Sit Pretty Dog Training

03/08/2025

Loving these new bandanas and t-shirts from K + H Designs! My childhood best friend Kristen has been running her business for a number of years now, and the products she puts out are amazing!!! Go follow her and order some sick custom t-shirts 😈

26/07/2025

Hot weather = indoor training days!
Here’s what I’m practicing during this heat wave that will also come in handy six months from now when we’re buried in snow/cold:

-Leash potty breaks: Keeping potty trips short and on-leash so they’re not baking on the pavement longer than necessary.

-Cooperative care practice: We’re working on desensitizing to winter gear like booties and jackets now, while it’s calm and controlled indoors.

Staying inside doesn’t mean enrichment stops!

Other ideas:
-Food enrichment: frozen toppls, kongs, licki mats. Pair this with your mat training to work on the dogs off switch!
-“Find it” games with treats or scent hidden around the house
-Shaping tricks or fun cues like ‘spin’, ‘play dead’ or ‘pick up your toys’

Do the best that you can for your dog every day!!

16/07/2025

Back with another breed boredom buster: Australian shepherds! My dearest and long time client Cody is an aussie (pictured below). Aussies are a very smart and chaotic breed to say the least. They tend to struggle with reactivity, like most herding breeds I might add. One things Aussie’s love, MOVEMENT. These dogs were meant to be working on the farm ALL DAY! These dogs need multiple outlets, but I also like for them to work A LOT on lower arousal activities. I also find these dogs loveeeeee to train, they are some of my favorites to train with due to their drive. So here are some activities I’d recommend for Aussie’s to keep them busy and to strengthen your bond with them!
-Scent work: https://www.akc.org/expert-advice/training/how-to-teach-your-dog-scent-work/
-Engagement exercises: Specifically whiplash turn and up down by Leslie Mcdevit
-Agility: even if it’s a cheap set you get from amazon or you craft one from PVC pipes, they love to climb and jump
-Mat training: spelled out very well in Leslie’s Control unleashed book, but there are lots of videos on mat/place work. Focus more on the dog relaxing there as opposed to staying there for obedience!

18/06/2025

Hello again! We’re back to breed boredom busters today! Next up golden retrievers!!! Man’s best friend, I have quite a few goldens as clients who I love dearly. However, this is my time to mention that golden retrievers are horribly bred in our area due to the good old amish, if they don’t do health testing, if you can’t meet both parents, they are NOT a reputable breeder. Some goldens are big ole dummies lol but most of them need a decent amount of training.The are very versatile!!
Here’s some boredom busters for those lovely little sweeties:

-Trick training: these pups love to learn a little trick. Also they are retrievers!!! Teach them to hold an object or retrieve something I beg of you! It’s adorable and impressive!

-Swimming: MOST of these babies love water!!! If they weren’t exposed to it when they were younger they may be weary of it. If that’s the case opt for a kiddie pool and keep throwing their tenis ball in there, let them figure out how to get it out.

-Body awareness: These guys have very happy tails lol so teach them where their butt is! It’s great fitness and good for confidence building. You could start by taking a strong milk crate or board game box and practice the dog putting two feet on it, then slowly walk into them to get them to move their butt! Until eventually they can move their back legs in a whole circle!

03/06/2025

We’re back!!!!!!!! It’s been requested that we start with heelers for Breed boredom busters! Believe it or not my sweet nephew Axle is a heeler mix! I love a heeler, they are a little psycho but ultimately little sweeties. They tend to have obsessive tendencies since they move so much faster than us lol. They love things that move fast! Don’t fall into the trap of giving your heeler a ball and letting them have constant access to it. If you want anything to be reinforcing to your dog do not give them constant free access! Here’s some boredom busters for you and your heeler:

-Flirt Pole or Frisbee: I love a frisbee or a flirt pole for a heeler. It causes you to be involved in the activity! With balls the dog can chew on them and make them move on their own, but the fun of these activities is that it’s much better if the human participates.

-Trick training: heelers love to learn new things, you gotta tire them out physically sometimes to get them to focus, but they are capable of some sick tricks due to their small size!

-Running: now listen maybe you aren’t a runner, neither am I! But get on a bike and have your dog run next to you. It doesn’t even have to be for a long time! Heck 5 minutes of you biking and your dog running is great. They make great little attachments for your bike that you can attach your dog to so their leash doesn’t get tangled. Now look up a few videos on this first before you get started (it’s called bikejoring) so you can be safe and have a good time! Teaching them to treadmill would ALSO be a great option. I wouldn’t do this OFTEN we don’t want to build endurance in our dogs. But once OR twice a week depending on the dog could be a good option!

I’ll be back next week with Golden Retrievers!

19/05/2025

Hi gang! Remember when I was going to do breed boredom busters????? Hahahaha……I’m still going to do that. The past few months I’ve been working on my website! I did fill up my last available slot for dog training today, my next availibility will likely be mid July. However I always welcome people to join my waitlist! Thank you all for your support and chat soon!

26/01/2025

Hi there!!! Sorry for the radio silence friends! After taking the holidays off, it's been a slow start to the new year. I'm excited to be back and posting on here! I think I'm going to create a new series called Breed Boredom Busters, where I'll cover exercises that are beneficial for certain breeds due to their characteristics and traits. Stay tuned! (A picture of the pups for tax)

29/10/2024

Hello there!! Today we’re covering treat pouches.

What is it: A treat pouch is perhaps the easiest to explain tool, a f***y pack like pouch to carry your treats.

Pros: you can always have treats for your dog!!!!! Some of them are snazzy and come with a p**p bag spot, a spot for your phone, D clips, room for toys, etc. A lot of them tend to include a clicker for free.

Cons: some of them are built smaller and can fit ONLY treats and some can be hard to clean!

Not sure if every dog trainer would consider this a tool but I sure do! I often tell clients ‘consistently reward the behaviors you like, and you will see a big change in your dog.’ What better way to do so then by having treats with you at all times! You can also use a f***y pack and put a ziplock bag of treats in there and BAM instant treat pouch. And here’s a word to the wise, it doesn’t always have to be filled with treats. MOST of my clients are required to hand feed their dogs for the first week of training. Put their meal in your pouch and train for dinner! You can work on a new trick or behaviors the dog already knows but I’m CERTAIN most dogs would rather do an activity with you then have you scoop their kibble in their bowl. Give it a shot! (A picture of Gim and I with my treat pouch for context)

22/10/2024

We trunk or treated! Thank you Canine Body and Mind for hosting and having us! We had a wonderful time!!! Tool Tuesday will resume next week ☺️

15/10/2024

I’ll have a trunk this Sunday at Canine Body and Mind! Come and see me for some treats!

13/07/2024

4 things to do with your dog when it’s hotter than hades outside!!!

Check out Lil ham’s video.

02/07/2024

Just your friendly, Fear Free pet sitter sharing some tips for the upcoming holiday! 🎆

‼️The 4th of July is the holiday when the most pets go missing!‼️

As a dog mom to a dog stressed by fireworks, I’ve included what we do to ensure the safety & well being of my dogs!

My sweet Paisley is terrified of fireworks, so we use a lot of the information shared in this post, but I figured I’d go more into depth with our routine.

•IDS/MICROCHIPS: Although my dogs hardly wear collars at home, their collars will stay on with the exception of bedtime. Please remember to keep collars with an ID on with a number/address & ensure your microchip information is current! 🆔

•CREATE A SAFE PLACE: Paisley will be in my room with curtains closed AND additional blankets over the windows to help block out noise.🏡

•WHITE NOISE: We use a fan for background noise, along with having her favorite show, Bluey, on the tv. Sometimes I add in additional background noise by playing music in the background, depending on how bad our neighborhood is. 📺

•SPEAK WITH YOUR VET: We use Trazodone to help manage her extreme anxiety, along with a ThunderShirt. 💊

•DISTRACT: ENRICHMENT, ENRICHMENT, ENRICHMENT!! Keeping her distracted with Toppls or LickiMats helps tremendously! 🦴

•POTTY BREAKS: Keep indoors as much as possible! Only outside to potty ON A LEASH! We have a fenced in backyard, but still run the risk of a firework startling her & she can clear the fence! 🦮

•BE THE BEST PAW-RENT: Soothe your pet. If you remain calm & reassure your pet, they handle the situation much better. I never leave on the 4th if I don’t have to, just to manage Paisley’s stress. We get lots of snuggle time! 🥰

If you have any questions about creating a safe place for your pets over the 4th, please contact to me & I would be more than happy to help!