No matter what type of pet dog training you chose, whether it’s in-kennel training, private lessons, in-home training, or even group classes, you have your home work cut out for you! In-kennel clients should understand that just because the dog does all the commands for our dog trainer’s doesn’t mean that will automatically apply to you. Let’s say, for example your dog has had the run of the house the last 2 years, he comes and goes as he pleases, chews up things in your home, lunges at people on a walk, and maybe a little rough when playing with new dogs. You as the pet owner, have allowed that to go on the last 2 years, and that is no big deal, we see it all the time, but when your dog returns home you have to get with the program and apply the rules instantly. This can take several days or even weeks for your dog to realize that “Mom is not putting up with my bad behavior anymore!” And my group class, private lessons, and in-home training clients you are not off the hook either! You will be assigned things to work on between sessions, it’s your job as the pet owner to follow through, and it’s so worth it!

Protection dog clients maybe the worst as far as expectations! They often times purchase a dog that is picked from a vendor in Europe, we ship the dog to our facility, and the owner may or may not even come visit before training begins. We work with the dog for several months in obedience and bite work and deliver the dog to the client’s home. This dog doesn’t know you from Adam; it takes several weeks and sometimes months depending on the dog, for a bond or relationship to take effect. Clients want good social dogs that can do well with kids that perform bite work, then call the first week and say it’s not mean enough! Once the dog understands his home he will guard it to the fullest! This goes back to patience and consistency in training once the dog is in your home! We have a protection dog in the Charlotte area, the owner called after week two and said that his wife has spoiled her so much he didn’t think she would bite a flea! Jason went down to the home did a little decoy work with her and she still had it! Jason explained that she was still settling in to be patient and stick with working obedience daily (this helps with the liability issue that come with a protection dog to work on nice solid obedience). A few weeks later, the owner called and said he had to leave work early and go home, because the cleaning lady had stepped out of the house and their dog would not let her back in! Since then this family has had other positive experiences when the dog performed their job, you just have to give it a chance!

Our Autism Assistance Dog clients probably have the most work do to once the dog arrives. For this simple reason is why we generally stay five days upon delivery of the dog to make sure the transition goes well with the children! Our families already have a tight schedule with school, therapies, and doctor appointments and so on, now they have to learn how to utilize a dog in this chaos! We prepare our clients for the responsibilities that are added with a dog and how they still have to work daily with the child and dog on obedience and structure. Like our protection dog clients we often purchase a dog to fit the family’s needs and they may visit the dog a few times upon delivery, so again it takes a little bit for the dog to settle and bond with your family so be patient it will pay off in the end!

So when asked “What are your expectations of the dogs training?” Your answer should be I understand that your job is to lay the foundation work for my dog, but it’s up to me and my family to properly nurture and mold the finished product with training my dog! Keep expectations realistic, understand that these dogs will not be push button in the beginning, it takes time, with consistency and structure you will get there, and we guarantee it! We are only a phone call away and any of our dog trainer’s will be happy to assist with advice and/or a visit if needed!

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This seminar is a great opportunity for dog owners, veterinarians, rescue volunteers, petsitters, groomers and others to learn about canine communication, canine cognition as well as answers to some common myths and questions about dog behavior. The seminar will last for about 3 hours and will include about an hour question and answer session with our training staff.

The seminar will include such topics as:
How Dogs Learn
Canine Body Language
Behavior Problems
How to be a Better Dog Owner
Bite Prevention
Working with Dogs and Children
…and much, much more!

This seminar is free of charge and is open to anyone who would like to attend. Space is limited and registration for the seminar is required. If you would like to attend the seminar, please email us at training@highlandcanine.com. Please include your name and phone number in your email. Our recent seminar posting for Charlotte filled in about a week. If you have questions about the seminar, feel free to call us at 704.728.9494.

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This seminar is a great opportunity for dog owners, veterinarians, rescue volunteers, petsitters, groomers and others to learn about canine communication, canine cognition as well as answers to some common myths and questions about dog behavior. The seminar will last for about 3 hours and will include a question and answer session with our training staff.

The seminar will include:
How Dogs Learn
Canine Body Language
Behavior Problems
How to be a Better Dog Owner
Bite Prevention
Working with Dogs and Children
…and much, much more!

This seminar is free of charge and is open to anyone who would like to attend. Space is limited and registration for the seminar is required. If you would like to attend the seminar, please email us at training@highlandcanine.com. Please include your name and phone number in your email. If you have questions about the seminar, feel free to call us at 704.728.9494.

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Desensitization often works by gradually exposing the dog to the fearful stimulus. As an example, we would take our dog to the vet for short periods of time without any negative stimuli, i.e. nail trimming, vaccinations, exam, etc. until the dog began to relax when taken to the vet.

Desensitization is often accomplished by utilizing a process known as counter conditioning. Counter conditioning is when we change the association that the dog has already made with the stimulus so that the outcome is always a positive one as opposed to a negative one. When using counter conditioning we must understand that it will require a great deal of repetitions with our new association in order for the dog to automatically assume that the new association will always be the end result of the stimulus.

For example, I have recently been working with a young Australian Shepherd that belongs to one of our clients that is a NASCAR driver. This is important because the dog often travels with him to the races and other events on weekends during race season. The young Aussie had developed a fear of loud noises including the National Anthem. He would become extremely nervous, shake and attempt to hide when he heard the song play.

Let’s take a look at the associations that this dog made based on the patterns and routines that he had experienced. He would often travel to the race track on the weekends. Prior to each race, he would experience the invocation, the National Anthem, a flyover by military jets, fireworks and then the firing of forty-three very loud engines. Again, his fear was generally of loud noises, but he quickly made the connection that when the National Anthem began that the loud fireworks, flyover and race cars soon would start. Therefore, he began to get nervous, shake and begin to hide as soon as he heard the anthem begin.

This is a perfect example of how counter conditioning can break the associations that the dog had previously made. In the dogs mind, he thinks that when the anthem begins, something very bad is soon to come. So it is our job to teach him that any time the National Anthem plays, good things will happen. The young pup was highly food motivated, loved to chase a ball and do agility. So, we would play the anthem and immediately begin feeding him, playing ball or doing agility. This would help to refocus his brain and gradually teach him that the association that he had previously made with the anthem had now changed.

I am pleased to say that this Aussie pup has made tremendous strides in overcoming his fear of noises. He continues to improve each week. It is also important to understand that counter conditioning does not always work for every dog and can at times, have negative effects. Before you attempt desensitization and counter conditioning with your dog, be sure to contact a professional trainer to talk about your dogs behavior and develop a plan of rehabilitating it. If you have questions about phobias, desensitization or dog training programs, feel free to contact us for advice or information.

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So, I am sure you are asking, “Where do I start?” You should start by looking at what you did and didn’t do with your pup last year, and what you can do to improve upon it. It’s imperative that you understand that your dog’s happiness directly correlates with the activities you do together. When is the last time you guys went on a walk together? Did you bring him to the park with your family at all? Invite him to a BBQ and let him run around with friends? Did you even have a nice catch with him in the house? If you did, ask yourself how often. If you didn’t…you have to ask yourself, why not?

Many times we are involved with dogs because the owner is not comfortable with the dog out in public. So they don’t bring him out in public. Often this will lead to destructive behavior inside the house, i.e. chewing on the furniture, counter surfing, chewing through walls and doors, non stop barking. It is common to see these behaviors purely because the dog is bored and makes games by himself to keep his mind stimulated.

If your dog is good in public with people and other dogs there is no reason not to get him out more often. This will decrease his energy, destructiveness and increase his behavior when he is home. If your dog is not good in public you need to address these issues. Does he bark or growl at strangers, or dogs? Has he bitten someone? Does he tend to pull on the leash and is hard to control when distracted? Do you have to repeat commands in order for him to pay attention to you? Does he jump on people? Is he easily startled or scared? Does he growl when he has a toy or food?

If you answered yes to any of the questions above you came to the right spot…because your dog needs your help. If these issues are not dealt with they could become serious, potentially dangerous for family members, neighbors, even strangers. Although these issues are common and can be fixed, you should consult with a professional dog trainer in order to make sure you don’t try to fix it and accidently make it worse.

We have many different training options, including group lessons, private lessons, in home training and in kennel training. We are committed to helping you and your dog succeed at this New Years Resolution so that you and your dog can live happier, healthier lives. Not to mention, we guarantee our training for the life of the dog. Contact us today to take the first step towards a new year both of you.

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Dog training obedience is the first step toward gaining structure and control back into your home and lifestyle. However not every dog is satisfied with 30 minutes of training a few times a week or most often I hear the old standby ” having the dog sit or down while I have my snack on the couch and throw them a piece or two! ” Some dogs need a little more interaction and so just need a job to do. The trainers at Highland Canine Training can offer you tips and suggestions for your lifestyle so that you can get more from your dog and your obedience training.

One alternative method of releasing in energy is what we call “Tracking for Fun” with your dog. Now, not every dog or pet owner is cut out for this exercise, we would have to test your dog out during our free evaluation to make sure that both you and the dog are up to speed! Tracking is a great we to get the whole family involved and make your puppy tired. We often times get the older kids in the family to run a short track in the wooded area or the park (some even take walkie talkie’s to make it even more fun) and then the rest of the family can run behind the dog while they are tracking. It’s great exercise for everyone!

Another alternative method is agility courses. This too will require a free evaluation from our trainers to make sure you and your dog are enjoying what you do. Some of our clients go to group classes or have private lessons for agility training or you can make your own agility equipment at home. This again is a fun hobby for the entire family. Some of our more creative clients come up with neat agility courses that they have made out of things lying around the yard or garage.

We often times see pet owners who have bought or ended up with extremely drivey working dog lines in their home, which can be a recipe for disaster if you’re not careful! Protection training is often a good outlet for those high energy dogs. Many people are under the asumption that dogs that do bitework are mean and cannot be socialized or controlled. That is not the case, if your dog has ambition you could simply conduct bitework sessions as a game or sport with very little civil agitation. Dogs can understand when the bite sleeve or suit is out…we get to play. This is a great work out for the dog as well as the handler and lets not forget the decoy. If you do not have access to the equipment we would be happy to provide you with private lessons for protection work.

Herding is another great way to provide your dog with both physical exercise as well as mental stimulation. Herding training is obviously not for every dog and owner, but is often a great way to burn off energy for pastoral breeds. Contrary to popular belief, Border Collies, Australian Shepherds and German Shepherds do not automatically know how to instinctively herd. These and many other dogs will have some natural herding instincts, but do not know how to herd. This activity is something that must be taught and can be learned by dogs both young and old. If you are interested in herding training feel free to call or email us to set up a free herding evaluation.

Tugging can also be a great game to play with your dog to exert mental and physical stimulation. This activity does not illicit aggressive behavior! A dog that is well-rounded and balanced will often find this game both challlenging and fun. The important thing to understand with playing tug is that you always control the game.

Utilizing a backpack during a walk or run can also be a great way of burning some excess energy. Physical exercise is not always enough and we would encourage mental stimulation along with any physical activity. Adding a backpack to your routine can sometimes be enough to tire out your dog.

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Our schedule for 2010 is listed below:

January 4th, 2010
April 5th, 2010
July 5th, 2010
October 4th, 2010

We are also offering discounted pricing for all of our courses for the Winter semester beginning on January 4th, 2010. Offers are available to those who register before December 1 , 2009. You can fill out our Dog Trainer Course Application here. For more information on our programs or our discounted prices, email us at training@highlandcanine.com or call toll free at 866.200.2207.

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Agility Dog

Agility for Fun Class 11:30 p.m. – 12:30 p.m.
This class is a great way for owners to teach their dog confidence as well as some exciting new skills. Our agility for fun class teaches ground work and fundamentals to complete a variety of obstacles and jumps such as weave poles, pause tables, tire jumps, triple jumps and more! There are no prerequistes for this course.

Basic Obedience Class 1:00 p.m. – 2:00 p.m.
This class teaches dogs and owners on-leash skills such as sit, down, stay, come, heel and place. This class is also designed to help owners deal with problems such as pulling on the leash, jumping on people, etc. This course is also a great forum for socializing your dog with new people and dogs.

Rally Obedience Class 3:15 p.m. – 4:15 p.m.
Rally-O class introduces dogs and owners to Rally Obedience. This class will teach the skills (sit, down, turn, stand, come, etc) to learn and compete in either AKC or APDT Rally courses and competitions. Rally is a great way for dogs and owner to work closely together and to show others their hard work. Rally is fun, competition obedience that is completed under time.

Therapy Dog Training Class 4:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.
Therapy Dog Class teaches dogs and owners the fundamentals of therapy dog work. Dogs and owners wishing to attend this class must have previously completed a basic obedience class or an equivalent. This course teaches the skills and environmental training that is required for therapy dogs. This course is great if you are looking into doing therapy work in schools, nursing homes and hospitals. Many of our previous graduates are already involved in these types of exciting and fulfilling programs.

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Our group classes in Matthews are held at 800 Elizabeth Lane and our schedule for Matthews, NC is:

Therapy Dog Tuesday Nov 3rd, at 6:30 pm

Basic Obedience Wednesday Nov 4th, at 6:30 pm

Advanced Obedience Thursday Nov 5th, at 6:30 pm

Agility for Fun Friday Nov 6th, at 6:30 pm

Rally-Obedience 1 Saturday Nov 7th at 10:00 am

Our Statesville Group Classes are held at Pet Envy Grooming located at 246C North Center Street in Downtown Statesville and the schedule for our Statesville Group Classes is listed below:

S.T.A.R Puppy Class Thursday Nov 12th at 6:00 pm

Basic Obedience Thursday Nov 12th at 7:00 pm

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