Dog Training Johannesburg

09/07/2026

There are 3 types of trainers..

1. The Intimidator - These trainers use force, intermidation and deprivation. They typically dont see great life results and jeopardise relationships.
2.Use only reward based methods and focus on the basic commands, sit, down, come.
3.At The Smart Dog we use the power of GAMES to inspire great choices, relationships and whatever the owner wants to achieve to happen in Real Life.

07/07/2026

" I have been refused access until I explained legislation and legal liability".

Guide and Assistance dog handlers deserve to access public space and receive regularservices without justifuing their journey.

Help support the righst of Guide and Assistance Dog Handlers.

Learn more about working Assistance and Guide Dogs here:

https://smartservicedog.co.za/the-importance-of-access-for-assistance-dogs/

Feel free to contact us on :

Email [email protected]
Whatsapp 0812704672
Office 0878221144

As we celebrate International Assistance Dog Week, it’s the perfect moment to reflect on the life-changing impact of assistance dogs—and the importance

06/07/2026

Mental Health Wednesday:

July 8th at 9am
The Els for Autism South Africa foundation(who is one of our sponsors) is hosting a 3-day autism education workshop and teacher training in Durban (Queensburgh). Designed for educators, parents, and professionals, the event provides practical strategies and connection Els for Autism South Africa Facebook.

Event Details:
Dates: July 6 to July 8
Location: 64 Pioneer Road, Northdene, Queensburgh, Durban [1]
Itinerary & Costs:
Teacher Training: July 6–7 (R250) Els for Autism South Africa Facebook
Parent Workshop: July 8 (R150)

04/07/2026

👉Boundary testing peaks between 4-8 months and feels exhausting because you’re constantly intervening. Here’s what you can do without turning everything into a battle:

✅Block access instead of correcting behavior. Couch surfing? Close the living room door or use an X-pen when you can’t watch. Counter surfing? Nothing goes on counters for the next few months. Shoes getting grabbed? They live in closets now. This isn’t giving up it’s preventing your puppy from practicing unwanted patterns hundreds of times.

👉If you say “off” from across the room and they ignore you, you taught them that distance optional. Only give cues when you can walk over and guide them through it if needed.

👉The testing phase lasts approximately 4 months (from 4-8 months old). Puppies who get inconsistent feedback during this window often become adults who ignore cues selectively. The pattern they practice now is what sticks long-term.

👉This phase ends when they learn which patterns produce reliable consequences. Make it easy on both of you control the environment, because it will dictate their behavior!

👉Day one Puppy Course
👉Adolescent Reset Course
👉Breeder/Trainer Course
✅NEW...Calm & Capable Course
All at https://thesmartdog.co.za

03/07/2026

👉Two things that make regression worse: stopping training completely because “they’re not ready,” or drilling behaviors harder to “get them back.”

👉If you stop training for 2-3 months waiting for regression to pass, behaviors fade from lack of practice. Your puppy doesn’t just pause development, they’re still learning, just not what you want them to learn. The gap between where they were and where they are widens.

👉If you push harder, longer sessions, more corrections, frustration when they fail, you create stress that makes regression last longer. Stress interferes with learning.

👉Puppies in stress aren’t absorbing information; they’re just trying to get through it.

👉How to know if you’re pushing too hard? Your puppy avoids training, shuts down (stops offering behaviors, goes still), or gets frantic (can’t settle, overly aroused). These are signs to simplify, not intensify.

👉What “good enough” looks like, they’re engaged during sessions even if responses are slower. They recover from mistakes quickly instead of shutting down. Behaviors work in easy contexts even if they don’t generalize yet. You’re maintaining what exists, not perfecting it.

👉This regression phase typically lasts 4-8 weeks if you manage it well. Longer if you oscillate between giving up and pushing too hard. The goal is consistent, low-pressure practice that keeps skills active without demanding perfection.

👉Day one Puppy Course
👉Adolescent Reset Course
👉Breeder/Trainer Course
✅NEW...Calm & Capable Course
All at https://thesmartdog.co.za

02/07/2026

👉Adult teeth start erupting at 12-16 weeks, but most puppies don’t finish teething until 6-8 months. That’s potentially 4 months of discomfort, which is why management matters more than training during this phase.

👉What people don’t realize is sometimes baby teeth don’t fall out on their own. Check your puppy’s mouth weekly. If you see an adult tooth coming in next to a baby tooth that hasn’t fallen out, call your vet. Retained baby teeth can cause alignment issues and root infections.

👉How to tell if it’s teething vs habit, teething chewing is focused on hard surfaces (furniture legs, baseboards) and happens in bursts when discomfort spikes. Habit chewing is more random, soft things, paper, whatever’s accessible and happens regardless of pain levels.

👉The destruction your puppy practices during teething can outlast the physical need. If they spend 4 months chewing baseboards because you didn’t manage the environment, that becomes a learned behavior even after their gums stop hurting. Gates and supervision now prevent habits later.

✅Frozen items (carrots, green beans, Kongs with their food) provide relief while giving them something appropriate. The cold numbs sore gums. Make it easy for them to succeed.

👉Day one Puppy Course
👉Adolescent Reset Course
👉Breeder/Trainer Course
✅NEW...Calm & Capable Course
All at https://thesmartdog.co.za

01/07/2026

🎉🐾 Happy 15th Anniversary to Smart Dog Behaviour School! 🐾🎉

Today, we celebrate 15 wonderful years of helping dogs and their families build stronger bonds through training, understanding, and trust.

We would like to extend our heartfelt thanks to all of our clients, supporters, and the community who have been part of this incredible journey. Your trust, loyalty, and encouragement over the years have made this milestone possible, and we are truly grateful for every dog and family that has walked this path with us.

Thank you for being part of our story. Here's to celebrating the achievements of the past 15 years and looking forward to many more to come!

🐕❤️✨

01/07/2026

👉Between 4-6 months, your confident puppy might suddenly become hesitant or reactive. They bark at the mailman they used to ignore, hesitate at familiar doorways, or refuse to approach people they would have greeted last week. This is the second fear period a normal developmental phase where puppies make long-term decisions about what’s safe.

✅What to do:
Let them observe from a distance rather than forcing interaction
Don’t push them toward things they’re worried about to “prove they’re fine”
Avoid scheduling vet appointments or grooming during obvious fear spikes
Keep their world predictable, this isn’t the time for big new experiences

Respect hesitation without reinforcing panic
This typically lasts 2-3 weeks. Well-socialized puppies still go through this they just recover faster.

👉This overlaps with teething pain, which makes puppies more irritable and less tolerant overall. Physical discomfort lowers their threshold for everything.
Your job isn’t to force confidence it’s to prevent bad experiences while they work through this phase. It will pass.

👉Day one Puppy Course
👉Adolescent Reset Course
👉Breeder/Trainer Course
👍NEW...Calm & Capable Course
All at https://thesmartdog.co.za

30/06/2026

👉Four months is when your puppy stops being a baby and starts becoming a dog.

👉They’re more capable, more independent, and significantly more opinionated! Recall that worked perfectly at 12 weeks suddenly needs more reinforcement. Things they were confident about might make them hesitant now. The chewing you thought would taper off actually intensifies because adult teeth are coming in and they have more jaw strength.

👉This isn’t regression, it’s progression. Your puppy is growing up, which means behaviors need to be actively maintained instead of passively existing.

👉👉The second fear period (4-6 months) overlaps with this age. Even well-socialized puppies become more cautious about new experiences. They’re making long term decisions about what’s safe versus what’s threatening. This is normal development, not a sign you did something wrong.

👉Recall becomes harder because the environment is more reinforcing than it used to be. At 10 weeks, staying near you was instinctive. At 4 months, exploring that interesting smell or chasing that squirrel feels more valuable. If you haven’t been building voluntary check-ins and practicing recall in gradually increasing distractions, this is when the gaps show up.

👉The good news is everything you built from 8-16 weeks still exists. The foundation is there. It’s just being tested by normal developmental changes. When behaviors feel less reliable, that’s information, not failure. It tells you where to add more practice, higher value rewards, or better management.

✅This is the age where consistent effort matters most. Puppies who seem “perfect” at 12 weeks often struggle at 16 weeks not because the training failed, but because easy conditions made average work look exceptional. Now you’re seeing what actually needs reinforcement.

Four months isn’t a crisis. It’s a checkpoint. Adjust your approach, stay consistent, and recognize that growing up means behaviors need active maintenance not just one time teaching.

✅For age-appropriate training strategies, visit https://thesmartdog.co.za

17/06/2026

➡️Sixteen weeks is your last checkpoint before the real work begins. At 4 months, hormones start shifting, the secondary fear period window opens, and selective hearing becomes a lifestyle. Everything you built gets tested.

➡️What a 16 week old puppy is capable of doing is processesing new things without falling apart. Will tolerate necessary handling even when they’d rather not. Comes back when called in low distracting situations, has learned that mouthing hard ends games, and can hold simple behaviors through mild distraction for a few seconds.
That’s the bar. Not a perfect down stay in a dog park. Not reliable recall past a squirrel. Not calm leash walking through downtown. Those are adolescent phase goals that take months more work.

➡️If you’re looking at that list and seeing gaps, you’re not behind you just know what to prioritize over the next two months. Whatever’s shaky at 16 weeks will completely fall apart under adolescent pressure unless you shore it up now.
The patterns people fight at 8 months ignoring recall, jumping on everyone, losing their mind on leash started as small cracks at 16 weeks that never got addressed. Don’t wait until they’re 40 pounds and the behavior is entrenched. Fix it while it’s still manageable.

➡️Also, give yourself credit. You navigated the fear imprint period, built a socialization foundation, taught bite inhibition during the window, and got them to 16 weeks without creating major problems. That’s harder than most people realize.

➡️What comes next is consolidation and refinement. Adolescence will test everything. Make sure what you built can hold.

✅Follow smartdog puppyprogram for confusion-free training

✅Day One Puppy Course
✅Adolescent Reset Course
✅Calm & Capable Course (teaching how to be alone)
✅Breeder/Trainer Course
✅FREE mini course: Should I Get a Puppy?
https://thesmartdog.co.za