Getting the Front Door Right

Guests Arrive

Most people with a dog (unless she happens to be the shy type) have experienced excitement at the front door. As a dog trainer in Flagstaff, arguably the most dog friendly town in America, most clients who call me have a few front door guardians. Reactions I have seen range from an over excited dog barking, pacing jumping, giving no room to the guest; to nervous-aggressive, to straight aggressive. What ever your personal front door scene may be, if you desire to have more control over these situations, an understanding of jobs and pack roll should be cultivated. When your roll as leader is clearly defined, you will have the respect of the group as the one who sets the rules. The rules can be whatever you want them to be, if you know the correct way to communicate them.

Socializing a Puppy; the right way.

Welcome to the Family


So you just brought home a new puppy. Everybody is overcome with joy, and the puppy is getting adjusted. I could write a book about all the little mistakes people make during these first few days, and how it surfaces into problems later in your life together, but you're stoked, so lets leave it alone for now. Common knowledge says, "socialize your puppy." However, this is a crucial step to get right, and most everybody, even so called dog trainers and dog schools (not naming names, but rhymes with shmet sart) get it absolutely wrong. If there is anything you want your dog to be good at, it is social behavior. Sharing your life with your k-9 gets difficult if he/she displays discomfort in social situations when other dogs come along, especially in a town like Flagstaff, where there are seemingly as many dogs as humans. Get this part right for a life full of doggy friends for your pooch.

A Downtown Dog

A Flagstaff Dog 

Anyone who has been out to coffee downtown knows Flagstaff is a dog town. A little observation will prove however that only some of Flagstaff's dog population are true downtown dogs.

To us, a downtown dog is a socially adept dog; a dog who is trusting enough of their owner to be comfortable in all reasonable social situations. But if we bring a dog home from the pound at 5 years old, can we really expect them to get over their old ways of doing things? If we have a dog we have raised from a puppy, and always known her to be bad in social situations, can we realistically expect for things to change? In short, absolutely, but only if we take on the challenge of modifying our own behavior around our dog. If we can change, so too will our dogs!