Deb Tollefson, Retired
Veterinary Technician
Office Manager, Co-owner--Veterinary Clinic
 
I am sharing something with you that you may or may not be interested in, but I was so impressed yesterday at what I observed that I just couldn't sit on it.
 
My friend Maryna, who has been keeping my neck and back healthy for years, has a home full of her own very well-behaved dogs. I was always impressed that they never tried to jump on me and always responded so well when given commands. Mostly, if they were in the house they just looked up from their appointed resting places, and then ignored me.

Yesterday when I arrived I noticed a tiny furry addition. "A puppy!", I thought, and then couldn't resist interacting with her. Soon Maryna called and "Lucie" responded immediately, returning to her trainer, and correctly following each command of "sit" "down", etc.
 
I stood there bug-eyed.
 
"How old is this puppy?", I inquired. "Only nine weeks? Well how long have you had her?"
 
"A week? Oh my gosh".
 
I had long known that Maryna was quite involved with animal training, but this was the first time I had seen her in action and I must say, I was blown away at what I saw. Now I truly understood the significance of her own well-behaved dogs.
 
Lucie, and I later worked together in the yard, with Maryna showing me what to do. In seconds, literally, Lucie, a 9 week old Australian Shepard/Border Collie mix, was responding to me as she does to Maryna. I must add that I have practically zero experience with any sort of dog training, though I worked for a number of years in my husband's veterinary practice and handled many breeds of dogs, few of which exhibited the behaviors of a well-trained animal.
 
The same techniques that Maryna uses to train a puppy, she also uses to successfully train older dogs, and to reverse years of improper behavior.
 
All best, 
 
Deb Tollefson