Teaching your dog "Stay" is one of the easier cues to teach your dog...if we do it right.  And of course most of us are doing it wrong.  Stay can be a useful command ("Stay" so I can take your picture).  It can be used for safety ("Stay" while I clean up this glass that just broke).  I also use it all the time to focus an overstimulated dog.  With just a few adjustments you can build a foundation to a stronger and longer Stay. In this episode I talk about:* How to set your dog up for...

Kasie comes back to teach us more about raw feeding.  This time we talk all about puppies! Plus Kasie has some advice on treats and how to start even if you feel overwhelmed.This episode is Part 2 of a two part series.  In Part 1 we talk about raw feeding more general.  Kasie has been raw feeding for 30 years and is the founder and owner of San Francisco Raw.  If you are new to raw feeding this is a great opportunity to hear from the perspective from someone who's been doing it for a...

Maybe you've never heard of raw feeding your dog.  Maybe you have but you're not quite sure what it means.  This episode can start to answer some of your questions. Raw feeding is something that I've dabbled in but I am NO expert.  Since I do get questions about it all the time, I've decided to bring in Kasie Maxwell Grujcic to help teach us more about it.  Kasie has been raw feeding for 30 years and is the founder and owner of San Francisco Raw.  If you are new to raw feeding this is a great...

"Practice makes perfect."  We all know that one.  Well, it's just as true for our dogs.  When we teach our dogs how to sit we know to start at step one and work them up to a reliable sit in any situation.  When we want to change a behavior (like barking, digging, leash walking, or counter surfing) it's no different. We don't usually think of it as something we have to intentionally practice but this is exactly what's we need to do. We think about how we want the behavior to change in the...

In part one we talked about demand barking.  Here in part two I go into detail about alert barking.  Alert barking is when your dog is barking at something.  A dog out the window, a noise like a doorbell, your neighbor, etc.  This type of barking usually starts in as your puppy gets older.  Once they reach adolescence this instinct kicks in. It also feel really good to them!  It burns energy and relieves boredom.  So the habit can start very easily.  There are a few ways to handle this type...

Barking comes in many different forms. This makes how to stop a dog from barking more complicated than we think.  We can't just ask "how do I stop my dog from barking?" and get an answer because why they are barking plays a significant role in how we stop them.  Are they barking in the crate?  Are they barking at you?  Are they barking at your neighbor?  Do they only bark when on a leash?  Even if you answered "yes" to more than one, how you address the barking will change depending on the...

Allison is back with some more great tips on how to take better photos of your dog!Who doesn't want that perfect Instagramable, frameable, background photo of our dog.  But even with the 200 photos we have on our phones sometimes it eludes us!Back in episode 52 Allison Shamrell of Allison Shamrell Pet Photography told us all about how to take great photos with just a cell phone and so much more.  Well, I've brought her back to answer some more questions on how to get that perfect shot!In this...

I'm back to burst some bubbles (POP!).  Don't get me wrong, I LOVE my fenced-in yard just like most dog owners.  But just like with most things that make our lives easier there's a downside.  I'm here to help you minimize them!My goal is to make sure that you and your dog can use your backyard in the best way possible.  And that means there's some training that needs to happen before you just let them loose!This applies if you have a puppy or a full grown dog!In this episode I talk about:*...

Socializing your dog, especially when they are young, is SUPER DUPER important.  If you have listened to me at all then this is not news to you. You know that you have to expose your dog to many different people, places, environments, sounds, textures, and dogs.  This is what creates a confident, well-adjusted dog that you can take anywhere and not have to worry about them.  BUT we need to do it right.  That is why I developed my 7 guidelines for socializing your dog.  Not only do we want to...

How many times have you gone to Youtube to find a new dog trick and it's a three-minute video with a dog that already knows the trick?Or you teach your dog a new trick in class to go home and they act like they never heard of it before.  Truth is, training doesn't happen in a straight line.  Yes, there is usually a set of steps we have to follow but those steps don't go as smoothly as the video, book, or class make it look. In this episode, I go session by session describing my journey of...

Your puppy's schedule will vary depending on many factors.  Including age, exercise needs, and your schedule.When I'm asked about what a typical day looks like I know that I'm actually being asked things like:"How many times should I take my puppy out?""How much exercise should my puppy get?""How much time is too much time in the crate?"To help answer these questions and give you a place to start, in this episode, I talk about what a typical day might look like for a 10-week old puppy and how...

When we imagine kids and puppies we think that they go together like peanut butter and jelly (or my preference - chocolate). The reality isn't so sweet.  Your puppy and your kids LOVE each other.  But sometimes it's that same love and excitement that causes scratches, tears, and a disheartening relationship.When we have kids and a puppy in the same house it takes a lot more management and referring than most expect.  We can have that amazing relationship that we imagined when you got the...

Debbie here!  I just wanted to jump into your podcast feed one more time this year.  First I want to thank you, my listeners once again for being a bright spot in an otherwise stressful year.  I also thought it would be fun to take a look back at this year's most popular episodes and also talk about what's to come in 2021.No training advice in this one.  Just a little conversation between us humans.  Press play to listen!Resources mentioned and related to this episode:YNP #046: Puppy Biting...

Fetch it the one game we all think of when we talk about playing with our dog.  So it's easy to forget that we have to teach them how to fetch.  We have the picture in our mind of our dog running across the yard or park to get the ball and bring it back.   It's so clear to us that we try to jump right there with our dogs!  But the reality is, our dogs have no idea what the rules of the game is...yet!To teach your dog to fetch first you have to make it SUPER EASY so they know what we want from...

When you are new at watching dogs play it can be confusing and even a bit concerning.  Dog play is "play fighting" so if you haven't made a career out of knowing dog body language it's easy to get concerned even when dogs are having a grand old time. To make it harder sometimes two dogs play, are having a good time, but it's still inappropriate play and we might want to ask them to take a break.Learning dog play and dog body language is like learning any new language.  It takes study, time,...

If your dog listens to you inside your house that doesn't mean they know what you want outside on their walk.  Even if you are asking for the same thing.  Dogs are very contextual and need to be taught how to listen even when there distractions.  The good news is, if your dog listens to you in your kitchen then you already know how to teach your dog to listen with distractions!  If you want your dog to listen to you in a new environment you have to reteach them the same skill like they have...

How do you handle potty training when all the adults in the housework full time?  This is a question I get asked a lot.  Mainly because my listeners know I do not like the use of potty pads (for more on that, check out Episode 009).  If you are going to be out of the house longer than your puppy can hold regularly, how do you handle that without using potty pads?  My short answer is "get help!"  I know, it’s not what you want to hear.  And you may think, “wait, SO MANY people have dogs and...

There are SO MANY things we need to train our puppy when we bring them home.  It's really easy to get overwhelmed or focus on the wrong things.  In this episode, I talk about the three most important skills you can teach your puppy.  Start these skills from day one and you will reap the benefits for years to come.  The three skills I talk about are:Being handled (beyond being picked up and petting)Getting their attentionImpulse control (AKA frustration tolerance)In this episode I talk...

Does it feel like your trainer just tells you to stuff your dog's belly full of treats and say then they're trained?  Treats are an essential tool to raising our well-mannered dog but the lesson on HOW to use the treats properly gets lost.And we really want to avoid that place where your dog will only listen if you have a treat in your hand.  In this episode I talk about:Why we use treats.What's the difference between high value and low value treats (and when do we use them).How to know when...

All we want is a peaceful house!  When asking two (or three!) different species to live together it can get tricky!How you introducing your dog and cat depends a lot on the personalities involved. If you have a calm dog and confident cat, count yourself lucky!  If you have an excited dog and a shy cat, it's gonna take a little longer.One of the most important things to keep in mind is not to rush the process.  That being said the best thing you can do to speed the process along is to make...

We all have a hundred (ok, ok hundreds) of photos of our dog.  But how many are keepers?  If you are anything like me you have 600 pictures and 2 end up as keepersIn this episode, let's welcome Allison Shamrell to give us all her best tips on how to get better photos of your dog, even if all you have is a cell phone!This is a fun episode and I learned so much from Allison and I know you will too!What we talk about:How to take better photos with just your cell phoneWhat obedience commands will...

A strong recall is one of the most important behaviors your dog can have.  It's also something that takes LOTS OF WORK!!This episode is a replay a mini recall training I did inside my online puppy course YOUR Perfect Puppy.  I talk about how I approach recall as a habit that you and your dog need to develop (not as a command to teach).  I also go over the most common mistakes that I see and small adjustments that you can make to get that stronger recall. Press play to listen to the entire...

Separation anxiety is always been something dog owners need to be aware of.  How to be alone is something that we have to teach our dogs.  In a perfect world we start this when they are puppies with crate training and the natural rhythm of our lives as we need to go to work, school, family functions or just out to dinner.  But right now we aren't doing any of those things.  As we are spending so much more time with our dogs a concern that has come up recently is how our dogs will react when...

Leash training is a hot topic among dog owners.  Walks are a fundamental joy for dogs but when it comes to walking down the street in a straight line, it's no longer feels natural for them so that's why we encounter some resistance.This is also why there are many different ways we struggle with our dog on a leash.In this episode, I go over the 3 most common questions I get about leash training.* How to stop pulling on a leash.* How to stop jumping and nipping during the walk. * How to handle...

​As your dog grows you will probably experience some behavior changes.  Just as you think you have it ALL figured out your puppy will prove you wrong. It's all part of the roller coaster of owning a puppy.  In this episode, I talk about when these changes can happen, why they happen, and how to handle them.  Press play to listen to the entire episode.  Enjoy!