Salty Dog Training, LLC.

09/12/2022

How to create resource guarding. I come across this often- owners thinking they are doing the right thing by sticking their hands in their dog's food, taking the bowl away while the dog is eating, etc.

Now let me ask you this... if someone else had total control over your meals (when you ate, where you ate, how much you ate), how would you feel if while you were eating they stood over you with their hands in your food and kept taking the plate away? You probably wouldn't appreciate it very much. Yet we expect our dogs to respect our space and time while we eat our food, right?

I'd like to ask anyone reading this post to give your dogs the same respect while they eat. Leave them to enjoy their meals in peace and quiet. Don't use this as a time to assert your authority over them. Don't let your children climb on them and play with their food. Just let them eat!

Some things you can do if you still feel the need are sit near them and play on your phone, toss them treats while they eat, talk to them, or walk around nearby while they eat.

IMPORTANT **** This applies to dogs that are not already resource guarding. If your dog is resource guarding please seek out the help of a trainer! Salty Dog Training can help! Send me a message or text 475-244-4905 to set up an in home consultation

06/09/2022

One of my #1 dog tips... resist the human urge to micromanage your dogs!

Would I have preferred my puppy to not eat a mulchy duck neck? YES! ...Was it bothering him? Not one bit😂

So I decided to watch him carry it off and enjoy his treat how he saw fit to enjoy it without interference from me based on my preference to not eat grassy, dirty food 🤷🏼‍♀️

Pick and choose your battles. Let your dogs be dogs. Let them think creatively and solve problems on their own when it's safe for them to do so. Enjoy watching them think and process the world around them in their own way.

Disclaimer....I'm not saying it is ok to let your dog eat mouthfuls of mulch, the small amount that stuck to the duck neck was not going to hurt my puppy and most of it fell off during the process!

06/04/2022

Its been a dramatic morning in this house😅 Just wanted to take a moment share this fun new behavior my puppy Goose has developed. He has decided it is no longer satisfactory that he has to eat his breakfast alone in his pen and throws a tantrum when I walk away after setting his bowl down. All of my animals are separated during mealtimes and this is something I am not willing to negotiate with him about so we are working through it.

My main point in sharing is to let whoever needs to hear this know that: dog trainers deal with the same behaviors as everyone else, even in the "teenage" phase. You are not alone and your early training was not for nothing. The education you have given your dog earlier in life is still in there somewhere... lost among the other thoughts and emotions your dog is dealing with during this stage of development which can be likened to the teenage phase in young humans. This stage can be just as frustrating and confusing for our young adolescent dogs as it is for us.

Now is the time to take a deep breath and come up with a plan before reacting, remain patient and understanding, continue to reinforce behaviors you do want more often than you react to what you don't want, keep working every day on molding the dog you want to spend a lifetime with, and try not to take your dog so seriously! I find it helpful to laugh at how ridiculous Goose's tantrums can be at times.

If you power through this stage and continue your training, one day you will wake up to realize that it has been weeks/ months that these kinds of outbursts haven't occurred and you are closer and closer to having a well mannered adult dog. Now is not the time to give up or throw in the towel because you are frustrated! Keep a level head. clearly communicate your expectations, and reach out if you need support! I will always be here for my clients...even if you just need a moment to cry because it's been a tough puppy day🐾

05/16/2022

FYI! The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued a Warning Letter to Sunshine Mills, Inc., of Red Bay, Alabama due to significant safety violations. Violations included elevated levels of aflatoxin (mold) among others. To see the full report follow the link. To get notified of pet food recalls you can sign up by following the link below as well.

The following brands are produced by Sunshine Mills. Due to the incomplete nature of the FDA’s report, there’s no way to know which brands are linked to this FDA warning.

Evolve
Nurture Farms
Triumph
Veterinary Select
Paula Deen Home Cookin’
Meaty Treats
Sportsman’s Pride
Hunter’s Special
Pup Corn Plus
Pet Life
Crunchin’ Bones
Dr. Dental Fresh Chews

Complete details of the 2022 Sunshine Mills Warning Letter posted by FDA and reported by the editors of The Dog Food Advisor.

05/05/2022

You are your dog's voice. Advocate for them! Other peoples opinions don't matter. Their disappointment at not getting to pet your dog doesn't matter. Standing up for your dog's boundaries is what matters 🐾

My dog doesn't want to say hi.

Period.

Full stop.

No, it doesn't matter that your dog is friendly.
No, we don't care that you've owned dogs your entire life.
No, I don't owe you an explanation for why he needs space.
No, I don't need to defend my dog's boundaries to satisfy you.

My dog needs space. That's a complete sentence. That's all you need to know.

It's your responsibility as a human to hear that and respect that. There could be 100 different reasons why I am making this request - those reasons don't matter.

Please respect our space. Respect our words. Respect our boundaries.

My dog doesn't want to say hi.

03/14/2022

Yes to this.

03/12/2022

There are 3 D's in dog training: distance, duration, and distraction. When working on new behaviors with your dog, try not to work on all 3 D's at one time. There is no rush! First work on distance then work on increasing duration in a quiet, distraction free environment (bathrooms or kitchens are a great starting point). Once your dog is showing that they understand what you are asking, start slowly increasing distractions. I always like to start the "distraction" phase by moving from inside the house to the backyard. Remember, what may seem like a small change to you can be a huge change for your dog! Start small and let your dog tell you when they are ready for higher levels of difficulty.

Also remember that dogs need to be taught to respond to commands in different contexts. Just because your dog knows sit inside the house, does not mean they will automatically be able to demonstrate an understanding of the same command in your yard, at the park, or in a store. Get out with your dogs and work on those behaviors so that you can go anywhere together! As always, I am here to help you and your dog on your training journey. Contact today to schedule an in home consultation or to discuss your training goals!

"Even high value treats aren't working!" or "He knows this behavior inside, he is just being stubborn!"

Often times when we think these things it is because the dog doesn't know the behavior as well as we thought he did. He isn't a bad dog, he just needs some more practice.

After building a behavior in a low-distraction environment, we need to work on building the 3Ds Distance, Distraction, and Duration to help our dog learn to generalize a behavior. Only then can we have a behavior that is functional in the real world.

03/11/2022

03/11/2022

02/03/2022

Goose is finally playing with his buddy Finn and not just hiding behind me! He's a big chicken, so our training has focused more on confidence building and him decompressing from everything he went through early in life instead of me pressuring him to learn a bunch of commands right away. There is no real timeline when it comes to teaching dogs new things. There are certain timetable early in a dog's life where they are more receptive to learning, socializing, etc. but that does not mean you force them to reach those milestones if they are not ready. Your puppy doesn't have to learn sit by x age, stay by x age, etc. If they have other more important needs that need to be met first for the other stuff to be effective and fun then that is their timeline. I find this happens more with rescues, young or old. Dont unintentionally project onto your new dog your expectations for them to be like your last or current dog, because they are not the other dog. Rather than pressure your dog to meet your expectations for them, pressure yourself to respect what your dog is telling you they need from you and work at their pace. Most importantly remember training should be fun for all involved💛

Photo cred: Darlene Smith

01/29/2022

12/17/2021