KR Dog Training

01/12/2024

08/09/2024

Great workshop option in Oak Creek!

NEW WORKSHOP - OCTOBER 5 - 2:15
446 W. Rawson Avenue, Oak Creek - $40

This will be a new circuit of exercises setup to challenge everyone - whether you’ve taken a previous workshop or you’re brand new to canine fitness!

Our workshops are great for folks curious about what canine fitness is all about or anyone looking for something fun and different to do with their dog. You’ll leave with some new handling skills and a new appreciation for canine fitness - and your dog will leave having had a great, full body workout!

We provide written materials to help you keep everything straight if you decide to incorporate the movements you learn into your daily life. We’ll also discuss modifications and equipment options based on a dogs ability and fitness level.

DM us with questions or to enroll or head over to https://www.twoleftfeetcaninefitness.com/classes!

07/09/2024

I feel bad for really cute dogs with stranger danger. Before you come for me, all dogs are cute - but I mean REALLY cute dogs like Doxies, Frenchies, and other little toy breeds that people feel they have a right to approach, talk to, & touch.

My client was telling me yesterday she felt so empowered lately telling people "no" when they asked if they could say hi to her Doxie, but then feeling aggravated how they don't bother waiting for an answer & start to bend over at the same time they ask that question. Those words become triggering to small dogs. Lo & behold, on our walk, it happened. We encountered a man who asked if he could say hi while simultaneously closing distance & bending forward. The dog lost its mind on an otherwise peaceful walk.

I wish more folks understood body language better. How can you tell if a dog wants to say hi?

🐾 Coming forward towards you with a loose & wiggly body & a tail wag should be your biggest indicator.

If a dog isn't doing this in public, do you know what I ask instead? "Can I TOSS your dog a treat?" (TOSS - that's key - not reaching out with your hand)

I don't even look at the dog, I look at the owner. If I don't have a treat, I don't ask, but what is this accomplishing? I'm conveying to the dog that not all strangers are scary & won't pressure them. If the dog takes the treat and is then interested, I now have consent from the dog to keep interacting.

If you encounter a dog out & about that is minding it's business, leave it alone. A dog that is standing back, near or behind its owners legs isn't asking to be pet by you. It's OK to look with your eyes & not your hands.

You never know where that dog is in its socialization journey. Is the dog fearful & in recovery from reactivity? Has the owner been working hard on neutrality for over-excitement? Interference can set training plans back for some dogs.

So please don't. And dog owners, "no" is a complete sentence. Advocate!

Never forget how big & scary the world can be for small dogs by default.

12/08/2024

Games based training aims at building life skills and increasing resiliency!

Edited to add additional information as requested!

Maximize your ability to help animals by understanding the science behind behavior. If you'd like to learn more about the research behind behavior change, please join my mailing list:
http://eepurl.com/hY-7hr or listen to my podcast: https://researchbites.buzzsprout.com

My Science of Fear course covers the limitations of counter-conditioning in more detail: https://sciencemattersllc.com/science-of-fear

And for more information on stress and resilience, check out my Unlocking Resilience course: https://sciencemattersllc.com/unlocking-resilience

Here are some citations for the research:
Keller, N. E., Hennings, A. C., & Dunsmoor, J. E. (2020). Behavioral and neural processes in counterconditioning: Past and future directions. Behaviour Research and Therapy, 125, 103532. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0005796719302189

Bouton, M. E. (1988). Context and ambiguity in the extinction of emotional learning: Implications for exposure therapy. Behaviour research and therapy, 26(2), 137-149. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/0005796788901131

Thomas, B. L., Cutler, M., & Novak, C. (2012). A modified counterconditioning procedure prevents the renewal of conditioned fear in rats. Learning and Motivation, 43(1-2), 24-34. https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0023969012000021

12/08/2024

🙉 Behaviour is communication 🙊

Juno stops on a walk and turns her head indicating she would like to take a right, not a left.

Juno grunts and leaps up when I move my feet beneath the covers, expressing her displeasure about a rude awakening.

Juno squints her eyes, purses her mouth, and rocks ever so slightly onto her haunches when a child runs up asking to pet her. "No thanks, kid. Not today."

Every movement and sound a dog makes—from the subtle wag of their tail to a sharp bark or low growl—serves as a vital expression of their inner world, conveying their needs, emotions, and intentions. The same way we use our voice, the symbolism of words and their meaning (and, yes, our body language, too), a dog exhibits particular behaviours to communicate something deeply significant, whether it be feelings of anxiety, excitement, fear, pain, discomfort, or a specific need or desire. Rather than dismissing unwanted behaviours as simply "disobedience" or "rudeness," it is imperative to interpret them as meaningful signals that require our attention and understanding.

By attuning ourselves to these communicative behaviours, we can engage in a more profound dialogue with our canine companions. This approach not only enhances the efficacy of learning/teaching but also deepens the relationship and trust between a dog and their caregiver, fostering a relationship grounded in empathy and mutual reciprocity.

04/08/2024

Great post with lots of quality tips on how to help your pup relax while out and about!

28/07/2024

I’m looking for a location to rent for a few hours a week (preferably Saturday mornings) starting this fall. If anyone sees anything, please let me know! Would love to start hosting workshops again ❤️

Requirements:
- dog friendly (obviously)
- grass area accessible for pottying dogs
- minimum of 5 parking spaces available (street parking ok pending how busy the road is)

12/05/2024

Unique and highly recommended opportunity 🥳

Join Canine Einstein and See Spot Play for a unique workshop on June 8 and 22.

This one of a kind event will review the power of play for you and your dog, covering tooics like:

🐾 what is play and why is it important

🐾the different types of play

🐾examples of games and play techniques for you and your dog.

We have two options.

1. Register with your dog for both days- you and your dog will be able to practice the games with hands on support from the presenters. Or

2. Register without your dog, but be able to practice at home and submit a video for feedback!

Either way- we will have a good time and all who attend will be entered to win a raffle basket from local small businesses!

Register today- space is limited!

30/04/2024

26/04/2024

It can be all too easy to look at a behaviour, particularly one that we find problematic, as an isolated thing that just occurs, or is put down to false and outdated ideas like 'dominance' or 'stubbornness'.

Think of behaviour as a symptom - underlying that behaviour there is an emotion driving that behaviour. Behaviours don't happen just 'because', there is always a reason for them and so it's up to us to learn how to understand what they are trying to tell us so we can work out what that emotion is.

And at the root of it all there will be a need. Something that is causing the dog to feel that particular emotion and so lead them to show the behaviour that we are seeing. Once we have discovered the emotion the dog is feeling, we can work out what the dog needs and help them to get whatever that may be.

The three pictures here give an example:

Behaviour: the dog is barking at something. If you look at their posture and body language the body is leaning back, away from what they are barking at. The ears are back, whiskers flared, and eyes fixed on something. The front paw is slightly lifted and there is a back paw in the air, and the back end of the dog may be lowered towards the ground a little.

Emotion: what the overall picture of the body language is telling us is that the dog is scared of the thing they are barking at, so the emotion they are feeling is fear.

Need: What this dog needs is immediate space from the thing that is bothering them, so they can feel relief from that fear and feel safer again. What they need going on is an increased feeling of safety and security, more trust in us to help them if they need it or get them out of a situation if it's too much for them.

When we can understand the need and emotion driving the behaviour we can understand our dogs far better and see where they need our help.

14/04/2024

IT’S FINE TO FEED YOUR DOGS SEPARATELY

I work with load of lovely clients who have multiple dogs that fall out sometimes. It’s often not the main issue their dogs are struggling with but it’s something they also need help with and it’s contributing hugely to their dog’s stress and anxiety.

Meal times can be a really common trigger point. Loads of people feed dogs in different corners of the same room, or a few feet apart in the kitchen and stand in the middle like a goalie ready to keep the dogs apart. Other people say that their dogs are fine eating together but don’t like it when one dogs finishes first and then hovers around the one still eating. Or the dog may be uncomfortable when the other dogs inspects their bowl when they’ve finished. A really simple way to avoid many fallouts is to start feeding dogs in separate rooms.

If you don’t know what you are looking for, you may not be aware that your dogs don’t love eating together. Signs they are finding it stressful would be eating really quickly when the other dog comes near or looks over, or slowing down the speed they eat at or even stopping eating and standing over their food and looking very still. Trying to take food out of their bowl to another place to eat it can also mean they aren’t comfortable.

If you are seeing any ‘distance increasing’ behaviours like growling, stillness, stiffness, curling their lip etc or signs of fear such as making themselves look smaller or tucking their tail etc this all mean they aren’t happy.

If your dogs aren’t totally happy eating in the same room, or you are having to stand between like a referee, feed them separately in different rooms.

It’s not a failure or an admission that they don’t get on to feed them separately, it’s totally normal in multidog households!

If you have dogs who have allergies and can’t eat the same food or dogs who are taking medication in their food etc too, it’s a really good idea to feed them in separate rooms.

It’s true that dogs are social eaters and most prefer company when they eat but this doesn’t need to be another dog eating next to them. This could be a human in the same room while they eat or it could be another dog behind a stairgate. I prefer to use stairgates rather than shut doors in most cases as it can enable social eating but without the risk of fallouts or either dog rushing. We want dogs to enjoy their food and take their time without feeling pressured.

Even if dogs aren’t actually falling out at mealtimes, having another dog putting pressure on them by standing near or rushing them so that they can lick their bowl, can build up resentment over time. Some fallouts between dogs are not due to one catastrophic event but are due to a series of small resentments over time that build up and cause a breakdown in the relationship.

I have 3 dogs who all eat in separate rooms with stairgates inbetween. They all adore each other and two happily share a lickmat regularly and all 3 do treat searches together. Their meals are in separate spaces as one is on so much pain meds that he rattles and one dropped tablet would kill my tiny dog, one has severe allergies and would be ill just from licking the other dogs bowl and she’s also a pig and would eat everyone’s food.

It’s not a failure to feed dogs separately and it doesn’t mean your dogs don’t get on. It can be about respecting each dog’s needs and actually improve their relationships together.

Laura McAuliffe, 2024, Dog Communication

10/04/2024

TIP TUESDAY
This is a quote from Chirag Patel during Clicker Expo 2023 during a presentation about Loose Leash Walking! When you're out walking with your dog, remember that your leash is not a piece of equipment for control; it's a safety net, since the majority of us live in an area with traffic and distractions. That said, ask yourself what does control your dog? What are they motivated by? What interests them when they're on leash (and when they're off leash)? What does your dog gravitate toward?

If you find yourself frustrated with your dog on leash, try to remember that it's not a failing on your dog's part; it's the strength of the rewards available to your dog - and you may not be the one providing those rewards all the time! There are a lot of instances where your dog will be seeking and receiving rewards from their environment! If you'd like your dog's attention to be on you, you'll need to work to be the one providing a lot of the rewards - and rewards your dog cares about!

04/04/2024

Let them Sniff! 🦮

Dogs Don’t Just Enjoy Sniffing, They NEED It! 🐶👃

Research shows that letting your pet explore the world around them through their nose is extremely important for their mental 🧠 and physical 💪 health.

Today’s article is all about the importance of giving your pet plenty of sniffing opportunities (link in the comments).

25/02/2024

Shake it…shake it off…

A recent study by two researchers in France looked at sniffing, pulse rate, and leash length on walks. Sixty-one dogs were taken on three separate walks, five minutes each walk, once with a 1.5m leash, once with a 5m leash, and once without a leash at all (walk order was randomized for each dog). Off-leash dogs sniffed the most, more than 3x as long as the dogs on short leashes. Dogs on long leashes spent nearly as much time as unleashed dogs sniffing, almost 3x as long as dogs on short leashes.

This study also found that sniffing resulted in lowered pulse rates, and the more intensely they sniffed, the more their pulse rates lowered. Pulse rate was also lowered when dogs “shook off” during walks on all leash lengths. The “shake off” behavior was often seen when the dog’s pulse rate was particularly high.

Read more about it below!

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1HX77kp2HBDiTxmq/?mibextid=Le6z7H

https://www.tuftsyourdog.com/everydaydogcare/giving-your-dog-time-to-sniff-on-walks-will-literally-soothe-his-heart/

What else can we learn about dogs from their walking behavior? Take your best friend on a Sniffari and see what you observe!