FAQ

Almost Everything You Need to Know About Dog Training


Training can not give you a new dog. You might think your dog is a brand new dog, but it can not replace personality or temperament any more than it can change the breed or the physical attributes of your dog. What training can do is:

  • It can create a framework of language making it easier for you to communicate with your dog

  • It can teach your dog what you want it to do

  • It can teach you dog what is and is not acceptable behavior

  • It can deepen and enrich your relationship with your dog allowing you to have more fun

  • It can end frustration and stress both for you and for your dog

  • It can calm a hyper dog by teaching it to slow down, think, and relax

  • It can give confidence to a fearful dog so that they can cope

  • It can modify aggression making your dog safer

  • It can foster pride and teamwork

Training will always make any dog a better companion. And, most importantly, training makes happy, relaxed, enjoyable dogs!

Life Appropriate Choices are decisions made by a socially acceptable dog. Choosing to pull on the leash, jump on people, or bite them are not socially acceptable even though they are "normal dog behaviors" - dogs get surrendered to shelters for far less. My goal is to keep dogs out of shelters by teaching them what is socially acceptable and desirable to keep them in their current loving homes.

We teach them that behaviors such as being quiet in the house, greeting people politely, walking with us, coming back when called, crating calmly, ignoring distractions, and not chasing other animals are desirable. This helps them to build habits and experiences that allow them to make better choices in the future - in essence they are learning to make choices appropriate to continued Life with humans.

I've worked with thousands of families who were extremely satisfied, but that doesn't mean I'm the right trainer for you. It takes the right blend of personality, knowledge, understanding, and compassion to make the right match for you. You owe it to your success to find the person who's personality is such that you enjoy working with them.

I work with devoted families who are willing to put in the work (training is a lot of work), do their homework assignments and make training not just a 20 minute session here and there but make it part of their lifestyle.  The bulk of training happens in the countless little moments throughout the day and are taught at random intervals similar to teaching a child manners - the teaching moments happen in the midst of life, not in prescheduled time slots.  To have a trained dog is to have a different mindset and commit to a lifestyle change that includes consistent attention to detail.

I would suggest you check out the rest of my site and my Facebook page to get a feel for me and the training I offer so you can make the best decision for your dog and ultimately are as excited to work with me as I am to work with you.

Nope! Your dog is never too old or too young to train. Dogs are like people - they start learning the moment that they are born, and they don't stop until they die.

​Granted, the older and more ingrained the previous behaviors and habits are, the more we have to work to unlearn them, but just like people, dogs learn new skills throughout their lives.

Also, like young children, puppies have shorter attention spans and need a lot more rewards, but they have fewer bad habits to unlearn and pick up new concepts incredibly fast.
​So no matter their age, your dog can learn!

I work with behavior issues like pulling on the leash, barking, chewing, digging, begging, jumping up, play biting, mouthing, and general manners like crate and house training - all easily fixable through the right private lesson or residency obedience training programs.
I also work with bigger behavioral issues like not coming when called, chasing cars, leash reactivity, separation anxiety, dog aggression, people aggression, and resource guarding behaviors. These behaviors can generally be fixed or managed but often require a residency training program and additional lifestyle expectations and changes to help your dog be successful.

We will be using food, praise, and toys to motivate them - after all, everybody needs an incentive, a reason to want to work, or as I like to say everybody needs to get paid, including your dog or there's no incentive to work. We want your dog to want to work.
I find that temporarily asking your dog to work for each meal gives the greatest enthusiasm for training. Dogs who get normal in the bowl meals are rarely hungry and motivated enough to work on something new that might be challenging for them. This does not mean withholding food - it means offering food as an incentive to learn new behaviors.

There are some dogs who are toy OBSESSED, and we can use toys to motivate them, but most dogs are not obsessed enough to start with toys alone, so I use a combination of food and toys.

All dogs will also be receiving praise verbally and physically (through petting). For many dogs, this becomes their most sought after reward and for many it's the only motivator that they crave.

Most dogs will be using prong collars (Herm Sprenger, Mueller, Micro-mini prong collars) and E-Collar Technologies e-collars (Micro Educator, Mini Educator, or Boss remote collars). I find that the quality, gentleness, effectiveness, and reliability of these collars make them stand out from the pack.

Occasionally I will recommend a different piece of equipment based upon your dog's specific needs.

So please bring: a flat collar with tags, a flat 4-6 foot non-extendable leash, your dog, a toy if that's his thing, his daily food, and possibly some yummy treats. (If you are currently feeding a raw diet, please dehydrate it or bring cooked meat to facilitate handling.) If you are coming for a residency program, please also bring his wire or airline kennel/crate.
Please do not bring bedding or fabric crates - we've never had fleas and would be mortified for your dog to bring home some unwanted guests if someone else brought in some hitchhikers.

I offer private lessons and residency training at my home in Centreville.  Lessons are held outside so they are dependent upon the weather and natural lighting conditions.  Lessons are offered Monday through Friday from 10am until 5pm.

Depending upon your dog's needs, program, and progress, we also go out on "field trips" in Fairfax or Prince William Counties as necessary.

The Social Obedience group offers additional training around other dogs, people and distraction and meets in various locations in Fairfax County.

​​The Pack Walking Group, also known as a Social Obedience Group is a free practice group for my clients after they have achieved basic control of their dogs to get them out around other people, dogs, and places to further expose them to distractions in the real world. We use it to challenge and encourage each other to continually practice and do better. This group is not a dog social or playgroup but an exercise in teaching our dogs self control and reliable obedience in the face of added real world distractions. Dogs will be challenged to walk politely with each other through crowds, do long down/stays or place commands, and overcome the challenges of variable surfaces, noise levels, and activities.

The Pack Walking/Social Obedience group does regular "field trips" around Fairfax County dependent upon weather.

If you've got a great location suggestion, we're always up to try new dog-friendly places.

I like to begin with the end in mind, and by offering packages, I know what level of competence my clients are aiming for. My clients are committed and invested in the process rather than trying to get it done in the least amount of lessons to save a buck - they know what they are paying for instead of just having them come back again and again and never quite finishing - life is too short, and people are too busy for that.

I'm sure you would also like to know how long it will take so you can get it scheduled in your calendar and done. I also believe people are smart, and they can do the math - hidden charges and never-ending lessons at continuing expenses frustrate everybody. Therefore my packages state the average required number of lessons without cutting you off and/or charging you more if your dog takes an extra lesson or two to achieve competency - as long as I feel that you are faithfully doing your homework we'll keep at it until you succeed.

Yes, crates are required. Roaming has no value for your dog or for you. Dogs who roam through the house unsupervised get into trouble physically by ingesting stuff they shouldn't, destroying things, having accidents, or getting into mental trouble like developing separation anxiety, nuisance barking, nervousness, fear or entitlement. A dog who roams thinks he's the king of the world, which many people mistakenly think is just what the dog needs. But from the dog's perspective, he now has to "rule the world," and he just doesn't have the skills or equipment to do that, making his "job" very stressful.

Your dog craves structure and guidance - he'd rather be a devoted friend and not have the pressure of ruling. Crates allow us to keep him safe and secure. Crates also help him not to develop any bad habits while you are away, making it much easier to establish better, new, and lasting habits. So while your dog is in training, crates are a must.