Dogs Behaving Better

07/01/2025

Holy cow! This dog REALLY enjoys clean dry feet!

06/01/2025

I never met Karen Pryor but have benefited immensely from her teaching, her instructors at the Academy she founded, and the Clicker Expo conference for the past 10 years.

She absolutely revolutionized the field of animal training, moving it away from punitive to positive. And it just keeps evolving in that direction.

With profound sadness and immense gratitude, we honor the life and legacy of Karen Pryor, a true pioneer in the fields of animal behavior and positive reinforcement training. Karen’s groundbreaking work revolutionized how we communicate with animals—and each other—leaving an indelible mark on science, education, and the lives of countless species around the world.

Continue reading: https://bit.ly/4214rRG

05/01/2025

Teddy was one of my first puppy clients, 10 years ago. It was wonderful to see him and his mom today. He is still so smart, funny, and affectionate. ❤️❤️❤️

05/01/2025

Training tips that we can easily incorporate into daily life, to make a difference.

01/01/2025

Observe your dog’s body language before letting strangers pet them.

When strangers touch our dogs without consent, it can be unsettling for them—much like an unexpected touch feels to us. Dogs deserve respect and agency over their bodies. Politely guiding others to wait for the dog’s signals, like approaching willingly or leaning in, helps ensure interactions are safe and comfortable.

01/01/2025

Need professional help for your puppy or dog with training or behavior issues?
End all the trial and error and make real progress toward a better life together!

01/01/2025

Good one!

22/12/2024

A picture is worth 1000 words

22/12/2024

Teach kids how to recognize and respect what dogs are saying. When we listen to their whispers, they don't have to shout.

A Kids’ Comprehensive Guide to Speaking Dog!

A fun, Interactive, educational resource to help the whole family understand canine communication
A fun, interactive, educational resource to help the whole family understand canine communication. Keep future generations safe by learning to “speak dog!” The perfect tool for parents, educators, dog trainers and behavior specialists to use in support of family pet dog training. Available in PDF and ePub versions
** Features the renowned Be a Tree® international dog bite safety program
** Real-life situations explained with photos and fun cartoons
** Complete toolbox to help children stay safe around just about any dog
** Written and contributed to by qualified canine training and behavior specialists

Also available in bulk at wholesale pricing as a tool for your training clients

https://dognosticseducation.com/courses/a-kids-comprehensive-guide-to-speaking-dog/

04/12/2024

Many reasons not to suppress unwanted behaviors with NO! and other forms of punishment.

THE PERILS OF PUNISHMENT

It’s easy to stop or suppress a behaviour by using punishment, force or pain and say that it really works, so why even bother to do it differently?

Punishment based methods may well “fix” the behaviour quickly, are far easier, require far less effort, less knowledge, less education, or even just be based on traditional belief, but these methods come at a great cost - destroying trust, creating insecurity, fear, anxiety, provoking aggression, causing dogs to shut down or feel helpless and prevent dogs from learning an alternative, more acceptable behaviour.

There is so much modern, scientific evidence to support force free, positive reinforcement methods as being the most effective and successful way to modify behaviour.

There is nothing admirable, ethical or intelligent in physically or emotionally forcing any sentient being to comply.

Take the time and make a commitment to understand and learn about positive, force free, science-based methods.

29/11/2024

Torre went with a cone alternative after knee surgery.

24/11/2024

Consistency plus clarity gets results!
I can help with both.

24/11/2024

Give only a little of these safe foods to avoid upset tummy.

There are many Thanksgiving foods dogs can eat. The key is to let them indulge in moderation to avoid pancreatitis, vomiting, and diarrhea.

20/11/2024

Dogs who are often over-the-top will benefit from a daily nap, especially puppies!

Chase-Free Living - Creating Healthy Sleep Habits! 💤

Just like us, our dogs thrive when they’re well-rested. 🐶✨

Sleep plays a crucial role in their physical health, emotional well-being, and even their ability to learn new skills (yes, including not chasing critters!)

Here’s how to help your pup get the quality snooze they deserve:
�✔️ Create a cozy sleep spot: A quiet, comfy area where they feel safe is essential.
�✔️ Stick to a routine: Regular exercise, meals, and bedtime help their body clock stay on track. ⏰
�✔️ Calm the chaos: Activities like sniffing games or gentle chew toys can wind them down before bed. 🦴
�✔️ Respect their rest: Teach your family to avoid disturbing your dog while they’re sleeping.

A well-rested dog is a happier, calmer, and more focused dog. Let’s help them recharge those paws for a lifetime of adventures! 🌟

How does your pup like to wind down before bed? Share your routine below! ⬇️

20/11/2024

Management is Step 1 of changing any unwanted behavior. Then training is Step 2.
I can help you and your dog with both steps.

ARE YOU MANAGING?
Are you managing your dog’s environment to prevent or improve unwanted behaviour?

As people, we tend to prefer and look for the more complicated solutions to problems. This tendency is termed “complexity bias” - the tendency to prefer complicated explanations and solutions instead of looking for the simpler ones.

Surely a complicated, time consuming, detailed solution has to be more effective, superior, impressive, or correct?

Complexity bias is so relevant when it comes to changing a dog’s unwanted behaviour. We often get so stuck on trying to modify behaviour through counter conditioning, desensitization or detailed training plans when sometimes the simplest solution to the problem lies in simply managing the environment.

Dogs will do what dogs do – when an opportunity arises to help themselves to food left on a table, to bark at the gate at anyone passing by, to have a drink from that big water bowl at the perfect height, that we call a toilet, to running off with irresistibly smelly dirty underwear, to rummaging through bins in search of anything that may or may not be edible, to running out an opened door in search of adventure - the list is long - dogs will be dogs.

Parents of little children use management all the time without giving it much thought. Baby locks on cupboards, covers on electrical sockets, valuable or dangerous items put far out of reach, fences and locks around pools, etc.

We wouldn’t just train a toddler not to stick their fingers in an electrical socket, not to open cupboards, not to touch a hot plate – it’s far safer, simpler and logical to first manage the environment, to prevent potential incidents.

The same principle should apply to managing a dog’s environment to prevent unwanted behaviour.

The more a behaviour is practiced the more difficult it is to prevent. The more a behaviour is rehearsed the better dogs become at it.

Preventing the behaviour from happening in the first place by using management is the logical, simple and effective way to address it.

Be a good manager – it’s far less stressful, for both us and our dogs.