Author: FSJ Dog Training

Spring Update

Dog Blog, Dogs and Children, FSJ ACT, Monthly Update

Spring time came and hit so fast I feel like I could blink and miss it. My April was incredibly busy; between my daughters year-end dance performance, group classes and one-on-one training sessions my month was jam-packed. I was able to put on two training classes for April and have two more for May. My busy schedule was also due thanks to my husband being home for breakup. This has helped me open my schedule for a lot more dog training.

With spring time always comes “puppy season”. I had a few puppies for 1:1 sessions and those are always a blast. I absolutely love training puppies; so if you acquired yourself a puppy this spring and would like to know how to get the best start on training send me a message!

One puppy came to me for trick training, to help them reach their goal of earning their Novice Trick Dog title through Do More With Your Dog. I absolutely love trick training, and this is a personal goal of mine for my own dog.

Myself and some fellow dog enthusiasts are mulling over the idea of putting together a trick training club. If this is something that sounds up your alley, let me know! The more people we have interested in it, the more likely we will do it.

Registration for my next class has ended, but you can READ HERE more information and to add yourself to the wait list for the next class.

Running group obedience classes was always the goal but one that took me a while to check off my list. It took me a while to have the confidence to run a class, and it only came after my experience with running Pack in the Park.

Last spring I approached the United Church about using the space for group classes. I remember there being group obedience classes there that I took my puppy to when I was about 15. I remember at the time thinking “wow, I want to do this. I want to run a class like this”, so to think back on that and realize that I not only have reached that goal I set so long ago but I’m doing it in the same space where I first set the goal is really quite bittersweet. However, last spring my group class turned into a 1:1 when I only had one person sign up for it. This made me a bit hesitant to put on classes again, but I gave it a shot and was blown away at the response I received. Not only could I put on one but TWO classes with an additional 2 more the following month. I’m not really sure what the difference between last spring and this spring is, but I’ll take it. I’m just happy to see so many people training their dogs!

Group 1 was my “Girlies”. This was a class full of women and their female dogs. It had a great vibe, despite two reactive dogs in the class, and everyone has progressed and learned so much in those 4 weeks. We have our last class tonight and then that is a wrap on Group 1.

Group 2 was a bit more challenging with many dogs and owners at varying levels. We had some owners who just needed the added level of distraction for their dogs to work in and we had others who were puppies just learning with their first-time puppy owners. This made for an interesting dynamic in class. Everyone learned in different ways and rates but everyone kept up with the same curriculum. Group 2 graduated first, as Group 1 had the Easter holiday push their classes back by a week.

As I prepare for Groups 3 and 4 I am using everything I learned from teaching Groups 1 and 2 to make the class even better. I plan to always revise it in this way, ever fine-tuning it to be more efficient and effective.

The most important thing to me is creating and supporting a safe, relaxed environment that is easy to learn in. I will keep offering this class as long as there are people who want to take it.

This month Fort St. James Dog Training, sponsored by the Fort St. James Animal Care Team Society (FSJ ACTS), is bringing the Be A Tree dog bite prevention program to the community’s children. We are starting with our local Girl Guides. Myself along with volunteer April Dimond will be presenting the Be a Tree information, along with some added tweaks to make the program better to understand and remember for children of a variety of ages. This program helps teach children what to do when encountering a strange dog and what types of behavior/body language they can observe and interpret to help them understand whether a dog is safe to pet or not. This information is vital for preventing dog bites in children.

This is a goal I’ve been working towards for a long time. I’m very thankful for FSJ ACTS part in helping me achieve this goal. I’m also incredibly thankful to April, for her insight into teaching children has been absolutely vital, and I’m very grateful for all the hands-on work she’s done to help me bring this program together.

Next Pack in the Park Date: May 7, 2025
Time: 11:00am
Location: Goodwin Park

Pack in the Park is a FREE event for all dog owners of all skill-levels to attend. It is great for reactive dogs to learn to work within their comfort zone (you may need to add more space between your dog and others until you reach that comfort zone). This is an owner-lead event; which means you plan the type of training you would like to do with your dog. This is NOT an obedience class.

Be aware: there are dogs behind fences that bark and sometimes there are loose dogs that wander by this park. If your dog is not ready for that level of distraction then you may want to work in a quieter environment still until your dog is ready.

Rules:
1. All dogs must be on leash (NO retractable leashes)
2. Dogs must NOT meet face-to-face; this is not a play date
3. All owners must pick up after their dogs!
This is a public park and if we wish to continue to bring our dogs to public spaces we must be respectful.

Preference Test Your Dog

Dog Blog, FSJ Dog Training, Training

When you preference test your dog, you learn what type of rewards they prefer. By knowing what your dog prefers you can help better motivate and reward them. They’re going to associate you with their favorite things and feel more compelled to listen because you give up the good stuff. It also helps you bond with your dog, by getting to know them better.

You can find out your dogs preferences by presenting two or more of similar items and see which they prefer, which they seem more excited about and which they tend to move towards and grab faster and/or more often.

You may find they vacillate between two items; they don’t always seem to prefer one over the other. If this happens, you know that both items have pretty equal value to your dog.

You’re going to find variations in what your dog likes based on what type of items it is and again within that sub-group of items. For example, you could present your dog with a toy or a treat, if they like treats better you can then test different kinds of treats against each other and see what kind your dog likes most.

You will be able to see which your dog prefers of…
– food
– toys
– locations
– people
– tactile stimulation

Repeat the same test at least 3 times to determine their preference. Whichever they go to most and seem most excited about will be their preference.

Pay attention to details. You may want to learn more about the subtle body language that dogs use first, before commencing preference tests. That way, you can be sure to look out for those signs your dog is giving you.

Some of these signs may be…
– snatching
– eyes popping (getting larger, showing the whites of the eyes)
– which one they go for first, and which they go for most often
– if it’s a toy, which toy they play with longer
– pulling harder, if they are on leash

When testing your dogs food preferences, you’re going to want to keep a few things in mind and understand that not all types of food can be compared equally.

Dogs understand the difference between large and small. You can’t compare a large piece of food to a small piece of food. You need to make sure that the pieces of food you are comparing are the same size.

There are a lot of different types of toys on the market for dogs, and your dog may prefer a type of toy over another. Pay attention to which toys they grab most often, which they hold in their mouth for longer, which they try to initiate play with you more, and whether they prefer a toy they can cash, catch, hold or chew.

There may be variations in…
– size
– texture
– purpose

A dog may prefer a plush toy over a rubber chew. Or maybe your dog loves to play tug o’ war and prefer a good rope toy. Maybe they love to chase balls but prefer a felted tennis ball over a rubber ball.

All of these variations leave for a lot of possibilities that could be your dogs favorite! Test many different toys against each other and see how your dog responds to determine which is their favorites.

Where does your dog like to go to relax, to sleep, or to hang out with the family? To know these preferences you will need to pay attention and take notice of your dogs favorite resting place.

The variations around your dogs favorite locations may be…
– warm seeking
– cool seeking
– quiet location
– central pathway
– inside
– outside

Some northern breeds of dogs and large dogs with thick coats of fur actually prefer to be outside in the winter. If you look at a thermal image of one of these dogs you’ll actually see how much their coats keep heat in. In comparison, you can see how much a heat a short-haired dog would loose. I’ve known of thick coated northern dogs who have full access to an indoor heated home but they choose to sleep in the snow.

It’s no secret that dogs often prefer one person over another. It is commonly the person that feeds, walks, plays, and trains the dog the most. You can understand your dogs people preferences by observing how they interact with each person in their family. Who do they seem most excited about when they return home? When your family is hanging out for a movie night, who does your dog choose to snuggle up with (if anyone)?

Understanding how to ask for consent from your dog can also help you determine who your dog enjoys spending time with, playing with or being pet by the most. You may even find that your dog prefers different people for each of these activities.

To ask your dog for consent when interacting, simply offer yourself to the dog. You can talk to them, clap your hands, offer your hands to smell and for pets, and see how your dog responds. If your dog seems excited, pushes into you, sits at your feet and leans into you, or otherwise shows any signs that they enjoy being pet by you and want to be close to you then it’s pretty safe to say that your dog is saying YES to this interaction. However, if your dog comes in for pets and then turns and leaves, looks away, stays just outside of your reach or maybe even lays down a little ways away from you these are all indications that your dog is saying no thanks, they’re not interested in that interaction. Test out consent with your dog and each person in your family to see who they enjoy interacting with the most.

Remember that dogs moods can change and they may not always prefer the same people all the time. Do the consent test several times and to determine which people your dog prefers most often.

If the results aren’t what you would like, you can make changes in how you interact with your dog to shape a more desirable outcome. Spend more time doing the things your dog likes and prefers and your dog will suddenly think you’re the greatest person in the family! You always have the best treats, the best toys and take the time to understand and respect their preferences.

Tactile preferences is the type of touch your dog prefers. Again, it is helpful if you have a basic understanding of canine communication when doing a tactile preference test. Understanding the subtle cues your dog gives you will help you know which type of touch your dog prefers.

Do one type of touch with one hand and another type of touch with another hand. Observe your dogs body position and which type of pressure your dog leans into.

You can try different variables of touch, such as…
– heavy pressure vs light pressure
– stroking vs. scratching
– close hugs and petting vs at arms length

Most dogs don’t enjoy hugs and kisses. Those dogs which do seem to enjoy this type of interaction have usually been conditioned to enjoy it. Some dogs may enjoy hugs and kisses from their owner but feel extremely uncomfortable if a stranger or lesser-known person tries to interact with them in this way.

Dogs often don’t like to be pet on the top of their head because there is a blind spot there. They may be conditioned to accept and even enjoy it from their favorite people, but when it comes to strangers they should never pet a dog on top of the head.

Imagine if your partner always bought your flowers but what you actually liked was chocolates. Imagine you had no efficient way to communicate this with them so they just kept buying you flowers. Yeah, you may appreciate the gesture, but what would really get you happy, excited and appreciative is if they knew what your favorite thing was.

Now that you understand your dogs preferences, you can use this information to better motivate and encourage them which will give you better success in your training as well as a deeper bond with your dog.

Good luck, and Happy Training!

Wrapping Up 2024

Dog Blog, FSJ ACT, FSJ ACT, FSJ Dog Training, update, Zelda

As the end of the year gradually races towards us, I find myself reflecting on the past year and considering the year ahead. Last year, dog training was a whirlwind of client after client. This year was a slow business year. I think a part of it is that this is a small town and eventually clientele will slow down no matter what, but also I think a lot of it has to do with my own time management.

We started FSJ ACTS in February/March this year and we hit the ground running. I could probably write an entire blog on just this year with ACT. I am constantly feeling pulled between my family, my jobs and my volunteer hours. I love all of it, but I don’t really have time for all of it. I’m so exhausted all the time that I don’t push myself as hard I could to make my dog training career more successful. I keep telling myself it will come with time as my kids get older.

That being said, when I look back on this year and everything I’ve done and learned I realize it’s been a pretty big year too. Just in more subtle ways. I did my first group class in June, which flopped as a group class but I met one wonderful person and her spunky hound dog pup and we still connect and stay in touch. My ideal client is one who shows up on time, does the work with their dog and stays in touch to let me know how it goes in the long-run. I don’t want to ever have a client tell me their training didn’t work out (or worse, hear it from someone else) when I could have been there to help guide them in a different direction. Dog training is kind of a mix between science and art, it isn’t always so black and white. Some things will work with some dogs but not others. Sometimes it takes a bit of trial and error to find what does work.

2024 also taught me how important Pack in the Park is, and it breaks my heart that I haven’t been able to host one in months. I’m currently putting together a new Host training program, so if you’re local to Fort St. James and would like to try to host a Pack in the Park let, me know! I wish I could be there myself, but I just can’t at this time in my life. So I’m hoping to find one or two more individuals who’d like to host it.

I took on a foster puppy for the first time since I was involved with the humane society in 2008-2012. It was extremely challenging. I underestimated how chaotic our house would feel with one more young being in it. Boss was such a great foster pup, the best I could have asked for. So chill, calm, and happy to please. But even with all those wonderful traits it made my house feel more chaotic. I’ve learned that if I do take on a foster dog it has to be limited to the summer when I can utilize my outdoor kennel more. I don’t know if my family will even be ready for another foster dog by next summer, though. Saying goodbye to Boss was really hard. Luckily, he is with a really wonderful family and I still get to see him on occasion when he comes for play dates with Zelda. Boss taught me it’s possible and completely okay to love a dog that isn’t part of your family.

I helped spearhead the Art for Animals Gallery Fundraiser and we learned so much from that. It wasn’t just about the money, it turned into this amazing opportunity to connect with the public about what ACT does. We reached a lot of people and taught them who we are and what we do. We had students come through the gallery and learn about art and our cause. For the amount of work and time it took, it wasn’t exactly the most profitable fundraiser but it turned out to be so much more than a fundraiser. I’m really proud of this one.

Last Sunday we had the first Annual Santa Photos fundraiser; which was so much more than just Santa Photos! We also had a little Christmas pet shop, nail trims by Katie, Dog Training Consultations by me and live music by Natile, as well as a few cool door prizes! We raised $790 and had a total blast meeting everyone and their furry family members. I think with more time to plan it next year we will bring it back next December, even better!

At our last ACT meeting we established the roles we would all like to play. I am now the Humane Education Coordinator. I joined Doggone Safe and am currently enrolled in a course so that I can be certified to teach dog bite prevention. I’m about halfway through it, as I write this, and I’ve learned so much already. It’s a very thorough course and I highly recommend it to any dog enthusiasts or anyone who works with dogs. I have plans to upgrade my education with more than just bite prevention as well. With these upgrades, I can’t wait to bring more humane education programs to Fort St. James in 2025.

I will be closed from December 19, 2024 until January 7, 2025. Happy Holidays!

FSJ ACTS will be closed from December 21, 2024 until January 2, 2025.

Boundary Training

Dog Blog, FSJ Dog Training, Training Workshop

Boundary training is the process of training your dog to stay within a defined space. This may be your unfenced yard or to not bolt through open gates or doors.

DISCLAIMER: Boundary training is not for dogs with behavior problems such as aggression (towards dogs or people), high prey drive or for females in heat. Boundary training is also not a way to contain your dog and should only be implemented under supervision.

WHY BOUNDARY TRAIN YOUR DOG?

– keep your dog from bolting through open doors or gates
– lessens the chances of your dog slipping out and escaping
– teaches your dog self-control around distractions such as people or other dogs walking by
– your dog can learn to wait their turn to go through a doorway or gate
– you can work in your yard with peace of mind
– you can eat your meals in peace (includes a bonus piece about teaching your dog to stay out of a room)
– strengthens your bond with your dog

I recognize that people (and dogs!) don’t all learn new things the same way. Some people learn best by reading, some learn best by watching and listening and some learn best by doing. It’s with this understanding that I’m offering three ways to learn about boundary training; a 10 page PDF document, a 15:39 minute long video or a one-hour in-person training session. Both video file and training session come with the 10 page document. When it comes to boundary training, it’s best if the training is done in your home which makes a group training workshop impossible. However, I think with the combination of PDF document, video and in-person training anyone can learn to boundary train their dogs themselves.

Select which part of the workshop you’d like:

PDF document
15 minute video + PDF document
1 hour in person + PDF document

A NOTE ON THE IN-PERSON TRAINING SESSION:

My current availability to come to your house for a training session is Tuesdays between 10am and 2pm. I understand that this is not ideal for a lot of people, and I apologize for the inconvenience. It is just my current circumstances.

In-person training sessions are only available in Fort St. James.

September Update

Dog Blog, Dog Rescue, FSJ ACT, FSJ ACT, FSJ Dog Training, update

I’m going to quit promising any kind of posting schedule or content because it’s clear I can’t keep up on it long-term. I will post when I can or when I have anything worth posting about.

Dog training has been slow for me, but not because there aren’t dogs who need training. I have myself invested in a lot of places. I have two kids (7 and 2) and since school just started back up we’ve had back to back sicknesses. We’ve just started potty training the two year old and that’s a whole new level of challenge. I am on the board of directors of the Fort St. James Animal Care Team Society (FSJ ACTS) and the animals of FSJ keep us very busy. I just started working weekends at The View Hotel, which means I no longer have availability on the weekends for dog training. My husband drives logging truck and his hours are long and all over the place which also makes scheduling difficult. As a side project, I’m also helping put together an art show for FSJ ACTS and (separately) I have put my crochet critters at So Divine Artisan Boutique. Not to mention, the kids activities, taking care of our home, and dealing with my injured foot for going on 16 months now.

I don’t normally air my personal life on here, but the reason I am explaining all of this is to ask you to please be patient with me. Scheduling is difficult right now, but I hope that by next summer I will find a new rhythm that will fit dog training into my life more. One of the things I really wanted to do was to check in with past clients. It’s been a year of dog training (already!) and I haven’t heard from most of you which I hope is a good thing. I would love to reach out to every single one of you. If you are a past client reading this, please feel free to get in touch with me and let me know how you and your dog are doing. I really love hearing updates. I love the good updates and I want to hear the bad updates so that I can help support you further.

FSJ Animal Care Team Society and Pope Mountain Arts are teaming up together to put on a group art show that will benefit the animals in the care of FSJ ACTS.

It’s open to all artists and all mediums. There is no theme, but an animal them or inspiration is encouraged. There’s no limit on the number of pieces to submit, but do keep in mind that this is a group art show and there is limited space.

For more information you can download our Information Package or email fsj.act@gmail.com

Art-for-Animals-2024Download

Once again, I’m slightly restructuring how I offer my services. There will be no price changes though, if anything, I am expanding my services. Since it’s become quite difficult for me to schedule training sessions and my space to train in for the winter is not ideal, I’ll be focusing on offering training consultations over the phone, Facebook messenger or e-mail.

Not to be confused with my previous consultations offered to help structure your training session to meet you and your dogs unique needs. To avoid confusion, the Over-The-Phone Consultation will now be known as a Phone Evaluation and the Online Consultation will be known as an Online Evaluation. The price of the training session will still be broken up between the Evaluation and the training session and will remain at the same price.

So what will be involved in a consultation that makes it different from an evaluation?

The evaluation is there to help make the most effective training session I can offer by evaluating your dog and your goals and values. With this information I will create a hands-on training session that will benefit you the most.

The consultation will include the evaluation but will also focus on advice I can give right away and a back and forth conversation that will help me determine the best advice I can offer over the phone or online. There is no broken down price because there is no hands-on training session. I may advise a training session for a later date, but the consultation will involve planning and create a training plan that is just for you that you can start right away on our own at home with your dog. The price for a consultation is $50 and includes a phone call or online based conversation that will cover the evaluation and then continue on with advice I can give right then and there. A follow up e-mail will be sent to you with a breakdown of what we discussed and any files or links to resources you may find helpful. If you require additional help then another consultation may be scheduled or you may schedule an in-person training session, if both parties agree that it is necessary.

I hope that with this new service I will be able to help more people shape desired behaviors in their dog and build healthy, long lasting relationships built on trust and respect.

July Update

Dog Blog, Dog Rescue, FSJ ACT, FSJ ACT, FSJ Dog Training, Monthly Update, Pack in the Park, Puppies in the Park, update

Apparently, after promising to at least commit to the monthly updates I completely skipped June. I really didn’t have a whole lot going on in June, to be honest. My group class (that only had one person) ended in the beginning of June and then I just focused my time on my family for a little while.

Dog training picked up in July and I’ve been semi-consistently busy this month. LOTS of puppies! Which is always fun, I love working with puppies (I mean, who doesn’t?).

FAVORITE NAME FOR JULY

I feel like I should say my favorite name for July is Nova, since that is my youngest daughters name, but I sorry Nova, I think I have to go with Mungo for my favorite dog name of July. It’s honestly just so fun to say. I’m not sure if it has any sort of meaning behind it, I really should have asked the owner. But it doesn’t even have to have any sort of meaning, it’s just fun to say.

Mungo is one of the puppies that our Animal Care Team took in. In our care, his name was Dusky. He was a foster fail, and his new family just adores him and gave him the name Mungo. Which I think really suits him.

I didn’t get any photos of Mungo during our training session, but I did get the above photo of Mungo and his owner working beautifully together during Puppies in the Park.

FSJ ACTS UPDATE

FSJ ACTS officially has Society status now, which is so exciting. It means we will have access to a lot more funding. Unfortunately, we are still not a registered non-profit and can’t issue receipts for tax purposes, but with society status we will be able to help the animals just a bit more.

On July 7th I picked up my foster puppy Boss. FSJ ACTS has lots of puppies looking for homes that are currently in foster care. We have an awesome team of volunteers to help with kennel duty, but we wanted to give our volunteers a break and give our puppies a chance to learn how to live life in a family and home environment.

Boss has fit in really nicely. Zelda wasn’t too sure about him at first but he slowly grew on her and now they are Besties. He’s great with my two girls (7 and 2 years old) and is learning not to steal snacks or toys. He’s learning a lot of things in our house and I’ve given him a slow adjustment to house life. To make this easier for him to learn the rules (especially for house training) I have kept him on leash in the house a lot of the time. He gets leashed to either myself or a study piece of furniture so that I can keep him within eye sight at all times. He’s also been introduced to the cats. My older cat Jarroko has been extremely patient and the best cat to teach him the ropes about cats. My poor younger cat Alice is terrified of him and has been living behind the hot tub for the last couple weeks.

Boss knows how to sit, down and “go kennel”. He’s learning to sit at doorways and gates (this is very tough for him), he sits for his meals and he sits to be leashed. He is a very sweet boy who loves people and wants to please. This makes him quite trainable. He has the sweetest disposition and loves catching a nap in a good sun patch. Boss is also really great on leash and responds well to loose-leash training.

If you’re interested in adopting Boss, please let me know if you’d like to arrange to meet him!

FSJ ACTS FUNDRAISERS

For the month of July the Fort St. James Bottle Depot collected donations for FSJ ACTS. The total raised in the month was $1,000. Thank you SO much for your generosity. This money will go towards our vet bills.

There is a fundraiser through As You Wish Custom Designs (based in Prince George) where $2 for every purchase goes to FSJ ACTS. FOLLOW THE LINK to order yours! Here are some handsome pooches with their stylish custom tags…

PUPPIES IN THE PARK

On July 20th I hosted the first Puppies in the Park; a spin on our classic “Pack in the Park” but it was for puppies up to 10 months old (who have been vaccinated). There’s a lot of fear about Parvo (and for good reason) so I had a lot of interest but a lot of puppies who aren’t vaccinated enough yet to attend public dog events like this. I had a couple of people attend and it was a blast of course, puppies always are, but there is a definite need to do this again next month once more puppies have had their shots.

I’ve had tons of people ask me about when I’ll do another Pack in the Park and I decided to create a texting list for those who want to be notified when the next Pack in the Park is happening. If you’d like to join this list, please let me know.

Meet Our Adoptable Dogs!

Dog Blog, FSJ ACT, FSJ ACT

The Fort St. James Animal Care Team is in need of foster homes and we’re looking for forever homes. A great option is to “try it out” first and Foster to Adopt. When you Foster to Adopt you make no commitment to keep the animal and if they are not a good fit for your household and they can be returned to our care.

For more information about any of the dogs below, please contact FSJ ACT by email fsj.act@gmail.com or Facebook Messenger.

If you’re interested in fostering, please fill out a Foster Application.

If you’re interested in adopting, please fill out an Adoption Application.

ADOPTABLE DOGS

Meeko is looking for his forever home.
For more about Meeko’s story read his Go Fund Me page.

ADOPTABLE PUPPIES

ADOPTED!

ADOPTED!

ADOPTED!

ADOPTED!

ADOPTED!

ADOPTED!

May Update

Dog Blog, Dog Rescue, FSJ ACT, FSJ Dog Training, Monthly Update, Training, Training Workshop, Trick Training, update, Zelda

I promised this long list of upcoming articles and then completely fell off the face of the Earth. I thought if I had a schedule of articles to stick to it would help me post consistently, but it did not help at all. Spring hit and I’ve struggled to even open my laptop ever since. After some self-reflection, I’ve decided that the only blog posts I’m going to commit to posting is the monthly updates. I may throw in other posts here and there, depending on my time and mood. However, I think for the summer it would be best to cut back on my post commitments.

BASIC OBEDIENCE WORKSHOP

May was a bit of a slow month for me, when it comes to training. I had one private lesson and launched my group class which, unfortunately, only had one person sign up. I’m struggling to get commitment from Fort St. James dog owners and I’m wondering if it’s the same Spring time struggles I’m facing with committing to anything consistently myself, right now. Whatever the reasons, I’m still going through with the class. I designed the price so that if this happened I wouldn’t be losing money and it still felt somewhat worth going. My one client in this group class has the most amazing soft, floppy hound pup so that definitely makes it worth-while.

The United Church has been awesome to rent, though. I’ve rented the space in the past for the K9 First Aid Course and it’s very affordable (especially if you provide clean up afterwards, which I totally don’t mind doing) and they allow dogs. When I started phoning around looking for a space to do a group class in, the United Church wasn’t my first pick, simply because it’s not the biggest space and wouldn’t allow for very many people and their dogs. However, I ran into issues with many places not wanting dogs in them and/or issues with insurance. The United Church is very accommodating and laid back to deal with; they’ve been fantastic.

Since I was unable to fill the class up, I do have a few spaces available and am opening it up to Drop-Ins.

Drop-ins can attend any of the following classes, and do not need to commit to the whole course. It is $40 to drop in, and I take cash or debit.

Saturday, June 1st

10am-11am

  • Stay
  • Stay Circle
  • Jackpot Rewards
  • Distractions and Challenges

Saturday, June 8th

10am – 11am

  • Watch Command
  • Automatic Sit
  • Come (recall)

Saturday, June 8th

10am – 11am

  • Heel
  • Phasing Out Treats

FAVORITE NAME FOR APRIL & MAY: ZERO

I actually didn’t really have a favorite name from my clients dogs (sorry!). I only had a few clients and all of their dogs had pretty normal names that could even pass for people names. I like quirky or weird names on animals… We have a Zelda, Jarroko and Alice (named from Alice in Wonderland by my daughter) in our household. So, while I thought those dogs all totally suited their names and they are great on them! There aren’t any that stand out as a favorite…

Except Zero, whom is a dog I met but did not work with. I love the name Zero on a dog because I have always adored The Nightmare Before Christmas and the ghostly dog Zero. My sister used to have a dog named Zero that I adored, a well. I did not get a picture of the Zero I recently met though, I wish I had as he was a beautiful dog. Here’s a photo of my sister’s Zero dog with my two (who have since passed a long time ago). Left to right: Coal, Linkin Bark and Zero.

FORT ST. JAMES ANIMAL CARE TEAM SOCIETY

The FSJ ACT is becoming FSJ ACTS! We are getting our society status. We still won’t be able to write receipts for donations as we won’t be a non-profit, but as a society we are eligible for more funding that we desperately need.

FSJ ACTS took on a one-time difficult case with a dog named Meeko who needed some medical care and we decided to take on the challenge to help. He is a very special dog and worth the care and effort. A great big THANK YOU to our team members Shannon, Katie and April for taking care of Meeko. Shannon has fostered him and cared for him and Katie has helped with his daily bandage changes and medical care. April helped bring Meeko to the vet every week, which is a couple hours from our community. We really need help with his overwhelming vet bills. Please read more of his story HERE and if you can contribute anything (even $5) to help with his medical costs we would greatly appreciate it.

We’ve also been working hard at fundraising, spay and neuter trips, vaccine clinics and general animal emergency help. To be honest, I could very easily write a whole separate blog about the Animal Care Team and what we’ve been up to. The animals are keeping us busy!

Every single one of our Care Team members is so valuable and every single person who helps volunteer and connect us to the resources we need are the blood pumping through our team’s collective veins. The individuals on our team bring so much skills, knowledge, heart and determination and the community helps support us in reaching our goals. It’s been amazing to be a part of and watch what people are capable of when we put a little effort and cooperation in.

TRICK OF THE MONTH: CENTER

Definition: the dog approaches from behind you, goes between your legs and stands shoulder to knee between your legs

Command Variations: “center”, “middle”, “peakaboo”

Use: a great way to keep your dog very close to you. It can be helpful in crowded or small spaces (ie; an elevator)

How to teach “Center”

Teaching your dog requires a lure (I use a bit of a tasty treat) and you need to start from the end result and work backwards. First you will stand right in front of your dog (facing away) and lure/call them between your legs.

Once your dog is understanding that you want them to stand between your legs and stay there, you can start to add in distance and different angles to approach from so that you can call your dog to the trick from anywhere.

Instead of standing (with your back to the dog) directly in front of them, start a little ways away from them and start to creep to the side a bit. Keep adding more distance and different angles until you can call your dog to the center position from anywhere (with them in front of you too). It just takes adding that distance (and angles) very slowly and gradually over time.

You will also need to gradually increase the amount of time your dog spends staying in this position. Once rewarded, dogs often consider their job over. Remind them that you would like them to stay in this position until released. If they break too early (whether you rewarded them or not) get them back into position and try again. Give your dog the release command and then toss a jackpot reward a little ways away from you, so that your dog knows it’s time to leave the position. When you reward your dog for staying in position you can slip little tidbits down to them so that they don’t need to move to get their reward. After several repetitions of this, your dog will learn the difference and learn to stay in position until a release command is given.

I’ve done a brief video to demonstrate how to train this trick. I hope it helps! It was my first time doing a video like this and it came with it’s own unexpected challenges. Hopefully next month I can come up with something a little better. Please let me know if you have issues playing it due to Instagram, and if so, next time I’ll load it to YouTube to embed it better.

Dog Training: Watch Me

Dog Blog, FSJ Dog Training, GUIDE 5: DOG TRAINING, Training

Definition: look at my face/eyes

Command Variations: “watch”, “look”, dog’s name

Behavior: dog looks at you

Use: once you have a moment of your dogs attention on you then you can give the next command with a better success rate

I have been moving more and more towards using a dogs name for this command instead of “watch me”. Using the dog’s name to get their attention is a natural response for most people and it just makes sense to train it to your dog this way.

Once you have your dogs attention on you it’s much easier to redirect them to something else and give them the next command. You will have a higher success rate with your commands when your dog is paying attention.

How To Train “Watch Me”

Training your dog to look at you is actually really easy. Like all training, it requires consistent practice. Start in a low-distraction environment like a quiet room in your house. Decide which command you’re going to use first and stick with it. Make sure it’s a command everyone in the household will use. In this example we’ll be using the dogs name.

Give your command, “Fido” and then hold a treat next to your face at eye level. When your dog looks to your face cue the action as correct using a clicker or a cue word like “YES” and reward your dog with the treat. Repeat, repeat, repeat. Keep practicing until you feel your dog is looking to your face without the lure of the treat.

Add Distractions

It’s important to always gradually add distractions when training any new command. Once your dog is understanding without a lure in a quiet room move on to a less quiet room. Start throwing in distractions of other people, animals, and different places. You can test your dog out by throwing a small box across the floor, have someone else blow a whistle, push a chair past the dog, throw a toy etc. There are endless ways to test your dog out. Create the distraction and then give the command. If your dog struggles to perform the correct behavior then you need a bit more work in the quiet room or with a less distracting challenge. Slowly build those distractions inside your home and then try outside your home. Try in your yard and then move on to a local park, beach, down town etc. If your dog struggles with the new level of challenge then you need to take a step back and work a bit more at a lower challenge for a while before moving on.

Basic Obedience 4 Week Workshop

Dog Blog, FSJ Dog Training, Training Workshop

$150

Saturdays
10AM – 11AM

at the United Church
#222 2nd Ave W

Starting May 25th

REGISTER NOW
join facebook event

This is a four-week workshop that consists of one hour of class time per-week. There is practice time at the end of each class, but you will be expected to practice what you learn with your dog throughout the week between each class as well. The workshop covers basic obedience that can be taught to all levels and ages of dog.

PLEASE NOTE: intact female dogs in heat will not be allowed to attend this class.

YOU WILL LEARN:

– the 5 basic commands; sit, down, stay, heel and come

– basic leash skills; how to hold your leash & types of appropriate leashes and collars

– building distractions and challenges

– all about cues, markers and lures

– automatic sit paired with commands

– how to use treats as rewards and how to phase them out

– how to hold your leash, types of leashes and appropriate leashes and collars

– how to use cues, markers, lures and commands

– how to train sit

– how to train down

– down vs off

– practice time

– building distractions and challenges

– how to train stay

– the stay circle

– how to use jackpot rewards

– practice time

– introduce the automatic sit

– “watch” command

– how to train recall (come)

– practice time

– phasing out treats

– how to train heel

– practice time

DISCLAIMER/RULES

This is not a dog social group.

This is not doggy play time.

This is an obedience class.

All dogs must remain on leash.

Dogs must not meet face-to-face during class.

You will see progress if you continuously work with your dog outside of class time.

You will not see progress if you don’t work with your dog outside of class time.

All owners must pick up after their dogs. (Poop bags & cleaners provided)

Don’t touch my demo dog Zelda without permission.

Don’t touch any of the other dogs without permission of the owner.