Training : You must learn to lead for the dog to follow
We first start by teaching, learning, conditioning for basic obedience
Let's talk about the basics of good behavior and where this comes from. If we train every puppy the basics of engagement focus and obedience from the very beginning there would be very few dogs in shelters. When you bring a new puppy, German Shepherd or dog into your care the responsibility of leadership is 100% yours for the LIFE of the animal. Civil Guard K9 trains our own dogs as obedient social companions and civil home and family protectors. Would you ever consider commanding a working personal protection dog to engage a threat without them first having you as a leader and teacher of basic obedience? Dogs with bad behavior have not been properly adapted too environmental and social conditions the dog needs to experience. Fear, aggression, avoidance, dominance can become really bad problems if they aren't corrected during early puppy development training. The mentioned behaviors are natural to the dog for survival. If the dog has no leadership it will need to protect itself. Over time these continued behaviors can turn aggressive. Dogs need to trust. Puppies come out of the womb a clean slate with varying temperaments and personalities. What they learn from then on is your responsibility. Telling a dog to do as you say without clear communication isn't fair to the dog. So lets begin by teaching, learning, conditioning for basic obedience and modifying unwanted behaviors. Each dog must be shown what you expect of them and then consistently taught to develop a pattern or what's called an imprint. If you're having an anxiety attack training your dog he will have one along with you. When teaching the dog we're careful not to reinforce bad behaviors. Recognizing the timing of rewarding proper behaviors is supportive for good development. I posted this picture so you can think about what's happening here. There is so much recent backlash about the use of e collars, choke collars and prong training collars in our current society. Those trainers that understand and use these tools appropriately will successfully train dogs. This young dogs standard flat collar is restricting air passage while causing him to pull like a freight train. If given the chance he will pull you down the street. Many dog owners experience this and the first thing they do is pull back to correct and the dog pulls harder or they allow the dog to advance forward teaching the dog that he makes the decisions. Next they run into the neighborhood pet store and buy a harness to give their dog some feel good comfort only to realize the dog pulls harder down the street. My point is even a flat collar trained correctly by experienced dog trainers due no harm and help our dogs work and live safely in a social environment. I hope you choose to work with us but if you live outside the area we're happy to connect you with an experienced trainer that uses similar training methods. We offer in home training services, boarding and training packages for our clients and their dogs.
Private lessons: These are lessons trained in your home lasting 11/2 hours. A majority of this time is spent teaching you the correct methods and techniques that I use for reshaping a dog's behaviors. As you learn we teach your dog to respect you as leader of your home. The goal is to create calm balance and understanding for your dog to begin to relax and learn. I wish I could promise every client it would take an exact number of sessions to complete this type of training . Because all dogs have variations of temperament and behavior including people too it isn't realistic to make such promises. I will recommend a certain number of sessions for you that will show you the results of changing your dogs behaviors. There is never any success without making a reasonable commitment so if you only are interested in a few sessions we're probably not the right match for each other. For those of you that want results and are willing to do the work I will ask for a 10 session commitment. That is a reasonable amount of time for us to get to know and work with each other so you can see results training your dog.
Private lessons pricing is listed on the pre consultation form on the contact page.
Are we the right fit for one another?
We often hear my dog is so misbehaved and doesn't listen. I need someone to train him for me. Although these intentions are good the idea of someone training your dog to learn obedience and then handing the dog back to you with expectation that the dog will listen isn't realistic. Training your dog to be obedient and successful requires teamwork. The teamwork comes from you the owner, the trainer and most of all fair, clear and balanced communication with your dog. Think of us as a team that will work in thirds. I understand the postures and language of how dogs communicate with each other. I use these interactions and patterns so I can shape and imprint better behaviors. Dogs are simple creatures living in a world of very complex human beings. Dogs understand two simple principles, which are positive and negative. Positive: The intent to engage something that motivates them to an action with a reward. Negative: A condition or experience that didn't provide intended positive results. The laws of nature put these rules in place thousands of years ago so that any species could survive and protect their mere existence. As a trainer it's my job to teach you the appropriate methods to bring your dogs behaviors back into balance. Modernized society has made a mess of a dogs survival habits. Current social expectations have clouded the real meaning of dog domestication. People are trying to humanize dogs because of personal emotional self fulfillment deficiencies. Dressing dogs in clothing, carrying them like accessories, pushing them in strollers the list is endless. We have done everything humanly possible to make them one of us. If your dog is having human issues let's work together to fix them. There are different ways to approach this. You do have a choice to make which requires you to make daily life habit changes for your dog. This also includes anyone else in your family or immediate friends who like to drop in. Sure its work to train a dog and be successful doing it. It's much more work to live with an out of control, misbehaved fearful dog that during its life with you might over react and bite someone. Understanding what's causing the behavior, knowing how to fix it and reinforce a better outcome is my job. Teaching you leash control, body posture, communication, leadership reinforcement, command timing and reward timing is my job. Your job is to learn what I teach you, practice the lessons as you are taught and stay consistent with your dogs training so once your dog is back at home they understand you and willingly follow your leadership. My services offer individual in home private training lessons or three and four week's of board and train. Read the descriptions of each package and find the one you might think is right for you. Then go to my contact page, fill out the pre consultation form. When I receive the information you will be contacted within 24 hours.
What could possibly go wrong?
People get injured from these behaviors.
The dog learns to establish his own leadership over you.
A bark turns into aggression because you pulled back on the leash.
The dog feels your apprehension and nervousness.
What could have been a good social encounter with proper handling is now an agitation towards what the dog focuses on.
"Dog's don't fail people fail dog's "
Recall: Is the most important dog command any person can teach their dog. Certainly heel, sit, stand, down, stay, out, no and all the others have their ranks of importance. We want a dog that will focus and behave well while listening to us in many distracting environments. Your ability to recall a dog to come back when you say so can save its life. If you would like to learn more about training or have a specific problem you need solving we're here to help. We have the experience resources and ability to help you become successful training your dog. Remember the very best time to start training is day ONE when the puppy comes into the new home. Focus engagement and basic leash obedience is the foundation for future advanced training and good behavior. Those that wait may experience negative behavior's as the dog figures things out for itself. This means you are a lower level member of pack orientation. We would like to here from you with your questions or concerns. We teach puppy engagement, basic obedience, advanced obedience, behavior modification, personal protection and three languages for training , English, German, Czech. Reach us through the contact page or social media links. You can find us on Facebook. You may also just pick up the phone and give us a call.
"Our ability to teach needs to communicate how the dog understands. We must speak the language of the dog, only then can we show them how to learn"
If you were allowed only one command for your dog what would you choose?
"All good dogs must understand the basic rules before they can live in harmony with us"
We've all been there before, maybe you are experiencing some dog behavior problems right now. I hope thats why you are here. These behaviors are just a few of many problems we encounter with training. Dogs running out through doors, barking all night. The biter, licker, jumper, chewer, counter surfer. The aggressor, car possessor, cat, rabbit, dog, bicycle, lizard and anything that moves chaser and the leash tugger who drags you down the street. The furniture shredder and garbage man avenger. And finally the worst of all is the mess in the middle of the floor I left for you. Many of these and more are terrible imprint behaviors untrained dogs have. The worst part is dog owners have created these behaviors. Training is key to a long lasting relationship with your dog and a life full of wonderful experiences. We can teach you the proper steps of becoming a leader and good handler while you train your dog.
Four weeks board and train: Some dogs need this! A program for finely finished obedience or if you are having serious behavior problems with your dog this might be the answer to your problems. Reconditioning a dog's longer term behaviors takes specialized skills and modifications. This takes time and real effort to reprogram the conditions your dog's experiences have created. Not all dogs are equal and some have serious problems in their daily activities. Almost everyone of these dogs have either been over affectioned, re-homed, rejected, abused or neglected.
Small inappropriate behaviors as puppies were never addressed and possibly accidental or intentionally rewarded. Now the imprints are more affirmed in the dogs mind and certain triggers set them off. This can be a very troubling place for your dog and your home life. It doesn't have to be that way so if you're up to the challenge and willing to put in some real hard work lets help your dog learn to find calm and be a good dog. Upon successfully completing this training you will receive a custom leather leash and leather collar. Continued follow up private lessons may be required at normal rates.
Let's get started fill out our pre consultation form on my contact page.
Three weeks board and train: This training is a solid beginning for you and your dog to learn the foundations of dog obedience. During the three week's of training you and your dog will go through calming and relationship building exercises. I will teach the fundamental behaviors that will shape all the basic commands of obedience. You and your dog will participate in learning about leash control, body posture, spatial distance, reward timing and corrections. When to focus and how to follow the actions and commands of the trainer and handler. The dog will live in a live active household environment that maintains a routine and schedule. Dogs are opportunist and follow patterns. You will need to replicate these obedience commands after you both are back in your home. During the stay your dogs care will be of top priority where there will be lots of time for learning structure, experiencing environmental exposures and if well behaved some limited dog interaction. You will be required to attend six 11/2 hour handlers sessions during the three weeks of hands on training. These are included in your training package . What will you and your dog be expected to learn? The foundation of dog obedience down, stay, come, sit, heel, wait at thresholds, leash direction, duration and body language. Also how to use spatial pressure and corrections with your dog. Overall how to be a good handler and teacher for your dog. Upon successfully completing this training you will receive a custom leather leash and leather collar.
Note:
Dogs for three and four weeks training programs must be 4 months of age 100% housebroken and able to lay calmly in a kennel for several hours.
There is a 2-3 day pre training boarding requirement for relationship bonding with the trainer for the three weeks board and train.
Let's get started fill out the pre consultation form on my contact page.