Today….. I told someone that they should get good at picking pockets. Yeah. That’s the kind of advice you get from me. See……. We took their dog on an “Out & About” training session. It was on a busy walking trail in Amesbury, Mass. There were walkers. Bikes. Kids. Kids in strollers. And dogs……. Several dogs. Dogs stopped on the …
Tug…….. Ivan Balabanov Melted My Brain.
Man…… I took a trip to visit Ivan Balabanov like 8 months ago. And that set off a direction of thought or study, that made my brain melt. I realized that I had been looking at tug with a weak microscope. Like…… If you have a weak microscope you can see to a certain depth. But, if you get a …
Jaxxy’s Transition To A Spring Pole
What do I do in a Blizzard? Transition Jax to Spring Pole! Lot of people tug. Not that many people use Spring Poles. The way old school dogmen used them didn’t involve control. Let them at it….. Pry them off. All conditioning and gameness. No control. But, I think they can be used as an obedience reward. Just like tug. …
Faith In Handler Drill
I wrote about this a long time ago. Back then I was calling it “Reverse BAT”. But, now I call it the Faith In Handler Drill. After that article, a ton of people have asked me to demonstrate it. Here’s a video of me showing to a dog/handler for the first time.
Jaxxy Doing Work.
This video has two purposes. Well, 3. One is celebrating my little idiot. God dammit I love that dog. Two, is showing progress to anyone following his little story. And, last, but not least….. Showing training doesn’t have to feel like this piece of shit chore. There was only about a third more of these activities that weren’t on film. …
Why “Break Sticks” Are Shit.
If you’re a dog trainer with an interest in rehabbing dog aggression…… Please. Throw the “Break Stick” away. Look, I know why you have them. It’s a logical mistake to make. You want to break up a fight that involves at least one committed dog. (a concern you NEED to address if you work in rehab). Well….. Who has the …
Spring Pole: Good Or Bad?
I’ve gotten this question a few times in the last couple of days. Thought I’d share my response here since a few other people may have the same question. Enjoy: Question: “What are your thoughts on people who tie a tug and let the dog hang? ……..What’s the purpose?” (old school shot of a tree Spring Pole) My Answer: “Back …
Those “Graduation” Moments
This is Firkin. She used to be super reactive. If anyone listens to the Podcast…. She’s the one that snapped the long line and went Zombie style on the door I narrowly exited. But that was then……. THIS. Is now. This was outside a Starbucks in a strip mall. There’s a grocery store, a pet store, and a children’s bus …
Another Second Chance Dog
“Pack Structure”
I’ve been wanting to write this for a while but……. Every time I try, I feel like my head will explode. Giving it another shot: Pack structure. When, I got into dog training it was to help troubled dogs. To that end everyone was talking about various ways to enforce what many times is referred to as “Pack Structure”. There …