Maddie• A 9 month Cocker Spaniel

Maddie C. worked with me for 2 weeks in Board & Train. She is a 9 month Cocker Spaniel. I watched her learn obedience that started in the Canine College and progressed to working over the whole complex. I could see how excited as we were about to leave and go outside. We would practice long sits at doors that were closed at first then open. I would watch as she listens to birds and other sounds and scents as I maintain and praise her just being able to sit still with all this stimulus. This is using the obedience she has just learned to be able to then absorb while in a calm state of mind. Doors have been something to explode through so this is a great place to draw the line and practice Maddie following me. If I cannot control her here I won't have better results in the dog park. I want to practice in areas that get her more praise and fewer corrections to comply with my wishes. This is just the start and needs to be reinforced daily at home along with practicing in group which would be less stimulating each session.

Oliver K. & Bear A.• Watching kittens watching them

While I work on perfecting the obedience that I've taught to dogs in board and train I take advantage of distractions at Best Friends Pet Motel. In our lobby we have a retail area, hotel check in, grooming, bird boarding and cats in 2 areas. Young at Heart Pet Rescue has a shelter and the other area with Young kittens. I have the dogs I'm working either sit or down while they can see the cats. The Young kittens are equally fascinated by the dogs. I began to film this and find it quite relaxing. I think this is like watching a fireplace on television. What do you think?

The above video is Oliver a 4 month Yorkie doing board & train during day care and returning home each night after mom is finished with work.

The second video is Bear A. a 9 month German Shepherd puppy in his second week of board & train. This week is spent perfecting the skills we learned except in areas of higher distractions. Bear definitely found the cats most amusing and entertaining. They found him entertaining as I did with all of them. Enjoy.

Here comes Cathi & Jazzy & Lefty

Jazzy, RL1X (AOE), CGC, is a four year old Shih Poo who adores every person she meets. For most, the feeling is mutual. She began attending Allan’s Intermediate classes a few years ago and they were so much fun that she kept dragging her mom, Cathi, back for more. Under Allan’s guidance, she perfected the skills needed to earn her Canine Good Citizen title.

Jazzy really enjoys her classes because Allan’s creativity makes them fun for the dogs. Cathi enjoys them too because Allan’s sense of humor makes them fun for the handlers. The classes are an opportunity to witness Allan’s talent for working with all different types of doggy personalities and developing well behaved companions. Still, Jazzy wanted to know, “What’s next?” The answer: APDT Rally Obedience! Allan helped Cathi teach Jazzy all the right moves. In her first competition, Jazzy received her Level One title, earning second place her very first time in the ring. She also received APDT’s Award of Excellence for scoring 190 or better in her first three runs. After only two trials, she earned a place on the 2009 APDT National Rankings. In her third trial, this talented canine was awarded her Level One championship and received two perfect scores of 210. In her short career, Jazzy has been awarded five First Place ribbons and multiple other placements. Once again, the clever All American wanted to know, “What’s next?” That’s easy! Her wonderful trainer will work with her mom to teach her all she needs to know for Level Two and, eventually, Level Three. For this little cutie, the sky’s the limit!

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You’ve hear the expression, “Rally to the Rescue”? This is a case of The Rescue to Rally. Lefty, RL1X (AOE), CGC is a four year old Australian Cattle Dog/Boxer mix once so terrified of humans that he would lose control of bodily functions if anyone paid attention to him. He spent most of his time cowering in his crate or under the nearest table. How does a dog like this survive in a world filled with humans? The answer is training! His mom, Cathi, had been taking Allan’s classes with her other dog, Jazzy, for quite some time. After adopting Lefty, she knew Allan could advise her on the proper training techniques for this – or any – type of dog. Lefty still has a long road to travel, but he’s doing it with a lot less baggage these days. Although still shy, Lefty has gained enough confidence to begin competing in APDT Rally Obedience. In his first competition, he earned his Level One title in three out of three runs. His scores were respectable enough to earn the Award of Excellence. In ten out of ten tries, Lefty was awarded his Level One championship. He’s even earned a few placement ribbons and scores as high as 208 and 206 out of a possible 210. A successful Rally career lies ahead for LEFTY...and that couldn't’t be more RIGHTY.

Louie D.• Meet & Greet

Louie is a lab rescue that has been with the family about 2 weeks. Board and train is an excellent way to introduce a new dog to you and your life. He is about 14 months old. He has strong food and ball drive. He loved foundation obedience. We bonded in a quiet area then perfected on our 6 plus acre facility. This is an exercise called Meet & Greet. The object is to teach the dog that he must sit for attention and affection. Once sitting I use the "off" command to keep him from touching with his paws or mouth. He then gets his chest rubbed and even a cookie. We use foundation obedience exercises to guide him to be the best the handler wants him to be. I would love to see Louie and his family in my intermediate group class.

Ginger, the Kissing Pit Bull

How's that for unconditional love. Ginger affectionately known as the kissing pit bull is so full of love she can't stop kissing anybody she sees. That must be where the saying comes from. "My dog is so happy to have been rescued from the shelter." Ginger was featured on a live segment on the television show Inside Edition. She was one of the many dogs on that day on an Adopt-A-Pet segment which aired on Canadian TV. Ginger hooked up with a local Canadian dog trainer who was kind enough to work with Ginger to control her kissing ways! As cute as it is, Ginger was unable to stop kissing anyone once they came to her! Rumor has it Ginger now has a forever home, and has learned to curb her love!
As always for those of you who are local and in the area here I would love to be able to help you with any of your training issues you might have. I offer everything from Board and Train to private lessons.

PetTube.com....Now accepting training videos

Did your dog become a superstar in one of Best Friends training classes? Has he really learned some cool tricks on a private lesson? Show off his talents in his very own video on the Internet. (For those of you who have worked in Board and Train or private lessons, I might have already uploaded your work on the blog) PetTube.com, check it out today. Remember every dog is a superstar with positive training! I'll be watching!

Onslow CGC RL1•Pivot L&R/Pivot L&R 1 Step

RALLY CLASSES HAVE BEGUN AT BEST FRIENDS Saturdays at 11a.m.

Onslow R. is just a delight to spend time with. When his mom is out of town she prefers board and train. Mom has worked him regularly in group class and they have improved so much they have begun to compete in APDT rally. Rally classes have begun on Saturdays at 11 a.m.

Onslow•Obedience Pattern in the Lobby

Onslow is a delightful Goldendoodle that is fortunate enough to have a mom that lets him spend time while she is on vacation in board and train. Never would she have realized that his training would become a part of their life. There are private lessons while she is in town that she brings her 11 year old Great Pyrenees just to watch. There have been intermediate and advanced group classes. They have gotten so good a natural progression was rally classes which start for the public on January 9,2010. They passed in their first event. In one weekend they passed 4 tests and now Onslow•CGC•Rl1

Onslow•Pivot Left 180

Onslow CGC (Canine Good Citizen) Rl1 (Rally level 1) Not bad for a wild out of control Goldendoodle. Started with board and train then intermediate and advanced group classes, private lessons and now rally obedience classes which will start Saturday, January 9, 2010 at 11 a.m. They passed twice on Saturday and twice on Sunday and earned a Rally level 1 title in their first try at an APDT event. Congratulations.

Onslow•Left 180 & Left About Turn

Onslow is a delightful Goldendoodle I've had the pleasure to work with. Here we are in the lobby where we are practicing obedience off of the leash. We do a tight u-turn to the left and a left about turn which is where I turn into the dog and he goes the opposite way. Onslow has begun to compete at rally obedience. He passed his first four APDT rally obedience events. Congratulations to him and his owner who never thought she would be proudly competing in dog trials.

Learn How To Speak Dog

Yes, I can train your dog. Dog training is my passion, I love to see the look in a dogs eyes when they have accomplished something. I love working with the owners, and helping them realize how easy and fun training your dog can be. I have taught people and dogs a lot of things over the years. However, teaching a person how to speak dog is not something I have done! Sure was fun to learn though! LOL! Check out the Petcentric website, you too can learn how to speak dog. If you ever need other training for you or your dog feel free to call me here at Best Friends!

Doggie New Years Resolutions

The Holidays are fast approaching! The new year is almost here and we all have a long list of resolutions ahead of us, I know I do. Why not let the dog have his own resolutions? Believe it or not dogs love to please their owners, they enjoy themselves more in a positive environment. While you are traveling this season, or enjoying your house full of relatives send your furry friends to me for Board and Train. This would be a great way for your best friend to start working on his new years resolution to be better behaved. I offer 1 and 2 week programs which include a discount on boarding. You can view the previous posts to see some of my best friends I have worked with in the past. Feel free to call me and we can discuss the options available to you. Together we can work on helping you and your friend have a bright new year!

Buddy L. Meet& Greet/off &take it

Here I am working with Buddy and teaching him how to interact with people. I have him sit. I use the leash to maintain while I praise him for doing what I ask. At first it is not necessary for people to touch if it causes Buddy to become overstimulated. Be patient. Work at the dog and handlers ability to do it right. I might remind Buddy not to touch first with food and eventually with my palm held in front of his nose. When this can be performed I have a stranger or family member repeat what I have done. At first distance is used to help the dog receive more praise and fewer reminders. If you cannot keep the dog calm with strangers at 4 feet away do not be in a hurry to get to 2 feet.

Anaaya • Victorian Bulldog @12 weeks

What could be luckier than a lady with a 12 week old female Victorian Bulldog named Anaaya that wants me to do board and train.  How about if her boyfriend has one from a different litter about a week older. He is a male named Rushbo. I had the good fortune to have each of them for 2 week board and train.  Rushbo was a little easier at first.  Anaaya was afraid to walk on the leash.  Both dogs have good food drive so it ws pretty easy to bond.  The first week we practiced foundation obedience in the Canine College.  I was eventually able to walk both dogs all around the complex.  When we worked in the lobby these puppies were magnets for attention.  I had a blast and so did they.  I brought Anaaya into the Canine College to show her to some of my private students who were about to practice on a Rally Obedience course that I had set up earlier.  I was amazed at how well she performed even with a couple of dogs in the room.  I brought her back later to film what I had witnessed.  In a familiar place she worked great.  She was a little bothered by Molly who was helping me film.

Deer Intruder

I have had many types of requests through out my years as a dog trainer. From simply "can you help my dog to stop barking" to "I need my dog to protect the house". Protection work is not my main focus,I prefer the fun of Rally, and Obedience Training. More rewarding, for both myself and the dogs. They are just like kids they get very happy when they know they have done well and accomplished what was expected. Back to the Protection side of training. In most cases people simply want their dog to learn to be more aware of their surroundings. To be able to bark and scare an intruder off. An intruder being the human kind that is! In a recent episode of Fox News they spoke of a neighbor calling the local police department because she heard loud noise coming from her neighbor's house, her neighbors were on vacation. When the police arrived they saw the back door open, and cautiously entered the home where they saw furniture all knocked over, and things from shelves on the floor. Upon further search they came to realize the intruder causing the big scene really meant no harm he just wanted to go back home. It was a misguided deer! The officers were finally able to chase the deer out of the home and back into the forest,his real home! To everyone out there keep in mind we can teach our dogs to protect our, their, home but not in every case! Any animal in an unfamiliar place is bound to be scared and slightly agitated. In any situation where you and or your pet come into close range with a animal you are best to leave it alone. You can contact your local animal control if the animal is injured.

Well behaved dogs and social events

My clients come to see me for various reasons. Some people simply want something fun and rewarding to do with their companions so they sign up for my many different group classes. Currently I offer basic, and intermediate group training class. Soon we will be offering Rally. Other people prefer the one on one training during private training lessons, that allows us to tailor the training session to something particular. Perhaps you are going out of town and you would like for your pet to have an educational vacation while they are here boarding at
Best Friends, in that case you can sign them up for Board and Train. In any case I have many different training options available from the basic and simple to something more in depth.
For those of you who have gone through training before there are many fun social events around town you can take your well behaved dog too! One such event is coming up soon at The Goodman Theater. "Pooch on Scrooge" It takes place on Sunday November 14Th. Reservations are required you can visit the Goodman Theater's website to do so. All dogs that come will get a digital copy of their picture along with a 2010 Sutton Studios dog calendar. David Sutton himself will be doing the photos.

Sophie St.J: a delightful rescue

Sophie is a "Mountain Feist" (a southern breed) found running loose in Tennessee. She made it to a shelter where she found the love of her new owner. She was very shy at first. Fortunately she quickly overcame the baggage she had come with by introducing calm obedience from a leader she could trust. Not only is she a great player in doggie day camp with other dogs but loves to please the leader while doing obedience. She is a great hunter and in her backyard shows her owner the moles and other animals she collects while being careful not to injure them. I have been fortunate enough to work with Sophie and her sister Raven in private lessons and board and train. Sophie loves the association with humans through obedience training. She just needs guidance to be the best her owner wants her to be. Although she lives in Madison, Wisc. the owner uses me because of previous dogs of hers I've worked and the results I've achieved. I'm proud to say that the owner knows the importance of continuing practice and has her enrolled in obedience class in her home town. Keep up the good work ladies and I'll look forward to seeing you again.

Oreo W. @ 16 weeks after Board & Train

I'm sooooo lucky! Oreo is back a month after his first week in board and train for another. Trust and bonding was established along with all the elements of foundation obedience. Now we work on perfecting. Trying to duplicate what we can do in a quiet area all over our 6 plus acre facility. Distance from stimulus makes it easier for the dog and the handler. More praise and fewer corrections. If I'm able to keep the focus on me then Oreo is not worried about anything else. I let him absorb while I keep him in a calm state of mind. Timing is essential. By learning your pet's body language undesired behavior can be corrected before it becomes pronounced. An excellent place to practice is in a group obedience class. If you take the time to guide your dog to be the best you want him to be before bad behaviors become a habit or a release for stored up energy, the owner will probably have less things to fix down the road.

Best Friends Jack-O-Lantern!

This Jack-o-lantern was created by our Houston, Texas location. Nice work- click for more detail! Happy Halloween!!!

Allan Ross Dog Training • Moses, Ball Drive

I start by stimulating prey drive & transfer this natural
drive into ball drive. I stimulate, then throw, then teach
it's fun to bring it back. I believe
when you control the games, you control the dog.

At first it may look as though I'm playing with Moses,
but actually I'm stimulating then using the Kong on a rope
as a motivational tool to reward and get Moses to
enthusiastically work for me.

Moses,a Portuguese Water Dog came to me at about a year old with very little training at about 3 months. I began in the Canine College working on foundation obedience. We bonded and I worked with food at first. He was a very quick learner that did not come with much baggage. It was easy to transfer play drive into ball drive. Top trainers know this is the way to produce the best working dogs in the world.