Affinity Dog Training, Inc.

04/23/2025

Super fun Yappy Hour module again tonight! Fun to see the “regulars” improve leaps and bounds in focus and partnership!!!

04/20/2025

Rainy days can be difficult for active dogs! Here Twist demonstrates his favorite game of finding his favorite toy! Uses his nose, body and brain! What did you do with your dog today?

04/17/2025

I have sent several emails to FB to "allow" me to change my business page name. Why I can't just change it, I don't know. It is my page! Sigh.. I am still Affinity Dog Training, but now an LLC instead of INC. Just FYI in case you see discrepancies somewhere.... Thanks!

04/16/2025

I need extra hands! I forgot to get video of our Yappy Hour Sits and Downs edition last night! So much fun was had by all! What a great group of dogs! Everything from 3 months to 4 years of age. To break it up we built our proprioception skills and confidence by playing on variations of planks and running thru tunnels! I really enjoyed taking everyone to the next level of their training! Looking forward to our next edition!

04/15/2025

I need not say anything more. It is the ONLY way to train and be with your beloved dog.

Positive dog training focuses on rewarding desired behaviours rather than punishing unwanted ones, fostering trust and a stronger bond between dog and guardian.

This method enhances learning by using treats, praise, or play as motivation, making training enjoyable for dogs. It reduces fear and anxiety, promoting better emotional well-being.

Positive reinforcement also encourages quicker, more reliable behaviour changes and strengthens communication, helping dogs feel confident in their actions. Suitable for all breeds and ages, this approach nurtures a cooperative relationship, ensuring a well-behaved and happy dog while creating a positive, respectful environment for both pet and owner.

04/11/2025

Just a couple spots left for Puppy Kindergarten class! Registration is open! Secure your spot today! Call 630 762 9271 or email me at [email protected]

04/04/2025

Love this!

This week there was a post from a well-known dog influencer claiming that "dogs don't need enrichment" and that we should focus on their "real needs" instead.

I'm not sure if this statement was made simply to create controversy and get a rise out of people, or if it reflects a genuine belief. Either way, it fundamentally misrepresents what enrichment is and why committed dog owners invest time and effort into it.

Let's get something clear: Enrichment IS meeting our dogs' real needs. It's not some frivolous extra - it's acknowledging the reality of who our dogs actually are.

At the end of the day, our dogs are animals living in captivity. Yes, they're domesticated, but we still ask them to live in ways that are profoundly unnatural to them.

Think about it:

❌ It's not normal for dogs to stay inside houses 22+ hours a day
❌ It's not normal for dogs to walk slowly on leash without pulling, sniffing, or interacting with their environment
❌ It's not normal for dogs to ignore other animals they see
❌ It's not normal for dogs to not forage, counter-surf, or dig up your garden

Our dogs actually make very big efforts to fit into our human world with all its arbitrary and weird rules. The least we can do in return is fulfill their natural needs as much as possible.

That's what enrichment really is: providing opportunities for species-specific behaviors like sniffing, chewing, licking, digging, shredding, and foraging.

In all my years working with clients, I've NEVER encountered a dog owner who spent "too much time" on enrichment. In fact, I've found the opposite - the more intentional enrichment a dog receives, the happier they are, the easier training becomes, and the better the relationship gets.

Why?
Because enrichment acknowledges dogs for who they are. We humans don't have innate needs to sniff, dig, shred things, or forage - but our dogs absolutely do.

When we don't provide appropriate outlets for normal canine needs, our dogs find their own solutions - which we often label as "bad" behavior.
The dog who shreds your couch cushions, digs up your flowerbeds, chews your baseboards, raids your garbage, destroys toys within minutes, or counter-surfs is actually just acting according to their natural needs. Enrichment helps bridge that gap by providing appropriate alternatives.

With my own dogs, I ensure they have several types of enrichment every day - chewing opportunities, licking activities, daily sniffing adventures, appropriate digging spots, and chances for shredding and de-stuffing.

To be clear, enrichment doesn't replace exercise, training, or social interaction. It's ONE important piece of a fulfilled dog's life.

The next time someone suggests that enrichment is unnecessary or superfluous, remember: It's not about mindlessly throwing toys at our dogs or creating Instagram-worthy snuffle mats.
It's about honoring their true nature within the constraints of our human world.

It's not a way to DISCOUNT what they need. It's a way to ACKNOWLEDGE who they truly are.

(BY the way: I am writing this as my own dogs are all eating their breakfast in the form of frozen slow feeders 😄)

Happy Enrichment!

04/02/2025

Who doesn't love a great recall?!!! Just a couple spots left in my Yappy Hour Recall module on April 8th at 7pm at Animal House veterinary Hospitsl in St. Charles! I meet you and your dog where they are at and help you get the recall of your dreams! I have some other fun stuff planned too! Email [email protected] or call 630.762.9271 for more information or to register!

03/31/2025

Calling all Spring Puppies! Registration is open!

03/25/2025

April Yappy Hour Schedule (with a sneak peak into May!) ! Pre-registration required! Call or email to register. Limited to no more than 5 teams per module. Get ready to have fun as you train and build a partnership with your dog!

03/23/2025

So VERY excited to offer this opportunity to our dog loving community! Yappy Hour! Beginning Early April. Event schedule coming, in the meantime you can call or email for more information or to save your spot!

03/21/2025

YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!

New Development: International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants Officially Closes the Door on Aversive Dog Training

Another domino has fallen in favor of modern, humane, and scientifically sound dog training methods.

We want to acknowledge the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC) for officially moving beyond LIMA (Least Intrusive, Minimally Aversive) as their guiding framework and explicitly rejecting the intentional use of positive punishment.

The issue with LIMA (Least Intrusive, Minimally Aversive) is that while it was intended to prioritize minimally intrusive, positively reinforcing methods, it still allowed trainers to justify outdated, aversive techniques, like shock collars or prong collars, as a supposed ‘last resort.’

This effectively provided cover for outdated ‘balanced’ training practices, an approach that we now clearly understand is not supported by scientific evidence. IAABC, a prominent global certifying body for behavior consultants, has now recognized this flaw and moved beyond LIMA.

Scientific evidence clearly shows aversive methods, even as a "last resort", don’t address underlying behavior causes; for example, shocking a dog who displays aggression doesn’t change their emotional response, it simply suppresses their communication.

This loophole permitted methods based in pain, fear, and intimidation, methods clearly shown by behavior science to be ineffective at addressing underlying causes of behavior and ethically indefensible.

To be clear, LIMA is not a framework endorsed by credible behavior science. In 2025, it is pseudoscientific by definition because it incorporates unsupported, aversive techniques under certain conditions. The term has become deeply problematic in professional dog training.

True scientific professionals, behavior analysts, and animal welfare experts consistently affirm that methods using aversive tools or techniques are unnecessary, ineffective long-term, and detrimental to animal welfare.

By adopting an explicitly ethical framework, IAABC has joined organizations like the Pet Professional Guild (PPG) in setting a clearer, science-based standard.

Today, only a small number of certifying organizations still explicitly allow aversive training methods or cling to the ambiguous and outdated LIMA standard.

Quick update on major certifying bodies stance on aversives:

The Pet Professional Guild (PPG) remains committed to force-free, modern methods. https://www.petprofessionalguild.com/about-us/position-statements/

International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC) now explicitly rejects intentional aversive methods under their new ethical framework. https://journal.iaabcfoundation.org/iaabc-free/

Association for Professional Dog Training International (APDTI) retains the term LIMA (“Least Intrusive, Minimally Aversive”), and even explicitly states that aversive methods are not justified "in lieu of other effective positive reinforcement interventions and strategies." However, their guidelines do not categorically prohibit aversive methods, leaving open the possibility of their use when trainers determine other interventions are “ineffective”. This lack of absolute clarity can lead to confusion and indicates APDTI would benefit from adopting explicitly force-free terminology. https://apdt.com/membercertificant-announcement/?highlight=LIMA

Certification Council for Professional Dog Trainers, Inc. (CCPDT) still permits aversive methods as a “last resort”. Their outdated position is clearly at odds with current behavioral science, leaving significant room for improvement if CCPDT aims to gain credibility as a leading certifying organization. https://www.ccpdt.org/about-us/standards-practice-code-ethics/

03/13/2025

Ready to take your recall training to the next level? As the weather breaks I’ll be offering my popular Rocket Recall foundations class and Rocket Recall 2.0!!! This class will be outdoors, so we can work in the real world! Message me or email [email protected] for more information or to reserve your spot on the list when registration opens! Class sizes will be limited!

03/06/2025

Animal Welfare Science is a real thing. I am so happy that there is a trend towards helping our dogs be dogs in ways that work in our human world!

So many of the things that people consider 'behaviour problems' in dogs are in fact perfectly normal and instinctive canine behaviours that stretch back over their evolution. The problem is that these behaviours can be inconvenient and potentially problematic in human homes.

Understanding dogs, where they came from and the traits that were vital to their survival in the past, lets us see that we need to provide ways for our dogs to carry out these behaviours. It is a vital part of ensuring their welfare and mentioned in the Five Freedoms - the freedom to express natural behaviour.

Of course we don't want them chewing the furniture, shredding the cushions, digging up the flowerbeds etc. The key is to find ways to let them carry out these behaviours that both they and we find appropriate and acceptable.

A child's sandpit filled with dirt or sand makes a great digging spot, and you can hide things in there for them to find. Alternatively, select a specific spot in the garden and direct the dog there if you find them digging elsewhere.

Make sure they have plenty of appropriate chewing material and redirect them to a chew if they start nibbling on the sofa or the chair leg.

Provide soft toys to be eviscerated to save the cushions. The great thing with soft toys is that you can restuff them and sew them up - often several times before they are beyond repair. Charity shops can also be good sources of budget friendly soft toys for this purpose (always making sure they are safe with no bits the dog may swallow).

Shredding dogs often also love cardboard. Use the household recycling to fill a cardboard box with things like egg boxes, other pieces of cardboard, packing paper and so on, anything that is dog safe. Scatter their food or some treats through the box contents and let them hunt the food out and then have a great time shredding the box and contents. Yes there is a little clearing up that needs to be done, but it saves the furniture or other items from destruction.

With a little imagination it's simple to come up with ways to fulfil these natural drives and your dog will definitely thank you for it. 🧡

03/03/2025

This is just too adorable!

02/21/2025

Just one spot left in the puppy class scheduled to begin Monday, March 3rd at Animal House Veterinary Hospital in St. Charles! Come join the fun!

02/21/2025

Looking for feed back on what types of classes or training YOU would like? Are you looking to create a stronger connection/ relationship with your dog? Looking for easy games to teach and play that can be played indoors or out to relieve boredom? Workshops that focus on a particular behavior - like loose lead walking? Or dinner time manners? Agility for fun? Go! And thank you for your feedback in advance!

02/18/2025

Brrrrr... Baby it is cold outside! Show me what you are doing with your pups to help beat the cold and boredom! Bonus if you have pictures or videos! If you need ideas FAST - reach out to me! I can help!