A very special client emailed me today letting me know her dog had recently passed. Even though she had lost several dogs before, she was really struggling with this particular loss and asked if I had any words of wisdom for her that might help her through it. Because she found my reply helpful, I thought I’d share it here, too. Having been through several tremendous losses in the recent past myself, I very much understand grief and what it takes to move through it in a healthy way. Maybe my thoughts will help you, too. (Note: I’ve edited down my response below to remove any personal inform ..read more

How To Measure  Progress Success is not a straight road to the finish. It’s got ups and downs and often times setbacks along the way. One of the best ways to measure progress is by gauging where you were at at your starting point and comparing it to where you’re at now. For example, if, before starting training, your dog reactive dog would lose his cool at a dog he saw 100 feet away from him and it took several minutes on average to calm him down but today he doesn’t react until the dog is within 50 feet and only takes a minute or two to calm down, that’s progress!!! And it’s progres ..read more

If you’re anything like me, you want sustainable products for your dog that you know will do the job, last a long time and make a positive impact. As a dog trainer for well over two decades, I have run across many people and companies with products for dogs but the ones at Wanderlust Creatures really stand out. They are a unique Canadian company specializing in handmade items for travellers and durable gear for their pets. They tick all the boxes for sustainable, local, long-lasting products for dogs. I absolutely love their dog ID tags. And I love their story too! Trevor and Monique, the ow ..read more

Did you know…. ….that a dog’s neck can expand when they get hot? It can! Just like your feet, ankles and hands swell when your temperature goes up, your dogs neck can, too. When blood flow increases to the large veins (like the jugular in the neck) and the big muscles, a normally “kinda snug” collar will turn into a “too tight” collar. Keep this in mind when determining the fit of your dogs collar or harness, especially if you have a flat faced dog like a Pug or Bulldog. Make sure you can comfortably fit two fingers underneath your dogs collar and two to four fingers (depending on the size of ..read more

I recently worked with the sweetest, almost-senior dog. His previous owner had taught him to be such a perfect gentleman that he no longer knew how to behave like a normal dog when out on walks. He wouldn’t dream of sniffing, exploring or doing anything but walk very slowly and directly behind his human. I’ve not met a dog quite like him before. His previous owner was incredibly kind and treated him exceptionally well, yet had been so diligent about teaching him perfect (albeit unique) leash etiquette that he no longer acted like a dog when he left the house. ‘Doggy’ things were now reserve ..read more

Rehoming a dog is a very taboo subject. After all, dogs are for life, no? For me that’s a definite yes……but…..sometimes circumstances dictate that rehoming is actually in the best interest of everyone involved, especially the dog, and we’d be foolish to overlook that simply because we aren’t willing to be flexible in our ideals. Having worked with thousands of clients over the past 21 years, I can unequivocally tell you that there are a lot of circumstances in which I might recommend rehoming – the owner is elderly or ill and can no longer properly provide for the dogs needs, the safety or wel ..read more

Head halters can be a really useful tool, especially if you have a powerful puller or a dog that is reactive when out on walks, as they give you way more control. The downside is very few dogs take to wearing them right away so I came up with a method to quickly get your dog comfortable having it on so that you two can get back out walking safely and enjoying life together again.   Until next time, Darcie Jennings Stay connected with me on Facebook & Instagram The post Is Your Dog A Strong Puller? Try This appeared first on Communicanine ..read more

Does your dog play keep away when you want to put his collar, harness or head halter on? Here’s a simple hack: teach them how to co-operatively suit up to make heading out the door a hundred times easier. Please note: Before doing this, make sure your dogs harness or head halter is fitted properly by running your fingers along all the seams to look for any tight spots and check their armpits for any signs of rubbing or chaffing. A lot of dogs will run and hide from their gear because it pinches, rubs, restricts their natural range of motion or is otherwise really uncomfortable to wear. No amo ..read more

If you’ve just brought a puppy home, you may be stressing out about how to socialize them right now with our current social distancing requirements. The good news is your pup doesn’t need to meet hundreds of people and dogs to be well socialized. In fact, for some dogs meeting all of those dogs and people every time they go out can overwhelm them and also teach them bad habits like pulling on the leash, ignoring commands and getting over excited every time they see someone on the street. So I put together a short video talking about how to go about making sure you socialize your puppy well wit ..read more

Telling someone that they need to euthanize their dog is the shittiest part of my job. I entered this career to help fix them, not to kill them, but once you’ve been in this career long enough you realize that not every dog CAN be saved or should be saved. I’ve seen a very disturbing trend over the past few years of wanting to save every dog at all costs with little to no regard to how doing so will affect the safety and well-being of the community they live in. If a dog attacks and kills another at the beach and is at risk of being put down, everyone automatically starts throwing up their pit ..read more