Dog training

Welcome! I'm so excited to help you dive into the wonderful world of training your dog. Before we map out our official path, I'd love to learn a tiny bit about your furry companion so we can make this as relevant as possible for you.

Could you tell me how old they are, their breed (or mix!), and if there are any specific behaviors or goals you are currently hoping to work on?

I have an energetic rescue dog who pulls on the leash and jumps on guests

It is wonderful to meet you, and thank you for sharing that context. Rescuing an energetic dog is incredibly rewarding, but dealing with leash pulling and jumping on guests can definitely test your patience.

To make sure we set you and your rescue pup up for complete success, I have designed a structured training path tailored to address those exact behaviors while building a strong foundation of trust.

Your path

Essential Basic Commands

Addressing Common Behavioral Challenges

Advanced Tips and Consistency

Let's continue to the first step: consistency and patience

Consistency and the Power of Micro-Sessions

It is great to start here because getting the timing and length of your practice right is the single biggest secret to training an energetic rescue. Many new owners think they need to block out an hour on the weekend to get results, but dogs actually have very short attention spans, especially when they are full of energy. Think of your dog's brain like a tiny sponge. It can only absorb a little bit of water at a time before it is completely saturated. If you try to train for thirty or forty minutes straight, your dog will get frustrated, tired, or simply tune you out. This is where we run into the trap of "my dog just won't listen." Instead, we want to focus on —short, highly focused bursts of training that last only two to five minutes, spread throughout the day. This keeps training fast, fun, and highly successful.

Because your dog is eager and energetic, keeping sessions brief ensures they stay motivated by the "game" of training. You will easily find moments for this during your normal day, like waiting for their food bowl to be set down or just before heading out the door. Next, let's look at exactly how dogs process these moments to learn new habits.

Continue to how dogs learn and associative learning

Let's explore how your dog's mind connects their actions to real-world outcomes. Dogs learn primarily through a process called , which is just a fancy way of saying they are constantly linking cause and effect in their environment.

When you are training, you are using a specific type of associative learning called positive reinforcement. If your dog does something you like—such as keeping their paws on the ground when someone walks in—and you immediately give them a high-value reward, they are highly likely to repeat that behavior in the future. But here is the trick: dogs live in the absolute present moment. If your rescue dog sits, but you take five seconds to fumble in your pocket for a treat, they might have stood back up, sniffed the floor, or started wagging their tail by the time they get the food. In their mind, they are being rewarded for sniffing the floor, not for sitting! To bridge this split-second gap, we use a vital tool called a marker.