It's a misconception that neutering/spaying a dog will make them calmer. Most dogs will feel slightly different, more mellow and less active immediately after a treatment or surgery at their vet. However with time each dog will start behaving and feeling like their old selves again. Instead of relying on this procedure to hopefully calm or relax your dog, look for safe and fun games and activities for them to do on a daily basis. Everything from dog food puzzles, snuffle mats, tug and pull toys to agility training will help ensure you have a calm and relaxed dog at home!

Most commonly, your dog will come and lick you to show you their affection and trust. As well as grow your bond while licking is also a calming and relaxing activity dogs do for themselves and one another. The key thing is that your dog is choosing to come to you. Otherwise, if you find your dog often licks you mostly during interactions initiated by you, it could be more an appeasing behaviour, potentially. So with all healthy behaviours toward you, it's definitely best if it's mainly initiated by your dog.

Dog walks are amazing! They're the primary enrichment and socialization outlet for the majority of pooches and make for a great bonding activity with their pet parents. But are dog walks enough to fulfill a dog's physical, mental, and social enrichment needs? Let's start with your dog's feeding habits/rituals. If they're not into their food, they may be counter-surfing or even begging for other food because it's a means to eat something they prefer. You can read this article if your dog isn't into their food. If your dog does eat his food but would rather try to get to the food you're having or anything that's being left on the counter, one way that you can help manage the environment to help them keep all four on the ground is to provide them with food puzzles or snuffle mats that'll further engage their attention. Tried the above and your dog is still counter-surfing? Consider the following: 1. Is your dog feeling bored/does feeding time = getting attention time? Counter-surfing, begging or whining can be signs that your dog has found in those activities a little bit of a 'problem' or a game to take on if they're feeling bored or understimulated. It can also be something they practice when they're too tired and don't know how to rest (see the second point for more details) on their own. And so what you will want to do is plan accordingly, to set yourself and your dog up for success by doing physically, mentally and even socially-stimulating activities not too long before lunchtime or dinner time, to help your dog feel more mellow and relaxed. A dog that's feeling more mellow is one that's more receptive to training or receiving your guidance, as opposed to one that is feeling very energetic, and simply looking for some engaging outlets to put that energy towards! 2. Provide your dog with an alternative. If your dog doesn't know what to do, simply confronting and telling them to not jump or counter-surf will likely not work. Instead, you will want to provide your dog with an alternative that feels just as good, or even better, for them to practice instead of counter surfing. If you've practiced the first point above, then it should be doable to guide your dog with their leash towards their bed, wait for them to lay down, and reward them with a special treat before dinner time, as to let them know that they have something they can do on their own end WHILE you focus on dinner. Each dog will respond to this differently. Dogs that have learned this type of relaxation exercise in class may have an easier time staying in that position/feeling on their own. If your dog keeps getting up you will want to gently guide them back to their bed. With enough practice and repetition, your dog will learn that what you're asking of them is to wait on it (and ensure it pays off with a high-value reward, especially the first times you try this.). If your dog has a really hard time staying away from you and the action, you may need to consider the point below as well. 3. If being away and giving you distance is something that's very difficult for your dog, then it's going to take some time. While your dog is learning that it's enjoyable and rewarding to give you space during dinner time, you will still want to ensure that you're preventing counter-surfing altogether. Because even if your dog isn't yet doing the behaviour you want (waiting elsewhere while you eat) you want to make sure that you practice making it so they can't practice the unwanted behaviour. And you can do so by assigning a member of your household that will help walk your dog away as he gets closer to the table or kitchen area. Walking away ensures that your dog doesn't get to jump or counter-surf and it's eventually the action that you will want your dog to do all on their own (especially if it's difficult for them to simply stay and wait somewhere else) so be sure to make it fun and rewarding for them to walk away from the table with you. Simply repeating this exercise of walking, in combination with the first two points will create for a little bit of an exercise that burns any extra mental or physical energy your dog may have, which can then encourage them to naturally want to take a break and not feel the need to counter-surf.

Yes, at the top of the list is your dog loves you because you ARE their whole world! So that’s one of the reasons. Let’s tackle the other 2: Anxiousness This likely isn’t a big surprise, as your dog may have been displaying this behaviour for some time and likely has other ways of showing signs of uncertainty or anxiety, even separation anxiety. This could be due to your dog not having yet learned the best practices (relaxation, reinforcing calm behaviour) with you that help him or her understand that time and distance apart is not a bad thing, but something everyone can look forward to, even for just a little and build from there. Anxiety is of course different for every dog and many different triggers may cause this, which is why it’s important to seek our a dog trainer’s support and knowledge in helping you understand how to guide your dog before, during, and after moments where he or she feels as though the best and only option they have is to continuously follow you around your home. Until then, the next reason is one you can Begin putting into practice sooner than later and likely start seeing a major difference in your dog’s behaviour, in many ways! Boredom One of the biggest reasons we love dogs is because they have the will to do what it takes (for us and themselves) to move forward! But when it comes to relentlessly moving as your shadow as you walk around inside your house, one major reason for this may be due to a lack of proper stimulation outlets. This doesn’t mean your dog isn’t getting enough exercise, or that he or she needs more walks. But rather, this means that your dog following you around could be their way to let you know that they’ve still got a bit (or a lot) of energy left to put to good use! Most commonly it’s mental energy that our average household dogs tend to store inside their mind, on a daily basis, until they feel as though the time has come to find an outlet that will do the job! And that’s where following you around comes in! But recognizing this could be the reason behind it, opens up a whole new world for you and your dog as you can then begin exploring fun activities you can put into place on a daily basis! Lookup nose games to challenge your dog’s mind, as well as food and snuffle puzzles that can and should replace your dog’s bowl for further daily enrichment. For physical activities, continue going on your walks but supplement them with a fun flirt pole toy that you can use both indoors and outdoors! This toy is one of the quickest and most fun ways to get your dog’s physical energy out! There you have it! Don’t forget that your pup loves you, and that potential anxiety is something you can get dog training support but what can help a lot is practicing fun, daily enrichment activities! Did you learn something new from this post? Let us know at info@pmez.ca.

Prong collars are meant to cause dogs physiological harm (on purpose), not only physically, but mentally as well. They can be very detrimental to your relationship with your dog, just like all other aversive training methods. Prong collars are designed to stun your dog by piercing your dog's neck the moment you pull or tug on their leash. Doing this makes it so your dog is more likely to stop what they're doing in order to avoid feeling that pain again. And so, to avoid inflicting physical pain to your dog and instead of using a prong collar, you should consider using either a flat collar or even better a harness, as well as the support of positive reinforcement training to instead work on guiding your dog towards success in a fun, encouraging, and harm-free way. In addition to keeping your dog away from an aversive tool like a prong collar, another reason to not use prong collars is that it's not a tool that is designed to help you and your dog better understand one another, particularly when your dog is struggling in a social setting. Aversive methods like prong and shock collars aim to simply stun your dog, regardless of how they're feeling or why. Needless to say, although you might find those types of results using this tool, you might also find that other behavioural issues may appear as a result of not having addressed the problem as a whole, by understanding why it's happening in the first place and providing your dog with a new 'replacement' behaviour that you're both happy with.

Dog walking is wonderful. It can be a great enrichment outlet for your dog and it's one of the best daily activities that’ll help you and your dog form a strong bond. Behaviour Modification: Walking with your dog should be a fun and pleasant experience for you both no matter what. However, the reality is that not all dogs and pet parents feel this way. Particularly if you're experiencing dog reactivity, barking, lunging, or constant leash-pulling, or perhaps your walks are overall great, but you feel like your dog is coming home feeling like he needs to do more, or overstimulated and can't easily relax. Regardless of what you're going through, the most common origin of leash walking concerns is a potential disconnect between the pet parent(s) and their dog. I believe that establishing a solid, trusting, and positive relationship and connection with your dog is the golden key to then being able to more successfully and reasonably expect them to make good decisions on walks, and in general. Here's how you can go about establishing the type of relationship with your dog that'll help provide you both with pleasant experiences on your walks: - Play different daily types of games indoors with your dog. Mental and physical stimulation games are the starting point to making your dog feel good, and like they just couldn't ask for anything more. Running around together, playing fetch, tug & pull games and some friendly wrestling will do the trick! And for mental enrichment, you can check out our Enrichment Ideas page. - Now that you're forming a fun and engaging connection with your dog, go through the following steps to help them feel good about the simple idea of going for a walk with you. Yes, you read correctly. Ensuring your dog feels good about the mere thought of going for a walk with you is extremely important, a part of proper socialization, and the starting point to what will ultimately help them leave unwanted behaviours behind, replacing them with choosing to focus their attention on you! Step #1. Make sure you're feeling good yourself! Are you in a bad or unhappy mood? Perhaps it's best to stick to some fun indoor games, and a quick bathroom break, and leave it at that for now. This is because our dogs can and will pick up on how we're feeling through our emotions and body language. Step #2. Make sure you have the proper gear! My personal favourite walking tool that I trust the most when taking a dog for a walk is a dog walking harness, particularly a freedom harness. I find it's the most comfortable type of harness for dogs of all sizes, breeds, and demeanours. While it also eliminates any and all pressure on their neck, minimizing any risk of injury or discomfort. Step #3. Take things slow and be as patient as you can. Your dog will be in no rush unless you are. When going for a walk there is really no clock or timer, at least not for your dog. And so it's important that you really take your time when stepping out of your home, or going through any step in your journey together, for that matter. When starting your walk, you can even try pretending like you forgot your keys or wallet and head back in, and back out, and repeat as you walk a little bit further out each time. This will encourage your dog to pay a bit more attention to you as you change directions. Step #4. Be considerate and mindful of how your dog is feeling as well. Dogs learn by association and every step you take with your dog, it's a step that is reinforcing how your dog is feeling as a result. This means that if your dog is feeling nervous, unsure, or worried, it can be a good idea to take a few steps back, reset, and re-asses. Instead of trying to nudge, force or talk your dog into moving onward with the walk. Doing this will let your dog know that you're paying close attention to how they're feeling and not pushing them too far out of their comfort zone just yet. As a result, your dog's trust in you will only increase with time, and encourage them to more confidently take that next step (or leap!) with you, wherever you go together. Step #5. Be as aware and in tune with your environment as possible. Dogs react to the world around them and not everything makes 100% sense to them, no matter how obedient or well-trained a dog is. This is why you want to keep an eye not only on how your dog is feeling but also on what's going on around them. A helpful idea would be to leave your headphones at home! For example, if your dog hears a loud motorcycle approaching and he's acting hesitant at the idea of walking in its direction, you can help your dog by taking space/walking away from it for now. And on another walk, you can tackle that particular concern by walking near a parked motorcycle to start and rewarding your dog for feeling okay near it, moving a little closer to it each time. Try these steps, and feel free to treat dog walks as though you're introducing the concept of going for them to a brand new puppy! Doing so will allow you to take a good step back and see where your concerns with your dog lie and why so that you can further break down those situations and environments, and make them more manageable for you both. - If you're having difficulty handling your dog, before you've even left your doorstep, chances are your dog is either feeling overly excited or aroused, under/overstimulated, or perhaps even fearful. In this case, you can take a page out of step #1 and keep the walk as short as possible. Next, when it's no longer an immediate need to go walk, and your dog has done his business outside, an exercise you can practice is bringing out your dog's leash and/or harness back out again from the drawer, when he's feeling calm and relaxed, and just placing it on the counter nearby. You can do this often and at random times, for short periods. Doing so will get your dog's brain thinking, wondering why you're not heading out for a walk already. But the moment where they decide to settle and relax (all while you about your day), you can then provide them with a tasty treat in small pieces so you can repeat this often. This lets them know that you were just bringing out their leash, simply to associate a calm feeling to the idea of it. - Want to work on training your dog to heel, recall, and/or overall good leash manners and obedience on walks? Awesome! The best route for that will definitely be either hiring a private trainer or joining a group class. Either way, Having practiced our ideas and methods will make it much more likely for your dog to succeed and reap all the benefits from the training program you decide upon. Just make sure that you and your dog feel 1000% comfortable with the ideas, methods, and tools your trainer presents you with. Unfortunately, items like shock collars, prong/pinch collars, and halties are easily recommended to pet parents purely because they can provide you with 'quicker' results and get your dog to do what you want on walks. But aside of being harmful, uncomfortable for dogs to wear, and mostly taking into consideration what your wants are first, instead of the dog's needs, another problem with these products is that they don't address the root of an issue, thus making it possible for another unwanted behavioural issue to take its place. A dog that feels misunderstood, forced, stressed, and uncomfortable will need to resort to ways of coping with those feelings, and that can lead to further barking, growling, digging, lunging, fearful reactions, and even aggression. - If you've gone through all our suggestions from this article and our others on dog walking and leash training, and you're having moments or even more so random surprises or instances on walks where you're just not sure how to help your dog behave calmly, and it feels like they're no longer listening, the best thing you can do is remain calm and take space with your dog. What happens in the outside world is and will always be out of your control, but no matter what happens, what will remain after you experience a speedbump along your walk with your dog is their leftover feeling from it all, and you. And so our recommended go-to response to any unpredictable situation is to remain calm and sure of yourself, as you guide your dog by walking them away. I don't personally recommend using any verbal or physical cues if your dog is feeling stressed (save those for later!) but rather just use your body to move away and your dog will naturally follow, walk on, engage, and reconnect with you., Right before you bring out and present them with a nice rewarding treat, in the form of a tasty snack, your voice, and your affection. Practice this regularly enough the above, and you will find that your dog will get closer and closer to making wonderful decisions all on their own! Who should walk the dog? We sometimes get asked this question, and if all family members are available to walk your dog together or separately, you should be able to do so! Just make sure that you practice all options with your dog regularly. Even if you decided that your dog is mainly one house member's responsibility to feed and walk, please remember that your dog or puppy likely doesn't see things that way and that it takes a village. Ultimately the entire family will get to reap the benefits of a happy and fulfilled dog. When should you walk your dog? Outside of potty training breaks (which don't always need to lead to long walks and vice versa) you should be able to walk your dog whenever you'd like! If you have a young, inexperienced, or sensitive dog, you might to avoid super early or really late-night walks as that's when pet parents of reactive dogs tend to prefer to take theirs for a walk to minimize the chances of running into other dogs. Where should you walk your dog? Everywhere! Part of the fun of taking your dog for a walk is that they get to discover and take in new smells, which tells them so much about their environment. That said if your dog walks the same route each day, you're going to need to consider adding new and different destinations to your walks to further enrich your dog's experience and engagement with you. Considering a dog walker? Whether it's one on one dog walking or group/pack walks, we strongly recommend thoroughly reviewing the pros and cons of this idea. Nowadays our day-to-day world just seems to get busier and our schedules sometimes allow us very little personal time, making it difficult to find the time, or sometimes even just the energy and desire to walk our dogs and that's okay. This is why dog walkers exist and they can help ensure that your dog still gets their daily walks and comes home happy. There are more and more alternatives such as apps and websites that will facilitate this for you. My first suggestion is that you carefully interview the person with whom you are entrusting your dog's care. Other than your dog's physical safety, their mental well-being is something you want to closely monitor by knowing how each one of your dog's walks goes, through feedback, in order to avoid any unwanted behavioural surprises that may come from them. If you decide to get a dog walker, still do your best to find time to engage and do activities with your dog either indoors or outdoors. Even a few minutes here and there will ensure that you continue nurturing and caring for the relationship you have together. To wrap things up, don't forget to make your dog walks fun for you and your dog! The more engaging they are, the more fulfilling and beneficial they will be for you and your dog. Even better if you try bringing toys or games with you, as well as their kibble or treats, for them to have to scavenge along the way. This can be a great way to keep their mood up and reward them for choosing to focus their attention on you, despite all the distracting things around you both!

Dog training encompasses everything from raising, understanding, guiding, and respecting dogs and everything they mean to us! Here are my training tips that I'd love to share with you, whether you just got a dog, or are working towards becoming a dog trainer. Here are some dog training tips for beginners. Let's start with the most important one! 1. Seek to understand, not to fix. No matter which dog you're working with, if you're looking to modify a behaviour and replace it with another, you will want to take a close look at what the potential cause is, that lies behind the issue in question. Ask yourself questions, take notes/logs of when and how the behaviour manifests itself, and go through little day-to-day scenarios where you can get a feel for how your environment is affecting your dog, to better understand him or her. 2. Use less cues or commands = more listening on both ends. You and I navigate society verbally, but if you want to truly understand your dog and build the best relationship possible, you will want to practice communicating with them more by listening and guiding them, as opposed to relying on cues and commands often. Verbal communication with your dog is great and essential, but when just starting to get to know your dog or tackle something new with them, pay close attention to how much you speak to them verbally, vs how much attention you put towards his or her actions. 3. Don't rush. Dogs are never in a rush, and neither should we. We love being and doing things with dogs because they remind us to live in the moment and make the most of what's in front of us today, not tomorrow. If you have a calendar, clock, or even just expectations of where you'd like to be 3, 6, or 12 months from now, as far as your relationship with your dog goes, please don't forget that your dog doesn't share those thoughts, and is simply doing his or her best to take things day by day with you. Subsequently, taking your time with your dog and not rushing them in their environment will make it so they're more likely to display comfortable and well-mannered behaviours, due to a lack of feeling stress, pressure, or any type of anxiety. 4. Get creative as often as possible, when it comes to providing your dog with enrichment. The more you can dedicate some time and effort in finding free or affordable enrichment options and fun games for your dog to do at home with or without you, the more likely you are to have a dog that feels happy, mellow, and fulfilled as a result! 5. Reward anything that your dog does that you like. Dogs don't know exactly how our world works, and the only way they get to figure that out is by trying things. This is why it's important that you put a lot of focus on going out of your way to acknowledge, pay attention to, and reward all the big and little things that your dog does on a daily basis, that you like. Especially with puppies! If he or she does something you like and you both feel good about it as a result, your dog is more likely to want to find ways to replicate that outcome.

Look for a nearby dog training school. That is the best and safest way to go as they will and should group puppies accordingly based on their age, size, demeanour, and play style. For environments where categorization isn't possible (perhaps because not many puppies of a similar age group are available to attend), you will want to make sure that you can attend the socialization sessions to ensure your dog is participating in safe and enjoyable for him/her. If your local training school doesn't offer socialization/play sessions for puppies, you can consider your local doggy daycare as they tend to provide play sessions for young dogs as well. Just make sure that they're properly supervised and short so that you can slowly increase the amount of time prior to having your pup attend regular daycare sessions. Do your best to avoid dog parks! Though we could write a lengthy article on why to avoid the dog park and/or what to consider before attending, we think that puppies (and most dogs under 8,9, 10 months) and their pet parents are likely not ready to attend unsupervised, busy dog parks. In the pet training industry, there are too many different takes and views on handling and raising and that's okay. But what you want to prioritize more than anything is your dog's physical and mental well-being!

There are a few reasons to consider. The first and most common one could be that your dog may be feeling bored (or understimulated, especially if you tend to practice activities and games with your dog that he/she no longer finds challenging or as stimulating as before). Another common reason a dog feels hyper, especially after having exercised and played, is that they haven't yet learned and practiced how to relax and manage their own emotions under different circumstances. Similarly to the idea of tucking children in at night with a bedtime story, we can also guide dogs to help them go from an excited, agitated, and restless state to a calm one. And so in a similar manner, it's usually a problem pet parents encounter with their dogs within their first few years as they grow from puppyhood to adolescenthood, to adulthood. This is because young dogs will need time to reach full maturity, mentally and emotionally, and this is where it can seem to be a difficult task when it comes to helping your dog feel relaxed and mellow in all types of different situations. What you can do: An easy exercise you can practice is to provide your dog with a food puzzle or snuffle mat after a physically demanding activity, to help their brain focus on a more calming task like using their nose which at the same time helps them relax, slow down & regulate their feelings. The activity of snuffle, and above all employing their scent detection skills and scavenging nature is a near guarantee to help any dog relax. Add to this a frozen Kong that they can spend some time on and you'll have yourself a dog that is keeping busy by chewing and above all licking, which also helps dogs soothe and feel at ease once more. If nose and scent-related exercises aren't helping your dog feel more mellow in your home, it would be best to reach out to a nearby trainer so they can visit and assess your dog's home environment, before recommending a few positive reinforcement options you can try!

This is a common issue pet parents face, mostly with young dogs and puppies, especially when the weather is pleasant and more and more people want to say hi to your pooch while on walks! But what can you do to best tackle your dog's constant jumping on people, and even better, how can you make sure you prevent it to the point it becomes a behaviour your dog no longer finds purposeful? (Because yes, your dog is doing it for a reason!) Let's start with what the reason behind this behaviour might be. The most common motive behind your dog jumping on other people may be two-fold: 1. It works! Like all other behaviours your dog does, it's mainly because it pays off for him and that can be in a number of ways. The main way in which jumping on other pays off is in what they get in return which is attention, whether it comes from you (even though you're not trying to praise or reward them, your attention is) or from the person they're jumping on. It's rather difficult to expect of the person getting jumped on to not react and give your dog any kind of attention, in order to avoid reinforcing the unwanted behaviour, especially when your dog is coming off friendly and/or when the person in question doesn't know that this is a behaviour you're working on managing. A tool that could help would be a label or sleeve that goes on your dog's leash or harness that lets others know to not pet or engage with your dog, or that he/she is in training. But something more that you can do in this case to yield far better results is to go for the preventative approach, to avoid having to manage a scenario that is largely not under your control and that you and your dog aren't fully ready for anyway. The best way you will prevent your dog from jumping and getting reinforced by other people is to become familiar with the body language patterns and signs that let you know that your dog is going to be jumping on them so that you can right away do your best to engage your dog with a different activity/behaviour, that you like better instead. Such as walking away and tugging on a toy with you, fetching a ball, or walking away with you and tossing treats for them to search through the grass or under a chair if you're indoors. Prevention is key but will only work if you're in tune with your dog's demeanour and patterns so that you can try to prevent them from doing the unwanted behaviour altogether. The more they get to practice it, the more they are likely to repeat it. The more you find yourselves ready with a leash and treats/reinforcers ready, the more successful you will be. These are the best ways you can manage greetings with minimal jumping on strangers, while you practice working on your dog's greeting with people in your close circle that will be able to help you in responding accordingly, should/when your dog happens to jump on them. More on this on the following point. 2. Your dog has a very social nature and/or is a high-energy dog! You can't train a dog's personality and demeanour out of them, but you can definitely find ways to get what you want if you also focus your efforts on ensuring your dog gets what he/she needs on a regular basis. If you live with a social AND energetic dog, you will want to make sure that you provide him with regular outlets for their need to play, jump, be excited, and be friendly, otherwise, they will find those outlets on their own and can result in more jumping on others, or other unwanted behaviours. Great outlets consist of dog training classes of different types, supervised play sessions, agility training, and other controller enrichment/engaging settings. And don't worry, your dog getting to practice jumping in a setting like play sessions, for example, can be different and not at all encouraging further jumping outside of those environments because dogs have a very strong capability to associate behaviours to places/scenarios we put together. This is done by rewarding your dog for being themselves mostly and mainly in that particular setting, but not as much (if at all) outside of it. Just like how you know that you can act a different way at a restaurant and another way at a concert. But then what follows that? What follows your dog having the outlets he/she needs? You. You and the environments you create where you are bringing home a happy, fulfilled, tired do that is less likely to feel the need to jump on the next stranger you encounter on that evening walk. But that's only part of the solution, the other part (especially when you've just begun tackling this behaviour) is having the environments you work in tandem with where you and your dog are at. This means that instead of practicing walking your dog past strangers in the hopes that he doesn't jump on them, you'll want to practice with people that know you and your dog, so that you can ahead of time let them know that if ever your dog jumps at them, that you would appreciate it if they did their best to not respond to your dog's jumping until/unless he's saying hello to them without. The combination of a dog that doesn't feel as much of a need to jump on people, along with an environment that doesn't put much (or any), attention to the unwanted behaviour WHILE ALSO rewarding and acknowledging the moment your dog does make the choice to not jump or to stop jumping, is what will help you and your dog succeed! If ever you're finding that your dog might be jumping on other people, but even more so you, then you may want to consider what your dog is trying to communicate to you there and then. This is because jumping on you or another pet parent can be a way of communicating that they're feeling overwhelmed, tired, overstimulated or even anxious at that moment, or about the environment they're in. This would require a closer look at when it's happening as adjusting the environments in question and our expectations is what will also help you in your success as well.