Posts tagged as:

exercise

Roundup: Your adolescent dog

September 23, 2008

A roundup of articles to help you and your pup sail through the choppy waters of adolescent months. “Adolescent Changes” From Dog Star Daily. No, you’re not losing your mind — the cute puppy who would never leave your side is now blowing you off and stealing from the trash. Learn what to expect, and [...]

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Five reasons to avoid invisible fencing

July 30, 2008

Invisible fencing may seem like a good idea on the outset, but I believe the risks outweigh the benefits. Below are five reasons I think these fences aren’t the best option for containing your dog. You still have to train the dog. Many people assume an invisible or underground fence is “plug ‘n’ play” — [...]

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Your agility dog: Building focus and drive (Part One)

March 25, 2008

In agility or other dog sports, we often hear about a dog’s drive. Maybe someone has said your dog has a lot of drive, or could use more drive. What is “drive”? Sometimes you’ll hear people talk about different types of drive in dogs, such as fight drive, play drive or prey drive. For our [...]

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Disc Doggin’!

March 22, 2008

This is my friend Tracy Custer (foster mom to my cattle dog Gimli — Tracy has a littermate), practicing with a few of her 11 (yes, 11) amazing rescued disc dogs. Most of the moves you see here are used in freestyle competition, which involves the handler throwing to the dog, who catches and performs [...]

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Doggie Zen

February 9, 2008

“Doggie Zen” is an exercise I learned from clicker trainer Shirley Chong. This exercise is particularly effective in teaching your dog to focus on you amidst distraction. Before you begin, remember… A click is a promise that a treat is coming. Always offer your dog a reward after you click, even if you have made [...]

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Is your dog ready for agility training?

January 24, 2008

Agility training is a wonderful, energy-burning and mind-challenging sport for dogs and their handlers. Even dogs not registered with the AKC can participate in agility competition, thanks to a plethora of agility registries such as the United States Dog Agility Association and the North American Dog Agility Council. Finding a good agility class or trainer [...]

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