Real World K9

10/31/2026

Sieger wants to wish all his canine friends and hoomans a Happy, safe, fun Halloween.

Please keep your dogs safe, kids in costume coming to your front door can be scary for your dog and the door opening to give candy may be the perfect escape if they are afraid. 1. Put them somewhere out of the main area where all the action is.

2. Give them something good to chew or lick, put some music on.

3. Keep candy away from them, so they cannot get to it.

4. Take your dogs outside on leash to potty, they can spook easily on Halloween.

You don't want them practicing bad behaviors, barking at doorbell, people at door, people walking around outside. What they rehearse they get better at.😉

Give them a nice quiet area in the house away from all the excitement, they will appreciate that.

Enjoy your Halloween. 🎃🐾😁

10/31/2026

Happy Halloween! 🎃🐾Rufus says...it's just a bunch of hocus pocus, this Halloween thing. Bring it on!

Rufus says something Wickford this way comes. Enjoying the haunted happenings in Wickford. This little twerp is super confident strutting his little stuff down the haunted streets of Wickford.

10/28/2026

Lola n Sieger out for more fall adventures. The weather has been perfect for this dynamic duo. They have been best buds for about 8 years now. Time flies. ♥️🐾

10/27/2026

Biological fulfillment is necessary, not an option👍🐾

Some dogs are tethered to a kennel.
Others are tethered to our expectations.
And that tether is much harder to see.

They live inside our homes now.
They sleep on orthopaedic beds.
A few toys to play with. A wardrobe full of coats.
They are loved. Oh, how they are loved.

But a loved life is not always a lived life.

We shrink their world for convenience.
We want a dog that fits into our life,
not a life that stretches to fit a dog.

So before they even arrive, the plan is made.
They will be calm when people come over.
They will be fine with 10 minutes around the same block.
They won't complain when we skip it.
Five minutes of fetch while dinner cooks.
And they will be my loyal companion.

But what if who they are doesn't fit the plan?
What if they were bred to run for miles and we give them a block?
What if they were bred to use their nose, and we never give them anything worth sniffing?

So the cracks show.
The chewed rug.
The paint scratched off the wall.
Whining at the door.
Jumping all over guests because it's the most excitement they've had in 8 days.

And we call it misbehaviour.

So we train them harder.
Not to understand them better-
but to make them fit neatly again.
Calmer.
Quieter.
They need to accept this is the life we decided they should have.

After all, dogs are meant to be loyal companions.
We never stop to ask if we are being a loyal companion to them.

We look at photos of dogs chained to kennels and feel angry.
We all agree, that's no life for a dog.
We give ours a bed instead of a rag on the ground.
A beautiful home instead of a chain.
A couple of toys instead of dirt and twigs.
We just don't see that the chain can still be there

10/27/2026

This is a good reminder to all, dogs need to be trained. Waiting at thresholds, leash manners, a stay command and so much more. People are getting seriously hurt. 😔😳 https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1HsRqJDwxN/

10/26/2026

Great post. Body language is key. Observing your dogs...

"Fixation doesn't matter."
I'm hearing that a lot right now.

I think we're having the wrong conversation.

Because the people I work with aren't trainers.

They're the person standing at the end of the lead, with their heart in their throat, thinking,
"Where did that come from? He was fine a second ago."

But he really wasn't fine a second ago.

It was in that tiny, half-second longer stare. The ears that just shifted. The mouth that just closed.

In three seconds flat, their dog "checked out" and locked on.

And it was missed. Not because they weren't paying attention. But because no one ever showed them what to see - or worse, they've been told it doesn't matter.

It does matter.

Those few seconds where that focus narrows and the world goes a bit too quiet for their dog? That's everything.

If we tell people that moment doesn't matter, we leave them with nothing until their dog is already over threshold. Already reacting.

Then they're stuck in that exhausting loop of reactivity, guilt, and "Why can't I help my dog?"

So call it what you want.
Intense look. Locked on. Fixation. Hyper-fixation.
The word isn't the point.

The message that "it doesn't matter" is.

Because when people recognise it, they can finally help their dog.

10/25/2026

Check out this sweet boy! What a nice dog.

10/25/2026

Another great week of dogs. Teaching some loose leash walking and engagement skills.

10/25/2026

Oodles of doodles. Anyone lookin for a doodle duo?

10/22/2026

Rufus n Figg, the little white fluffies had a great afternoon hiking the trails and some playtime afterwards. Tired pups. Both dogs are under 2 yrs.