Yes Dog Dog trainer for puppies, adolescents, and adult dogs. General obedience and problem behaviors.

04/02/2025

You know what makes a trainer ridiculously happy? Watching their client be super successful with their own dog. This is Kylo and his mama working toward grinding his nails. I only started this exercise about two weeks ago, and Kylo's mom succeeded in making the huge leap to contact with the rotating grinding bit directly to Kylo's nails for the very first time in this lesson. And look at her mechanics! She looks like she's been practicing this skill for years.

I'm excited to see what the future holds for Team Kylo.

Kylo.
04/02/2025

Kylo.

Kylo's little big brother, Oliver, came to visit so that I could assess the boys together. It was definitely an illumina...
04/01/2025

Kylo's little big brother, Oliver, came to visit so that I could assess the boys together. It was definitely an illuminating exercise as Kylo's mom and I work together to create a training and management plan that will hopefully result in more peace in the home.

But we couldn't resist letting little Ollie benefit from snow therapy while he was here, and Oliver's response to the snow that was almost as tall as he is did not disappoint.

Kylo is at the end of his board and train when he and his owner work together to teach Kylo to perform all his cool new ...
04/01/2025

Kylo is at the end of his board and train when he and his owner work together to teach Kylo to perform all his cool new skills with his own person as his handler. This is why I haven't been taking as many photos and videos. Though hopefully, I'll remember to pause my teaching and gabbing long enough to take video of Kylo's mom working with him because she is doing a stellar job!

In the meantime, I couldn't resist snapping some photos of Kylo indulging in spring snow therapy. This boy loves a good snowstorm, and I sure prefer it to spring rain. Kylo is also a bit more photogenic in the snow as his coat contrasts nicely with the white background and otherwise blends in a bit with our mountain dirt. While I love the fun action shots, I think my favorite is the last photo of Kylo quietly contemplating life while simply sitting and enjoying the snow falling all around him.

When you live in the woods, there are critters. Fortunately, I have an Official Critter Monitoring System.
03/30/2025

When you live in the woods, there are critters. Fortunately, I have an Official Critter Monitoring System.

8 weeks is a long time for a doodle to go without professional grooming, especially one with as tight of curls as Kylo a...
03/27/2025

8 weeks is a long time for a doodle to go without professional grooming, especially one with as tight of curls as Kylo and especially here in the woods with pine needles and pine sap everywhere. If I ignore his coat, he will most assuredly start to mat, which will cause his coat to pull uncomfortably on his body when he moves, reduce oxygen getting to his skin, which can lead to infection, and make his next grooming appointment long and uncomfortable. So I try hard to maintain my guests' coats while they are here.

There are a few things to note if you have a curly-coated dog that needs regular grooming. The first is that a brush won't do a thing to get through those tight curls. It'll literally just scratch the surface. I found that even a slicker brush does little to pe*****te the curls, and if you can get through the curls with a slicker, you are likely to scratch your dog's skin while you do it. Go ahead and brush a slicker brush against your own skin if you need to in order to determine how that might feel to your dog. I found that the only way to get through the curls is with a comb. Think of it like a woman in the 80s and early 90s with permed hair. We used combs and picks for a reason! Kylo's mom sent us a conditioning spray that really helps to loosen the hair as well.

The other thing to consider is the dog's experience. Groomers have a lot of dogs to groom, and it's amazing how much they can accomplish in a day. However, that is often at the expense of the dog's comfort, and they learn to be wary of grooming tools and the brushing/combing experience. Kylo was no exception. So I do a little bit each day, and I work hard to ensure I am always gentle. I don't need Kylo to be beautiful, and I have no time constraints. I just need to maintain Kylo's coat health. So we spray, we gently comb, and we massage. And Kylo relaxes as he learns that this is a good and gentle thing that he enjoys.

03/26/2025

Kylo lives in a multi-dog household, and sometimes, even though he likes other dogs, arousal spikes, and scuffles may ensue. One place that this frequently happens in multi-dog households is doorways and gates. Both dogs excitedly rush through at the same time, likely knocking into each other, and feelings (and sometimes bodies) get hurt. So one way to manage this is to create a default behavior of sitting and waiting calmly at all doors and gates until released. I can choose to go through the threshold first or not.

This is also a great skill for dogs to prevent them from jumping out of cars when you open the door but before you have a good grip on their leash, to be able to investigate that the coast is clear when walking into the lobby of your vet or dog daycare, and to take a quick peek at your surroundings as you exit a building with a dog with reactive behavior or into a high-traffic environment.

Here is Kylo showing mastery of this skill.

03/26/2025

I love progress videos! Remember when I said I was teaching Kylo to feel more comfortable with body pressure by teaching him to go through my legs using nose targeting? Here's our progress. Look at the loose body language and increased animation, the higher tail, the willingness to take greater risks. This is what confidence looks like! A link to the first video will be in the comments for reference.

03/24/2025

Here is a tiny glimps of the chaos Kylo navigated so beautifully today.

Kylo and I went on a super fun field trip to the Sundial Bridge and arboretum. There were joggers, cyclists, scooterists...
03/24/2025

Kylo and I went on a super fun field trip to the Sundial Bridge and arboretum. There were joggers, cyclists, scooterists, golf carts, dogs of all sizes, loud music, screaming and running children, and all sorts simply odd things. But Kylo is a city boy, and he says he was made for this chaos! People stopped us frequently and commented on his impeccable manners and cute Muppet face. He made me a very proud Trainer Lady today.

Kylo and I are done training for the day. He has an entire yard he is free to explore. You know you have successfully tr...
03/23/2025

Kylo and I are done training for the day. He has an entire yard he is free to explore. You know you have successfully trained a love of the mat, when this is how Kylo chooses to spend his time.

03/23/2025

Kylo is a really nice dog. If he doesn't like something you are doing, he'll struggle to get away, but he's not likely to put teeth on you. Sadly, because a dog won't defend himself, we often consider that permission to do all sorts of stuff they don't care for without consideration for their level of stress. Kylo is quite sensitive about having his feet touched, so when we aren't training other things, I've started doing some desensitization and counterconditioning toward grinding his nails and examining his feet. This is where we are today.

I love this game because there's a beautiful communication taking place. Can you see where he says, "No, thank you,"? And do you see how he responds when I respect the no?

All our other guests have gone home, so it's gonna be the Kylo Show this week!Here we are, taking advantage of a gloriou...
03/23/2025

All our other guests have gone home, so it's gonna be the Kylo Show this week!

Here we are, taking advantage of a glorious spring day, and working on duration behaviors with distance.

Also, two extra pics just because they are darn cute.

Behold! I present to you, Kylo the Muzzle-Trained!
03/18/2025

Behold! I present to you, Kylo the Muzzle-Trained!

Sweet Alex runs cold. The boarding lodge is heated, but I like to give him a little extra warmth anyway, so every night ...
03/18/2025

Sweet Alex runs cold. The boarding lodge is heated, but I like to give him a little extra warmth anyway, so every night before lights out, I tuck him in with a bunch of blankets. I think he likes it.

More muzzle stuff.Did you know that teaching your dog to put the muzzle on is only part of the muzzle training? They als...
03/18/2025

More muzzle stuff.

Did you know that teaching your dog to put the muzzle on is only part of the muzzle training? They also have to feel comfortable wearing it! And we need to continue to build those positive associations while wearing the muzzle.

We start with easy things. Can you take treats continuously while wearing your muzzle? Can you take treats frequently but not continuously while wearing the muzzle? Can you think enough while wearing the muzzle to perform easy behaviors, like sit or nose targeting? Can you relax on your mat with duration while wearing your muzzle?

Relaxing on the mat is where we left off with our muzzle training today. Tomorrow, we'll see if he can go for a walk in the woods with his muzzle.

For now, if the muzzle causes him any amount of stress, it gets immediately removed. And while he's wearing it, we ONLY do super fun things. There may be a time that he needs it for a less fun thing, like examining an injury at the vet one day, but that will only be one stressful moment among hundreds of good moments in which the muzzle is used, so the muzzle will never become a cue that bad things are happening.

I *think* I just completed all my tax prep and sent everything to my CPA.  I always feel like I've climbed Mt. Everest w...
03/15/2025

I *think* I just completed all my tax prep and sent everything to my CPA. I always feel like I've climbed Mt. Everest when I finish, but the views definitely aren't as good.

Going through all my financials reminded me how awesome my network of friends, colleagues, and clients is. Evacuating from the Park Fire while I had a full lodge of boarding dogs was no easy task. It was stressful and expensive. I was committed to spending whatever was necessary to keep the dogs in my care well and safe, but thanks to you, all my expenses were covered, and I was able to leave a really nice kennel for Becca Hintz of Wintegrity K9 as a thank you for her incredible hospitality, driving a lot of dogs up and down the north state, and for otherwise jumping through hoops to help us out. She now uses that kennel for her own training business and has a secure place to put dogs in any emergency.

While there was plenty of stress related to wondering if my home and business were going to be standing when I got back, keeping my boarding dogs safe and minimizing their stress, the logistics of travel with 6 reactive dogs, keeping clients happy while I cared for their dogs during a natural disaster, and remembering to actually take care of myself by doing basic things like eating meals, the one thing I didn't have to worry about was money. There are no words that can possibly express how grateful I am that money was not a worry during an otherwise very challenging time. And that was because of you.

So, in case you missed it the first time or I didn't say it enough already and also just because I want to say it again, thank you.

The fresh, powdery snow softens the landing for Alex's feet so that he can enjoy snow therapy, too. Go, Alex, buddy. GO!...
03/14/2025

The fresh, powdery snow softens the landing for Alex's feet so that he can enjoy snow therapy, too. Go, Alex, buddy. GO!!!

Alex generally doesn't like to stay outside unless the sun is out and there are sunbeams to bathe in. But a good snow will cause this guy to milk every moment of his outdoor playtime.

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Choice. Communication. Companionship.

Yes!Dog Training began several years ago with the rescue of an emaciated pit bull from a fighting ring bust. She was covered in open wounds and old scars. Shortly after her adoption, it became apparent that her wounds were not merely skin deep, and her behavioral issues were very challenging. She inspired my pursuit of knowledge in the subject of animal behavior. I became passionate about learning how to help her feel safe in this world, and that passion led me to want to help other dogs and their humans live in harmony. So I became a professional dog trainer. Certified as a Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner, I spent 5 years as a trainer and behavior consultant at a high-volume daycare, boarding, and training facility prior to forming Yes!Dog, Inc, through which I offered private training and trained dogs for commercial advertising. I also worked as the Manager of Behavior and Training for the East Bay SPCA prior to moving Yes!Dog, Inc. up to Shingletown, CA to build my own board and train facility at Lupine Lodge. I’ve had the privilege of working with thousands of pet dogs from puppies to seniors of all varieties of breeds and mixes. The Yes!Dog method is to empower dogs through choice, to train with clear communication while learning to understand what the dog is telling us, and to enjoy the resultant companionship. All of our training is done using positive, science-based, and effective methods. Choice. Communication. Companionship. These are the 3 C’s of great dog training.