Sam's Train, Play and Stay

05/29/2026

05/28/2026

A very sleepy puppy dog 🐶❤️

05/27/2026

So important!

These dogs can “give in” instead of growl.
And because of that, there’s no obvious conflict, but there can be discomfort.
“They’re OK together.”
“Let them work it out.”
“They’ll get used to each other.”

Tolerating something happening is not always the same as feeling safe with it.

Some dogs become very good at avoiding conflict instead of resolving it or escalating.
Some will just simply endure social pressure.

Being aloof can work for them too.

A quieter dog, that doesn’t move too much or isn’t vocal around others has sometimes worked out how to “fly under the radar”
Now there really isn’t anything wrong with that, but we need to be mindful.
Some freeze as a dog approaches.
Some repeatedly roll over and just stay there until the other dog loses interest.

But sometimes they can escalate only after ‘tolerating’ things for too long.

Unfortunately, these quieter dogs are often the ones people can miss completely.
They can also be put into social situations they don’t want to be in at all.

That quietness is mistaken for calmness, acceptance.

Not every struggling dog is loud.

05/27/2026

I sure do love to continue my education 🐶❤️

05/27/2026

I can. But I’m not going to.

I don’t want your dog to shrink away while I insist on ruffling their hair up.
They don’t need me to touch them to prove “I’m safe”.

What they actually need is for me to keep my hands in my pocket and wait for some signals of consent.

We have a tactile “obsession” when it comes to dogs.

Maybe it starts when they’re puppies and their squidginess draws our hands in.
100% their fur and wee fat rolls combined are irresistible.
From there though, it can become a habit.

We see a person up the street we haven’t seen for a while, stop for a chat and our hand goes down to pat while we say “Aww whose this wee girl”.
That’s how easy these habits grow.

They’re ingrained.

How about we start to normalise not touching?
And start normalising watching for consent.

05/26/2026

A day late but oh well. We sure do love our brainless cavaliers Rosie and Piper

05/26/2026

We have just a couple spots left for our group classes beginning next week, this will be our last round of classes for the next 6 weeks so now is the time to join!

Tuesday 06/02:
Introduction to Scent Work 10:00am
Beginner Group Class 5:30pm
Intermediate Group Class 7pm

05/25/2026