Evaluating Service Dog Candidates At the Shelter: 5 Traits to Look For
There are thousands of Service Dogs in the United States. Many of those Service Dogs graduated from programs or organizations, some were owner-trained, and still others trained and placed via other methods. For many owner trainers and programs, rescue dogs are selected to complete Service Dog training, to varying degrees of success.
Thanksgiving and Your Service Dog
It's that time of year when family and friends travel, gather together and celebrate the holidays with big meals, special treats and lots of festivities. While Thanksgiving can be an amazingly fun time of year, for many people, pets and working dogs, it can be very stressful. Here are some important considerations for keeping your Service Dog happy over the coming days.
2015-2016 Guide to Service Dog Travel
While traveling with a Service Dog in the United States is your privilege, navigating airline policies, international laws, TSA regulations, security checkpoints and other commonly-encountered situations can be anything but smooth sailing. Here are some tips, tricks, guidelines and resources to ensure your trip is as stress-free as possible.
Tips and Tricks For Housetraining Service Dogs in Training
Lack of housetraining is one of the few things that a business or place of public accommodation can exclude your Service Dog for, so it’s vital that Service Dogs in Training master proper bathroom habits quickly and early. Here are some tips and tricks on how to rapidly housetrain your Service Dog in Training (or any young puppy).
5 Vital Public Access Skills Every Service Dog Should Know
One of the most commonly asked questions is, “when is my Service Dog in Training ready for public access?” While that’s a question only you or your dog’s trainer can answer, here are 5 vital public access skills every Service Dog or Service Dog in Training needs to know before beginning work in public.
Howly Jowly 2014 Christmas Giveaway
The 2014 Howly Jowly Giveaway is closed! Howly Jowly 2014: The Basics; The basics are simple: we're giving away training books, really awesome tasty treats and superbly high quality toys to as many Service Dog and SDiT teams as we can. There is no cost to enter or participate, shipping is free and anyone in the United States with a Service Dog or Service Dog in Training, whether or not you're a USSDR registered team, is welcome to participate.
Helping Your Service Dog Generalize Behaviors
We have heard the expression location, location, location as it pertains to real estate, but for those of us familiar with Canine Learning Theory and service dog training, changing location is paramount when it comes to teaching your dog to "generalize" or learn to do a behavior or command in any given situation or environment.
Service Dog Breeds for Those With Allergies
When considering partnering with a Service Dog, there are quite a few factors to consider. One commonly occurring question is allergies. Many believe that their allergies will prevent them from finding happiness and stability in their life through a Service Dog due to some evil hives, swollen glands and itchy eyes. There is good news though! There are many types of hypoallergenic breeds which they could consider.
Service Dog Quest: Impulse Control
During the 2014 Service Dog Challenge Week Four, you started reinforcing handler focus. By this point, your partner should offer rock-solid eye contact almost as a default. Now, it's time to engrain that handler focus in all situations and make it a habit. If there's something distracting going on, then self control and impulse control are the only things keeping your partner's attention on you.
Service Dog Quest: Focus, Fido!
During Week 3, your focus was on learning about the theory behind distraction proofing and changing canine behavior. Now that you've studied the concepts, it's time to put them to work in the week 4 Service Dog Challenge: "Focus, Fido!"