rehabilitating dogs

Plenty in Life Should Be Awesome

By |2013-05-29T11:20:14-04:00May 29th, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |

In order to simplify training for pet owners, and to incorporate training into daily life, eliminating the need to set aside a specific time for it many trainers recommend the Nothing In Life is Free protocol (NILF)*. It has its merits, though an unfortunate name. Tagging along with the technique is a fuzzy notion of "we're in charge here and the sooner you figure that ...

Over Equipped

By |2013-04-28T09:13:07-04:00April 28th, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , |

I should start this post with a disclaimer that I am not advocating against the use of the pieces equipment I am going to mention, rather that we should take a good long look at how and why we are using them. Routinely a post will make the rounds of the social media circuit about a dog who while playing with a dog, ended up ...

Fearful Dog Fails

By |2013-04-13T09:47:49-04:00April 13th, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

Sunny gets to decide where he feels most comfortable around people. One of the reasons I go on like a broken record about the importance of using reward based training methods that have been designed based on the evidence available garnered through the study of animal behavior and research is because working with fearful dogs can be so darn challenging. So challenging that ...

Save Your Breath

By |2013-03-29T16:33:58-04:00March 29th, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

Every now and then a Cesar Millan fan will find my blog and do their darndest to convince me of the error of my ways and assessment of his. I have to give them credit for their efforts. They are right to accuse me of moderating many of their comments. I didn't always but I decided that he has gotten enough airtime without my blog ...

Relationship Capital

By |2013-03-16T20:10:50-04:00March 16th, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

When I was in my 20’s I worked as a guide on the Wanganui River in NZ. One day during a hike, one of the participants on the trip, a woman in her 60’s commented to me that she thought I “weighed too much for a girl my age” and went on to give me dietary advice which consisted primarily of switching from butter to ...

Feeling is Believing

By |2013-02-24T15:13:22-05:00February 24th, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , , |

During our daily woods walk I spied a piece of birch bark rolled up and lying on the snow. Nibbles also saw it and tentatively stretched his nose toward it for a sniff. I felt myself experience a small hit of adrenalin that often accompanies events that scare or startle me. Other than it being the same size and dimensions of a belly-up grey squirrel, and ...

Snooper Sleuth

By |2013-02-02T09:13:12-05:00February 2nd, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , |

Anyone who has lived with and cared about a dog has experienced moments when they are looking at a dog and wondering what the heck is going on. A trainer friend shared a story with me about a client's dog who had started barking, at seemingly random times, at the refrigerator. We had been griping about the reasons some vets or trainers come up with ...

Sew Buttons On Your Underwear.

By |2013-01-21T09:39:39-05:00January 21st, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , , , |

Anyone who has spent time with prepubescent or adolescent humans has had or heard a conversation that goes something like this after an adult makes a statement or request- Kid: "So?" Adult: "It's important." Kid: "So?" Adult: "I feel insulted when you talk to me that way." Kid: "So?" Adult: "That's a rude thing to say." Kid: "So?" Adult: "I'm losing my patience when you say ...

Are Trainers Responsible For The Death Of Shelter Dogs?

By |2013-01-06T10:35:52-05:00January 6th, 2013|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , |

In the dog training world, which has a number of difference sects, stone tossing between them is a common occurrence. I confess I've lobbed a few myself. Some of the criticisms voiced are valid and important, others less so. In many cases there is a fundamental agreement between camps, with differing implementations. The number of unwanted dogs killed daily in shelters around the country is ...

Is there life away from home when you live with a fearful dog?

By |2012-12-29T09:35:38-05:00December 29th, 2012|Categories: Dog training, Helping fearful dogs|Tags: , , , , , , , , , , , |

Play time with other dogs can be a perk at a boarding facility. Living with a dog with fear based behavior challenges impacts our lives in many ways and the freedom to be away from home for more than 8 hours can be among them. A couple of the options available for our dogs' care when we need to be away are; someone ...

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