Meet Kathy Sdao, One of the Dog Training World’s Rock Stars

If you ask the majority of pet owners to name a well-known dog trainer, you’ll probably get only one or two responses: Cesar Millan or Victoria Stilwell. Newbies need only know that my own training techniques and preferences are much more in the style of Stilwell’s “It’s Me or the Dog” than Millan’s “The Dog Whisperer.”

This year on Dogster, I plan to introduce you, some of the world’s best pet parents, to some of the biggest names in the training industry, the ones professionals consult for the most relevant training information and best standards and practices. And I think they ought to have their own TV shows on Animal Planet too!

Today, I’m talking to Kathy Sdao, one of dog training’s rock stars. She is an associate-certified applied animal behaviorist who came to dog training after a career that included work with the U.S. military on training dolphins for work in the open ocean.

I first met her a few years ago at a seminar hosted at our facility (“Cujo vs. Pavlov,” on working with aggressive dogs), and have since seen her at ClickerExpo and APDT conferences. I even invited her back to Rewarding Behaviors for her S.M.A.R.T. rewards seminar. Kathy is a phenomenal presenter with great enthusiasm and energy. She presents information in a manner which is humorous, entertaining, and engaging.

Casey: You started your career working with marine mammals. What made you transition to dog training?

Kathy: I switched from training large wet animals — whales, dolphins, porpoises, walruses, sea lions, and seals — to training smaller, drier animals in 1996. I did this because I wanted to start a business and be self-employed. Though I loved working at Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium [in Tacoma, WA], it was physically grueling work. In addition, because I have pretty strong opinions about the best ways to train and to care for animals, I figured I’d have more control over these decisions in my own business.

I was incredibly naive in assuming that my twelve years of experience with marine mammals would make me a good dog trainer. I knew so little about dog behavior!

A dear and generous friend allowed me to shadow her during the dog training classes she taught and to observe her dog daycare business. This, plus a lot of research, gave me the courage to create a dog daycare business of my own, assisted by another former zookeeper, Marcye Miller. Running a dog daycare allowed me to immerse myself in ten hours per day of the full range of dog behavior. This was the beginning of my endless fascination with watching dogs interact, play, resolve conflicts, and learn.

I rarely miss working with marine mammals. I was blessed to have had the opportunity at all, and now I truly enjoy my work with dogs and their people.

How is a behaviorist different from a dog trainer?

These two categories overlap, of course. I consider myself both a behaviorist and a dog trainer. And the definitions vary from country to country. In the United States, anyone except a veterinarian can legally call herself a “behaviorist.” (Veterinary behaviorists must meet stringent requirements to receive their board certification.) So the term doesn’t actually convey any specific credential.

My certification as an associate-certified applied animal behaviorist (ACAAB) was granted to me by the Animal Behavior Society (ABS). The requirements include a master’s degree or Ph.D in a behavioral science with specific courses in animal learning and ethology, along with extensive hands-on experience working with animals under the supervision of a qualified mentor.

To me, these two categories — the board-certified veterinary behaviorists and the ABS-certified “psychological” behaviorists, each with a post-graduate education in behavior science — are the professionals best qualified to resolve serious dog-behavior problems such as aggression and anxiety.

What are the top three things pet owners can do to improve their relationships with their dogs?

1. Put more emphasis on being a skilled, generous, creative “feeder” than on being a strict leader. That is, understand that the main “job” of a great pet owner is to repeatedly reinforce all the dog behaviors you want to see more of. This is a much greater priority than being “commander-in-chief.”

2. Walk the dog! Aim for a 45-to-60-minute walk at least three times a week. (Get approval from your veterinarian if you think your dog’s health might preclude this.)

Just changing this one thing can make an enormous difference in the relationship between dogs and dog owners. This long-duration, low-impact exercise boosts serotonin levels, stimulates the dog’s olfactory senses, exposes the dog to novelty, and provides an opportunity for ongoing training.

If your dog pulls on-leash, try using a front-attachment harness or a head halter. If your dog lunges at bikers or other dogs, choose a boring walking location where you can avoid these triggers (e.g. an empty parking lot, an unused school track) — and contact a qualified dog trainer to help you resolve this issue.

3. Play with your dog every day. Use one of the standard games — fetch, tug, hide and seek — or create a ritual of your own. Make sure there are rules to keep everyone safe; young children need lots of supervision and coaching. But honest play, where both participants are really having fun, is mutually exclusive with stress and anxiety. It creates resilient bonds between dogs and people.

Tell us more about your new projects. You have a book and some new videos coming out.

I’m excited about my new book: Plenty in Life Is Free: Reflections on Dogs, Training and Finding Grace. It’s been in the works for two years and is somewhat unusual. It’s part memoir and part training manual, and even discusses the impact spirituality has on the decisions we make as trainers. It presents an effective alternative to the various rank-based dog-training paradigms we’ve used for the past few decades. I hope this will help foster more cooperative partnerships between people and dogs, replacing the standard “master vs. subordinate” model we’ve inherited.

I also have two new DVDs, available through Tawzer Dog. One of these is based on a brief lecture I gave in Orlando in January on the topic of my book.

The other is a longer lecture given at the same venue titled “What Not to Err: Training Mistakes that Create Headaches for Dogs.” It reviews ten errors common to dog-friendly trainers. Topics include ineffective cues, backward sequences, poisoned reinforcers, misunderstood training transitions, and more. Understanding how to avoid or resolve these issues makes training fairer for our dogs and more fun for everyone.

Photos of Kathy are courtesy of Jon Smith.

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Too Broke to Buy Training DVDs? Sign Up for the Netflix for Dog Nerds!

In an ideal world, pet owners would train their dogs in the following order, depending on the pet’s problem, available resources, and geographical availability:

• Find a qualified, dog-friendly training professional to coach you in person
• Find a trainer to work with you via Skype if none are available in your area
• Watch training videos online
• Purchase training books and/or read articles
• Seek advice from anyone you know who has ever had a dog, or watch reality shows about dog training

It’s obviously best to work with a trainer in person, and this should be mandatory if your pup has potentially severe or dangerous behavior problems. But many dedicated pet owners can learn to teach basic manners and even some very advanced tricks by watching training videos or reading books.

This week I want to recommend Tawzer Dog Videos, which is probably the world’s best source for quality training instruction and seminar DVDs. Its site features many of the industry’s well-established trainers alongside up-and-comers like Grisha Stewart and Emily Larlham. I’ve sent many pet owners to the Tawzer site when they’ve asked me about finding resources on teaching new skills, but I admit that purchasing DVDs can quickly get expensive.

Fortunately, Tawzer recently introduced a Netflix-like home delivery subscription service for its training DVDs. This gives you the chance to learn from Grisha, Emily, Steve White, Kathy Sdao, Ken Ramirez, Patricia McConnell, Terry Ryan, and other leaders in the behavior and training field from the comfort of your home. The site lists all the pricing options and policies.

Advantages:

• Variety: You’ll find DVDs on tricks, basic manners, adolescent dog training, training for competition sports, puppy raising, and behavior modification.
• Price: The basic plan (one disc at a time) costs about $10 a month.
• Quality: The folks at Tawzer put a lot of time and effort into finding seminars that promote modern, dog-friendly training techniques.
• CEUs: Pay attention, fellow pet pros! If you don’t have the time or money to attend a variety of seminars, you can now get credit for renewal of professional certifications through viewing Tawzer’s videos.

Disadvantages

• Tawzer doesn’t yet offer a streaming service, but I hope the company is working on that so people like me can watch these DVDs directly without waiting for the mail.

Unlike Netflix, which has multiple shipping stations nationwide, Tawzer is a small, family-owned company based in the Pacific Northwest — so I have some concerns about shipping and delivery times to the East Coast. I admit I haven’t subscribed to the DVD delivery program yet (mostly because I just spent a ton of money on Tawzer videos for my professional library and have yet to watch them all), but hopefully this won’t be an issue. I really want to check out Sandi Pensinger’s new Treibball DVDs and of course, Emily Larlham of Kikopup’s great tricks seminar!

• Patience! Many of the seminars comprise four to eight DVDs, so you may want to upgrade from the one-DVD-a-month plan if you want to watch an entire seminar without waiting.

Have any of you subscribed already? I’m interested in hearing feedback about the service, particularly from East coast subscribers regarding wait time on DVD shipments.

Until next week, happy training!

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Five Tips for Clicker Training in a Multi-Dog Home

While clicker training is a powerful and effective training method, it offers unique challenges for those who have several dogs. I have two dogs myself, and many of my clients have multiple dogs. Today, I’m sharing a few recommendations on how to clicker train in your home or business with any number of dogs.

+ Train separately first:

It’s always best for your dog to learn a new behavior or skill in an environment where there are as few distractions as possible. Ideally, you should choose a fairly quiet room or area in your home — no television, music, cats, children, or other dogs — so that you can give your dog your full attention and he can reciprocate by giving all of his attention to you.

+ Condition unique markers for each dog:

Start by doing this separately. Dogs can learn to respond to any marker or signal that is “charged” in the same manner as a clicker. The click itself can be ambiguous if you start training multiple dogs in a single session, often leaving each dog wondering, “Was that click for me?”

My Chow mix gets very jealous when I am training my Saint Bernard. If she is outside and she hears a click, she runs up the back stairs, hurling herself at the door and howling madly. Because of this, I like having a visual signal charged for each dog — a finger point in each dog’s direction allows me to train Cuba in silence without inciting the wrath of Her Royal Chowness.

Make sure that if you use a visual marker like a finger point that it does not resemble any existing body cues. If pointing at your dog’s butt is your usual cue to sit, you might want to choose a closed fist or intentional, deliberate blink as your new marker.

I also like to condition a group marker (for this, your clicker will work just fine) that means, “Everyone did the right thing, everyone gets a goodie!”

+ When your dogs are individually reliable, begin working them in small groups:

One of my clients lives with six dogs. Each needed to be trained individually; then they were trained in small and changing groups of two or three dogs before all six dogs were eventually worked together.

If you are training multiple dogs to the same level of performance, have races!

Try asking all the working dogs to sit and reward only the fastest dogs, creating a bit of a competitive edge. (Note: When I am training Mokie and Cuba together, she is much, much faster than he is, so this tends not to be very fair!)

+ During individual training, crate or tether the dogs that are not currently being worked, or have them settle on a mat or practice a “down-stay.”

Waiting is often much harder than working for many dogs. In these situations, I always like to give the non-working dogs a higher value reinforcement than the dog that is working (waiting may get paid with boiled liver treats, while working may get paid with kibble).

When you are training with positive reinforcement, working with your dog obtains its own reinforcement value. Train patience, waiting, and politeness like a behavior to avoid frustration and frequent interruptions.

For more tips on working with multiple dogs in a household, you may enjoy the following resources:

How to Be the Leader of Your Pack: And Have Your Dog Love You for It by Patricia McConnell, PhD.

How Many Dogs?! Using Positive Reinforcement to Manage a Multi-Dog Household by Debbie McMullen

Photo courtesy of the Hounds of Bassetville

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Don’t Have Access to a Quality Dog Trainer? Here Are Seven A+ Online Training Classes

I often hear from readers who want to do something fun with their dogs and teach new behaviors using positive reinforcement, but who don’t have access to good trainers in their area.

While I don’t recommend that you seek assistance for severe problems like aggression, reactivity, or separation anxiety without meeting a qualified behavior professional in person, I do suggest that you check out these amazing online education programs to improve your skills as a trainer as well as your dog’s behavior. All of these programs were developed by fantastic trainers and focus on improving your relationship with your dog by using reinforcement to create reliable behaviors.

+ CyberDog

CyberDog is a basic manners course based on the beginners’ curriculum from the Karen Pryor Academy. KPA-certified training partners Sarah Owings, Helix Fairweather, and Lynn Martin will help your dog learn basic skills like targeting, recall, loose-leash walking, waiting at a boundary, and settling on a mat. The eight-week program costs $250.

+ CyberAgility

This is exactly what it sounds like: agility instruction from the comfort of your home. Also created by Helix Fairweather, this fun online course costs $160. Using clicker training, shaping, targeting, and other positive training techniques, not only will you learn new games to play with your dog, you’ll graduate with better training skills!

+ Susan Garrett

This internationally renowned agility champion offers two online courses. Puppy Peaks is a great focus- and teamwork-building program created for puppies but helpful for dogs of all ages, while Recallers is designed to help you build a reliable recall, regardless of distraction or environment.

These fantastic courses are available only a few times a year, and while I haven’t taken them myself, I’ve heard rave reviews! Sign up for Susan’s newsletter on her site to make sure you don’t miss out.

+ KPA Dog Trainer Foundations

I had the pleasure of contributing to this great new course from Karen Pryor Academy. It’s designed as a clicker course for devoted pet owners or competitors who want to hone their training skills, or it can be a prerequisite for those who lack training experience and are interested in enrolling in the dog trainer program. It aims to give attendees a solid understanding of clicker principles, and how to clicker train “the Karen Pryor way.” Registration is $359 for seven lesson units that take eight to twelve weeks to complete.

+ Sylvia Trkman

Two-time world agility champion Sylvia Trkman offers online educational programs for a variety of skill levels, including puppy training, tricks, agility, and foundations. You can enroll as a participant, submitting videos and receiving feedback on your training from Sylvia and classmates, for $220 to $250 per course, or as an auditor for $120 to $150.

+ Sumac Johnson

Sumac Johnson’s Wag It Games program offers online classes throughout the year, including Rally Obedience, Homeopathy, Living Room Agility, Sniff It, and even my new favorite, Treibball — there is something fun for every dog and dog owner to try! You can attend classes as a student, or as an auditor at a reduced price. Check the site for details and start dates.

+ Donna Hall

Donna Hall is a talented Canadian trainer offering customized online classes in subjects including Service Dog Training, Treibball, Basic Clicker Skills, and Foundation Manners. I’m a big fan of her YouTube pages and videos.

Are you interested in signing up for an online program? Have you participated and would like to share some feedback about your experience? Please tell us in the comments. Until next time, happy training!

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Some Dog Training Techniques That Might Just Help You Keep That New Year’s Resolution

Happy New Year, Dogsters! I hope for all of you that 2012 brings us all great joy and success, both personally and as dog owners.

Last year, I resolved to take more winter walks with the dogs. Yeah, it’s easy to do that on a beautiful 70-degree day with a soft breeze, sunshine warming your shoulders, but it will be another thing entirely this week, when local temperatures are predicted to plummet to a disgusting 15 degrees Fahrenheit. Experience living in the arctic climate of upstate New York for many winters tells me that probably means our wind chill will hover around minus 10, if I’m lucky. Blech.

Sometimes I feel like Alice in Wonderland — giving myself very good advice but very seldom following it. Most New Year’s resolutions are more fantasy than they are self-fulfilling prophecies, anyway. Why are they so destined to fail?

My winter walking resolution, like many others, was set for failure from the start. Why? Because the alternative (sitting warm in front of the fireplace; not taking a walk and worrying about coming back with fewer phalanges than I started out with, thanks to frostbite) was more attractive.

Thankfully, my career as a trainer has taught me a bit about changing behavior in a positive and reliable way, and my “resolutions” for 2012 reflect that. Here’s how my resolution will change this year.

1. Split vs. lump, or “Every walk begins with a boot or sneaker.”

This is trainer jargon for breaking behaviors down into small, achievable goals. This allows you to create a high Rate of Reinforcement, which is fundamental in building reliable behaviors. Veterinary behaviorist Sophia Yin examines these issues in her blog entry, “Dog Training Tip: Why Cigarettes Are More Addicting than Heroin and How It Applies to Dog Training.” The whole concept of “New Year’s Resolutions” sets learners up for failure — it’s flawed. We need more frequent reinforcement! You may earn an annual salary of $50,000, but would you prefer to receive that income split into weekly paychecks or to receive a lump sum once a year?

Instead of resolving to take a walk this Tuesday, I’m resolving to take off my slippers and put on my sneakers. Once my sneakers are on, I’ll resolve to prepare my treat bag, leash the dogs, and then go outside together. Resolve to put one foot in front of the other — then every step reinforces the previous one.

2. Set yourself up for success.

Oh, to be a dog living with a dog trainer. Certainly, many are the canine equivalent of the cobbler’s children, wearing tattered behavioral shoes. Sometimes I think, “Yikes, you’ve really been slacking lately on the dogs’ training. I think they need some quality time to brush up on some skills or to learn something new.” When I catch myself thinking this, I never “resolve” to spend an hour and a half a day training the dogs. I resolve to keep a few pieces of kibble in my pocket.

If it’s easy or convenient to fit into your day, you’re more likely to do it. I know I’m much more likely to fit a ten-treat training session into my day than I am a ten-minute training session. The funny thing is, when your resolutions are easy to achieve (after all, a ten-treat training session may take less than a minute), you’ll find yourself doing them more often, and without even realizing, you may end up doing ten or more minutes a day over the course of many brief sessions.

Making it easy to be successful also means controlling the environment to the best of your ability. While I can’t change the weather, I can stock up on appropriate winter gear: scarves, hats, gloves, fleece tights under my jeans, wool socks, warm boots, and some YakTrax all help to make an unpleasant experience significantly less unpleasant.

3. Removing distractions, aka “Damn you, Facebook!”

Check out this article by classroom management expert Dr. Fred Jones to learn about “bootleg reinforcement,” which is basically the opportunity to self-reward for “poor” or undesirable behavior. I can reinforce my failure to go for a walk by engaging in a different behavior that is incompatible and self-rewarding, like Facebook.

It’s a lot easier to accomplish something when you remove distractions. I decided to be proactive so I couldn’t self-reinforce for undesirable behaviors (walking leads to freezing, so staying in means avoiding frostbite), so I installed the LeechBlock add-on to my Firefox browser — and now I can’t access Facebook at all between noon and five p.m.

4. Reinforce the desirable behavior.

When I wake up on winter mornings, I like to get out of bed, turn on the heat so that the bathroom warms up, and hop into a nice hot shower. This is another opportunity for bootlegging reinforcement! In 2012, I’m changing the picture — warm showers come after winter walks. Once I’m warm from a shower, I don’t want to go out into the cold. But I’m much more likely to go outside if I know when I get home, I can immediately take a long, hot shower.

We’ll see what happens this week. But I will say that my “resolutions” for 2012 have a greater chance of being successful simply because they are more reasonable. Saying “Every walk begins with a sneaker and ends with a shower” is a much more tangible way to change my behavior permanently than setting a lofty, decidedly ambiguous goal of “Take more winter walks.”

How might these tips change your resolutions this year, Dogsters? Remember, quitting smoking doesn’t begin with a year — it begins with a minute. Living a healthier life doesn’t begin with losing thirty pounds; it begins with replacing a single chip with a carrot dipped in hummus. “Feeling better about yourself” is not an achievable goal, but doing a single nice thing for yourself, like having a cup of coffee with someone who brings out the best in you, is the first step on that journey.

Please leave your suggestions in the comments below.

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Government-Mandated Dog Training: Cool or Crappy? Discuss!

Earlier this year, a law was proposed in metropolitan New York City that would require all dog owners to pass a mandatory, state-regulated “obedience course” for dogs. I remember, when the highly controversial law was announced, logging into my Facebook and e-mail accounts and receiving lots of messages from clients and colleagues who were extremely excited about this, seeing it as a fantastic way to legitimize professional dog training to the pet-owning public.

While I believe it was a noble effort by lawmakers to reduce the number of dangerous dogs and bite incidents in NYC, this is a law I just can’t get behind. Here are just a few of the reasons I believe that similar laws should be avoided or dramatically changed before implementation in any community:

1. State regulation of approved schools/instructors — It’s very important that pet owners realize not all trainers are created equal and that no training is often preferable to bad training. What sort of screening guidelines would be in place for eligible training companies? There are a great many “professional” trainers that I would not allow to touch or train my dogs under any circumstances.

2. Such a law could make pet owners resent training. — I find that the clients who are most enthusiastic about training are the most successful. A well-trained dog never does the bulk of its learning in the classroom — for training to be effective, it must be worked on at home, throughout the dog’s life. If people resent the fact that they MUST do training, they are unlikely to follow through with it.

3. “Obedience” classes are not for all dogs. — Just because a dog may know how to sit and lie down on cue does not mean it is a safe dog who doesn’t present a bite risk. In fact, most of the aggressive dogs I work with already know sit and down. Obedience classes are not the best learning environment for dogs with real aggression issues; allowing such dogs into group classes without laying down significant layers of behavior modification puts all dogs and humans in that classroom in jeopardy.

4. Knowledge, for people and dogs, is a “use it or lose it” enterprise. — I started learning French in 6th grade and continued studying it through college. Years later, I can’t have a coherent conversation. Similarly, an obedience certificate today does not mean that your dog is necessarily less likely to bite someone three years from now!

As an alternative, I’d love to see owners given incentives and positive reinforcement for being proactive and making training a priority. Potential incentives could include:

• discounts on homeowners’ insurance policies
• discounts on pet health insurance policies
• exemptions from breed-specific legislation (an issue worthy of its own blog topic!)

What are your thoughts on the issue?

About the Author: Casey Lomonaco graduated with distinction from the Karen Pryor Academy for Animal Training and Behavior, and is a member of the following professional organizations: APDT (Association of Pet Dog Trainers), CGC evaluator — AKC (American Kennel Club), TDF (Truly Dog Friendly), and the No-Shock Collar Coalition.

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Demo dogs set the right example for training

I’ve mentioned in many previous posts that my dogs are demo dogs for me at Kindred Spirits Dog Training so I thought I would talk a little bit about what they do. After all, not all trainers use demo dogs in their classes or training.

After I had been teaching dog training classes for a few years, I re-enrolled in college and began taking some classes. They were not in animal behavior, but human behavior. I specifically wanted to know how to teach adults, so I focused on adult education. One of my professors made a huge impression on me. He was a great teacher, and he said that to teach, the instructor needs to impact people in a way they can’t forget. They need to hear the material being taught, see it, and practice it. The material, no matter what the subject matter, needs to make an impression.

So we try to do that at Kindred Spirits, and one way we can do this is by using our dogs. I know that the dogs make a big impression on people, because most of our returning students will mention what dog I had in class. Recently a woman said, “I took my first class with you 18 years ago. Ursa was your demo dog and she was awesome. Then when we got another dog, we came back to you and you had Dax in class. Now we have a new dog.”

Our demo dogs’ first job is to show what each exercise is. I have my dogs (and my instructors’ dogs) demonstrate the steps of each exercise as it is being taught. They demonstrate it step by step, then we show the finished exercise. When the dogs show off the finished exercise, I then explain how this can be used at home to make life easier with the dog or safer for the dog. When I talk about the finished exercise, I also let Bashir show off. When he’s working off leash in front of the class, he makes a huge impression because to work off leash, he’s ignoring all of the class dogs, as well as all of the other trainer’s dogs. He’s focusing on me and what I’m asking him to do. When he heels off leash, watching me, and ignoring all the distractions, there’s a huge ‘Wow!’ from the class.

Another wow-worthy exercise is the come. When we teach the come, we demonstrate the various steps, explain our philosophy, and then tell the class that their ultimate goal is for their dog to come to them the first time they call, every time they call, no matter what the distractions. We then have six, eight, or ten of the trainers’ dogs sit and wait in front of the class. The trainers then walk about thirty or forty yards away. At a signal, the trainers call their dogs who run past the front of the class (ignoring the class) to go to their owners. It’s always impressive.

I also use our dogs to help establish the students’ expectations. At KS we don’t teach competition. We once did, but found that our joy came in training family dogs.  We want to create well behaved pets who will spend their lifetime in their homes. What I ran in to while doing this was that competition owners had high expectations, but pet owners did not. Therefore, by providing some demonstrations with our dogs we could raise those expectations. We’re saying, in so many words, “yes, your dog CAN do this!” Not all dogs like being a demo dog, though. Kate’s Rottweiler, Gina, has never been happy as a demo dog; she appeared uncomfortable having everyone stare at her. So even though she was praised and rewarded for working in front of the class, when she made it clear she didn’t like it, she wasn’t asked to do it any more. Some dogs love it, though. My Aussies all enjoy it and will vie with each other as to who gets to demo a specific exercise. In fact, they get so good at it I’ve often told classes we could go get coffee and just let the dogs teach the class.

Photos: Top: The Kindred Spirits’ trainers’ dogs. Bottom: Jeff Gross and his German Shepherd, Storm. Photos by Becca Siminou.

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Disneyland: The Most Exhausting Place on Earth (When Training a Service Dog)

Kami Jewart and Kendall, her service pup in training, at Disneyland

Today we’re going to take a trip to Disneyland with guest blogger Kami Jewart, who has raised five service dogs and serves on the board of Power Paws Assistance Dogs, in Ariz. Kami is a dog-lover who is passionate about helping others gain their independence through the partnership with service dogs. If you like this story, you can find more like it in the book Partners With Paws: Service Dogs and the Lives They Change, edited by Kyla Duffy.

Maria Goodavage

___________________________

The happiest place on earth is even happier with a four-month-old Golden Retriever. An integral and fun part of the service dog training experience is taking a trip to Disneyland. Sights, sounds, smells, and millions of distractions await the service dog-in-training at a Disneyland Park. People are overjoyed when they see a service dog partaking in the Disney experience, and the park and staff welcome service dogs.

Training at Disneyland is unmatched, as the pup-in-training is permitted to go on most rides. They need to remain calm while getting spun around on the teacups, and they must rest quietly at their owner’s feet as they soar high above Neverland on Peter Pan’s Magic Journey. They don’t meet the height restrictions for Space Mountain or Indiana Jones, so they have to forego those rides. However, a disabled person in the theme park with a service dog can do something like the “baby swap,” where if there is more than one person in the party, one can ride the ride while the other waits with the dog, and then they switch. People with service dogs are advised to obtain a guest assistance card when they enter the park, which helps their Disneyland experience go as smoothly as possible.

Meeting the characters in costume is one of the important Disneyland experiences for a service dog. I didn’t even think about how “scary” a person in a costume could be until my pup, Kendall, tried to run away from Pluto.

Another experience I wasn’t prepared for was the popcorn. Part of my responsibility as a volunteer service dog trainer is to get my pup-in-training to the point where he or she will automatically ignore dropped food. Once a service dog is fully trained, he or she can be expected to not eat dropped food off the floor, but at four months old, Kendall’s “leave it” command was not yet perfected.

Now that you’re aware of my duties, take a moment to picture Disneyland and all the spilled popcorn… and then think of trying to keep a four-month-old Golden Retriever away from it. Kendall took this opportunity to lunge at every morsel of salty, buttery, popcorn goodness children had inadvertently dropped throughout the park. At least we didn’t have to buy Kendall any snacks!

A day at Disneyland is an exhausting experience for children and service dogs alike. Near the end of our visit, Kendall fell fast asleep while waiting in line for the Pirates of the Caribbean ride. When we finally got on the ride, Kendall obediently hopped into the boat and lay at my feet. I hadn’t been on the ride in years, so I wasn’t prepared for the entire experience. We went through the various scenes on the ride, and Kendall seemed to enjoy watching the animated pirates singing and dancing.
We were nearing the end when it happened. The boat inched up a hill and then released into a sizeable drop. Kendall had never before experienced freefall, but he sure knew the location of my lap. As the water poured in over the edge of the boat, a little wet Golden Retriever landed in my lap. Now he was comfortable, and I was soaked!

Kendall quickly recovered from the Pirates experience, splashing the other patrons as he happily wagged his soaking wet tail. We stayed to watch the parade, and Kendall couldn’t keep awake long enough to be scared of the costumes or fireworks. He just dozed in my husband’s lap as the colorful light show bid us farewell.

This guest post is an excerpt from the book, Partners With Paws: Service Dogs and the Lives They Change, a compilation of 50 stories that highlight the important role service dogs play in people’s lives. From both puppy raiser and service dog team perspectives, readers gain an intimate understanding of service dog training, service dog team matching, and the liberating impact service dogs have on people with both visible and non-visible disabilities.

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Tote Bag : LEPRECHAUN IN TRAINING

BAGEDGE TOTE BAG : 8 oz. 100% cotton canvas; self-fabric handles; 15" x 14 1/2" x 1"

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Dogtra 1900NCP Field Star 1/2 mile Training Collar Single Dog

1900NCP Number of Dogs: 1 Features: -Field star 1/2 mile remote dog trainer. -Fully waterproof, 1/2-mile range. -Rechargeable Ni-MH batteries. -Low to high power transmitter. -Rheostat Intensity dial that allows for gradual adjustment in stimulation intensity. -Stimulation type-nick, constant, and non-electrical stimulating pager/vibration. -LCD screen displays exact numeric level of stimulation clearly and accurately. -Tri-color LED battery life indicator. -Available in one or two-dog system.

Price: $249.99

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Londons Times Miscellaneous Funny Cartoons - Dog Training Common Errors - Key Chains

Dog Training Common Errors Key Chain is new, measuring 2.25w x 2.25h x 1/8d. Key Chain Tag has a glossy finish and comes with a hole for hardware. Our new key hanger makes an attractive decoration for any household, plus keeps keys organized and easy to find. Picture is printed on both sides of the key chain. Each includes snap-on key chain hardware.

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Tote Bag : TRAINING TO BE A CAGE FIGHTER

BAGEDGE TOTE BAG : 8 oz. 100% cotton canvas; self-fabric handles; 15" x 14 1/2" x 1"

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Dog Training Aid

Hand-held training aid produces a high-frequency sound that's discomforting to dogs, but completely harmless. Inaudible to humans, it works at the press of a button-helping reinforce your verbal commands. Also discourages the approach of unwanted dogs from up to 15 feet. Requires one 9-volt battery (not included). Plastic. 4 1/4" long x 1 3/4" wide.

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Tote Bag : PORN STAR IN TRAINING

BAGEDGE TOTE BAG : 8 oz. 100% cotton canvas; self-fabric handles; 15" x 14 1/2" x 1"

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Puppy Training Sins Every New Puppy Owner Needs To Avoid

Discover the "How To Secrets" of home training puppies to become "Great" adult dogs with award-winning Jim Burwell's "Puppy Training Sins" including:

- Puppy training is ONLY about training the puppy...

- Obedience training is "hard" work... You will be surprised with this one...

- Kids and puppies are a natural combination... or are they...

- "Puppies should come already 'house-trained'...

- You have to be hard on a puppy to train it... NOT!


And MUCH more...


Jim Burwell's grass-roots start with his in-home dog training business that has grown to become Jim Burwell's Petiquette.

Jim has successfully trained over 20,000 puppies and dogs in 25 years.

In addition to successfully problem solving dog problems, Jim has spent the better part of his career working with owners in their home training their puppies into becoming great adult dogs.

Samplings of his national and local accomplishments as a professional dog trainer include:

- Recognized by the Houston Chronicle's Texas Magazine, October, 2003, as "Houston's Dog Whisperer"

- Voted best dog trainer by readers of the Houston Press..

- Past President, Lone Star Search & Rescue Dog Association...

- Founder, Rover Oaks Pet Resort, Home of Texas Dog Training the first multi-million dollar pet resort in Houston

- Professional witness for City of Houston in dog abuse cases..

- Featured on NBC TV "The Buzz"

- Article contributor to Hitched Magazine, MSN Dog Central, Chicagoland Tales..

- Trainer of the home puppy for the Ronald McDonald House, Houston, TX...

- Featured in Houston Business Journal, Dallas Business Journal, and Austin Business Journal

- Member Association of Pet Dog Trainers and International Association of Canine Professionals.


Jim provides expert dog training advice and information at www.PuppyTrainingSecretsRevealed.com

This product is manufactured on demand using CD-R recordable media. Amazon.com's standard return policy will apply.

Price: $19.95

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Training That Works for Your Dog [VHS]

A professional dog trainer based in New Hampshire, April Frost offers some no-nonsense advice on training a dog in this instructional video. The system Frost advocates proceeds in logical steps, with the dog being given lessons in a specific order. Among the major commands covered are sit, heel, come, down, and stay, and lessons on how to get a dog to behave when guests come to the door. Frost contends that there are no specific pieces of training equipment that are required, yet she does offer some useful guidance on choosing collars, leashes, and a 30-foot training line. The proper way to put a metal training collar on a dog is described with some detail--the collar (often mistakenly called a choke collar) must be put on the dog safely. A group of dogs and handlers appear as Frost's class in this video, and the lessons are presented clearly. Important tips, such as the proper use of treats as a reward, are provided. The camera work is professional throughout and thankfully avoids flashiness, which would be a distraction. This is a solid introduction to dog training, and a viewer who takes the lessons seriously could benefit greatly from Frost's tutelage. --Robert J. McNamara

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Londons Times Funny Dogs Cartoons - Dog Training - Key Chains

Dog Training Key Chain is new, measuring 2.25w x 2.25h x 1/8d. Key Chain Tag has a glossy finish and comes with a hole for hardware. Our new key hanger makes an attractive decoration for any household, plus keeps keys organized and easy to find. Picture is printed on both sides of the key chain. Each includes snap-on key chain hardware.

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