The DEV Dog Blog

There are a myriad of reasons why training your dog is so important, but they really boil down to three biggies: safety, harmony, and fun 

First up: Safety.

Untrained, misbehaving dogs can cause great harm without even realizing it. There was an article by PBS that came out the other day stating “From 2001 to 2020, the estimated number of adults seen at emergency departments for dog-walking injuries increased significantly, from 7,300 to 32,300 a year”. That’s just taking your dog for a walk! When dogs have a solid foundation of training, they will be less likely to follow their impulses and instead follow their owner’s guidance when out in the world. Which means less likelihood of the dog pulling their owner over causing harm. 

Now for the more damaging stats. In 2023, there were 4.5 million dog bites recorded in the US according to the CDC. Fatalities from dog bites and attacks have also been on the rise since 2018. The largest percentage...

Short answer is yes, but the road to easing a dog’s anxiety is different for each case. 

I am far too familiar with helping anxious dogs, not only from working with our client pups, but mostly because my first dog was an anxious wreck. His name was Riley. Riley was a super mutt who looked mostly like a hyena. He was slender, dark brindle, and had these adorable tufts of fur that stuck out at the base of his upturned ears. He was my first dog and one of the greatest loves of my life, but boy did he make my life hell for a while. Until Riley was 10 and Corey waltzed into my life. I was blown away by the difference in Riley’s behavior after implementing the strategies Corey taught me. Keep in mind too, this was about 8 years ago and we have learned even more since then! So let’s dive in! 

Identifying Anxiety in Dogs 

Different dogs will express their anxiety in different ways. Riley was an extrovert, so his signs were very loud. He barked,...

One of the first decisions you’ll have to make in your dog training journey is which training program to choose! Many of us trainers offer multiple options; for example, we offer Board & Train, Day Train, Private In Home Lessons, and Virtual Coaching (for folks not local to us). 

For today’s post, we’ll focus on Board & Train! 

First, what is Board & Train? 

Board & Train, or B&T for short, is a program where your dog will stay with us for a minimum of 3 weeks. During that time we will teach your pup all of the basic skills they will need to be successful in life including what we call The Communication (more on that in a second), 5 core commands (Sit, Down, Place, Heel, & Recall), crate training, potty training, plus leash skills like how to respond to leash pressure and loose leash walking. For more in depth skills like e-collar training and/or working through behavior modification like dog reactivity, we...