Dogs Off-Leash in On-Leash Areas – Problem?

I remember when my wife and I got our first dog and I was just entering into Dog Training. Our neighbourhood in Calgary had a nice pathway system next to it and it was away from any major roads. I used to take our dog off-leash in this on-leash area so that he could have a better run.

I remember one evening it was getting a bit darker and a guy was coming around the corner and our dog went running over to him and you the guy froze up and you could tell he was a bit scared. He then sternly said “Put your dog on leash!” I replied “He is friendly.” I thought what kind of a jerk doesn’t like dogs. You are in the wrong city if you don’t like dogs. All I could think about was how wrong he was and that it should be fine that I had our dog off-leash since he was friendly.

Years later I now work with a lot of people who are trying to rehabilitate dogs. They can have fear issues, fear aggression issues or dominance aggression issues toward other dogs. In order to rehabilitate these dogs they need to practice in the presence of other dogs while they focus on their owners. They need to build trust and see that their owner will keep them safe. I tell people to go near pathways where dogs are required to be on-leash to practice.

I receive frequent e-mails from these clients explaining how tough it is to train their dog because there are so many other dogs that come running over to them and the dog they are trying to rehabilitate. I would then tell them “Oh, just make sure you are in an area where dogs are required to be on-leash.” They tell me they are in an area where dogs are required to be on-leash.

These clients may be working with dogs that have certain aggression problems whether it is fear or dominance based. Other people’s dogs will go running up and their owners will say “It’s ok he’s friendly.” My clients will reply “My dog is not! Please call your dog back.”

There are so many dogs out there that are super good with other dogs. Many people their entire lives have never seen a dog with a really bad problem. It is easy to start assuming that all other dogs are just as good with other dogs as their dog is.

Thes people that let their dogs roam free in on-leash areas love their dogs and they love other dogs. They just want to give them the best exercise and life that they can.

I am not entirely opposed to having a dog off-leash in an on-leash area but what I think would be better for all is to assume that other people don’t always want your dog coming up or other dogs may not always be good with other dogs. If you do want to have your dog roam off-leash in an on-leash area it would be best to do so when there are no other dogs or people around. If you do see another person or dog you should call your dog back to you and assume that your dog should not engage that other dog or person unless that other person asks if you want to let them engage or if they can pet your dog.

Some of these dogs that are roaming off-leash don’t have the best of obedience. People often find they listen good enough and will come back in a bit after they call them which may be after they went up to greet another dog or person. They also don’t pull like crazy on leash if they are allowed to roam free which makes it more enjoyable for a walk. If this is the case these people may want to invest a bit of time in training their dog to walk nicely on leash and have top notch recall. That would greatly help out the people who are trying to rehabilitate their dogs.

You see the people who let dogs roam off-leash in on-leash areas and the people who are trying to rehabilitate dogs and give them a second chance both love dogs. They are the same people down to heart. However they can butt heads because the people who are trying to rehabilitate want the other dogs to be on-leash and the people who let their dogs roam off-leash think the other people didn’t do a good enough job at this or that and that is why their dog is the way they are.

It helps to think of this from a human example. A dog that is fear aggressive is a dog that has either had a bad encounter with another dog and turned fear aggressive or is a dog that didn’t encounter enough other dogs during their socialization period as a puppy (that doesn’t mean they have to go and play with a bunch of other dogs it just means they have to see a lot of other dogs while they focus on their handler). So let’s say it was a bad encounter they had with another dog. That would be the same thing as if you were mugged  and attacked by a random stranger. Now imagine after that you are out for a walk and all of these random strangers come running up to you. You can imagine that it would cause you a great deal of stress. If you are walking down a street and see hundreds or thousands of different people can you tell which one has been mugged or attacked before? Usually no, it can be really difficult to tell. The same would go for picking out dogs that have been attacked before.

In the case of Dominance Aggression these dogs are not afraid they just want to take out all other competition or hurt them bad enough to let those other dogs know not to mess with them. These are the dogs you really want to be careful around. Many people have not encountered these types of dogs before so from my own personal experience I will give you examples to know what they might be like. These are the types of dogs where I have received phone calls where the owner says my dog escaped the front door and almost ripped the back end off a dog going passed on a sidewalk. I don’t think the dog will make it, what should I do. Or where the neighbours dog got out and this person went to go and put that dog back in the neighbours yard and this person’s own dog escaped his yard and came and killed the dog right there on the street and the owner himself, a grown man, couldn’t stop it from happening. I could go on with more stories than there should be but just to educate people these dogs do exist. Luckily there aren’t many but they are out there. For your own dog’s safety you will want to ensure they are well trained and will come when called right away. I always ensure I know and trust the other dog first before I let our dogs encounter that dog.

So if you are the same as I was and thought dogs should be allowed to roam free because everyone should love dogs and if they don’t then there is something wrong with them. I ask you to put yourself into the shoes of others who are trying to give other dogs a second chance to have the same good quality of life that your dog has. Be courteous and set an awesome example. Show off how well your dog loves their life and how well trained they are. Some other people and dogs have had a rough go or a bad experience. We can do our part to ensure everyone can enjoy their walks and lives.

If you are like I was you can go about and make the necessary changes. If you have friends that do the same explain this to them as well. You have no idea how happy you will make people who are rehabilitating dogs if you keep your dog by your side. You should feel good about that. You have aided those dogs in their recovery and you have set an example for the other people and why they are doing what they do to achieve the same level that you yourself have achieved.

Assume this Mantra: My dog will stay with me by my side when encountering other dogs or people until they are requested to be met or engaged.

Thank you in advance for making the necessary changes. The good you are doing for other dogs and people will be far greater than you will ever know.

The Progression of Dog and Human

It has been interesting to watch the progression of Dog and Human over the last several hundred years. For hundreds of years humans have bred dogs to have specific drives, personalities and temperament to match the job required. In the last few decades it has become more popular to rescue dogs from all different mixes, personalities, temperaments and drives.

The way a dog used to be chosen and bred was through this process:

  1. Intended Job – What job do you need the dog to do?
  2. Temperament / Drive / Personality – Determine what would be the best temperament, drive and personality for that job.
  3. Breed Selectively – Take dogs with traits close to what you are looking for and breed them together until you achieve the desired natural temperament, drive and personality.
  4. Training is a piece of cake – Since they are naturally suited for this job they quite often require little to no training.
  5. Life is Peachy

The new process is more like this:

  1. What looks pretty? – Choose a dog based on what looks cute. This can be through a breeder or a rescue.
  2. Find out what natural temperament, drive and personality they have after they have been acquired.
  3. Contact a Trainer (some do fine as is and others require training)
  4. Try to have the natural temperament, drive and personality trained out of the dog. Essentially we are trying to fight Mother Nature’s Natural Recipe.

I am not sure what caused the shift from purpose to looks. I don’t know why a dog that wins breeding shows achieves higher prices than a dog that was bred properly for health and a specific job or task.

Another interesting change is the thought people have on rescuing a dog. You quite often hear people say “Why would I buy a dog from a breeder when there are so many rescue dogs looking for a home?” I can understand getting a rescue but I am not too sure about that statement. First a person would have to ask themselves “Why are there so many dogs that need to be rescued?” To me it seems there has been a lot of excessive breeding which can constitute poor breeding or mismatched homes for the dogs bred. If you have ever talked to a responsible breeder, this is what you will find: They have a list of people looking for a dog. They then screen those people to ensure they are the right match for that breed of dog. If they are not the right match then they do not receive a dog. The breeder then breeds accordingly to the supply required. So in essence if a person wants to get a rescue and not support breeding it seems as though they are only supporting the irresponsible breeders as those dogs get surrendered or they breed beyond their supply requirements. The responsible breeders carefully select forever homes for these dogs and have “no breeding contracts” signed so these dogs are not allowed to be bred. They also have in the contract that if circumstances change the dog comes back to the breeder and they find another properly matched home. I do find it very difficult to find a responsible breeder as more seem to be in it for the wrong reason than the right reason. In my opinion the right reason is breeding a dog for the family requirements which is generally these days a pet. If you want an example of a responsible breeder you should check out http://www.starstrucklabradors.com They are even approved by the Calgary Humane Society.

The reason I find these changes interesting is that it causes so many people a lot of grief, stress, frustration, money and sometimes ends relationships. If the order was switched back around to first and foremost choosing the job required of the dog and then selecting the dog from there it would make things go much more smoothly.

Every now and then I work with a client who has purchased a dog from a responsible breeder and I ask them the process in how they chose the dog. This is what they say:

  1. We decided what kind of dog we wanted as a pet. We wanted a nice temperament and eager to please dog that we can take camping or on trips with us.
  2. We then searched for a breeder that was responsible.
  3. We went to check out the puppies and we chose one that had a nice bond with us that wasn’t clawing all over us. They had a nice easy temperament.
  4. We then wanted to ensure that dog was trained properly so we researched trainers and came across your website. We really agreed with your philosophies and loved the video on your website and thought we want our dog to be like that.
  5. Here we are, ready to do the learning and the training. We want to spend time with our dog and ensure they are well trained.

I tell these people to tell everyone they know how they chose their dog. Tell them that a dog trainer who works with the worst of the worst for dog behavioural problems wants you to spread the word to as many people as possible on how to properly choose a dog. You guys nailed this 100%.

There are rescue dogs that can also be temperament tested. This is a bit harder as you don’t know what the parents were like. The other big issue if you are getting an older dog is to not know what their past experiences were like and what they have been socialized to. Properly socializing a puppy is an extremely important process to success with training.

Here is a common list of problems we deal with. They are so common that my wife can list what the problem is when a client phones and I can guess what the breed of dog is.

  • Border Collie – Chases anything with wheels and tries to bite tires or herd children or other dogs.
  • Rottweiler / Cane Corso / Mastiff – Too protective and won’t let people in the house or may try to lunge at people if they are too close on a walk.
  • Husky – Pulls on leash and is too hyper.
  • Pitbull – Aggressive with other dogs and is too hyper.
  • Terrier – Won’t listen and wants to chase squirrels and rabbits

The list is quite long but that will give you some ideas. These are all traits that have been bred into these dogs (some breeders have bred traits out of them so that is why it is important to know what the breeder breeds for).

Now you can see what the progression has been and how to better select the right dog for yourself. The message you should take from this is:

  1. Choose a dog based on the order it has been done in for hundreds of years and you will be happy.
  2. Choose a dog based on the wrong order and you can be setting yourself up for a whole lot of grief.

Happy Dog Training!

Pack / Herd / Flock Mentality

I am a big fan of nature. I love animals and I love watching their interactions. We just had a funny occurrence here between one of our chickens and one of our dogs.

Chickens, just like dogs have a Pack Mentality. Chickens have a “Pecking Order” (that is where the term Pecking Order comes from if you didn’t already know this). At mass produced chicken barns they clip the beaks off the end of the chickens. This is to ensure that they do not kill too many other chickens. When you have 10 chickens, the lowest ranking chicken may get pecked by 9 other chickens. When you have 10,000 chickens then they may get pecked by 9, 999 other chickens. Once a wound is opened up on a chicken the other chickens will continue to peck at that wound until the chicken is dead.

Back to the main story – Our Husky / Coyote cross named Enzo was eating an apple off our Apple Tree. Nine of our chickens were out running around the yard. The highest ranking chicken we have is named Mother Clucker. None of the other chickens mess with Mother Clucker. If a dog comes up to the chicken tractor she is the first one there ready to peck at them. As the Alpha chicken she has rights to more things than the other chickens. So Mother Clucker and all the other chickens love apples. Mother Clucker decides to strut over to Enzo as he is eating his apple. You will never see this instance in nature. A coyote cross or pure coyote would definitely stop eating his apple and go kill the chicken and eat the chicken. However since the chickens are a part of our pack (The dogs weren’t convinced they should be a part of the pack but since I am the leader and I said the chickens are a part of our pack the dogs agreed) order would have to be set out between everyone. Mother Clucker thinks she has the right to take from whoever she wants. So she went to take a piece of Enzo’s apple and he growled at her. She took another piece and Enzo went “Bark! Bark! Bark!” and Mother Clucker went running. Pack Structure was then once again restored. For those of you that don’t speak dog, Enzo said “Go get your own bleepin apple you bleepin chicken!”

I do love watching how animals that were never meant to be in a Pack together can then become pack members and not view each other as predator and prey. All animals as far as I know seem to have a hierarchy. When it comes to training dogs if you are not seen as the Alpha Dog then you will get no where with training. The only reason our dogs get along with chickens is that all of us have agreed that I am boss. Whatever the boss says, goes. Many people have tremendous difficulty training their dog because they do not provide clear leadership and rules. It is common to think that spoiling a dog will make them happy. This I find to be very untrue. The more you make a dog work and provide them with clear leadership the happier they are. You will also have a lot more peace within your Pack.

I would also like to take this time to remember our chicken Ginger who passed away recently. Ginger was a very sweet and calm tempered chicken. We miss you Ginger and will never forget you.

Introducing Young Children To Your Dog

We just recently had a 1.5 year old little girl come to our house. So far we have only had a little baby and a 5 year old boy come to our house. This is what we do to ensure success:

Pack Structure in Place – Dogs that know their position in the Pack do much better with children. Spoiling dogs leads to the biggest chance of bites and aggression toward children. Having a dog work and understand their rules goes a long way towards being good with children. It can be very difficult for a dog to view children as higher ranking and respect them. By following Pack Structure rules you really help to ensure success.

Premack Principle – Associating good things to children. When we had the 1.5 year old girl here we did a number of things to associate good things with her to our German Shepherd:

  1. Fetch – Delta loves fetch so we will play fetch while the little girl is present.
  2. Find your ball – Delta loves to find her ball in the house so we would play that game with the little girl running around.
  3. Tracking – We had the little girl and her mother go and hide on our property and off our property with Delta’s favorite ball. Delta loves to track after we taught her how to last summer. Delta found them in short order and her ball was tossed to her.

No Petting – Many people think you have to have the child pet the dog. This is one of the biggest chances for a dog to bite a child. All that you have to do to socialize a dog to a small child is play their favorite games next to the child. Delta was walking right passed the little girl playing games. The little girl could reach out and touch her but this was not necessary at all. This whole petting idea to socialize a dog can create a lot of problems.

When Delta was a puppy we would play a CD with the sounds of children playing while we played a game with Delta. I would also take Delta around schools and daycares on the opposite side of the fence just slightly away from the children playing and I would play games with Delta there and work on obedience.

I would also do things to Delta that a child likely would not do. I would practice playing a game and pull on her ears or her tail or legs. I would grab a handful of hair and pull a bit. We would also put Delta onto her back and wait for her to calm. I would hold her upside down and also cradle her like a baby. We proof a dog up for all of these things just in case a child does something to the dog it is not a surprise to that dog. However I always closely monitor dogs and children. If I cannot then we keep them separated.

Dogs can easily bite children. Some dogs are naturally good and some are naturally not good with children. The higher the pain tolerance a dog has the better they generally are with children. If a child grabs a handful of hair it won’t hurt a dog with a high pain tolerance. If you do this to a dog with low pain tolerance it can hurt the dog a lot which can elicit a bite.

Dogs that bite children are often put down. In almost all of these cases proper prevention and socialization can ensure harmony between dogs and children.

If you have a puppy or dog that you want to be excellent with children, give us a call. We would be more than happy to show you the proper techniques.

Profit Versus Your Dog

There are many excellent companies out there but one of the biggest problems is that they are often Profit driven. We as consumers have the ultimate say by voting with our money. It is our responsibility to speak up for what we truly want. Let me give you some examples in the Dog World:

Red Moon Pet Food is our preferred choice of kibble and it is what we recommend to anyone in search of a better food. Red Moon up until recently was fully customizable. Let’s list the things that will remain top quality in Red Moon:

  1. Human Grade food ingredients.
  2. Shipped to your house for free (included in the price of the food).
  3. No fillers (corn, grains, gluten)

However it used to be even more awesome when it was customizable:

  1. Supplement Selection – You could select which supplements you wanted (immune system booster, joint reviver, digestion aid, coat health, grass defender {keeps the urine from burning your grass})
  2. Made fresh the day you ordered it – Since it was made in micro batches it would be made fresh and shipped out that day or the next.
  3. Protein Selection – Higher for puppies and lower for adult dogs.
  4. Calorie Selection – High energy or low energy dog.
  5. Name Your Food – You could call it “Rover’s Food” and the food would show up at your door saying “Rover’s Food” on the side of the bag.

So what changed? Red Moon is an Alberta based company which has also expanded into the United States. There are several States that require pre-approved AAFCO labels. Since Red Moon is customizable there are a couple thousand different combinations which would need to be submitted. Red Moon decided to make a more standardized kibble (non-customizable) so that it could be shipped to all of these different states. This was done to help the company grow and increase profits and margins. It is still a good food and we continue to feed it to our dogs but it is not the super awesome food I once knew.

I have sent the owner several e-mails to help sort this problem out to try and get the best possible kibble back for all of the dogs out there. The owner has been very good at answering my questions and is a very nice person.

What are your thoughts? Do you prefer quality over a cheaper product?

Here is another example:

Vet Food often has some of the highest filler content I have seen in any dog food and it sells for a premium. I was told by a Veterinarian that when they go through Vet School, the company that sponsors their education on Pet Nutrition is Hills which is the same company that sells Science Diet. The Vet food often has specialized ingredients that really help a dog out with different health problems. Some I have seen even create more problems for the dog. So why not make a Vet food with no fillers? The most simple answer is profit.

I myself support top quality products whenever I can. If a company is putting people and nature before profit I always try to support them. The problem is that this can be expensive. When you are making less money you try to go the cheapest route possible. In my first years of Dog Training I know exactly what that is all about. If you have the extra dollars to support these companies I urge you to do so.  If you are on a budget you can help spread the word about companies that you want to support.

In our business there are several things I know that I could do to be able to produce more profit for us. The issue is that I know this is not what is best for our clients and their dogs so we do not implement these ideas. People often say we are crazy to offer additional support and coaching as well as any questions answered for the life of the dog. Sure this may take up more of our time but money plays a secondary role. It is true that like everyone else we need to make enough money to be able to allow us to live and continue to help other dogs. However we always ensure dogs are first in any decision we make. Any increase in profit is a bonus.

So my question is: Do you prefer to support companies that put people and nature first or profit? What do you think about Red Moon removing their customization? Would you prefer to see customization back in effect? The more people that do, the better. I will continue to ensure we look out for what is best for dogs. We would be very happy with any support we receive from you. Just voicing your opinion goes a long way.

Spring – An Excellent Time To Get A Puppy

Spring is one of the best times to get a puppy. This is the time that Nature would naturally produce Coyote and Wolf pups. There are natural reasons for this such as:

  • Easier to find food.
  • Weather is more pleasant – higher survivability rate.
  • Pups will have grown and learned how to hunt prior to a more difficult winter.

Here are some reasons why Spring is such a good time for people to get puppies:

  • You will be more likely to take a pup out to socialize them.
  • Pup will experience thunderstorms in their socialization period.

Proper Socialization is the absolute number one key for having the perfect dog. Improper socialization or lack of socialization ruins more dogs than any other variable. Here are the rules for Socialization as a puppy:

  1. Whatever a puppy has a good experience with they will tend to like later on.
  2. Whatever a puppy has a bad experience with they will tend to dislike later on.
  3. Whatever a puppy has no experience with they will tend to dislike later on.

Many little dogs end up with Fear Aggression problems because they are easier to keep inside and more likely to be trained to go pee on a pee pad. There are two main causes for a small dog to develop Fear Aggression:

  1. Lack of proper socialization.
  2. People spoiling the dogs which in turn makes them think they are a higher ranking pack member and can control the rest of the Pack and strangers through aggression.

Here is a really good thing to keep in mind for training a dog: Once a dog understands their commands and obedience, everything else is considered a distraction. I could say my dog will sit in the house but will my dog sit with 100 rabbits running around? It is the exact same behaviour the only difference is the distractions have changed. If your puppy does not see anything else as a distraction then your training will be a piece of cake. This is why proper socialization is so extremely important. One key thing I will do with a puppy is take them to all different kinds of distractions and make them do Sits & Downs for their kibble. This is a very easy step to socialize a puppy properly and can make your training later on 1000 times easier and that is no exaggeration.

What are the cons of taking a puppy out early for socialization? A puppy is a lot more susceptible to contracting Parvo Virus prior to having all of their vaccinations up to date. This is the single biggest factor in why puppies do not get proper socialization. People are afraid to take their puppy out until they have full vaccination. I myself feel that it is very well worth the risk of taking a puppy out so that they can be properly socialized. You must take as many precautions as possible. Avoid areas with other dogs and especially avoid other dogs feces.

You could be a very cautious person and only let your dog in your own backyard to avoid Parvo. However a bird could easily eat the feces of an infected dog with Parvo and fly into your own backyard and eat food out of your dog’s food dish or infect something else your puppy may get into. This would be an extremely rare case but it still could happen.

Let me tell you a couple of stories relating to improper socialization. The first story is the worst I have come across. This lady had a Weimaraner puppy and was so fearful of her dog contracting any diseases that she did not take her puppy out anywhere until he was fully vaccinated and she did not even allow guests over for fear of them bringing in a disease on their footwear. This dog became extremely reactive to people and other dogs with severe aggression. No one else other than this lady could get anywhere near her dog. There was no way she could go on holidays and have someone else look after the dog. Going for a walk was a complete nightmare and dangerous to anyone else around.

I have worked with several dogs that were a breeding dog and located on a breeders farm. Those dogs were perfectly accustomed to people coming over and the sounds from the farm. Some of these dogs then go to homes in the city at 2 years of age. Many are very fearful of everything around them.

When I am working with a puppy I socialize them to everything I can think of in a positive way including: farm animals, car washes, vehicles, buses, construction equipment, air craft, dogs, cats, things blowing in the wind, gun fire, people, etc.

Here is a very common problem I hear about with puppies over and over again when it comes to socialization. Many people think you need to socialize your puppy to as many other dogs as possible to have a very well socialized dog. Let me clarify this and pay very close attention to what I am about to say. It is important to socialize your puppy around other good dogs that you know and trust. Having your puppy get mauled by another aggressive dog can cause major problems. Do not trust another persons word that their dog is friendly! I have heard and witnessed many cases where other people say “Do you want to let our dogs greet? Mine is friendly.” Only to then have their dog attack the puppy. You do not know what another person’s definition of friendly is. One time several years ago I was walking our dog Enzo on a trail and a person approaching said “Is your dog friendly?” I said “Yes he is.” He said, “Mine too, do you want to let them greet?” His dog had a muzzle on and was snarling and lunging at my dog. I am not sure what his definition of friendly was but it was not the same as my definition of friendly. I tell people to assume that all other dogs are aggressive or improperly behaved until they have proven to you otherwise. Again Do Not take another person’s word for their dog’s behaviour.

Letting dogs greet on leash is a bad idea for a number of reasons:

  1. It is always the Alpha that greets others first. If you want to be the Pack Leader then you need to greet that other dog first.
  2. Proper dog greeting involves curving where they curve towards each other and then sniff. On a sidewalk or pathway you usually do not have the room to do this.
  3. When dogs are on leash they will tend to pull to go and see the other dog which puts their body language forward and makes them look aggressive which can trigger fights.

All it takes to properly socialize a puppy to other dogs is to have other dogs present while your puppy is focusing on you and ignoring those other dogs. They do not need to go run and wrestle with another dog to become properly socialized to other dogs. Here is a better example of what I mean: When I was socializing Delta (our German Shepherd) to our sheep, I would bring Delta into the sheep pen and make her do commands with the sheep nearby. We did this over and over and now she is excellent with the sheep. She never had to run and bark or nip at them to become socialized to sheep. All that needed to happen was to have the sheep present while Delta was focusing on me. The same can be done with other good dogs or anything else you want to socialize your dog to.

Summary

  1. Spring is a good time to get a puppy as it is much easier to work with them in warm weather and socialize them properly.
  2. In my opinion taking a puppy out to socialize them prior to full vaccination and risk of contracting Parvo Virus is worth it hands down. You still must maintain caution. Stay away from areas frequented by other dogs. Stay away from dog feces. Only bring your puppy around other dogs you trust and you know are fully vaccinated.
  3. Socialization (Proper) is the biggest key to success. Obedience is a piece of cake to train. A well socialized dog makes all the difference in your training success.
  4. All it takes to socialize a dog properly is to have the distraction present while your dog focuses on you. That’s it, that’s all.
  5. What the majority of the population will tell you to do with your puppy is just plain wrong and bad advice. I could prove this over and over again. Two of the biggest pieces of wrong advice are:
    1. Having dogs greet on leash (WRONG).
    2. Dog parks are necessary to socialize your dog properly (WRONG).

Someday it will be common knowledge to do all of these steps properly. I am making that one of my main goals in life. The more people you can tell about this the better. There is a saying in dog training “An ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure.” I do not find this to be true at all. It is more accurate to say “An ounce of prevention is worth 10,000 pounds of cure.” It cannot be emphasized enough how important proper socialization is to ensure your puppy lives the best possible life they can. I absolutely love working with puppies as I know they will go on to live the best life they can. Yes it is true that we are more expensive than a group puppy training class. What is the advantage of coming to see us you ask. I work with some of the worst problem behaviours imaginable. I get to see over and over again where things went wrong. These dogs all started off as good puppies but at certain times in their lives the wrong step was taken. I can show you what these wrong steps are and how to avoid them.

It is puppy season and I am very excited. We already have a lot of puppies coming this month and the next. If you want to learn how to have the perfect dog for you then give us a call and we will set you on the right path.

Happy Dog Training!