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Building structure with your new puppy is one of the best things you can do to create a happy, healthy, and obedient puppy. There are many reasons we want to build a structure, and several ways to do so.  Why you should build structure in your puppy's routine Structure creates calmness in the puppy. When you have a structure where they know what they're going to do next, they're not stressed out overthinking what's going to happen next. They are not concerned about when they

As a dog owner, you want to do everything you can to ensure your furry friend is happy and healthy. That includes making sure they're getting the right nutrition. There are a lot of different opinions out there about what the best diet for dogs is, but the truth is that there's no one-size-fits-all answer. The best way to ensure your dog is getting the nutrition they need is to work with your veterinarian to create a customized plan.  In the meantime, here's a basic overview

Recently, in Northern Alabama, there were multiple kids bitten by dogs in various cities. I was on the news again last week, talking on WHNT News Channel 19 and giving tips on dog safety and working with reactive dogs. It's become such a problem. The story that I did was in reference to a girl who got bitten at her apartment complex when another dog, that's a neighbor's dog, was on a leash and approaching her. It got off-leash and got excited, ran to her, bit her in multiple

All new at 10 tonight. A 9-year-old is recovering after a vicious dog attack in Hansville. Left her with severe injuries on her face. Delilah McKay was sitting outside on her apartment steps when a dog that was being walked by another child all of a sudden attacked her. The family shared photos that show her injuries, and we want to warn you, some of those photos may be graphic. Delilah's mother tells us a nearby teenager managed to get the dog away from her daughter. Delilah

Training a dog can come with a huge set of challenges. If you have a high-energy dog that engages in destructive behaviors, gets bored easily, and makes life harder, you know what it's like. What makes it harder is trying to train a dog that you also have a hard time keeping up with. A high-energy dog may be a unique challenge, but fortunately, this challenge is far from impossible. Breeds are a good determiner Dog behavior is often genetic, and you'll find that many dogs of

So you love dogs. You have a knack for understanding them. Perhaps you have already helped friends with their dogs, or maybe this is all brand new. Either way, you're here because you want to turn that passion into a real career. Good news—you don’t need a PhD in animal behavior or a decade of apprenticeship to get started. However, you do  need a plan, some education, and a lot of hands-on practice. Embarking on a career as a dog trainer may seem daunting. With vast knowled

After training a couple of thousand puppies and using this technique on my own puppy, Dixie, when I got her at 10 weeks old, the very first thing I taught her was go to your bed and stay .  I have a video on my phone of May 5, 2020, at seven o'clock at night, where I'm showing people how I trained Dixie to go to her bed and stay the very first day that I got her. My clients are amazed at this video and how well Dixie picked it up, and how easily I taught it to her the first d

Puppy socialization is the most important thing to teach your puppy from ages 8 to 16 weeks. Some experts say from 4 to 12 weeks. The breeder will usually start socializing the puppy from 4-8 weeks by exposing it to a variety of different people, animals, sights, and sounds. And then when the owner takes the puppy at eight weeks, they continue until 12 weeks or even 16 weeks. When we start socializing our puppy, we need to consider vaccinations. Your veterinarian will provide

A lot of people get these two confused. They don't even know there's a difference at all, and they don't know that there's many different...