By Mikayla Morris, CPDT-KA, DCBEC What Is Canine Confidence? Canine confidence is a dog’s ability to feel safe, calm, and self-assured in a variety of situations. Confident dogs tend to show neutral, relaxed reactions around people, other dogs, new environments, unfamiliar noises, handling, and changes in routine. Confidence does not mean a dog is overly…
“Reactivity” is a broad term; it’s a term that has become almost meaningless in the world of dog behavior. It simply means the dog is overreacting to something in the environment (e.g., strangers, other dogs, certain sounds, motion, etc.). That reaction may include barking, lunging, whining, hiding, freezing, pulling away, or trying to escape. Aggression…
Owners tend to label behavior problems in simple terms: “He’s stubborn,” “She’s not listening,” or “He knows better but ignores me.” But dogs don’t operate from a place of defiance in the way we tend to think. What you’re seeing is usually the surface expression of something deeper: anxiety, conflict, fear, or reinforced behavioral loops…
That doesn’t mean it’s impossible to address. But it does mean you need to understand what’s actually driving the behavior in order to properly treat it, not just react to what you see on the surface. The root cause of many behavior issues, minor and serious, is frequently not what the dog’s owner thinks it…
Figuring out how to train your dog when it’s too hot outside is a common challenge during warm weather months. When the weather gets warmer, long walks and outdoor training sessions may need to be shortened or avoided altogether. The good news is that training does not have to stop. With the right tools and…
Is It Right for Your Dog? If your neutered male dog has persistent anxiety, fear-based reactivity, or physical slowing that hasn’t responded to traditional behavior modification from a qualified dog behaviorist and hasn’t responded to behavioral medication, a hormonal panel might be the missing link. Cautionary Note While it would be nice to think that…
The Three Dogs Training Cooperative Care Workshop is available for enrollment. This cooperative care workshop starting April 11, 2026 is for anyone who wants to help their dog tolerate and even enjoy the kind of physical care that often makes dogs uncomfortable and even aggressive. IAABC outlines cooperative care in this article. We care for…
Good dog play can be a lovely thing. It can also be confusing, misinterpreted, and at worst shift rapidly to serious predation, defense, or offensive. How do you know which is which? Sometimes you can easily see it is all good, like here the Great Dane and the Frenchie were in basic class together. They…
The intention is to calm the dog. But dogs don’t process language the way we do. They aren’t evaluating the logical meaning of the sentence. Instead, they are reading the owner’s tone, body language, timing, and patterns. If the owner suddenly changes their voice, tightens the leash, or focuses intensely on the dog, the dog…
Some trainers will tell you to make a specific sound like a dog growl or make a snake-like hiss as if these sounds are dog training magic. Alas, there is no magic sound out there that will make a dog behave one way or the other. However, there is magic in dog training. Eight-five percent of…
