What Now? My Dog has behavior problems and I don’t know how to decide what to do!

Serious behavior problems are not the norm in the competitive sports world, but they do happen. Training can certainly affect behavior, and behavior can influence training! They are not the same!

Most behavior problems have underlying 'emotional' issues and training alone isn't the answer. If your dog is barking at someone, which is commonly a 'distance increasing' behavior that comes from the place of fear, we need to acknowledge that emotion, not suppress it. We can certainly use positively trained skills like obedience to replace an undesired behavior, but it needs to come from a place of confidence and choice, not force or coercion. 

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  2142 Hits
2142 Hits

E341: Janice Gunn - "Maintaining Connection in the Obedience Ring"

This week Janice Gunn joins me to talk about how she evolved her finger follow method to encourage connection while competing in obedience — from ring entrances to exercise transitions to leaving the ring for your jackpot! 

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  2849 Hits
2849 Hits

E340: Kayla Dever - Balancing Trialing and Training

Join me for a conversion with Kayla Dever as she shares her story - starting in the service dog world, evolving in flyball, and now hosting and competing in nosework!  

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  2628 Hits
2628 Hits

E339: What is a Confident Dog, Anyway? with Dr. Amy Cook, Julie Daniels, Petra Ford, and Sara Brueske

In preparation for the upcoming confident dog conference at FDSA, I invited 4 of the presenters for the conference on the podcast to talk about what confidences looks like in our dogs, how much of it is innate vs. something we can instill, and what the process of building confidence looks like. Join us for this fascinating conversation!  

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  3584 Hits
3584 Hits

E338: Preparing Young Sports Dogs for Competition (Part 2)

Join me, Megan Foster, Stacy Barnett, Barbara Lloyd, and Hélène Lawler for a continuation of our conversation about preparing young sports dogs to compete - including the good, the bad, and the ugly! Note: This episode ran long so we've split it into two parts.

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  1671 Hits
1671 Hits

E338: Preparing Young Sports Dogs for Competition (Part 1)

 Join me, Megan Foster, Stacy Barnett, Barbara Lloyd, and Hélène Lawler for a conversation about preparing young sports dogs to compete - including the good, the bad, and the ugly! Note: This episode ran long so we've split it into two parts.

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  1660 Hits
1660 Hits

E337: Lucy Newton - Follow That Track!

Looking for another way you can teach your dog to use his nose? In this episode Lucy and I talk about teaching your dog to track! Join us to learn a little about training your dog for competition tracking. 

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  2048 Hits
2048 Hits

E336: Jennifer Summerfield, DVM - Gut Health and Your Dog

Microbiome and gut health has become a hot topic in recent years — join Dr. Jen and I to talk about what you need to know about your dog's digestive health. 

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  1808 Hits
1808 Hits

Why Do Dog's Disconnect After Reinforcement?

Why is it that dogs often disconnect after reinforcement? Have you ever noticed that your dog checks out after he or she has received a reward? This is a pretty common problem, and it can be exhausting to keep your dog in the game. So, why do dogs disconnect after reinforcement?

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  2731 Hits
2731 Hits

E335: Petra Ford - Getting Started on Competition Heelwork

Petra and I talk about what it takes to get really pretty heelwork — namely, position, a good focal point, and strong engagement skills.  

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  2759 Hits
2759 Hits

Mastering Lateral Movement in Front: Beginning Steps

Teaching your dog advanced commands can be a rewarding experience, and one valuable skill for rally is lateral movement in front of you. This blog post will explore a training approach involving mats or props to guide your dog through this challenging but achievable behavior.

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  2169 Hits
2169 Hits

E334: Irith Bloom - What is Arousal?

In this episode Irith and I dive deep into what arousal is, what it means, and what we can do about it. Irith breaks down both the science and the practical, applicable skills we can apply. 

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  2783 Hits
2783 Hits

E333: Julie Symons - Lost Item Recovery

Come learn all about this new nosework game! Julie and I chat about what's involved, how to get started, and answer some of the most frequently asked questions about the new sport! 

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  2151 Hits
2151 Hits

E332: Laurie Huston - Teaching Commitment in Agility

What can commitment do for your agility team? Laurie and I chat about what it means and the difference it can make when playing the game!  

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  2112 Hits
2112 Hits

Wait Your Turn: A FOMO Foundation Game

Dogs like us, dogs can experience frustration when they are not part of the action. This is commonly referred to as FOMO (fear of missing out).

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  7874 Hits
7874 Hits

E331: Megan Foster, Julie Daniels, Amy Cook, and Erin Lynes on Adolescent Dogs

In prepping for the Adolescent Dogs One Day Conference, we brought on a number of the presenters and panelists to chat about what changes we see during adolescence and how we can best handle them.  

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  2381 Hits
2381 Hits

Unleash Your Memory: Tips and Tricks to Remember Rally Courses

Rally is a fun and captivating dog sport that requires not only obedience skills but also excellent memory recall abilities. Not only do you as a handler need to remember how to properly execute the signs, but remembering the rally course is essential for seamless performance and achieving top scores. In this blog post, we will explore practical strategies to help you improve your memory and successfully remember rally courses. Let's dive in and unleash your memory power!

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  2851 Hits
2851 Hits

E330: Shade Whitesel - "From Toy Skills to a Formal Retrieve"

Shade Whitesel joins me to talk about how fluent toy play skills allow for more two-way communication during training, and how toy skills can be used to build a faster, better formal retrieve. 

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  2544 Hits
2544 Hits

Mastering Side Steps in Rally: A Step-by-Step Guide to Precision Lateral Movement

Mastering side steps in rally can be a source of immense joy for both the participant and the audience. While teaching a proficient side step may pose some challenges, the effort invested is worthwhile.

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  5345 Hits
5345 Hits

E329: Amy Cook, PhD - "Thresholds and Decision Making with a Reactive Dog"

What is a threshold? Does it matter? Join Amy and I for a fascinating discussion on how what we know can impact or enable our choices when we're out with our dogs. 

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  2612 Hits
2612 Hits

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