The “Your Turn, My Turn” Sharing Game
The “Your Turn, My Turn” Sharing Game: Teaching Dogs to Share Safely The “Your Turn, My Turn” sharing game is designed to teach two dogs that taking turns with food, toys, and human attention is safe, fair, and even fun. This cooperative dog training exercise helps prevent tension, reduces competition, and builds positive emotional responses around shared resources—all while strengthening trust between dogs and their [...]
Understanding Pain in Dogs
Understanding Pain in Dogs: Recognizing the Signs and Taking Action Understanding pain in dogs is essential for protecting their health and quality of life. Dogs rarely vocalize pain unless it is severe. Because of this, discomfort often goes unnoticed. Pain may only become obvious after behavior or performance changes appear. Subtle signs often provide the first clues. These may include decreased activity, reluctance to train, [...]
The Benefits of Trick Training for Dogs
The Benefits of Trick Training for Dogs go far beyond teaching cute or impressive behaviors. Trick training is a powerful enrichment activity that strengthens learning skills, builds focus, and supports both mental and physical well-being. By engaging your dog’s brain and body, trick training creates a positive outlet for energy while making learning fun and rewarding. One of the most important Benefits of Trick Training [...]
Teaching 4 Essential Skills for Pet Therapy Dogs
Teaching 4 Essential Skills for Pet Therapy Dogs lays the foundation for helping dogs succeed in therapy environments where calm, safety, and emotional connection matter most. Pet therapy dogs provide comfort and joy in hospitals, schools, nursing homes, and other settings, so thoughtful, positive training is essential to prepare them for this important role. One of the most critical skills for therapy dogs is calm [...]
Total Recall!
Total Recall! Building a Distraction-Proof Recall Criteria Ladder Total Recall! Building a Distraction-Proof Recall Criteria Ladder is a structured, success-focused approach to teaching dogs to come when called, even when the environment is packed with irresistible distractions. From flying toys to moving dogs and tempting food, recall training succeeds when difficulty increases gradually and thoughtfully. At the heart of this method is the criteria ladder. [...]
Teaching Your Dog to Faint
🎬 Lights. Camera. SPLAT! What happens when your dog locks eyes with their one true love… and simply cannot cope?They faint. Obviously. Welcome to the most dramatic dog trick ever, where your pup becomes a full-blown movie star. From swoony romantic comedies to malfunctioning robo-dogs, historical reenactments, and mystery thrillers, this trick lets your dog act their heart out. In “Love at First [...]
If You’re Loving It, Why Leave?
by Eileen Anderson Is “choice” a code word for negative reinforcement? It can be. Seems like that’s the context where I see it pop up the most. I’ve written a lot about choice. Two of my major points are: Many people are confused about using choice as an antecedent vs. a consequence; and People are rarely referring to choices between positive reinforcers when they [...]
We are ALWAYS training
Kay Laurence is a master trainer who points out the obvious in this blog: We are always training our dogs no matter what we are doing. Happy reading! ------------------------------------------------------------------------------- by Kay Laurence I had not really considered the props we use as significant objects for the dogs when competing in a ring or training environment. We are aware of using bedding or crates to [...]
A Positive Outlook on Canine Aggression
by Anna Francesca Bradley Reactivity indicates a dog is not comfortable in a given situation. Photo (c) CanStock Photo Reactivity indicates a dog is not comfortable in a given situation. Photo (c) CanStock Photo It usually starts when I receive a call from a distressed client who informs me that their dog is, or has, suddenly turned ‘aggressive.’ They tell me their dog [...]
Is Calm Really Just Another Behavior?
by Barbara Hodel What is the most difficult thing to teach our dogs? Coming back or a great recall? While I do agree that this is a difficult behavior, I do think teaching calm is much more difficult. Calm Mum – Calm Puppies Being calm is not the same as a cued ‘sit stay’ or ‘down stay’. Without becoming too airy fairy: Calm is also [...]
Three reasons to use a clicker, or not.
Here is a blog by the Masterful Clicker Trainer Kay Laurence. Kay brings up some interesting points why it may be better to use a clicker, not because it has some sort of magical effect, but rather because it raises the human's awareness of the training process. by Kay Laurence The concept of “being a clicker trainer” is always going to lead to argument [...]
Dominance in Canine Behavior: Reality or Myth?
By Don Hanson BFRAP CDBC ACCBC CPDT-KA The concept of dominance in dog training is still pervasive today in some circles in spite of the advances made in behavioral science. Photo: © Can Stock Photo It was in the September of 2002 that the first version of this article appeared in Paw Prints, the Green Acres Kennel Shop newsletter. I update the article [...]
