The Watering Bowl | Outdoor off leash dog park and bar in South Austin

St. Pawtrick’s at the Watering Bowl

Are you looking for a fun event to do outside with your dog on St. Patrick’s this year? This St. Patrick’s day, March 17th 2025, is “St. Pawtrick’s” a fun outdoor social event in South Austin at the Watering Bowl. The Watering Bowl is an outdoor dog park and bar in South Austin with a 20,000 square foot fenced in …

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Penny Lane the Lab with her Kong toy

Magic Mat Teaches Your Puppy to Settle Calmly

How to Teach Your Puppy to Settle Calmly on a Magic Mat Puppies often get excited when encountering new places, people, or dogs. This excitement can lead to unwanted behaviors like barking, jumping, and not listening to you. But don’t worry! With the Magic Mat, you can teach your puppy to relax and settle calmly anywhere. By training your puppy …

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Best Things to Teach Your Puppy

New puppies are a lot of fun but can also be overwhelming. Learn Certified Dog Trainer Shelly Haines‘ Top 5 things to teach your puppy. Start with dog training basics A simple thing that can help make your life with your new dog easier is Dog Training. Start training your puppy right away The sooner you start training your dog, the …

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AKC Canine Good Citizen Evaluator

Classes for the Canine Good Citizen Test

Canine Good Citizen (CGC) Preparation Course The Gold Standard In Dog Training Beyond the immediate benefits of harmonious living, Canine Good Citizen training opens the door for your dog to participate in more advanced training—including dog sports and even performance and competition events. An AKC Canine Good Citizen certification is also a prerequisite for many therapy dog programs. This Canine Good …

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small dog with head out window while riding in a car that is the color blue. happy dog.

How Often Do I Train My Dog?

You should train your dog at least 2 times a week. Your dog is the learner, and you are the teacher. Based on our experience and the industry standards – training your dog 2-3 times a week is the best frequency for formal dog training sessions. Ritual training for daily routines is the best for boundaries, impulse control, foundational skills, …

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Happy dog laying in crate kennel crate training for a puppy

What’s The First Step in Training?

The first step in changing your dog’s behavior. Using Management A dog training plan has immediate solutions that will prevent the rehearsal of the “unwanted behavior.” This goal is a critical part of the training plan that clients should follow after their first private lesson. We will always make the safety and emotional well-being of everyone involved at the heart of this plan. The …

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Golden young puppy in grass with toilet paper

How do I make my puppy happy?

How Do I Raise a Happy & Well-behaved Puppy? Socialization, enrichment, and positive reinforcement puppy training are the secret formula to raising a happy and well-behaved puppy. “Puppy socialization” is a term thrown around a lot with dog owners and pet parents, but what does it actually mean from a dog training perspective? Did you know? This is the most …

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Shelly Haines with Faculty from The Victoria Stilwell Academy - Dog Trainer School

Your trainer’s rigorous training and education

Shelly Haines is a graduate of the prestigious Victoria Stilwell Academy for Dog Training & Behavior as an online student and has been granted official status as a VSA-Certified Dog Trainer Online (VSA-CDT-Online). Shelly’s Recent Training Conference In October of 2021 she spent 7 days in Atlanta, GA with Victoria, the VSA faculty, and other graduates for a multi-day intensive …

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Sleepy Pug

Is your dog stressed? What to do.

Our dogs can experience stress and anxiety just like we do. We are used to noticing signs that we are stressed like irritability, tiredness, headaches, etc., and are able to communicate what is wrong with us and take appropriate actions to alleviate it.

Peanut Butter safe for dogs

Xylitol and Oil-Free Peanut Butter that’s Safe for Dogs Buddy Budder, the dog-friendly peanut butter. Better Peanut Butter! Watch a quick video of how I LOVE Bark Bistro’s new peanut budder. We use it for enrichment like to seal a stuffed Kong, as well as to give dogs their medicine. What’s the best part is they have a stress and …

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