Zane a 4 year old Boxer has come to K9 Coach Dog Training Camp because he needs a little help containing himself. He has a habit of lunging out towards other dogs. Zane is big and strong and holding him back is difficult.

First impressions would most likely cause one to think that Zane is aggressive and too big for his own britches. But the truth of the matter is Zane is truly a bully. You remember the bully in grade school. Sounded all big and mean but the minute someone stood up to him or her, the meltdown occurred!

Zane is actually for whatever reason a fearful dog. And by that I mean if something isn’t familiar to him, he will actually jump, taken aback in fear. It can be sounds, a branch blowing in wind, or a statue in someone’s yard as art. Most things like that don’t move at him like a dog does, so his reaction is a bit different.

Lunging at another dog, head butting another dog the way he does, his whole intent is to get the dog away from him. It worked for him in the beginning and so he has continued to practice that behavior.

Key in training for Zane now…. focused attention. Learning how to come and sit, to walk by your side, the “watch me” in the midst of other activity is what will build his confidence. That coupled with a lot of exercise since a tired dog is a good dog!

So far so good. He’s in the beginning stages of getting focus while in distraction. This is the fun part. Seeing a dog “get” the training.

As with so many things in life, the reaction is about the thought. Interrupting his thought and getting it on track and then helping him into the correct action will teach him to physically act different… though he’ll never logic all of that out. It is as simple as focused attention, exercise, and continued practice every day.

That’s how I spent my day today. It was a fabulous day. Southern California, the sun out, a beautiful day. I got to make some really great choices today and I’m grateful for that.

Went and voted early, and my candidate is winning tonight as I write this blog. That makes it a great day for me. And even greater, I got to go out on the beach and train Zane.

Zane is a 4 year old Boxer. He’s a really cool dog. He’s big, he’s strong and he lunges at other dogs. As I work with Zane, its easy to see that his biggest problem is he’s basically a scaredy-cat! He gets startled easy. He’s unsure of new sights and sounds. He sometimes will jump at a shadow.

The way it comes out with other dogs is by lunging at them. Its an effort on his part to keep them at bay.

The important thing in training a dog that has issues such as Zane’s is simply building up the dogs’ confidence. The way that’s done, it to teach tasks so clearly that the dog understands to do the task no matter what is going on around him. That means teaching the task with no distraction and doing the repetitions perfectly enough times that it can be transferred into a time of distraction. The other key ingredient is lots of exercise. Lots!

Today Zane was exposed to some distraction out on the beach. He got to practice his “heeling” , “sitting”, and “look at me” while dogs walked by him. It’s a matter of keeping his attention, keeping him on task. Doing it enough times that it becomes “normal” for him.

Zane had a great day at K9 Coach Dog Training Boot Camp. He’s got a lot of training and fun ahead of him.

Like I said earlier. Zane is a really cool dog.

The key to training your dog is by teaching the last step of whatever it is you want your dog to do first! I know that sounds a little backwards, but dogs do learn in pictures. They don’t logic.

So where to start?

Lets use the example of having your dog come to you and sit in front of you. Most people would automatically try to call the dog to them and then ask the dog to sit. Right?

Wrong.

Why? Because I want to be able to reward the dog most times for the end result. So, if I teach my dog to sit in front of me and reward many times for that, then have my dog somewhere away from me and ask them to come and sit, the chances are they will get it. They know the last step well!

If you try to teach you dog to come and then sit, the chances your dog will come to are iffy at best! And then you have the task of teaching the sit in front of you.

On the other hand, if you have had your dog sit in front of you and you’ve reward over and over for that, when your dog is away from you (and start with a short distance) you can then say “come”, and chain it together with “sit”. Your dog has been rewarded many times for that and so the chances they are going to come and do the sit in front of you which is well known are much higher!

Cool huh!

Stay tuned for more training tips. A trained dog is a happy dog.

Check out our website for more info on private training camps, interactive online training, and more info on our dog trainers school for those who would like to get a new career in dog training.

Professional dog training is not only rewarding its can be a business that you own that is successful financially as well.

Robin MacFarlane of Thats My Dog, Inc teaches most of her immersion professional dog trainer courses from her Wisconsin location. For fun this year she’s decided to come on out to San Diego in March and provide the same great school, with warmer temperatures than you’ll find in Wisconsin!

For anyone thinking about a career in dogs this is the course to come to. Not only will you get the foundation of how to become a professional dog trainer, but Jt Clough of K9 Coach is hosting the school. Jt not only is a professional dog trainer herself, but specializes in how to run the business end of dog training.

You’ll get the benefit of both technique and business at this course.

To find out more go to That’s My Dog or call 866-DOG-LADY. We’ll send you a DVD and answer all your questions no.

Don’t miss this course March 14-18, 2008 in San Diego, CA

Thats My Dog also has a location in Chicago, IL