Salty Raccoon Ranch Kennels & Training

08/24/2025

✨ “If we hang out here long enough, maybe we can score an employee discount!” ✨

Na’Vi is just 13 weeks old and starting her store training adventures! 🛒 These outings aren’t about shopping bags—they’re about confidence building. For a young pup, a store is like a classroom full of sights, sounds, and smells: carts rolling, kids giggling, scanners beeping, and people bustling by.

We like to hang out near the registers so Na’Vi can simply watch, listen, and relax. This helps her learn that all the hustle and bustle of public life is normal—not scary.

Why this kind of training matters:
🐾 Builds confidence in new environments
🐾 Teaches calmness in crowds & noise
🐾 Creates a neutral mindset for future service work (or just being a rockstar family dog)
🐾 Builds impulse control instead of overstimulation

Today it’s shopping carts… tomorrow it could be airports, busy sidewalks, or family gatherings. Early, positive exposure like this sets puppies up for a lifetime of success! 💪🐶

👉 Tell me in the comments—what was your puppy’s very first big outing? Did they totally rock it, or give you a story you’ll never forget? 🐾💬

"If we hang out here long enough, maybe we can score an employee discount!"Na'Vi is 13 weeks old and just starting her store visits! These outings aren't abo...

08/16/2025

7 Rules of Life with Na’Vi the puppy!
Na’Vi is 13 weeks old today and had her first pup cup from Partners

08/12/2025

Coffee & Puppy Play Time.Nova & Na’Vi (12 weeks old) are enjoying playing together while I try to drink my morning coffee.

08/04/2025

Gemma is Back on Duty! 🐾💼

After five months off for maternity leave, our sweet girl Gemma is officially back on full Service Dog duty! 💪🐕‍🦺 During her time off from public access work, she never skipped a beat with her in-home medical alert and psychiatric tasking—she’s truly a working mama through and through.

Here at Salty Raccoon Ranch, we don’t take risks with our pregnant girls or young puppies. That means no public outings during those sensitive stages of motherhood. Gemma got to enjoy all the snuggles and baby puppy breath while staying safe at home.

Now that her pups are growing up and finding their own paths, Gemma is easing back into the rhythm of full public access. It takes us about a month of refresher work to get her fully in the groove again—but knowing Gemma, she’ll be back to turning heads and saving the day in no time.

Welcome back, Gemma girl—you’ve still got it. 💖

https://youtube.com/shorts/6xH3DXEnBqs?si=6rK21IhqxxgD_kTc

Gemma is Back on Duty! 🐾💼After five months off for maternity leave, our sweet girl Gemma is officially back on full Service Dog duty! 💪🐕‍🦺 During her ti...

08/02/2025

🌊 River adventure time! 🐾

Today we took little Nova & Na’Vi to the Wabash River and park for a big puppy outing! At just 11 weeks old, they’ve been working hard on leash skills, obedience training, and those all-important socialization experiences. And guess what? These two rocked it like little pros — walking on leash without treats or lures! 👏✨

Of course, their secret weapon was none other than Momma Gemma, who tagged along as our helper dog and proudly showed her pups the ropes. She’s such a steady, confident role model, and the babies took notes! 🖊️🐕

It’s amazing to see how much foundation training helps set puppies up for real-world success — and outings like these help build calm, confident future service dogs.

https://youtube.com/shorts/a3nmP_EHCzk?si=b-F2cdgsU79g3u-X

🌊 River adventure time! 🐾Today we took little Nova & Na’Vi to the Wabash River and park for a big puppy outing! At just 11 weeks old, they’ve been working ...

07/28/2025

Baby Shark On The Loose!!! 🦈Nova and Na’Vi are 10 weeks old now… and officially land sharks! 😅 These two are so excited about high-value treats that they haven’t quite figured out the difference between the snack and my fingers! 🐾So what’s a trainer to do when tiny piranhas attack during training time? Glove up! 🧤💪 The glove helps create a clear texture contrast between my hand and the treat, which makes it easier for their puppy brains to start recognizing what’s edible (and what’s definitely not).This is a super common phase we call “baby shark mode” — part of normal development and impulse control training. With consistency, patience, and some well-timed glove protection, we’ll be back to gentle treat-taking in no time.For now… wish my fingers luck. 😂

07/26/2025

✈️ Flying a Young Puppy Isn’t Easy… But It Is Possible! 🐾
With proper preparation, positive reinforcement, and lots (and lots!) of patience, flying with a young pup can be a smooth and even enjoyable experience.

Our boy, Night Von Merryman Haus, recently took his very first airplane ride—and he absolutely crushed it. 🖤🐶

Before his big day, we spent two full weeks preparing him through intentional training:
✨ Confidence-building games
✨ Desensitization to airport noises and movement
✨ Crate comfort work
✨ Public access exposure
✨ Calm behavior while being carried or wheeled

This kind of early exposure training lays the foundation for future success—especially for puppies headed into service dog roles or those living a travel-heavy lifestyle. It teaches them how to navigate the world with confidence, trust, and adaptability.

Whether your pup is flying across the country or just going into town, good training and thoughtful prep truly make all the difference.

We’re beyond proud of Night and how beautifully he handled his first flight. ✈️💪
Another feather in the cap for the Salty Raccoon Ranch pups! 🐾💙

https://youtube.com/shorts/iH7L3zRNVbE?si=ngOONe9S9nfHtO-5

⸻

Flying a young puppy is no easy task. ✈️🐾But with the right preparation, positive training, and a whole lot of patience (and treats… lots of treats), it can...

07/23/2025

✈️ More flight prep for this little frequent flyer!Part of our daily training includes carrier desensitization—aka riding around in his pet travel bag so airport life feels familiar and no big deal.We’re building confidence one step (and one stroll) at a time. Dog

07/23/2025

✈️ Puppy Flight Prep Tip ✈️
It takes a lot of extra training and preparation to fly a young puppy on an airplane. One of the things we do to help them feel confident for the big travel day?

We take the puppy for rides in their airline-approved pet carrier — inside a wagon! 🎒🛒

This helps simulate being carted through a busy airport and the motion of the plane ride itself. We pair it with positive reinforcement, of course — plenty of praise, treats, and calm energy.

It’s just one of the many little steps we take to make sure our puppies grow up to be confident, capable travel buddies 🐾💼

✈️ Puppy Flight Prep Tip ✈️It takes a lot of extra training and preparation to fly a young puppy on an airplane. One of the things we do to help them feel co...

07/20/2025

Cute Little Puppies... nothing is cuter than cute little puppies

https://youtube.com/shorts/j6BmFKjT6-c?si=eiNBfjUWV93AtZOb

°viral

Cute Little Puppies... nothing is cuter than cute little puppies °viral ...

07/17/2025

🎉 The Notorious Six of our “N” Litter are almost 9 weeks old and gearing up to head off to their new homes this weekend! 🐾

We had a little farewell photo shoot to capture these adorable faces one last time before they venture out to become future service dogs, family companions, and all-around good pups. 💛

This group has been an absolute hoot — bold, bouncy, and full of nose kisses. Each one is taking a piece of our hearts (and a little goat hay) with them.

We can’t wait to watch them grow and shine in their new adventures! 🌟