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I got Ellie back in September, when she was around 3 – 3.5 months old. I was a project manager so luckily I was able to take her with me as I drove around checking up on renovations.

At some point it got hard to train her consistently, so I started researching ways I can train her on the go and ended up building an app, all thanks to the breeder I got her from, she suggested I become a trainer because of my bond with dogs.

I thought about it for a while and came to the conclusion that I'd rather help other owners train their dogs, because I believe having a strong bond with your animal amplifies training results and communication more than anything.

Back in December, I decided I wanted to move somewhere warmer so I can spend more time outside (a head injury a few years ago made Chicago winters extremely hard for me).

Well a few weeks ago, I made the move to the west coast, I just launched an app for the first time in my life, and Ellie gets to live her best life swimming in the ocean and running on beaches. I never would've thought my life could change the way it did in the past 6 months, but she inspired me to do better. I'm blessed and grateful for this dog so much. Love you Ellie aka wigglebutt!

Hi all! Are there any user friendly poo and wee tracker apps? Goal is to see how quick after his food, sleep and playing/training schedule he needs to go? Thanks

My pup – for context a 4 month old Old English Sheepdog – is having the usual puppy biting and nibbling problems which are annoying enough, but we can deal with that and tolerate it.

However, the real problem is his reaction to being told off or being made to stop doing something.

For example, when we tell him no for biting us or withdraw our attention after he has nipped us, he will often begin to growl and bark at us and sometimes even try to nip us with his lip curling up in a fairly aggressive manner. Our strategy so far has been to move away and ignore the negative behaviour as we believe it stems from his frustration at not getting what he wants – so we are keen to make sure the aggressive behaviour doesn’t create a path of least resistance.

The reason for me making this post today though is because we took him on a walk to this morning and we found a quiet spot to practice some recall training, which was fine. He did ok, and then time was up so we wanted to get him back on his leash. Well, he wasn’t happy about this, and even though he remained in the sit, he tried to bite my hand repeatedly and hard while I was putting the leash back on him.

This is unacceptable to me, and it was kind of the last straw for being tolerant of his nipping. My family have already expressed concerns about him joining events as we have a lot of kids in the family and they don’t want him to nip them. If he is now escalating to biting out of frustration or aggression, then that won’t fly at all. How am I going to get some bite inhibition and restraint trained into him? He’s such a nice dog most of the time, but at least once a day he goes mad for a few minutes with these behaviours.

or do you regret getting a second?

im torn, i want my two year old dog to have a buddy, but i dont necessarily need two dogs.

wondering if it will be double the work, or just double the joy.

Hello everyone,

I have a lovely dog (most of the times), he is 5 years old now. My problem comes to walks with my son, when I was living back at the countryside the walks werent the biggest problem in the world, but I had to move out. Now I live in a big city and if he hears a loud noise or sees anyone/another dog he starts acting crazy, becomes extremely stressed out, tugs on the leash and wants to run home asap, so 90% of the time he doesn’t even want to leave the apartment building, people told me to not react so I try to show no emotion at all. His first ever walk here was actually fine which surprised me , we were able to take quite a long walk but now its getting worse and worse to the point where walks with my son arent enjoyable anymore, the only time I have a chance for a longer walk with him is between like 2-3 am when its the most quiet so I have been getting no sleep 🙁 I would love for him to be happy about taking longer walks again or be able to leave the apartment more easily because there is an amazing park next to us

Just wondering if I should be training my dog to not eat snow ? He mostly licks the snow and doesn't eat a ton but it is becoming a bit of a problem/habit lol thanks.

(FYI I live in Canada where there is lots of snow)

Hey all! I’m reaching out in a desperate attempt for advice or potentially someone who is going through something similar. I have an almost 4 year old border collie/saint Bernard mix. She’s always been full of energy so we do spend a lot of time exercising, outdoors, and stimulating tasks. But she could be absolutely wore out laying on the floor and any little task I do sends her into a barking/digging/wall chewing tailspin. I could be very calmly turning a wrench, washing a dish, using a flashlight, cleaning the dryer lint etc and she just looses her mind. Tasks like vacuuming, yard care, or any task that creates even the slightest noise or above average activity level is near impossible. I find myself getting very overwhelmed trying to complete a task while attempting (unsuccessfully) to redirect her behavior. I’m just at my Wits end and don’t know where to go from here. She digs massive holes, trys to chew on walls and trees, and just obsessively barks no matter how much I try to redirect. She has even managed to crack two teeth chewing on trees. I just don’t know what else to do

hello all,

I have a 3 year old red cattle dog that I think is depressed. He just looks really sad and stares at me.

I take him for enriching walks to different places daily, my partner and I are both home full time now so, he shouldn't feel lonely.

I am currently pregnant (due any day now) and have a two year old. I made sure that I continued to walk and do scent work with my dog even when my baby was weeks old.

the only big change I can think of is that he isnt allowed inside as much, so I make sure we have our meals outside as a family with him.

any advice, bumming me out and feel like I am a shitty mum.

I have a 2 year-old blue heeler. We have trained her a lot, and sometimes when we go on hikes and it’s permitted, we let her off leash. She has always stayed super close, checks in constantly and followed all orders.

Today she saw a pack of deer and started chasing them and we lost her in the forest. I had never before lost sight of her. It took us 10 minutes to find her and I was terrified throughout

I am now thinking about not letting her off leash ever again. Even if she’s good 99% of the time I can’t risk it.

Am I being too extreme? Should I do some more exercises and try again in a few months? What’s the right way to think about this?

I have a Great Dane that is about 9 years old and I have had an issue with petting him/ getting pawed at every now and then and causes hives or redness and tiny bumps in the general area of where I was scratched or rubbed up against him. Doesn’t happen all the time but maybe once or twice a week, I end up with spots on my arms or legs. Just seeking any advice if anyone has any at all! Please and thank you. I wasn’t able to post a photo on this thread so any advice I will look into!