Animal Antics

This is our handsome boy, Brodie. He’s very sensitive about having his paws touched and his nails trimmed. We're exploring ways to file down his nails while working to desensitize him to the clippers. All you will need is a piece of wood, double-sided tape, sandpaper, and the command "paw." In this video, we demonstrate different tools, including toys and treats. Use what your dog considers "high value." Start by asking your dog to sit and give a paw. When their paw touches the board, mark the behavior with "yes" and reward. Repeat this until your dog is actively scratching their nails on the sandpaper. Alternatively, place treats on the floor and cover them with the board. When your dog scratches the board, lift it to let them get the treat. This only needs a few repetitions! It's important to start off with the finest grain of sand paper and remember it might take a little longer for dogs with sensitive or sore paws🐾 #dogsofinstagram #dogtraining #dogselfcare #animalbonding #doglover

This is our gorgeous girl, Raven. Today, she is going to show you how she has learned some self-control around her favorite "toy," the hose pipe. Raven is obsessed with the hose pipe. At first, we start off by doing some engage/disengage work. The moment Raven disengages from the hose pipe, she gets a tasty reward. I then made it slightly harder by creating an "invisible" barrier and shaking the hose pipe. I wanted to see if Raven would be able to leave the hose pipe while it became more exciting. She gets a reward if she stays behind the barrier and doesn't step towards the hose pipe. Self control is an emotional skill that can be taught and developed much like a physical skill such as walking on lead. Teaching your dog self-control while under high arousal is super important. Self-control will allow your dog to feel calmer and more in control of their environment rather than feeling frustrated by their need for instant gratification. There are many basic tricks to start off with to teach your dog self- control. If you need any assistance, please don't hesitate to contact me🌸

Let's talk about seperation anxiety. Dogs who suffer from seperation anxiety become extremely anxious and show distress behaviours such as vocalization, destruction or house soiling when seperated from owners. It is important to create distance with your pup to teach them independence and reduce anxiety when you are not around. There are several tips in this video on ways to create distance and build your pup's confidence. Start small and overtime gradually increase distance and duration. We want to create the association that when you are away, fun things happen. Most importantly, be patient with your pup and with yourself.🐾 If you need any help with improving seperation anxiety in your dog, please contact me, I would love to help🌸

This handsome boy is Brodie. Brodie is one of our reactive boys who is reactive to certain triggers, one of which is people or dogs over the wall. What is reactivity? Reactivity is where a dog overreacts to normal situations that other dogs would take in stride. Reactive dogs become overly aroused by common stimuli. It's incredibly important to never punish your dog for reacting to a trigger. You will only create more fear in your dog and increase their reactivity. I did a home consultation and came up with some ways that work for Brodie to assist him with his confidence and decrease his reactivity. In this video, we have 5 different methods. 1 - We provided a blanket that Brodie associates with the Boundary game - when he chooses to come to the front door and lay down & not just run straight outside, he will be rewarded either by a treat or allowed to go outside when the release word is said. 2 - Brodie remains on a long leash at all times and does calm, slow walking around the garden. If he hears any noises and does not bark, he gets rewarded with a delicious treat. 3 - Brodie goes to the corner where he is most triggered. Here, we allow him to hear noises while dropping treats. Creating a positive association for him that this area in the garden is not that scary. 4 - Brodie loves to sniff for treats and food. Here, we will drop pellets for him to sniff every time a dog barks or there is a loud noise. He creates the association that dogs barking equals treats falling from the sky. 5. Lickimat- Lickimats release happy endorphins, which help Brodie to relax in an environment where there is a lot of noise, which he struggles with. This gives him an alternative behavior to choose instead of running around barking. The reason we need to give Brodie alternative options is that barking also releases feel-good hormones and will only escalate if he's allowed to practice the behavior. It also teaches Brodie how to relax himself and therefore be able to make

This is our handsome boy Harry. He is going to show you his progress with his scent training. In this video, he is able to identify by smell, which plant is lavender and which one is rosemary. Scent training is a fun way to explore your dog's incredible smelling ability whilst building confidence and having some much needed fun with your pooch. Scent training can do wonders for behavioral difficulties such as recall, reactivity, prey drive issues and anxiety. It is also great for mental stimulation and calming your dog's anxiety. You will start off by hiding your dog's favorite toys, food or treats around the house or garden and use the go "find it" cue. Let your dog sniff the items out. If you consistently pair this activity with the word "find it" then you can use this cue when you are out and about and you want to distract your dog from another dog or something that is catching their eye. Take your tasty treats or toys on your walk and hide it in long grass. Tell your dog to go find it. If you need your dog to come to you or distract them away from something else, throw the treats on the floor and use the cue "find it". You can start to increase the difficulty by getting your dog to sniff out and identify particular objects, toys or food. Let's get their noses working🐾

Mental stimulation for dogs is incredibly important. It helps with the development of the brain when your dog is a puppy and is a great way of slowing the aging process of the brain when the dogs enter their senior years. Including mental stimulation in your dog's day to day routine will decrease any behavioural problems and assist in burning off some excess energy. It also places your dog in a state of calmness, helps increase confidence, teaches patience (helps frustration tolerance), and problem solving skills . Here is a quick and affordable game for your dog. Take an empty plastic bottle and make a hole on the side of it for the pellets to fall out. You might need to assist your dog at first in figuring out what he or she is meant to do with the bottle. Once your dog has the hang of it, let them have fun while you can enjoy some down time🐾

This is our handsome boy Finn. Finn is scared of his harness and sudden noises. Today, we are going to show two different activities to help build Finn's confidence towards his harness and scary sounds. Video 1 shows how I move backward and allow Finn the space to make a decision to walk towards me while I am holding his harness. I reward him for making the decision to step towards his harness. This will show Finn that his harness is not scary but something that is fun and rewarding. Video 2 is the noise box activity. I have filled this box with items that make noise which includes his harness. I also throw yummy treats into the box for Finn to sniff. This is a great activity to build confidence and decrease fear and noise sensitivity. By putting your dog in control of making the noises and then being rewarded for it by finding the treats, you create a positive association between unexpected noises and treats. Let the games begin🐾

This is our beautiful Raven. She is going to show you how she is learning to stop at the boundary line on her property. In this video, I will show you how to train your dog to stay behind a certain boundary line. It is incredibly important to teach your dog this trick to prevent them from running out of your property if the gate opens. In this video, I have laid down a piece of material as the boundary line. I reward Raven for being on the side that I need her to be on. I then step back and allow her to come to me. If she stops at the line, I reward her for this decision. When she steps over the line, I don't shout or reprimand her. I simply say "oh dear" or "woopsie" and redirect her back to the area where I want her to be. I repeat this exercise and reward every time she stops at the boundary line🐾