Dogs With Big Feelings

Episode 18: Should we let our animals opt out of training?

Does your dog or horse opt in or opt out of training?  How can we be better trainers and better pet guardians so that our horses and dogs WANT to play with us?

Episode 17: Helping your dog or horse meet new friends!

I have strayed from my original purpose of this podcast to include more dog training tips as well as horse training tips.  In my ever-evolving journey of horse and dog training, I think this is valuable!  I'd love to hear your feedback.
 
Today I talk about how to help a reactive dog make friends on leash, and how I do a similar set of exercises with Zephyr. 

Episode 16: Building on Success and recognizing early signs of failure

Zephyr wears a bareback pad! Oh, and also, the answer isn't a bigger bit or a prong collar or a more severe halter =)  

Episode 15: But Don't Horses and Dogs Use Aggression?

In this episode, I share a story about a poor choice I made and I discuss why we don't kick and bite or growl and snap like horses and dogs do with each other.

Episode 14: Anxious animals need to move, and when do I feed for picking up feet?

In this episode, I talk about letting horses and dogs move forward when they are anxious and asking for help if you need to.  I also discuss forgiving yourself if you get scared or frustrated and resort to harsher methods, and describe why I feed Zephyr for keeping his foot ON the ground when I'm teaching him to pick up his feet. 

Episode 13: The Geekiest Episode So Far

In this episode we discuss shaping a behaviour to address anxiety in crossties, NRMs vs Positive Interrupters, Primary vs Secondary Reinforcers, and more =)

Episode 12: Itchy Face Rubbing? Egos? Building Confidence?

Egos in animal training? Or is it anxiety? How can we build confidence in people and in animals? What will I do about that itchy colt who wants to rub his face on me?

Episode 11: Halters, Puddles, and the Tools in front of you

What kind of halter am I using and why? Are rope halters bad? How can you train your horse to confidently walk through puddles? When you have a hammer, everything starts to look like a nail.