Sometimes I hear people say, I wish my dog could talk. I wish he could just tell me what he wants or what he’s thinking. What these people do not realize is that their dogs do talk – or communicate – but they just aren’t listening closely enough. Dogs do not speak English. Why would [...]
One of the things we work on in my Puppy Preschool Classes is learning to tolerate and hopefully even enjoy handling and grooming. I wish we had more time to spend on it, and I am thinking about making some changes to my curriculum to incorporate more time for it. Is it a struggle to [...]
While I can and do teach people how to work with their shy dogs, some people just seem to be naturals at this kind of work. My nephew seems to be one of those. Perhaps it comes from learning how to best work with his two younger brothers, 8 and 5 years old. When I [...]
In my earlier article about household rules, I asked what your rules were. But how easy is it to change those rules or implement new ones? Some of my clients are hesitant to change the rules. Let’s say, for example, that dogs have been allowed to sleep on the bed but you now want to change [...]
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 [...]
