This blog post offers guidance for autistic dog owners on navigating the challenges of dog care during autistic burnout. Autistic burnout is a state of chronic exhaustion and decreased function due to prolonged stress, often resulting from masking autistic traits, sensory overload, and social expectations​. Burnout affects various aspects of dog ownership, including physical energy, tolerance for interruptions, and sensory sensitivity, making routine tasks like feeding, walking, and training difficult to manage…

We explore how a dog’s discomfort during car rides may not just be anxiety but a sign of physical pain or discomfort. Dogs experiencing stress during car travel often undergo subtle strain from the vehicle’s movement, needing to make constant balancing adjustments that can exacerbate any underlying pain, particularly in dogs with joint or muscular issues. Common methods to ease car discomfort include using crash-tested crates for stability, adding orthopedic mats for grip, and blocking visual stimuli to reduce anxiety. Veterinary options like anti-anxiety, anti-inflammatories, or anti-nausea medication can also be helpful.

The case study of A, a 2.5-year-old Feist mix, illustrates how persistent behavior issues often have deeper, underlying causes. Despite extensive training, A continued to struggle with aggression, pulling on walks, and inconsistent eating. A key observation of A's unusual hind-leg skipping led to further investigation. This was when a Dynamic Dog Assessment, an approach that considers the whole dog's physical health, behavior, and environment, revealed subtle discomfort signals that changed A’s life.

We explore the often-overlooked connection between pain and undesirable behaviors in dogs. It provides a comprehensive guide on recognizing the subtle signs of pain, such as changes in sleep patterns, mobility, and social interactions. By understanding how pain can impact a dog's behavior, owners can take proactive steps to improve their dog's well-being. The article includes practical advice on tracking symptoms, consulting with veterinarians and Dynamic Dog Practitioners, and managing pain effectively.

Drawing from a personal story about Oakley, my dog who overcame a severe spinal infection, her story emphasizes the importance of listening to what our dogs are trying to tell because their behavior always has a deeper story.

Just like any other professional, dog trainers need to have a solid plan in place in order to be successful. This means having a clear understanding of your goals, what you and your student need to do to achieve them, and how you will measure progress along the way. While every trainer's approach will be slightly different, there are some essential elements that should be included in every dog training plan. In this blog post, I'll share some tips on how to write an organized and successful training plan that your students can stick to. By following these guidelines, you can set yourself up for success and ensure that you're providing the best possible experience for your students and their dogs.

Anyone who has ever owned a dog knows that they are capable of exhibiting a wide range of emotions, from happiness and excitement to fear and aggression. Unfortunately, even the best-behaved dog may exhibit aggression under certain circumstances. If your dog is exhibiting aggressive behavior, it is important to take steps to manage the aggression in order to keep both your dog and those around him safe. The best-laid training plans start with the management of the dog’s undesirable behaviors to prevent further reinforcement. In this blog post, we'll discuss three strategies for managing aggressive behavior in dogs: using training equipment like muzzles, rearranging the environment for success, and preventing your dog from practicing undesirable behaviors.

Dogs can become aggressive for a variety of reasons, whether it’s due to fear, insecurity, frustration, mistrust of strangers, or just a general lack of socialization. Whatever the reason may be, dog owners need to be aware of the signs of aggression in their dogs and how to properly (and safely) address it. One way to help an aggressive dog is through desensitization and counter-conditioning. In many cases, aggressive behaviors like lunging, barking, and growling can be decreased through a process called desensitization and counter-conditioning.

Often when dog owners come in for training, they immediately expect us trainers and behavior consultants to judge them.

They will say things like:

"My dog sleeps on the bed. I know he isn't 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 to, but..."

"Sometimes I give my dog a treat just to give them a treat. I don't make them do anything to earn it. I know I am not 𝘴𝘶𝘱𝘱𝘰𝘴𝘦𝘥 to, but..."

We have finally reached the end of our Teamwork for Trainers series about the takeaway for pet professionals from the Ferrazzi’s book, “Leading Without Authority” (2020). The final chapters of the book included several gems about overcoming negativity within team settings, which is something all pet professionals will experience at some point in their careers; whether this is with students or other professionals. Gossip, negative remarks, and bringing down others is something everyone will fail victims to dishing out and receiving at some point throughout their career.

As we near the end of this blog series, as I was reading in Ferrazzi’s book, “Leading Without Authority” (2020) we are following for this series, I wondered when we would reach the topic of positive reinforcement. Any experienced animal trainers know how important reinforcing desired behavior is, but they also know about the positive effects on psychology in both animals and humans. And finally, that chapter has come!

Photo Credit: https://puppyhero.com/breed/nova-scotia-duck-tolling-retriever

Life, however, doesn’t just give us people we agree with, and sometimes there will be a good reason for us to need to peacefully collaborate with people whose ethical stances are different from our own. Even in professional debates and conversations at conferences, there is a chance for each person to input their opinion into the conversation for review by the group.

As professional animal trainers, trust is a colossal part of our job whether we are aware of it or not. We need the trust of the animal so, we can function as a team with the animal and we aren’t injured. However, we also need the trust of the human-side of the equation. The animal’s owner must trust in our opinion, expertise, and ability to provide the results they are asking for in a humane and effective way.

The dog’s owner, vet, vet behaviorist, doggie daycare, pet sitter, and anyone else interacting with the animal on a semi-usual basis is on our broader team. We must consider if what they are doing is working for us or against us and how we can extend what Ferrazzi describes as “care, concern, commitment, and camaraderie” to everyone on our broader team to accomplish our common goal; a happy, healthy animal the owner can live with (Ferrazzi, 2020).

With my training students, I have found many come to classes or private sessions after attempting to follow step-by-step guides, DVDs, or YouTube videos on how to train a dog.

They are often frustrated that the dog in these books or videos isn't like *their* dog. That dog is already well-trained, a different breed, more focused, or just simply *better* in some way than their own dog…