On a daily basis at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, I tell people, “My first piece of expert advice is to go home, throw away this retractable leash, and buy a standard 4′-6′ leash.” In my blog on The Key Elements To A Proper Heel, I discuss in more detail what you…
Anytime someone is not located close to our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we always get asked if we can recommend a good certified dog trainer. This is something that always amuses me. People do not realize, there is NO “real” dog trainer certification. Meaning, if you are a licensed plumber, electrician,…
Every single day at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia we hear people say, “My dog listens to my husband (or wife), but he doesn’t listen to me.” So, what we immediately begin doing is asking them questions to see “why” the dynamic of your relationship is the way it is. Generally,…
At our dog training lessons in Northern Virginia, we always cover the things you should and should not do while working with your dog in-between sessions. We will cover a few of these things in this blog. Overtraining: Regardless of what training method you choose to train your dog, one of the biggest…
At our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we do everything from personal protection dogs (bite dogs), drug dogs, basic/advanced obedience, and behavioral issues. So naturally, people see our numerous videos on YouTube of our trained dogs doing bite work and they call us or email us to because they want their dog to do…
At our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we always get asked about foods that people should avoid their dog eating. There are quite a lot of of them, actually. Anyone with a dogs knows that it can sometimes be hard to completely prevent your counter-surfing dog from snatching some foods off of…
Training a dog to heel is one of our most requested and needed commands at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia. We currently have over 430+ Before/After videos on our Youtube Channel, most of these videos show dogs we have trained off-leash heeling with distractions. The picture above is me working a Belgian…
Toy Aggression is a behavioral issue we deal with a lot at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia. First, we will start with prevention, to ensure you never have this problem with your dog. Anytime we do our puppy training classes at our Northern Virignia facility, I always tell the owners to get their…
At our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we hear stories of owners getting bit while breaking up a dog fight on a daily basis. Once this happens, the owner usually calls us for two reasons: 1) Because their dog got into a fight with another dog and they want to help ensure it…
At our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, I always ensure I warn people about killing their dog’s drive through obedience training. When many people come through our dog obedience training program in Virginia, they are so excited to have their new, listening, well-behaved, and good mannered dog. With our training sessions, we tell people…
We deal with leash aggression in dogs weekly at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia. An important study to first reference is one which was recently done on 2000 dogs at Mendel University in the Czech Republic. In 2000 dogs of varying breed, age, and size; researchers noted that dogs who were ON a…
At our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we always get asked, “What is the hardest breed of dog to train?” Seemingly, this is a very simple question that someone is waiting for us to give them an immediate answer; however, it’s not that simple. At our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we train…
Your dog eating their own stool actually isn’t uncommon, it’s a question we get regularly at our dog training business in Northern Virginia. Many owners are completely appalled and disgusted at this behavior; however, it’s somewhat common and normal for many dogs. The official term for this behavior is Coprophagia. Four of the most common…
We stress mental and physical stimulation on a daily basis at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia. The importance of physical and mental exercise cannot be stressed enough as to what it takes in order to raise a perfect dog. Dogs are like people—they need stimulation, they need to get out, and they need…
We always get questions about owners’ dogs submissively or excitedly urinating during our puppy training classes in Northern Virginia. What we hear all of the time is, “My puppy does this anytime my husband comes in the room, I swear he has never hit him or did anything to him.” People automatically assume that this…
Many owners ask, “How do I stop my dog from chewing on things when they are home alone?” This is an issue we correct on a daily basis at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia. First, you must realize some of the main reasons that dogs do chew or destroy things: -Attention Seeking -Teething…
At our dog training program in Northern Virginia, we stress the importance of verbal and visual cues in training our dogs. Dogs learn mostly through verbal cues, visual cues, vocal tones, repetition, correction, and praise (just like us humans). First, we will discuss keeping your commands simplistic! In the Marine Corps, we used the acronym,…
We only do private dog training sessions at our facility in Northern Virginia, there are many reasons for this. First, I always say, “I have never seen a dog that impressed me in obedience that did it through group training or group sessions.” I have said this for years, and to this day,…
At our Dog Training Center in Northern Virginia, we get asked about group classes on a daily basis. Being around almost every style of training program, I have yet to be impressed with group classes or group training sessions. As I say on a daily basis at our private dog training sessions in Northern Virginia,…
At our Dog Training Program in Northern Virginia, many people ask “How can I have a healthy, happy, and energetic dog?” Everyone who’s ever owned a dog, knows that special feeling you get when they welcome you home after a long day. They share their unconditional love with you whether you’ve been gone for five…
At our Puppy Training Classes in Northern Virginia, we address play biting and nipping a lot. Many people refer to this behavior as different things such as, play biting, nipping, and mouthing. Some dogs are more prone to this than other dogs; such as, Malinois, Australian Shepherds, German Shepherd, Huskies, etc. These are all what…
At our dog training center in Northern Virginia, we always tell people to stay away from dog parks. Many people wrongly assume that dogs parks are great for socializing, letting their dog burn off energy, and playing; however, more often than not it will eventually end badly. Do not take your puppy to dog parks…
People ask about clicker training everyday at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia. This method is also based solely on positive reinforcement training for dogs. If you are not familiar with clicker training, a clicker is a small mechanical-like device that the owner (handler) holds, and when the thumb presses down on…
Naturally people ask us, “How can I get my dog to listen when he is distracted” like your dogs at your training in Northern Virginia? Many people watch our 400+ videos on our YouTube Channel and they see the dogs we train in Northern Virginia performing flawless obedience: outside, off-leash, with distractions (people, dogs, cars,…
When many people are looking for an obedience training program in Northern Virginia, they always ask us, “Is it better to participate in the training with my dog, or do your 2-week board and train intensive obedience training program?” I always tell people, when it comes to which dog training program is right, there is…
On a daily basis at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we are talking to people about reading their dog’s body language to better help predict their dog’s behavior and make them understand their dog better. There is a big misconception with people that a wagging tail means a happy dog, that…
We deal with food aggressive dogs at our training facility in Northern Virginia, a lot. So, many of you are probably wondering, “How can I stop food aggression with my dog?” Click here to see a before/after video of a food aggressive Pit Bull we just recently trained at our dog training facility in Northern…
The question always comes up, “How do I keep my dog from escaping his or her crate (cage)?” This is a very simple question; however, more of a complex answer. First off, many dogs who are escape artists and are constantly escaping their cage, may have some form of separation anxiety. There are a couple…
At our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, we do a puppy training/consultation program as early as 8-10 weeks old. However, we really do not put too much focus on “obedience” per se at that age, we focus on things that we consider more important for puppy development; such as, bonding, socialization, pack leadership, crate…
On a daily basis at our dog training facility in Northern Virginia, people contact us and ask if it’s possible to fix their people aggressive dog. When working with dogs that are people aggressive, I believe the first step is understanding what the aggression is based off of before you can properly create a training…
Literally every day owners contact us and ask, “Can your dog training program in Northern Virginia fix our dog aggressive dog?” I always respond with the same answer, “It’s impossible to guarantee that our training will make your dog love other dogs. What we can guarantee you is that you full CONTROL of your dogs…
Many people have tried many different tricks and techniques with their dogs and they still wonder, “What is the best dog training method for training my dog?” There are several training methods that can be used to train your dog. One of the most common and popular methods is reward-based or treat-based training. This training…
Many people ask, “What is the best type of dog to get?” or “What is the best breed of dog to get?” In order to raise the perfect dog, you have to pick the perfect dog—that is, the perfect dog for you. Unfortunately, I cannot answer that, only you can. The question you should ask…
People ask us all of the time, “Will shock collar training hurt my dog?” Or, “Will shock collar training ruin my dog’s personality and turn him into a robot?” All of these statements and questions could not be further from the truth. Anytime I hear the term, “Shock Collar, ” it literally sends chills…
Bringing home a new puppy is like Christmas every morning, until you realize that you need to house train your puppy. You know, those mornings when you wake up to a mess in your floor. Many people wonder, “How do I train my new puppy?” House training a new puppy can be emotionally and physically…
At Off-Leash K9 Training, we are considered the best dog training program in Virgina and even far beyond, as you will see in our reviews, 400+ videos, and celebrities who have flown their dogs to us from all throughout the United States. What Can You Expect during Dog Training? Are you excited to have your…
Many people hear everyone constantly say, “You need to be the pack leader.” However, many of you ask, “How do I be the pack leader for my dog?” What does it mean that dogs are pack animals? This means they always roam and stick together in a pack. Lions are the same way; you will…
Many people quickly realize that their dogs will listen great inside, but then they wonder, “How do I get my dog to listen with distractions?” Off leash dog training Northern Virginia, ensures that a dog behaves just as well when off the leash as they do when they are on it. If you attempt to…
5 Common Misconceptions about Dog Training Ever since we’ve opened our training school for dogs right here in Northern Virginia, we’ve come across all sorts of inquiries—and misconceptions. We do feel bad about the latter because dog owners miss a very important service all because they’ve been misled for the longest time. So we opted…
Once you have gone through the processes of house training and basic off-leash training, why not go one stage further? Competition obedience training in Northern Virgina can be fun, interesting, and best of all your dog will really enjoy it. Dogs are made to be active, and competition obedience training fits the bill perfectly. Our…
