Separation anxiety can be one of the most challenging behaviors for dog guardians to navigate. Watching your dog struggle with your absence—whether through destructive behavior, excessive barking, or pacing—can be heart-wrenching. While it might seem like a problem that demands a quick fix, the reality is that overcoming separation anxiety takes time, patience, and a carefully structured approach. Of all types of training, this is one area you really don't want to DIY when it comes to training dogs.
When it comes to addressing challenging or unwanted behaviors in dogs, one of the most effective techniques we use at Noble Woof Dog Training is a method called counter conditioning and desensitization. These terms may sound complex, but they boil down to a very humane and gradual process that allows your dog to change their emotional response to a situation or trigger that previously caused fear, anxiety, or aggression. However, like any significant change, it doesn't happen overnight.
Real-life exposure to the outside world is irreplaceable. Your puppy needs to learn how to navigate the unpredictable elements of urban life, from the rumble of a city bus to the rustling of leaves on a windy day. Though paramount for safe contact with other puppies, a classroom environment simply can’t replicate these experiences.
Moreover, puppies need to learn how to navigate a variety of environments, not just the inside of your home or a training facility. They need to understand how to walk on different surfaces, how to stay calm in the presence of distractions, and how to interact confidently with the world around them.
Crafting resilience in puppies is a paramount objective for every pet guardian, trainer or behavior consultant. Puppy resilience entails their capacity to navigate new experiences, recover from stress, and confidently engage with their surroundings. This blog serves as a compass through the pivotal components of an effective puppy socialization program, designed to foster resilience, drawing upon the seven domains framework of the Resilience Rainbow Model.
When will my dog be trained? At Noble Woof Dog Training we believe that training is a journey that evolves throughout your dog's entire life. Our tagline, "Training is a Journey, not a destination," reflects this philosophy emphasizing the ongoing nature of dog training and the importance of commitment and consistency. Lets explore why dog training is never truly "finished" and how embracing this lifelong journey from the perspective or relational psychology is essential in building a strong bond with your canine companion.
Your positive reinforcement trainer may be advising you to stop taking your dog into environments where problem behavior is expressed for several reasons:
Stress Reduction: Problem behaviors often arise from stress or anxiety triggered by specific environments or stimuli. By avoiding these environments temporarily, your trainer aims to reduce your dog's stress levels and provide them with a break from situations that may be causing distress.
Recall, also known as “come when called” is a simple behavior to teach, but is difficult for our dogs to do consistently unless we set them up for success. A dog who is ENGAGED knows that payments (praise, treats, toys, and fun) come from their handler and is motivated to work with their human. Before we can ask a dog to follow cues, have good manners, or be safe off leash, we must show them that listening to us is in their best interest.
The following 5 rules of thumb for building a great recall should help!
Dogs do miss their human counterparts, thanks to the time you’ve spent creating positive associations with them. But dogs don’t define “miss” the same way humans do. Rather than “longing” for us, dogs notice our absence. So when we return, they display many signs of happiness.
“We are a source of a lot of positive reinforcement for dogs,” says Brie Blakeman, CBCC-KA, CPDT-KA. “Our absence can easily be associated with absence of those reinforcers.”
Understanding your dog’s core needs is a crucial aspect in raising a calm adult dog. Every dog has an “emotional cup” that is relatively empty at the start of the day & needs be filled through satisfying their instinctive core needs.
Every dog, being a member of the canine species has at least these 6 core needs. The order of importance depends on the individual.
Knowing what to do when an off leash dog rushes you and your pup can save everyone a lot of stress. Having a plan in place with a few sets of rehearsed options is key. Take a look at these recommendations and let us know what you would add to the list! Have you been rushed by an off leash dog? What was your experience? Share in the comments!
Before every puppy class all surfaces, and props are sprayed down with a thorough coat of Rescue, which is then allowed to air dry before your puppy comes into contact with the objects/props they will be using in class.
After every puppy class all props are either sprayed again, or soaked in a bleach solution. All toys and fabric surfaces are run through our washer/drying with both detergent and bleach.
Coach Jackson Poling of Noble Woof Dog Training recommends habit stacking. Habit stacking is when we are able to make it easy to follow “guidelines” for ourselves to stay on top of important daily tasks. Some examples include pairing a certain training exercise with a day of the week, or a specific daily event. For example, always following feeding time with wiping the counter down, or always mopping the floor after the dogs have been bathed so it stays cleaner longer.
Our puppy socials are small in size. This allows us to guide and work with each team. Puppies learn and grow at fantastically rapid rates, and we do not want to miss an opportunity to support a puppy through a learning moment because we are too busy elsewhere. We leave space for learning and discussion as well as play and exploration in each puppy social class!
Noble Woof recently opened its first brick-and-mortar space at 8502 SE Stark Street after six years of providing in-home private dog training. Staff use positive reinforcement methods to cultivate good behavior and emotional enrichment in dogs. In addition to various instructor-led courses, their day training program helps reinforce at-home training with the added socialization dogs benefit from.
Cues are important because they are how we achieve interspecies communication. Even between members of the same species, we are always signaling and responding to signals, or cues, from one another. Even as a verbally oriented species, us humans use a great deal of body language signals to communicate to one another how we are feeling.
At Noble Woof we believe in getting all dog teams the best possible training they could get, and sometimes that means referring them out to more experienced trainers, veterinary behaviorists, or simply trainers who have more availability and can meet your need quicker than we can.
One of the hardest behavior issues to live with is a dog who was never potty trained. Luckily, potty training should be really swift and easy if good management and a clear plan is in place. A huge aspect of potty training is preventing the dog from having accidents inside the house through active supervision, a consistent potty/feeding schedule, and good management tools. It is also important to recognize that dogs never eliminate inappropriately due to malicious intent. If your dog or puppy has eliminated inappropriately it is due to poor management, not enough access to where they should go, a lack of schedule, extreme fear or phobia, or a medical issue.
