My Dog Is Afraid of the Clicker. What Should I Do?
I wrote this article especially for people who are either new to using a clicker or have not dealt extensively with a fearful dog.
If your dog is scared by the noise of the clicker, slow down. Switch to a verbal marker for now. Don’t immediately focus on trying to achieve softer clicks. ...
Managing Dog-Dog Greetings
Recently I attended a dog event and observed about 30 dogs and their handlers come and go in the course of three hours. Most of the dogs were taken to one another for greetings. Call it the curse of knowledge, but I see such interactions through the lens of human handling skills and canine ...
Choose Professional Development Conferences Wisely, or the Return on Your Investment May Disappoint You!
We all have limited time and resources so choosing which conference to attend each year is an important decision for all professionals. There are several things to consider when making your choice to ensure we make the most efficient and effective use of our precious time and resources. The ...
When Day Care Is Bad for Your Dog
By Danette Johnston
If your dog currently attends dog day care or you are thinking about starting, here is some food for thought…
I have owned and operated a dog day care and training facility for over 18 years now. I have a lot of experience in this arena, have learned a ton (thank ...
Litter Box Victory
By Jennifer Van Valkenburg
In this post, I am going to talk about a very basic feline need – going to the litter box. Cat owners may wonder, when there is a perfectly good litter box, why does their cat think it is preferable to use the floor, the laundry basket or maybe even the bed to do ...
Portland Blog Competition: Aggression by Any Other Name
By Stephanie Peters
“Help, my dog is aggressive!” This is often the first thing that I hear from potential clients when they contact me for a training or behavior consultation. They may be troubled by certain behaviors their dog is demonstrating, and are either panicked that they have ...
Dogs Are Exceptional, Despite Attempts to Argue Otherwise
Headlines like this really bother me: Dog intelligence 'not exceptional.'
Compared with what? How are you defining 'intelligence'? Seeking answers to these questions, I downloaded and read the full study, which is available for free. It's 20 pages, plus 8 pages of references. It's primarily ...
Spice Up Your Walks!
Long explorations in the country, splashing around in the sea, trekking up hills, they're the reasons we love having our dogs and enjoy their companionship. From time to time though, sometimes things become just a little bit 'samey'! We can use this special time together as an opportunity ...