dogs and joy – Free Range Dogs

Dog Years: Gifts of Old Age in Tucson, AZ

August 29, 2023August 29, 2023Free Range Dogs

I had a moment of pause the other morning when I went to feed the dogs their breakfast. I rattled the dog kibble in their bowls. It was still early morning and Scout, the female wirehaired pointer, and her yellow lab confederate, Drake, were both Johnny on the spot. Our geriatric male Clumber spaniel,...

Saying Goodbye to a Beloved Dog in Los Alamitos, CA

July 18, 2023July 18, 2023Free Range Dogs

I first heard this oft-quoted saying from a dear friend and fellow dog lover and trainer and writer, Bill Tarrant. Turns out it was originally written by Sir Walter Scott and goes as follows: “I have sometimes thought of the final cause of dogs having such short lives and I am quite satisfied that...

Perimeter Report from the Big Yellow Dog in Oracle, AZ

March 27, 2023March 28, 2023Free Range Dogs

Today Morning Perimeter Report Good morning, Big Yellow Dog here reporting for perimeter duty. Both the girl dog and I were ready at dawn, but the humans lingered in their sleeping chamber. I suspect they may have been feigning sleep in an attempt to stall the important work of property patrol. I can not...

Sharing the Same World as your Dog in St. Augustine, Florida

February 23, 2023March 25, 2023Free Range Dogs

I see lots of different types of dogs in my training sessions. I often have a very brief window of time available to interact with and assess those dogs. The trick is to find a way to communicate effectively with each individual dog. Out of necessity, I have found an approach that works well...

Old Dogs with New Tricks in Oracle, Arizona

February 7, 2023February 7, 2023Free Range Dogs

I often get questions about training older dogs- people wonder just how successful one might be trying to train an old dog? My experience has been that when you have lived with a dog, there comes a turning point. Yes, early on you are training the dog, but not too far down the road...

Swimming with dogs in Honolulu, Hawaii

December 26, 2022March 25, 2023Free Range Dogs

How many dogs? That’s a question folks need to ask themselves. I had a conversation the other day with a friend who just brought a second dog into his family. This was after an older dog had recently passed, bringing their family dog number back down to one. As parents, they were very careful...

Here’s Looking at You, Kid, in Aspen, Colorado

December 17, 2022March 25, 2023Free Range Dogs

Recently we talked about rope, the primary and simplest tool a dog trainer needs. In this week’s blog we will explore the second essential training tool: your voice. It’s the one thing we all use to communicate, and yet we underestimate its power and potential peril when used to train our dogs. Since we...

A Community of Dogs in Kentucky

November 29, 2022March 25, 2023Free Range Dogs

Nicole was unpacking her suitcase this morning and examining her new walking shoes that had just completed their first sojourn. We had just returned from a Thanksgiving trip to Kentucky. I spent mornings and afternoons in a deer stand while Nicole went for daily restorative walks along the narrow travel lanes in this picturesque...

Training Dogs for Off-Leash Hiking in Phoenix, Arizona

October 17, 2022March 25, 2023Free Range Dogs

It matters how you start a thing. This is particularly true when applied to starting a Free Range Dog from puppyhood. People often have a vision of life with their dog- things they would like to do with them and places they would like to go. In the case of the Free Range Dog,...

My Dog, My Self

October 3, 2022March 25, 2023Free Range Dogs

I caught this headline in the newsfeed today: “In a first, scientists show that dogs can smell when humans are stressed.” Who could’ve imagined…other than anyone who’s ever lived with a dog? On a serious note, it is reassuring that science has been able to verify and quantify what most of us already know...