Video Archives - Smart Dog University

Dog Nail Trims Part 5: How to Trim Your Dog’s Nails with the Dremel – Video

April 23, 2015

Grinding a dog’s nails: Crazy or genius?

If you’ve been following our dog nail trimming series, you’ve already read (and watched) about getting to know your dog’s nails, the mistakes people make when trimming their dog’s nails, how to get your dog comfortable with having his paws handled, and how to introduce the grinding tool to your dog. In our fifth and final article in the nail trim series, you’ll learn exactly how to use the Dremel to trim your dog’s nails.

This is the easy part. You’ve already worked with your dog to get her used to having her paws held without fear or growling, and you’ve paired the noise of the Dremel tool with really tasty food. Now, all that’s left is to actually trim some nails!

Here’s how to trim your dog’s nails with grinding tool like the Dremel.

Provide a comfy spot for your dog to sit or lie down.
Have some of those fabulous treats at the ready.
Turn the Dremel on, ask your dog for her paw.
Hold the paw firmly, but gently and put the grinding tool directly on the dog’s nail briefly, grinding some of the nail.
Click (or yip) and let go of your dog’s paw.
Deliver a fabulous treat.
Repeat!

Be careful.

You want to tap, tap, tap the Dremel on the nail, not hold the Dremel there for any duration. The friction can heat the dog’s nail and it can be uncomfortable for the dog. If your dog is new to this, do just one nail and be done with the whole thing. You can give it another go tomorrow. Your main goal is to ensure the dog is enjoying the process and is voluntarily staying with you.

Talk back! Let me know how your grinding sessions go and if you like grinding better than clipping.

Dog Nail Trims: Part 4 – Get Your Dog Used to the Dremel Grinder

March 5, 2015

Do you love the idea of grinding your dog’s nails, but worry that he’ll hate the grinder?

As long as you introduce the grinder slowly and associate the noise with really good food, you’re likely to have a dog that wants to see and hear the grinder! If your dog already has a bad association with the nail clippers, using a grinding tool might help your dog move forward more quickly with nail trimming. Why? If your dog has no experience with the grinder, you have the chance to make a WOWZA first impression! I use the Dremel grinding tool for my dogs, so grinder = Dremel in this article.

This is the fourth article in a series. If you haven’t the first three yet, it’s a good idea to start with Get to Know Your Dog’s Nails, Five Mistakes When Trimming Dog Nails, and Handling Your Dog’s Paws.

Dog, meet Dremel. Dremel, meet Dog.

So here’s how easy it is to introduce your dog to the Dremel tool. You must have delicious food. People food. This won’t work if you don’t use the best food you’ve got, period, end of story. Think: canned cat food, salmon, pepperoni, steak, grilled chicken, cream cheese. It’s got to be something to make the dog go “Gimme more, gimme more!” For the video, I used cat treats from a company called FreshPet. Their treats are in the refrigerated section of your pet supply store (I got mine in WalMart).

You’re now armed with food so delicious you’re drooling, right? Good. The next step is to turn the Dremel on. As soon as you turn the Dremel on, begin feeding your dog the yummy goodies one at a time. Feed your dog for about 3-5 seconds, then turn the Dremel off. When the Dremel turns off, the food goes away. No Dremel = no food. Continue this pairing (Dremel = food, no Dremel = no food) several times until your dog looks at you happily when he hears the Dremel turn on.

Things to Remember

Use the best food you’ve got. Now’s the time to be generous, not stingy.
Be sure the dog doesn’t touch the running Dremel! (In the video, Tango wanted to sniff the Dremel when it was turned off. I wouldn’t have let him do that if the Dremel was spinning.)
Be careful! The Dremel will put holes in your clothes (and you) if you let the spinning barrel touch you.

Troubleshooting

If your dog is noise sensitive, have a helper in another room turn the Dremel on and off while you feed your dog delicious goodies. As the dog gets more comfortable with the noise, your helper can move a bit closer for the next round of training. Gradually move closer at the dog’s pace so the dog and the Dremel are in the same location.
If your dog isn’t happy about having his paw held, watch our video that shows you how to get your dog to tolerate paw handling.
The dog should have the choice and ability to leave whenever he’d like.
Go at your dog’s pace and stop before he wants you to.

Next up, how to grind your dog’s nails with the Dremel.

Dog Nail Trims: Part 3 – Handling Your Dog’s Paws – Video

February 26, 2015

Is your dog a little touchy about her feet?

Do you struggle to wipe her paws or trim her nails?

We’re on Part 3 of our multi-part series on dogs and their paws. We’ve already covered the anatomy of a dog’s nail, the mistakes people make when trimming their dog’s nails, and in this article we’re going to present the first step of the solution to struggle-free nail trims.

If your dog won’t let you handle her paws, you’re not going to have an easy time trimming her nails.

Let’s start at the beginning. You’re going to need some really delicious, mouth watering, delectable treats. I don’t mean dog treats, either! I mean real people food! I mean: cheese, steak, chicken, salmon — the good stuff! Now’s the time to be generous, not stingy! You won’t need a leash or a collar for this exercise — we’re letting the dog choose whether she wants to stay or not. You read that right: it’s the dog’s choice.

Step by Step

Allow your dog to mosey on over while you’re sitting on the floor. Give her a few treats just for free (generosity!).
While she’s hanging out with you, start high on her front leg and gently slide your hand all the way down to her paw. Click (or yip!) and treat the instant you’ve reached her foot.
If your dog jerks away, don’t worry. You’ve just gone a little too far too fast.
Start at the top again and click right before you reach her paw. Always treat after clicking.
Repeat steps 2 – 4 until your dog allows you to gently slide your hand down her leg and touch her paw without pulling it away.
Gradually increase the amount of time your hand rests gently on her paw before clicking and treating. GOAL: Your dog doesn’t mind you resting your hand gently on her paw for at least 5 – 10 seconds.

Next Steps

Gentle Pressure

When #6 has been accomplished, you’re going to change it up a bit. Instead of working on how long you can rest your hand on your dog’s paw, you’ll be working on the pressure. So don’t worry at all about the length of time your hand is on her paw, you’re just adding the slightest amount of pressure now. Click and treat instantly if she kept her paw still. Remember, if your dog pulls her paw away, take that as a signal that you’re moving forward too quickly with your steps. Go back to when it was easier for the dog and spend some time at those easier steps before moving forward.

Gradually add gentle pressure until you’re able to actually hold your dog’s paw. Again, don’t worry about how long you’re holding onto the paw — it’s easier for the dog if you work on either the length of time you hold her paw or the pressure with which you hold her paw.

Combining Time with Pressure

Once you’re able to hold her paw for 10 seconds, and separately hold her paw in your hand, then (and only then) are you ready to combine those two elements. Begin by holding her paw ever so gently for two seconds. Click and treat if she didn’t pull her paw away. Continue to systematically increase the amount of time or the gentle pressure until you’re able to successfully hold your dog’s paw with gentle pressure for ten seconds.

Coming Next

Next up is introducing your dog to the grinding tool! Stay tuned!

How to Build a Solid Stay: Intro to Distance

January 22, 2015

Everyone wants their dog to “stay.”

Stay there, don’t move. It sounds easy, right? I mean, how hard can it be to just stay still? For a dog, it’s pretty darn hard — he’s social, he’s interested in what’s going on, maybe he’s uncomfortable or even scared. If you take the time to build a solid stay from the beginning, though, stays aren’t that hard at all.

The Three Parts to a Stay: Distractions, Distance, Duration

We’ve introduced the concept of an advanced stay and now we’re ready to introduce distance!

Here’s how we add distance:

Start small — take just one step away at first.
Return to your dog immediately (we’re working on distance, not duration)
Click immediately upon return to your dog (if he’s stayed in place)
Reinforce with something yummy and maybe even the opportunity to play a bit before starting again
Systematically increase the number of steps you take until you’ve reached your goal

Troubleshooting:

What if the dog gets up? You asked him for too much, too soon. Instead of scolding your dog, remind yourself to take smaller steps (literally and figuratively) next time.
What if the dog lies down (if you left him in a sit)? Leave distance behind. Go back and work on the sit position for duration, then once the sit is solid (not sliding into a down), then bring distance back into the picture.

Remember, your goal as your dog’s teacher is to set him up to be successful. Too much, too fast doesn’t help the dog get it right. The more clicks and treats your dog earns, the more he learns “the right answer.”

Talk back! Leave a comment and let us know the most distracting thing your dog has faced.

Teach Your Dog a Moving Leave It (Video)

January 15, 2015

Leave it is a great tool to keep your dog from focusing on something in the environment.

From cars, to poop, to dead animals, a solid “leave it” can prevent your dog from pulling you down the street, lunging toward those things, eating crud, or barking. If you’ve already taught the basic leave it, and the advanced leave it, you’re ready to take leave it on the road!

Here’s how to start the moving leave it.

Start with a mildly distracting item.
Place it on the ground about 3 feet off to the side.
Put yourself between the dog and the item (this makes it easier for the dog to get it right)
Start with a few clicks and treats as you’re approaching the item.
It’s important to click and treat before your dog is distracted.
Say in a happy voice “Leave it” (or whatever your word is — ours is “not yours” for Levi).
Click and treat the instant the dog looks at your or leaves the item alone.
If the dog can’t look away from the item, you have two choices:
- Use a less interesting item or
- Move further away from the item
When the dog has been successful a few times, move a little closer.

Carry your clicker and your treats with you on your regular walks and cue the “leave it” when your dog is only mildly interested in something. You want to capture as many “you’re right!” opportunities as possible. You’re building a new habit! The habit is: when the dog hears “leave it,” he swivels his head and looks at your direction. The more times you can get success, the faster this habit will be built.

It’s really as easy as it sounds — as long as you practice and you set your dog up for success.

Your turn: what’s the craziest thing your dog has left when asked?

Advanced Leave It: Distractions (Video)

January 8, 2015

Teaching your dog a solid leave it can save his life.

Imagine that you’re walking your dog on the trail and you come upon an injured wild animal. You need your dog to stay away from the animal and remain focused on you. Or, maybe your dog gets out the front door and spies a jogger running past the house — on the other side of your busy road. You don’t want your dog to approach either situation.

Teaching your dog to leave something alone — not to take it into his mouth — doesn’t have to be complicated or difficult.

It’s a relatively simple process that has just a few parts. We started teaching leave it this way.

Add in distractions.

After you’ve gotten that task accomplished, it’s time to bring the leave it skill up a notch. Here’s how we work in some distractions. When you think about it, leave it isn’t really needed unless there are distractions around!

Start by making the distraction as slight as possible. In the video, you’ll see that I wrap the raccoon tail in my hand so the toy is physically smaller and the most distracting part (that bushy tail!) is hidden from Levi.

Side note.

This toy arrived in the mail less than 24 hours before we shot this video. Right before shooting the video, I ripped the toy out of it’s wrapping. Levi’s seeing the toy for the very first time on camera. I love watching his face throughout the video — he’s definitely in love with that thing! After the video shoot, I cleaned it up, wrapped it back up and gave it to the dogs as a Christmas present! They were just as thrilled with it the second time!

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