B.F. Skinner’s Quote Reminds Us About The Fallback Of Punishment

This B.F. Skinner quote on behavior is an important reminder about the fallback of punishment when it comes to teaching and changing behavior: “A person who has been punished is not thereby simply less inclined to behave in a given way; at best, he learns how to avoid punishment.”

This B.F. Skinner quote on behavior is an important reminder about the fallback of punishment when it comes to teaching and changing behavior: “A person who has been punished is not thereby simply less inclined to behave in a given way; at best, he learns how to avoid punishment.” Such an important and valuable quote […]

Training Your Dog To Do Chin Rest For Cooperative Care

There are so many benefits to teaching your dog chin rest. Fear Free cooperative care and lowering arousal are among them. However, if you have already trained your dog to do a strong hand touch or nose targeting behavior, it can complicate this dog training lesson. No worries! It just means thinking creatively to problem solve. In this blog post, you will learn more why and how to train your dog chin rest.

There are so many benefits to training your to do dog chin rest. Fear Free cooperative care and lowering arousal are among them. However, if you have already trained your dog to do a strong hand touch or nose targeting behavior, it can complicate this dog training lesson. No worries! It just means thinking creatively […]

Your Puppy And Dog Are Always Learning

A letter from this puppy to all puppy and dog parents.

A letter from this puppy to ALL dog and puppy parents: Hi! I am focusing. My brain is at work. Every waking minute,every interaction,every outcomeis teaching me associations & expectations. You may not mean to, but these are some lessons you may be teaching me. Humans walking near when I have something I value mean […]

Teaching Fear Free Cooperative Care Pet Handling

Training for Fear Free cooperative care pet handling involves teaching an animal to be an active participant in handling and other husbandry behaviors. An important component of cooperative care is giving that animal the ability, choice and control to be able to say YES or NO to moving ahead.

Training for Fear Free cooperative care pet handling involves teaching an animal to be an active participant in handling and other husbandry behaviors. An important component of cooperative care is giving that animal the ability, choice and control to be able to say YES or NO to moving ahead. (This is referred to as agency.) […]

Walking My Dog Helped A Child Feel Safe Around A Dog

Yesterday when I was walking my dog, we had an opportunity to help a child feel safe around a dog. This is our story, an important story for parents and those who have a dog.

Yesterday when I was walking my dog, we had an opportunity to help a child feel safe around a dog. This is our story, an important story for parents and those who have a dog. My dog, Dawson, and I came across a mother and her maybe two-ish year old little girl. The little girl’s […]

Tips For Dressing Your Dog In A Halloween Costume

Safety Tips For Dressing Your Dog In A Halloween Costume

For me, one of the most fun aspects of Halloween is seeing all the little kids dressed in costumes. The really young kids are the cutest!  For many others, coming up with unusual, elaborate and/or comical outfits for their dog is also what makes the holiday fun. If you are among them, here are my […]

Keeping Kids Safe Around Dogs at Halloween

Parenting tips for keeping your child safe around dogs during Halloween trick-or-treating

I talk a lot about minimizing stress on dogs at Halloween. It is an important topic as Halloween can be cause your dog to be fearful or over stimulated. However, it is also important to talk about dog bite prevention tips parents on keeping kids safe around dogs during Halloween Trick or Treating. When your […]

Shifting Focus In Dog Training

Refocusing how we look at dog training.

Let’s refocus how we look at dog training. Instead of seeing dog training (parrot training, and training any animal) as how we GET our pet TO DO something…. Let’s practice seeing training as a way of BUILDING communication,collaboration, trust and enjoyment WITH our pet. When we do that… Our pet will be INSPIRED to WANT […]

While He May Look Fine, This Is A Fearful Dog With Anxiety

There are many who, if they passed us on that day, would have thought, because this dog did not bark or lunge at the person or car he saw at a distance…that he was FINE. He may have looked like he was enjoying being on leash in the community. What do you think? Actually, while […]

Is Your Dog FINE?

Is your dog fine? When clients tell me their dog was FINE at the groomer, FINE at the vet, FINE when accompanying them to a busy park, FINE when children are running and screaming…my question to them is, “What does FINE look like in that context?”

Is your dog fine? When clients tell me their dog was FINE at the groomer, FINE at the vet, FINE when accompanying them to a busy park, FINE when children are running and screaming…my question to them is, “What does FINE look like in that context?”