Every Dog Can has extensive experience with a full range of dog and puppy behavior problems - from simpler issues like house soiling, destructive chewing, excessive barking, etc., to more serious and complex behavioral challenges of all types including separation anxiety, fear, and aggression.

Our behavior specialist is a Certified Dog Behavior Consultant and a certified member of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants.

•  Behavior Consultation Services
•  Rates for Behavior Consultations
•  Pre-Consultation Behavior History Form

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Behavior Consultation Services

Every Dog Can's professional behavior consultation services are designed to provide real-life solutions.  Consultations take place in your home environment, where the problem is most likely to occur and where we can more easily observe your dog's behavior and your interactions with him firsthand.  The consultation is comprehensive:

• First we identify and analyze the underlying causes of the problem behavior.
• Then we help you understand your dog's behavior and what's triggering it.
• After our analysis is completed, we make specific recommendations for managing and modifying your dog's behavior, and we work with you to implement them.

First we identify and analyze the underlying causes of the problem behavior.

We ask you very specific and detailed questions about your dog's past and present behavior. Our goal is to compile a complete history with as much relevant information as possible about your dog and the problem, including your dog's past socialization and training history, physical health, social interactions with people both inside and outside of your household, interactions with other animals, daily activities, living environment, and anything else we think might play a part in creating or influencing the problem behavior. We also closely observe your dog's behavior and interactions with you and your family during the consultation for crucial information about the dynamic within your household and how it may be contributing to the problem.

Then we help you understand your dog's behavior and what's triggering it.

Many people believe that a dog does a "bad" thing because the dog is "too dominant" or does it out of spite or to get back at his owner for something the person did to him or denied him. That's old-fashioned thinking about dogs. Current research points to other influences that are more likely shaping your dog's negative behavior, including lack of proper real-world experience and socialization during critical developmental periods, lack of appropriate outlets for natural dog behaviors, inappropriate home environment, and even your dog's genetic make-up.

Often a specific situation, location, event, or even a certain type of person or animal may trigger your dog's undesirable behavior.  Sometimes a dog's aberrant behavior is actually a sign of stress that is misinterpreted by the humans in the household; and if that stress reaction goes unnoticed or is unwittingly punished, the dog's stress levels inevitably increase and the behavior worsens.  (This is often how a dog bite occurs.)

When the reasons why a particular behavior is occurring are more clearly understood by you and your family, our recommendations for change will hopefully make more sense and be easier for you and your family to implement.

After our analysis is completed, we make specific recommendations for managing and modifying your dog's behavior, and we work with you to implement them.

Our recommendations will be tailored to your individual case and will include specific instructions about how to read any advance warning signs your dog may be giving so the problem can be managed or avoided before it occurs. We'll also show you how to use simple positive reinforcement techniques to communicate with your dog clearly and calmly, without force or intimidation, so he understands what you want and expect of him.  We'll demonstrate for you specific training and behavior modification exercises that you can do yourself to effect a change in your dog's behavior. We may also recommend ways to arrange the physical environment within your home so your dog is prevented from making mistakes and is given the opportunity to make the right choices. In some cases we may ask to collaborate with your veterinarian to rule out any possible medical cause for your dog's behavior.

In very serious cases, such as those involving aggression, we may ask you to consider retaining us for additional in-home training visits, particularly in the early stages of rehabilitation, to help start you and your dog on the right path.

Finally, we ask you to stay in touch with us to ask any follow-up questions and to report your progress.  This assures us that you understand our recommendations and that the plan is working for you.  It also allows us to make any adjustments that may be needed along the way.  These follow-up communications are usually done by phone or email, and are included in the original consultation fee at no additional cost to you.

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Rates for Behavior Consultations

Our behavior consultation is billed at an affordable flat rate of $50 per hour, prorated in quarter-hour increments.  A typical consultation lasts approximately 2 hours.  More complex cases may require more time.

You pay only for the actual consultation time spent in your home (our travel is normally included - see Free Travel Area below).  Our time spent responding by phone or email to any follow-up questions you may have after the consultation is included in your original fee at no additional cost to you.

If you would like additional home visits or wish to retain us to do the actual training and behavior modification for your dog, our services will be billed at our flat training rate of $40 per hour (travel is included if within our Free Travel Area).

Discounts are available for puppies and dogs adopted from a shelter or rescue group within the past 6 months.


Free Travel Area
We are committed to providing leading-edge dog behavior and training services to Northwest Arkansas.  If you live in or near the following communities in Benton and Washington Counties, we will travel to your home at no extra charge:

Avoca Bella Vista Bentonville Bethel Heights Cave Springs Centerton Decatur Elm Springs Farmington Fayetteville Garfield Gateway Gentry Gravette Healing Springs

Highfill Hiwasse Johnson Little Flock Lowell Monte Ne Pea Ridge Prairie Creek Rogers Siloam Springs Springdale Springtown Tontitown Vaughn War Eagle

If you live outside of our free travel area, please call us! We are very happy to come to your home to help you and your dog, but we'll add a reasonable charge to compensate for the additional time and expense of travel. If that isn't possible and working together via phone or email isn't feasible, we will do our best to help you find someone in your local area who may be able to assist you.

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Pre-Consultation Behavior History Form

We've included our Pre-Consultation Behavior History Form here so you can see the information we need in order to have a more complete picture of your dog or puppy's behavior and of the specific problem.

After you schedule your behavior consultation, please download the form and complete the information to the best of your ability.  We need to receive the completed form from you at least 48 hours in advance of the consultation. Please call us with any questions.

Click here to download the Pre-Consultation Behavior History Form In Word Format.	Click here to download the Pre-Consultation Behavior History Form In Word Format within a zipped file.
Download your free copy of WinZip Here!

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