For many older folk, when we talk about tethering a dog, a picture of a sad neglected hound on the end of a rusty chain springs to mind. And when I was a kid, that kind of tethering was often a way of life for many lonely dogs left to ‘guard the yard’ all day. …
Dogs Are Not Hamsters – Let’s Talk About The Use (And Misuse) Of Crates
For the last decade or more I have defended the appropriate use of dog crates. But I believe I am seeing a disturbing trend that is tempting me to change my position. There is no doubt that dog crates are immensely useful training aids for puppies and young dogs. And that crates provide an important …
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Operant Conditioning In A Nutshell For Dogs And Their People
Operant conditioning is the process by which animals, including dogs, learn to change and modify their behavior. There is quite a bit of confusion about this process in dog owning circles. And in particular about the use of two particular words Punishment Positive We’ll go into that in a minute and hopefully all will become …
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The Pros And Cons Of Feeding Your Dog Once A Day
The most common feeding schedule for adult dogs is one or two meals daily. I feed my dogs twice a day. But feeding your dog once a day can work well in some circumstances, and data from the Dog Aging Project has found an association between once daily feeding and a lower incidence of some …
Pippa’s Original Clicker Retrieve
The Clicker Retriever was originally published on the Totally Gundogs website. We are currently moving our library of hunting dog content to Dogsnet, you can check out that link for an update. This article describes the method I used when I first started training the clicker retrieve. The Clicker Retrieve was originally published in several …
The Trouble With Springers
The Trouble With Springers was originally published on the totallygundogs website. We are currently moving our library of hunting dog content to Dogsnet, you can check out that link for an update. This article contains information and help for those who share their lives with an English Springer Spaniel from working lines. The Trouble With Springers …
Welcome To Visitors From TotallyGundogs
Hi I’m Pippa, and if you have just arrived here from TotallyGundogs, this page is for you! I built the TotallyGundogs website in 2011 and the final article was published on it in 2016. By the end of 2022 the articles were still receiving nearly as many visitors as they did back in 2016 but …
Could You Be Your Dog’s Best Teacher?
Dog training can be challenging. Maybe you doubt your ability to teach your dog yourself? After all, there are skills involved. Things to learn. And natural abilities needed. Am I Good Enough? Maybe a professional with heaps of talent and years of experience is the best person to teach your dog? How could you ever …
Force Free Dog Training
A lot of people ask me about force free dog training. Does it really work? Isn’t it just for softies? Don’t bribes stop working after a while? And seriously, how can it possibly work when dogs are chasing squirrels? What Is Force Free Training? Force-free dog trainers completely avoid all use of aversives. When we …
When Your Puppy Is Not Interested In Food: Training Tips And Solutions
Puppies are like people when it comes to appetite. Some can take it or leave it. Others are always hungry. Puppies that don’t want training treats Some puppies will fall on every morsel of food that falls from your hand as though they have been starved for a month. Others will turn their noses up …
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