Stimulating Endorphins While Training Your Dog
Ever eat ice cream when you are down? Does it make you feel better? It should brighten your mood because eating comfort foods stimulate endorphins in your brain that give you that “feel good” sensation (unless you are one of the rare people that hate ice cream that is). The endorphins are natural stress fighters…
Don’t Under Estimate The Power of Classical Conditioning
I am a huge fan of clicker training (an operant conditioning technique), but I recently got a huge reminder of the importance of classical conditioning the other day when I attended a fellow trainer’s class. In both the Rally class and the orientation to the Reactive Integration class, classical conditioning was used. I feel like…
The Dog Trainer’s Dogs
This wonderful article on the dog trainer’s dogs came out recently by Paws Abilities called “What’s Important to You?” The article covers reasons you might think the dog trainer’s dogs are not well trained. “Here’s the thing: we each train what’s important to us. What I find important with my pets and what you feel are a…
My First Dog Show
I am planning on competing in AKC Rally in the future with my dog, Loker, so I attended my first dog show to see how everything happens and the kind of environment to expect and prepare him for. Personally, I have never seen so many dogs in one place! Wow! I had a great time…
We’ve Made it to the Finals!
Hello fellow dog owners! I need your help!! I’ve entered my dog (Loker) and I in a National Train Your Dog Month contest and we’ve made it to the finals! We need public votes now to win and would really appreciate it if you’d go vote for us! My video is called Loker the (Smart)…
Tricks to Teach My Dog
January is National Train Your Dog Month! I want to go through and talk about some tricks to teach my dog this month. Some tricks I have in mind are: perfecting Loker’s heel, turning counter clockwise (he already does “spin” clockwise), and bow. Here’s a list of tricks you could work on with your dog:…
5 Ways to Integrate Positive Reinforcement into Your Lifestyle
I want to expand outside the world of dogs for a minute. Since I crossed over just about a year ago this month, I have learned how to use positive reinforcement with my dog, but also with the people around me. I find that I am a much happier person, in general, when I integrate…
Can Your Dog “Leave It”?
Have you taken the time to teach your dog to “leave it”? If not, here’s your chance! [Just in time for the holidays! ;)] “Leave it” can be a lifesaving cue for your dog. It can prevent the dog from eating fractured, cooked chicken bones, moldy hamburger on the side of the road, or even…