Happy Cloud Dog Services

03/04/2023

This can happen in a second. Fixation/hyper fixation is an escalation in awareness and if you have a reactive dog....usually there is barking, lunges, whining and "digging" in immediately after fixation.....and unfortunately that reaction can happen just seconds after a "locked on" gaze.

The good news is there are ALWAYS "tells" that your dog has gone from looking to hyper fixation.

If you have a reactive dog, learning all those subtle and not so subtle tells are SO very important. You need to start to read these changes in posture and behaviour so you can act.

Ears change, softness in the body changes, mouths often "slam" closed and there may be a leaning in with a long lowered neck.

Not all dogs show all these changes and the graphic is a generalisation...but it lists many common signs that your dog has become aware of a trigger.

Your dogs coat may never be raised when they see a trigger, they may have a shorter, curlier coat.
There may not even be any changes in the tail for some breeds as they may have little to none or a tightly curled tail.

BUT....there WILL be signs that your dog has just changed from looking to fixating.
A good way to get a better idea of the changes is to have someone film you and your dog when you are nearing a trigger for your dog.....whether that be a cyclist, person, dog or cat. Have someone film it for you.

Watch the video and look at what happens in a split second or seconds leading up to fixation...
Leash tension.
Lowering neck.
Straining forward.
Mouth shutting.
Tail tucking or in a high flagging position.

This is ALL information you can use to lessen reactions and prepare an action plan for when you see those tell tale signs.

Reactivity is a beast.
It is complex and very individual....but if you learn all the signs your dog does give you.....you are on your way to making a real and positive change for you and your dog.

All the best on your reactive journey.

27/03/2023

This is a great cost for good information going toward a good cause from a trainer certified in the methodology of addressing separation anxiety that I suggest and have had repeated success with. It would be a good chance to get a solid rundown on what to expect and why it works if you’ve been considering taking the plunge and would benefit from a primer!

Coming up tomorrow - register now!

While separation anxiety is hard on dogs, it's also hard on their guardians, who may get nasty looks and notes from neighbors about their dog's barking, warnings from their landlord or homeowners' association, and feel trapped in the house by their panicking dog.

Come learn the facts about separation anxiety, and how you can help your dog, at my March 28 online presentation, a fundraiser for the Springfield (VT) Humane Society. Can't make it live? The session will be recorded and made available afterward. Register at the link: janicezdogtraining.as.me/separationanxietyzoom

20/03/2023

This goes for dogs as well!

There’s a concept in behavior studies called a “repertoire” or a behavioral repertoire. All that means is all of the behaviors that an animal (including humans) is capable of. This includes things as simple as eating, laying down, sitting, standing, but also jumping up, barking, growling, biting, etc.

Sometimes a dog needs help remembering the options that are available to them, when they are deciding how they are going to act in a situation. This is especially true if they’re experiencing strong emotions, both good and bad. If you’ve ever been so overwhelmed that someone has had to remind you to sit down or take a deep breath, then you know what that feels like (I think that’s everyone 🙂 ) Often the first “idea” that pops into a dog’s head when they’re very excited or very upset isn’t what we’d prefer that they do — and even more than that, it often isn’t even what the dog would prefer to do, if they were able to take a deep breath and think about all of the other possible things they could be doing at that moment. Most dogs (not all, there are some exceptions, like everything in life there is nuance here😆) don’t enjoy getting tense and overexcited and barking every time a dog passes by them on a walk. It’s exhausting! But if we just punish them for doing this, or even if we just prevent them from doing it through some other means, that isn’t showing them what we’d like them to do instead, or helping them discover what else they might prefer to do instead.

Sometimes, even just learning how to do other things (like a trick that is fun to do, that they are rewarded for doing) will make it less likely that they pick the behavior that upsets us, simply because they have more options now. But if that’s not enough we can still focus on making the other options more rewarding over time. Either way, they need to be aware that other options exist and they need to feel empowered to choose them.

07/03/2023

Canine Behavior Thought of the Day: Adolescence

This post is inspired by my new foster dog, Bob, a 9 month old mixed breed who arrived today and will eventually be available for adoption through Wags and Whiskers Animal Rescue of MN.

Bob was surrendered to Wags for the same reason a lot of 6-18 month old dogs end up in rescue: he's at a developmental stage where his hormones and energy level are high, and his ability to to access his thinking brain is limited. (Across species, this developmental stage translates to "teenagers do a lot of really dumb stuff.") It's understandable that this is a challenge to deal with, and unfortunately it became too much for the home that adopted him as a younger puppy.

When Bob arrived at my home today, he was a little nervous about being in a new place, and he displayed his nerves by continuously climbing on me (and he's not small). We tend to think of jumping up as a happy/friendly behavior, but, in some cases, it is an anxious one. The dog's thinking brain is turned off, and their instinctive brain is telling them to move, resulting in somewhat chaotic behavior.

After he was seeming comfortable in the new place (relaxed body language, tail up, interested in exploring, no longer desperately jumping up on me), I introduced him to the other dogs. [Note, I perform introductions more quickly than ideal due to the needs of my household; a slower introduction process than this will have better results!] Bob is super dog friendly and had no trouble meeting my three resident dogs one at a time! By dinnertime, the four of them were all integrated.

Here's where the adolescent brain concept comes back in: Bob does NOT know how to stop. He has 3 new friends and thinks he needs to PLAY PLAY PLAY with all of them. My 3 resident dogs all have very good dog skills in different flavors, and they each told him, "No, I don't want to play" in clear terms. But he would not let up, so I put him on the other side of the gate from my dogs. The moment I did, Bob took a very deep breath and went off to get a drink of water. He was relieved to stop; he just didn't know how!

After giving Bob an hour or so of crate time, I crated my three residents and had Bob out with me alone. He still couldn't settle outside of the crate. He went from dog toy to dog toy, chewing for a moment, then pacing on to the next toy (or in a few cases, my shoes and other non-dog items). Back in his crate he went while I made and ate dinner (it's so helpful when they're already crate trained!!)

After dinner, I let Bob and my residents out again. Once again, Bob was pestering the other dogs non-stop. I wanted to drink a glass of wine and relax on the couch instead of managing dogs, so I brought out my favorite tool for adolescent dogs: a leash.

The photo below shows what happened within one minute of restricting Bob's area of movement with the leash, which is simply attached to me while I sit on the couch. [Image Desciption: a light tan colored dog on a blue leash is sleeping in a carpeted room with a few dog toys nearby.] If you've ever been around human toddlers at bedtime, you can guess what happened here. This dog is EXHAUSTED, but he had no ability to stop his own activity. The moment I took away any options besides laying down and chewing on toys, he was finally able to relax.

All dogs need physical activity and mental stimulation. The difference between high and low energy dogs is not strictly in how much of it they need, but rather how easily they can settle in the absence of activity. Low energy dogs settle naturally, while high energy dogs need to be taught how! This is especially true of adolescents, because they are at a stage in brain development where their impulses to move, move, MOVE are not tempered by a mature thinking brain.

Here are some things I'll be working on with Bob to help him learn how to settle:

🐾Enforcing settling using the crate (luckily for me, he is already crate trained and recognizes it as a place to settle)

🐾Enforcing settling using a leash tether (neutrally teaching him that settling outside the crate is possible too!)

🐾Reinforcing settling through mat training

🐾Managing interactions around other dogs - separating and only allowing play in short, controlled spurts

🐾Reinforcing ignoring other dogs and other thoughtful behaviors through impulse control training

🐾Reinforcing trained behaviors to give him something he CAN do instead of rowdy behaviors

If this post sounds familiar to you and you would like some assistance in creating a management and training plan for your own rowdy dog, please reach out!

20/02/2023

20/02/2023

One of the first assignments I give nearly all of my clients is to come up with a list from one (best) to ten (still good, but not very exciting) of their dog’s favorite treats. We often talk through a variety of options because there are SO MANY potential rewards to choose from out there outside of the dog treat aisle at the pet store. I rarely find a dog’s #1 is an actual dog treat. Usually it’s something like cream cheese or tuna fish. 🙂 But there are so many other things to try. Sardines, liver pate, heck some dogs will pick carrot sticks over anything else every time. It’s helpful to have this actually figured out before going into a training plan so you can select the optimal level of reward for the behavior you’re trying to teach or reinforce.

But it is also often a very good reminder to dog guardians that what they think their dog will like best isn’t always what their dog actually likes best. One of the most common scenarios I walk into when someone is struggling to convince their dog something they’d like them to do is worth their time is that the guardian is not using a reward the dog is very motivated by. I love when this happens because it’s one of the quickest fixes, and the instant change in engagement is so encouraging for most people. You’d be surprised how often you may be doing “everything right” — aside from selecting the wrong reward!

In nearly all cases we will be working toward reducing and varying the rewards we use in training but finding the right reward and rewarding often, especially when learning a new behavior or asking for a behavior in a new or difficult context, can completely make or break a training plan.

If you need any help brainstorming rewards or have any great ideas to share, feel free to comment!

19/02/2023

This is always the first step of any training plan with me when working together to address undesirable behavior.

Honestly, in many cases, some behavior is incredible easy to prevent entirely through management and may be very time consuming to resolve through training, and it may not be worth the family’s time, energy, and frustration to invest in.

A good example of this is a client I worked with that had a dog on prednisone, which is a huge appetite stimulant. They began to have pretty significant counter surfing issues. This can be challenging for an average dog, especially of his breed (a lab!), but the medication just made it so much more frustrating for everyone that it was much easier on the entire family to just come up with a plan to prevent there from being any food within reach of the dog.

I’m always in favor of picking your battles. We all have a lot on our plates these days and our dogs benefit when we aren’t exhausted and frustrated with them.

THE MARVELS OF MANAGEMENT
Management in dog behaviour terms is making changes to an environment so that a behaviour can’t be practised. It’s a simple, often over looked way to prevent unwanted behaviour. Management can replace the need for long, complicated training methods or can be used to stop the behaviour from being practiced and reinforced as you work on teaching your dog an alternative behaviour.

The longer an unwanted behaviour continues the more reinforced it becomes and the harder it is to change, like changing a bad habit that has been going on for a long time.

Think about how parents manage the environment of a toddler. How do they stop their child from opening a cupboard where chemicals are kept, prevent access to a swimming pool, or prevent little fingers being stuck into plug points? Would they spend time and effort in teaching the child not to do these things, while always feeling stressed that they might still do it, or do they manage it by using a cupboard where the child can’t reach, put up a pool fence or use plug covers.
These are just some simple examples of how we already use management without giving it much thought. Why then can’t we do the same for our dogs?

So many dog owners insist that their dog needs to be trained not to steal food, not to run out the door, not to drink from the toilet, not to overturn dustbins, not to steal clothes etc.

There are many behaviours where the simplest and most logical solution is just to manage it, prevent it from happening and then decide if it’s really worth the effort and time it may take to train our dogs not to do these things, without any guarantee that it will work.

I’m a big believer in management because it works so well, makes such a difference in setting our dogs up for success and reduces stress in both ourselves and our dogs.

19/02/2023

Fear.....Completely individual, complex and what your dog is afraid of needs to be noted (even if we do not understand it, it seems irrational...or if they are afraid of something we view as harmless).

I have seen people laugh when dogs are afraid of something that we view as "innocent"....it is not innocent to your dog.
Sometimes the objects dogs are afraid of are shown again in front of others...almost like party trick to make their dog have the same reaction.

Social media is full of these videos too.

New objects or situations can make some dogs extremely nervous and afraid, and it makes no difference whether we understand it....we need to respect it.

This graphic is about the 4 F's and the first F covers a lot and is a bit more in depth than what is shown on the graphic....dogs may disengage, fiddle, "faff" about, fidget or show behaviours to self sooth.
There is a lot of movement in the first F.

The others are more self explanatory.

Many stress signals or calming signals precede or accompany these 4 F's ....even freeze.

Important to note is the fight.....All dogs, of EVERY breed given a unique set of circumstances are capable of fighting.
It doesn't necessarily mean your dog is aggressive....it is simply your dog feels forced into action.

If your dog is fearful.....you need to help.

Repeatedly exposing your dog to fear is never a good idea...and we can do this all the time, and we justify it.

Dogs that need to be groomed are often forced into the car .....you may know they are really afraid of the car but they need to go, so a highly stressed, scared dog is forced into the car......
They will never get over this fear if they are continually forced to confront their fears (or even phobias) again and again.
...it can morph outwards.
The car is in the garage and now suddenly your dog refuses to go near the garage or even near that side of the house.

Fear needs help.
It needs understanding, often unique solutions.....but your dog deserves the time and effort to help them through this.

17/02/2023

Some great ideas (featuring a sheepdog! Not that we’re biased…)

20/01/2023

I love Ruffwear and use it myself and recommend them constantly and will continue to, but it’s something to be aware of for potential runners.

19/11/2022

TREAT AND RETREAT ☺️

The key to this exercise is to use both food and distance to help pups feel that they are safe. Treat and retreat can be implemented in many ways. You might practice this if your pup hides from visitors or if your pup has done well with a guest protocol and is ready for the next step.

The key concepts are:
✅ Pups are able to control the distance that they get to the person that frightens them

✅ The person = awesome stuff happens

✅ There is zero pressure to approach the person

👉 Treat & Retreat, Version One:
We recommend that version one be done by a trainer or behavior consultant, or under the immediate supervision of your trainer or behavior consultant.

🔺Open the apartment door
🔺Toss very high value treats
🔺Close the door and leave

👉 Treat & Retreat, Version Two:
After working with a professional in version one, you are ready for version two. The guest is already indoors, sitting quietly.
The dog is brought into the room. Follow any precautions set out for you (muzzle, drag leash, etc.)

🔺The guest is still and does not make eye contact with the dog.
🔺The guest tosses a very high value treat past the dog so that the dog has to walk away from the guest to get the food.
🔺Guest repeats this for a few minutes.
The dog is taken out of the room.

There are other applications to this game. These are the versions Behavior Vets typically start with when working with our clients when addressing fear and/or reactivity.

🦄 Thank you to Suzanne Clothier for creating this fantastic game! Learn more about it at

19/11/2022

This is exactly how I feel and the attitude I try to take into training with me. I really hope this can help some people struggling with their dog’s behavior — to know that those may actually be tools your dog is bringing to the table!

I love a risk taking dog.

I love your naughty dog.

Your dog that jumps on me.

Your dog that shoves his whole face in my treat pouch.

Your dog that barks and paws at me for attention, and your dog that steals my hat out of my pocket.

Even your dog that thinks tables are for standing on.

You know why?

Your naughty dog is still brave enough, confident enough, to try something new.
To say “hey, I wonder how this will work” and just go for it.

I see dogs all the time who are apprehensive about trying new things, who lack the desire to try something new. Some dogs come by this behavior due to their anxious genetics or lack of socialization, but some of them become this way because they’ve been punished over and over again for trying new stuff. They jump on a guest, they get “no” shouted at them along with a collar correction. They grab something off the counter, they get the item forcibly removed while they’re yelled at.

Eventually, they stop trying new behavior because it comes with such a history of punishment, and from the outside it looks like “oh good, they’ve learned”. Until you try to teach these dogs to do something brand new. You try to lure them into a position, and they’re hesitant to follow the treat (what if that gets me yelled at? Is this a set up?) You ask your dog to interact with a new person and they hesitate, knowing that the last new person they “interacted with” resulted in them getting physically corrected.

A naughty dog who is willing to do new things is a dog that hasn’t been punished to the point of suppressing their behavior. Punishment can be tempting to use because it stops the dog in the moment, but in some dogs it will suppress ALL behavior somewhat, making your dog hesitant to try new things in your presence, even things completely unrelated to what they’ve been punished for in the past.

I get that as a dog trainer it’s my job to help teach people’s dogs to stop jumping, counter surfing, barking, etc. But there are ways to do that while preserving a dog’s confidence and willingness to try new things. I’m not interested in a mindlessly compliant and obedient dog that got that way by squashing their confidence through heavy use of punishment. I want your naughty dog to learn new behaviors that replace those old “bad” ones using fun stuff like food, toys, and praise, so that when the time comes to learn something new your “naughty” dog is still brave enough to try those new things!

So please don’t apologize to me for your naughty dog. I love to see it!

10/11/2022

Dog licks are often thought of as doggy kisses. But, it’s actually something to take a step back and notice. And could sometimes be considered a, “Kiss to Dismiss” (more on that below). These licks do trigger some questions that may seem a bit silly to ask in response. Something like, “Describe the licks for me. Fast, slow, and then does the dog move away?”
“Is it a full tongue or a little bit?”
“Full tongue lick or quick flick?”
“Is the child sitting and the dog approaches or vice versa, what level of mobility does the child have, is food present or remnant?

There’s many questions! But, these questions help us gather valuable information to help us understand what the dog may be communicating. At Family Paws Parent Education, we want to help parents consider and recognize that dog licks may not always be what we think they are, “affectionate kisses”, or indications of “love,” but could have other meanings. We refer to this as “Kiss to Dismiss”. If you are curious of these doggy “kisses” and if they are a “Kiss to Dismiss”, ask yourself,
🐶 Is your dog in need of space? (what just happened? Did your baby crawl closer to your dog?)
🐶 Is your dog in need of space and there is a reason they may choose not to move? (example: comfy spot, resource, pain)
🐶 Does this licking deter closeness or lead to an increase in space?

Thank you, Steve Bishop of Bishops Gate Dog Training for this graphic! Steve is also a Family Paws Parent Educator.
We do not recommend baby and dogs interact as shown in these illustrations. Never allow your baby to crawl up to or freely explore your dog in this way.

You can also find him on Instagram at

03/11/2022

This is a great opportunity to get instruction on this skill for a really great price. Lots of flexibility also. I know I’ve suggested a scratchboard to a lot of folks but we may not have had time to get around to it with other projects in the forefront, if you can get in I’d recommend taking advantage of it.

29/10/2022

25/10/2022

05/09/2022

Teenage dogs are just like teenage humans in a lot of ways. Testing boundaries is normal, and it’s also normal for adolescent dogs to have a hard time with impulse control. In fact, it’s developmentally appropriate. Risk taking behavior has a lot of natural functions in maturing animals! It doesn’t make it less frustrating for parents and guardians but it may give you some hope to know that it’s totally expected and it won’t last forever.

Building and maintaining trust and a good rapport with your dog is the best way to get both of you through this time. Hang in there.

30/08/2022

⭐️ ANNOUNCEMENTS: Opening availability to separation anxiety clients, organizing community resources to assist with separation practice! ⭐️

I hope everyone is having a great wrap up to their summer! As the weather cools down and we start spending more time at home and indoors, it will become easier to fall out of practice with helping our dogs remember how to calmly be home alone. Previous SA clients: please remember to do your weekly practice when you are not naturally and habitually leaving your dogs home alone throughout the day.

I am (slowly…) working on organizing some resources that I am hopeful will be helpful to both current and former clients practicing maintenance absences as well as people in the local community that are working through their dogs separation-related distress issues on their own.

What this will look like eventually is, fingers crossed, an easier way to trade dogsitting and places to go hang out for the duration of your longer practice or maintenance sessions, especially during extreme outdoor temperatures and/or for people that do not or cannot access indoor spaces to sit for a few hours at a time and have nowhere else to go.

I’m especially hopeful that this will be helpful to my disabled clients that may have specific needs about their environment. Transportation assistance would also likely be helpful.

If you would like to be involved, please comment here and let me know and I will be sure to give you a head’s up when I have something concrete ready to test out. You don’t need to have a dog with SA to volunteer.

On that note, after graduating some families, I have some openings for new separation anxiety clients. If you need help with your dog’s separation anxiety and are prepared to commit to an intensive program in which you’ll receive daily planning and support, please email me at happyclouddog[at]gmail.com

If you have any questions in general feel free to comment, private message, or email me!

Featured in this post today is Ronan. I’m not working on separation anxiety with Ronan, but he has such a cute cheeky smile, I thought he’d help bring some attention to this post!

[A medium sized fluffy brown dog in a blue harness looking up at the camera anticipating a treat!]

07/08/2022

Edit: space taken! Feel free to contact me to be placed on a waiting list!

I have space available for an additional sliding scale client (it is pay what you can, if what you can pay is nothing, that's fine.) I cannot take any additional separation anxiety cases or service dog clients at this time. (But you can still contact me to be placed on a waiting list if you are looking for assistance with either of these two issues.)

This is for in person (in the Pittsburgh area) or virtual (anywhere!) meetings. I cannot currently see dogs that have previously bitten (with "bite" being defined here as "requiring medical attention") people or other dogs.

Please send me a message here or email me at: happyclouddog[at]gmail.com to inquire. Once the spot is filled I'll update this post. :)

07/08/2022

31/07/2022

Everyone ready? 🥁

I checked all of the suggestions in the comments against the people who had sent in a contribution. There were a few people who had made a contribution but did not submit a name for consideration. If this was you and you want to submit a name for the next helper dog (I have two others that need names and will be posted soon), please just let me know and I’m happy to count your contribution as a submission.

I assigned a number to each suggestion and popped the numbers in Google’s random number generator. We got 3, which was the number assigned to Cheryl Holley Dobson’s submission of Buttercup. Thank you Cheryl!

Buttercup will be getting her very own set of tags to use shortly so she can continue her important work of helping dogs feel more at ease in the presence of other dogs, and the funds contributed (we raised $160!) will be going to help an in-need family get a month of training and behavior mod support for their dog. I appreciate you all so much, thank you for caring.

Hello! This is my friend and co-worker named… uhhhh. Actually, I’m hoping to get some help with that, and maybe a couple of other friends, too. Read on, please!

This is one of my “practice dogs” - a life-sized plush dog I use to help my clients with dog aggression, reactivity, or general overexcitement in the presence of other dogs. After they’re comfortable and able to focus in the presence of this dog, and we work on some other skills too with their guardians, I bring my real dog, Clover, around and we get them used to working around her, too. Then we can take our show on the road and go on trips to parks and on walks around the neighborhood, practicing the skills we’ve learned together.

I keep a collar and tags on my practice dogs, because some dogs become sensitive to the sound of tags jingling and it’s important to help them learn it’s okay to hear those sounds. During a recent appointment, I lost the tags from this spaniel in a client’s yard. Whoops! They were actually an extra set of Clover’s tags and expired rabies and license tags. She’s not using them and there’s that important jingle-jingle-jingle sound when we “walk” our practice dog by the collar on a leash!

When my client found the missing tags, it made me think how rude it was of me to not even name these dogs that help me out all the time!

That’s where I’m hoping to get some help. I have this spaniel and two other dogs (I have them in a few different sizes and positions, and will likely accumulate more, to help with dogs that have more specific needs — and for most dogs, seeing a dog sitting down is easier than one standing — rather rigidly, at that, I might say — so I often start with this pup. So I’d like to start by naming them first as well!

For a donation of any amount to my fund to help subsidize training and behavior modification for low income families, you can leave a comment on this post with a name suggestion. In a few days, I’ll put all of the suggestions* in a random number generator and we’ll pick a winner! And then ______ (watch this space) will have tags made of their very own and will get to stop mooching off of my dog. 🙂 If you don’t get your name picked, don’t fret — once this dog is named the others will be looking for suggestions too, please try again!

Please see the comments on this post for the link to the subsidy fund! Thanks everyone!

(*Please don’t submit “Doggy McDogFace”, I’m watching you.)

[A life sized plush toy of a brown spaniel-type dog, sitting in front of a glass door.]