Teaching Humans

As educators we believe it's important to teach our human clients the skills they need to become self-sufficient in meeting the needs of their canine companions. Simply training the dog is not enough. We stress the need to focus on building strong relationships based on mutual understanding, helping clients bridge the often vast gap that can occur when trying to communicate with another species.

Clients learn dog skills through detailed written programs and handouts, one-on-one coaching, demonstrations and explanations of methods and techniques, and frequent progress checks.

Residency Program

Teaching Dogs

Group classes can be an appropriate way to teach dogs new behaviors. We offer several, and their progression is designed to accommodate your dog's developmental needs in the first two years of life. Human children are required by law to be in school through twelfth grade so that as adults they are more likely to be responsible and socially skilled. We believe dog "children" should also be in school until they're two, a developmental age roughly equivalent to an 18-year-old human. Well-trained dogs pose fewer behavioral risks and are much more fun to be with!

Classes are taught by professional instructors, not volunteers, using research-based curricula. Classes are kept small (6 dogs) and the presence of both a lead instructor and an assistant instructor insures all dogs get plenty of individual attention and coaching. The following classes are currently offered:

• Life Skills for Puppies
• Basic Manners
• Advanced Manners
• Tellington TTouch^TM

Life Skills for Puppies

Why Should We Go? At the age of 8 weeks, your pup’s brain is fully-formed and ready to learn – the best time of her life for training. Positive, fun training methods are especially important at this time, because coercive teaching methods used during critical periods of development (3-16 weeks), can set the stage for fearful or aggressive behaviors later in life. The gentleness of our methods, plus lots of food and fun, minimizes the potential for later onset of behavioral issues. Classes are limited to 6 puppies, allowing the teacher to spend more time with each pup and on individual family puppy issues. Instructors are professional trainers and behaviorists.

Is There An Age Limit? Puppies up to the age of 18 weeks may enroll. Exceptions may be made on a case-by-case basis

What Will We Do? Any good puppy class will have three main goals:

• Shaping appropriate social behavior with other dogs and people, including children. Activities include:
  • Off-leash play
  • How to redirect mouthing, biting and jumping
• Shaping temperament. Activities include:
  • Exercises to promote the pup's calm acceptance of touch anywhere on its body
  • Developing the pup's ability to settle into a calm physical and emotional state on command
  • Exercises to prevent resource guarding
• Teaching basic manners. Activities includes:
  • Sit, stay, down, come, and let’s go (heel) using the lure-reward method of training.
  • Proofing behaviors against distractions.
  • Practical applications such as waiting in front of an open door.

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Cost: $125. Includes the Puppy Portfolio and the booklet Way to Go!

Basic Manners

Why Should We Go? Just as human children are required to go to school through 12th grade, we believe dogs should be in school until they're 2 years old. This reduces the chance for behavior problems, and helps to maintain a strong and positive relationship with your 4-legged family member. Classes are limited to 6 dogs, allowing the teacher to spend more time with each dog and on individual family dog issues. Instructors are professional trainers and behaviorists.

Is There An Age Limit? Dogs over the age of 18 weeks may enroll. Dogs can learn at any age.

What Will We Do?

• Shaping appropriate social behavior with people, including children. Activities include:
  • Loose-leash walking
  • Promoting engagement which decreases response time to cues
  • How to greet visitors and friendly strangers appropriately
• Teaching basic manners. Activities includes:
  • Sit, stay, down, come, using the lure-reward method of training.
  • Proofing behaviors against distractions.
  • Practical applications such as waiting in front of an open door.
  • Making you the center of your dog's attention, so responses to all cues are crisp and immediate.

Tell Us More!

Cost: $125. Includes the book Family Friendly Dog Training (McConnell, Moore).

Advanced Manners

Why Should We Go? Just as human children are required to go to school through 12th grade, we believe dogs should be in school until they're 2 years old. This reduces the chance for behavior problems, and helps to maintain a strong and positive relationship with your 4-legged family member. Advanced Manners builds on the skills learned in Basic Manners, increasing your dog's responsiveness to your cues in more challenging situations. Classes are limited to 6 dogs, allowing the teacher to spend more time with each dog and on individual family dog issues. Instructors are professional trainers and behavior counselors.

Is There An Age Limit? Dogs over the age of 18 weeks may enroll, after they have completed Basic Manners. Dogs can learn at any age.

What Will We Do?

• Shaping appropriate social behavior with people, including children. Activities include:
  • Learning to quickly settle the dog from an excited state.
  • Increasing your dog's ability to attend to you despite distractions.
  • Mastering appropriate greetings.
• Continuing manners training in more challenging situations. Activities include:
  • Helping your dog respond to cues when the context is changed.
  • Lengthening the distance and duration of stays.
  • Teaching a fail-safe recall.
  • Mastering loose-leash walking.
  • Teaching remote signals.

Tell Us More!

Cost: $125. Includes bound training manual.

Tellington TTouch^TM

The "T" stands for "Tellington:" Tellington TTouch^TM, a method created by Linda Tellington-Jones initially to help resolve behavioral and performance issues in horses, and since adapted for use with companion animals.

• Uses non-habitual, gentle, non-threatening movements and manipulations to awaken and activate unused brain cells and neural pathways.
• Helps change ineffective communication and behavior patterns.
• Causes no fear to the animal
• Improves learning ability

TTouch^TM is proving increasingly valuable as a tool in the resolution of behavioral issues in companion animals, including:

• Aggression,
• Separation anxiety,
• Fears and phobias,
• Relief of stress, and improved performance in obedience, agility and other dog sports.

TTouch^TM is performed by certified Practitioners who complete a rigorous 2-year training program during which they are mentored by an experienced, certified Practitioner. A keystone of the program is the completion of 15 case studies which describe in detail the protocols used by the Practitioner-in-Training, along with their rationale and results. Certified Practitioners hold membership in an international Guild, and must pursue continuing education to keep their skills and membership current.

Participate in a TTouch^TM Workshop

Click here to view Kindness Canine's Workshop schedule.

Click here to view what you'll learn at a Kindness Canine Workshop.

If you or your organization would like to learn more about TTouch^TM and how it might benefit your companion animals, please contact Claudeen Mc Auliffe, Certified Practitioner, at Kindness Canine Behavior Consultants.