Our Philosophy
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At Confident Canines, our experience indicates that the majority of the issues that owners struggle with are, at their core, due to a lack of leadership in the form of clear structure, rules, guidance, and accountability. When these crucial components of a balanced life are missing, our dogs tend to become stressed and anxious. Just like us, this mental state can cause dogs to make less-than-great choices.
This stress and anxiety can take many forms; dogs may exhibit resource guarding, entitled/pushy behavior, leash reactivity, aggression, obsessions (like licking, chewing, digging), excessive barking, crate anxiety, territorial behavior, and common behaviors like jumping, leash pulling, rambunctious behavior etc. We like to think of these behaviors as symptoms of a bigger issue--a general sense of insecurity in the dog resulting from a lack of leadership and structure. We find that when you provide this essential foundation for your dog, these behaviors often fade away, and those that don’t will decrease in intensity making them easier for us to address directly. |
That is to say that our program is much more about laying this foundation than about addressing specific issues. We know that addressing the state of mind of your dog will yield far more effective and longer lasting results than simply trying to address the symptoms, as this approach teaches your dog to make good choices on their own and access a calm and relaxed state of mind.
We also want our techniques to be as owner-friendly as possible. We don’t want every owner to have to become a dog trainer just to manage their pet. To that end, our program is generally broken up into about 20% active work, like obedience drills, and 80% duration work. Duration training is very easy to work into an already busy schedule, as it can be done anytime you’re home, or even while out and about. Dogs practice Place while owners cook a meal, read a book, watch TV, or help their kids with homework. We call it “passive” training, and not only is it remarkably effective at reinforcing a calm and relaxed state of mind, but it allows your dog to be included in your life as much as possible, which is one of the best things you can do for your dog!
In short, the world is full of distractions and challenging situations for our dogs. That's why we chose to focus on developing a unique, real-world dog training program that will allow your dog to live harmoniously with you, as their leader and guide.
We also want our techniques to be as owner-friendly as possible. We don’t want every owner to have to become a dog trainer just to manage their pet. To that end, our program is generally broken up into about 20% active work, like obedience drills, and 80% duration work. Duration training is very easy to work into an already busy schedule, as it can be done anytime you’re home, or even while out and about. Dogs practice Place while owners cook a meal, read a book, watch TV, or help their kids with homework. We call it “passive” training, and not only is it remarkably effective at reinforcing a calm and relaxed state of mind, but it allows your dog to be included in your life as much as possible, which is one of the best things you can do for your dog!
In short, the world is full of distractions and challenging situations for our dogs. That's why we chose to focus on developing a unique, real-world dog training program that will allow your dog to live harmoniously with you, as their leader and guide.