Canine Connection Training & Coaching

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Canine Connection Training & Coaching Specialized Dog Training, Behavior Consulting, Relationship Building, Intuitive Connection Coaching online & in person.

Our mission is to provide emotional support for dog people. ❤️‍🩹

Helping you learn & grow alongside your dog. 🌱

I’m gonna say something a little confronting… Some of us use our dogs to avoid ourselves. We hyper-focus on improving t...
20/04/2026

I’m gonna say something a little confronting…

Some of us use our dogs to avoid ourselves.

We hyper-focus on improving their behaviour and avoid exploring our own.
We feel guilt about every walk that’s not long enough for them but avoid meeting our own exercise needs.
We obsessively Google solutions to training or health concerns at midnight and skip learning about our own needs.
We spend thousands on vet care but don’t spend on our own wellness.
We feed them organic raw and avoid taking care of our own nutritional needs.

It feels like loving them ohhh so good!
And it is.

But sometimes, it’s also avoidance.

Because if we’re focused on fixing them or improving how they might feel, we don’t have to look at what’s happening within ourselves.

Unconsciously, it might feel easier or more rewarding to take REALLY GOOD care of them and settle for mediocre care of ourselves.

I say this with so much compassion.
Because I’ve been there.
Because I see it every single day with clients.
Because we can have the best of intentions but seriously but hurting ourselves, by putting our dogs before ourselves.

What kinda person would you be if you tended to yourself as lovingly as you tend to your dog?

How would you show up for you differently?

Where can you give to yourself a little more?

My 1:1 coaching is designed to help you explore your relationship to yourself, through your dog. 💕 I’ll be back soon!


I didn’t want kids so when we realized Cedar wasn’t a fan of uncontrolled, screeching little humans, it wasn’t a worry o...
10/03/2026

I didn’t want kids so when we realized Cedar wasn’t a fan of uncontrolled, screeching little humans, it wasn’t a worry of mine. And then all of a sudden I wanted to start a family, and I realized we might have our work cut out for us. I lean in to challenges and have learnt to approach things from a place of non-attachment. I didn’t assume we’d have a problem but I also didn’t assume we wouldn’t.

My postpartum experience has been really challenging - Cedar wanted nothing to do with me, probably because I haven’t been that easy to be around! Hello anxiety! 😟

But day by day, without the pressures of expectations. Without an Instagram worthy idea about how things would be. Without forcing or ignorantly encouraging… I just let Cedar (and me), take his time.

We didn’t share much time or space together in the first 4 months. I was solo at that time and adding the concept of learning to trust Cedar around a newborn wasn’t within my capacity.

Our community (thanks & & and many others) cared for Cedar more than I had the chance to!

I didn’t let guilt run rampant in my mind.
I knew deep down he’d forgive me.
He understood.
He was okay.
And we’d have our time together again.

Fast forward to 7 months with Asher.

And now Cedar loves our morning ritual cuddles & kisses (it’s good for Asher’s gut flora right?!). 🤣

We’re back to walking together and going on adventures as a dynamic trio. Cedar stays closer than before. Monitors other dogs around Asher. And shows genuine signs of care for him.

It’s amazing what LETTING GO does for dogs.
We have so many expectations of them.

What would it feel like for you to stop pushing for a specific outcome, and start loving them where they are at?

What would it feel like to grant that same practice with yourself?

What are you waiting to change before loving them or you?

Let go. Lean in. Trust the process. Cedar’s wisdom is loud. And I’m trusting him to new depths as he ages. ❤️

Cedar makes me a better Mom. In fact, before becoming a Mom, I didn’t realize that Cedar was already teaching me how to ...
19/01/2026

Cedar makes me a better Mom.

In fact, before becoming a Mom, I didn’t realize that Cedar was already teaching me how to mother.

He taught me how to slow down and listen… not just to what he was doing, but to what he was feeling.

To interpret what he was communicating.
To take a breath before reacting.
To respond with patience instead of frustration (this one took a long time my friends).

That’s what attunement is.

It’s the ability to sense, understand, and respond to another being’s needs… emotional or energetic, while staying connected to yourself. Oooooowie, is that ever a doozy of a task sometimes.

If you’ve ever had a sensitive or reactive dog, you know how hard that can be.

Their behaviour triggers you… deeeeeep within.

They feel everything, but you both do.

And if you’re anything like me, you’ve probably had moments of frustration, guilt, or wondering why it feels so hard to stay calm when you love them so much.

Motherhood is just a deeper layer of the same lesson:
When I can stay grounded in myself, my baby feels safe enough to settle.

Attunement starts with awareness.
It’s not perfect, and it’s not instant.
But it’s how calm connection can flourish in every relationship, human or animal.

Have you noticed your dog pick up on your emotions too? What have they been teaching you lately?

Cedar makes me a better Mom.In fact, before becoming a mom, I didn’t realize that Cedar was already teaching me how to m...
19/01/2026

Cedar makes me a better Mom.

In fact, before becoming a mom, I didn’t realize that Cedar was already teaching me how to mother.

He taught me how to slow down and listen… not just to what he was doing, but to what he was feeling.

To interpret what he was communicating.
To take a breath before reacting.
To respond with patience instead of frustration (this one took a long time my friends).

That’s what attunement is.

It’s the ability to sense, understand, and respond to another being’s needs… emotional or energetic, while staying connected to yourself. Oooooowie, is that ever a doozy of a task sometimes.

If you’ve ever had a sensitive or reactive dog, you know how hard that can be.

Their behaviour triggers you… deeeeeep within.

They feel everything, but you both do.

And if you’re anything like me, you’ve probably had moments of frustration, guilt, or wondering why it feels so hard to stay calm when you love them so much.

Motherhood is just a deeper layer of the same lesson:
When I can stay grounded in myself, my baby feels safe enough to settle.

Attunement starts with awareness.
It’s not perfect, and it’s not instant.
But it’s how calm connection can flourish in every relationship, human or animal.

Have you noticed your dog pick up on your emotions too? What have they been teaching you lately?

05/01/2026

Integrating a sensitive dog with a new baby can feel like your heart is being ripped in half.

Half of me feels protective over baby Asher, and the other half of me is grieving me and Cedar’s relationship shifting.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again.

I didn’t have ANY expectation a of these two having an Instagram worthy bond - because Cedar doesn’t love kids and hasn’t had much baby exposure. I knew it would take lots of time and management to have them safely co-existing - mainly because Cedar has high prey drive and well… babies squeak.

When we grip too tightly to the image of how something “should” be, we set ourselves up for disappointment. But when we meet life without an agenda, without force… we leave room for presence.

We get to feel the sweetness of what is, instead of grieving what isn’t.

Cedar is still teaching me, every day. About boundaries, about adaptability, about forgiveness, about patience, and about how to let go of control in order to actually see what’s right in front of me.

As Asher finds his place in our pack, and Cedar and I continue to evolve our bond, I’m choosing to hold space not for perfection, but for the little glimmers. Those tiny, shimmering flashes of connection that feel like Cedar telling me “I understand, and I accept him”. ❤️‍🩹

Tonight for the first time in 5 months, Cedar wanted to play, with Asher in the room. And we successfully enjoyed our time, all together!

Don’t forget to celebrate the small wins, they add up to big ones over time. 🎉

I’ve never been great at slowing down.As someone with an anxious nervous system, stillness used to feel unsafe … I’d fil...
04/01/2026

I’ve never been great at slowing down.
As someone with an anxious nervous system, stillness used to feel unsafe … I’d fill my calendar, overwork, overdo, anything to keep from sitting in the quiet.

Pregnancy became the first nudge toward change… a kind of training for the portal of motherhood. 😉

And then there’s Cedar.

My steady, low-energy husky who has always preferred long naps to long hikes.
At first, his need for rest frustrated me. I wanted to be the Annika I knew with the adventurous dog, hiking trails and always on the go. His physical limitations felt like a trap! And his behavioural limitations felt like a social death!

But now I see it differently.

Cedar has been teaching me how to slow down & go inward for years… how to find nourishment in gentleness, how to embrace presence instead of a fast pace.

He was preparing me for this season all along.

These early months of motherhood have brought every emotion to the surface.
There have been many, many moments of anxiety so overwhelming I really worried I’d never be “myself” again.

I’m talking falling to the ground crying & begging for my guides or creator to come and save me on my hands and knees kinda anxiety…

Moments where my baby’s cries activated every “he’s gonna die” signal in my brain.

But I’m learning.
To listen for the subtle cues… in my baby, in Cedar, and in myself.
To not project my urgency onto them.
To breathe before I react.
To ground myself even when the world around me feels loud and chaotic.

Cedar continues to be my mirror and my guide, showing me that calm leadership begins with self-attunement, not control.

Our dogs really are our teachers.
I wish I was as steadfast and grounded as him! I can’t wait to see what lessons he’ll walk me through next. 🤍

31/12/2025

May 2026 bring us more presence with our beloved dogs.
More…
Acceptance.
Gratitude.
Connection.
Trust.
In them, the process, their wisdom, in their unique lessons that they came here to teach each and every one of us.
There is no dog we get that isn’t FOR us.
There is no coincidence.
Hard behaviours and all, I’m a firm believer that these souls that enter our worlds can be our greatest teachers, and that we are co-creating, learning and evolving side by side, especially when it feels hard.
May 2026 bless you & your loved ones with continued expansion, hope, clarity, joy & presence.

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http://www.canineconnectiontraining.ca/

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