Reina really embodies this song: 1. she’s a million dollar baby (duh) and 2. she knows right from wrong! This little lady has done so well in just the beginning sessions of her E-Collar 101 Program. She is a long term client, who’s owners wanted to elevate their relationship by introducing the e-collar. She came into this program with amazing obedience and impulse control (clearly)! So why condition the e-collar? We condition the e-collar to extend our reach in those “what if” moments. Reina will be given so much more freedom now that her owners have a way to communicate with her no matter if the leash is on or off!
Greta was adopted last year as an adult dog and came to us exhibiting explosive reactivity at even the subtle sight of another dog. Over the course of several sessions, we conditioned her to a clicker and utilized a variety of counter-conditioning techniques to help support healthy interactions and neutrality around other dogs. Here, we are opening up her ability to share space with other dogs by slowly decreasing the distance and utilizing the clicker. Why are we tossing her the treat? To make the reward event more memorable and longer lasting, but not high energy enough to where it will amp her up too much. Very proud of this girl’s progress and a big shoutout to her owners, Dave and Karen, for being so dedicated and really absorbing what is demonstrated in sessions!
You don’t have to go through reactivity alone! Learn more about how you can help your dog work through reactivity by filling out our questionaire (link in bio) and scheduling an evaluation!
We are so proud of Misha’s ability to open up with the help of the ecollar. By starting low and slow, we were able to reintroduce the ecollar through a delicate conditioning process. Misha now has so much more freedom to grow his social circles. Owner, Alicja, is able to communicate clearly with Misha, which has immensely helped him in his big moments of reactivity. We see big results because Alicja is so damn dedicated and ALWAYS shows up ready to train. We love working with these two, they have so much to look forward to!
A reminder that socialization doesn’t always mean direct play! Misha and Rukka displayed many other ways your dog can and should socialize.
👉Neutrally sharing space
👉Solo side by side play
👉Nose to tail greetings (and being called off when appropriate)
👉Coexisting while independently exploring the space
Group Training with a view! Yesterday, we spent our session at Fort Williams, where we spent time on and off leash!
COMMENT BELOW!
Is your dog trained to be off leash? If so, what tools do you use?
We’re so grateful to have met so many amazing dogs this year! Big kuddos to the dedicated owners who have stayed consistent - you continue to make our community so fantastic! We can’t wait to watch more dogs and owners grow in 2024!
IA created Group Training to give our graduated clients a space to apply their handling skills and elevate their relationship with their dog in a range of settings. Emma and Ivy lead the group through exercises, while giving feedback on how to maintain a calm mindset and training presence while navigating more stimulating and challenging environments. Group Training is a space where clients can continue to safely grow with their dog, all while collaborating with likeminded, supportive owners/handlers!
Here’s a couple clips from our most recent Group Training sessions at the @oldporthalfmarathon, @bunkerbrewing & Summer Sunsets Live at @thompsonspoint.
Some shots from our picture day with Justine Johnson Photography!
📸 @justinejohnsonphoto
Wrapping up our final group Foundation Building class with a little Musical Dogs!
This is a tricky topic. How can we turn our (or our dog’s) reactions into responses? In a perfect world, we identify a trigger, go to the root of the problem and work through that insecurity. The unfortunate part is that we don’t live in a perfect world. Sometimes, no matter how much work you put in or how many perception modification techniques you try, there will always be that “reaction”. There are somethings that are so ingrained in our (or our dog’s) brain (due to genetics, past trauma, etc.) that prevent us from fully working through that “reaction”. This isn’t meant to sound depressing, it’s meant to sound real. When modification fails, what do you do? That’s when management comes into play. Management is a wonderful way to set yourself (or your dog) up for success:
“Management (with a dog or a human) is equally as important as modification. Sometimes even more so. Setting unrealistic standards for yourself or your dog will just end up with frustration or disappointment in the end, which isn’t beneficial for either parties. You can really only modify so much about an individual. That realization could help people be a lot happier with where they currently are at with themselves or their dog.” Ivy
2021 was a year full of growth.
✨Our Clients
It has been a privilege to watch our clients’ hard work and dedication to training pay off. Our clients created reliable relationships in 1:1 training, which allow us to create a group training class, a safe space for likeminded trainers to test their dogs. From aggressive dogs to high energy pups, our clients put in the work to strengthen their relationship.
✨Our Team
IA gained an amazing trainer & coach, Ivy Bateman. Her insight and knowledge has allowed our operations to grow. We are incredibly grateful to have her on our team!
✨Our Knowledge
A dog trainer never stops learning because every dog is different. We spent time researching and adopting new ways to create a custom training experiences for all of our clients.
Thank you, 2021 and everyone who was a part of it!
Dogs Gone Mild: When Good Dogs Get Better
(thank you Laura Cui for the caption)
Sunday Group Training has given this group an opportunity to not only have fun but also work through their challenges (reactivity, engagement, obedience). I’m so proud of everyone’s progress and can’t wait to watch you guys accomplish so much more!
Honor where you’re at!
Honor where you’re at!
Testing out my A-Frame! I had so much fun building my confidence course this weekend!
Importance of mental & physical exercise!
Importance of mental & physical exercise!
Music: Bensound
Ecollars are used for maintenance!
What if someone you didn’t know randomly tapped you on the shoulder and just looked at you. They keep tapping you, expecting a response. Would you feel confused & uncomfortable? That’s how a dog feels when you start using an ecollar with no prior training. Uncomfortable and mostly confused.
Owners want to use an ecollar because their dog won’t come and my first question (if I already don’t know the answer) is: what type of recall training have you done and how consistent have you been? Most of the time people have just let their dog off leash and hoped for the best and then get frustrated when the dog won’t listen. Please don’t do that.
An ecollar is not going to magically fix recall or any behavior. An ecollar is used to reinforce already existing training; it’s used for maintenance (shout out to @denise_fenzi who has a wonderful video on this topic).
If a dog can understand and respond to a command in a low distraction neutral setting, then it may be ready for an ecollar.
Here’s the timeline I follow for training:
In low distraction settings:
1. Introduce a command with force free techniques and BIG rewards
2. Shape the command using minor corrections if needed (leash or spacial pressure)
In medium/high distraction settings
3. Reintroduce the command with control (always staying safe - don’t give the dog freedom it’s not ready for)
4. Stronger with expectations
Once I am positive that the dog understands the command, I will repeat that same process (still using all the old tools) when introducing a new tool (like the ecollar). We have to transfer the old corrections to the new corrections or we’ll just have a very confused dog!
