Training Resources

Much material is available on-line that can help you understand how to train your dog.  These resources vary from on-line classes to downloadable reading materials.  There are also numerous excellent books that are perfect for training the well-behaved companion dog.  Fenzi Dog Sports Academy has produced an e-book for new puppy owners that is chock-full of great articles and advice that you can access HERE.  Download additional FREE guides from Ian Dunbar and Avidog by clicking the buttons below.

TRAINING IN THE AGE OF COVID-19 AND SOCIAL DISTANCING

With social distancing and limited class sizes at dog facilities, training and socializing a young puppy has become more difficult.   However, there are some misconceptions of what "socialization" means.  Many people think it means getting your dog to interact with lots of other dogs in a sort of kindergarten kind of way.  Dogs really don't care if they have lots of doggie friends and this is not what puppy classes were designed for -- they were designed to teach you how to be interesting enough to your puppy that your puppy would pay attention to you in the presence of really alluring distractions (other puppies!).  Socialization really means exposing your puppy to new environments, new sounds, new locations, and new people so that your puppy is confident in many different situations.  Obviously, you can still do much of this exposure but right now, we do not want to expose the puppy to many different people, strangers or friends, because we are trying to minimize human contact to prevent viral spread.  Avidog has published a blog article on ideas for how you can still socialize your puppy to humans without contact with individuals outside of your immediate family.  Jane Killion of Puppy Culture has also written a blog about socialization under normal conditions and how that is changing in the age of COVID-19.   Finally, a number of individuals are offering free classes during our alone time and you should take advantage of these -- sign up for these now as I don't know how long they will be open for registration and how long they will actually be free.

Jane Killion (free for now) - With Open Arms and a Level Head:  How to Bring a Puppy into Your Life
Pupford Training with Zak George - 30 day free Perfect Pup training course

Other courses that exist and that have a fee but are being modified for the fact that we are social distancing:
Avidog's Puppy Bundle (this bundled program includes the Fit for Life Puppy program and the Getting Started with your Puppy program.

Make sure you really understand what is meant by "socialization" of puppies.   It is not about meeting other dogs and having a good time!

Online Resources

  1. Dr. Sophia Yin, DVM: A veterinary behaviorist. Her website has a blog with excellent articles on training tricks and she has a number of other resources that you can purchase that will teach you to train your dog or puppy.
  2. Dr. Ian Dunbar, DVM: An animal behaviorist and veterinarian. His website has a section of useful articles for training dogs and eliminating problem behaviors and his blog has a number of articles that provide useful tips for training problem behaviors.
  3. Karen Pryor: An animal behaviorist who trained dolphins for the navy in the late 1960’s and then stunned the dog training world with her seminal book, Don’t Shoot the Dog. She created clicker training for shaping dog behaviors. Her blog is loaded with numerous articles on dog training and her dog training section has training videos that accompany articles.
  4. Susan Ailsby: A long time dog trainer and PWD owner; her “training levels” are a must read. You can download the original training levels for free or buy the new ones.
  5. ​​Susan Garrett: A long time dog trainer and agility competitor. Her blog has many useful articles about training philosophy. Her store has many useful books and videos, such as Ruff Love, Shaping Success, Crate Games, and 2 x 2 Weave Pole Training. Ruff Love and Crate Games are classic programs for creating a happy, well-adjusted, non-reactive and controlled dog.
  6. Pamela Dennison: A long time dog trainer. She offers many online courses on recalls, managing a multi-dog household, and dog training for dummies. See her website for more information.
  7. Petra Ford Academy:  Petra Ford is both a high-end obedience competitor and a canine physical therapist/rehabilitation practitioner.  She offers a series of online courses for physical fitness for puppies to adults and also obedience.  See her website for the courses offered currently.​

Online Courses

  1. Fenzi Dog Sports Academy: A long time dog trainer, Denise Fenzi believes in creating a strong relationship with your dog via games so that the relationship becomes the foundation for obedience training. Her online academy offers people a way to take obedience courses in the comfort of their own home with comments on uploaded videos. Other instructors in the academy offer courses on agility, rally, nosework and tracking, and health and fitness.  For those who can't commit to 6 weeks of courses, Fenzi now offers highly targeted 1 week workshops as well as 1-2 hour long webinars on specific problematic issues.
  2. Susan Garrett's Recallers Course:  This course is perfect for the average pet owner who wants their dog to pay attention and be engaged so that it will respond to commands under the most demanding situations (like, hey, SQUIRREL!).  The course opens several times per year and requires sign up when offered.
  3. Susan Garrett's Homeschool the Dog:  This course is perfect for pet owners who just want basic impulse control for living happily with humans.  The course opens several times per year and requires sign up when offered.
  4. Tom Mitchell, DVM and Lauren Langman's Absolute Dogs online training program and Naughty-but-Nice DVD.  The online classes are chocked full of games and demo videos to show you how to train for impulse control, recalls, and calm behavior.  The DVD is designed to deal with dogs that have behaviors that could later prove difficult and help you nip those behaviors in the bud while training alternate behaviors.
  5. Ian Dunbar's Academy offers online courses to train the perfect home companion dog.
  6. Avidog provides a series of videos that can help with a variety of training issues.  Their blog is full of short articles on training, feeding, and health issues and is constantly updated.   They are currently moving their platform to Gooddog.com and will reopen courses there soon.
  7. George Zak's 30 days to a Perfect Pup -- this course is offered free through Pupford and has a number of useful articles to aid in training.

​“A person can learn a lot from a dog, even a loopy one like ours. Marley taught me about living each day with unbridled exuberance and joy, about seizing the moment and following your heart. He taught me to appreciate the simple things-a walk in the woods, a fresh snowfall, a nap in a shaft of winter sunlight. And as he grew old and achy, he taught me about optimism in the face of adversity. Mostly, he taught me about friendship and selflessness and, above all else, unwavering loyalty.”
― John Grogan, Marley and Me: Life and Love With the World's Worst Dog