Continue reading »]]> Recently, I asked other canine enthusiasts through Facebook, Twitter, and two forums (Border Collie (BC) Boards and American Eskimo Dog (Eskie) Board) which of the following topic they would most like to see in a future article. The choices were:

1. Potty Training for puppies and adult dogs
2. Canine Stress, Fear, and Aggression
3. Kids & Dogs: Safety Protocols
4. Clicker Training Explained
5. Weather/Seasonal Safety Tips
6. Other

The feedback has been almost overwhelming! Not only is there a clear-cut winner of the polls, but I also received some fabulous suggestions for other future articles. A special, enormous thank you to everyone who participated!

Now, the winner by a tremendous lead is:

…drum roll please…

…

…

Canine Stress, Fear, and Aggression!

So, here’s the deal, because this is such a massively broad topic, I’ll be taking it apart into a series of articles and posting them as often as work and life will allow (at least once a month, but I’m shooting for one a week).

This coming week’s working title is: It’s a Stressful Life. Here, I’ll discuss (at least) the different types of stress, possible causes, manifestations, and potential treatments as it relates to dogs.

As always, your feedback is welcomed, and if you have something specific you would like to see in an upcoming post, don’t hesitate to let me know!

Thank you again,

Lynnette C. with Siriusly K-9′s

Continue reading »]]> There is a saying in Texas: “Everything in Texas either stings, bites, burns, or breaks your heart.”

How true it is, as Kayzie, my border collie, found out a week before Thanksgiving 2011.

This past November, I took a little holiday back down to Houston, my old stomping grounds. After a good, week long debate with myself, I elected to drive down and take Maverick and Kayzie with me. What can I say, I’m a sucker for my dogs. Now, I’m just guessing mind you, but that’s probably the reason why I’m in the dog business. Just saying.

Anyway, we had a nice, grueling 26 hours on the road… Okay, grueling for me, Maverick and Kayzie slept almost all the way when they figured out we weren’t going to the dog park, or the beach, or to work sheep. Try having a border collie glare at you when you pass all the appropriate exits, it just might give you nightmares. She also let me know that potty breaks were not sufficient and could not replace a good walk. Oh well, at least she’s not a backseat driver, and I made up for it when we got to Houston.

Since I left the state, some where around 30 dog parks had been built in Houston alone. I did my research beforehand, brought all the important documents, and headed straight for the dog park with a pool that was closest to my destination. Very, very good decision. So much so that I knew I’d have to make time to come back during my stay.

The pups played for two hours, and Kayzie met a small posse of other border collies. After that, we went to the ranch where we’d be staying for the next three weeks. It was good. Good people, friends I’ve known for a very long time, and new-ish friends that I finally got to meet in person. Everything went pretty much the way I had planned it until three days before I had set for the return trip.

For those who might not be aware, 2011 brought the worst drought Texas had seen in decades. It was a bit disheartening for me to see the scouring of the wildfires almost as soon as I crossed the border at Texarkana. I’ll admit that it made me cry to see everything so dry. I had been away for nearly a decade, and I must have lost some of my Texas Survival Sense while I was gone because it never even occurred to me that the Texan wildlife would be parched too and looking for water. Here’s another quick fact: there are three different types of venomous snakes that are indigenous to the United States, and they all reside in Texas. Nine species of rattlesnake alone inhabit the state. I think you can see where this is going, I won’t even mention the scorpions, yellow jackets, and fire ants… Oops.

I can remember seeing several Cottonmouths (aka Water Moccasins) and Copperheads, both venomous snakes, as a child. They would come right into our yard from time to time, and always in the summer when it was dry. You really can’t blame the snakes, they’re just trying to survive too.

In any case, three days before I was set to come back to Michigan, I took Maverick and Kayzie out to the park again. Gorgeous dog park by the way, I still love it. They were playing, chasing a ball, and having a good time in general. Kayzie had finally realized that swimming wasn’t so bad, so she and Maverick worked out a little system: she would swim out and get the ball, drop it near the bank, and Maverick would pick it up and bring it back to me. Smart dogs using team work to throw out my shoulder. This game went on for a while until this giant Great Dane about seven months old came crashing into the party. He was tall enough that he could stand on the bottom of the pool and jump on Kayzie when she went to get the ball.

Don’t get me wrong, I love dogs and I love working with them and their owners, but would you stand by if a larger kid was drowning your baby while the parents sat there and laughed? I doubt it. I was a second away from jumping in myself and dragging the Dane off, probably rougher than would have been necessary, when Kayzie’s head popped up a little ways away from the Dane and she issued her own correction. The Dane backed off a little as Kayzie retrieved her ball and swam to the shore, growling at him if he got too close.

Needless to say, we went to another part of the park for a little longer before we left. Kayzie was limping a little, but I just chalked it up to her hitting something on the bottom of the pool when she got dunked. To be honest, I wasn’t really even upset with the Dane, he didn’t know any better, but the owner’s reaction had me more than a little perturbed. Looking back, I should have reported the incident, or at least had a good talk with the owner. Such is.

Later that evening, I noticed Kayzie was not acting like herself. In typical border collie OCD, she usually makes two to three patrol rounds before settling down to relax with Maverick and me. That night, she didn’t want to jump up on the bed or the couch, she didn’t even want to get up for food or water. She just laid on the floor digging at her front right paw with her teeth.

Concerned, I made her stand and walk a few steps. She would not put any weight on the offending paw, which told me to take a closer look. Under all that fur, her little, dainty paw had swelled to one and a half its normal size. Again, I thought it had just been bruised in the water scuffle earlier since I couldn’t find any punctures, cuts, or abrasions, so I treated it as such with a cool wrap and set her up for the night.

By morning, her paw had swelled even more to twice normal size, and then again to three times by that afternoon and up to her elbow. The paw was also hot, and I knew that couldn’t be good, but there still weren’t any lacerations or punctures, so I began to suspect that she might have broken a bone and I started looking for a good vet in the area. Late afternoon, her paw ruptured in three places.

To shorten this already long story a bit, we had to shave the fur on her paw down to clean and wrap it. That’s when we found the single puncture right below the knuckles top and center on her paw. Our best guess is that she had stepped on a snake, most likely a cottenmouth, and either a baby or one that had recently eaten at that, when she was coming out of the water. We think the snake had migrated into the park because it had been so dry and there was a man-made pool there. Quiet girl that she is, Kayzie had never once whimpered, or complained, or tried to snap at us while we cleaned and dressed her wound… Twice a day for almost a week because the wound was oozing, and I stayed over my scheduled departure so that I could be close to a vet if she developed any complications. She’s fine, and happy now that most of the fur has grown back so she doesn’t have to wear her boot out in the snow anymore. When there has been snow at least.

We lucked out, plain and simple, because it could have been a lot worse. Dogs investigate things with their noses, so she could have gotten a full bite to the face. Or she could have had more venom injected into her. Point is, make sure to watch your animals. Believe it or not, Michigan is home to one species of venomous snake in the rattlesnake family, and it lives in wetlands and marshes.

Lesson #1: Do not allow your pet to intentionally tangle with the wildlife (believe me, I know accidents can happen) because, aside  from being just not nice, it can potentially be dangerous.

Lesson #2: When traveling with your dog, make sure you’ve researched vets in the area of your destination and along your route. You just never know when an accident will happen.

Wishing everyone a great 2012,

Lynnette & Siriusly K-9′s

Continue reading »]]> All too often, we as dog owners are fixated on our dog’s physical needs, especially if we have high-energy dogs. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve asked owners how they exercise their dog, and they tell me they jog, put the dog on a treadmill, or play fetch for hours and hours.

While that’s all good to a certain extent, not one owner in the years I’ve been training has told me about the mental stimulation games the dog plays. In fact, I get a blank look when I bring the subject up! Let me give you a little history to my introduction to exercising a dog’s mind.

Some years ago, I was very active and loved high adventure sports. I could be found on weekends backpacking or rock climbing or repelling, and I really, really enjoyed those activities. Then I blew out my knee while working and spent over a year in recovery. Aside from the toll it took on me not being able to do the things I used to do, it took a toll on my rescued Border Collie, Kellie. You can only throw the ball down the hall so many times before your dog shuts her brain off and begins to manifest her uneasiness in different ways. For Kellie, those ways were behavioral, and all I had done with our fetching game was increase her stamina so she could do more damage.

Once I was done feeling sorry for myself (yes, humans have those psychological bumps too), I saw, really saw, what I had caused to happen to my baby. It was like taking a blindfold off. Because of reasons personal to me, I could not just abandon Kellie to a shelter, I figured I owed it to her to correct the problem as best I could. The question was, how? I still couldn’t run, or ride a bike, or rollerblade, I had a hard enough time just walking, and there was no way I could afford doggie daycare or a treadmill.

So, I did what you’re doing now, I researched alternate forms of exercise plus Border Collies in general. Kellie started a behavior modification regiment that went far beyond teaching her commands. It had to include an emotional and mental component because I had to change the way she saw the world. In part, that included turning her brain back on and teaching her not only to make choices for herself, but to make the right choices, and that included adding mental stimulation games to her regiment.

I am pleased to tell you that, under this guidance, Kellie did what she should not have been able to do: she went from a dog that would lunge at people and attack other dogs on sight to soliciting people to pet her and inviting other dogs to play. That is not a normal occurrence for a dog with Kellie’s issues, she’s an exception, but then, she did have a good start.

I’ve compiled a short list of in-expensive games for you and your dog to play to exercise his mind. Please remember to always, always end the game before your dog is ready to; it’ll keep him happy to play the game next time. I hope you will find these games useful with your own dog:

The Cup Game

This is a basic food type game I developed several years ago. It is played with cocktail cups, or any cups that have a wide brim and a small base. It is best played on a smooth surface, such as a linoleum floor, so that the cups slide.

Start with one cup. Put a strong smelling treat in it and show it to your dog. Now put the cup brim down on the floor so that the treat is trapped inside. Tell your dog to “get it,” and sit back and watch your dog try to up-end the cup to get the treat.

Making the game harder – Having your dog use his nose

Once your dog has mastered upending or picking up the cup (usually not long once they figure it out), you can start adding more cups. Put your dog in a sit-stay or behind a gate and arrange cups with no treats under them on the floor. Start out with only two empty cups, you can add more later once your dog gets the idea. Put one cup with the treat in it at the end. It’s okay if your dog sees which cup has the treat for now. Once the cups are all arranged, let your dog come in and figure out which one has the treat.

Quick rule: you dog can’t just come barging in like Dogzilla and knock over all the cups, that defeats the purpose of the game. If this happens, your dog gets no treats and is put back in position while you arrange the cups again.

Alternate form, if you’re using a clicker to help train your dog, or even if you’re using a voice marker like “Yes!,” then you can control your dog a bit more from the onset and make it a scent game at the beginning. Instead of letting your dog tip the cup over, tell him to “Find it!” Mark and reward with an even better treat when his nose touches the cup. When he’s doing that regularly, start adding more cups and only reward when touches the right cup. Then you can start adding “Get it!” if you so desire.

You can make the game even harder by not letting your dog see where you put the treat. If you add a scent article to the mix, then you’re really on a roll and you can remove the treat under the cup and just have the scent article there. This game is designed to allow modification as needed to continually work your dog’s brain.

Other Food Games

There exists a wide array of products out there to help stimulate your dog’s mind. I now have several that I rotate through at meal times. Some of them are:

1. Kongs
2. Premier Tug-A-Jar
3. Buster Cube
4. Tricky Ball
5. Molecuball
6. and a wide variety of food puzzles that you can find at www.dogwise.com

Clicker Games – Shaping

These have to be my favorite because I can really see the dog’s mind working. About once every other week or so, I teach my dogs something new with out using any prompting at all. Some trainers call this the “Hands-Off” method of training. My new Border Collie, Kayzie, was taught how to heel using only the clicker and now heels better off lead than on. Quick disclaimer: before you can start using this, you have to know how to use the clicker properly, it’s more than just clicking for a desired behavior, you dog has to know what the click means. You are also not allowed to help your dog in any way, that defeats the purpose of this exercise, you can only click for something done right.

First, have an idea of what you want your dog to do. We’ll use “Clean up” your toys for this example.

1. When your dog picks up any toy, click and reward
2. Once your dog is going from toy to toy trying to see which one will earn a click, wait until your dog, toy in mouth, takes a step toward the toy box, or where ever the toys are going to go.
3. Continue until your dog is regularly taking a step toward the toy box, then start withholding the click until he takes two steps, then then three, then–you get the idea.
4. Once your dog is taking his toys to the toy box, wait until he drops the toy in the box before you click and reward.

Ta-da! It takes a little while, and you might want to break it up into a couple of sessions, but once you turn the brain on using the clicker, you’ll be amazed at how fast your dog learns and the behaviors he’ll start offering!

Other Ways of Exercising Your Dog’s Mind

I know that I’ve only given you two actual games, but this post is getting so long. We have to cut it somewhere and leave some material for another article, so I’ll leave you with this:

• Take your dog to someplace new at least once a week
• Change your walk route, and don’t have her walk at heel the whole time. The enjoyment and mental stimulation comes from sniffing out new things.
• Withhold throwing the ball until your dog offers you a behavior (we will discuss this in more detail in a future post).
• Play Hide ‘N Seek with your dog and other members of the household (this will also help develop a reliable come command).
• Try a new activity with your dog. There are plenty of fun sports like Canine Freestyle, Agilty, Flygility and more that get you both thinking!

That’s all for today. Be sure to check back soon and see what else we’ve added! Not to give anything away, but there just might be a video in the near future!

Thank you,

Siriusly K-9′s

Continue reading »]]>

What is an aversive?

In dog training, an aversive is something you do to punish the dog for either displaying an undesirable behavior or not performing a behavior quick enough. Some trainers will call it a “correction,” or “discipline,” or “becoming the alpha/pack leader,” or “being dominant.” Any way you cut it, it is something you add to training that the dog does not like. Shock collars, pinch/prong collars, spray bottles, booby traps, and hitting are all aversive forms of training. How they are used can have damaging effects on your relationship with your dog and, depending on the force used, can be considered abuse.

So, what’s the big deal? They work, don’t they?

As a matter of fact, aversives rarely work the way you want them to, and, once applied, must be used throughout the dog’s life to maintain control in most cases. Studies show that using an aversive only suppresses an unwanted behavior, it does not banish it. This means the behavior could resurface at any time, often worse than before the “training program.” Here are some facts about using aversives:

Final Word on Aversives

Aversives should only be used to quickly and permanently change the dog’s behavior, not to make the owner feel better because the dog was “disciplined.”

Aversives should only be used when all other options have been exhausted.

There are humane and effective alternatives to aversives.

Information presented here is supported by facts and research by: M. and K. Breland, B.F. Skinner, M. Sidman, R. Bailey, M. Burch, B. Schwartz, K. Pryor and other well known behaviorists.

That’s all for now. If you have a question about training your dog, don’t be afraid to ask us. As always, be watching for our next post: Ways to Exercise Your Dog’s Mind.

Thank you,

Siriusly K-9′s

Continue reading »]]> In dog training world, there’s a battle going on over the use of rewards and corrections (or adversives), and which will teach the dog what it is supposed to do better and faster than the other. When I say this, I mean using purely one or the other, but there is a middle ground.

One of the core philosophies at Siriusly K-9′s is that each dog is a special, unique individual, just as every person is special and unique in his or her own way, and each has a way he learns best. A soft dog, for example, should not be subjected to harsh methods of training because she can shut down, just how harsh you can be depends entirely on the dog. Likewise, a hard dog isn’t going to respond to a command that’s given in an unsure way. Notice I didn’t say “alpha” and “beta” dog. The reason for this is that there are varying degrees of these characteristics in a dog’s behavior, and what we might perceive as an “alpha” behavior could potentially be attributed to something else. What that something else could be takes some time to learn, and you have to be passionate enough to stick with it and really delve into the canine psyche.

So, the method or methods you choose should be based purely on how your dog learns. However, there should be an order that you at least try. Scientifically, animals learn best when their behavior is reinforced ahead of time instead of trying to correct it after the fact. It’s part of what I like to call being pro-active in your dog’s training rather than reactive. My recommendation is write down a value list for your dog something like:

Loves to Likes:

1. Hotdogs
2. Tennis Ball
3. Liver Treats
4. Dog Biscuits
5. Dry Food
6. Attention

Dislikes to Hates:

1. Being yelled at
2. Being ignored
3. Being left alone

It’s like a sliding scale. You have to use your dog’s own likes and dislikes to your advantage. The profile of the dog above belongs to one of my own. The issue, if you can see it, is that while he doesn’t like being yelled at, he hates it even more if I turn my back on him, and the worst thing in the world I could ever do to him is leave him by himself (no other dogs, animals, or people) and go into another room. Why, then, would I yell at him if it’s more effective if I turn my back?

Because he likes attention and yelling might make him think “well, at least she’s noticing me,” I don’t yell. My little girl is so soft that she shuts down and wanders off. So you see, knowing what works for each means I can customize the training to suit both my needs and the needs of my dogs. There is no “one size fits all.” Not if I’m going to get them to their maximum potential.

Here’s a few words on rewards taken from Siriusly K-9′s Student Handouts:

Reward has become a dirty word in dog training. Many people seem to believe it means only food or treats, and that by giving it to their dogs, they are making their dogs dependant on food. Still others feel it is bribery.

The truth is that food can be a great motivator, a bit like treating yourself to ice cream or chocolate, if used properly. If you are concerned that too many treats will make your dog fat, you can use your dog’s kibble as a food reward and/or cut back on the amount of food you give your puppy. Have a small variety so that your puppy stays interested.

Never give your dog a treat if he’s begging for it. You want your dog to respect you, not the food, so you should phase treats out as soon as possible.

As great as food can be as a motivator or reinforcer, it should not be the only thing in your reinforcer arsenal. Anything your dog likes can be used to your advantage, such as: toys, going outside, going for a walk, meal times, a fresh bowl of water, attention, affection, praise, be creative!

Our section on adversives is much, much longer and deserves it’s own listing. Stay tuned for our next post: Adversives.

Thank you,

Siriusly K-9′s

Continue reading »]]> Hopefully by this time we’ve dispelled the myth that dogs are sneaky, conniving little critters plotting to take over our houses, and the equally false “Disney Dog” myth that dogs only want to please us.

Dogs learn by interacting with the world around them. What we teach a dog to do now, in our home and in public, has a major impact on how the dog will live the rest of his life. They learn more complex behaviors and about human body language and vocalizations through repetition, and, of course, what they get out of the endeavor.

Point is that dogs will repeat a behavior if it is worthwhile for them to do so, and often without force. With that in mind, there are some things we must remember when training our dogs.

Things to Remember

Be Fair

Set realistic expectations for your puppy and small goals with larger goals in mind. Make sure you take your puppy’s breed tendencies into account since the different breeds of dogs were bred for different purposes. It will, for example, require more work to get a Border Collie to leave kids and squirrels alone than it will it will a Mastiff.

Remember that we are asking a dog to both learn a second language and give up many of his instincts to live with us in a human world. How would you feel if you went to France and were thrown in jail because you didn’t speak the language or know which cheese should be eaten with a certain wine?

You must take your puppy’s ingrained culture into consideration when you are teaching him to do what you want.

Be a Teacher and a Leader

The best teachers and leaders do not try to dominate or enforce their will on others. They are patient, compassionate, and understanding. They take responsibility, and know that, when things go wrong, they have to reevaluate how they are communicating and what they are doing to teach their students. They have a trust and respect with their students.

Imagine you take a child to swim lessons and the “instructor” just throws your child in the pool, stands back and says, “She’ll come up eventually,” as the child is drowning. I strongly doubt you would be taking your child back to that instructor. In fact, you might have a hard time even getting the kid in the water again since she had just been taught to fear water.

It is much the same with dogs. Your puppy’s job is to offer you behaviors, and your job is to reward the behaviors you want. It is your job to guide him to make the right decisions by controlling what he learns. The fundamental method of doing this is through supervision and confinement. When we are watching our puppies, or when we put them in their safe room, they cannot get into trouble because we can head off and redirect the behaviors before they start. After all, you wouldn’t allow a two year old child to run wild in the kitchen with the knife drawer open and the stove or oven turned on; would you?

Another thing to remember is this simple phrase: Nothing in Life is Free (NILIF).

You have to work to earn money so that you can buy the needs and wants of life. Then, because your puppy is your responsibility, you have to go to the store and buy for your puppy’s needs as well. This becomes your puppy’s paycheck, or his allowance. What is your puppy doing for you to earn his paycheck? You don’t have to go overboard with chores. A simple sit, watch me, or wait as you put the food down works nicely. The point is to have your puppy work to earn things from you. We’ll talk more about this in a minute.

Be Consistent

Imagine one day you went to work and your boss told you what a fantastic employee you were. Five minutes later, he begins screaming and ranting at you for no apparent reason. Later, he tells you how wonderful you are at your job and how much he values having you. Would you feel as warm and fuzzy on the second compliment as you did on the first? Or would you look at your boss suspiciously and wonder what he’s all about?

That type of environment breeds anxiety and mistrust. It is important to our dogs’ mental health that we are consistent and predictable, otherwise we pave the way for behavior problems and our puppies learn at a much slower rate.

It helps your puppy if everyone she comes in contact with is on the same page with the house rules. For example, to teach your puppy not to jump, she only gets a petting or treated when all four paws are on the floor. Do you allow your puppy on the couch? Sit down with your family and create a list of rules for your puppy. Post this list on the fridge so that there is no question.

Most important, don’t waste your time telling your puppy what you don’t want him to do, teach her what to do instead.

Be a Good Communicator

It is your job to tell your puppy what you like by reinforcing the behavior. Any behavior that is reinforced will be repeated more often, and behaviors not rewarded will go away. There is a catch though. You have to have really good timing. Dogs only have a 3-5 second association period, so if you miss it, you cannot reward or correct the behavior. It takes 9,000 good repetitions over the course of time before a dog truly knows a command.

One more thing:

Don’t worry if you dog makes mistakes. After all, nobody’s perfect, and sometimes training doesn’t go as we planned.

While all this is still running around your head, I want you to grab a sheet of paper and a pen. Draw a line down the middle of the page and label the left side “Bad” and the right side “Good.” Now, under “Bad” write down in a list all the naughty things you want your dog to stop doing. Don’t worry, I’ll wait, for some of you it might take a while.

Got it? Good job! You can always write down more later if you forgot some. Now comes the hard part. I want you to slowly go down the “Bad” list and think about what you would like your dog to do instead. Write those down under good. Quick rule, you can’t just write down “STOP IT!” You must think of a behavior your dog can do instead. Example: BAD: jumps on people; GOOD: sits and waits to be petted.

That should occupy you for a bit, especially since that’s all the time we have for now. Be on the watch for our next installment: Rewards and Adversives.

Thank you,

Siriusly K-9′s

Continue reading »]]> Dogs are dogs. No matter how cute and loving they are, it is important to understand that dogs are not little humans in furry coats. They are amoral, opportunistic, and they have their own customs and methods of communication that are completely alien from that of humans.

A dog does not plan for the future. He lives in the here and now, and, unless he is taught differently, he will default to what his instincts tell him is appropriate for dogs to do. This does not mean that he is trying to take over your house or wants to fight you for dominance; indeed, most dogs are perfectly happy to follow human orders. However, they need to be taught what is acceptable for a dog to do when he lives in a human world.

Many of the behaviors we will be asking our dogs to perform will go against his natural instincts, but they are important for the dog to learn for both the safety of other people and animals, and your own sanity (not to mention your bank account when your puppy goes through the chewing phase!).

The following are the “Top 10 Things We Know About Dogs,” edited from Culture Clash by Jean Donaldson:

1. It is all a chew toy to them: A dog’s jaw is his money-maker, so to speak. He uses his mouth the same way humans use their hands, and, therefore, he needs to keep the muscles in shape. This essentially makes your puppy’s body merely a vessel to carry his mouth around. You puppy has no concept of precious human objects. He simply does not understand the value, and does not understand why you get so upset when he chews up the couch or your DVD collection. After all, isn’t that what it’s there for?
2. Amoral: Your puppy has no problem stealing, cheating, or licking himself in public. He does not go to church and confess his sins, or sit down and discuss the moral implications of his actions. He simply does not care. He has no concept of “right or wrong,” only what he can get out of it.
3. Self-centered: Much like being amoral, a dog could give two hoots about what you want. His motivation is not to please you, only what’s in it for him.
4. Learn through classical and operant conditioning: This means they don’t go about reading textbooks, or discuss philosophy and the meaning of life. Dogs do not have the ability to reason and barter that humans do. Their behavior changes based on learned consequences to their actions, much like babies.
5. Predators: It is strongly wired in a dog’s instinct to hunt, chase, grab, rip, tear, chew, and dissect. Even the earliest forms of dog play are preparing them for this role as they grow. We cannot remove this instinct, but we can control it through proper outlets and setting boundaries.
6. Highly Social: Dogs need the contact of other creatures. They bond strongly and do not cope well in isolation.
7. Short socialization period: Puppies are sponges. They need to be socialized with different people, sounds, textures, and situations when they are young or they may choose to fight or run away in fear when they are older.
8. Opportunistic: Get it and eat it now!
9. Resolve conflict through ritualized manners: A dog never bites when a growl will do. Posturing, movement, and other body language and vocalizations are how dogs communicate intentions with each other and how they try to communicate with humans. We often muck it up and teach our dogs unwanted behaviors when we interfere.
10. They have an amazing, well-formed sense of smell: The nose and the mouth lead the dog. Our job is to be opportunistic and use it to our advantage.

Hopefully I’ve given you a few things to digest and consider. That’s all we have time for now, but be watching for our next installments: How Dogs Learn and Exercising Your Dog’s Mind.

Thank you,

Siriusly K-9′s

Continue reading »]]> Welcome to Siriusly K-9′s new and improved site and blog

We know that sometimes training your dog can seem like a daunting task. We’re here to help and have created this blog especially to keep you apprised of what’s going on with us, our newest class schedule and services, and to offer some free advise so you can get the best from Your Best Friend.

The dog training field is constantly changing as new innovations emerge and our knowledge of our canine companions increases to replace old, sometimes harmful, ways of thinking and methodologies. The Canine Specialists at Siriusly K-9′s stays up-to-date on these changes, and we will periodically post these updates along with tips to better understand your dog, and ways to help you shape a dog that is nearly problem-free (we can’t promise 100% problem-free since dogs are living creatures, and all living creatures will occasionally make mistakes).

While free advise can be helpful, we strongly recommend owner get at least some hands-on assistance from professional trainers for several reasons:

1. Professional dog trainers have been training for a long time so they (the good ones anyway) have the good timing necessary to effectively teach your dog how to behave with minimal mistakes
2. Good trainers know and understand the canine mentality, behaviors, and body language
3. Accountability and support. Even trainers join group classes of other trainers they know and trust to learn new techniques and get help on some issues. Sometimes, we even need the structure of an organized class we’re not teaching to motivate us to get up and train our own dogs!
4. Your dog is perfect in every way, but there may be things that could be improved on that you don’t see. A second pair of eyes and a few suggestions never hurts.

We hope you enjoy our blog and main website. If you have any questions, please feel free to contact us and let us know how we can better assist you and your dog.

Thank you,

Siriusly K-9′s