Brilliant Behavior, LLC.

06/10/2023

Brilliant Behavior offers free, no obligation virtual consultations for in-home pet care!

No matter the species, our team of animal care specialists can provide for your family!

Book your free consultation today:

Let our team of zoological specalists care for your animals! Ensure the saftey and comfort of your furry, feathered, or scaley family!

07/07/2023

Brilliant Behavior has been nominated for best Dog Trainer in Orlando!

You can help us out by voting at:

http://vote.orlandoweekly.com/services/best-dog-trainer

And sharing Brilliantbehaviorllc.com with anyone in need of positive reinforcement based training services!

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05/12/2021

Did you know we offer FREE, no obligation virtual consultations?
Have you thought about getting your dog trained but not sure where to start?
Want to know all about your trainers methods before moving forward?

Chat with us! We can answer your questions and learn all about your specific situation so we can focus on your individual dog!

https://www.brilliantbehaviorllc.com/book-a-training-session

14/07/2021

Setting the Tone: What you do before a walk can increase success during!

Walking your dog can be an enriching and fun activity for both you and your furry friend. Walking can also be a great stressor for many dog guardians who experience difficulties during this time. Things like dogs shooting out the door, pulling on the lead, not sitting still for clipping the leash are all common problems.

What you do before taking your dog out can make a difference!

❥ Try exercising your dog before the walk! This might seem excessive, but taking 5 minutes to run around the yard, play fetch, or even puzzle games can make a huge difference in your dogs excitability prior to a walk.
❥ Remain calm. Often times, we get our dogs excited by using high pitched tones, loud voices, etc. when we tell them we are going for a walk. Instead, calmly get your pup ready for this walk without adding to their excitement.
❥ Practice picking up the leash and putting it down. Just picking up the leash and moving it to another part of the house a few times will teach your dog that touching the leash does not necessarily mean they are going for a walk. This will help them unlearn precursors to a walk and therefore their emotional response to seeing a leash in hand.
❥ Ask your dog to sit and wait away from the door while you clip. Asking your dog to place elsewhere can remove the anticipation of going right out the door.
❥ Do not open the door unless your dog has released their pent up energy prior to the walk. It is okay to walk away from a dog past their cooperation threshold and wait for them to show you the behavior you would like to see to set expectations for the walk!

02/07/2021

Prepare your dog for success in scary situations.

With the Fourth of July around the corner, let's look to understand and empathize with our dogs!

Did you know more animals are lost this night than any other?
The loud noises, vibrations, and strange sights can leave your dog too scared to process what is happening around them.

Here's what YOU can do to keep them safe and comfortable.

❥ Make sure your dog has their collar and tags.
❥ Do not leave your animals unattended outdoors.
❥ Give dogs a safe space indoors. This can be an open crate with blankets drapped over, a spot under a table, or let them cuddle up to you on the couch.
❥ Get dogs off the bare ground. Reducing the feeling of vibration can help calm the animals. Use beds, stack pillows, blankets, and anything else you can safely use.
❥ Add white noise. Soothing jazz, fans, sound machines...other noises can help drown out the fireworks.
❥ Distract with games and treats! Now is a great time to condition the pup. Teach them that loud noises mean yummy treats, reward them for remaining calm!
❥ Give them a sweater or thundervest, the compression makes them feel more secure.
❥ Consider calming treats and medication. Anti-anxiety meds can make all the difference in your pets safety, comfort, and well being. Contact your vet for this!

Wishing everyone a safe Fourth of July weekend!

11/06/2021

Building trust: How relationship and training connect

This is Jimmy. Jimmy was a feral dog for the first two years of his life, meaning he missed prime socialization time. Jimmy is a dog who knows how to interact with other dogs, but is still learning how to interact with people.
Jimmy builds his understanding and relationship through structure, routine, and, of course, food.

Transitioning to a new home can be a big step for Jimmy. And it means he needed all the positive reinforcement possible to build a trust and strong relationship with his new family members. I had previously clicker trained Jimmy, and with some guidance through virtual couching/ training sessions, this tool has allowed his new humans to communicate with Jimmy when he was making the right decision in being calm, socializing appropriately, etc. By rewarding him for what he does right, he is learning what the best decisions are for himself.

This was especially important when we recognized Jimmy was fearful of transitional areas of the home. He would act aggressively near door ways, entry ways, etc. Once we realized this, we instructed his people to use the clicker when they enter a room he is in, prior to any aggressive or uncomfortable signs from Jimmy. The way Jimmy felt about people entering a space quickly changed as he began to associate it with something positive for him. This also lead to a better relationship between Jimmy and his people.

Jimmy's transition to his new home has been going smoothly since because of this force-free, compassionate training.

As we work with Jimmy's new foster family, we will continue to aid in growing that bond and increasing his success!

01/06/2021

Before and After: Why Husbandry Training Matters

This is Brutus. He was one of our fosters with The Pittie Party of Central Florida, who had stepped in and saved him as a case of neglect. Brutus was suffering with entropian. This is when the eyelid turns inward and the fur and lashes scratch the surface of the eye. Over time, with lack of treatment, this causes scarring, ulcers, and infection to the eye.
Brutus had lost about 60% of his eyesight by the time he was rescued. He began seeing a veterinary ophthalmologist who prescribed him courses of different ointments and eyedrops to reduce the swelling, irritation, and cloudiness.

For us, this meant asking an 80lb dog who cannot see well and has a painful eye condition to sit still with us as we put things into said eyes. We had two sets of drops and an ointment put in twice a day each.

And so, we began training Brutus to take his eye drops. This would be categorized as husbandry training.
Husbandry training is asking the animals to voluntarily partake in their own health care.
Husbandry training your dog could be training them to sit for a nail trim, allow you to examine the inside of their mouth, staying still for brushing, or in this case, taking eye medication.

By teaching Brutus that taking his eye medication was something fun, rewarding, and worth the time and discomfort, Brutus was easily able to receive his medication daily, on time, and with no stress to him or us.

As you can see in his before and after, the course of treatment through the months was a success. Brutus regained about 40% of his eyesight in the first two months and the treatment meant he no longer needed to recieve surgery. Because of the permanent damage done by the years of neglect, he still has one eye drop medication he receives once a day. Because of his training, his wonderful adopted family gives him these drops easily with lots of love (and treats!).

30/05/2021

These are the faces that began Brilliant Behavior. Our fosters.

As zoological professionals, it is no surprise our love for animals bleds into our home lives, too. We have had the opportunity to share parts of our lives with some amazing foster animals. Giving these pups training and structure made them candidates for the wonderful homes they live in today.
Taking in rescued animals has its challenges. But these dogs were worth every bit of effort. Every dog came with new experiences. Every dog came with an abundance of love.
Fostering is what inspired us to use our experience, knowledge, and skill to help more animals and the humans who care for them.

If you have the ability to open your home to an animal in need, please consider fostering and adopting from local shelters and rescues! These cuties came to us from The Pittie Party of Central Florida

30/05/2021

Good things come to those who wait. Modifying reactivity and anxiety.

When our foster dog, Faith, came home with us, we quickly realized she was fearful of many things. Loud noises, new objects, strangers...anything unknown to her sent her spiraling with anxiety. Through her rescue, Faith was able to work with a certified behaviorist, one of only three in the state, and was diagnosed with a general anxiety disorder. We do not know her life prior to being in the shelter and rescued, but we can see the scars the trauma has left on her mental and emotional state.
For months, we worked to not just change what Faith did when she was scared, but we worked on how she processed these feelings through behavioral modification.
We worked on obedience training, desensitization, and creating a rich history of reinforcement for what she previously found aversive.
Now, when a stranger comes to the home, she eagerly approaches with a tail wagging instead of growling and lunging.
Now, when she hears the sound of the pressure cooker, instead of retreating and trembling under a bed she sits in front of it and waits for a treat.
Now, when she feels overwhelmed with exitement instead of behaving erratically she finds a toy to play with and focuses her energy in a structured way.
Now, when there is presence of a stimulus she is unsure of, she seeks us for instruction.

Faith needed communication and understanding. She needed patience and time. Faith needed to build trust and a bond. She needed structure and guidance.

To see Faith blossom into a happier, more relaxed, more confident dog was worth all of this and more.

30/05/2021

With a combined experience of over ten years in the zoological profession, caring for animals is our passion. A vital part of what we do is building a positive, cooperative relationship with an animal. We will take our experience and knowledge and help you do the same for you and your pet, whether furry, scaly, or feathered. We will build and grow the relationship, confidence, and cooperation between you and your animal through positive reinforcement training and force free techniques. Let us help you and your pets, whether in person or virtually, we can teach all species, breeds, ages, and capacities!