Spam Lite. That's what I took with me this morning to the Frederick Chamber's Summit Award breakfast. Talos and I were there to accept the At Your Service award for Smart Dog University. It was diced into tiny pieces and it was my super-duper high value reinforcer for Talos to reward a job well done. He […]
Targeting – Your Secret Weapon
Sometimes the solution to a dog's behavior problem can be as easy as teaching the dog a brand new behavior, then asking for that behavior right before your dog starts the old, problematic behavior. We teach targeting in Canine Building Blocks group courses because it's a nice, simple solution to many behavior problems. What is […]
Sleep, Sleep, Sleep!
You know how I'm always talking about how to find the most reinforcing thing for your dog? I've discovered the "magical" reinforcer for Talos. Sleep.
Exquisite
You've not seen anything like this. Pedigree (the dog food company) filmed a commercial using a camera that records 1000 frames a second. A thousand frames a second! Watch the expressions of these dogs. Watch their lips. Their eyes. Their toenails. It's exquisite. I wish I had that camera because I'd love to see Talos' ridiculously […]
The Aftermath of Blizzard 2010 – Talos and Tango [Video]
The Mid-Atlantic has been hit with some serious snow this winter. I hate winter, but I love snow. I figure if it's got to be cold, we might as well have lots of snow. And this year, I've been a happy camper. We got about 30" of snow over the weekend and the dogs turned […]
Simple Way to Get (and Keep) Your Dog’s Attention [Video]
Ever feel like your dog doesn't even know you're at the other end of the leash? I see lots of dogs who are oblivious to their people. Frustrating? Yes. Hopeless? No way! I'm working on Talos' attention to me. I use my clicker and some really yummy treats and we start in a really low […]
Calling All Door Dashers! (Video)
Remember last month when Talos escaped the gate? I vowed to teach him to wait at the gate at that very moment, but the weather here has been wicked cold. Record-setting cold. So no training got done…until now. In this video, you'll see how you can use the clicker to teach the dog to wait […]
Snow Hounds (Video)
We love the snow! This is Talos the Great Dane's first big snow. And because he's a service dog in training, we'll have to return him to Service Dogs of Virginia before next winter. So every snow's important to us! Enjoy watching the dogs romp…
Fear Not (Video)
We're always on the lookout for ways to expose Talos to new and unusual sights and sounds. When we were at the Christmas Tree farm we had the chance to get our Christmas tree bundled. The bundler is loud and big. And there was plenty of room to move away if Talos showed any fear […]
Talos’ First Snow (Video)
Anyone with a new dog loves the first snow. Watching a dog run out into the new fallen snow for the first time is like watching your kid taste something new for the first time – it's not to be missed! We got about three inches of snow over the weekend and Talos got his […]