Happy Holidays

Whatever you celebrate…… Enjoy it! A lot of people are either having guests over. Or are leaving their pets at home for longer than usual while they go somewhere. If you have a “difficult” dog, this can be daunting. I’m very familiar with the urge to cancel holiday plans because it just doesn’t seem worth the “dog” issues. But, over …

Can’t Make An Omelet Without…….

I’ve dedicated a ton of energy over the past 2 decades to change the public perception of the vastly misunderstood American Pit Bull Terrier. I’ve been responsible for changing the mind of countless people. I’ve personally been credited with a dozen or so adoptions that would NOT have gone with a Bully breed, had they not met my dogs. And …

Is Language Ruining Our Ability To Communicate?

We talk too damn much. Really……. That’s the point of this article. I have two main interests. Dogs, and Martial Arts/Self-Defense. These seem ridiculously unrelated on the surface…. But, in reality, they aren’t. I’ll explain: This is how I think animal communication goes. And yes…. Humans are animals. 1. Calming/Avoidance Signals 2.  Stillness 3. Pressure 4. Sound 5. Touch 6. …

Canine Good Citizens

We took Milo and Mabel to the AKC’s Canine Good Citizen test at Finish Forward Dogs, and they passed with FLYING COLORS!!!! For Milo, it was no biggie. He’s kind of one of those easy dogs, that just does things well. He’s a bit of an overexcited greeter, but no fears. No aggression. But…… Mabel, is a different story. Outright …

Economics….. And Dogs?

First…. Just in case you don’t know…. Economics isn’t just the study of money, and it’s effect. A great book called Freakonomics convinced me to stop being nauseous at the though of economics. Anyway… What the hell does this have to do with dogs? Well, there’s a rule in Econ called the Rule Of Unintended Consequences. Yes, it’s pretty self …

New Toy For A Maine Winter!

Oh yeah! I got me some sliding snowshoes!!!!! These bad boys are a cross between Backcountry skis, and Snowshoes. In my zeal for bad ass dog activities under ANY circumstances, I’ve run into some snags with the tapering period before and after the snow season. My kicksled, is awesome for when it’s been snowing regular. But, if you hit patches …

Conversational Leash Work

Tyler Muto is a trainer out of New York, that I Really like. He has a technique that he calls “Conversational Leash Work”. It’s very cool. It’s very gentle. And he uses a Prong Collar. Wait….. What? Gentle use of a Prong. How’s that supposed to work? I’ll let him explain it: Pretty interesting stuff. He’s using -R, and a …