Exploring K9 Training

Pepper has been working with us for a while now, originally beginning after we had the opportunity to pet sit her and start building her relationship with someone outside of her immediate family.

Pepper is a dog with big feelings rooted in fear, and recovering from something uncomfortable has historically been a challenge for her. Because of that, her progress has always been about meeting her where she is and giving her the time, support, and experiences she needs to build a greater sense of safety.

We recently had our fourth training session, and it was so special to see just how far she has come. Pepper absolutely adores her trainer, but having someone outside of her immediate family in her space can still be difficult. She’s had some really positive experiences with guests lately, though, and those experiences are beginning to add up.

During this lesson, Pepper was able to recover nearly instantly after initially saying hello. She spent time either comfortably out with guests or observing them from the deck through the glass, and throughout our session she needed significantly less support to navigate their presence.

We also got to work on her relationship with the door and the movement happening inside the home. And honestly, by the end, Pepper seemed less concerned about the people themselves and more frustrated that she couldn’t get to her friend inside!

For a dog whose pace needs to be slow and supported, these moments are huge. We aren’t rushing Pepper toward a finish line. We’re giving her opportunities to experience success, recover, and learn that she can handle these moments.

Good job, Pepper. We are so proud of you!

Please give a warm welcome to Charlie to the Exploring K9 Training family!

Charlie is a young adolescent Golden Retriever who is learning how to share his space and resources with the other dog in his home, along with learning that not everything in the house necessarily belongs to him. We’re also working on helping Charlie learn how to use his very large, very enthusiastic body appropriately, especially when all that excitement makes jumping feel like the best way to say hello!

During our consultation, Charlie showed us just how quickly he can learn when we meet him where he is and give him the right support. We were able to work through some of these skills together and, more importantly, show Charlie that he is capable of doing hard things and remaining receptive to guidance even when something feels challenging.

Adolescence can be such an important time for learning, growing, and figuring out how to navigate the world in a big, growing body. We’re excited to help Charlie continue building those skills as he matures and to watch all of his progress along the way.

We cannot wait to see this handsome boy again! Charlie is already proving to be quite the cutie, and we have a feeling he’s going to keep us smiling!

Please give a warm welcome to Buddha here at Exploring K9 Training!

Buddha is a giant boy at roughly 120 pounds and is a Great Pyrenees and Saint Bernard mix. We had the pleasure of meeting this special guy for a consultation, and since then, we’ve been working together through private lessons.

Buddha came to us with some very big feelings. He has struggled with severe reactivity toward both people and other dogs since he was young, and despite pursuing training in the past, his family hasn’t been able to make the progress they were hoping for.

He has worked up to being able to go through drive-thrus, but opportunities to safely get out and enjoy the world are still limited. His mom also needed someone Buddha could be comfortable with while she travels for work, so she figured she might as well find someone who could not only care for him while she’s away, but also help them navigate his big feelings along the way!

Buddha doesn’t warm up to people easily and currently has just one other safe person besides his mom, his grandpa. Watching the relationship between Buddha and his mom, it’s easy to see how much trust they’ve built with each other, and how much she’s willing to do to help him feel safe in a world that can be really overwhelming for him.

We’re incredibly excited to help Buddha and his mom expand his bubble at a pace that feels safe for him. Buddha may not be the dog who’s going to be a Walmart greeter, and that’s okay! Our goal isn’t to turn him into a dog who loves everyone. We want to help him experience more of the world, enjoy being a dog, and have the skills to regulate when people or other dogs are around so those moments don’t have to end his fun.

With his size and breed mix, safety will always be a huge priority, but Buddha has already shown us so much promise. We’re excited to see where this boy goes!

Each dog is different, and each dog has their own pace. The magic is finding that individual pace and meeting them where they’re at.

We had such a fantastic and productive lesson with Luna and Noodle recently. We changed up our usual route to our designated spot at the park, intentionally giving the girls more opportunities to slow down, sniff, and take in their surroundings without becoming overly excited before we even began working.

Once we settled in, we kept both girls busy with exercises focused on problem solving, engagement, formal obedience positions, heel work, and using props and cones to make the experience interactive and mentally stimulating.

Luna did an amazing job showing us the strong foundation she has built. She was able to work through her obedience skills while also being challenged with problem solving and new exercises. Noodle’s work looked a little different as we continued building her ability to process everything happening around her and choose to engage with us.

Noodle is naturally a very happy, social dog who seems to live permanently on cloud nine, so reeling her in and getting her brain ready to work can take quite a bit of patience. Right now, it can still take her some time to choose engagement, but more often than not, we’re seeing that initial time improve. That is all we can ask of right now as she continues to build these skills.

We even had squirrels climbing through the trees nearby and an unexpected picnic audience behind Noodle. Despite all of that, she was able to use her nose and brain to find cookies hidden underneath cones, work through heel exercises, and practice basic obedience cues.

By the end, we had two very tired Aussies ready to relax. These are some of my favorite parts of training, taking the foundations we build in more controlled settings and giving dogs opportunities to use those skills out in the real world. When we thoughtfully combine movement, sniffing, problem solving, engagement, and training exercises, it can be incredibly mentally fulfilling for them.

Great job Luna and Noodle, until next time!

We had the pleasure of taking Kai out for another Enrich & Explore adventure, and this time we really got to see him settle into it!

Kai has been out with us a couple of times now, and it was so fun watching him become comfortable with our routine and truly relax into the experience.

He had a blast sniffing his way along the trails, checking everything out, and even getting to use a play area where he showed off some of the tunnel work he learned through agility. He climbed up and down the hills, investigated a huge fallen tree trunk, and even got his feet wet in the little creek running through the area. There was a little bit of everything, and Kai got to take his time enjoying it all!

One of my favorite things about these walks is getting to give dogs the freedom to move and explore on a long line while still thoughtfully choosing an environment where they can safely engage with the things they naturally enjoy.

Kai definitely came home tired, but it wasn’t just physical exercise. He got to sniff, explore, problem solve, move his body, experience different textures and terrain, and just be a dog for a while.

That’s what we mean when we say Enrich & Explore. We want the outing to give them something more than steps. We want them to come home feeling like their cup was filled too!

We recently had the pleasure of having a private lesson with Ms. Luna at a local park!

Our focus was polishing up her recall, particularly around distractions, and putting those skills to work in some more realistic scenarios.

Luna had such a fantastic lesson and did a wonderful job working through everything we asked of her. We practiced recall in different situations, while also making plenty of room for her to sniff, explore, take in her surroundings, and simply enjoy being a dog. She certainly made the most of those opportunities!

We love being able to incorporate those natural moments into a lesson while still keeping our training goals at the forefront. It gives us the chance to work on practical skills without asking Luna to spend the entire outing focused on us.

We had so much fun with this girl and were really happy with how she did. We can’t wait to see Ms. Luna again soon! She’s typically one of our weekly day training clients, so it was especially nice to work alongside her owner and provide that extra assistance to make the process as smooth as possible!

Please welcome Mollie and Layla to Exploring K9 Training!

We had the pleasure of meeting these girls for a consultation, with our focus being on Mollie, a Border Collie mix and relatively new rescue addition to her family.

Mollie has been settling into her new home wonderfully. She was fortunate to have a great foster home before adoption, and her family has continued building trust by learning to listen to what she is communicating. We’ve already seen how much that has helped her.

When Mollie becomes overwhelmed, it can show as nipping toward the people she lives with in specific contexts. Herding breeds tend to instinctually use their mouths to control situations, which can make them more prone to this behavior when overwhelmed. Thankfully, this has already improved significantly as her family has learned to recognize when she needs support.

Their biggest goal moving forward is helping Mollie feel more comfortable when guests visit. She has not nipped guests, but we want to proactively give her other ways to communicate if she ever does feel overwhelmed or uncertain. We’ll also be working on her excitement when a parent comes home and some jealousy between the girls around attention and treats.

As trainers, understanding the behavior in front of us also means looking at what may happen next. Recognizing patterns and early signs allows us to be proactive and help prevent small concerns from becoming bigger challenges.

We started working through a training plan during their consultation and were already able to see Mollie catching on. She has so much potential, and we’re excited to help her feel more secure as she continues figuring out her new life.

And Layla deserves a shoutout too! This happy go lucky Australian Shepherd already has some great training under her belt and is such a wonderful influence for Mollie. Dogs are social learners, and having a well-rounded dog in the home can make a huge difference for a newer dog learning the ropes.

We absolutely loved meeting these girls and can’t wait for their private lessons! Good job, Mollie and Layla! 🤍

Ms. Kit would like everyone to know that our Enrich and Explore service rocks!

Kit is just a very active and enthusiastic Lab who does everything at 100%, and these walks have become such a staple in her routine. It never fails to make us smile how excited she gets when it’s time to head out with the magical treat lady!

Enrich & Explore gives Kit space for movement, choice, and more autonomy through the use of our longlines, paired with enriching environments that give her opportunities to do the things she genuinely enjoys. In some ways, it’s not all that different from how we enjoy scrolling on our phones, reading a book, or getting lost in a hobby we love. Dogs need those fulfilling experiences too.

Kit gets to sniff, explore, run around, and practice checking in with us and being rewarded for those choices. We’re not asking her to spend the entire walk in a perfect heel or constantly focused on us. Instead, we’re giving her the freedom to enjoy being a dog while naturally building skills along the way.

And if you’ve ever met Kit, you know she doesn’t know what a bad day is. She is truly a ray of sunshine, and we absolutely adore that about her. It’s safe to say this was another successful adventure with our favorite treat-loving girl, and we can’t wait to see her again soon!

Please welcome Truman to Exploring K9 Training!

Truman was found in some unfortunate circumstances and never really had the opportunity to learn how to be a dog or what it means to live in a home. Thankfully, he was rescued by a lovely family who want to give him the life every dog deserves!

Despite not having the best start, Truman is the sweetest boy. He absolutely loves people and has really taken to having a dog sibling to play and spend time with!

His family wanted some extra guidance in helping Truman learn what it means to be a house dog, while also helping him become safe and trustworthy around children and others. He sure does love jumping up when he gets excited!

Right now, one of our biggest priorities is helping Truman learn that even when he’s REALLY excited, all four paws can stay on the ground.

We’re also working on him learning his new name, coming when called, and becoming more trustworthy outside since his yard isn’t fenced. We’re using an extra-long leash to safely work on this while giving Truman room to explore and learn. His new name is also intentional, giving him a fresh start without any previous baggage or history attached to it.

Our goal is to help Truman learn the basics, become reliable with the things that keep him safe, and ultimately learn what it means to be a happy and enjoyable companion.

And Truman did absolutely fantastic for his first private! He showed us just how smart and eager to learn he is. Right now, he’s learning how fun it can be to work for food, so we’re using some extra-enticing treats to help him understand the game. He picked up on our exercises quickly and was already learning how to transfer that new skill over to his dog mom.

We’re so excited to be a part of Truman’s journey and cannot wait to watch this sweet boy blossom into the dog he’s meant to be. Good job, Truman!

Mr. Odie has been LOVING his Enrich & Explore walks and is always eager to hop right in!

These walks are so much more than just a traditional dog walk. They’re centered around not only a dog’s physical needs, but their mental welfare too.

We look for shade, variety in terrain, water access, and plenty of trees and bushes to sniff and explore. We want every walk to be as safe and valuable as possible while giving dogs the opportunity to actually enjoy being outside.

The goal isn’t just to come home physically tired. We want dogs to come home feeling content, fulfilled, and like they got something meaningful out of their time outside. Unfortunately, not all walks are created equal. We really strive to give your dog an experience they’ll genuinely look forward to and fall in love with.

And Odie is a very special Enrich & Explore client because this sweet boy is 10 years old, going on 11! For our senior dogs, staying active and maintaining muscle is incredibly important. As dogs age, muscle loss can contribute to physical decline, so continuing to safely move their bodies and keep them using that muscle can be such an important part of supporting their quality of life.

We love being able to meet dogs where they are and give them an outing that is valuable for their body, mind, and needs. We’re so happy to be able to provide these walks for our pups, and especially for sweet old souls like Odie. He deserves all the sniffy adventures! ☺️