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Our No-Cost Training Program for Rescues.


At 19 years old, I was hired by the local humane society as an animal behaviourist. I did not really have any official experience training dogs, but had worked with horses, and in a dog daycare over the years prior. I was ecstatic to receive the job - my first real, with benefits, career! I applied and accepted the job without even reading the job description. I soon realized what the job entailed, how the shelter and behaviour department ran its day to day operations, and how the animals coped in such a foreign environment. My daily tasks involved assessing abandoned and surrendered dogs for adoptability, walking and training dogs waiting for the adoptive homes, and teaching classes and consultations for new pet adopters.

This particular shelter was able to house close to 100 dogs, with only 25 or so adoptable at any given time. The rest would be housed in the holding area. The behaviour assessment scored dogs in different areas such as touch tolerance, sociability towards strangers and other dogs, protectiveness of food or treats, and general life skills. If they failed any of these areas, they were not considered adoptable. Once deemed unadoptable, they had only a few options - they could go to a foster home or foster based rescue to determine if their behaviour and skills would improve in a more familiar home environment. If such a foster home or outside rescue was unavailable (which was often the case with higher needs, aggressive, or reactive dogs) the result was humane euthanasia. These decisions would be made over the course of 1-5 days.

Now, not every shelter or rescue has the same procedure as the one described, and many are lucky to be able to support higher needs dogs for long periods of time while they wait for the perfect adoptive family to come along. But, the fact is, that dogs with behaviour concerns will always be more difficult to adopt. They are a little bit harder to live with, after all. Many of these dogs spend months, or even years waiting for that perfect home. After my personal involvement in situations like these, I became dedicated to helping these dog's find that perfect home more quickly.

I am proud to offer my support, in the form of no-cost training consultations, to rescues, shelters, and foster homes. While I would hope that the dogs improvement would help them be adopted more quickly, even if it still takes awhile for that perfect family to find them, they are being worked with correctly and effectively so that the requirements for the new owners are not so overwhelming. I am able to currently offer these in-home training sessions to rescues local to London, ON. Modern, scientifically based dog training methods are used for optimum results.

If you are reading this and have already adopted a reactive or aggressive dog, we will offer low cost options to ensure you are supported, and you and your dog reach your goals.

Please contact us if you are dealing with any of the following behaviour concerns, in a rescue, foster home, or otherwise:

Aggression or reactivity towards other dogs, humans, bikes, other animals, etc (growling, snarling, biting, lunging)

Excessive protectiveness of resources (food, treats, toys, beds, rooms, spaces)

We look forward to working with you!

-Dynamic

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