Tag: dog behavior
Emily Stoddard from Canine Sports Dog Training recently sent me a success story of how proper use of an e-collar helped a dog destine for euthanasia. Guinness’ story is not an unusual one, a dog with a less than desirable upbringing, going to a new home and the new owner struggling to rehab an animal who has learned the wrong behavioral response to anything he perceives as scary. Unfortunately the sad stories like his aren’t hard to come by. The […]
thought I’d share a photo from my recent vacation. My partner and I were trying to decide on what excursions to take while visiting St. Lucia. While I gravitated toward the hiking, horse-riding and sail boat options, he was more interested in the high paced activities, like ATV’s, Dune Buggies & Jeep excursions. Figuring vacation was no place for a debate, I opted to let him pick. ATV’s would have been pretty low on my list since my comfort zone […]
Here in the US we will be celebrating Thanksgiving tomorrow. It is a day to remember all that we are grateful for. With that in mind, I did not want to over look extending my gratitude here. So, for those of you who read this blog and comment regularly, thank you for sticking beside me on this topic. As prickly as it can get from time to time I appreciate your wear-with-all in helping others understand the true nature of […]
Remote Training Collars and Dog Aggression: : It Isn’t All About the Tool This past weekend I hosted a guest speaker at my dog training facility in Dubuque, IA. Chad Mackin joined us to present his Pack To Basics Workshop. We had about 25 professional trainers and a few pet owners join us for 2 days of discussion and hands on work tackling the difficult problem of dog to dog aggression. We had a few interesting cases including Soldier Boy who […]
It is time for my Halloween post. I had so much fun dressing up last year, I knew I’d find a way to pull out another alter ego this season. With that in mind, I decided we’d discuss if the use of aversives are necessary when training a dog. I know it is a topic that causes much debate among trainers. It is like politics, with the topic getting heated and people tending to gravitate to one side or the […]
Maverick just finished his 2 week remote collar dog training program. Today he and his owner showed up for their final private lesson before they join in our group polishing classes. I was sitting at my desk and watched as his owner pulled up, got him out of the truck, had him walk in a nice heel to the door, sit for the door to be opened then came in and greeted us all politely by sitting (rather than the […]
That is a question a lot of people ask, including other Dog Trainers. Using the tool effectively, at a low level to gain and retain a dogs attention is not something everyone intuitively understands, which is why there is such a need for education. Here at That’s My Dog! one of my responsibilities is to oversee our Professional Trainers remote collar course. The final session for the year started this week and it is always fun to meet new friends […]
Tips for Remote Collar Dog Training I spend a lot of time on this blog sharing success stories from people who have used remote collar dog training as part of a balanced training program to rehabilitate their dog. I also spend a fair amount of time expressing my opinions on training in general and talking about what to do if you are thinking about purchasing a remote collar to add to your dog’s training tools. What I try not to do is […]
Invisible Fence for Dogs: Good, Bad or Ugly? Lots of people ask for an opinion about invisible fence for dogs and the system. Do they work, are they necessary, will they make a dog aggressive? If you’ve been following this blog for any length of time, you are already familiar with my general stance that it is never so much about the tool as it is about the person doing the training. As the old saying goes “It’s the fool, […]
Last week I wrote about a questioner I was looking for volunteers to answer in regard to their e-collar training experiences. I want to hear from dog owners who are using this tool as part of their training program. And I left you with the tidbit from one person who responded: Q: In one sentence please describe how you felt about remote collars BEFORE you started training with them. A: The only people that use them are police dogs and […]