THE BARE-BONES BASICS
Written By: Courtney Roberts
“Dogs do speak, but only to those who know how to listen.” - Orhan Pamuk
As our dog’s stewards, it’s our job to learn their language, be keen observers, and really get to know them for the unique individuals they are. Ask questions like: What do they move towards? Move away from or avoid? Do they have treat preferences? When and where do they like to sleep? How do they like to be pet? What’s their favorite toy? When do they have the most energy? When we make note of their daily activities and preferences, it is much easier to create routines that will optimize their overall welfare and ultimately eliminate undesirable behaviors. Behavior is never purposeless. Dogs simply do what works best for them at achieving their desired outcome.
How Long Will It Take To Train My Dog?
Written By: Courtney Case
"How long will it take to train my dog?” This is a completely reasonable question that almost every client asks me as a professional dog trainer. The answer varies depending on the people in the household, the dog(s) and the situation. What I can always say is, “to a certain extent, you never stop training.”
The truth is, training isn’t a thing we do with our dogs and then stop doing one day because they “know better.” A mature dog has roughly the mental capacity of a toddler. Not to anthropomorphize too much, but we don’t expect toddlers to remember everything we teach them in every situation, and we shouldn’t expect our dogs to always know what to do. Even a dog without special needs like behavior issues is going to need the occasional reminder of what we want in certain situations and is (hopefully) being rewarded for that behavior. Dogs are living, breathing, decision making animals and sometimes they’re going to get distracted, forget things, and want to do things you don’t want them to do.