Teach your dog Shake

Shake is a fun, easy trick that everybody loves!

Start by placing a treat in front of your dog's nose to keep their attention forward and not on what you are doing to their foot. At the same time, gently tickle behind your dogs foot until they pick it up. (Some dogs may need a more forceful tap behind the leg). When they pick it up, say GOOD! and give the treat. DO NOT PICK THE LEG UP YOURSELF. They must offer it!

Once they are offering it consistently, start asking for it. Keep their focus with the treat, extend your hand out, and ask them to "shake". If they don't offer the paw, tickle behind the leg until they pick it up. When they do, praise and treat. Repeat until they start lifting the leg without you having to tickle. 

The first time they offer it on their own, praise them like you won the lottery and give them an extra treat! 

That's it! If you would like your dog to shake with both paws, I recommend teaching them to mirror you. For example, if you offer your left paw, they should offer their right. In the picture above, you can see my left hand and her right paw. When you ask for the other paw, switch hands. This way, when you move onto more advanced paw-work, such as High 5 and Wave, they will know which paw to use. 

If your dog is paw-shy, start by letting them "shake" by only tapping your hand, don't try to hold it. Build up a tolerance and trust by asking them to keep their paw on your hand for a longer period each time. As they get better, you can actually grab their paw with your hand.

Great work! Now go upload your Shake pictures on our Facebook Wall!

The Recipe for Dog Crack

As long as I've been training, dogs have been going absolutely NUTS for freeze dried liver.  However, if you train a lot, or if you go through treats quickly (like me!), then you know freeze dried liver is a pretty hefty investment. If you buy the real stuff, the best deal is at Ryan's, but you have to buy it in bulk, and hope your $30 worth of dog treats doesn't get burglarized. (Or worse, that it spills in your car, and you don't notice until you return with the windows up on a hot day. Talk about disgusting smells...)

Anyway, since I hand out treats freely in class, and since almost every dog LOVES this stuff, I decided to make my own.  I, like most people, do not have access to a freeze drier, but I can dehydrate things! If you have a dehydrator, it makes this task super easy; but if you don't, all you need is a few baking pans and an oven.

Go to your local supermarket, and look in the meat aisle. They should sell beef livers, chicken livers, and sometimes "gizzards and hearts". YUM! (puke!) I prefer the chicken livers, because they're already small and I don't have to cut the stinky stuff. 

Arrange them in a single layer on a baking pan, or in a dehydrator, and bake at 175 for about 8 hours. (I leave them in overnight.) If using a dehydrator, you may have to leave them for 12-16 hours, depending on your settings. You want them to be crispy, so they won't go bad when you take them out for training.

By now you should notice that your entire house smells horrible. (Don't worry, it will go away!) If you plan on making these treats often, I suggest you pick up a cheap dehydrator at Goodwill, and start making these outside. (With your dogs secured INSIDE, of course, LOL!)

Since they are dehydrated, they should keep at room temperature, no problem. I prefer to keep them in the fridge in a ziplock bag until ready for use, just to be on the safe side.

There you go! Super cheap, super easy, and your dogs will love you forever! :) 


PS You can do the same thing with salmon, (my dogs love!), but don't use a dehydrator. The meat leaks too much during the dehydrating process and will short out your machine! But salmon smells good, so it's oven-worthy!

How to teach your dog SPIN!

Spin is a cute trick that is easy to learn and helps dogs burn off extra energy.  The goal is to teach your dog to spin around themselves in a tight circle. 

When you teach a new trick, you always want to lure your dog through the motion before you give it a name. Start with your dog standing up and put a treat in front of their nose.  Without saying anything, take the treat and slowly lure the dog in a circle. If your dog sits or doesn't follow, use praise to encourage them to follow the treat. (Hint: it helps GREATLY if you use your right hand to spin the dog counter-clockwise, and your left hand to spin the dog clockwise).  When first learning, try both directions to see if your dog has a favorite. Once they pick a direction, stick with that one direction until they master it; then you can teach the opposite.

Start by getting your pup interested in the treat

Lure them around...

Continue practicing until your dog is comfortable making a tight turn around themselves!

 ADDING THE WORD: When your dog follows the lure consistently, you are ready to add the word!  I use "Spin" for one direction (counter clockwise) and "Unwind" for the opposite (clockwise), but they are also directed with hand motions. My dogs can determine which direction to turn by which hand I use. See above: right hand for counterclockwise, left for clockwise. 

When adding the word, start with your dog in a sit or stand. Warm them up with a few "spin lures" to let them know which action you are looking for. Ask them to "spin" and whip your hand around in an exaggerated circle (the same direction you want your dog to spin in). If your dog doesn't move, or if they attempt but stop halfway, give them a verbal correction (UHUH!) and immediately lure them. Once they finish the spin, praise and treat. Continue practicing until they can perform without the lure.

Hints: 
Make sure your dog masters one direction fully before you teach the opposite. Skipping ahead will make your dog confused and they will not consistently spin the proper direction.
A lot of people want to teach their dog to spin multiple times. This is fine, however, not in the beginning. You want to make sure your dog knows the motion is to spin in a circle, then stop for further instructions. Once they are experts, you can teach them to continue spinning until you say "Ok!" to release, or "Stop".

Ava and Carl demonstrating Spin and Unwind:

Alright, that's it! Go practice! If you have questions or need help, leave a comment! Once your dog masters it, show off with a video-response or picture!!

Submissive Urination..and KEA GOT ADOPTED!

Today's blog is going to follow the story of a tall, lanky German Shepherd who touched my heart for the past two weeks. His name is Kea and he was surrendered to the rescue I work with two weeks ago. When Kea's parents brought him in to meet me for an evaluation, he was a mess. His legs were trembling, he hid behind his parents because he was terrified, and he tried to keep his body as low to the floor as possible. I had his folks walk him around a bit, and they did, but his stature didn't improve much. They had done training with him, and his obedience was spot on, but they never sought help of a behaviorist to help him build confidence and eliminate his submissive urination.  When I took his leash and walked him around, he reluctantly did so, keeping his body as close to the walls as physically possible, and peeing every time I touched him or praised him over-excitedly. During his initial half hour evaluation, he peed between 15-20 times. And then his training began...

Kea's first week with me was spent meeting and interacting with every one we could. He attended several Meet N Greet classes, and was worked with by several of my alumni students. In the beginning, he was very confused and lacking confidence, peeing every time a new person would come up to meet him. He tried hiding behind me, but I forced him to sit and accept petting. Every time he did something right (or even slightly right), Kea got lots and lots of praise.  By the end of the week, he was a new dog!  He had discovered that people really weren't so scary and that they had lots and lots of affection to give. Previously, he had gone through life basically on his own - never getting feedback from his owners, so he was never really sure if he was doing anything right. Once he started receiving praise, he knew he was on the right track, and loved every minute of it.

Kea learning that babies are awesome! Axel loved giving him treats, and soon Kea was following him everywhere in hopes of getting a treat!

Today Kea moved in with his new family. This previously "hide behind mom" kinda boy waltzed right up to his new owners, tail wagging! That was definitely a proud-trainer moment! He peed only once, when he first met them, and didn't pee the rest of the time we were there. He even met their daughter - no pee - and the family cat, and he was a big brave dog. As we were leaving, the family took Kea on a walk, and they stopped to talk to a neighbor. Kea went right up, tail wagging, ready for some attention! His previous owners would've been speechless. He just needed the right training to bring out his stunning personality.

I am so proud of all of the progress Kea has made these short two weeks, and I would like to extend a thank you to all of my students who volunteered their time to come meet him and help him on his journey. He is now happily in his forever home because of all of the positive reinforcement he has received.


So, in conclusion, I can't give specific instructions to fix a submissive urination problem - because every dog is different and not all dogs respond to the same training techniques, but I can say this:  dog's need leadership. Unless you own a wolf or a wolf-hybrid, your dog does NOT want to be the alpha leader. They need guidance, structure, and most importantly feedback.  They like to know when they're doing things right, don't forget to tell them! And if you ever need help with an anxiety or aggression problem, or if you can't get your dog to stop submissively urinating, I'm only a phone call or an email away! :)

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The power of a JOB

I always say that dogs are like children. Well, I have a toddler of my own, who has just about the same attention span, mentality, energy, and comprehension level of most dogs. Everything is instant gratification with him, and if you don't correct in the moment, it has passed and so has the opportunity for a lesson. He is also brilliant (like most dogs), and if I don't give him things to keep his brain occupied, he will find things to do; things that are most often not desired behaviors (like dogs). At the risk of sounding like a broken record, every day he does something new that inspires me to help people better understand their dogs.  There are many topics I would like to cover relating children to dogs, but for today we will focus on the power of a "job".

Dogs are pack animals. They thrive on social order, and unless you own a wolf-hybrid, your dog wants to receive instructions from his pack leader (hopefully you!).  Giving your dog a job will fulfill many of his needs: it will allow him to burn off excess mental energy, it will give him a sense of purpose, and it will teach him the proper reaction to a situation. All of these things will give you a happier, well balanced pet, and will help reduce some of the boredom destruction that takes place when you're away.

But what is a good job for a dog to do? Many of you reading this are envisioning your dog putting your laundry in the washer, getting you a beer from the fridge, and then returning the empty can to the recycling bin. Mind you, my dog CAN do all of those things (I'll post video later!), but, that level of training isn't required to give your dog a job. Often times people get frustrated with their pets because they do so well in class, but at home, they seem to lose all of their training! What they're missing is practical training. Sure, it's nice to leash the dog up, get out the treat bag, and do training for 15 minutes, but what about the rest of the day? My challenge to you, my reader, is to find practical jobs your dog can do through out the day. Some common examples are:
- Performing a sit stay during the commercials of your favorite show
- On one street of your walk, ask your dog to sit or down at each driveway you pass
- Teach your dog the "your bed" command, and ask him to hold it for the duration of dinner time
- Ask your dog to perform 2 "sits" and 3 "downs" before handing him his dinner bowl
- When you're playing ball with your dog, ask him to do a different trick each time before you throw the ball. This can be really fun if your dog has a whole repertoire of tricks; if he only knows sit and down, just alternate!

Once you start integrating training in your everyday life, training becomes something that is expected. You will notice your dogs becoming more consistent with their listening skills, and you will definitely notice your dog more exhausted. Especially for those of you who find you can take your dog on a jog, return home, and they're ready to go again! If you start tapping into their mental energy stores vs just their physical energy, you will notice a much happier, less stressed pooch. 

Got an idea for a job? Leave it in the comments section below! Happy Training!

Dog Days of Summer!

It's hot, dogs are being dumped left and right, and shelters don't have the funds to save everyone. So, Dog House Training Academy put on a little fundraiser to help raise awareness and to raise some money for our favorite rescues, White German Shepherd Dog Rescue and Home Fur Good.

Our event started at 5pm on Saturday, August 20th, and by 5:02, the place was packed! We had tons of doggie treats, and various doggie items donated to the cause; we had an overflowing table of human goodies, and a pool in the back for everyone to cool off in. Our raffle table was stocked with everything from free training to an IPod to baskets full of beauty products! Nancy from WGSDR took our Pet Luau photos, and everyone had on their model faces! Check out the Luau Pictures!  By 8pm, the sun was down, and all the doggies had gone home.  We ended our evening raising over $350 for charity! The rescues had donation bins at their tables as well and pulled in several hundred on their own. All in all, I'd say it was a good evening. :)

Best features:  all the new faces I was able to meet, getting a visit from Axel, it didn't smell TOO much like wet dog lol, and I didn't get bit or peed on the entire evening! Note: when you're a dog trainer, you appreciate the little things in life :)

Thanks everyone for making this event possible!

For more candid photos of the event, click here.

Welcome to The Dog House

Hey there, Leah here. I'm starting this blog to give myself a little more freedom. I have a ridiculous amount of dog-knowledge stored in my head, and I'd love to share it with everyone. Unfortunately time restraints usually force me to give the shortest "here's how to fix ____ problem" answer, but I'd love to help the public figure out why. Dogs are not complex, they have a willingness to work (if you teach them), and they are brilliant and have a potential many people do not expect. Once you figure out how their minds work, you can understand the communication barrier that separates man and dog, and learn how to cross it, ending the frustration.

That being said, I hate lectures. I'd love for this blog to become almost a forum, with open communication encouraged. You have questions, and I have answers. I'd like to make this a place to recommend training exercises, new dog treat recipes, my favorite products, and anything else dog-related.  So please, give me some inspiration, and no, I will not accept the dog-ate-my homework excuse ;)

PS My goal in the next year is to write a book, so I'm dabbling in the blogging world. Dog training is best done in a hands-on type medium, so I'm curious to find out what people would be interested in reading. So in advance, thank you for being my guinea pigs. :) Check me out on the web!