact me through the link to my website in my profile.

11/03/2025

Got a high-energy dog who never seems to settle? Your first instinct might be to exercise them more—longer walks, extra fetch, endless play. But here’s the thing: sometimes, they don’t need more movement. They need to learn how to relax.

Over-exercising a hyper dog doesn’t calm them down—it just builds endurance, making them need even more exercise to reach the same level of tired. Instead of chasing exhaustion, focus on teaching them to settle.

🛑 What actually helps?
🐾 Mental work – Puzzle toys, sniffing games, and chews can wear them out faster than a five-mile run.
🐾 Planned relaxation – A solid “place” cue and reinforcing calm behaviors help them learn how to chill on their own.
🐾 Reward the stillness – Notice when they choose to relax? Mark and reward it. That’s the behavior you want more of.

Exercise is important, but rest is just as critical. A dog who knows how to turn off their own engine won’t constantly push yours into overdrive. So next time your dog is bouncing off the walls, ask yourself: do they really need more movement—or do they need to learn how to be still?

05/03/2025

March is here already, and so is this month's newsletter. Enjoy!

Daylight Saving Time & Your Dog

04/03/2025

Training a dog is a lot like rehearsing for a play.

Actors don’t just step on stage and deliver a flawless performance—they run lines, practice cues, and work through mistakes. Dogs learn the same way.

🐾 Repetition matters. Just like actors need to rehearse, dogs need consistent practice to understand what’s expected.

🐾 New places = dress rehearsals. Your dog might nail “sit” in the living room, but what about at the park with squirrels as the audience? Training in different environments helps them perform when it really counts.

🐾 Mistakes are part of the process. No actor gets every line right the first time, and no dog will either. Keep practicing, reward the wins, and don’t stress the flubs.

🐾 Confidence comes with experience. The more a dog rehearses in different situations, the more reliable they become—just like an actor who’s finally ready for opening night.

So keep training, keep reinforcing, and remember: it’s not about perfection. It’s about setting your dog up for success when the curtain goes up. 🎭🐶

28/02/2025

𝗧𝗼 𝗵𝗲𝗹𝗽 𝗮 𝗱𝗼𝗴 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘀𝗲𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻 𝗮𝗻𝘅𝗶𝗲𝘁𝘆 𝗴𝗶𝘃𝗲 𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗺 𝗮 𝗳𝗼𝗼𝗱 𝗼𝗿 𝗮 𝗽𝘂𝘇𝘇𝗹𝗲 / 𝗰𝗵𝗲𝘄 𝘁𝗼𝘆 𝗼𝘂𝘁 𝗯𝗲𝗳𝗼𝗿𝗲 𝘆𝗼𝘂 𝗹𝗲𝗮𝘃𝗲

There are a couple of problems with this advice. First of all many dogs who are extremely stressed when their owners leave them home alone are too anxious to eat or chew.

If a dog does eat, despite normally being anxious when the owner leaves, giving these types of items are nothing more than a delay in the dog’s onset of panicking. Eating and chewing may dampen the feelings of anxiety while it lasts, but when those items are gone the dog will display their typical anxiety.

Even worse, the presentation of food, or food placed in a frozen Kong for separation anxiety can serve to help the dog predict that the owner is about to leave, and they can start to become anxious as soon as those items are given to them, even though the owner has not yet left.

Need help with your dog who panics when you leave? Check out my website through the link located in my profile.

27/02/2025

OK, so small is certainly subjective. At 23 pounds Whimsy is small compared to a Labrador retriever. But she’s huge compared to a Chihuahua! Considering that Quinn weighs 55 pounds, I think of Whimsy as a small dog.

There are huge benefits to having a small dog over a large or even medium sized dog. For one, small dogs are easier to carry if needed—whether that’s up the stairs, into the car, or away from a sticky situation. If they’re sick or injured, you can scoop them up and get them to safety or the vet without much trouble—something that’s a lot harder with a large dog.

They also take up less space, which is handy if you live in a smaller home or apartment. And in the car? A small dog’s crate or booster seat takes up way less room than what you'd need for a big dog, leaving more space for passengers or gear. Finding a lap big enough for a Great Dane is a challenge, but a little dog like Whimsy? Perfect fit.

Then there’s the practical side. Small dogs typically eat less, so their food costs are lower. They also tend to have smaller beds, smaller crates, and—bonus—smaller p**p!

Do you have a small dog? What do you love most about them?

25/02/2025

I admit it—I created a monster! Some time ago, I was sick of waiting for the dogs to come back inside right before bed. Apparently, there’s a lot of great stuff outside at 10:30 at night! So, I started giving them a treat almost every time they came in. That solved the problem, but it also created a new one.

Whimsy started barking at me as soon as she ran inside. At first, it was kind of cute—I admit it. But, as often happens, what starts out as cute turns annoying over time. One quick little “bark bark” would be fine, but being pushy and barking nonstop was over the top.

I tried a few things. One was requiring her to be quiet and lie down before getting a treat. That turned into a pattern where she’d bark several times, then lie down—sometimes quietly, sometimes still barking.

Since that wasn’t working, I needed a new plan. It was time for what trainers call training an incompatible behavior—replacing an unwanted behavior with a more desirable one. In this case, I needed to plug up the loud mouth!

Luckily, Whimsy already knows “bring it.” If I drop something and point to it, she’ll pick it up and bring it to me for a treat. So now, when I let the dogs in, I toss a toy and tell Whimsy to bring it. There’s still a little barking before she picks up the toy, but it’s greatly reduced. Sometimes, she even grabs the toy without barking at all. Definitely progress!

Does your dog have an unwanted behavior? Training an incompatible behavior might be the solution! If you need help, I’d love to work with you. You can contact me through my website—it’s on my profile.

22/02/2025

https://www.facebook.com/mrwaiteumich/posts/pfbid02etPMdT9kVyTekc71NAkh7SeiHrDW5Yhmj48Puj4BNRo3TmVn3vbxZQcUX9FUGkVPl?

Send a message to learn more

20/02/2025

𝗦𝘂𝗯𝘁𝗹𝗲 𝗦𝗶𝗴𝗻𝘀 𝗼𝗳 𝗦𝘁𝗿𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗗𝗼𝗴𝘀: 𝗔𝗿𝗲 𝗬𝗼𝘂 𝗡𝗼𝘁𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗧𝗵𝗲𝘀𝗲?

Dog owners typically know the big signals that their dog is fearful or stressed. But dogs communicate discomfort in ways we often miss. Stress signals are context-specific and usually happen in clusters—one sign alone may not mean much, but multiple together can indicate anxiety.

🐾 Lip Licking & Yawning – If your dog isn’t eating or just waking up, frequent lip licking or yawning can be a sign of stress.

🐾 Stretching – A deep stretch might seem normal, but if your dog is stretching repeatedly in a tense situation, it can be a way to release stress.

🐾 Shake-Offs – Like shaking off water, but when dry. Dogs do this to reset after a stressful moment.

🐾 Panting (When It’s Not Hot) – If your dog is panting heavily in a cool environment, they might be anxious.

🐾 Scratching – Sudden scratching (with no obvious itch) can be a displacement behavior, meaning your dog is unsure or stressed.

🐾 Excessive Sniffing – Sniffing is normal, but if your dog suddenly fixates on sniffing in a tense situation, they may be avoiding interaction.

🐾 Stiff Body Posture – A tense, frozen stance with tight muscles often means discomfort.

Stress signals aren’t random—pay attention to when and how they appear! Have you noticed these in your dog?

17/02/2025

I had the pleasure of meeting Bowie today. Bowie was adopted just a few weeks ago, and his people hired me to work with him on a few manners behaviors. When I arrived the other dog (Ziggy 🤩) had been confined to a bedroom so that we could work with Bowie without interruption.

To his person's surprise, Bowie was very wary of me. She told me that even though they'd only had him a few weeks, they had never seen him act that way. I spent the first portion of my visit trying to make friends by tossing him treats and avoiding any threatening actions (eye contact, reaching towards him, sudden movements). He started to warm up to me, but when I had the owner work him as I coached, he became wary of her too.

It finally occurred to me to bring the other dog out. Ziggy was released from the bedroom, and Bowie became a whole different dog! He gained more confidence, was willing to work with both of us, and even got a little pushy.

Some dogs take a while to adapt to their new life, and you don't really know a dog until you've had them for a few months. We learned something about Bowie in this session, that he really relies on Ziggy to make him feel confident. As I continue to work with him, we're going to help him build some confidence even when he isn't around Ziggy.

If you need some training assistance with your dog, I would love to help you as long as you're within a 20 mile radius of Ixonia WI. You can contact me through the link to my website on my profile.

12/02/2025

Sadly Purple Monster hasn't survived the winter, although he's lasted longer than I thought when I bought him and Green Monster (who so far still has all his stuffing) back in early October!

I know plenty of dog owners would be dismayed to see a toy reduced to scraps. But honestly? I fully expected Quinn to dismantle them, and I figured it would happen within days, not months. Dogs have an innate need to tear and shred because as carnivores they need to be able to rip apart prey to access meat, tendons, and organs. Even with food served up in a bowl, the urge to sink their teeth into something and destroy it remains strong.

And let’s be real—shredding is just plain fun. The gripping, shaking, and pulling apart mimics the thrill of a successful hunt. Beyond that, tearing things up can be a stress reliever. So, instead of mourning Purple Monster, I’ll take it as a sign that Quinn had a great time.

08/02/2025

Whenever I'm on a walk with the dogs and were about to cross a road, I give them the cue "wait". We all stop as I look both ways, and remain in place until I give the cue "ok" meaning that traffic is clear and it's safe to cross.

Yesterday I did this as we were just about home from the walk. I gave the ok cue after waiting for several cars to pass, and was halfway across the street when I realized that Whimsy was already on the other side of the road and no longer attached to the leash I was holding in my hand.

It has made me grateful that she is trained, because not only did she wait when I asked her to before crossing the street, but once I realized the leash had broken I was able to tell her to wait again so that I could get to her before she took off. She patiently stood in place as I threaded the leash through her harness, and we went back home.

You may never intend for your dog to run off leash, but as my experience has shown sometimes leashes, collars and harnesses break. Sometimes gates get left open, or the fence breaks, and despite your best management things don't go as planned.

Training can make living with your dog much easier, but it can also be something that keeps them safe.

05/02/2025

My February newsletter was sent out yesterday - If you enjoy reading it, I can have it sent directly to your inbox! There's a place where you can sign up in the newsletter itself!

The Best Valentine’s Day Gift for Your Dog? Quality Time and Training