The Naughty Dogge

The Naughty Dogge This is Monique Anstee's business page. None of the ideas shared belong to me. They have all been passed down from my mentors, who gave them to me.

Monique Anstee is the owner and trainer of The Naughty Dogge, but was first a competitor. Monique has many accomplishments to her name - including Representing Canada at Crufts in England, with her dog Basil, and having top ten placements in Canada on ALL of her dogs. She is currently the most accomplished Dog Training School on Vancouver Island. Her clients love her for her honesty. She has been

called a drill-sergeant by some because she will not allow people to be disrespectful or unfair to their dogs. She always gets results in the kindest way possible. And all training is premised on the belief that we teach rules in orer to give freedom. No dog should behave like a robot, or have his temperament squashed. She teaches clients to train their dogs fulltime, Monday to Thursday. There are evening classes, private lessons for any reason that you can imagine, phone consults and video lessons available, as well as apprenticeships for people who want to learn how to train dogs (though realize this is a life goal and will not be accomplished in the six month apprenticeship - thought it is a good start!)

I decided to chill, and everyone else thought my idea was super.
06/29/2025

I decided to chill, and everyone else thought my idea was super.

06/29/2025

Our days have been kind of easy and non-eventful. She decided she didn't want to go on any trips with me. That's fine, she's welcome to stay home, bore herself to tears, and hide under the bed for a day or two. When I did need to get her from under the bed, she came out easily, so easily I went and grabbed her collar. I admit, I stopped at grabbing. I wasn't stupid enough to lead her by her collar! But I didn't need to - she followed me downstairs.

It's now saturday evening, and she's been normal in the house, but not wanting to go out for all of friday - I assumed she was tired after her big day thursday. Then she was the same for all of saturday. Now at 6 pm, she's following me in and out the door every single time I go. I think she's realizing our hikes and trips are kind of fun.

She's so much sweeter, and engaging, almost normal. My challenges that I must train are just evaporating away with me handling her right, and being one move ahead of her in this game of chess. She really is so very clever.

Dog Trainer Tip. Buy dumb dogs. You will be much happier.

Monique Anstee
Author of As a Dog Thinketh and Lift Your Leg - the podcast

Ps. I stuck a photo of her in the comments below. This was her next to me while I was writing.

06/27/2025

2/2
I have a different dog tonight. After seeing her family she sobbed the whole way home, then seemed to get her s**t together and decided to make the most of her time here. I approached her while she was on the couch and did the unthinkable - I put ear drops in her ears. She was almost normal.

After that I went to do sheep chores and she had the chance to come, or not. She decided yes. Once there, she got to eat sheep poo while I drove the tractor. Eventually, with all of her free time because I was busy working, she realized that she can make sheep move. She started with a few barks and a step or two towards them. Suddenly, she stood taller, and gave bigger barks and moved towards them faster. Pippa saw, and took control. She got in behind her sheep and pushed them towards Wednesday. Wednesday shrunk in size and stepped back, only Pippa continued to push the sheep at her. Wednesday took off and ran, learning a valuable lesson about sheep, and probably having no idea Pippa was behind them causing the whole event. I looked from my tractor and saw her run back to my van and was lying to it, but not under it as would be usual. After a short amount of time curiosity got to her and she was back with me in the barn, eating sheep poo.

While at the barn she ended up covered in sawdust. As I put fresh bedding down, she was digging a hole in the pile, then rolling in it - a far cry from her normal reserved self. She's a coated breed, so was covered in it. Once home, while standing in the kitchen, I realized she had nothing to hide under in the bathroom next to me, so I walked to her with a brush and got some of it out. She had not time to squeeze behind the toilet, and I took her collar and groomed her like I would one of my own dogs. She pathetically bit at the brush and got a minor bop with it-enough of a bop to communicate biting is never gonna work with me. After her brush, she scampered away like a normal dog with no panic, and went to the couch. She remained normal all night long.

All afternoon and tonight I have had a different dog. She engaged with us both, has not hidden under anything in nine hours, which is unheard of. As I write this at the kitchen table, she is lying next to me, rather than under it or my chair.
Tomorrow is a whole different day but I will enjoy every single success and milestone that we made today. Even my dear husband, once he was done moaning about her still being here, confessed she was no problem now and he could see the changes today.

Curious, if you all had to guess her breed, what would you pick? Leave it in the comments below.

Until tomorrow,
Monique Anstee
Author of As a Dog Thinketh and Lift Your Leg-the podcast.

06/26/2025

1/2

Lesson Complete. Wednesday is one lucky dog, owned by two sensible, loyal realists. She's still here with me as its not the time to send her home. As loved as she is, she needs to be worthy of her wonderful home and she isn't just yet. One more bad screw up might get her permanently and rightfully booted, and at her current level of training, that screw up will happen, only with less intensity.

I have serious hopes that she can be the dog this family needs. She will always be weird, or dare we say it, autistic. Training can give her coping strategies, along with rules and fair expectations, and the spoiled brat part of her that outsmarted the system has gone into hibernation. Her people already have a good understanding of her needs, which I can further help them grasp.
I'm realistically hopeful, and proud of my Wednesday dog and how far she has come.

Monique Anstee
Author of As a Dog Thinketh and Lift Your Leg-the podcast.

06/26/2025

Test has been executed. I asked my group-class to identify Wednesday from my three current Board and Trains, only there was a slight glitch. I only had one person that I hadn't already showed her too. However, I'm very pleased to say that this person guessed wrong. She said Wednesday looked happy and normal, so she picked the weird dog.

All three of my board 'n 'train's got to participate in off-leash social tonight: All three showed what is possible in their futures.

Today I was mindful of working Wednesday through the final remainders of her panic. Sporadically throughout the day I went towards Wednesday with focus on her, hand forward so my intention was clear, and would take her collar in my hand. When she was good, I bonded with her for a moment, and then walked away. This included reaching into her crate, which equates with dipping your fingers in a Piranha tank. While she was uncomfortable, she remained polite and tolerant. There is a glitch to my thinking here. While this is all well and good, and these repetitions are needed, as soon as I add one where I follow through with doing something she doesn't want, I will lose trust again and reinstate that panic. But, this still feels like the right thing to do so I am. If I am right on this, my next step will be very carefully using an e-collar to call her out of her hiding places. I do believe this will be the ultimate fix, however, with weird dogs like this, I want to make sure I have taught every piece of the lesson before adding this. An e-collar should always be the final step added, as an additional layer ontop of all of the other learning. I do believe with this dog, when she realizes I can control her when I don't have a long-line, she will take a deep breath of relief and relax.

Tomorrow her people get to see her for the first time since I have had her. They have great trepidation about taking her home. My idea is that we meet and do a lesson. If it feels right to take her home, they leave with her. If not, they give me more dog food and we reevaluate our options. If she is close to being the dog they need, she stays for longer and I complete my task. If it is a no-go, she still stays for longer and we continue on making her a lovely dog for the right people.

I have to say, I admire her people greatly for following their intuition. Admitting trepidation about taking her home takes guts and honest communication. Many wouldn't have been this honest. I am such an advocate for always listening to what inner voice in your head says. This voice, if you are blessed to have it, is a gift to keep you out of trouble. Never ignore it. And as trainers we must hear our client's when they say things that we don't hear often - the golden nuggets of truth are spoken in the irregularities. They know something that we might not, and it is our job to pick up on this and believe / support them.

Tomorrow is a big day. Pray for us.

Monique Anstee Author of As a Dog Thinketh and Lift Your Leg-the podcast

06/25/2025

The progress is immense, but is it enough? Can it ever be enough?

I remember back at the start I thought some of her hiding was a game? I was right. Some of it was, but not all of it. The sport-hiding has gone away, However her panic hiding continues. I'm continuing to break down the component pieces, one by one,vand then can work on those pieces a lot.
Walking towards her with my hand outstretched to grab her collar will send her scrambling away. I'm hoping if I do this lots
the panic will reduce.

Today I took her to a patio for lunch. As we entered the patio she saw the people sitting at picnic tables with confined walkways in between. I felt her switch. I momentarily paused and let her take it in, but not long enough for her legs to take her. Casually I guided her through with little taps on her collar to stop her from bolting. Despite feeling explosive she looked totally normal walking through. While I could feel it, Jill could not see it. That's
pretty good right? It is, if she lived with an adult family that can slow themselves down, and be mindful of the sp*ed with which they throw her into things. But young children are involved and we cannot get them to be smooth, calm and predictable as they reach for her collar or give her a hug.

Knowing Wednesdays struggle with confined spaces, can she ever be trained so that she can have a hair clip put in her ears while she is sleeping? That is the reality of her future life. Her progress is immense. She is braver, happier, and for most outsiders now looking at her, normal. I'm going to test my students tomorrow night about which of my three board and trains am I writing about. I think they will pick the wrong dog..

I do still have hope. Honestly, from the very first day I didn't know she would get this far.

Monique Anstee
Author of As a Dog Thinketh and
Lift your Leg-the podcast.

06/24/2025

Progress: Her ‘stuck’ moments are now minimal. She follows me around, she plays with me appropriately. If she gets weird and hides I can shoo her away to a more appropriate spot, like her crate. She tries really hard to regulate herself all the time except if I have intention. When I am more serious, she can’t cope with me.

A perfect example is we were coming home from our week long holiday. Things had been super, but now we are packing up and she needs to get into the car. She hid, panicked, had a complete meltdown minus biting, then found her way into her crate and her panic went away.

Yesterday we had a full day chilling at home, with so many opportunities to hide and be as weird as she could dream of. She was super, until bedtime. She didn’t want to sleep in her crate. She hid under my seat, scrambled out on top of Kate in a mad panic, and that went as well as anyone can imagine, at which point Harry wanted to join in. I shooed her away as she preferred being scolded by Kate than other options, at which point she ran across the room and hid behind the TV. I put a leash on her, and we walked fully civilized to her crate.

This drama has happened for the past two nights now that we have been home. Tonight on night three there was no drama. She resigned herself to her crate and went in like a good girl.

Then there is all of the good. I got a new Board and Train today, another panicky fearful weirdo that I already am quite smitten with. But my new weirdo managed to do gymnastics and slip out of her tight collar, and bolt away from me. It’s my worst fear. Anyhow, I found her in record time and managed to trick her into going inside a building with Rupert and Wednesday. As I played with Rupert and Wednesday she couldn’t resist and was curious, coming in from behind to see what I was up to. Slowly she came closer and closer, and an hour and a half later, had Wednesday’s collar snapped tight around her neck and was secured in Harry’s crate. Wednesday was amazing helping me catch this dog. It’s almost like she knew someone weirder than her needed help, and she showed them the ropes of survival with the New Auntie.

She can hang in my house with all of my dogs and my husband. She’s much less annoying in the house, and starting to verge on being pleasant. I am starting to have fun with her in moments - as is she with me. Her subtle little personality is starting to show - she is less bland than she used to be.

I’m really not selling her well. She is a dog that lives in the shadows, and gets angry about it. Slowly she is getting more into the front and centre.

Theoretically her Board and Train is soon up, however, it won’t be. If there is a chance of making her the dog her people need, she will stay until that happens. I’m still uncertain if it is possible. If it is, I will share the details on her backstory. If not, I need to give my client’s confidentiality while they make some very tough decisions.

She has changed so much. But will it be enough? I am curiously optimistic, and even if it isn’t enough, she is starting to become a dog that a new family can love.

Monique Anstee
Author of As a Dog Thinketh, and Lift Your Leg - the podcast.

Our latest podcast, discussing my latest board and trains...  What makes a dog trainable?  Please share with fellow dog ...
06/23/2025

Our latest podcast, discussing my latest board and trains... What makes a dog trainable? Please share with fellow dog nerds!

Podcast Episode · Lift Your Leg - the art of training a dog · 2025-06-23 · 35m

06/20/2025

Today I’m sitting here proud of my work with her for the past two days. The change began when we went for a walk Monday night, right from our door. She ran across the road from her crate (where she was feeling a bit sour) and took herself down to the beach. I however intended to walk up top on the walkway. I let her go down, pretending I had a choice, and walked parallel to her. What would have been a battle of wills had I gone to get her, instead made her feel strong and proud. She could see me up above and stayed with me. We probably walked 400 yards, then there was a bridge and I met her down below. She was joyous, and thought herself so funny.

This bitch is weird, there is no denying that. In addition to this, I believe she has been micromanaged, so to have the freedom and confidence to do her own walk and follow me at a distance is huge. I was fortunate I was in a location where I was able to let her do this. I think there are very few locations where I could.

My goal has been to teach her to be a dog. Yesterday she and I biked up a very steep hill, through the forest, and home through the town where we are staying. Again she chose to go a different route, only, she couldn’t. In truth I think she wanted to protest the steep hill her sausage shaped body had to climb. But with some resistance she followed, and loved her first bike ride. Then she went back into her crate, and we went to one of my favourite dog spots, where she got to run free with all the others. Then we did yard chores for the day and she assisted. She was exhausted, and would hide to sleep, but come out when asked. Her bad moments were easy to diffuse.

This morning she was much easier to manage. We did another amazing hike at an old dam, with water rushing over rocks. She had a look of surprise and gratitude on our way back to the car. For the first time ever, she started to look back at me as we were walking to check in - a definite first, but a normal dog behaviour. When we got back to the car, Kate was blocking her access to her crate. I could feel her tense, then she solved her issue by going under the van. I put Kate away, then called her name to come out. I was stunned - she did and ran around the car into her crate. It’s easy to make the right choice when you are happy, which is why that has been my goal for the past two days - give her days that are the best she has ever had, then I can get some of the firsts that I need to see. Once back home, we did yard chores again. She opted to be with me. When she hid and slept, if I moved off, she would move with me. Again - this is a big change. At the end of the day, both she and Fika couldn’t keep their eyes open any more. Wednesday went for a nap under the dog trailer, came out on her own when I called her to go into the car.

Today I am seeing changes. Fundamentally she is still the same dog that get’s stuck, dislikes being touched or approached, however, I can see her making huge efforts to control herself. I cannot ask for any more than that.

We are definitely on the right path. My husband said it the best - this dog is definitely on the spectrum. Her issues are touch, seeking enclosed spaces, struggles with all transitions and being restricted. But if she can struggle and let me help her, that’s okay.

Today despite me reaching into her crate for her, something I never dared to before, leading her by her collar and cutting her toenails, she hasn’t thought of biting me.

Monique Anstee
Author of As a Dog Thinketh and Lift Your Leg - the podcast

Our Podcast of this week is a plea to Balanced Dog Trainers.  We must do better with our dog training.  If you always us...
06/17/2025

Our Podcast of this week is a plea to Balanced Dog Trainers. We must do better with our dog training. If you always use the same tool on every dog, you are not balanced…

Podcast Episode · Lift Your Leg - the art of training a dog · 2025-06-15 · 46m

06/17/2025

A new day, with a much nicer dog. We started off by waking up and going off-leash to the river, where she got to be a dog, be free, and do whatever she wanted. She wasn’t even weird to catch at the end, and hopped into her crate to go home like a good girl. Our battle of hiding under the car two days ago was worth it. She has not gone under my car since, and instead gets a bit twitchy waiting as I open her crate door. I applaud her effort and patience.

After her hike, I brushed every dog and cut their toe-nails. She was last so she got to watch it happen to everyone else first. She was so much better than I expected. I only did her rear nails and they were curling under, meaning a cut was long over-due. Her front ones desperately need cutting too, but we both needed this success and I didn’t want to push it.

Later, she got weird and hid in a room that I needed to get her out of. When I told her to get out from under the table, she did and ran to hide behind the bed. When I moved towards her and motioned her out, she left (a first) and went into the bathroom. I followed her in and took the opportunity to p*e. When she saw I wasn’t hunting her down, she came and greeted me, another first.

I left her in the bathroom and she came out on her own and wasn’t stuck, another first. While I’m seeing these firsts, there are still so many moments of hiding, and weird, but change must begin somewhere. At least now I know she can.

Many more hikes are needed. She needs to learn how to be a dog and freedom, hikes and games will teach her that, as will my dogs.

Congratulations to one of my readers who worked out she was a singleton. Yes, indeed, she was. That is a piece of this puzzle. Her breeder tried to do what they could with knocking her off during feedings, but as Wednesday demonstrates, having littermates is so much more than that.

Please do comment, like and share to remind the Facebook Algorithms that I am here.

Monique Anstee
Author of As a Dog Thinketh and Lift Your Leg - the podcast

Address

1633 Kangaroo Road
Metchosin, BC
V9C4C6

Opening Hours

Monday 9am - 1pm
Tuesday 9am - 1pm
Wednesday 9am - 1pm
Thursday 9am - 1pm

Telephone

+12505902664

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Our Story

Monique Anstee is the owner and trainer of The Naughty Dogge, but was first a competitor. Monique has many accomplishments to her name - including Representing Canada at Crufts in England, with her dog Basil, and having top ten placements in Canada on ALL of her dogs. She is currently the most accomplished Dog Training School on Vancouver Island. Her clients love her for her honesty. She has been called a drill-sergeant by some because she will not allow people to be disrespectful or unfair to their dogs. She always gets results in the kindest way possible. And all training is premised on the belief that we teach rules in orer to give freedom. No dog should behave like a robot, or have his temperament squashed. She teaches clients to train their dogs fulltime, Monday to Thursday. There are evening classes, private lessons for any reason that you can imagine, phone consults, as well as apprenticeships for people who want to learn how to train dogs (though realize this is a life goal and will not be accomplished in the six month apprenticeship - thought it is a good start!)