Training Dogs Online

09/03/2025

Dog Enrichment: It’s in Their DNA, Not Just Training! 🐾

Did you know that enrichment isn’t something you “train” your dog to enjoy—it’s a natural biological instinct? Just like humans have hobbies they naturally gravitate toward, dogs have enrichment needs that are hardwired into their DNA.

🧠 Some dogs LOVE solving puzzles.
🐕 Others live for the thrill of chasing and fetching.
👃 Some need to sniff and forage to feel fulfilled.
🦴 And for some, chewing is the ultimate stress relief.

❌ You don’t get to choose what your dog finds enriching—nature already did.
✅ Your job is to observe, support, and provide healthy outlets for their instincts.

When dogs don’t get the right enrichment, they find their own ways to entertain themselves… and let’s be honest, their version of fun might involve shredding your couch. 😬

Want to understand why enrichment is essential and how to give your dog the best mental & physical stimulation? Read our latest blog! 👇

🔗 Click here to read: https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/dog-enrichment--why-it-s-a-natural-instinct--not-a-training-exercise

🐾 Let’s help our dogs be dogs—in the best way possible! Share this with a fellow dog parent who needs to see it! 💛

Dog Enrichment: A Biological Need, Not a Conditioned Response Think about your favorite hobby. Maybe you love painting, hiking, playing music, or binge-wat

03/03/2025

Desensitization: It’s Not Just Training, It’s Biology! 🧬

Dogs don’t learn to “just deal with it” overnight—their entire development is designed for gradual exposure!

✅ Puppies are born blind & deaf to prevent sensory overload.
✅ Their vision & hearing kick in slowly to help them adjust.
✅ Rushing exposure? That’s how fear and reactivity start.

Understanding how dogs are meant to learn changes the game for training. Want to work with their instincts, not against them? Read more here:

https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/why-desensitization-is-built-into-your-dog-s-dna

Born to Adapt, One Sense at a Time Imagine being born into this world, but you can’t see, you can’t hear, and your only skill is wiggling toward something

11/02/2025

Understanding Your Dog’s Thresholds
How to Know When They’re Calm, Stressed, or Overwhelmed

A trigger is anything in your dog’s environment that causes them to react—like another dog, a loud noise, or a moving object. But not all reactions are equal. Your dog has threshold levels, which are like emotional traffic lights.

Here’s how it works:

🟢 Green Zone – Calm and Learning
Your dog notices the trigger but stays chill. They can:
✔ Follow commands
✔ Take food normally
✔ Relax and disengage easily

💡 Training Tip: This is the best time to train! Use this calm state to build positive associations with triggers.

🟡 Yellow Zone – The Tipping Point
Your dog is starting to get stressed. They may:
⚠ Stare intensely at the trigger
⚠ Take food but hesitate or gulp it down
⚠ Struggle to focus on you

⚠ What to Do: Add distance between your dog and the trigger. Redirect their attention with high-value food rewards before they escalate.

🔴 Red Zone – Reactive and Overwhelmed
Your dog is no longer coping and might:
❌ Bark, lunge, or freeze
❌ Refuse food entirely
❌ Ignore your commands

🚨 What to Do: Move your dog away from the trigger ASAP. Let them decompress in a calm, quiet space and avoid forcing them to stay in a stressful situation.

Every dog’s threshold is different, and it can change based on distance, intensity, and environment. Learning to spot where your dog is on the threshold scale can help you manage their reactivity and set them up for success.

Read our blog on Understanding your Dog's Thresholds to learn more.

https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/understanding-your-dog-s-thresholds

Got a question about thresholds or reactivity? Drop it in the comments! ⬇️

Struggling with a reactive dog? You’re not alone! Learn how to manage reactivity and build real-world skills with our online course.

🔥 Get 75% OFF today! Sign up here → https://trainingdogsonline.mykajabi.com/offers/hZqAB4c7/checkout

07/02/2025

Dually ❤️ He was such a great little work horse.

https://www.facebook.com/share/v/15zttnwYaL/?mibextid=wwXIfr

06/02/2025

How Long Does It Really Take to Train Your Dog? Let’s Talk Timelines! 🐾

Ever wonder how long it actually takes to train your dog? Is it weeks? Months? A lifetime? 🤔 Let’s face it—every dog is different, and there’s no one-size-fits-all answer. But don’t worry, we’ve got the inside scoop to help you set realistic expectations and celebrate every milestone!

Whether you’re teaching your pup to sit, mastering loose leash walking, or tackling those bigger behavioral challenges, we break it all down for you in our latest blog post: “How Long Does It Take to Train a Dog?” 🐶✨

📖 What You’ll Learn:
🐾 Why consistency is key (and why skipping training one day isn’t the end of the world).

🐾 How different goals—basic manners vs. advanced skills—affect the timeline.

🐾 Tips for keeping progress fun and frustration-free!

Training isn’t just about the end result—it’s about building an awesome connection with your dog along the way. 🐕💛 So, if you’ve ever felt like progress is taking forever (or happening too fast to believe!), this blog is for you.

📍 Check it out here 👉 https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/how-long-does-it-take-to-train-a-dog--realistic-timelines---expectations

Comment below and let us know your biggest training win or challenge—we’d love to hear your story! ✨

Is Dog Training a Weekend Fix or a Lifelong Journey? If you’ve ever Googled, “How long does it take to train a dog?” you’ve probably seen answers ranging f

31/01/2025

Your Dog’s Not Lazy—They’re Bored! Here’s How to Fix It

You think your dog is just chill—but are they actually BORED OUT OF THEIR MIND? 🤯
🚀 Midnight zoomies?
🛋️ Redecorating your furniture (with their teeth)?
🐶 Barking at literally everything?

These aren’t quirks—they’re cries for enrichment! The good news? Fixing it is EASY (and no, it doesn’t mean running marathons together).

👉 Find out why enrichment matters more than you think & how to turn your “bored dog” into a fulfilled dog NOW!

📖 Read here:

Ever feel like your dog is just… there? Maybe they spend most of the day snoozing, barely lifting their head when you walk by. Or, on the flip side, they’r

27/01/2025

💸 Why Are Vet Bills So High? Let’s Break It Down 🐾

If you’ve noticed your vet bills creeping higher with every visit, you’re not alone—and it’s not just inflation. A major trend called corporatization is reshaping veterinary care, and it’s directly affecting your wallet and your dog’s care.

👩‍⚕️ Here’s What’s Happening:
• Big corporations like Mars, Inc. (yes, the M&M’s people 🍫) and EQT Partners are buying out independent vet clinics.

• While this brings more resources and standardized practices, it also brings higher fees, upselling of services, and a focus on profit.

🐕 What This Means for You and Your Dog:
• Vet visits might feel less personal and more like a sales pitch.

• Costs for routine care like vaccinations and check-ups are rising.

• Independent, family-owned clinics are disappearing, leaving fewer personalized care options.

✨ What Can You Do About It?
✔️ Ask questions—always understand why a test or service is recommended.
✔️ Support independent clinics where possible.
✔️ Focus on preventative care to avoid unnecessary vet visits.

💡 Want to know more about what’s driving these changes and how you can navigate them? Check out our latest blog:

👉 https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/why-your-vet-bills-are-skyrocketing

Let’s keep the focus on what matters most: your dog’s health and happiness. 🐾

24/01/2025

Beyond Sit and Stay: Building a Dog Who Wants to Learn! 🐾

Training isn’t just about obedience—it’s about creating a dog who’s eager, motivated, and ready to learn. Want to know how to make training something your dog wants to do rather than something they have to do?

In our latest blog, we’re covering:
✅ How to build food motivation the right way
✅ The secret to keeping your dog engaged
✅ Turning training into a fun, rewarding experience

Ready to make training a highlight of your dog’s day? Check out the blog here:

https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/beyond-sit-and-stay--building-a-dog-who-wants-to-learn

🎯 Let’s work smarter (and tastier!) to make training a joy for both you and your dog.

Why Engagement Starts with YOU Let’s be honest: when most people think about dog training, their minds go straight to the basics—sit, stay, down. And while

17/01/2025

Kibble First, Treats Later: The Smarter Way to Train.

Let’s break it down: If we start training with super high-value treats, we’re setting ourselves up to hit a motivational wall. Think about it—if your dog will only work for steak, where do we go from there? Lobster? Filet mignon? By starting with kibble—their everyday food—we’re laying down a rock-solid foundation of food motivation that doesn’t rely on fancy snacks to get the job done.

Here’s how it works:

💡 True Motivation Starts Small

Training with kibble teaches your dog to value the process, not just the prize. If your dog is excited to sit, stay, and strut their stuff for kibble in the kitchen, you know you’ve built genuine motivation.

💡 Avoiding the Bribery Trap

When your dog learns to work for ordinary rewards, you’re not stuck in a cycle of constantly “upping the ante.” You don’t have to bust out gourmet treats for every little command. Training stays sustainable, practical, and stress-free.

But wait, what about the good stuff?

Once your dog is rocking it with kibble and nailing those basic skills, we can bring out the “big guns” (aka higher-value rewards) for more complex or challenging tasks. It’s like saving dessert for special occasions—it keeps things exciting!

The result? A motivated, engaged learner who LOVES training and works just as hard for kibble as they do for a big reward. That’s what we call real food motivation—the kind that builds trust, enthusiasm, and a strong foundation for whatever you want to teach next.

16/01/2025

Human, We Need to Talk About the Dog Park…

Okay, look, I know you love the dog park. It’s your happy place, right? But for me, it’s like a reality TV show I didn’t sign up for. Some dogs are weird. Some don’t understand personal space. And that one dog who always starts drama? Yeah, I’m looking at you, Baxter.

But hey, I’m not ungrateful—I know you’re just trying to do right by me. So I’ve written down all my thoughts (yes, I can write now) in this blog. Trust me, you’re gonna want to hear this.

📖 https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/why-your-dog-has-mixed-feelings-about-dog-parks--from-a-dog-s-pov

You’ll learn:
🐾 Why I might love and hate the park at the same time
🐾 How to tell when I’m totally over it
🐾 And how we can make this whole thing way less awkward

Click the link, human. Do it for me. 🐕

Dog Parks: The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly (From a Dog’s POV) Oh, hey! It’s me—your dog. Yeah, the one you drag to the dog park like it’s some kind of

14/01/2025

🐾 Hey Hoomans, It’s Me, Your Favorite Blogger! 🐾

I may be a dog, but I’ve got A LOT to say about what makes me, well… me! 🐕✨ In my latest blog, I spill the kibble on why I act the way I do (hint: it’s not just because I’m cute).

📖 Here’s what I wrote about:
✔️ How my breed and genes make me unique 🧬
✔️ Why your training and environment shape me into the goodest dog 🌟
✔️ Tips YOU can use to help me be my best self 🐶

👉 Read my masterpiece here:

https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/nature--nurture--and-your-dog--why-your-dog-acts-the-way-they-do

Signed,
Your Four-Legged Friend and Blogger Extraordinaire 🐾

Why Your Dog’s Behavior Isn’t Random It’s me again—your dog. You know, the one you’re constantly trying to coax into things I have zero interest in, like m

10/01/2025

Hey humans, it’s me—your dog. Can we talk about leash greetings for a second? You think you’re helping me make friends, but let’s be real—it’s like shoving me into an awkward hug with a stranger and hoping for the best. Spoiler: it’s not working.

Here’s what’s actually going down:
🐶 Leash Tension = Stress. I’m over here thinking, “Why are you holding me so tight? Is this other dog a threat? Should I bark just in case?”

🙄 Face-to-Face Weirdness. We dogs don’t greet like you humans do. Nose-to-nose is NOT our style—side sniffs, please!

😬 Leash Tangles. Now we’re tied up, and you’re doing that awkward leash shuffle while I’m just trying to figure out if we’re fighting or playing.

Wanna know the right way to help me meet other dogs without the drama?

📖 Read it here: https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/why-on-leash-dog-greetings-are-like-bad-tinder-dates--awkward--forced--and-never-a-good-idea

Let’s save the leash for safe walks and leave the greetings for when we can vibe properly. Trust me, you’ll thank me later. 🐕🎉

Because Nothing Says ‘New Friendship’ Like Tangled Leashes and Awkward Sniffing Hey, humans. Yeah, it’s me—your dog. The one you’re constantly dragging aro

09/01/2025

07/01/2025

Toxic masculinity in training quadrants? Really? Seriously?

You may have seen the recent debate about the Four Quadrants of Dog Training—a post that compares them to toxic human relationships and labels balanced training as harmful. Let’s set the record straight. Pulling at emotional heartstrings shouldn’t be the new normal when it comes to educating dog owners.

💡 Here’s the truth:

The Four Quadrants—Positive Reinforcement, Negative Reinforcement, Positive Punishment, and Negative Punishment—are tools, NOT emotional frameworks.
They’re about communication, not control.

📖 In our latest blog, “Debunking the Fear Tactics: What the Four Quadrants of Dog Training Really Mean,” we break down:
✅ Why the comparison between quadrants and human relationships is flawed.
✅ How fear-based messaging misleads dog owners.
✅ Why balanced training, when done responsibly, prioritizes clarity, compassion, and results.

🐕 Dog training isn’t about guilt or fear—it’s about what works for YOU and your dog.

👉 Click here to read the blog and join the conversation!

https://trainingdogsonline.ca/blog/the-dog-training-divide--let-s-talk-about-the-four-quadrants-and-fear-based-tactics

🗨️ What do you think? Can we have balance in training without fear? Let’s talk below! 👇