K9 Mastery

12/01/2025

https://tomlinsons.com/.../pound-4-pound-pet-food-donation

Please help our rescue by supporting us in the Pound4Pound food drive! You can donate by using the link above and selecting ADOPT from the drop down menu!

This drive goes a long way to help us feed our rescue dogs every year! Tomlinson’s matches every donation 100%!

Please donate and share today!

11/29/2025

Please help us feed our rescues! This food drive is the ONLY fundraiser we participate in each year. Everything else we do comes directly out of our pocket.

This food drive takes such a huge weight off of our shoulders because it guarantees the dogs we rescue have food and we can put money into vetting, care, and housing.

Tomlinson’s also matches every donation, so every little bit really counts!

Just select A.D.O.P.T. From the drop down menu when you donate. And THANK YOU!!

https://tomlinsons.com/products/pound-4-pound-pet-food-donation

Please vote for A.D.O.P.T. In this food drive! We’re so blessed to be apart of this event again! This is the only fundraiser we participate in each year. Everything else comes directly out of pocket.

This drive is so important to us because it’s how we feed our rescues every year. Without it we definitely couldn’t do what we do.

Simply buy a bag and Tomlinson’s will donate one to match it. Just be sure to select A.D.O.P.T. From the drop down menu.

Thanks so much for all your support!

11/12/2025

Sandy working on stays.

11/11/2025

Help Mike find a home!

Mike has recently completed a 30 day board and train with us. Unfortunately Bastrop County Animal Services has not been able to find a foster for Mike who is able to attend a lesson to learn how to reinforce Mike's training and work with him daily on what he's learned until he is adopted.

This means that, even though I have extended his stay for the time being, Mike will have to go back to his kennel in the shelter soon without the exercise or reinforcement he needs to be adopted.

If Mike goes back to the shelter, he will no doubt revert back to old negative behaviors and decline without proper exercise. But, we only have a little time left before my holiday reservations start coming in and Mike will not have a place to stay.

Mike is super sweet and lots of fun! He's an energetic puppy and that energy can get him into trouble without a little guidance, which is why we stepped in to help!

Mike will now wait for you to go in his yard and let you put his leash/collar on, wait to go in and out of gates and doorways, walk without pulling on the leash, heel, sit, down, sit stay for 5 minutes, down stay for 10 minutes, and recall on a 6 ft leash.

He's great at all the basics with someone who knows how to give good praise and some belly rubs! He also does great both at home and in town. He loves field trips to Home Depot!

Videos of Mike's Obedience: https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/13QQoDcOYBiN2TQiS9RqUb25glIxY3RjH?usp=sharing

Mike loves playing with his toys, loves tennis balls and has been good with other dogs overall, but he is shy at first so he needs slow, proper introductions to feel comfortable. He also can be a bit over the top in his play, so he should be paired with other dogs who are equally playful and tolerant and definitely not a dominant dog who may bully him.

Mike used to inhale his food, but we have been able to get him to slow down his eating. He does sometimes still guard his food around other dogs, though, so we do recommend separating him to eat until this can be worked on a little more. I'm sure with a little more time this won't be an issue.

If you or someone you know thinks that you may be able to foster . . .or even better . . .adopt Mike, please reach out to me or Bastrop County Animal Services.

10/31/2025

10/31/2025

It’s been a minute since we gave a Mike update.

We’ve been busy behind the scenes working on slowing down his eating, building confidence, getting more structured exercise, and of course obedience training.

Mike is doing very well and has made a lot of progress. He still has a tendency to get a little overly excited and jump a bit when he first meets you IF he isn’t on a leash and collar. . . Which is to be expected from a dog in basic obedience with Mike’s temperament. But, he now will wait for you to open the kennel door or gate and sit politely for you to put his collar on and the jumping doesn’t happen nearly as often or for as long.

He loves his lessons and really enjoys field trips now that he’s not afraid of jumping in and out of the van or going in his crate. Home Depot is a favorite destination.

As of now, Mike is doing really well with loose leash walking and only needs a few reminders here and there to keep paying attention. That’s usually when he sees something new that scares him a bit and he just needs a little more encouragement the first few encounters.

Mike is also doing well with his heeling. He can do left and right 90 degree turns, u-turns in both directions and well as full circles. Changes of pace are no big deal anymore either!

His sits have been super consistent. His downs are a ton better too. He sometimes scoots around or lays on your feet, but he’s getting better about just going down calmly where he’s at when he’s told.

Mike can now hold 5 minute sit stays and 10 minute down stays with a lot of distractions too. People, animatronics, shopping carts, other animals, dogs playing, loud noises, swift movements, toys and peanut butter are just a few of the distractions he’s overcome. I’m super proud of him for all of that!

Mike has started doing recalls on leash too and loves them! Being with people is his favorite thing, so if he can run up to you he’s very excited about that!

Mike now also runs on the treadmill at a good pace for 15+ minutes and we can leave food out in his kennel without him over eating or us worrying about him inhaling it from eating too quickly!

Way to go Mike! You’re a star!

10/18/2025

Mike had his first visit to Home Depot this morning and did really well! Mike doesn’t like slick floors, loud noises, swift movements, and is very much lacking in confidence when it comes to new people and places.

Mike went really far out of his comfort zone today and you could tell when we first walked in. He slinked around. . . Slick floors and lots of things going on. . . But over the next hour of work and praise he started to focus on me more, relax, and start to have a good time! He left the store much more confident than he came in and even sat nicely for some people to pet him!

Now we just need to work on loading into the car 😂😂😂

10/15/2025

We have a Mike update!

Mike has been doing very well with his obedience! He is loose leash walking like a pro around our ranch, and he's started heeling with turns, curves and some changes of pace . . .he's not just doing straight aways anymore! His sits and downs are getting much more consistent too! We even started with some work on stays already this week! 😳

He's rockin' it!

We are still working on slowing him down when he eats, his manners behind a fence/barrier, and getting his confidence built up. He's very eager to please and wants to be involved in everything! He also wants everything to be his friend but hasn't quite learned the appropriate social interactions yet.

We still have work to do, but we're proud of how far he's come already!

Here are some pictures of Mike working on his stays!

10/09/2025

I was able to get a few better pictures of Loca today! :-)

After spending a little more time and evaluating her, it looks like she knows what "sit" and "down" means. We started on lessons yesterday and she's already very good about walking on a loose leash, she's starting on heels, and we are working on consistency for sit and down. She is doing very well on "wait" as well when on leash.

Her full bio is below . . .who wants to give this cutie pie a home?!
________________________________________________________
Meet Loca – The Little Gremlin With the Underbite of a Champion and the Energy of a Caffeinated Squirrel

If you’ve ever wondered what it would look like if a gremlin, a pogo stick, and a cartoon character merged into one delightful creature, wonder no more.

Meet Loca: a 22-pound pug/rat terrier mix who looks like she was assembled by a committee of toddlers with a glue stick and a dream. She’s got the curly tail of a cinnamon roll, the underbite of a bulldog lawyer mid-argument, and the boundless energy of a toddler who just discovered Pixy Stix.

Loca is about a year and a half old, spayed, healthy, and up-to-date on all her shots—basically, a fully loaded model, ready to roll. She was adopted as a pup and returned after about a year, allegedly because she didn’t get along with the resident cat. But plot twist: she’s now in a foster home living harmoniously with three cats. And not just coexisting—they share space, sniff noses, and Loca has yet to declare war on a single one of them. So, we’re thinking maybe that first cat just had some personal problems and decided to frame poor Loca. Typical cat behavior, honestly.

She absolutely loves people, thrives around other dogs with proper introduction, and approaches life like it's one big game of tag. She’s the kind of dog who thinks every walk is a parade and every human is a new best friend.

But don’t let her high energy fool you—once she’s done zooming around the yard like she’s auditioning for the doggy Olympics, she will absolutely crash in a sunbeam with her silly underbite sticking out and her tail curled tight like it’s holding in a secret.

And good luck not laughing every time she gives you that slightly crooked, toothy grin—it’s like she knows she’s ridiculous, and she’s owning it.

Loca’s the kind of dog who doesn’t just live in your home—she takes over your life in the best possible way. She’ll make you laugh when you’re grumpy, drag you outside when you’re lazy, and force you to become a better person just by keeping up with her antics. She’s chaotic good in canine form.

So if you’re looking for a low-maintenance, couch potato type—keep walking. But if you’re looking for a weird little gremlin with a heart of gold, a face made for memes, and a love for life that’s downright contagious... Loca is ready to move in and turn your world delightfully upside down.

Adoption fee: $150
To Adopt: https://www.adoptfordogs.org/how-to-adopt
Location: Bastrop, TX

10/09/2025

Mike is settling in nicely! He's loving the AC in his kennel, is getting use to tile floors, dog doors, and coming inside (he acts like he's never been inside a building before), and he's already doing SOOO much better walking on a leash and paying attention! Great job Mike! Bastrop County Animal Services

10/08/2025

Congratulations to Patty and her dog Sandy for being our newest Intermediate Obedience graduates!

10/07/2025

We're excited to announce that this cutie pie named Mike from Bastrop County Animal Services was chosen for our 30 day board and train Rescue Training Program! We picked him up today and he's getting settled in. He'll start training tomorrow! We'll be posting regular updates, so stay tuned!