Category Archives: barking and lunging

G is for Grrrrrrr

. . . and Grrrrrrr is dog for “Growl.” As the wonderful dog behaviorist and author Nicole Wilde explains: Growling is a perfectly acceptable canine warning. It’s a dog’s way of saying, “Hey, I don’t like that,” “Don’t come any closer!” or “Please stop what you’re doing.” … Whether a dog is growling at another dog orContinue reading “G is for Grrrrrrr”

D is for Dominance

I’m so encouraged that Bark and Lunge has received the following endorsement: Bark and Lunge is worth reading slowly for the details and for the joy of it. The book recognizes the inappropriate use of simple dominance theory, which is so common and so wrong for dogs. Many dog owners will recognize some of the questionsContinue reading “D is for Dominance”

Choke Collars, Corrections, Classical Conditioning, and Clickers

I was dimly aware of clickers being used in animal training from the time I was a child and went to the Animal Actors show at Universal Studios. I remember hearing the clicks while the trainers made the animals perform tricks, and my brother explaining that’s how they got animals to do things. When IContinue reading “Choke Collars, Corrections, Classical Conditioning, and Clickers”

WOOF! Management Is the Secret to Success

Welcome to the second WOOF Support Blog Hop. This month’s theme is Success, Frustration, and Everything In Between. Reactive dog trainers talk about “setting your dog up for success.” To me, that means careful management. Generally, I do not consider Leo a fearful dog, but he is extremely leash-reactive. After what we went through withContinue reading “WOOF! Management Is the Secret to Success”

How to train a dog to do anything (and prevent bites)

I read Ian Dunbar’s Before and After Getting Your Puppy before and after we got Leo. Unfortunately, I had not yet heard about puppy socialization when we got Isis, whose story I tell in Bark and Lunge. That’s why, after reading an advance copy of my book, Ian Dunbar said: Prospective puppy/dog owners can save themselves aContinue reading “How to train a dog to do anything (and prevent bites)”

The Good Dog Park v. The Bad Dog Park

There are lots of reasons not to take your dog to a dog park, and most of these have two legs and spend their time texting when they should be watching their dogs. But sometimes, especially when it’s cold and rainy and your dog barks and lunges when he’s on a leash, you really justContinue reading “The Good Dog Park v. The Bad Dog Park”

WOOF! Working Out Our Fears

Where were all the Fearful Dog support groups when I was struggling with Isis? Did they not exist, or did I not understand until way too late that fear was the root of her problem? Social media was still young then, way back in 2008. I’m part of two great Facebook communities where every day,Continue reading “WOOF! Working Out Our Fears”

Tell me again, why did I quit nose work?

Oh, readers, I know you don’t know, since I can’t even remember. I know why I quit the nose work class. I didn’t want to do another dog class without Rob and the only class that worked with our schedule was 8-9 pm Thursdays. It was a lot of money and a long way toContinue reading “Tell me again, why did I quit nose work?”