Happy Dog Training

08/27/2026

When I was a less experienced trainer I always thought of food aggression in dogs as an issue of poor pack hierarchy in the home. I know many dog trainers continue to believe this. Today I know better. I wasn’t completely wrong back then, my knowledge was just incomplete. Food aggression in dogs can certainly be a rank issue but most of the time it just isn’t.

We generally distinguish two types of food aggression in dogs: a genetic predisposition and a learned behavior. The former is more common and has to be managed and the latter is less common but can be resolved. Read More: https://SoCal.Dog/FoodAggression

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😊🐕🐾 Subscribe to our channel at SoCal.Dog/YouTube for full versions of our videos and other great training clips. 🖥 🐾

08/15/2026

Guest Post by internationally acknowledged dog trainer Chad Mackin.

I’ve been seeing a lot of posts about pit bulls lately. Some written in defense of them, others on why their history makes them more dangerous than other dogs. Almost everything I’ve read misses the point in big ways. So, let’s get our hands dirty and get into some controversy, shall we?

If you take either of the following lines about pit bulls, you are probably not going to like what I will say.

Contrary to what many believe, it isn’t all in how you raise them. The fact that pit bulls were originally bred for fighting doesn’t automatically make them aggressive. And no, they were never (as far as I can tell) called "Nanny Dogs," ... 😊 Read more: https://socal.dog/Pitbull

🐕🐾 Visit HappyDogTraining.info to take your dog to the next level!

😊🐕🐾 Subscribe to our channel at SoCal.Dog/YouTube for full versions of our videos and training clips.

08/04/2026

The answer to the question 'What is the best service dog breed?' will vary by dog trainer and that should give you pause. It really shouldn’t. But there is a reason. Let’s take a look at the sorry state of service dog training and what the criteria should be versus what they are. To explain this, I need to provide some background.

First, the service dog industry as a whole has a wash-out rate of about 50%. Wash-out means the service dog fails either during training or within the first year after deployment. A dog that washes out can no longer work and must be replaced. That means that 50% of the dogs people paid a lot of money for (e.g. $25 - $75K) have to be replaced. The service dog training contract usually outlines how/if that happens and who pays for that. This detail gives you an important indication of what kind of service dog training company you are dealing with.

🐕🐾 Read more at https://ServiceDog.Team/BestSD and visit TotalK9Focus.com to get your own service dog.

When picking the best service dog breed, it's most important to understand what makes a successful service dog.

08/03/2026

Stress in dogs is a fact of life. We all experience stress every day and must learn to develop some resilience to the daily life stresses we deal with. People without the ability to handle stress, can’t function in our world.

This is the reason we coach our children how to maneuver life, but don’t do everything for them. We can’t shield them from everything as they grow up if we want them to be successful adults who live a rich life. Our kids need to learn how to cope with stress and not break when then things go wrong because they will. This is no different for dogs. Read more at https://socal.dog/Stress

Visit us at HappyDogTraining.info to take your dog to the next level 😊

😊🐕🐾 Subscribe to our channel at SoCal.Dog/YouTube for full versions of our videos and other great training clips. 🖥 🐾

07/22/2026

Every dog finds forced isolation unpleasant. No dog enjoys you going to work and leaving them alone for eight to ten hours a day. Dogs are social creatures. While dogs sleep a lot and do need their alone time, most of the time, they would rather be with you, than away from you. Some dogs just handle this separation better than others. However, separation anxiety in dogs goes far beyond this basic reality. Read more: https://socal.dog/Separation

🐕🐾 Visit HappyDogTraining.info to take your dog to the next level!

😊🐕🐾 Subscribe to our channel at SoCal.Dog/YouTube for full versions of our videos and training clips.

07/10/2026

Dogs are amazing. Our wonderful companions bring us endless joy and happiness. We play together, hike together, run together, sleep together, eat together and so much more. Our dogs are valued family members that love us unconditionally. We take care of them as best as we can and they return the favor. Having a dog in your life is enriching beyond imagination. Unfortunately, we all have to say goodbye to our dog at some point.

😊🐕🐾 Read more at https://socal.dog/Goodbye .