The Hyper Pup K9 Training and Rehabilitation

Back to work with the many in-home clients I visit on a regular basis. Zoe‘s follow up after her board and train is a vital part of the overall learning process, for dogs and their humans. Three weeks of training is great in building a strong foundation, but it’s the work that the family does at afterwards that establishes the new skills as part of the dog’s lifestyle. ... This is how new skills can become healthy habits. Zoe gets the royal treatment from her humans. Obviously.

The conflicted dog This is just one of the many beautiful dogs I’ve been working with during the past few days. This Rottweiler boy deals with heavy anxiety and is sensitive to touch, yet incredibly soft and gentle. ... Sound like a paradox? It isn’t. So many dogs live lives of conflict and inner turmoil. They walk a fine line between their desire to be social and sometimes extreme insecurities. These insecurities aren’t always easy, or possible, to remove or alter. Our jobs and responsibilities, at best, are to help them navigate a human world filled with triggers and scary environments while respecting their limitations.

Dogs are all different. There is no such thing as a cookie cutter dog. They’re not all alike. They have different personalities, temperaments, dispositions, likes and dislikes.... Respect and understand that the dog you see walking down the street in your direction may not be welcoming to you or your dog. I’ve posted this image a few times before but it bears repeating again and again. Our expectations about other dogs and their behaviors sometimes border on the ridiculous and insane.

Don’t give up on them I’ve had a series of very difficult dogs coming into my program for the past two months. Not aggression cases, but dogs with extremely short attention spans. Dogs that are highly impulsive and have a challenging time calming and focusing. These are dogs that are hyper-vigilant on the environment. ... Often times these dogs are allowed to give into their out of control behaviors because they’re so difficult to manage. We tend to give up on their nonsense, turn a blind eye, and somehow accept that the dog is crazy. This only makes the behaviors more solidified, consistent, and a part of their personality. We want this with good behaviors, but not with bad behaviors. The real answer is to set clear limitations on their unacceptable behaviors and live by those standards. As with anything else, the key to improvement is continual practice and rehearsal. It’s better to think of life with these dogs as a process. And that means it may be a life of continual reinforcement, reminders, and training. I’m not saying it’s easy, I’m saying it’s necessary. The worst thing we could do is allow these dogs to live a life of no control over their impulses, no focus on their handler‘s, no accountability for bad behaviors. That way leads to Possible anxiety Increased restlessness Minimal, or nonexistent focus Absolutely no control over impulses A complete disconnect between dog and human

Cooper trying to blend in with his new family.

Busy days filled following up on old friends. This is the super important part of the work - training the humans.