Canine Connection LLC

11/03/2026

If you need one of these (PRONG collars, NOT Martingales, for all of you looking for a fight in your comments below) to train your dog to walk on a loose leash, you need to find a qualified trainer who has "tools" in their toolbox that don't involve aversion. Learn to train your dog without pain, discomfort, or fear, and you can be proud of yourself and your dog with nothing to HIDE.

11/03/2026

How to Select a Trainer: Recommendations published by the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior (AVSAB)

11/02/2026

***IMPORTANT*** Why in the world is this even a question in 2026, and why is the WSJ publishing such garbage? When exactly did science and responsible journalism die? You won't be able to click on the WSJ article and read it unless you have a subscription, but you can listen to an introduction to the article by clicking on the headphones icon at the top of the article: https://www.wsj.com/lifestyle/tough-love-vs-nonstop-treatsthe-civil-war-over-dog-training-54dd190a I listened to enough to know I didn't want my blood pressure to rise any further, but next time I'm in the library I may dare to read the stupid thing. Niki Tudge, Pet Professional Guild, has written a rebuttal. https://www.petprofessionalguild.com/barks/barks-magazine-blog/the-ultimate-irony-of-the-wall-street-journals-headline-proclaiming-a-vicious-war-that-is-getting-nastier-by-the-day/

by Niki Tudge

11/02/2026

Don't be deceived - fees that fall way out of range of these average fees do not indicate superior service, but they are a common way in the dog training industry to make the public believe that the service is superior to what is offered by other businesses. Dog training is an unregulated industry, and companies that lack substance often employ this tactic to look elitist. You should recognize that when you see a highly qualified, certified trainer charging modest fees, that's a true deal you should grab! Likewise, when you see extremely high fees in the range of thousands of dollars, that should raise a red flag! ~Cindy

11/02/2026

Hand signals. A bit of a thorn in the side to me.

Not infrequently, I hear people proudly report that a dog they owned or knew, or a dog that someone else has or had, was taught to respond to hand signals. It's often presented as if this were an achievement representing a higher level of training. It really isn't.

Let me explain.

Dogs are very astute observers of movement. It should go without saying that their primary means of communication, with people as well as with other dogs, is nonverbal. They can learn words, and there has been fascinating research in recent months and years about how dogs perceive and process language.

But verbal language is not their primary means of communication. Dogs are, after all, nonverbal creatures. They communicate primarily through body language, movement, posture, facial expressions, and other visual and olfactory signals.

Think about it this way: We humans can learn sign language, but it isn't our natural first line of communication. We are primarily verbal creatures who communicate through spoken and written words. Dogs are essentially the opposite. We shouldn't be surprised that they can readily interpret visual signals. In fact, that's what they are naturally equipped to do.

Since dogs are such careful observers of movement, it's easy for them to notice patterns and movements and assign meaning to them. Humans, on the other hand, tend to be much less aware of our own subtle movements, particularly when we're talking. We may inadvertently gesture, shift our weight, move our hands, or change our posture while giving a verbal cue. The dog notices these things, even when we don't realize we're doing them.

For this reason, good training starts by remaining quiet and minimizing our movements until we get precisely the behavior we want.

How do we get the behavior we want without coaching the dog through it? Through reinforcement. We use food rewards to positively reinforce the behavior we want to see repeated. What is reinforced is more likely to be repeated.

Why food? That's a topic for another post, but briefly, food meets a biological need and is therefore naturally reinforcing. Food delivered following a behavior increases the likelihood that the behavior will be repeated. It can also be delivered in discrete amounts in rapid succession, which facilitates learning.

Once the dog has learned what we want to see repeated through reinforcement, we add a verbal cue. The cue tells the dog the name of the behavior he has just learned.

Why don't we teach the cue at the same time we're teaching the behavior? Until the dog learns what to do through reinforcement, a verbal cue is just background noise. We also want to make sure the dog is performing the goal behavior exactly as we want before we give that behavior a name, for obvious reasons.

This results in what we call "clean" training: a dog who clearly understands what to do and what the behavior he has been taught is called.

Once the dog has learned the verbal cue, we can teach him a nonverbal cue as well. But best practice is to teach the verbal cue first, then introduce the nonverbal cue as an additional way to communicate the same instruction.

Where a lot of people get the idea of putting behaviors on a nonverbal cue, such as a hand signal, is at least partly through the process of luring. Luring involves holding a piece of food in front of the dog's nose to guide him into a position, such as a sit. The natural transition is to then use that same hand movement as a signal to sit.

But hand signals have limitations. They must be performed consistently and precisely, and the dog must be looking at you to see the signal. Subtle differences in movement, positioning, or even the angle of your body can affect how the dog interprets what you're asking. They can also be inadvertently incorporated into other behaviors, creating confusion.

In other words, just because a dog can learn to respond to a hand signal doesn't mean it's necessarily the clearest or most reliable way to communicate with him.

The place I find nonverbal cues particularly impressive is canine musical freestyle, where dogs perform choreographed movements on cue in response to sometimes very subtle movements or even the placement of objects. That's a different application altogether, and it can be quite remarkable.

But for general purposes, and particularly for basic behaviors, verbal cues are the preferred way to train a dog.

Remember, just because something looks impressive to us doesn't necessarily mean it's an impressive accomplishment from the dog's perspective. Dogs are already exceptionally skilled at reading nonverbal communication. That's what they do.

© 2026 Cindy Ludwig, Canine Connection LLC
Serving southwest Missouri and beyond

11/02/2026

This is my late dog, Opal, a Golden Retriever of many talents. Many of you remember her.

She was "career changed" out of a training program with a large service dog company I used to work for and I was offered the opportunity to adopt her for free with the condition that I train her to be a demonstration dog for the company.

I had 6 mos. to get 'er done, and if I couldn't train her, according to ADI (Assistance Dogs International) standards by the deadline, I had to pay for her.

This company had very high standards, even though they used force-based training methods. None of the puppies in Opal's litter were deemed suitable, even though they came out of the company's own breeding program. Opal was the only pup who was given a chance, but she didn't last long.

She was deemed unsuitable for training and placement due to her exuberant personality and lack of cooperation with force-based training methods. Opal had a streak of "intelligent disobedience," which I think is what made her attractive to Guide Dogs for the Blind. Guide dogs need this characteristic, and if I wanted Opal, I had to decide quickly or lose the opportunity.

I accepted the challenge and finished training Opal in well under 6 months. She passed all the testing criteria, and although Opal had balked at the company's attempt to train her to retrieve using a "force fetch," I was able to train her to retrieve virtually anything using force-free positive reinforcement techniques.

Opal went on to enjoy her new career as a performance dog, not only as a demonstration service dog, but also as a member of the Badger Kennel Drill Team, a demo dog for a workshop I did for the Musical Dog Sport Association, a teacher dog in my work with dogs with behavior issues, and more!

Canine Connection LLC offers group classes, private lessons, and behavior consultations for fear, anxiety, and aggression, as well as assistance with mobility, hearing and other assistance dog training.

Cindy Ludwig, M.A. (Adult Education), B.S., R.N.
Certified Professional Dog Trainer (CPDT-KA)
Karen Pryor Academy Certified Training Partner (KPA-CTP)
Owner, Canine Connection LLC

Serving the Springfield, MO area & beyond
417-597-4295

Opal is a "career changed" dog from a service dog program who could...

11/01/2026

11/01/2026

Today in the Advanced CGC and Urban Canine Class we practiced loose leash walking/heeling, waiting at doors, and long down/stays. Everyone did great!