It’s almost here. The 4th of July. For many people, it is a day of picnics, social gatherings, food, and fun, culminating in a brilliant display of fireworks against a dark sky. For many dogs, however, it’s a day of stress and terror, especially for those with noise phobias and sound sensitivities. It’s also the … More It’s that time again
Let’s talk about motivation! If you are in the business of using Positive Reinforcement (+R) as a trainer (or owner), then you need to truly understand what motivates your learner. I fear that somewhere along the way, we have vastly oversimplified this concept and distilled it to “just feed treats” or “petting/praise works” or “oh, … More What does your dog LOVE?
You’ve done your homework. You have learned about dog body language. You use success stations and proactive separation. You have been diligently facilitating a safe coexistence between your dog and baby. But now you have a toddler. An active, independent, ever-curious, running, climbing, grabbing, throwing, evolving human being. And you worry about how often that … More But what does safe inclusion look like?
For many of us a new year means new goals. We make goals for work, goals for our health and fitness, goals to make our lives more balanced or to visit new places. But do we make goals for our dogs? Rarely. Luckily, the Association of Professional Dog Trainers has all the encouragement you need … More Starting New
Training by Connection 