Every note, in one place.
Plain-language help for reactive, anxious, and rescue dogs, straight from our sessions. New notes land here as they're released.
How to Teach Your Dog “No” (and Why Louder Doesn't Work)
Most houses use one “no” for everything. Split it into two words, make something always follow each one, and your dog can finally tell what you're asking.
Why Did My Dog's Training Suddenly Go Backwards?
A dog who could do it last month and can't do it now has almost never forgotten it. Usually one of four things changed, and each one has a fix.
Why Is My Dog Reactive?
Reactivity isn't one thing. It's fear, frustration, or a body that's learned to panic, and once you know which one you're looking at, everything else gets easier.
How to Get Your Dog Ready for a Hurricane
Every hurricane list for dogs covers the go-bag. This one covers the weeks of work that have to happen before the bag is any use to you.
“Yes” doesn't mean anything to your dog yet
A marker word, a clicker, even “good boy” starts out as noise, the same way “no” does. Meaning is something you build, and it takes less time than you'd think.
Trigger Stacking: When Small Stressors Add Up
Your dog's stress doesn't reset to zero between one trigger and the next. It stacks, and eventually something small tips the whole thing over.
How to Keep Your Dog Safe in a Houston Summer
Heat makes everyone short-fused within seconds, your dog included. Here's how to actually keep them safe on a Houston summer walk.
How to tell if training is actually working
The progress is real, it's just not where you're looking. Often the exact thing that feels like failure is the win.
Enrichment vs. exercise, and why your dog needs both
Walking your dog into the ground doesn't do what you think it does. What most dogs actually need is a chance to slow down, explore, and use their brain.
Setting a new rescue dog up for success
The first few weeks with a rescue aren't really about training. They're about trust, and the timeline belongs to your dog, not you.
Why your dog is great at home but a mess outside
Spoiler: it isn't stubbornness, and it isn't really even a training problem. Your dog is an animal in a distracting world, and once you get that, a lot of this stops being so frustrating.
The one move for when your dog lunges
Corrections aren't evil, but they're not your move here. When your dog's already over the edge, you want one reliable safety net: the emergency U-turn.
What "threshold" actually means
Trainers throw this word around constantly. It actually means two things at once, and once you can see both, your dog's reactive walks start to make a lot more sense.