07/24/2024
Summer is a wonderful time where we can enjoy vacations and extra time with family. It also tends to be a busy time for most folks.
What makes summer the best? A dog that can be around other pups and their people in new and exciting environements but still focus on you!
Breaking routines can be a wonderful part of summer vacations but this can be very hard on our pups as our expectations of them remains the same regardless of new environments full of distractions that can cause over stimulation.
Dogs thrive with consistency and routine, and they can show their emotions or overwhelm in ways that quickly become behaviors that pet parents find frustrating and overwhelming.
These behaviors seem to come out of nowhere leaving clients at a loss as to how to handle them. These behaviors can be destructive chewing and digging in unwanted places, having a harder time settling in their crates for sleep or during the day, barking more or at different things, seeming to āignoreā cues/commands that were previously spot on!
Sometimes this can be made worse by thinking they need more exercise or inadvertently reinforcing behavior that we donāt like or trying to punish them for doing something āwrongā.
What dogs really need is to feel safe, to learn to self regulate and to get their nervous system back into a calm state. They need outlets to soothe their emotions. They need to have a trusting relationship with their pet parent that is solid with clear communication going both ways. What this looks like varies from dog to dog.
I work with families to better understand how their pups learn and how they show emotions by learning to read their body language and engage with their pup in a relational way to get back on track again!
For dogs to have solid behavior in highly distracting environments it takes a lot of work to get there. I help my clients with the āheavy liftingā, using behavior modification tools to help build confidence at the dogās pace using positive reinforcement methods and then practice, practice, practice! Short game based lessons keep training moving forward and builds long term consistency because itās fun for everyone!!
Please send me an email: [email protected]. I am happy to share a free mini course (videos and handouts to accommodate different learning styles) to give you training tips to direct your family from chaos back to calm. I also offer a free 15 minute consult to see if we are the right fit for each other and then customize packages from there š¾š.
Currently offering Day Training/Walk & Trains in Woodinville, Redmond, Kirkland, and Bellvue!