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Problem Solving: Whining & Barking Jan 20, 2024

Do you have a dog that whines when setting up for a retrieve, or barks when sent on a go-out?

Noise in the ring can be a difficult problem to tackle!

How can you clearly communicate to your dog...

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Sneak Peek Inside the Obedience Road! Jan 18, 2024

Recently, I received some questions about the Obedience Road membership program. I created the video above to answer a few questions and give you a look into the platform.  I...

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Keeping Commands & Cues Clear: Command Discrimination & Signals command discrimination signals Dec 10, 2023

Considering Command Discrimination, Signals and Directed Jumping, there are lots of opportunities to give our dogs signals and commands from a distance. In addition to Directed Jumping, our dogs...

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Keeping Commands & Cues Clear: Sitting in Heel Position Dec 04, 2023

When your dog is sitting in heel position, there are five different exercises that could be next. 

You might tell him to Heel, Stay, Lie Down, Stand Up, or Go-out. 

Dogs...

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The Excitement of Learning Something New gloves Oct 05, 2023

Becoming a proficient obedience team requires repetition and rehearsing, but dogs are at their best, that is engaged and attentive, when they are learning new skills.

Inexperienced Dogs are always...

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Requiring Attention at a Distance Jul 17, 2023

I have written and talked about teaching your dog to pay attention in heel position (Read it Here!), but Obedience is also hard because our dogs have to pay attention to us at a distance....

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Randomizing Rewards: Certainty & Mystery Jul 16, 2023

In my last message, I addressed the importance of Randomizing Rewards. Today I am sharing a piece of a webinar that I gave to the Obedience Road Members titled Certainty and Mystery.

Are you...

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How Do You Increase the Amount of Time Your Dog Will Perform? Jul 16, 2023


Last week, I gave a webinar titled, “What Makes Obedience Hard?”

We all know how challenging it is to teach our dogs to love Obedience exercises that are not naturally motivating....

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Obedience is Hard! Attention is Required! Part III Jul 10, 2023


During this blog series, I asked you to accept the obvious, obedience is hard, and agree to the goal: teach your dog to be engaged and enjoy obedience, even when it is not naturally motivating....

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Obedience is Hard! Take the Challenge - Part II Jun 30, 2023

Last week, I talked about the unique challenge of Obedience. Many sports are naturally motivating for a dog to perform, while much about obedience is not. It is our job to teach our dogs to love...

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Obedience is Hard! Jun 23, 2023

Today we talk about soccer moms, growing up, I had a dog show mom. We competed together in the 1970s, and she introduced me to every venue available. I competed in Junior Showmanship, Conformation,...

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Improve Your Recall Using Proofing proofing recall Jun 05, 2023

There are only three ways that your dog can fail the recall. He can:

  1. Not come,
  2. Come too soon
  3. Get lost on the way.

Using simple proofing (intentionally adding distractions), you can cause your dog...

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Proofing the Stand (and Moving Stand) for Exam proofing stand for exam Mar 07, 2023

The Stand for Exam is another stay exercise and should be treated with the same importance as the Sit and Down Stay.

There are two mistakes that your dog can make during the stand for exam:

  1. Move...
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Training Q&A - Going Straight to Heel & Failing the Go-out directed jumping fronts Jan 30, 2023

Have you ever struggled with a dog that starts going straight to heel in competition instead of coming to front? It can be a frustrating problem, especially if you allow it to happen in the...

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Training Q&A - Unwanted Sniffing & Multiple Failures preparing to show scent articles Jan 26, 2023

Recently, I hosted a webinar- Overcoming Obstacles and Achieving Your Goals. 

The first question in this video involved a dog that is sniffing the ground on his way to the scent...

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Training Q&A - Make Heeling Fun & Improving Fronts fronts heeling Jan 23, 2023

Recently, I hosted a webinar- Overcoming Obstacles and Achieving Your Goals.

Together, we brainstormed and addressed several training challenges. The above video includes two of the questions...

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Training Q&A - Glove Problems & Mouthing Scent Articles gloves retrieve problems Jan 19, 2023

Last week, I hosted a webinar to help obedience enthusiasts develop strategies to overcome training challenges encountered on the way to achieving their goals. 

The above video includes a...

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The Obedience Road is Open!! Jan 18, 2023

Recently, I hosted a free webinar and received some questions about the Obedience Road membership program. I created the video above to answer a few questions and give you a look into the...

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Taking a Jump on the Go-Out Command directed jumping how dogs learn proofing Jan 08, 2023

Have you ever had a dog that headed for the jump when told to “Go-out?” I often get questions about this issue, as it is a fairly common problem. Why dogs do this can be explained in a...

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Creating SMART Goals inspirational Jan 04, 2023

If you’re like me, January offers time to pause and think about the things I hope to accomplish in the new year.

For those of us competing in dog sports, we typically dream about...

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