Our Training Philosophy

My responsibility to pets and their owners is to prevent fear, anxiety or stress, not cause it.  I will always have your dog's welfare and yours in mind when helping you along your training journey. This involves looking holistically at your dog and both their internal and external environments to ensure we can set everyone up for success. 

 

Training dogs takes consistency, repetition, time, and patience. Behavior modification takes knowledge, patience, and the ability to communicate with the dog. You need to learn to read their body language because that is how they communicate, not just with us, but with other dogs.

When working with Pawsitive Purpose, we will ensure you have the support 

needed to understand what your dog needs to succeed, including teaching

you about body language, indicators of pain, stress and discomfort, and

navigating management needed for safety and positive outcomes.  Success

and effective change must be built on a strong foundation based in trust and

mutual understanding.  

 

At Pawsitive Purpose, we use only science-based, kind, effective positive

reinforcement training methods. That means that we NEVER use any aversive

methods such as choke collars, prong collars, e-collars (shock collars) or any

other methods that use fear or intimidation methods. That includes any tools

or techniques that cause dogs pain or discomfort.  We will never force, scare or intimidate you OR your dog into compliance.

​

We use positive reinforcement to teach dogs how to do what we want them to do instead of simply punishing what we do not want.  We instruct our clients how to effectively reinforce their dog for the behaviors we want to see and how to cease reward patterns, either environmental or intentional, for undesirable behaviors.  Behavior that is reinforced will occur again and behavior that is not reinforced will decline.  But, you have to show your dog what you want them to do instead of the unwanted behavior in order to change their behavior patterns.  Training a dog takes time and effort on the parts of all involved. 

We expect our clients to be willing to put the effort in to make changes to get the desired results.  We promise, the work and journey is worth it.  Our goal when working together is for everyone to feel safe and supported at every step of the way.  We encourage questions, curiosity and ask that you hold nothing back when providing information about your dog, their history and your family.  It is OK if you have used these methods and tools in the past and we want to know if you have!  This helps us take all learning history factors into play so that we can adjust our approach to best serve you and your dog.

​

Studies show that the only humane training method is positive reinforcement training. In all of our work with you and your dog, we abide by the guidelines set out by the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior which discourages the use of punishment, pain and fear based methods.   Read the article here from the American Veterinary Society of Animal Behavior to learn more.