by Positive Dog | Jan 3, 2020 | General Training
Food Toys and Puzzles
Food toys and puzzles come in many varieties and have different purposes. There are:
- Snufflers
- Bat ‘Em Arounders
- Puzzlers
- Chewers and Lickers
Snufflers
Snufflers are food toys such as snuffle mats/balls and are typically used with kibble or small dried treats. You can also use the grass in your yard as a natural snuffle mat. Food is accessed not by chewing or by hitting the toy around, but simply by sniffing it out. These options are excellent (perhaps the best?) choices for stressed or reactive dogs as well as for senior dogs. You can buy snuffle mats on Amazon and at many pet supply stores. You can also make one yourself! I cut up an old fleece blanket to make one. It is a lot more work than you think to add enough fleece to achieve a dense mat. They are generally machine washable which is a huge plus in my household.
Another great way to achieve a similar effect is to make a bug pile of cardboard and sprinkle the treats around in it.
Here’s a link on how to make one. I bought a cheaper kitchen sink liner for the base of mine.
Fill them with:
- Kibble
- Dried Berries/Fruits/Veggies
- Dried Liver Bits
- Sardine or Anchovy Bits
- Any small dry treats
Bat ‘Em Arounders
These are toys that don’t require a lot of skill, just perseverance and enough confidence to hit a thing around making a lot of noise. You add treats or kibble, hand them to your dog, and listen as they smash them around hoping for food to fall out.
Great for:
- Shy dogs – to build confidence providing the level of difficulty isn’t too high
- Old or disabled dogs who cannot get out as much as we would like
- Recovering dogs who need to expend energy
Too Difficult? Use smaller treats
Too Easy? Use larger treats
Dog Not That Interested? Add a big piece of chicken or steak
Be very cautious when these toys for dogs who are easily over stimulated. They encourage wildly hitting a thing without thinking, providing a very reinforcing intermittent rate of reinforcement. If you have a dog who is already prone to being crazy and not thoughtful, these might not be the best toys for you! If you have a normally very active dog who isn’t able to get out, this can provide a bit of stress relief.. just be careful with how much you use them.
Puzzlers
Food puzzles come in many varieties and difficulty levels. I have 8 or 10 that I rotate in and out of my feeding routine. The goal of a food puzzle is to teach your dog to THINK and to thoughtfully figure out how to access the food. IMO, many people use food puzzles incorrectly, treating them like Bat ‘Em Arounders. Puzzle toys will not stand up to being tossed around and pounced on and are not designed to be used this way.
Only give your dog a puzzle that they will likely to succeed at in 15 seconds or less. If you have a puppy or insecure dog, this should be 5 seconds or less. If your dogs becomes frustrated or resorts to brute force, the puzzle you presented is too difficult. Simplify it! Help your dog be successful and build on that.
Chewers and Lickers
These are great for many dogs in just about any circumstance. When I need a quiet morning to catch up on emails, I feed my dogs their breakfast in these. I always recommend people bring a couple of these to puppy class, or other classes if their dog will have trouble settling, and I bring a bunch of them for my dogs when I’m competing and they will spend much of the day in a crate or in the car.
Fill them with food and healthy snacks, pop them in the freezer and pop them out when you want to help your dog be calm.
Use them for:
Filled with Dog Food and Topped with Yogurt
- Puppy Class
- Road Trips
- Quiet Time
- Visitors in the Home
by Positive Dog | Dec 13, 2019 | General Training
What does your pup/dog do that you wish they didn’t do? 
Much of dog or puppy training is helping them set good habits. To a dog, squirrel chasing is a fun activity, but in the human world this can be an annoying and dangerous habit.
Barking at the mail delivery person, running off to visit other dogs, counter surfing – these are all habits many dogs find super fun.
A Dangerous Habit
At about 6 months old, my sweet adorable puppy decided that running away from me and herding horses was the most fun thing in the world. This was extremely dangerous. At about her age, one of our other dogs was run over by a horse and ended up with a very badly broken leg. *We did not own Maxi when her accident happened.
Reinforcement Drives Behaviour
In order to stop this dangerous habit, I needed to prevent Jubilee from herding horses and receiving the thrill and adrenaline rush she now associated with it.
Step 1. Management
Jubilee had zero free access to the yard while I worked on this issue. Her exercise was elsewhere or on a long line. Near the horses, she was always leashed.
Step 2. New Habits and Incompatible Behaviours
Every day while I cleaned the paddocks and the horses were busy eating at a distance, Jubilee came with me (on leash). She practiced simply lying down while I shoveled. I set up the horses at a feeding station far enough away for Jubilee to be successful. Because they were eating, the horses mostly stood still which made the challenge easier.
Next we played fetch on a long line in the paddock. This is a fun game that is incompatible with chasing horses. In addition, we practiced playing fetch as we walked past or near the paddocks.
A New History of Reinforcement
With time and patience, Jubilee now expects to play fetch or settle beside me when near horses. Her new habit is to look to me for an opportunity to play.
Dogs usually look for pathways to reinforcement. By using boundaries and incompatible alternate behaviours, Jubilee’s anticipated pathway to reinforcement became looking to me.
“To make anything a habit, do it; to not make it a habit, do not do it; to unmake a habit, do something else in place of it.” ~Epictetus
by Positive Dog | Dec 7, 2019 | General Training, Reactive, Aggressive, or Overexcited Dogs
When you have an anxious or reactive dog you might have people tell you that your nervousness or [random personal quality] is the problem or a part of the reason your dog misbehaves.
These often unsolicited opinions are usually well meaning. After all, that person is calm and confident and have a well behaved dog, so there’s your proof! *Insert dramatic eye-roll*
A Valid Point
It is easier for a dog to relax when they are being handled by a relaxed person. However many nervous and high strung people seem to own well behaved and calm dogs. So what gives? The truth of the matter is that your relationship with your dog is two-sided. Your dog’s behaviour affects you just as much as your behaviour affects your dog.
You Likely Did Not Start Out Anxious
The very first time you walked your dog, were you anxious? Probably not. At some point, your dog likely did a weird thing and you thought “hmm… I’m not sure about that”. Then as your dog’s behaviour worsened, you became more anxious. YOU developed a Conditioned Emotional Response to seeing other dogs/people/garbage cans, and perhaps even to walking your dog in general.
Give Yourself a Break
Really, cut yourself some slack. You wouldn’t be anxious if your dog didn’t have a problem. You being anxious makes your dog’s problem worse… which makes you more anxious. This is not your fault.
So what now? Recognize that you and your dog are a team. Train at a place where you both can be successful. We talk a lot about training at a distance where your dog can be successful, but that is just one piece. In order to progress, we must start from a place where you and your dog are OK. If either part of the team become anxious to the point of being over-threshold, the team cannot progress. Start slow. Build confidence in you both.
by Positive Dog | Dec 5, 2019 | General Training, Reactive, Aggressive, or Overexcited Dogs
Wouldn’t it be nice to have a dog who can sit or lie quietly while another dog passes. Do you wish your dog could at least walk by another dog without more than passing interest. Why do so many of us struggle with this skill?
Puppy Socialization
(Please contact me if you do not know how to properly socialize your puppy)
If you brought your dog home as a puppy, you likely spent a lot of time actively socializing. The new puppy met hundreds of dogs and people, including people in hats, people with umbrellas and wheelchairs, people with beards, shaggy dogs, big dogs, small dogs, cats… There are more than a few checklists out there to follow to ensue you have a well socialized pup who will grow up to have no issues.
Maybe that was wrong?
Socializing your dog is a good thing. HOWEVER, many people equate socializing with allowing their dog to practice rude behaviour. PLEASE, PLEASE do not allow your puppy or new dog run up to other dogs or people just because “he’s friendly!” Envision how you would like your 5 year old dog to behave. Are you teaching your puppy to behave that way? At what point is he learning to be a polite greeter?
Bob is a very friendly guy. He LOVES hugs! Bob runs up to random people and dogs on the street and gives them unsolicited bear hugs. Bob meets a few people and dogs who really enjoy his hugs, but he receives many negative reactions and scares quite a few people.
Don’t let your dog be like Bob. Just because your pup is friendly, it doesn’t mean it is ok to be rude and pushy. Good manners start with calmness, thoughtfulness, and self control. Some dogs are born with these skills , most dogs need to be taught them.
But My Dog is a Rescue 
Thank you for taking the time to find and save a dog who needed you. I have a few rescue dogs too. Even though a dog has been rescued from a bad situation, it does not mean that rude behaviours are OK. Retraining established and previously reinforced behaviours takes time and patience.
Many dogs who were never exposed to other dogs, or who lived on a chain or behind a fence, learn to be frustrated when they see another dog. This is a very common source of leash or fence reactivity.
Take the time to train your new dog as though they were a new puppy. It is never too late to start this, even if you have had your dog for months or years.
Start From a Place of Success
How far away from the exciting/scary things do you have to be so that your dog can relax? Start there. Add difficulty a little at a time and in short sessions. Your pup will learn more quickly if he starts from a place of success rather than failure. To help build calmness, we want our dogs high on dopamine, not high on adrenaline.
by Positive Dog | Aug 11, 2019 | General Training
Training a dog to come when called, no matter what the distraction takes time but can be super fun for you both.
Recall is one of my favourite things to train. Grab some awesome treats and toys, a long line and your dog, and lets train!
If your dog is taking off, think like a dog: Where is the reinforcement, and how can I make the reinforcement be with me?
The number one concern your dog has in life is “What can I get out of this?” Let’s prove that they get the most out of staying with us.
Recall Rules
- Let your dog wear a long line if you aren’t sure about recall. This allows for freedom to learn while staying safe.
- Call and LEAVE in a fun way. Do not stand still or go towards your dog. The faster and more energetically you leave, the better!
- Reward with play always. That means play ball or tug, or for dogs more food motivated, toss those cookies around! Do not simply hand your dog a treat. Be fun.
- Never ‘punish’ your dog for coming to you. After you reward with play, you can ask for a sit or clip on a leash, but not before!
Dismissal
Dismiss your dog after playing. Dismissal is a key part of training a recall. Give your dog permission to go sniff/pee on things, etc. Send your dog away from you rather than letting him or her wander off when bored of you.
Relax
Before you venture off leash, can your dog relax and be thoughtful ON leash around distractions? If your dog cannot be thoughtful and has a difficult time just chilling beside you for some yummy treats, chances are you won’t have much of a
recall if you let your dog loose. Practice relaxing in many environments and near distractions. Practice makes perfect! This helps desensitize your dog to the distractions
Recall, Play, and Dismiss
Practice calling your dog throughout the walk – not only when you want to attach a leash and leave. If your dog learns (and will learn quickly!) that being called is followed by going home, he or she will be wary of responding. You never want the recall to predict the fun ending – so make sure the fun continues when they come to you.
Once you play, 9 out of 10 times, dismiss your dog. That 1 in 10 times that you leash him will be unexpected compared to the probability of play and a dismissal.
More Games to Help Train A Reliable Recall
Let Your Dog Hunt – With You
Dogs want to hunt. That’s what they were born to do. Use this desire to your advantage and let your dog hunt with you, on your terms. Play food chase games. Toss a piece of food, run away as he or she is sniffing around for it and watch your dog chase you at maximum speed when they realize how far away you have gotten
Impulse Control & Leave-It Games
If you’ve taken a puppy or beginner obedience class, you probably learned “It’s Your Choice” or “Zen Bowl” games. These are fantastic games to play out on walks to train your recall. If your dog cannot call away from a boring old milk bone, you know you have some work to do before you try a recall away from a squirrel.
Proximity games
(Check out
Absolute Dogs for fun and detailed explanations of some of these games)
Play games that build confidence and teach your dog to love being close to you and being touched.
- Over/Under/Leg Weaves. Is your dog keen to weave between your legs? Or if you are sitting, to crawl over or under your legs?
- Recall to Through. Call your dog and instead of just tossing the cookie, spread your legs wide and toss the cookie through your legs. Is your dog comfortable and happy to run through your legs or would he rather avoid being in your space?
- Collar grab game. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PaKIrNXTYqQ
Eye Contact
1 – Hold Cookies in both hands, one hand on either side of your face.
2 – Your dog will stare at one hand or go back and forth looking at each hand. As this game becomes boring, he will look to you for guidance. Say ‘Yes!’ and give him a cookie from the hand your dog was not looking at.
3 – Repeat in low distraction areas and work up to higher distraction areas. Once your dog is good at this, you can add a word such as “watch” or “look”. But don’t add that word too soon or it won’t have any meaning !
Offered attention – the partnership game =)
by Positive Dog | Dec 27, 2018 | General Training, Reactive, Aggressive, or Overexcited Dogs
The key to fixing reactivity is to keep your dog under threshold most of the time. ‘Under threshold’ means that the dog is not so upset that they are barking/lunging/panicking/attacking. When a dog does go over threshold we need to get then out of that situation, settle them down for a bit, and try again. The incidents should be infrequent enough that your dog can recover between incidents if/when he or she does go over threshold.
The program I use counter conditions the dogs to the trigger, whatever that might be for that dog. Here’s one of many foundation games that we play:
Relax!
Relaxing on cue is trained without triggers around, or around dogs/people he is somewhat comfortable with. #1 Rule – if your dog is worried, he/she is allowed to stand up. It is very important that your dog feels they are allowed to leave the situation. Our goal is to create a relaxed dog, not one who is afraid to move – that is a core difference between positive and punishment based trainers.
Disengage
Teaching disengagement is very important for when your dog does go over threshold. Before it will work in extreme situations this skill must be trained a lot while your dog is under threshold.
The Science: Adrenaline and Cortisol vs Dopamine.
What do we want from our dogs? Calmness around other dogs/people/etc. Imagine this scenario
*You can replace shock collar with prong or choke collar or any tool used to hurt/threaten/punish your dog.
Adrenaline
You’re wearing a shock collar. You look at a blue car and maybe try to kick it or yell at it. You hear a beep and feel a shock to your trachea. Every time you see a blue car this happens, repeating 10 or 20 times. The next time you see a blue car, what will your automatic response be? Your body will receive a shock of adrenaline to prepare you for the beep then shock you’ll probably stop trying to kick the car, but it isn’t because you suddenly feel calm around it. Every time you see a blue car or maybe a blue truck or maybe a blue bicycle, you’ll get a dose of adrenaline.
This is counter productive to building confidence and being calm. Even just wearing the collar will fill you with adrenaline. Wearing the collar just heading outside for a walk, no cars in sight, but anticipating you might see a blue car… more adrenaline.
Dopamine
If every time you see a blue car before you tried to kick it, instead of the shock we gave you cheesecake. This releases dopamine in your brain. Dopamine helps you be calm, improves your memory and helps you stay happy and motivated. Your environment is controlled so that those blue cars are far away to start. Every time you see a blue car you get a few bites of cheesecake, then are asked to turn away and move away from the car, earning another bite of cheesecake.
Eventually when you see a blue car your body will release dopamine anticipating the cheesecake and turning away from the car. Eventually going out for a walk will make you happy and relaxed, keen to find those blue cars to earn that shot of dopamine and more cheesecake – or maybe its steak today. You don’t know, but it’ll be good =)
And that is why we use food instead of shock collars to fix reactivity.
