Journal
Dog training journal: straight talk on dogs.
The questions our team answers on the phone every week, written down. Short, practical and honest.
Hurricane peak: September's evacuation rehearsal
The middle of September is the peak of hurricane season. The one hour evacuation rehearsal our trainers ask every family to run: crate, car, a strange room and a dog that loads on one word.
The Labor Day reset: rebuilding the routine
Labor Day weekend closes the summer. The three day reset our trainers use to put the crate, the walk, place and the door back where they belong before the fall calendar starts.
The hottest two weeks: indoor training games
The middle of August is the hottest stretch of the year. Five indoor sessions our trainers run when the pavement never cools, each one a real skill dressed as a game.
Back to school for the puppy who was never alone
The spring puppy has had a person home every hour since it arrived. School starts in three weeks. The alone-time build our trainers run, from the crate to the first empty house.
Pools, retention ponds and what a dog can drink
Mid July is peak pool season and the retention ponds have turned green. The leave it and recall work that keeps a dog out of standing water, and the pool deck routine that keeps it out of the pool uninvited.
The week after the fireworks
July 4 fireworks last three nights around Houston, and the dog that panicked needs the week after more than the night of. How our trainers rebuild the yard, the crate and the walk once the noise stops.
Summer camp for dogs: the kids are home all day
School is out and the house is full from breakfast to bedtime. How the summer schedule breaks a dog's routine, the crate and place rotation that fixes it, and why June is a strong month for a stay.
June heat index: the fifteen-minute walk rule
June 1 opens hurricane season and closes the daytime walk. The fifteen minute rule our trainers use for the summer walk, the pavement test and what replaces the long walk until October.
Graduation parties and the dog at the door
Late May brings a house full of guests for every graduation. The doorbell routine our trainers teach, and why it is a two week build for a dog that jumps.
Memorial Day at the lake: the dock plan
Memorial Day weekend at Lake Conroe or Lake Houston is the first real water test of the year. The dock routine our trainers use: place on the boat, recall from the water and the life jacket rule.
April showers: potty training in a wet month
Spring storm season makes April the wettest stretch of puppy potty training. The leash-to-the-spot routine, the crate schedule and what to do on a night of thunder.
Pollen season: itchy dogs and short tempers
Oak and pine pollen coat Houston in yellow from late March. What an itchy, sleepless dog does to a training routine, and the handling and settle work that helps.
Bluebonnet season: photos without the pulling
Bluebonnets line the roads west of Houston from mid March to mid April. The sit and stay that makes the photo, and how to teach it before you drive to Chappell Hill.
Spring break dog sitters: instructions that work
Spring break in mid March means a sitter, a neighbor or a boarding stay. The instruction sheet our trainers wish every sitter got, and what it says about the crate, the walk and the door.
The crawfish boil and the dog: backyard party manners
Crawfish season runs from now into May, and every boil is a backyard full of shells, kids and coolers. How to get a dog through it on place instead of under the table.
February is the outdoor month
February is when a Houston dog can be outside all day. Our trainers on using the month for long line recall, trail walks and the off-leash foundation before the heat returns.
The Christmas puppies hit twelve weeks
A puppy that came home at Christmas is twelve weeks old by mid January. What should be in place by now, what the socialization window still needs, and where the bundle fits.
The January board and train: why winter is the easiest stay
January is the mildest month on the Houston training calendar. Why our trainers get more done in a January stay, and what the two week and three week programs cover.
Christmas lights walks with a reactive dog
The neighborhood lights walk fills the sidewalks in December. How we get a reactive dog through a month of crowds, inflatables and strange dogs at every corner.
The holiday puppy: the first ten days
A puppy under the tree is a December tradition. The first ten days decide the crate, the potty routine and the rules; here is how our trainers run them in a full Houston house.
Thanksgiving travel: leave the dog or bring the dog
The Thanksgiving drive is the first real travel test of the year. How we help families decide whether the dog rides along or stays, and how to make either one work.
Daylight saving ends: the 5 p.m. dark walk
When the clocks fall back in early November, the evening walk becomes a night walk. Our trainers on lights, leashes, cats, coyotes and keeping the walk structured after sunset.
Fall festival season: dogs at pumpkin patches and markets
Pumpkin patches, farmers markets and fall festivals all say dogs are welcome. What a dog needs to handle a crowd, and how our trainers build it before the gate.
The first cool front: reset the walk
The first cool front usually arrives in October. How we use that one week to rebuild the structured walk after a summer of short, hot, sloppy outings.
Fall is training season: the cool-weather window opens.
Why September to November is the best stretch of the Houston year to train a dog, and how to use it before the holidays arrive.
Hurricane season, month four: the go-bag check.
September is the peak of the Gulf hurricane season. A ten-minute check of the dog's go-bag, records and crate plan, done now, saves a bad night later.
A year of Houston dog seasons: the calendar in one post.
The Houston dog year, month by month: when to train outdoors, when to book, what each season asks of a dog, and the posts that cover each one in detail.
Fall spots fill in August: booking the Platinum you want.
The training home takes a limited number of dogs, and the September to November calendar fills in August. How booking works, what the deposit does, and how to pick dates.
Board and train or private lessons? How to choose.
The honest difference between a board and train program and weekly private lessons, and which one fits your dog, your schedule and the problem you are trying to solve.
Back-to-school countdown: the two-week routine reset.
When school starts the house empties at seven and the dog notices. A two-week reset for the new routine, and the separation warning signs to watch in the first week.
What to expect when your dog comes home from board and train.
The go-home session, the first week back, and the three habits that decide whether the training sticks.
Is my dog reactive, or just excited?
Barking and lunging on leash can mean frustration, fear or aggression. Here is how to tell them apart, and why the fix is the same foundation either way.
How to prepare your dog for board and train.
What to pack, what to tell our team, and what to stop doing the week before drop-off.
Peak heat: how a board and train week runs in July.
What a July day in the training home looks like: dawn walks, midday place and store work, evening field trips, and why summer graduates hold their training.
Why your dog should train in a home, not a kennel.
The difference between a warehouse-style facility and an in-home board and train, and why it decides whether the training transfers to your house.
Road-trip season: teaching the car.
Summer road trips from Houston start with a dog that rides calmly. How to teach the car in two weeks, from the driveway to the highway, and what to do about the drooler.
Why the place command changes everything at home.
One command, taught properly, that ends jumping at the door, begging at the table and pacing at night.
July 4 is four weeks out: the fireworks plan.
A four-week plan for a fireworks-anxious dog before the Fourth, from sound work and crate calm to the night itself, plus what to do if the dog escapes.
Hurricane season starts June 1: the dog checklist.
The dog checklist for the start of the Gulf hurricane season: the go-bag, the records, the crate plan and the one question to answer before a storm has a name.
Heat starts now: moving training to dawn and dusk.
The first 90-degree week usually lands in May. The heat calendar for dog training in Houston, the pavement test, and how the training home runs a summer day.
Bayou season: leashed trails and alligators.
Warm water brings alligators back to Houston's bayous, retention ponds and parks. The rules for a dog near water in spring, and the recall that keeps it out of it.
Puppy season: the eight-week checklist.
Spring litters come home in April. The eight-week checklist for the first week with a puppy in a Houston house: crate, potty, socialization and the first rules.
Spring break travel with a dog from Houston.
Beach, hill country or the in-laws: what a spring break trip asks of a dog, what to pack, and the two commands that make a hotel room easy.
Spring storms: thunder plans before the first big one.
Houston's storm season starts in March. A plan for a storm-anxious dog, built in the two calm weeks before the first big line comes through.
Adolescence hits: the February puppies from last fall.
The puppies that came home in September are six months old now, and the sweet phase is over. What adolescence looks like, what to hold, and when to call.
Rodeo season prep: crowds, trailers and neutrality.
Rodeo season brings trail rides through the suburbs, horse trailers on the roads and crowds downtown. What it asks of a dog, and how to prepare one.
The rare Houston freeze: what your dog actually needs.
Once or twice a winter Houston drops below freezing. Short-coated dogs, pipes, icy sidewalks and the yard: the short list of what changes for a few days.
Resolutions that stick: ten minutes of place a day.
The one training resolution that survives February: ten minutes of place a day, every day. Why it works, and how to build the habit around a Houston morning.
New Year's Eve fireworks: the calm plan starts now.
Houston fireworks run from Christmas week through January 1. The plan for a noise-sensitive dog starts three weeks out, and here it is.
Holiday travel: boarding with training refreshers for graduates.
Where a trained dog should stay while you travel, why a kennel week undoes training, and how graduates board in the training home instead.
Holiday guests are coming: two weeks to fix the door.
The doorbell, the jump and the bolt through the open door are the three holiday failures. A two-week fix for each, and the honest point where two weeks is not enough.
Thanksgiving table manners for dogs.
A dog at a Thanksgiving table has one job: to be on place until released. How to teach it in the three weeks before the meal, and what to do on the day.
Halloween at the door: place, thresholds and candy.
Forty doorbells in three hours is the hardest test a dog's door manners face all year. A two-week plan for a calm Halloween, and what to do with the candy.
Cooler mornings, longer walks: rebuilding the structured walk.
October is when the summer's short walks stretch back out. Here is how to rebuild the structured walk without letting the pulling come back with the mileage.
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