Get a jar of Holiday Dog Cookies and leave them outside the front door for guests. Make a cute sign with instructions like Dog-in-training for the “Good List.” Ask my pup to sit for its reward. Leave a leash hanging at the door! When the doorbell rings, you can gain control of your excited dog by quickly clipping on the leash and stepping on it to prevent your dog from jumping up. Let’s keep those paws off the holiday sweaters! Be sure to hang the leash at the door guests use to enter your home. If your leash is in a different room, you are not likely to retrieve it before going to the door. Get into the Holiday Spirit and buy a holiday-themed leash to hang at the door!

Brush up on your dog’s “Place” skills before you start having visitors come over. To help your pup out initially, use a leash to tether your dog on their place. With all the holiday food and feast around to tempt your dog, having a strong “Place” will help encourage their impulse control. Feel free to give the office a ring to brush up on this skill before the holiday food starts arriving.
Take your pooch for a LONG walk before your guests arrive! A tired dog is less likely to get into trouble

By beginning training early, you set your dog up for success by giving them clear rules and boundaries thereby allowing them to find and understand their place in your home and family. Socialization aside, formal obedience training can begin at any time. Early training impacts your dog’s mental state of mind as well as your relationship with your pup. Training teaches your dog to exercise self-control. This self-control makes it possible for your dog to apply your rules and boundaries successfully and in turn makes your life with your dog more enjoyable! The sooner you get started, the sooner you can have success and enjoyment with your best pal!

Keep in mind, it is never too late to start training. The Jabula Team received such a great compliment from the family of a recent Board and Train graduate, Huckleberry. Huck started his training when he was ten years old, showing you really can teach an old dog new tricks. His dad noted, “He’s been calmer, happier, more relaxed since he got home. He minds [sic] so much better now and, just as important, seems to be really happy to be asked to do something, allowed to choose his action (rather than feeling only compelled to comply), and then content with his station/lot in life at that moment.” Huckleberry’s dad went on to add, “Having lived with Huckleberry for more than 10 years now, it was hard for us to imagine if or how he could shed some of his anxieties and relax a little… With the way HB has returned to us, it has really struck me how kindly you and everyone at Jabula treated him.”

Huckleberry was a wonderful student and we enjoyed working with him and his family. We’d love for you to have the same experience as Huck’s family. In an effort to encourage you to continue productive work with your dogs, we are offering a December brush up special for our approved boarding clients over the holidays; call the office for more details. And remember, there’s no time like the present to start training!