When I meet with clients for behavior consultations and private training, I start by sitting down and asking lots of questions. One of those questions is often: “What are the rules of your household?” Sometimes I get immediate answers, but often I stump people with this question. What do you mean, they ask. Can you [...]
The first dog of my own as an adult was a retired racing Greyhound named Gunner. When I first adopted him, I did not have a fenced yard so we had to go out on leash every time – whether to take care of business or go for a walk. I lived in Minnesota at [...]
If you were required to evacuate your house today, are you prepared? What if you had 3 hours to prepare? How about 30 minutes? What would you take with you? Do you have easy access to crates, leashes, food and water for your animals? Where would you go? Do you know where you can stay [...]
Think you know your dog breeds pretty well? Ok, then, here’s a test for you. From the following list, rank the order in which you think each breed is most likely to show aggression or reactivity (barking, lunging, growling, pulling on leash) toward other dogs when on leash: American Pit Bull Terrier/Staffordshire Terrier (2 different [...]
We generally assume that we will outlive our dogs. In most cases, that’s true. But are you prepared in the event you and your family are gone and your dog is left behind? In some cases, we know it’s likely to happen. An elderly parent has a young dog who will most likely outlive her. [...]
