Ah socialization! I hear this word probably a hundred times a week by owners. "We need to socialize him more." "It will be good for his socialization." "We went there so he could get socialized." These are just a few of the phrases I hear from very different owners with very different dogs constantly as if it was a catch phrase that should be said around dog trainers. Unfortunately, a lot of the people that use this phrase don't actually know the meaning behind what they are

Taking your dog to a dog park can ignite quite the conversation between dog lovers. Some dog lovers are in the camp of a dog park not being a good idea. Some dog lovers are in the camp of dog parks being a great place to take your dog. Both camps are correct. Dog parks can be great depending on the dog, the owner, and the park itself, but they can also be horrible ideas depending on those same criteria. Here are some questions to ask yourself on if you should be taking your d

As a professional dog trainer, I work with thousands of dogs and their owners. I work with first time dog owners, experienced owners, owners that have worked with other trainers before, and everything in between. Along with experience level comes different personalities as well, from human and canine alike. But what a professional dog trainer should know is how to work with these different personalities and how to create a training plan that is good not only for the owner, bu

One of the many grievances I hear about as a professional dog trainer that has a very simple fix is that of dogs that bark and/or whine in the crate. Dogs that have minor crate issues are very easy to work with. Puppies are also very easy to crate train. There are many times where people want to work on private lessons, which are typically an hour long, just to teach the dog to be quiet in the crate, but I am here to tell you, it is very simple. I have outlined and provided a

If I ever was reincarnated, I can tell you what I would never want to come back as. No it is not a dung beetle, slug, or other gruesome animal most people initially state as a horrible animal to be. My answer would be even more specific. I would never want to come back as a puppy. Yes, you heard correctly, a dog trainer would never want to be reincarnated, if that were even possible, as a puppy. It has nothing to do with my love of dogs or coming back as something cute that w

Summer is a fun and crazy time. There's trips and vacations, tournaments, barbecues, and chaos in between. When we get ready to celebrate Independence Day, we plan for our barbecues, fireworks, trips, etc. One area people forget to prepare for is their dog on the Fourth of July. For some, this is your dog's first Independence Day and you can do little things now to make it a good experience, or a bad one, for your dog. Here are some tips to get you started. People frequently

You have your new puppy and are excited to start training your puppy. After all, they are so smart and training is fun! So what should you teach your puppy first? Typically, everyone teaches sit first. Then, people like to teach "shake" and sometimes other tricks. But as a dog trainer, I would advise to hold off on some of the tricks while your puppy is young. No, I am not a scrooge. I love teaching tricks as much as anyone else and believe me, I find them to be more enjoyabl

It's a nice, sunny day out and it seems like a good day to do something for your dog. So, you head to the dog park, the equivalent of doggy Disney World. You get there and everyone is ignoring that there is a "big dog" side and a "little dog" side since the "big dog" side is muddy, and everyone congregates on the "little dog" side. Your puppy is about 30 pounds, so you go in anyway. Your puppy finds a buddy to play with in this group of medium and large dogs and things appear

It's Christmas morning and you walk up to your Christmas tree with your nice warm coffee you see your Christmas gift you have been begging for all year long: a puppy. This puppy is so cute and has a little red bow on its collar that just looking at it melts your heart. You rush over and pick up your new puppy and this puppy loves to cuddle, has puppy breath and is sweet as can be! This is the world's best puppy and it can only get better from here! Now we have more traveling,