Go check out a study done earlier this year on the effect of chewing on cognition in dogs (No bones about it: The effect of chewing on cognition in dogs)Here’s an excerpt from the study:“We found that in dogs with high levels of fearfulness, a higher frequency of chewing resulted in better working memory performance, while in dogs with low levels of fearfulness, a higher frequency of chewing resulted in poorer working memory performance. We also found that dogs with a higher maximum bite intensity displayed better performance on the maze test. These results are the first to suggest that chewing may have positive benefits on cognition in dogs and that this relationship may be pronounced in dogs with high fearfulness”
Halloween Fun Class: 2023
We had a blast at the “Paw Patrol: The Mighty Movie” VIP screening at Irene Village Mall today!
Here are of some of the things we did!
Riley showcased her detection dog super powers. Soda did a few tricks. Swift and Tash looked super cute! Aramis gave prizes to a few kiddos and baby Fleur had her debut! ❤️
Thanks to everyone who came through!
🪡THREAD THE NEEDLE GAME🪡At yesterdays fun class we played this game and it’s so great for building confidence while practicing some obedience tricks! How to play: Everyone gets their dogs settles in a row. A Hula Hoop gets passed from one person to the next. The hoop has to go over both the person and the dog. Once done, the dogs have to stay while the hoop gets passed on to the next person. A few of the dogs were a little unsure about the hula hoops being lowered over them but I’m happy to say they all ended on a confident note! Progress!
A secret weapon that can make vet visits a little bit easier- The MIDDLE! Teaching your dog to calmly stay in middle position can help keep the visit more relaxed. You have time (and hands) to be able to fill in forms, talk to the receptionist, avoid people stepping on your dogs tail, etc. This is just a quick little trick that can go a long way. Stay tuned for more tips and tricks on cooperative care and vet visits. Share with someone who needs this! 😎CK9 Training
First session of the day- 7am scentwork private lesson! Did you know that you can do scentwork with us in Pretoria, Johannesburg or online?! #scentwork #dogtrainingtips #pretoriaeast #randburg
Thanks to everyone that attended the webinar last night!
Here’s a little excerpt❤️
As soon as the recording is up, I will send it out asap😁
Another cooperative care tip! Use a scratchboard to help with nail maintenance.
This is especially helpful while you are getting your dog happy with a nail clipper or drempel. You can do both the front nails and back nails 🥳
Quick and easy DIY enrichment idea!
Just make sure that this is safe for your dog, it’s not going to be appropriate for ALL dogs!
I’m loving cooperative care training. Swift has always mostly tolerated grooming and vet procedures but now he’s learning to LOVE it and realizing that he can participate. The goal of cooperative care is to have our animals be willing participants in their own care. Not just tolerant! Start buttons are a way of giving your dog an opportunity to say yes and no. Being able to say “no” is actually why cooperative care is so awesome. We’re giving choice back to our dogs. I’m working on a few start button behaviors with Swift but here he is doing a “chin rest”. Chin on = start and continue. Chin off = stopChoice and control! So important for our dogs.
Riley LOVES tennis balls.
Today the local tennis club donated a box of old balls they can’t use anymore and we decided to have some fun with Riley!
She’s a retired explosives detection dog living with the best dog mom and previously trained on tennis balls. Finding a whole box was super easy for her!
Here a little video of the search we did!
Barks & Recreation Park playgroup outing!
We had so much fun at the rucksack walk workshop and playgroup outing at the new Barks and Recreation Park yesterday.
The park is in Roodepoort, fenced and you can rent it by the hour. Safe and perfect for reactive dogs.
There are so many things to do besides sniffing the entire park:
- Jumping through hoops
- The sniffy wall
- Plants the dogs can sample (herbs)
- So many obstacles (wooden frames, hoops, tyres)
- Digging pit to dig in
- Shady leaf sniffing spots
- Lots of space to run and play
Barks and Recreation Joburg
For the link to the park, look in the post comments👇
Scentwork isn’t all about finding essential oils! This month the dogs are learning to find keys! ❤️
