Electronic cat toys offer cats an opportunity to play on their own or with each other and simultaneously hone their instinctive needs to pounce and hunt. There is a fabulous selection to choose from to keep felines in play mode for spurts of 10 to 15 minutes at a time. They beep, blink and make sounds that mimic birds, mice and other critters. Some even have motion sensors to … [Read more...]
How a Certified Separation Anxiety Trainer Can Help Your Dog
There is Help for Separation Anxiety Now As a professional dog trainer, who works with a veterinary behaviorist, we encounter many desperate cases. Some of the toughest cases we deal with are separation anxiety issues in dogs; it’s such an emotional situation. If your dog is reactive to dogs or humans, you can manage the situation by keeping your dog away from her … [Read more...]
How to Stop Your Cat from Biting
The key is to not use your hands or feet as toys. “There is something about the presence of a cat that seems to take the bite out of being alone.” —Louis J. Camuti, author of “All My Patients Are under the Bed: Memoirs of a Cat Doctor” But what if your favorite feline is a biter? It can be quite shocking when you’re relaxed, stroking your cat and he suddenly bites your … [Read more...]
Dog Pawing Behavior: What It Means and How to Stop It
How to Stop a Dog From Pawing and Scratching People As a professional dog trainer, I’ve witnessed dogs pawing people, which leave long scratches on arms and legs behind. Many years ago, during a private dog training lesson, a Great Dane welcomed me at the front door with a massive swat across my back. Wow, that scratch burned, bled and bruised over the next couple of days. … [Read more...]
Dog Shock Collars: Which Side Are You On?
Friendly Shock Collar Debate Recently, we had a huge reaction to this shock collar blog post, which explains how shock collars are inhumane and painful. Responses varied from support of the article to passionate debates over shock collar use. Unfortunately, many responses were anecdotal, lacking research references to support their case. We must focus on facts if we … [Read more...]
Dogs Find Choices Very Rewarding
Choice Dog Training As with everything in life, trends appear, stick around or rapidly disappear. Lately, a new dog training trend focuses on giving dogs choices during the training process. This “trend” puzzles me a bit because choices should be a part of all dog training. Dogs deserve choices, and sometimes dogs find choices more rewarding than food. Below, we show you … [Read more...]
Confessions of a Dog Owner: I’m Not Getting the Most Out of Class
How to Get the Most Out of Your Dog Training Class Committing to weekly group class sessions can be challenging, but it's worth it. Make each class session count. It's all about time management sprinkled with preparation and a dash of understanding your environment. Arrive Early Plan on arriving early, meaning you're parking at the dog training center 10 minutes before … [Read more...]
Does Ignoring Bad Dog Behavior Work?
Ignoring Your Dog Can Extinguish Bad Behavior Ignoring a dog is a good thing; it provides choices for the dog. When a person ignores a dog, it provides the perfect situation for the dog to choose if she would like to engage in a greeting. Even more important is ignoring bad dog behavior prevents reinforcement of a behavior. With that said, are you really ignoring your … [Read more...]