Our Responsibility

Despite working cooperatively together for thousands of years and selectively breeding them to produce specific shapes, sizes, temperaments, and abilities, we still struggle to understand and communicate clearly with our dogs. 

We have a responsibility to communicate with our dogs in a manner that can effectively teach them what is acceptable or unacceptable by providing them with meaningful feedback in both of those situations. Otherwise, we are literally withholding information from the dog and expecting them to make different decisions. This inevitably results in the human getting frustrated.

Our philosophical framework in dog training, whether it’s behavior modification or obedience training, is one of simplicity and honesty. You should use the most effective and efficient technique to accomplish the goal, safely. That way we achieve the goal, and we don’t waste your time or money. We do this by evaluating what motivates each individual dog and use that to increase and decrease behaviors. That means we must tell the dog both ‘yes’ and ‘no’.   It isn’t fair to expect much if you don’t give the dog that information.

Just like you and me, your dog is best motivated if you provide things they would like to attain in conjunction with things they would prefer to avoid (take a minute and think about things you do even though you don’t feel like it. Why do you do them? Or things you would like to do, but you don’t. Why don’t you?) That being said, the consequences attached to ‘yes’ and ‘no’ can vary wildly from dog to dog, as they are all highly individual! I can’t stress enough how important it is to listen to the dog. The dog ultimately decides what consequences affect their behavior, and this means you actually get to know your dog differently, and learn a lot about them in this process.

Accountability is Compassion

This is where people struggle. When I meet most people, they are already great at rewarding, exercising, loving on, and playing with their dog. It’s the accountability that is usually completely absent. This builds a wildly imbalanced relationship. Many of us fail miserably at holding our dogs accountable for their behavior. It’s not for lack of trying, we just don’t know how to do it—or maybe we are afraid of damaging our relationship, or hurting our dog’s feelings. But it won’t. I know this because I have extensive experience doing it. And the thing is, the longer you put off getting your dog out of kindergarten, the longer you need to manage them and the smaller their life gets.

Don’t allow your dog to do things that you hate. It will sabotage his life and your relationship. That is not compassion. The good news is we can show you how to calmly hold your dog accountable. No yelling, no screaming, and no anger or frustration! Your dog won’t take it personally. And you can finally live harmoniously together. Many times we don’t even realize how much our dog’s behavior is affecting our own lives. We just kind of get used to it, and it becomes normal. Normal can be better!

If you have tried using well-timed cookies or teaching your dog alternative or incompatible behaviors (i.e., “sit” to stop jumping) to stop unwanted behaviors, and it isn’t working, you are not alone. And there is nothing wrong with your dog! That is totally normal. Unwanted behaviors need to be addressed directly. You need to learn to properly correct your dog and rewire their brain to make different neural connections. Once this is accomplished, you can reward better choices to build up and solidify new habits. You will never be successful at eliminating a behavior by telling your dog what you like but not what you don’t like. We are experts at eliminating unwanted behaviors, and have helped hundreds, maybe thousands, of people to be successful with dogs of all different ages and personalities.

We can help. See my services page to view all of our programs and pricing. Don’t wait, reach out today, this training will change your life!

Make Today The Day!

Our dogs are valued members of our family. We want what is best for them. It is so rewarding to help people bring the best out of their dogs. I believe in providing people with effective training in reasonable time frames. Most people’s goals are very attainable, and you’re improving both your life and your dog’s by making it happen! We’re happy to assist with puppy raising, manners, off-leash obedience, rehabbing reactivity, or eliminating problem behaviors. Contact me via email or text to set up a free phone consultation with no pressure or obligation.