Meeting Your Dog Where They Are

What if your “problem” dog isn’t broken at all—just under‑fulfilled, over‑aroused, and waiting for clearer structure? We sit down with a listener whose three‑year‑old shih tzu wakes early, paces, fixates on a senior housemate, and melts down in public. The twist: he’s not “bad,” he’s wired like a working dog in a small body. Our goal becomes simple and doable—build a daily rhythm that channels drive, lowers stress, and teaches calm on cue.

We dig into the tug‑of‑war between genetics and lifestyle, especially when maturity unmasks anxiety. You’ll hear how we set “windows” of focused activity with marker words—Are you ready? opens the session; All done closes it—then pick up toys and move the dog into a crate or tether to practice settling. We break down short food games like get it and yes to engage the brain, then layer easy skills and play. The result is arousal with purpose, followed by true decompression, not nagging or guilt.

Multi‑dog homes get special attention: how to protect seniors, stop relentless pestering with a slip lead, and decide when to interrupt play versus let it flow. We talk crate training that builds alone‑time skills without drama, why randomizing session times prevents anticipatory chaos, and when a well‑fitted e‑collar can add humane clarity after foundations. If winter has cut your walks, you’ll learn how two short, high‑value sessions a day can outperform long, inconsistent exercise and steadily grow confidence for public spaces when weather returns.

By the end, we land on a compassionate truth: you can’t turn every dog into your last dog, but you can teach the one in front of you how to thrive. If this resonates, tap follow, share with a friend who’s overwhelmed, and leave a review telling us the one habit you’ll try this week.

Visit us on the website here to see what we've got going on and how you can join our pack of good dogs and owners.

Transcript

Upcoming Camps And Trainer Programs

Rethinking Expectations: Genetics Vs Lifestyle

Owner’s Story: The “Amped” Shih Tzu

SPEAKER_00 0:12

Hey guys, and welcome back to the Everyday Trainer Podcast. My name is Meg, and I am a dog trainer. Today's episode is a recording of a virtual session that I had with a client with a overactive shihtzu. So the reason why I wanted to share this episode with you is because we talk a lot about what has a bigger influence genetics or lifestyle and how we can meet our dogs where they're at. You know the drill? Grab yourself a tasty drink and meet me back here. A few housekeeping things we've got. I have a camping trip going on at the end of February 2026 in Joshua Tree. If you guys want to come camp with me, it's gonna be so much fun. Two nights in Joshua Tree, and we're gonna be covering loose lead walking, e-collar, pack hikes, group dynamics. Plus, you'll get to be in a cool environment with lots of cool people. So I would love for you guys to come out. Limited spots, five people max for that. You can visit the website, and I have a ton of information on that. Next, virtual shadow program. If you don't know, I run an online shadow program for those interested in becoming dog trainers or dog trainers who are just looking for a bit more clarity in their career. It's three weeks all online. First half we cover dog training foundations. I break everything down by our communication systems. So marker words, leash pressure, e-collar, body language, food rewards, play. How do we layer all of these things together to create a really clear picture for the dogs and the owners that we work with? And then the second half of the program, I cover all things business. So I essentially give you a blueprint to the everyday trainer, all of the automations that we use, the workflows, how we price, how I structure my business, how to get clients, reviews, what needs to be on your website, literally everything that you need to know to run a successful dog training business. We'll cover in the second half. Each week there is a group call with everybody in that cohort and also a live training session. So you guys will get to see me and Toma work all of the dogs that we have in for training once a week. Answer questions. We'll answer questions. You guys can ask questions, and it's a great time. So if that sounds right up your alley, that will also be on the website. You guys know I have all of my information there. Okay, that takes us in to this week's episode. So I originally didn't want to post this conversation because I went back and I watched it, and there were a couple things that I was like, oh god, like it it was a little bit cringy to me as just a person going back and watching a recording of you know a conversation that they have with somebody. So a few things. This owner has multiple dogs, and the dog that the dog in particular that she was, you know, contacting me about that she wanted help with did not fit the mold of her other dogs. And I see this all the time, right? It's the reason I got into dog training. I got my first dog, Zoe. She is a cuppy cake angel, literally the easiest dog in the whole world. I thought that I was the best dog trainer ever. And then I got Lucy. And Lucy is very, very different from Zoe. Even though she is the same breed, she came out the womb just entirely different than Zoe is. And so a big part of my dog training journey with Lucy has been changing my expectations of what I think a dog needs to be, right? Because my original expectations were, oh, all dogs need to be like Zoe. And Lucy very quickly showed me that that is just not true. And so it kind of brings up this topic of how much control do we have over our dog's behavior? Because a lot of the conversations that I have with owners, it leans towards I'm contacting a dog trainer because I want to fix my dog's behavior or because they need to be like my other dog and I'm going to change them through this training. But the conversation in this session that I had, it went down, it went down the path of this is just kind of the dog that you have, right? So how can we recognize the type of dog that we have and meet them where they're at in the training, instead of using this training as a tool to completely change the dog to somebody that they're not? And you'll see at the end of the conversation that that's kind of, you know, the realization that the owner has. And I loved that. I was like, wow, this is, you know, this is amazing. This is exactly what I want. This owner who is like, you know, maybe I can't make him like the other dogs, but I can fulfill him, right? A lot of these behaviors are coming from a place of a lack of fulfillment, a lack of clarity, a lack of structure for him. And that's coming from I didn't have to be that way with my other dogs. So, how can we look at the dogs in front of us and, you know, structure our training in a way that makes them better and fulfills them and you know, limits the bad behaviors instead of just looking at it as like this dog is bugging me. How do I fix these behaviors? So when I went back and watched this, I realized that I was a bit overzealous as I was, you know, speaking in this session. And something that I've always kind of prided myself on is my ability to meet clients where they're at. And I don't, and maybe she feels differently, but I feel as though I maybe didn't meet her exactly where she was at because I should probably give more uh realistic advice as a dog trainer, but part of me is so passionate about what I know about dog training that I want to kind of over-educate people a little bit. Um, and in doing that, I feel as though I've complicated my dogs are jumping up here. I've complicated my advice to her in some way. I think I think when you have a dog that's like a little crazy, speaking of, my crazies are running all over the place. Um when you have a dog that's a little crazy, like as a dog trainer, you get kind of excited because you're like, oh my gosh, there's so much that you can do with this dog. But as an owner, it can feel very like it can feel very daunting because you're going from okay, the expectation of I just want my dog to be chill and not really have to do anything. And now I'm like, here's an active training session, here's our marker words, here's all of this stuff. I feel like it can be a bit overwhelming. So I do feel that I was a bit overwhelming in this session, but as a dog trainer, I just I get excited when we have a dog that has a bit of drive, and I really want to, you know, teach people how to harness that drive and how to fulfill our dogs. I hope you guys enjoy all of the chaos that is muffin in the background. So, since this podcast is just a podcast and I don't have video associated to it, I've clipped out a middle portion of this call where I'm doing an active training session and demoing the training. If you guys are part of my community, you can access that. But I went ahead and clipped it out for audio sake. It's just not interesting. The sound is not great, and I figured if you guys are interested, you can join the community, you can join my live calls, you can see exactly what it is that I'm talking about because it just didn't really carry over uh verbally, I guess, if that makes sense. And I will say, even though I cut out that section, there's a lot of good topics and conversations that we have. So I feel like you guys will get a lot of value out of this episode. Enjoy. So tell me about your dog and what's going on.

SPEAKER_04 9:46

All right, so I have uh two shihtzus, and um the one that I'm having issues with is my younger male, he's three years old, and it's just I don't know, he is so amped up all the time. And like I've had shih tsus forever, and I'm fostering a male shih tzu, and I'm like, my dog, like this male one that I have that's mine, he's not like any other shih tzu I've ever had. Like he is crazy. So, like in the morning he wakes up and he he wakes up before everybody else. He's up, like, and he's whining and he's like walking on me.

SPEAKER_00 10:29

And it's like him since he was a puppy.

SPEAKER_04 10:33

Yes, he he was uh he was purchased by an older couple who quickly realized they were in over their head, beginning to realize why.

SPEAKER_02 10:46

And you're like, okay, this makes sense.

Maturity, Neuroticism, And Structure

SPEAKER_04 10:49

Yeah, and then um we had someone uh a friend in common. Um actually he she was my dog's chiropractor. So he looks just like um a senior dog that I had for about six years, and so she got in touch with me and I agreed, yeah, I'll I'll take him. Um, but he was still pretty young. He was still only like 11 weeks or so. He was he was yeah, he got kind of stepped on by them. Um, and so so yeah, I mean, overall, I mean, when I got him, he seemed like, you know, he he's been pretty like headstrong, I think, from the beginning. And I don't know if headstrong is the really the right word to use. He's just always been like kind of like say that word, pushy. Yeah, maybe that is the word. Yeah, a bit, yeah. Yeah, because he is a bit pushy. Um, yeah, a lot. So yeah, that's how like every morning starts. He's up before you know anyone else. And like, I don't think he sleeps very well. Um, he's got some breathing issues, he had to have surgery, so like I just don't think he's like a sound sleeper. He he just gets up early and I ignore him. And he does go back to sleep, but it's just this whole ritual of like you know, getting up and doing this. He'll go grab his ball if the ball's around. Okay, and then he'll like get his ball and walk on me with the to show me the ball. Yeah, so he's like, get up, get up, and then I think one of the biggest things that I think now I've gotten to the point where I've gotten so frustrated that like basically like all day long I'm yelling at him and I'm getting so frustrated. I'm getting like I'm seeing a side of myself that I don't like with my dog because I'm like, I've never felt like this, but I don't like you. And like, you know, I'm getting really frustrated. And I think one of the things he's doing a lot is he's all over my female dog. Okay. He's like jumping on her, he gets really excited the minute she gets out of bed. He's licking her incessantly on her lower back. I don't know if it's like, because I've read I've read a lot of different things. I don't know if something's going on with her, I don't know if it's hormones, I don't know if it's his own like insecurity, anxiety. I just don't know. But like that's become the biggest like frustration. And I think the more frustrated I'm getting, the worse he's behaving. Um the other thing is, I mean, he's always ammed up, like like breakfast and dinner. I mean, he's like spinning in circles, whining, going crazy. And I put his food down and I make him wait. And he won't he won't take his food until I I release him. So I do try to like get him to have like some self-control, but he doesn't have a lot. I mean, I would say that's probably the only place he's he he exhibits self-control because we've done it since he's a puppy. Um yeah, so that's another thing. Um the other thing I've always noticed with him, and I think now it's getting a little bit more kind of like what's going on is is how like early on when I was in Denver and I had him, we went like a lot of places, not like super early, but like we started going places and he was pretty comfortable. And soon enough he wasn't. So at some point, I don't know, I can't remember when it shifted. He just seemed like, yeah, it wasn't. I think it might have been when I moved. Like I remember going to a farmer's market here in New Jersey several months back, and he freaked out. He was like trying to figure out how to get out of there. He was panting, he was, he was having a like a complete like you know, freak out. And I was like, what the hell is going on? Like what happened here? Like, and so so I I tried to take him a little, I tried to go back and like I carried him like around like a couple of times without like you know, just going to like when it was like a little quieter, making it like five minutes, and we laughed, trying to make it like a little bit better of experience. Yeah, so that was a shift I saw in him. And then also when I touch him, and this is frustrating for me because it makes me feel bad. I can't help it. His whole body gets like tense, like he's completely like rigid. Like I always say, I'm like, What are you, rigor mortis? You're like, what's going on? I'm like, you're like dead. It's like my foster dog, he just was he was just surrendered by his family two weeks ago. And I touch him, I drop something, and like no, no, no reaction. My dog, I touch him, and like he like jumps out of his skin. He's like, you know, in the air, and like and the other, so I'll give you a few more things. Guests, when guests come into the house, he is like like crying, whining, like, look at me, see me, you know, not necessarily jumping on them per se, but just like, you know, making a spectacle of himself. And then if they give attention to my female dog, he he like starts to like nibble on her ear, and like I don't really know what that means. I've never like I think he's just over aroused. I I I don't know. Um the other day I put him in his crate by himself without her, and he freaked out. He like so I I didn't realize like how much he seems to maybe need her until until more recently. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:38

Um and how old is she?

SPEAKER_02 16:41

She is 11.

SPEAKER_00 16:43

Okay. I I kind of have a similar dynamic to Muffin, my little Malinois, and my older dog. Um, they are just they're like overly submissive to her, and she's kind of like the matriarch of our group, right? Like she's 13 years old, and they will like excessively lip lick her mouth, and they're just like rolling on their backs, and they're just kind of being like overly annoying. Um and they like she will not correct them, you know. So I don't know if your older dog is correcting him, yes. Okay, and does he listen? He does, and he's all like, oh like will he like back away and like leave her alone?

SPEAKER_04 17:32

He will, but he gets all like I don't know, he he gets all like I can't even explain it. He's such a goof, Paul. Like, he does leave her alone, but he doesn't like he it there's a weirdness about it. He doesn't completely like go away, he's sort of just like, whoa, whoa, huh. And then he like kind of feels it out, like, can I come back? Or you know, she corrects him a lot because one of the things he does is when we go out in the morning, she doesn't get up with us usually. She like wants to stay in bed, so I'll take him to go potty and we'll come back in. And he runs straight back in the bedroom and like pounces on her. And so in the last week, I've now like we'll like I've been either dating her in the room, although I don't like to do that because if she gets up and has to go potty, so I've been putting him on a leash, and like when we go back in, he can't go back in there. I've been putting him on a leash in the house a bunch in the last like several days just to limit his access to her. Yeah, but I'm really lost, not sure what the right answer is. Is he crate trained? He is. He will go like if I say go to your crate, he'll he'll go in his crate.

SPEAKER_00 18:46

Does he like chill in there?

SPEAKER_04 18:48

Yeah, I mean, it's funny, like when I go out, they go in the crate. So I don't really give them free room just because she's not good with holding her potty. And uh, so I'll put them in the crate together. And he typically doesn't bother her too much in the crate. Um, and whenever I I'll check on check on them in the you know with the camera, she's always sleeping and she hates going in the crate, even though she sleeps in there during the evening. She just doesn't want to go in there when I'm leaving. He's always like watching the door. He's not necessarily crying or anything like that, but he's always like, he doesn't always just like fully relax. You know, he's watching the door.

SPEAKER_00 19:30

Um, a typical daily routine look like with you guys.

SPEAKER_04 19:35

So typical daily routine is we get up, we go to the bathroom, we have breakfast, um, then they go back out again, uh and then I sit down for work. Now, like I get myself ready too. So I'll get up first, get ready, and then we'll go outside and all of that. We have not been doing as many work. Walks because that's the one downside since I moved back to Jersey is that like in in Colorado, we took a walk every single day. In New Jersey, it's freaking cold. And where I live is pretty rural. And um, the road is just like they just dump salt on it. Yeah. So I I've been trying like last week, I got them out like I think maybe like four times that week. And a few times actually, because it rained and the snow kind of salt washed away. We went for walks. I take them to the park and we get out for walks. But like today, I thought about it. It was like in the 20s, and I was like, uh, it just, you know, it's for them, it's just not, and it just snowed. So if it did hadn't just snowed, I would have probably done it. But I knew there was going to be snow on the ground. So unfortunately, we're not doing as many walks as as we will do. And then unfortunately, in the summer, it gets too hot here and there's shih tzues, and that limits like depending on how hot it is. Then, like in the summer, we go through a period where we haven't been like going for like a lot of walks. So walks are not necessarily part of their daily life anymore. And that is a major change for them. Yeah. But we have been here a year, so it's not like it's not like this has just like happened overnight. Yeah. Yeah. Okay. Yeah. Um, and I will say I have moved with him, like with both of them. I moved a bunch over the last couple of years. So when I got him, I was in Denver. And then I like sold my house in Denver, moved in with my mom. Then I bought a house in Colorado Springs. Then I moved to New Jersey. So, but I through all that, he seemed like totally fine. It was once we got to New Jersey that I feel like things started to escalate. And the other thing is he hates like he likes going for walks, but he hates putting the harness on. That's when he gets like all rigid, or he'll run into the crate to hide. Um, he won't do the stairs. He like, unless I put him on the first stair, like we go to the basement, he won't do the stairs. Um, but he used to do stairs just fine before. So yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:21

Okay, so I think kind of what you're seeing now is just like he's reached full maturity. Um, dogs typically don't hit full sexual maturity, or I guess like past sexual maturity, but they don't come into them for their full like personalities until like two to three years old, you know. So this is when you start to kind of like see how the adult dog is going to be. Um, it sounds like he's a little neurotic, he's probably a bit like a Malinois in a shihtzu body, you know, possibly, yes. Um so a little bit drivey, a little bit neurotic, and with dogs like that, no matter like the size or anything, we have to implement. I think he needs more structure, you know. So what that looks like for you because you're not able to like physically exercise him on walks. I would play tug with him or like even play fetch in your house, like something to be productive, right? Like play is productive because it's like something engaging with you, right? Play, play, play five to ten minutes. Okay, and then you go back into the crate.

SPEAKER_04 23:36

Oh, so so crate him during the day, even.

SPEAKER_00 23:39

Yes, yes, and like I would probably crate him at night too if he's waking you up super early. Really? Yes, and dogs that are like that, like they just kind of struggle to settle on their own, and they will like work themselves up to a point where they're like waking up at 5 a.m., going to sleep late, you know, they just like cannot settle on their own, and it's just this vicious cycle that they get kind of like stuck in until you're like, Hey, you're being a little crazy and neurotic. I need to set a schedule for you because you are showing me that like you can't decompress on your own.

SPEAKER_03 24:18

Yeah, you know.

SPEAKER_00 24:19

Um, and it also sounds like he's a little bit insecure, you know. He gets uncomfy with you touching him, he gets uncomfy in new environments. Sometimes we don't see that until the dogs reach that full maturity, you know. Um, so in playing a game with him or like do training sessions, like you probably hear me talk about active training sessions all the time. Yeah, um, I would work him like I would, you know, my malinois or any of my other dogs. Like it sounds like he wants a job, like he wants to do something, and his job currently is like bugging you and bugging your older dog.

SPEAKER_04 25:00

Yeah, he's definitely, yeah. Yeah, and even the foster dog. I mean, kind of like, you know, with the foster dog too, like very, like very rough, like not very rough, but a bit rough play, like, you know, and mounting him. The both of them are kind of like mounting each other, but like, you know, they sparred for a while when they met. They get along great. He's not, he isn't, he's not aggressive, like, you know, he growls at me when I pick him up, but he's never even snapped. Um, it's you know, he's he's he is very sweet and he's like very sensitive. Um, but part of the insecurity and the you know, neurotic. I will tell you, like, I started to give him a treat ball in the mornings when I would start working. And then it became like the minute, the second my butt hit that chair, he was whining and losing his mind. Like it, like, so I've stopped it actually because I was like, I can't do this. I can't, you know, I I I can't.

SPEAKER_00 26:08

Yeah. Um, that's hilarious. So that tells me that like he's a pretty smart dog and he learns patterns, right? Which means that he's probably gonna love some training sessions with you.

SPEAKER_03 26:19

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 26:20

Um, the shihtzus that I have trained, they've loved to play tug. I just get like a little tug with them. And what's gonna be super important for you is creating very clear windows of what you're doing with him, right? So, like if I'm taking my dogs out for a training session, I'm gonna say, Are you ready? That are you ready is opening the window of play, of training.

SPEAKER_04 26:46

I'm just taking notes, FYI, when I look away.

SPEAKER_00 26:49

Okay. Um, so you sitting down in your chair has become that cue of you're about to get something really good, right? So we can be really intentional with this. And it doesn't have to take up your entire life. Literally, twice a day for five to ten minutes, okay. Play, tug with him, throw a ball, play fetch, do training sessions, and I can kind of like walk you through what that looks like. But we're always gonna start. You're gonna look at him, are you ready? At first, he's not gonna have any idea what that means.

SPEAKER_04 27:22

Right.

SPEAKER_00 27:23

After a couple times of us doing that, when he hears the are you ready, he's gonna be like, Oh my gosh, we're doing a training session, we're doing something fun. I get to play with mom, right? And then at the end of that session, all done, we're gonna go ahead and close that window. So when I close that window of play, when I close that window of training, I am not necessarily going to put you in command. It would be a good time to either crate him or have him on the leash and like tether him to a piece of furniture, have him chill out. But I'm not necessarily gonna put you into a command and be like, okay, now lay down or go to place or whatever. But if you go to annoy the other dog or bark at me or anything like that, no, and then I'll correct you. So a correction could be like a pop on your leash, a little tug on your leash, you know, no, pop, pop, pop. He'll be like, okay, I'm sorry, especially if he's sensitive, like your corrections could even just be a no, you know, and he's like, Oh, I'm sorry. Um, but just communicating, like, hey, that window is closed, right? You had your time to be crazy, we got your zoomies out, we fulfilled you in that way, but now I'm gonna close the window, and now you have to learn how to chill. So it's all about balance. I want to make sure that I'm fulfilling your needs, but also I'm gonna make you settle because that's part of life as well, right? Okay, so I would get into some sort of schedule or routine with him. It doesn't have to be like, okay, it's 10 a.m. time to go in your crate for an hour. It doesn't have to be like that, but just try to get some crate time every day, some play time every day, okay, and some like you know, tethering or some subtle decompression around you, right? You know, right. But you're gonna be able to do it.

SPEAKER_04 29:23

So about the crate, like if if I'm putting him, if I'm putting him in the crate by himself, right, without her, like what if he starts barking? Because the other day I put him in by himself and he barked for like I think an hour and a half. He never stopped. And I was outside shoveling and I heard him, and I was just like, but you know, I think he was like in full like panic or whatever mode. So what do I do if he is barking?

SPEAKER_00 29:52

Um, I would get into the habit of every time you crate him, let's like start off small, right? So every time you crate him, toss a handful of food in there or a couple treats in there. He goes into the crate, good. You leave for, you know, walk out of the room for a sec, come back in, let him out.

SPEAKER_04 30:10

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 30:11

You know, but ideally, I want you to crate him, walk away, uncrate him before he gets an opportunity to scream. Or not let him out if he's screaming. So it's kind of a combination of like, okay, I'm just gonna practice like closing the door and walking away and coming back. And you can also like put him in the crate, walk out of the room, come back, and like drop some treats in there if you're quiet, right? So you're quiet, I walk away, good. I'll come back in and I'll reward you in that crate. And he'll be like, Oh, what is going on here? You know, like what am I doing to get rewarded? I'm just kind of like hanging out here, not doing anything. But let's say you put him in the crate and immediately he starts screaming. I was just waited out.

SPEAKER_03 30:57

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 30:57

Right? It sounds like he's pretty smart and he's gonna learn very quickly that, like, oh, when I like scream and lose my mind, I don't really get what I want. So as soon as he settles, I'll go and let you out.

Windows Of Play And Clear Markers

SPEAKER_04 31:09

Okay. Yeah, it's funny because he's never barked in the crate because I think almost always he's been in the crate with another dog. Yeah. This last week, I put him in the crate by himself like two or three times, and he's just like barked his head off. Like I even tried it the other day while I was working. I just put him in, I put the foster dog in his own crate, and I just left them. Like, I put some music on and I just went back to work, and he was losing his mind, but he's he never does that with with when he's with the my female dog, like he's he just he hasn't gotten the reps of like being alone, alone, yeah. You know, yeah, I'm seeing that now.

SPEAKER_00 31:53

Kind of like the more advanced thing that you could do is you could e-collar train him and you could correct him for that. So, like when you tell me like I am getting so frustrated and I like hate how he makes me act, basically. You know, like first of all, I relate to that so much because sometimes even my own dogs are like driving me nuts, and I'm like, why are you making me get like this?

SPEAKER_02 32:18

Yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly. I want to be nice and you're making me yell at you because you're not listening.

SPEAKER_00 32:24

Um, anytime I find myself getting frustrated with the dogs, I'm like, I need to put my e-collar on, right? Because my e-collar just gives me a little more oomph, right? It gives my words a little more meaning. And if he's to the point where he's like driving you nuts all the time, you need to be able to say no to him. Like when he's bugging your other dog or when he's like barking in the crate, like the e-collar is gonna help you say no, but I think that there are some steps that you can take before that, okay. Um, which is just gonna be more structure and clear windows of when you can be wild and I am gonna play with you and you know, we'll have fun, and then I'm gonna close that window, and then I expect you to chill. But if he gets go ahead, no, no, you go ahead, finish. But if he gets to the point where like he's not settling, then I would e-collar train him so that I can correct him when he's like amping himself up. Because if he is a little bit on the neurotic side, then he might get caught in this like loop of like, I'm gonna freak out. And sometimes the e-collar helps to disrupt that. Okay.

SPEAKER_04 33:35

Yeah, because I noticed uh like with the foster dog, they'll start to play and they'll just keep like going at it, going at it. Like then next thing you know, they're both getting like hyper, like, you know, bit around too, like, you know, amped up, one's mounted to the other, like, you know. I mean, they play nice too. And I'm like, I'm like, okay, gentle, gentle enough. And then they're like, like they're both, they both look like, I mean, mine especially looks like he's like a demon. I mean, I'm like, what is what what is this? What is this? And I will eventually have to break them up. Like, I'm like, enough, enough. You know, I had a leash him the other day because they just won't, you know, and the foster dog kinds of wants to stop, but then my dog keeps going and going and going, and he'll be like, Okay, I'll play again. But um, the foster dog's like, I'm happy to stop.

SPEAKER_00 34:30

Yeah, I would, I would probably like you can let them play, but then when it gets to the point where it's like not fair play anymore, right? The foster dog's like, okay, like I'm done. Yeah, pull him on a leash and tether him.

SPEAKER_04 34:44

Okay, just like tie your leash to a piece of furniture, you know. Yeah, which is what I did, what what I did the other day. And like I the last few days I've been walking around like having him on a leash. The and one of the reasons I've had him on a leash is it's this whole thing with like him and my my female dog. I don't like it's so and I don't know why it's getting me so crazy, but like just like I don't love that he like obviously jumps all over her. Like she doesn't like it. I want her to feel safe, you know. I don't and she likes him, like they're they're good together, but I know he's she's making he's making her uncomfortable. She's 11 years old, she's more sensitive, right? Of her body, and he's jumping like to the point where he either jumps on her by mistake or jumps close enough to her. She'll snap at him, she'll go after him, you know, here and there. Um, you know, he's just like so like the minute she wakes up, and I I feel like I have to blame myself because I feel like I sort of have like created this thing where like when she wakes up, it's like, oh, good morning, B, like getting all excited, you know, because I don't know, she's got all she's she's got like a terrible past, and like I don't know, like I I started doing that and I feel like I've taught him to be like, oh, Beatrix is up, we gotta like throw her a party. Yeah, yeah. So now when she gets up, I ignore her.

SPEAKER_00 36:12

I'm like, yeah, and I like we don't have to treat our dogs the same, you know. So like I would personally crate him, you know, like I would crate him at night because he's super annoying in the morning, and it's not like he it always has to be that way, you know, but like he's still pretty young, yeah. So it's gonna be a tough habit to break if you like he it's just gonna get earlier and earlier.

SPEAKER_04 36:38

I know, and I think crating him at night is gonna be like it's probably gonna be like a shit show. Yeah, you think I think so because right now with the foster dog, like I'll have to. I mean I don't know, it's gonna be tough. I I I think he'll he'll he'll he'll really struggle with it. I think he'll struggle with it.

SPEAKER_00 36:59

I could try to see what start it during the day. Okay, yeah, okay. You know, and just like get him into the habit of like being created even when you guys are home. Okay, because he's probably like has a lot of FOMO. He wants to like be with you guys and be with the other dogs, you know. So he's probably really gonna struggle like being put away. But when I have a dog that's like that, that tells me, like, oh, I need to work on this.

Managing Multi‑Dog Dynamics

SPEAKER_04 37:30

Yeah. Well, I'm also worried about his confidence, right? Because, you know, it what there was a time when I thought that our lifestyle was such that he was a confident dog. I I think that I may have may have thought he was even when he wasn't, you know, but he didn't give me an indication that he wasn't. He was happy to like greet people, he was very friendly. Um, he seemed pretty relaxed in in situations. And now he's not, you know, um, he's like trying to get up onto my lap, or like if I'm standing, he's trying to like, he's jumping on me, he's like panting, you know, he's like very, very insecure, you know. Um, he's got a lot of anxiety. Um, so I really do, I don't want him to, I don't want him to have that lack of confidence. And also it upsets me that when I touch him, he's like, you know, you know, meanwhile, he's always got to be next to me, right? So it's like you touch me and I'm gonna like stiffen up, but here I'm gonna lay next to you and like, you know, turn up like and give you my belly. But if you touch my belly, I may have to like jump up and you know, like not be on my, you know, on my back. He's it's like fine, it's on his terms. Yes, yeah, it's always, yeah, very much on his terms. And I go slow, so I know like if he's laying next to me, I've been trying to just not even pet him. Like basically, like, we're just gonna be next to each other, but I'm not gonna pet you. I'm not really gonna like pay attention to you, just let you be. Um, because I definitely probably like pet him too much. Um, the other thing he loves to do is like he does love to play fetch, right? There are nights where I for like two hours I'm throwing the ball for him and he'll bring it back, and then he'll like lay there on the couch. He's like, oh, like, and then I'm just like, okay, I've had enough. And like I'll just try to ignore him. And he's just like, he's like panting, like he just gets himself he's just so there's so much.

SPEAKER_01 39:37

Yeah, you have a you have a little melon walk. Um so with your human.

SPEAKER_02 39:42

I just want a little shihtsu. You're like, I didn't sign up for this. I'm like, how can I have six shihtzus and this one is this way?

SPEAKER_00 39:52

Yeah, no, they're they all have their own individual personalities, you know, like you really don't know what you're gonna get. No. And I And I say it all the time.

SPEAKER_04 40:00

I'm like, I'm pretty sure I was bamboozled. I'm like, this family knew very early on this dude is nuts. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 40:10

I can't imagine him being with like an older couple.

SPEAKER_04 40:13

Oh my God. And like literally, he does like 360s, 360s, like when I'm like getting, you know, ready to feed him, he's just like freaking out, freaking out. Like, you know, I mean, he's very food motivated. So there is there is that at least, you know.

SPEAKER_00 40:27

I like to play fetch and he's food motivated. Like, use that to your advantage. But the problem with just like the endless game of fetch is like there's no you haven't closed the window. Yeah. You know, so he's like, Oh, well, if I bug her long enough, she'll play fetch with me again, you know. So, like, that's where those windows of are you ready? All done come into play. Is that like, are you ready means like, okay, now you can be crazy. I'm gonna play with you, we're gonna do the thing. And then when I say all done, we're all done, and you're gonna put the toys up. So you're not gonna have the toys just like out in your house all the time. The toys come out when you want to play the game. Okay, okay, yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 41:09

Cause he'll he'll he'll eventually like fall asleep for for a power nap with a ball in his mouth.

SPEAKER_00 41:16

Yeah, so yeah, he literally, so as soon as you say all done, you pick up all of your toys and you put them like in a basket on your counter or something, you know, like they go away, they only come out for those transitions with you.

SPEAKER_04 41:34

Okay, so don't give him unlimited access to his toys like throughout the day. Correct.

SPEAKER_00 41:40

Okay, you know, and like you can basically the toys that you want to play with him should only come out when you're playing, but let's say he has like a little stuffed animal or something, like you can pick a toy or two, but I don't want you to have like a whole bunch of them, you know. Okay, yeah. We when we just kind of like pick one or two every day, it keeps it interesting and it makes it very clear of like, okay, these are your toys for the day. You know, you can play with these. Um, and then like this toy, this is our special toy, like this only comes out when I'm playing the game with you. Okay, okay. Yeah, all right, I get that. Yeah, that makes sense. So let me show you what like a sample session can look like for you.

SPEAKER_04 42:30

Let me ask you one other thing. Uh, with with the female dog, what what's a way to get him like how can I stop him or or some ways of like distracting him from constantly like wanting to like keep like running over to her, wanting to lick her, like all this fixation on her?

SPEAKER_00 42:52

Have your leash on and tell him no when he goes to do that. No, pop, pop, pop on your leash.

SPEAKER_04 42:57

Okay, so that's all just keep letting keep. Do you think he'll get it eventually and stop?

SPEAKER_00 43:03

Um, it depends on how sensitive he is. That's kind of why I said like the e-collar might be a little bit nice because then we could set boundaries like that, and you wouldn't have to have him on leash all the time. But start with the leash.

SPEAKER_04 43:14

Start with having a choke collar leash or like a harness.

SPEAKER_00 43:18

I would get a slip lead.

SPEAKER_04 43:19

Slip lead, sorry, that's what I meant.

SPEAKER_00 43:21

Yeah, okay. I I would get a slip lead. Um, if he's little, like I think that that would be enough, you know. No, pop, pop, pop. And he's like, Oh my gosh, okay. And then he tries to do it again. No, pop, pop, pop. No, should always be followed up by something. So a question that I always ask people is like, how does your dog know what the word no means? You know, like how does he know what that means? That's probably why you're getting so frustrated, is because it's never been followed up with a correction, you know.

SPEAKER_04 43:51

Yeah. So like it doesn't really mean anything to me. Right. Okay. Yeah, because even like groom, I groom him myself and like bathing and grooming, like everything is escalating, like it's becoming more and more and more difficult. Like every time I groom him, he's more nervous, he's more like, you know, like harder to like groom, like he's more fearful, he's more whatever it is. So whatever's going on with him, it's just like getting worse. It's not getting better. Um, and then I always like, then there's this skill because I'm like, it's always the person's fault. And I'm like, what have I done that's like created this? And you know, and it's just like this constant like battle of like, what am I doing wrong? Because it has to be my fault, but at the same time, I'm like, sometimes I don't feel it's probably a little bit of a lack of structure, but you know, I don't I don't prescribe to the it's the person's fault. Okay, that's good. Because I feel like it's not totally my fault.

SPEAKER_00 44:52

Genetics are a bitch, it's literally genetics, you know. Yeah, it really dictates a lot.

Tools, Corrections, And E‑Collar Options

SPEAKER_04 45:00

And honestly, I think it really came to a head when the foster dog came in the house because he's a five-year-old Chihutsu, and I was like, Okay, all right, this is like this is like the dog I've always had. Like this dog of mine, and like there's definitely like something that I have to deal with because it's not changing, it's only getting worse. But okay, so you're gonna show me what what a session looks like.

SPEAKER_00 45:26

Yeah, and I think like um it there's a learning curve from having chill dogs to getting a dog like him, you know. It really makes you. I literally became a dog trainer because I got a dog like that, you know, and she's a golden retriever, but she's just a backyard bred neurotic mess. And I had to learn the hard way that she's not like my other dog, you know, she's not like my first golden retriever who's a well-bred show line, you know. I didn't really have to train her. So it's as somebody, as somebody with the experience now, I can see those dogs immediately. And I go, okay, you need you need to be treated almost kind of like a working dog, in that like I have to crate you because like you're just gonna make yourself neurotic if I don't make you settle in the crate and if I don't want to give you all of this structure, like my Malinois that I'm gonna take out right now, that's how she is. Like, I I tried to sleep in bed with her one time and she was standing, she's just like can't stress, can't settle, like cannot relax. And I'm like, girl, this is crazy, you know. But like if you don't have experience with dogs like that, you're like, what is wrong with me? What is wrong with this dog? Like, yes, yeah. So I wouldn't blame yourself. It's literally I mean, is he always gonna be like this? I think to some extent, honestly, you know, but like you have to figure out how to live with it in a way that works for you, you know, and like it's part of that is changing your expectations of what you think dog ownership needs to be, you know. Like he might have to be created more than you ideally want him to be created, but like that's just the type of dog that he is, you know. Like he doesn't settle very well on his own, so he has structured, he needs that routine, and especially insecure dogs, they they thrive off of structure and routine. So I think that you'll find that with more of a routine, he's gonna do a lot better. Okay, okay, so this will be a food session. So you can grab some treats, you can grab a handful of his food, whatever that looks like to you. I love to use like these little freeze-dried raw, they're soft, um, and so they can chew them really quickly in the training session. And for your dog, since he's small, you can like break it apart into a couple of different pieces.

SPEAKER_04 48:00

Okay, what kind is that?

SPEAKER_00 48:01

This is Stella and Chewie's needle mixes. Um, open farm also has a freeze-dried raw. There's a lot of brands that have freeze-dried raw, but it's just like these things for soft nuggets.

SPEAKER_04 48:13

Okay, yeah, and I have like these uh rabbit treats that he chews pretty quickly.

SPEAKER_00 48:18

Part of our training is I want to make sure that I have clear words, right? So my marker words. So I'm always gonna start if I have a dog who I've never done this with, I'm gonna start with a get it, which is I'm gonna toss food away from me and it's gonna get the dog chasing the food.

SPEAKER_02 48:35

And then I'm also gonna pair it with a yes, which is reward on me. Yeah, okay. Is gonna be get the food over there, yes is come back to me and get the food. So you're playing the game of kind of chase the food, right? And if he is driving and he likes food, he's gonna love it, right? He's gonna take off after the food, and then before he comes back, yes, he's gonna come back to you. And we're just kind of conditioning the words that we're gonna use.

SPEAKER_00 49:00

Okay, and then depending on kind of what skills you have with them, you can throw in some other things in there.

SPEAKER_02 49:06

So, like if if he knows a sick or a down or like literally anything, it doesn't matter what it is, we can mix those in. Okay.

SPEAKER_04 49:16

Yeah, you know, I'll just tell you this. When he was a puppy, I had him uh I had that one of those like um those uh those little platforms that are like uneven. Yeah, yeah. And I would have him like go up on that, he would get up on that like nothing, like he didn't even up until he was like probably a year and a half. If I had a treat, he would get up on that thing, sit while he was wobbling around. Recently, when I fostered a puppy who I was using that with, I realized Axel no longer like was totally afraid to like even touch that thing. Yeah, it's so like I and then I realized like really how much how much like he's gotten so insecure and fearful of things. I eventually got him to do it a little bit, but only his front feet. He still wouldn't completely go back on it. So I would check that out, you know.

SPEAKER_00 50:05

Yeah, I'm I'm going to that you can kind of like get him in the right head space is with the chasing the food at the beginning, right?

SPEAKER_02 50:13

So, like I don't want to start the dog with something that they're like hesitant to do, right?

SPEAKER_00 50:18

So I'll do yes, get it, yes, and then he's like jacked up. He's like, Okay, yeah, that was easy. Place, you know, I get two paws on the little thing, yes, okay.

SPEAKER_04 50:29

Okay, yeah, all right, place and by himself completely, right? Like, don't like he and I are gonna go into like a separate area, no other dogs around. Correct, right?

SPEAKER_02 50:39

Okay, that's so let me go grab and I'll kind of she's already parking, too.

SPEAKER_04 50:44

Like I'm ready. And what's like Meg, so what's like the the biggest part of this? Is this like is this part of like getting some of their like you know energy out in a more like meaningful way? Is it like structure bonding all of the above? All of the above.

SPEAKER_02 51:04

Okay, I'm using your brain. You have to use your brain during this session.

SPEAKER_00 51:08

You have all of this pent-up energy. Okay, let's make it productive. Let's I'll practice my timing, my marker words, you'll practice your commands, up in place. So I'm just gonna kind of like mix in a bunch of things. Couche.

SPEAKER_04 51:24

And ideally, what like as he gets as all of this kind of happens, maybe he stops fixating a little bit on my female dog because he's using his brain to do other things.

SPEAKER_00 51:36

Yes, he's not super fulfilled right now, you know.

SPEAKER_02 51:40

So we can fill him.

SPEAKER_00 51:44

Um done, and then I'll go and I'll put her in the crate. That all done is marking the end, right? And then I'm either gonna tether you, I'm gonna put you in the crate.

SPEAKER_04 51:57

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 51:58

Like, okay, we did our thing, that was fun, and you can be like, use your dog mommy voice, right? Like, yay, good job. You know, like she's on, he can jump, like he can do crazy dog behaviors, he can bark, right? Like you saw, I said, Are you ready? And Moffin's like, you know, yeah, that's fine. That's the time and the place for it.

SPEAKER_03 52:20

Okay.

SPEAKER_04 52:21

Say all done. This could could I possibly like if I'm doing this, could I possibly like put like the other dogs in their crate like nearby, or should shouldn't they not be like part of even seeing this? They can see it. They can see it, okay. Because I'm just trying to think that I might want to do this with my female dog as well, because she's got she's always has anxiety, she's always had anxiety since I got her because she was a female and so and and a pretty bad one. So she's always had like you know, a certain amount of anxiety. So I think this will be really and she's very food motivated, she's not very training motivated. I got her, I I taught her to sit, but we never could get past sit because she's too suspicious of like what's going on.

unknown 53:09

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 53:10

And just like anytime I have a dog who's like maybe a little insecure, the get it's the chasing the food, like they love tasting the food as it rolls on the ground.

SPEAKER_04 53:18

Yeah, I'm definitely like as you were doing that, I'm like, I think this would be great for Beatrix. She'd really, you know, do well. And so that's a good time if I do that in the morning before I start working. Then I could put him in the crate and and then like let him like take a little nap while like for the first couple hours of my work day.

Building Confidence With Short Sessions

SPEAKER_00 53:36

Yes, exactly. So, like with dogs like him or dogs like Muffin, it's short, productive moments out of the crate where I'm training you or going for a walk. We're doing something engaging. You're not just like sitting around while I'm like on my laptop. It's like if you're out of the crate, I'm doing something with you, and then I'm gonna put you away to help you settle.

SPEAKER_04 54:00

Yeah, okay.

SPEAKER_00 54:01

And it doesn't always have to be that the tether is gonna help him settle outside of the crate, right? But like in the beginning, he's gonna need the tether to help him do that, you know.

SPEAKER_04 54:10

And I'll definitely I I like that. I like the the the tether thing too. Yeah, because I the more I the more I'm talking to you, I just realized like I'm it's just making me think about a lot of things where I'm just like, yeah, he definitely is unfulfilled. Um, and because I'm looking at like my schedules, and I think it has gotten worse since I moved to New Jersey because I'm not like in Colorado, I don't think there was really ever a day where we didn't go for a walk. A walk was a part of every single day because the weather, there was never a situation where the weather really kept us from taking a walk. Even snow, it was usually like still nice, like nice enough to walk. Here it's not like that, it's just completely different. And we're rural, so it's different. And it's definitely like they he's gotten more and more like crazy. And I can't I didn't think it, I didn't think the walks were that big of a deal because he didn't really like, you know, it wasn't like he loved walks so much anyway, but I I I see now that it's at least it was getting something, you know, out of, you know, there was some structure. There was like, you know, a lot that he was getting from the walk.

SPEAKER_00 55:20

So and even just like smelling the environment and getting inside, like it's huge, you know, and a lot of dogs struggle with behavioral issues because they aren't super fulfilled, you know. So we just have to find ways to do that that works with our schedule and our lifestyle, you know. So since you can't go on super long walks anymore, like do these training sessions throughout the day. It I guarantee if you play tug with him, like it could be literally a towel, you know. Get it, you play tug with him. He's gonna be wiped, you know, because that's like a lot of energy. And he's like, Wow, I get to do something with mom. This is fun, I know the game, I know how to win. Same thing with like our yeses and get it. It's like we show them this game, and then in the summer, when it warms up a little bit, you can take that game outside at a park, right? And then that's how we can build up his confidence around people and new environments, right? So we practice the game in like a safe, low STEM environment, and then we can take that game everywhere.

SPEAKER_04 56:26

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 56:26

Make sense, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 56:28

No, totally, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 56:29

And then, like when it is warm, that's when you can, you know, take them to the park or play fetch outside and do all of that stuff, and just kind of look at it now as like winter is your opportunity to build up your marker words, build up the clarity in this game, practice your structure, your crate, all of this sort of stuff while you guys are kind of like stuck inside. And then come spring, you can start to take this game out in new areas. Okay, yeah.

SPEAKER_04 56:55

And like you said, I mean, he is really smart, he really is. Like, because sometimes he's like, he's like, he's like going on and on. I'm like, oh my gosh. And then like I'll be like, okay, he's trying to tell me something. What is he trying to tell me? And then like I'll like go over to where he is, and I'm like, oh, your ball is stuck underneath here. Yeah, it's like there's always something like, or a treat fell underneath the couch, or like something, I don't know, like and I've so I've realized like most of the time he's trying to, he's like communicating with me, you know.

SPEAKER_00 57:30

And he's like finding jobs for himself, you know. He's like, This ball, I gotta get this ball. This ball is under the couch, you know.

SPEAKER_04 57:37

So he's like fixing thing, and I'm like, what job do I give him? I'm like, I don't know like he what he's qualifying for. I'm like, because I felt like he does need something, like that's what you know, and like what's hilarious is that stupid tree fall, which he used to like roll it around, and it used to drive me crazy because you would go under the bed, and I would like every time I had a like go get it, go get it. Now he's like, Oh, I'm not gonna roll it around, I'm gonna take it up on my dog bed and I'm gonna roll it around on the dog bed, and I'm gonna get all the treats out and I'm done. I don't have to roll it around all over.

SPEAKER_01 58:17

That's hilarious.

SPEAKER_04 58:18

He feels around, he just puts it on the bed and like messes around with it until he gets all the treats out.

SPEAKER_01 58:24

Yeah, and you could still like do that. Yeah, yeah, have a cue to it, you know. It could be your are you ready? or like you ready for ball?

SPEAKER_00 58:36

You ready for ball? Like, oh, you are the one who opens that crazy window, and like you don't get the ball unless I say this cue. So you're not gonna be crazy unless you hear that cue. Right.

SPEAKER_04 58:49

And not the same thing every day. Otherwise, then he he's like anticipating it and kind of losing his mind. And like, would you suggest that like if he gets like excited about like all these games we're playing, do I keep doing it like every day at the same time, or do I switch it up so he's not like like if I don't do it, he's like freaking out.

SPEAKER_00 59:10

Don't do it at the same time every day. Don't do okay, like mix it up, you know, and mix up your training sessions. Like sometimes we'll do training sessions in here, sometimes I'll go to a park or a parking lot and I'll do the training session. So, like, change change the times a little bit. Your day doesn't have to look the same, but you should have like the same components each day. Okay, okay.

SPEAKER_04 59:32

Okay, that's good.

SPEAKER_00 59:33

Yeah, and that will like help with a bit of resiliency, you know, because I don't want a dog that's like, it's 10 o'clock, it's time to do my training session, and I'm gonna get exactly what he would do. Yeah, and they get that way with like mealtimes too. Like if people are very much like, I feed my dogs at 5 p.m. on the dot, it's like 4 45, and the dog's like, hello, it's about dinner time, you know. So I don't feed my dogs at the same time every day. It's kind of random, you know, because I don't want to create like that cue of like it's the same thing every single day, you know?

SPEAKER_04 1:00:09

Yeah, I get it.

unknown 1:00:11

Cool.

SPEAKER_04 1:00:12

I don't feed them at the same time, but around the same time. Um, but with shits, you have to be careful because they always tend to like vomit if they don't eat. It's like I don't know what it is. It's like something with the breathe. Like, if they don't eat like for an extended period, like they always like they get like that sour stomach, they end up like puking bile. It's always like, but they've been better because I I feed them somewhere between like 545 and 630, sometimes a little later, depending on when I'm done with work. So they're not they're they're definitely like not used to like the same exact time right now.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:49

Yeah, and if you're doing like these training sessions throughout the day, they'll get a little bit of food throughout the day.

SPEAKER_04 1:00:53

Yeah, and I do give them like a lunchtime snack, you know. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 1:00:58

All right. Do you have any other questions for me?

Turning Winter Into Training Season

SPEAKER_04 1:01:02

No, I think that's it right now. I just, you know, I I I think one of the things that beyond this other stuff, I think one of the things that like you kind of enlighten me is that like this is this is him. Like this, yes, like he is not completely fulfilled and he needs like more structure. He needs he needs certain things to like be a better version of himself, but that like I can't completely like fix what's going on because it's partly like him. And like, because he's been like this since he was little, like it's just gotten worse. And the and where what's gotten worse, I think, is where it's become a little bit more behaviorally like you know, uh chat like whatever driven. Whereas before it was just more like my personality, and I'm like crazy and this. So I need to get back at least to that and not have it like, you know, what's going on right now, which is a lot behavioral. So I think that was that's key too, because I can't I can't get him to be like the foster or the dog because he's not.

SPEAKER_00 1:02:16

And I think like, I don't know, this is one of the issues that I have in dog training, is sometimes we lead people to believe that they can change a lot more than they actually can, you know, and like I have been training dogs for like eight years now, and I know right away the type of dog that I'm working with, you know, and I can like tell people like, hey, you're gonna meet with dog trainers and they're gonna tell you that they have the secret sauce and that they can fix all of these things, but this is the dog that you have, and we can work on that, we can get better, but at some point we have to accept like this is just how our dog is, you know, and I am gonna kind of restructure my expectations to make sure that one, I set this dog up for success and provide the structure that they need and whatever, but also like help them be just a better version of themselves, not like a different type of dog, you know.

SPEAKER_04 1:03:10

Right. Yeah, I think that's that's incredibly helpful, you know. Yeah, a little, a little, a little sad, but you're like, oh god, give me strength.

SPEAKER_00 1:03:22

Yeah, no, I mean, Lucy, my dog who got me into uh dog training. Like, I mean, I took her, we were out in the mountains and I took her off leash and recall, nowhere. I was like, man, if I did not have an e-collar, you you are 10 years old and you would still not listen to me if you didn't have an e-collar on. Like, that's crazy, but that's just the dog she is, you know, she's been like that since day one. And for me to expect her to be any different is kind of crazy.

SPEAKER_04 1:03:52

Yeah, and he's a he is actually like a really good dog, like he he can listen pretty well. And I think it's just gotten so bad them yelling at him all the time, like, don't do this, stop it, stop it, because he's just like all over her all the time. That I think like we've gotten to like a bad place. Like he was a better dog, like you know, a better version of himself. And he was like listening and out, like having fun and being like, he's good on recall, like, you know, and I and we've just got morphed into this like bad place. And I think what you're telling me to do is is what will help to bring him out because he really is unfulfilled. And I I'm like I knew that, but like I I at least I have some tools now on what to do, which I think will be helpful.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:44

Um, are you part of my online community?

SPEAKER_04 1:04:47

I'm not, other than like I follow you on Instagram and I've like I've listened to like a lot of I think most of your um, you know, your podcasts and stuff, but I'm not part of the online community.

SPEAKER_00 1:04:59

Okay, that might be helpful. Um, I can send you like a link to join that, but every Thursday I do a group call with everybody. I'll kind of like pick somebody each week and we'll basically do like a live training session. So like well, that's cool. Yeah. So if you join, we can do a call like one of the weeks where it's like, all right, set up your camera and like I'll walk you through one of these like active training sessions, you know, and then you get to see like everybody else's training sessions because everybody's kind of working on the same thing, you know. Like we're all starting with play and our marker words and building all of that stuff. Um, so yeah, I think that that would be a good resource. Okay. As you're starting to like, yeah, as you're starting to do all of this stuff.

SPEAKER_04 1:05:47

Okay. I thought it was mostly like just material, like and stuff, but knowing that it's like a bit interactive, that's super cool. I'll do that.

SPEAKER_00 1:05:55

You ever want like help or anything? I that's like the thing that I'm most active in. And it's just because it's people who are all like goal-oriented, you know, they're like, okay, I really I really want to do this stuff. So they're joining the calls, and it's just like a good little group. So I'll send you the link to that that you can join. Um, and then when you do, just send me a message in there and just be like, Hey, when can we schedule the live session? And I'll get you, we can either do it like during that time, or we can pick another day and we'll just like do a group call with everybody and we can do a trading session.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:31

Okay, cool. All right, awesome. All right, thank you, Meg. I appreciate it.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:35

You're welcome. It was nice meeting you. We'll keep in touch. And if you have any questions at all, you can always just like DM me or respond to any of the emails that we sent.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:46

Okay, awesome. That's great. Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 1:06:48

All right, have a good one. Good luck.

SPEAKER_04 1:06:50

Keep me updated. All right, thank you. Bye. Bye.

Acceptance, Expectations, And Next Steps

SPEAKER_00 1:06:56

All right, y'all. I hope you got some value from this week's episode. If you'd like to schedule your own virtual session with me, I will include the links in the show notes. Oh my goodness, my own dogs. Thank you so so much for being here. And we'll see you next week.