Beyond the Dog - Dallas

Meet Taro, our Dallas Dog of the Month!

During his in-home Dallas dog reactivity training program, Taro completely transformed his behavior around other dogs and people. He no longer shows reactive behavior around his past triggers and has gained so much confidence walking around his apartment complex.

Dallas has so many dog-friendly things to do and now Taro and his owner can enjoy all of them together! Go Taro!

We have in-home reactive dog training programs in Austin, Dallas, Houston, and Kansas City and virtual dog training programs offered worldwide. Link in bio to learn more!

DON’T MAKE THIS DOG TRAINING MISTAKE 👇

One of the biggest dog training mistakes we see people make is that they expect their dog to listen around super difficult distractions without ever practicing in front of those distractions or nailing the basics first.

Here’s how to prepare your dog for advanced distractions!

1) Begin Fading Food: Get the food out of your hands and into a treat bag and delay the time it takes from saying the command to giving the treat.

2) Do Normal Activities but Remain Focused on Training: If you are practicing a down stay, pretend to check your email or get “distracted” by your phone. Start a load of laundry or begin unloading the dishwasher. Break the everyday activity into bite-sized pieces and reward your dog at short intervals for holding a command like “stay.”

3) Get Your Dog Practicing Obedience Outdoors: Remember, your dog’s nose is much better than your nose, and smells can quickly become very distracting. Go back to the basics you started with when you change environments from indoors to outside.

4) Moving to Advanced Distractions: Ensure your dog complies with verbal cues then start to change your positioning when you ask the command. Once your dog realizes that the command has little to do with the position you are in, it is time to teach them to comply with your command no matter what they are doing.

5) Target Problem Behaviors at Difficult Times: For example, work on jumping after your dog hasn’t seen a family member for a while or practice recall by a squirrel.

Remember, go back to the basics for a few minutes anytime you increase the level of distractions. As you progress through these steps, you will have a well-mannered dog and one that is compliant with commands around advanced distractions without yelling and screaming from you.

Want a professional dog trainer to do the heavy lifting for you? Our in-home dog training programs are crafted from decades of experience training dogs. We know exactly how to give you the results you want in the most efficient way of training possible!

Link in bio to learn more!

Some dogs should not go to the dog park and that’s okay!

Poor candidates for the dog park include…

❌ Young puppies, specifically those in the critical socialization period of 3-12 weeks (we recommend being extra picky about the group of dogs your puppy plays with until they are at least six months of age)
❌ Unneutered males over 8-months-old
❌ Adult males who have recently been neutered
❌ Dogs that stay by your side the entire time and have no interest in playing with other dogs
❌ Dogs that just want to play fetch with their owners and have no interest in interacting with other dogs

Stay tuned for part 2!

If you notice avoidant or fearful behavior in your puppy, let us know and we can help treat the behavior right away! We have both in-home and virtual puppy training programs that can be customized to fit you and your puppy’s exact needs.

Start your puppy training journey with us below!

https://calendly.com/petbehaviorteam/15min