To make the most of your valuable time, please do the following to set yourself up for success:

Before the Consult

  1. 2-hours prior: If you are using a food reward, do not feed your dog a full meal within 2-hours prior to consult. Some dogs (puppies) work for kibble, and you should set aside a portion of your dog’s daily kibble for training.
  2. 30-minutes prior: Please potty your dog about a half-hour before the outdoor appointment. 
  3. 15-minutes prior: Please secure your dog before the appointment, in a crate or in a room.  This prevents your dog from practicing behaviors we might be trying to fix from the very start.  
  4. 15-minutes prior: Also please prepare several different baggies with food or treats, being careful not to mix them together. It’s very important for your dog to be excited for the food/treats during the time you set aside for training, and not all food has the same value to your pup.

At the Consult (90-minutes)

  1. Quick review of paperwork
  2. Observations and Questions about your dog’s behaviors, video use is encouraged.
  3. Demonstrations of techniques to use with your dog
  4. Sharing of resources & final questions to build a training plan

After the Consult

About 48-72 hours after your consult, you will receive a PDF write-up with observations, hypotheses and suggested Training Plan for moving forward. Links to schedule additional sessions will also be provided.

It is easier to teach a learner what to do instead of what not to do

Basic Training Terms

Engagement – means your dog is listening to you and learning desired behaviors.

Reinforcement – An increase in the strength of a behavior due to its consequences.

Reward: anything your dog finds reinforcing (pleasurable)

Marker – a sound ::click:: or a word, “Yes!”  predicts a reward is coming.  The marker is used at the exact moment that the dog performs a desired behavior è so they will want to continue performing that behavior.  

Luring – refers to the action of physically gesturing and luring your dog into a position.  Food is used initially in the lure, and then faded quickly.  

Thank you for your interest in Steady Dog Training and giving us the opportunity to work with you and your dog!

PRINT PDF: Preparing for Consult