In recently years, there’s been a huge increase in interactive toys and food puzzle toys for dogs. While there are some of these types of toys for cats, I think there is a lot larger selection of fun interactive dog toys. This is unfortunate, as many cats are quite active and playful and would enjoy […]
I’ve been reading through Kay Laurence’s Clicker Foundation Training: Level 1 book. The book deals with many important foundation skills, such as food delivery, targeting, shaping, and adding cues. This is a book that I’ve read through several times, but there are lots of gems packed into it and I find new ones each time […]
This week, Flower is learning to touch a target! Flower is one of my young rats. Even though I’ve had her about a year, I have not done a whole lot of training with her. (Although, she has learned some really cute tricks.) We have lots of training plans for this fall, though! Targeting is […]
Do you have a dog that loves squirrels? My parent’s dog, Ginger, could sit in the backyard for hours watching the squirrels. Many dogs find squirrels quite interesting, which can be a big distraction during training. Recently, one of my advanced classes took a field trip to a local park. Although it was pretty warm, […]
These two phrases — “randomly” and “all the time” — are ones that I hear quite often when I am working with my training clients. Often, dog owners call in a trainer because their pet is exhibiting behaviors that are annoying, frustrating, or even downright dangerous. My job as a trainer is to identify the […]
I had a very fun Wednesday this week! I got to present the research study that I did for my Master’s thesis at the Dallas Zoo, as part of a lunch lecture series that the zoo organizes for employees. It was fun getting to share my research and we got into some good discussions about […]
