Blog

How To Recognize Signs Of Heat Exhaustion In Dogs

The warmest months in Hawaii are vastly upon us with temperatures reaching over 80F degrees and over 50 percent humidity. Humans have the ability to regulate their body temperature by sweat glands located throughout our bodies. When we sweat, the evaporation of our sweat cools our body. Unlike humans, dogs do not have sweat glands located throughout their body. A dog’s sweat glands are mainly located between the pads of their feet. A dog’s primary way of cooling themselves is by panting and breathing. Ways to beat the heat this summer: Always provide shade and fresh cool water for your dogs. Provide a small plastic pool for your dog to wade or lay in during the day. Keep the pool in the shade so the sun does not heat the water. Remember to rinse the pool daily to keep clean. You can find cooling products for dogs such as bandanas, vests, or

Tammy Nunes June 28, 2021 No Comments

Stop Your Dog From Barking!

With any problem behavior, it is important to figure out why your dog is doing that particular behavior. Once you can figure out why they are doing what they are doing, you can address the problem behavior. I find that many problem behaviors can be eliminated by making sure dogs receive enough exercise and you are consistent with redirecting their problem behavior, all while setting their environment and your dog up for success. Why do dogs bark? Separation anxiety Protection or alert Fun or attention seeking Fear Boredom Over-stimulated Separation Anxiety If your dog is barking due to separation anxiety, you will want to address the separation anxiety issue itself, as that is a bigger issue than just barking alone. I am here to help. Protection If your dog is barking at people or other dogs passing by the house, ‘turn off their tv’ by blocking their view from

Tammy Nunes June 15, 2021 No Comments

6 Tips to Gaining Your Dog’s Attention

If you find yourself saying ‘I just wish my dog would pay attention to me more’ try these simple tips to help. Bonus, keep in mind #6 when you OR your dog are learning anything new. Engage with your dog Your dog knows when you are not paying attention. I will often tell students, “if you are not engaging with your dog, why in the world would your dog engage with you?” What do I mean by engage with your dog? Talk to your dog on your walks or when you are out and about. Yep, be that crazy dog owner who tells your dog about your day, praise your dog for walking next to you and paying attention to you. Make your walks unpredictable to keep your dog guessing where your next move will be. For example, if I am walking a dog, I will randomly turn to the

Tammy Nunes June 1, 2021 No Comments

How to Get Your Dog’s Attention

A big question I receive is “how do I get my dog to pay attention to me. No matter what.” I feel the ‘Look’ exercise is underused. If past students tell me their dog is starting to bark on their leash, I’ll remind them to use the ‘Look’ exercise. Here are some other examples of how I use this exercise: To redirect your dog from other dogs To redirect your dog from cats To redirect your dog from something they are afraid of such as skateboards or bicycles To stop your dog from pulling To stop your dog from smelling And so much more! A word of caution: training a reliable ‘look’ takes time, practice, and patience. You must start this training in a quiet, non-distracting environment. As your dog gets better, you can increase the distractions and your expectations. Always remember, consistency over time gets results! Take a look

Tammy Nunes May 17, 2021 No Comments

Try This Before Your Walks

Did you know that the way you start your walks with your dog can set a precedent to how your walks will go? If you allow your dog to pull you out the door at the beginning of your walk, it is more likely your dog will pull you during the entirety of your walk. Consequently, it will take that much longer to gain their attention. I quickly learned that if I allowed a dog to jump all over me while putting on their leash, or allowed them to pull me out the door, it took me and my furry companion much longer to get anywhere without them pulling. I’m not sure about you, but I do not find walking a dog that pulls me to be fun, at all. One of the first things that I do when training one of our Board and Train or Day Train dogs

Jen Chapman December 15, 2020 No Comments

Helpful Tips For Your Recalls

Is your dog not responding to their recalls like you would like? Do they look at you when you call them to ‘come’ but continue to turn and run the other way? If you find you are having a hard time with your dog coming when called, apply these helpful tips. When applied you will see results immediately! 1. First and foremost, set your dog up for success. Do not give your dog freedom until they are coming to you reliably– unless you are in a situation where you do not need them to come when called. The reason for this is because every time you call your dogs to ‘come’ and they do not, they are learning to ignore your requests. People hate to hear ‘keep your dog on leash’ until they know better. They envision their dogs running free and coming back to them at

Jen Chapman December 1, 2020 No Comments

How Has Dog Training Changed Over Time?

Formal dog training as we know it originated during World War II. Before that, dogs had been working household members and their behavior was largely shaped through organic learning from older dogs. Only when soldiers needed to train large numbers of dogs to assist in warfare did compulsion training arise and, when the war ended, was developed into a recognized field by discharged military personnel. Back then, society as a whole accepted punishment as a valid teaching method. Typical training approaches involved physical corrections, leash jerks, and loudly yelling at the dog. This was difficult for puppies to endure, so the prevailing wisdom was to hold off on proper training until the puppy was seven months old (house-training was the exception). In some places, these outdated methods are still used. But from the 60s and 70s and on—through the work of pioneers like Bob Bailey, Karen Pryor, and Dr.

Jen Chapman November 17, 2020 No Comments

Why Do Dogs Love To Roll In Stinky Stuff & Grooming Tips

Few dogs don’t have this habit to some extent—whether it’s a good shoulder-first roll in fresh grass with all its hidden secrets or a nosedive into a freshly manured field. The behaviour is called scent rolling and researchers speculate that it originated as a way to bring information back to the pack. Of course, dogs have had much time and adaptation to make the behaviour their own, so it’s likely dogs roll in grass and other interesting materials for a number of reasons. One is to get rid of unwanted smells, for example that doggie shampoo you enjoy but that Fido does not appreciate. Itchy skin can be another cause for frequent and vigorous rolling, so look out for fleas, tick bites, or tell-tale signs of skin conditions such as scabs, redness, rashes, or bald patches. Rolling in grass is not dangerous in itself. Just be sure your dog has

Jen Chapman October 6, 2020 No Comments

The Shell Game

A positive push that has happened for me this year was to see how I could stimulate both dogs and owners during Stay at Home Orders due to COVID. I’ve done this by having fun getting out of my routine and implementing brain games into my behavior repertoire. I have often told owners that mental exercise such as training, allowing your dogs to smell, and brain games can tire dogs out. I have seen and gotten reports back from students how this is true. Students who have joined me in my Games class reported that they were spending more time with their dogs and their dogs took a nice long nap after class due to the fun mentally stimulating activities. In this post I want to share a simple, fun, interactive game for both you, your dog, and family, The Shell Game. Let me know if by adding The Shell

Jen Chapman September 29, 2020 No Comments

3 Keys To Successful Dog Training

Setting boundaries/ guideline/ expectations/ rules, however you want to look at it can help dogs, adults, kids, animals thrive with knowing what is expected of them. Knowing that there are rules, keeps pure and utter chaos from ensuing. Boundaries/ guidelines/ expectations/ rules takes the guess work out of what needs to happen in various situations and in order to get attention. For example, I have found training your dog to ‘sit’ to get attention instead of them jumping can be life changing for both the dog and their owner. The best part of that? It’s not that hard as long as your consistent and follow through. In my son’s Taekwondo dog class their Black Belt Success Cycle is something I have always followed and implement with my students. I feel these are the 3 keys to successful training, setting boundaries, and obtaining goals in life. The key steps are: Know

Jen Chapman September 21, 2020 No Comments