Blog
Learn more about our successes, our struggles, and what we have learned from our clients at The Freckled Paw.
Why Private Dog Training Might Be Right for Your Pup
Once you decide that you need a little individualized attention for you pup, how do you decide between the growing list of people who call themselves trainers. Let me walk you through how we put together our private dog training programs. Maybe you can benefit from...
Do you hate walking your Reactive Dog?
I get it, I really do! With Pixie, I remember those first spring days coming home from appointments thinking how wonderful it would be to go walk my dog. Then pulling into the neighborhood to find that everyone else had the exact same idea. Between the kids playing in...
Tips on finding the right breeder
Deciding on a breed and breeder for your next puppy I wish more people would reach out to trainers to help them find a puppy. We know lots of dogs, and can certainly help direct you to a breeder and puppy that will match your lifestyle. Here are some of the...
Favorite Dog Training Locations in Suffolk Virginia
Dog Training in Suffolk Virginia Welcome to a new blog post series on my favorite places to train dogs. I always strive to be as transparent as possible with what the dog training programs will look like. Hopefully this will give you a glimpse into what is possible...
When your Dog doesn’t Listen
Learning and training is fluid. Cargo has been on house arrest for about 6 months now. (She had the dog equivalent of two torn rotator cuffs.) In February she was allowed short walks which we did through the neighborhood. At 1pm in Chesapeake, most of the people are...
Lost and Found: What to do when the worst happens
Did you know that 4th of July becomes animal services busiest time of the year? The parties, the people, fireworks and general jubilation can be too much for many of our pets. Doors get held open just a little too long, big booms cause otherwise homebody dogs to bolt...
Breed Specific Behaviors
We are all about prevention around here! Prevention of injury, prevention of practicing unwanted behavior, and most importantly prevention of behavior issues. Yes, I hope to put myself out of business with all your perfect pups living their best lives. Since I have a...
Make it stop! When barking is just too much
Dogs bark. Full Stop. That's what they do. Often I am called when the barking is getting excessive or happening at inappropriate times. When that happens, my first goal becomes figuring out why the barking is happening in the first place. Sometimes it's a breed...
Polite in Public: Essential skills for every dog!
Many of us get dogs to share many aspects of our lives with. We want a dog who is content to hang out in the house when we leave, one who can adapt to people coming into the house, and most importantly one who does not embarrass us when out in public. What are the...
The top 3 tips to improve your walks with your dog
I have yet to find a magic wand to teach dogs to walk politely on the leash. If anything I have found lots and lots of ways to sabotage your dog's leash skills. I tell every client that I want them to think of the leash as a “seatbelt not a steering wheel”. That means...
Keeping your dog calm in the Winter
Here in Virginia, we are lucky enough to only get a few months of the year when the weather is too horrible to walk the dogs. This is especially true if we have mild winters. That doesn’t mean we want to be out in the cold. So what do we do with our dogs when it's...
Your 2023 Gift Guide
It’s that time again! If you are like me, your dogs get whatever they want whenever retail therapy needs to happen. I still like to have a few things in their stockings for Christmas morning. This year we are focusing on small businesses that are killing it with their...
Tiktok Challenge: Do you need a second dog?
Are you ready for another dog? There is a TikTok challenge going around, advocating for or against getting a dog for your dog. It could be a great thing getting a second dog (or third or fourth) but are you really ready? In addition to twice the food cost, twice the...