Course curriculum

  • 1

    Welcome!

    • Welcome!

    • Course Structure
  • 2

    Separation Related Behaviours (SRBs)

    • Understanding Separation Anxiety and Related Behaviours

    • What can Separation - Related Behaviours look like?

    • Separation Can Begin Before You Leave

    • When Does Your Dog's Behaviour Change?

    • The Camera Is Your Friend

    • Not Every Home-Alone Problem Is Separation Anxiety

    • Behaviour Tells Us What Happened — Not Necessarily Why

    • Separation Anxiety Is Not Revenge

    • What About a Dog Who Follows You Everywhere?

    • Your First Goal: Become an Observer

    • Key Takeaway

    • What are the risk factors contributing to Separation Related Behaviours (SRBs)?

    • The Impact of Predictability

    • The Stress Bucket - What is it?

    • Why Avoid Unplanned Alone Time During Training?
  • 3

    Foundational Concepts

    • Introduction to Event Marker Training

    • Turning on the Event Marker Word "Yes!"

    • What Counts as a Reward?

    • Food Fun Games - Creating MORE Reinforcers Through Food Play

    • Video Demo - Food Fun Games

    • Toy Motivation - Creating More Reinforcers Through Toy Play

    • Stacking the deck in your favour

    • Things to Remember When Training Your Dog

    • Foundations — Putting It All Together
  • 4

    Optimism

    • Creating Your Training Plan

    • Optimism - What is it?

    • Predictors - re-visited

    • A Simple Practice Example

    • When Should I Stop the Exercise?

    • Demo video of building Optimism around random parts of your exiting sequence

    • My Dog's Departure Predictors - option to download

    • D.M.T.

    • DMT - a deeper look

    • Your Short D.M.T. Practice Plan
  • 5

    Calmness

    • Introduction to the Calmness Triad

    • What is the Calmness Triad?

    • How to make a food stuffed Kong last longer for your dog

    • Teaching your dog to station

    • Introduction to Release Words - "Break!"

    • Boundary Games (Station Training)

    • Boundary Games - The Next Layer of Learning

    • Boundary Games - Name it

    • The Calmness Protocol - promoting more relaxation

    • Ninja Feeding

    • Boundary Games - Ninja Feeding

    • Ninja feeding - next progressions
  • 6

    Independence

    • Independence - feeling safe with a little space

    • A Gradual Independence Practice Plan

    • Keep a Simple Record

    • Station Training - Before You Progress — Is Your Dog Ready?

    • Employment Opportunities for your dog

    • A Simple Employment Practice Plan

    • “Gated Communities” — Building Independence With Physical Barriers

    • Safety & Support — When to Stop and Get Help

    • Distance - Building Comfort Away from you

    • Distance Comes Before Visual Separation

    • Visual Barriers - blocking sight of owner

    • A Simple Practice Plan

    • Duration — Building Comfortable Time Apart

    • Bringing It All Together — Building Independence

    • Independence - Summary discussion
  • 7

    Boundary Games - building value and distance

    • Station Training Games - building criteria

    • Station Training / Boundary Games - Building distance to SEND to the bed
  • 8

    Safety Nets

    • The Safety Net — Managing Unavoidable Absences

    • Practical Safety Net Departure Checklist
  • 9

    The Transformation Plan!

    • Bringing It All Together — Your Transformation Plan

    • Your Practical Weekly Action Plan
  • 10

    Conclusion

    • What to do from here