Always Learning

Just a little explanation to why I didn't have a new post on my blog last week; I attended my first IACP Dog Conference held in Alexandria, Virginia. The IACP or the International Association of Canine Professionals which I am a member holds an annual conference. You can go to the website http://www.canineprofessionals.com/ to find out more details but in a nutshell....

The IACP is dedicated to the education, development and support of dog training professionals worldwide. The IACP provides a community where experienced dog trainers mentor, guide, and cultivate members to their full potential.

And Boy, did I learn! The 5 day conference kicked off with a dinner and keynote speaker: Brother Christopher of the Monks of New Skete. Then each day was filled with presentations from top professionals in their fields. We heard about Marketing your business, tips on grooming for trainers, Chiropractic and Acupuncture for dogs, self development, Motivating dogs, Freestyle dancing with your dog and Canine Nutrition. I am sure these topics will come up in future blogs.

Not only did I get to hear excellent speakers, I got to meet "face to face" with dog trainers I had only known through social media. These trainers came from all over the US, Canada and as far as Iceland, Ireland, and Singapore!

I have returned with rejuvenation and knowledge to share with my dog owners and their dogs. And not even a bum hand (which happened on Monday) will hold me back from doing what I love and helping others.

Out of the DogHouse LLC website www.ohiodogtrainer.net
Contact Dru Therrian 440.286.9070

The 3 P's

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Not only is Daisy a good Scout she is a quite a trooper. And Yes! Daisy is really is holding the whistle in her mouth. Having her able to do all these Blog photo shoots is the result of Years of the 3 P's= Plan, Prepare and Practice. And believe me, we do a lot of all Three!

So you may be thinking you don't need a dog that can hold a whistle in her mouth but you do need a dog that will come when you call. Rolling over, Playing Dead Dog and Sit Pretty are all fun tricks; They aren't necessary to be a Good Dog but it sure doesn't hurt because the bottom line is Cooperation = Your dog willing to do things with you and for you. Honestly, all that is really necessary to be a Good Dog is a dog that will Walk nicely, Come back to you and Stay put.

Another thing I want to point out is not biting off more than you can chew. Think of what the goal will be then back track it to a starting point. If you want to be able to walk your dog through a crowd you need to begin with Baby Steps and have your dog walk nicely past a neighbor. If you are expecting your dog to have calm behavior when visiting your Mother-n-Law's house you better have calm behavior before you get there. And if you are not "there" yet don't put yourself or your dog in a situation that will fail.

Your dog doesn't have to be perfect at the beginning but you should achieve success as you go and reach each set goal. At first, don't set the bar too high. Dogs that go Ballistic over some "Challenging Distraction" means you are over your head and need to step back.  Training a dog takes lots of time! No Magic Wand here. And all dogs learn differently. So remember the 3 P's: Plan, Prepare and Practice. Then Small Victories will add up to a Huge Win.

Out of the DogHouse LLC website www.ohiodogtrainer.net
Contact Dru Therrian 440.286.9070

Can You Read Me Now?

Do you want to teach your dog HOW to Read? Then teach your dog Hand Signals. Every Hand Signal I teach means a "Word". It is always talked about how good dogs are at reading body language. And that is definitely true. Dogs pay attention to what we say silently with our facial expressions and body gestures. You can teach a dog a Hand Signal after each command because dogs will associate the hand movement with the verbal command; Especially if you do it every time.

One little hitch about dogs is, they will need lots of practice to really be fluent in understanding what we are saying to be able to Read us. Just because your dog can sit two feet away from you, does not mean he will know how to sit when you are 10 feet away.

Here is how I move Daisy through the positions of Sit, Stand and Down.


This is a great way to spend time with your dog and it is tons of fun! You will have to PRACTICE! with your dog; change the distance and location. Then you can be amazed and impress others with your dog's intelligence and fluency of whatever language you Speak!

Out of the DogHouse LLC website www.ohiodogtrainer.net
contact Dru Therrian 440.286.9070