Clear Dog Training

Can what a dog eats affect anxiety levels? 🐶🧠🍄

Exciting new research suggests the answer may be yes.

Studies exploring the gut-brain connection in dogs are looking at Lion’s Mane mushroom, probiotics and other supplements, with some showing promising results for anxiety, emotional balance and reactivity.

No, it’s not a magic cure 😉
But there is growing evidence that gut health may play a much bigger role in canine behaviour than we once thought.

Training still matters. Sleep matters. Enrichment matters. But for owners of anxious dogs, this area of research offers real hope 👀

📚 Here are links to some of the research being discussed:

• Lion’s Mane / cognition & mood research:
https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/nutrition/articles/10.3389/fnut.2025.1405796/full

• Lion’s Mane review paper:
https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC12030463/

• Mushroom nutraceutical research in dogs:
https://athenaeumpub.com/evaluation-of-a-mushroom-derived-nutraceutical-for-canine-cognitive-decline/

CLEAR Dog Training, Wynnum, Brisbane, Queensland 💙
Where dogs love to learn!

A slightly uncomfortable truth about dog training…

🐾

Most dogs aren’t stubborn.

They’re just very well trained — by accident.

Dogs are incredibly good at learning patterns. If a behaviour works, they repeat it.

If jumping gets attention, it continues.
If barking makes something go away, it works.
If grabbing sleeves gets a reaction, it becomes a game.

From the dog’s perspective, the behaviour makes perfect sense.

That’s why many behaviour problems aren’t really obedience problems.

You can teach a dog to sit beautifully, but that doesn’t automatically change how they feel about excitement, frustration, strangers, or other dogs.

Real progress usually comes from changing the patterns around the behaviour.

That might mean:
• rewarding calm behaviour earlier
• managing the environment better
• avoiding accidentally reinforcing behaviour you don’t want
• creating predictable routines that help dogs relax

Another common trap is micromanaging dogs.

Constant “sit”, “leave it”, “no”, “down”, “stop” can leave both dogs and owners feeling frustrated.

Often the bigger win comes from setting things up so the right behaviour becomes the easy behaviour.

And here’s the part many people don’t expect…

When the person changes the pattern, the dog usually follows.

Every time. 🐾

Caroline Strainig
CLEAR Dog Training
Wynnum, Brisbane

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Watching the Eurovision grand final live at 6.30am in Australia while the dogs stare at me like I’ve personally ruined their morning by not taking them out somewhere. 😂🐾

I assured them this was quality entertainment… although I still haven’t quite worked out how the British entry got there. 🤣

The Border Collie committee remained unconvinced.

Apparently:
🎾 Balls need chasing
🌳 Parks need visiting
👃 Sniffs need sniffing

And after several minutes of intense judgement, they finally decided:
“Oh, you won’t do anything? Fine. We’ll just have to go and play ourselves.”

Cue couch wrestling and complete chaos in the middle of Eurovision. 😆

CLEAR Dog Training owner Caroline Strainig is taking a ride on the wild side 😅💨

After years immersed in Rally Obedience, obedience and other “slower” dog sports, Caroline has decided it might be time to head back into the fast lane again — with young rehomed Border Collie Pablo.

Pablo is a seven-month-old non-pedigree Border Collie who arrived only a few weeks ago, but already shows all the makings of a future flyball dog. He’s highly intelligent, loves tug toys, adores chasing balls and throws himself enthusiastically into everything he does.

He may be a little taller than the ideal flyball dog… but sometimes heart matters more than height 🐾

When deciding what direction to take with Pablo, Caroline laughed:
“I don’t need another Rally dog. I don’t need another obedience dog. I want a dog I can just have serious FUN with.”

So Pablo’s future now looks set to include flyball training — and if he shows enough enjoyment and potential, eventually flyball racing.

For those unfamiliar with the sport, flyball is essentially drag racing for dogs 😄

Teams of four dogs race over four jumps, hit a spring-loaded flyball box which releases a tennis ball, grab the ball and race back over the jumps while another dog from their team charges past in the opposite direction. Add another team racing beside them and things get very exciting very quickly!

Caroline previously competed in flyball many years ago with her old dog Adam before injury sadly forced his retirement. Together they enjoyed enormous success, helping their team win Division One at the Sydney Royal and becoming the first dog for Redlands Dog Obedience Club to break the magic four-second barrier — the milestone owners of fast flyball dogs dream about.

So after an epic transport saga, an old flyball box has finally arrived from Sydney… and Pablo’s new adventure is about to begin.

Here’s to flyball.
Here’s to speed.
And perhaps one last hurrah for Caroline in the fast sports 🐾💨

Note: If there are any other flyball people around the Wynnum/Brisbane Bayside area with young dogs who might enjoy joining in a bit of casual practice and fun, Caroline would love to hear from you 🐾

“My dog won’t take treats outside…”

It can feel frustrating.

Your dog takes food perfectly at home…
Then you step outside and suddenly they’re not interested.

They’re not ignoring you.

The environment is just more powerful.

What’s really going on

Outside is full of competing reinforcement.

Smells, movement, sounds, other dogs — all of it matters.

In that moment, those things can outweigh your food.

What this means

This isn’t stubbornness.

It’s feedback.

Your dog is telling you the environment is too difficult right now.

What to do

Start where your dog can still engage.

Use distance to lower the pressure.

Build value gradually.

Then increase difficulty in small steps.

The takeaway

We don’t force focus.

We build it.

CLEAR Dog Training
Where dogs love to learn.

“My dog needs a friendly dog to socialise with… Can you provide that?”🤔

I get this call a lot.

And I understand the thinking — if your dog reacts to other dogs, surely meeting a calm, friendly one will fix it?

Unfortunately… it doesn’t work like that.

Reactivity isn’t a lack of social opportunities.
It’s an emotional response — often built over time through genetics, experience, or both.

That means one nice interaction won’t undo it.
And if the setup isn’t right, it can actually make things worse.

What does work?

Start by building focus, engagement and clear behaviours in a calm environment.
Then gradually introduce distractions at a level your dog can cope with.
Over time, with the right exposure and training, things improve.

Other dogs can be part of the process — but they’re not the starting point, and they’re definitely not the fix.

Slow, structured, and set up to succeed… that’s where the real change happens. 🐾

— CLEAR Dog Training Brisbane

Socialisation isn’t just what happens in a puppy class… 🐶

Puppy classes can be helpful.

But they’re only one small part of helping your puppy learn about the world.

Even in well-run classes, puppies can get over-excited when interacting.
That’s normal — but it also means those sessions alone don’t teach everything your puppy needs.

Good socialisation isn’t about “lots of play.”

It’s about helping your puppy learn to be:
✔ Calm
✔ Confident
✔ Able to cope in the real world

That means:
• Seeing other dogs and staying relaxed 🐕
• Learning polite greetings
• Knowing when to engage… and when to disengage
• Staying connected to you around distractions

Because if we rely only on puppy-to-puppy interaction, puppies practise whatever works — not necessarily what’s helpful.

The key is being intentional.

You can:
• Arrange play dates with suitable puppies 🐶
• Introduce calm, well-socialised adult dogs
• Work in real-world environments at the right level 🌿

Always supervised. Always thoughtful.

Because a confident adult dog isn’t created in a few sessions.

It’s built over time. ✨

⸻

Caroline Strainig | CLEAR Dog Training Brisbane
25 years of excellence

No, we don't train husbands or wives! 😄

One question we occasionally get asked at training sessions — usually with one partner teasingly looking at the other — is:

“Do you train husbands and wives too?” 😄

Our usual answer?

“Yes… but we charge extra!” 😂

It’s a fun question — but it actually has a serious side.

Some of the same principles that work in dog training work surprisingly well with humans too.

For example:

Reward the behaviour you like.
“Hey, you did a beautiful job on that — thank you.”
Maybe even follow it up with a small reward.
“Can I shout you a coffee?” 🍦

People — just like dogs — tend to repeat behaviours that get a positive response.

And when something isn’t ideal, managing things calmly and non-combatively tends to work far better than constant criticism.

Good training (for dogs and humans!) is really about:

✔ clear communication
✔ rewarding the right things
✔ setting everyone up to succeed

That’s how you build great behaviour — whether it has two legs or four. 🐾

Caroline Strainig
CLEAR Dog Training
Where Dogs Love to Learn
Wynnum, Brisbane, Queensland

Meet Pablo… and oh boy, we may be in trouble 😄🐾

Pablo (left in the photo) has joined the CLEAR Dog Training crew — and he’s already making himself at home.

This gorgeous seven-month-old Border Collie is a rehomed young lad with brains, bounce and a big personality. Cheeky, switched on and mad about tug, he’s already showing promise for flyball, canine disc and agility.

He’ll be teaming up with Lockie (right in the photo), and I have a feeling these two may become partners in crime.

Pablo has impressed us hugely — beautiful temperament, loads of enthusiasm, and the kind of intelligence that makes training a joy. He’s a bit of a cad… and everyone adores him already. 💙

Very early days, but we’re excited to see what this youngster might become.

Welcome to the family, Pablo — let the adventures begin!

See the video in comments for Pablo making his views on tug very clear… 😂

P.S. If anyone would like their own “Pablo”, his breeder has another litter due shortly and I’m happy to put suitable people in touch. 😉

Why is my previously friendly puppy suddenly scared of everything?

One day your puppy is confident and curious.
The next day they’re barking at wheelie bins, strangers, or a dog they happily met last week.

Welcome to the teenage fear phase.

Many adolescent dogs go through a secondary fear period, usually somewhere between 6–14 months of age. During this time their brain is changing rapidly and they can suddenly react to things that never bothered them before.

This doesn’t mean your dog is becoming “aggressive” or that you’ve done something wrong.

It means they need good guidance from you.

Here’s how to help them through it:

🐾 Stay calm
If your dog reacts to something, don’t panic or fuss. Speak normally and keep things relaxed so they learn there’s nothing to worry about.

🐾 Don’t force them
Never drag a worried dog towards something scary. Create distance and let them process it calmly.

🐾 Redirect their brain
Ask for an easy behaviour like sit, watch, or heel and reward calm thinking.

🐾 Use smart exposure
Socialisation doesn’t always mean meeting people or dogs. Sitting in the car watching the world go by can be incredibly valuable.

🐾 Reward curiosity
If your dog sniffs or calmly investigates something that worried them, praise and reward. That’s confidence building.

One important thing to remember:

During fear periods, a single bad experience can stick. So focus on creating positive, controlled exposures rather than overwhelming your dog.

Handled well, this stage can actually build a stronger, more confident adult dog.

Clear Dog Training
Where dogs love to learn
Wynnum, Brisbane

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