As a professional dog trainer, I hear it all the time: "Why does my dog listen to you, but the minute I take the leash, it all falls apart?"

After decades of training service dogs, you'd think I'd have it all figured out by now. But recently, a five-month-old puppy reminded me of something fundamental.

We often assume that newer is automatically better. But when we look at dog training over the past 100-plus years, we see a mix of highs and lows.

The best gift we can give any dog is confidence to live in our human world without fearing unfamiliar people, unfamiliar dogs, scary stimuli, and strange scenarios.

Dogs can’t tell us how they’re feeling. And for that reason, many people aren’t aware how often pain and physical discomfort can influence their dog’s behavior. 

“What are some important things that dogs need every day?” I opened my volunteer training session at Berkeley Animal Control with this simple question, and hands shot up around the room.

Like most dog folks, you probably use food rewards as part of your pup’s training. And of course, you can always simply hand your dog a little treat, but what’s the fun in that?

As a Search and Rescue K9 handler, I need to feed my dog like the canine athlete he is. 

It’s been over 40 years since I first started teaching off-leash puppy socialization and training classes and introduced the use of food lures and food rewards to the world of dog training.

We all want our dogs to get along with others. But the reality is, not all dogs like all other dogs—and that’s perfectly normal.

Have you ever noticed how much fun it is to anticipate something good?

Search dogs help save lives every day all across our country, but have you ever wondered how these remarkable animals learn to do what they do?

Many of us raise working dogs as pets, without realizing the mismatch. I didn’t set out to raise a working dog but that changed when I met Mick, a pup from California’s rural ranchlands.

A few special working dogs go above and beyond, providing specific help for some of life’s toughest challenges.

Your alarm goes off, and for a brief second, you question every life choice that led you to this moment. But there’s no time for existential crises - you’ve got a dog sport competition to get to.

If you’re interested in agility training, it’s probably because you think your dog will have fun doing it and there is absolutely no better reason to give it a try. But there are plenty of other benefits to be had, whether it’s on a formal agility course or out in the real world.

The ritual is always the same: crack open the apartment door, listen for movement, and pray for an empty hallway.

Mark your calendars, dog fans! The Canine Science Symposium returns to San Francisco State University later this spring on the weekend of May 17-18.

Love comes in many forms, but there's something uniquely magical about the love we share with our dogs.

There are challenges with having a new pup in your life, and that’s true regardless of the dog’s age, breed, or level of training.