Juliet the Great Pyrenees/Lab Mix

Meet Juliet!

Juliet is one beautiful lady! Unfortunately she was found abandoned and severely malnourished on the side of a road. Unfortunately, while Juliet is living in a wonderful and loving home, what she learned on the road (food guarding) was a hard lesson to unlearn.

Shortly after adopting Juliet her new family discovered that she was protecting her food. This is understandably a serious problem which was compounded by having a young child in the house. If not first managed, then actively trained - one wrong move to create a very bad situation– especially if it happened when young children were visiting!

Before we got started on a training plan we checked to make sure that the environment was safe. We suggested tethers and baby gates in various locations throughout the house but especially near the dining room. If Juliet came to the dinner table trying to scrounge for food her owners could simply Ask her to go to her bed (reward her when she did), or Refocus her and physically take her to bed (tether her there) and rewarding her for "staying" by giving her a special bone/toy.

We also recommended using tethers for the food guarding training as well. By working with Juliet near the end of her tether her owners could remain safe if anything happened. Next, we suggested hand feeding Juliet, playing Taking Treats Gently, as well as, sharing bones with her (low value at first) and practicing Leave It and giving her fantastic treats when she complied – of course giving her the bone back!

We wanted Juliet to learn that she was now safe and would be cared for without having to hunt or guard food. However, this is not an easy behavior to work on without help.

If you have a dog who you suspect is getting possessive over food, toys, bones or even the couch, please call Zen Dog Training to get help. More information about Resource Guarding can be found on Zen Dog Training Online, as well as homework sheets for Ask, Refocus, Leave it, and Taking Treats Gently.

Myth Busting: Waiting until the 6th month to train a dog

Nothing riles me up more than hearing someone say,"a trainer told me you are not supposed to train a dog until they are 6 months old."

What a crock! Absolute rubbish!! Hearing people say something like that makes my stomach turn.

First, do you really think the dog isn't learning from the very first second they open their eyes and start to hear? Seriously, by the 6th month, the dog is now the human equivalent of a 7 year old child! At that point they have already made up their minds about how the world works - in my book if we start at 6 months we are "re-training" them.

Actually, good breeders (and I mean the REALLY good one's) are not only housetraining puppies by the 5th week, they are teaching them to 'sit' and pre-socializing them by exposing young puppies to lots of people, kids, loud noises and otherwise preparing the youngsters for success in our noisy, busy world! Cool huh?


Why do people recommend that you can't train a dog until they are six months old?

The most plausible reason I have heard is that trainers who use 'corrections', metal prong collars or employ "startle-techniques" (jerk the collar, pop-the-leash kinds of things) have to wait until the dog has bonded with humans first so they don't "break the dog's spirit" when training them.

Bottom line here, your dog starts learning what works and what doesn't in your house the very first second they walk in the door! Waiting to train them (especially if you have kids!) sounds ludicrous to me, but strangely I still hear about it!

Those of us who train dogs with peaceful methods (dog training methods that depend on communication and understanding) it is - completely reasonable - to have a 12 week old puppy mostly potty trained, doing simple 'sit', 'down' commands and even walking on a loose leash!

Of course, those are not my first objectives - my priorities with new puppy training are:

1. Teaching them bite inhibition - they should learn not to bite people!
2. Teaching them to accept their home as safe - including the mailman, visitors and strangers, outside things like joggers, bikes, scooters, trucks, kids, and strangers. (Socialization)
3. Teaching them to NOT protect food from us and to accept ANY touch at ANY time, from kids at the park, to the groomer, brushing their hair of teeth, or even mild-restraint at the vet or during an emergency.

Phew! That's a lot - a better summary of the essential puppy training lessons would be:

- Housetraining
- Playbiting
- Home Alone Training
- Socialization (People, Places, Things and other Dogs)
- Preventing Food Guarding
- Socialization to Touch


Remember, your dog is a learning machine! Who over hundreds if not thousands of years has learned to successfully live and co-exist with human. They are masters of learning what pushes your buttons and how to get what they want. That's why training them you rules needs to happen right away!

Gentle training methods like our Zen Dog Training system to interrupt problem behaviors can be used immediately upon getting a new dog. In fact, the ideal time for us to start In-Home Training is 2-3 days after the new puppy has arrived.

The most important training tools for puppies are the ones that create an environment for success. Confinement areas, chew toys, crate, bed, housetrining and feeding schedule, playbiting with kids or chasing cats...all potential problems that can be avoided from day 1 with good training tools!

For more information visit www.ZenDogTrainingOnline.com - See: Outsmarting your dog, and all the PDF's and Video's under "Your New Puppy"

We Have a Winner!

Well, it took a while but I'm very pleased to announce that we have a costume contest winner! Sure, I suppose we could've deliberated faster and narrowed down the participating pups sooner, but you try picking one adorable dog out of a crowd. Here's what was at stake for the top five costumes: $100 from Zen Dog Training, a $100 gift certificate from Durty Harry's, a $50 gift card from Pawsh Dog Boutique and Salon, two $50 gift certificates from Beacon Street Grooming, and a fantastic prize from Cause to Paws. The top ten favorites also received free access to Zen Dog Training Online, our video solution center. Members can view dog training videos and learn our Zen Dog tips and tricks — remember, training is never over!

And our membership winners are...

Clockwise from the upper left: Daiquiri, a four-year-old English Setter from Wood Hole, Illinois; Wally, a two-year-old mini Dachshund from Brookline; Reuben, an eight-year-old lab/shepherd mix from Somerville; Junebug, a five-year-old pug from Roxbury; and, in the center, Brownie, a thirteen-month-old chihuahua from Marshfield.

And now for our top five...

• In first place and in the lower left: Oreo, a one-and-a-half-year-old spaniel/hound mix from Somerville.
• Tied for second and in the upper left: Sebastian, a five-year-old Boston terrier/pug Frog Prince and Annabell, a one-and-a-half-year-old Boston terrier Princess from Brookline.
• In third place and in the upper right: Eddie, a nine-month-old Cavachon from South Boston.
• In fourth place and in the middle right: Bogart, a thirteen-week-old mini beagle from Boston.
• In fifth place and in the lower right: Rosie, a one-year-old Boston terrier from Somerville.

Thanks you to all who entered our contest! To see all of the participants, visit our Facebook page.