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Chocolate Lab UNLEASHED

February 14, 2011 By Duke Ferguson 4 Comments

Rolo is 5 years old and all things chocolate labs are supposed to be; hyper, fun, goofy, lovable, etc. But, he was also stubborn and unruly. We had tried puppy obedience classes when he was small, he pulled so badly we couldn’t get him into the classroom and inside, he was too distracted to learn anything. The classes didn’t seem to help at all and to be honest, I’m not sure we “passed” them. We had a private trainer in two different times over the years, we learned basic obedience, but Rolo was dominant and stubborn, it took him weeks to give in to the down command. I tried books, videos and searched the internet for help. We had different collars, leashes, halties and harnesses. Over the years, we’ve adapted our lives around Rolo’s issues. Moving across the street away from other people and dogs while walking, not taking him to places like the lake or the park, keeping him fenced in the yard because he’d run as soon as he’d realize he wasn’t leashed, and putting him outside or in another room when company came because he’d jump all over them. It was embarrassing to have people in, it was embarrassing to take him out. The last straw came when we had to take him to the vet and his behavior landed us in a private room away from everyone else. I was feeling desperate to have some control over my life and this dog, and found Unleashed Potential during one of my internet searches. The upk9 trainer came to the house and gave a demonstration, explained his methods and left all the information I needed. At first, I was very skeptical, I had tried a lot of things so far and wasn’t convinced this was going to work.

But, I decided to go ahead, and the results have been amazing.

Rolo now plays in the front yard while I shovel snow without a fence! He’s been skating with us for the first time and never once wandered off, not even when two large dogs showed up. He has been learning to greet people without scaring them, and has advanced enough to take him off leash in Point Pleasant Park. We still have a lot to learn, but I’m confident we can master it. We even made it to the vet without being removed from the waiting room!!

I am impressed on how quickly the results were seen with proper direction and support. I’m really looking forward to summer, cottages, lakes and beaches, Rolo is loving his new freedom!!

Holly Flemming
Halifax, NS

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Dog Funny Voicemail of a Dog Trainer

December 18, 2010 By Duke Ferguson Leave a Comment

Dog Funny Trainer Voice Mail ( Funny )

Hello: This is the Magic Wand Dog Training Center, we are unable to
come to the phone but please press or enter the number for your
request, we will return your call as soon as possible.

Press 01 to tell me your dog has been asked to leave the local
obedience club because he won’t sit, wait, down or come when called
(even when on lead) so you thought you would try agility.

Press 02 if your Labrador is morbidly obese and you thought you would
try agility.

Press 03 if you want 30 minutes of advice and have no intention of
paying for it.

Press 04 if you describe your dog as ‘a little bit naughty’ when what
you really mean is that the b*st*rd bites … hard.

Press 05 if you want puppy training classes but your Boxer is already
12 months old.

Press 06 if you believe that just by turning up to one puppy training
class and doing no work whatsoever at home, your puppy will grow up to
be a well adjusted companion.

Press 07 if your nervous, aggressive GSD has bitten and hospitalized
Aunt Maude, the vet, and your child and you want me to re-home it.

Press 08 if you have three children under school age, an invalid parent
living at your home, a partner who works away, are pregnant with twins
and want your 8 month old Dalmatian that never gets a walk to stop
chewing every thing in sight.

Press 09 if you want to tell me my advice has not worked even though
you have not tried it yet.

Press 10 if you want to be dog trainer and behaviorist because you like
animals better than people.

Press 11 if you are 15 years old and want to do work experience with me
but would faint if I asked you to pick up dog poop.

Press 12 if your dog is aggressive with other dogs but you want to join
one of my groups because it will be nice for him to have some friends.

Press 13 if you cannot afford my private rates and want a discount
because you only have one BMW.

Press 14 if you are cancelling your lesson that is due to start in 30
minutes and have no intention of paying the cancellation fee.

Press 15 if you do not believe in rewarding a dog and know that clicker
training does not work because your friend Beryl said so.

Press 16 if you think your dog knows he has done wrong when you tell
him off and that he obeys you because he respects you and acknowledges
you are a superior being.

Press 17 if you want me to wave my magic wand over your
contacts/weaves/start line waits in just one session and will then tell
me it did not work when you go to a show just two days later with no
training in the meantime.

Press 18 if you have eleven Jack Russell bitches in a small flat and
you want me to teach them not to fight each other.

Press 19 if you already know everything about your breed because this
is the fourth one you have had and I cannot tell you anything new.

Press 20 if you want me to pick up your dear departed dog’s ashes from
the vets and keep them at my house because you are too upset to have
them in your home (true!).

Press 21 if you could not use a Gentle Leader, indoor crate, or harness
because they are cruel.

Press 22 if you will not put a muzzle on your deadly aggressive dog
because you do not want people to think he is nasty.

Press 23 if you want to leave an increasingly angry message for the
third time this week demanding an urgent call back and yet again forget
to give your name or number.

Press 24 if, having ascertained I am out, you wish ask my engineer
husband for behavioral advice about your pet.

Press 25 if you wish to fill up my answering machine tape with an
incoherent rambling message.

Press 26 if want your intact male adolescent dog to spend its days
lying patiently on your front step on your unfenced property because
dogs shouldn’t want to run away, should they.

Press 27 if you want me to teach your untrained border collie to play
with sheep because you think he will like it.

Press 28 if your dog thinks its name is “NO”.

Press 29 if it is before 8am or after 10pm and you want to ask how to
stop your 13 week old puppy from biting your 5, 7 and 9 year old boys
when they play fight with it.

Press 30 if you have taken trouble to socialize and train your pet and
want to make an appointment to learn even more fun stuff. No need to
hold, I’ll put you right through!

Do you have problems training your dog or dogs? Do you want help? No matter the size, sex, age or breed We Can Help!

To find a UPK9 Trainer near you or to Book your FREE Demonstration and Consult Click Here

For more information on how you can purchase Dog Training Genesis and become a member CLICK HERE or on the photo of Duke and his dogs.

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Dog Videos: Training in a Hurricane

December 2, 2010 By Duke Ferguson Leave a Comment

This is how dedicated our clients can be.

Short clips taken from a group class Unleashed Potential PEI had during Hurricane Earl. The winds were not really 130mph here on PEI, I was just making fun of the day we had on PEI, it was not a bad day for a hurricane. I am glad we did not get hit like other places were. Scary stuff!

I wont quit my day job to become a reporter. I think I’ll stick to dog training.

Do you have problems training your dog or dogs? Do you want help? No matter the size, sex, age or breed We Can Help!

To find a UPK9 Trainer near you or to Book your FREE Demonstration and Consult Click Here

For more information on how you can purchase Dog Training Genesis and become a member CLICK HERE or on the photo of Duke and his dogs.

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E-collar or Shock Collar? FROM OLD SCHOOL PUNISHMENT TO A MODERN DAY COMMUNICATOR

December 1, 2010 By Duke Ferguson 3 Comments

Sadly, there is too much controversy about e-collars, remote collars, shock collars….what ever you want to call them in the dog training world.

E collar haters say they are inhumane and abusive and that they send a jolt through the whole body of the dog. Some say the dogs only work because they are scared to be shocked. There are a few blogs and websites that bash e collars and make them scary to others but the fact is most of these people have never felt one and don’t have any idea what they are really talking about. Then there are some of the videos of idiots turning collars wide open like something you would see on the movie Jackass and stimulating themselves wide open? There are too many people who view an e collar as the last resort to any training IF they were to use one.

Because of the lack of education and knowledge about e collars, I feel this ignorant way of thinking comes from way back in the days of e- collar use when the technology was poor and the use was quite harsh. Many years ago in the beginning days of e collars there was only one level possibly 2 or 3. They were meant for 1 thing. STOP the dog. ZAP!!
People need to wake up and realize that technological advances have made leaps and bounds since those days and things are different now.
When you go to physiotherapy and they put a tens machine on you or a muscle stimulator, are they brutally shocking you? NO! Are you scared and in pain? NO! In fact its just the opposite and there are medical benefits and pain relief in the application. The thing is, the therapist is using the tool properly. Can the Tens machine be unpleasant? Sure! If the person using it does not know what they are doing?
It is time to stop being so narrow minded in the thinking that a remote collar can ONLY be used as a tool of punishment or correction, this is simply not the case

The problem I see today, with an e collar is that to many people can buy one with absolutely no idea how to use or apply it. This becomes a problem created by the uneducated handler and does not mean the tool is bad or inhumane.

With today’s modern e collars there are many different levels of stimulation that gives us many options when training just like a tens only not as strong.

Do you realize now we can use a the remote collar gently as a prompt or a cue for attention? Its true!! Just like tapping someone gently on the shoulder. The physical touch of the collar tap is very effective to break through distraction and re direct attention when the dog has focused his attention somewhere else, and yes of course when the dog redirects the attention back to the handler you can give positive reinforcement with a treat. The collar tap does not have to be a high level stimulation in order to work.

The only thing I see that makes this so hard to understand amongst trainers is personal emotional feelings and narrow mindedness. This is very Sad!!

I have trained all over North America training with many different dog trainers and have gone to many professional training schools that teach the complete opposite theory and I see dog trainers disagree and argue on topics way to often. It gets very hard on the head after a while.

Take a Clicker trainer, a traditional leash trainer and a e collar trainer that are set in their ways and put them in a room together. Ive been in this position before and it is stressful to say the least. They do not agree on very much at all and what they fail to see is that they all have pros and cons to their methods if used narrow-mindedly. They are not wrong they are just limiting their ability. In today’s society, IN THE REAL WORLD, trainers need to open up their minds to understand each other and to learn to use a balance of both positive and negative motivation. We seem to fear what we don’t understand so to better ourselves open the mind and get educated.

Here are some links to a couple of videos in relation to this blog post

All comments welcome

Duke Ferguson, ABCDT, CMT. Owner of Unleashed Potential K9 Academy.

We have Dog Trainers currently serving All of PEI, Halifax ,Nova Scotia,

www.unleashedpotential.ca

Do you have problems training your dog or dogs? Do you want help? No matter the size, sex, age or breed We Can Help!

To find a UPK9 Trainer near you or to Book your FREE Demonstration and Consult Click Here

For more information on how you can purchase Dog Training Genesis and become a member CLICK HERE or on the photo of Duke and his dogs.

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Obedience training in Halifax N.S. Canada.

November 24, 2010 By Duke Ferguson Leave a Comment

We adopted our adorable border collie Strider at 8 weeks old. We came home proud and excited with the belief that we would be able to train this dog as we had our last dog. However something went terribly wrong, and instead of having a dog who brought happiness and comfort to our family, we were stressed out and began to hate this adorable puppy. It became almost impossible to leave the house because Strider would get into the garbage, eat the carpet, eat the walls, eat beds, eat rocking chairs, etc. Talking him outside was even worse, to the point that upon seeing other people we would run in the opposite direction, sometimes into peoples yards. We got to the point that we thought we had tried everything; puppy obedience school; training books; training videos; various collars; private trainers, and we were considering putting Strider up for adoption. And then we found Ted. Within an hour of Ted being in our home working with Strider we saw a huge change. Now, several months later I can walk around my neighboured without a leash and without fear. We can go to the park, be relaxed and have other dog owners remark on how ‘perfect’ Strider is. Strider still has potential to learn more, and now that we are more confident in our methods, we can teach him more. Without Ted and his training I would still be lost. To anyone considering this method of training my family, Strider and I recommend it 100%.

Emmaline Boutilier, Halifax N.S.

Do you have problems training your dog or dogs? Do you want help? No matter the size, sex, age or breed We Can Help!

To find a UPK9 Trainer near you or to Book your FREE Demonstration and Consult Click Here

For more information on how you can purchase Dog Training Genesis and become a member CLICK HERE or on the photo of Duke and his dogs.

Learn More About Dog Training Genesis CLICK HERE !

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