Introducing Mini Lessons For those of you in or around Tracy CA

I would like to introduce two new changes to Dog Training with Alysia!

First off, I would like to announce Dog Training with Alysia is officially part of the Tracy Chamber of Commerce!
(*insert clap*) Thank you, Thank you! Im very excited to have my business officially involved in the city of Tracy.

Secondly, I would like to introduce mini lessons!

I realize that a lot of clients, or people who show interest in dog training, have been afraid to commit to a full basic obedience course, mostly because they are about a 5-6 week course and shaping your schedule to fit something of this longevity into can be quite difficult sometimes and I completely understand that! I always recommend basic obedience courses as I feel they are, by far, the best way to train your dog to understand all the cues that will set them up for a successful happy life so if you indeed have the time for them and would like to sign up for them please do!
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Before all of my normal training courses begin I hold a private or group introductory lesson explaining in detail my training ideals and then give homework on two very important cues to set you up for your first actual class and that is pretty much the extent of that introductory lesson with me.

I started thinking of ways I could make a training course seem less demanding so I thought why not just build a lesson more informative than my introduction and use that as a way to help people who want to learn but do not want the commitment of a 5-6 week course!

Rusty performing a "down stay"

Lets be honest, I personally learn way better when I have someone in front of me showing me how to do things! I can sit here and type all day but reading and understanding what I have to say and want to show everyone can be quite difficult so if you learn better by face to face interaction and lessons then these are perfect for you!

At the end of each lesson you will be able to get some questions in for me to answer so that every course is personalized for you and what you want to learn from them!

I have four main lessons right now that I will give a brief description for
??????????1. Introduction to training & Basic cues - This course will talk about everything you need to know to be successful with training. I will talk about motivators, food lures, marker cues and more! I will show examples with your dog or mine (depending on where this lesson is held) of how to teach some valuable cues, how often to teach them etc. BUT, then it will be up to you to train your dog with the information given!
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This isnt a basic cue by the way ;)

2. Problem behaviors & how to read a dogs body posture - This course explains where problem behaviors come from & how to prevent them. Ive included reading dogs body posture in this because dogs speak using their whole body and expressions so that is why this is so important to know and it is also a way to have an idea what your dog is actually thinking. I cannot even count the times Ive seen owners get so worked up over two dogs introducing themselves at the dog park and almost creating a bad situation simply by acting up while I just stand back and think of how perfectly normal and social those two dogs are. I will help you with any problem behavior advice you need during my ask the trainer question section.
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 Closest pic of a problem behavior I could find! Tearing apart toys ;)

????3. Foster Family Dogs - This may sound redundant but there are a lot of things foster families may not think about while housing their temporary dog. During this course I will teach some basic cues and the do and do nots of training your foster dog! If you dont already know I am actually certified in training shelter dogs so part of my training involved how to transition your dog into their new home. This can include foster homes, however, with foster homes it is a little different so Ive adapted this training lesson to help you out! Also some shelter dogs can gain "bad habits" so we will go over problem behaviors as well during this course!
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This is Amy our Foster dog who is currently learning
basic obedience during her stay!

 
4. Dogs & Kids - How to teach your kids to properly interact with the family dogs & strangers dogs. I will also teach you how you can read your dogs body posture to watch for warning signs that your dog is feeling uncomfortable in the situation and how you can give your dog some space during the day.

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This would be my mini dog trainer teaching my dogs how to
lay before receiving their reward!

Other lessons that are in the process of being laid out are more for fun and will involve trick training and sports!

 If you have something specific for me to help you out with then I would be more than willing to write out a layout specifically for you or mix up any two of the mini lessons and give information on each!

 

 My goal is to just help everyone have more insight to dogs & training at an affordable cost.

 

Let me tell you the best part!

 

My current price for these lessons are a flat $30 dollars plus tax and gas if youre outside of Tracy!

You can invite as many people as you want to these lessons and if you would like to hold them as a fundraiser you are more than welcome to charge "x" amount per person as long as all the profits go to a non-profit of your choosing!

 

So schedule your mini lesson so I can help give you some valuable information without the commitment of a training course!

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Introducing a New Dog Part 2

Todays article was Introducing a New Dog Part 1 so you might want to read that first before reading part 2.

If your having trouble with your new dog and your dog not getting along, there are some things you can do. One thing to keep in mind though, is how bad are they not getting along? If they really dont like each other, is it fair to either of them to keep this new dog? If they arent getting along at all, even though there are things we can do, you will probably not be able to trust the two together. Is this something your willing to take on?

First thing we can do, is introduce both dogs to the Clicker. Make sure both dogs understand what the click means, bring them into the same area, but far apart from each other. Youll need another person to help you, each of you handling each dog. You want to click and reward each time the dog looks away from the other dog. Once your dog is focusing on you, more than the other dog you can move in closer. Continue clicking and rewarding each dog for ignoring the other dog.

You want to move in closer very slowly, inches at a time. Once your able to be about 5-10 feet from each other, start walking both dogs, keeping that distance between you. Keep clicking and rewarding for the dogs not paying any attention to the other dog. Youll have to use your own judgment here on when to move closer together. You only want to move closer when both dogs are doing really good on focusing on you. Remember, dogs are dogs and an attack can break out at any time. If your uncomfortable with this and really bad about reading dog body language, I recommend getting a professional to help you.

As you get closer, make sure the dogs are focusing on you. If dogs are doing extremely well, face one dogs butt towards the other one, click and reward the dog and keep his head occupied. You should pet him, holding his neck so he cant turn to bite the other dog. If hes being good you should also be treating him with your other hand. Let the other dog sniff him and be sure to reward that dog for good behavior too, not showing any sign of dominance. Now do the same with the other dog, letting that dog sniff. After doing this, please dont think both dogs are fine now and you can just let them play. You want to continue this for a few weeks, and. Go different places and practice, practice in the house, practice having dogs do obedience or tricks while in the same room. You want to do this until each dog is no longer showing ANY aggression signs towards each other. Even then you have to really watch them.

I highly recommend a professional to help you through this.

You might look into Its Me or the Dog: How to Have the Perfect Pet, if your familiar with the TV show Its Me or the Dog, this is a book written by Victoria herself. I have not read it, so I dont know if it covers anything pertaining to introducing two dogs to each other. I do know Victoria follows this method of introducing dogs though.

Another that might help you is Cesars Rules: Your Way to Train a Well-Behaved Dog. Another favorite among many is Cesar Millan. Though I have read one of Cesars books and it was a good read, I havent read this one. So once again I dont know if it would help you with introducing dogs or not.

Heres one Ive recommended before and will recommend many more times is Don Sullivans The Perfect Dog. Since the DVD on Amazon is so high priced, this time Ive linked you directly to the thane website where you can find lots of information on Don and his products. Watch videos and read testimonials. Once again I have his system myself and promise you, this is the real deal. I will say once again if you are all about positive reinforcement training and clicker training, you will NOT be happy with his system. He doesnt use treats at all and relies on a system of praise, toys, and freedom, along with discipline. If treats and clickers arent working for you, get his system. This system WILL help you in introducing two dogs and much more. You will be happy with how much information you will gain from his 2 DVD set. Here are a couple of videos to show you what I mean:





I have done his method on introducing several dogs, and yes they actually do respond exactly how the dogs in those videos do. It can be done.

Hopefully you find something that works for you and you can get your dogs doing good together. Dog aggression is difficult to explain when writing, and can be unethical to give tips when you havent seen the situation. I recommend educating yourself, and getting help from a Professional if your having trouble with your dogs. Find a method that works for you, if one method isnt working, try another one. Not all training methods work for every dog.

Also, we now have our own online store. Go to the link on the right and feel free to browse through.

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