Custom Training the Kealolo Way!

WHO NEEDS KEALOLO CANINE CONNECTION?

Is this you?

"Help! My new puppy is destroying my home!"
"Help! I just bought a puppy on impulse. I have no idea what to do!"
"Help! My new dog from the pound is howling all night long!"
"Help! My dog is perfect - perfectly crazy with too much energy!"
"Help! I bought Poochie after seeing one just like him in a movie - but he is nothing LIKE that one!"
"Help! My family wants this dog trained or out he goes (and maybe me with him) but I don't have time to go to a group class!"

If you answered yes to any of the above, or have a similar situation, you need Hawaii's Furry Godmother, Susie White (and her associates)! She helps you to connect to your dog and your dog to connect to you.

CLIENT QUALIFICATIONS - Kealolo Canine Connection serves as a charm school and/or a reform school for your dog. We only accept owners after a thorough evaluation. We work with owners who view their dog as a valued family member even though they are going through a "rough patch." Our clients are committed to the welfare of their dogs and understand that interaction and training methods must be tailored to the individual dog and family.

SERVICES:

All Breeds

"Good Dog!" Training and Consultations for Dogs 4 months and older
"My New Puppy" Package - from preparing to bring puppy home through puppy's first 4 months

Making your dog a Canine Good Citizen!

Introduction and beginner's training in agility, tracking, special tricks, obedience, conformation, and other activities you may wish to engage in with your dog over the long term. Fun stuff! And it will tire that beastie out and use up her energy too!


Choosing the Right Dog for YOU:
*in-your home or our office consultations
*advice on where to buy your dog
*phone consultations
*by special arrangement: accompany you to a dog show or pet shop to see different types of dogs
and discuss their pros and cons

Puppy/Dog Proofing your home, yard, pool, kids; keeping dog safe; how to protect your possessions

Temperament Evaluations: we will analyze your dog's temperament and behavior and counsel you as appropriate. Even pups a few weeks old can be accurately temperament tested - all pups in the same litter will NOT have the same personality!


Border Collies As Pets - Detailed consultation and planning assistance
(hot links to be added soon to web resources - this site under construction)

What We Don't Do:
You Need a Specialist for the Following:

1. Advanced Competition Training
2. Protection Dog Training
3. Temperament Evaluations for Court Cases
4. Aggressive Dog Re-training of Adult Dogs (except for relatively minor cases)
5. Medical advice - except for providing general information. We do not replace your vet or breeder for nutritional or medical advice.

We reserve the right to decline any client or pet at our sole discretion.

TRAINING METHODS - THE KEALOLO APPROACH

There are a lot of training methods out there, and we've reviewed them all, gone to the seminars, watched the videotapes, read the books, seen the trainers in action, and seen what each method does to each dog breed. We're quite opinionated: we don't want to produce cowering dogs, neurotic dogs, needy dogs, or antisocial dogs. We work to produce HAPPY dogs, who enjoy their lives and enjoy their interaction with YOU and are a pleasure to be around - for you and others. We have seen dogs unnecessarily choked, slammed, yelled at, and restrained by trainers using some of the popular methods. Sure, you can make your dog lie down this way, but do you really want it to fear the sound of your voice? You can get the same results - and better - using a balanced approach. We may be biased, but we believe that the Kealolo Method combines the best of all existing methods. And of course, since it is customized, we can optimize the balance of techniques used on your dog.

We employ a balance of training methods to reach your dog. Each dog and each owner are a unique marriage. We evaluate which training methods work for each situation. The majority of our obedience and re-training is very positive and happy and revolves around food in the beginning. (Trust us - bribery works!) However, because we care deeply about each dog, we will not recommend ONLY 'reward' training if it will result in your dog being unsafe to himself or to other dogs and people. Why do we use some negative pressure? Because some cases do require it, and when that's true, failing make the dog a good citizen may lead to him having a miserable, restricted life and/or being recycled from home to home and eventually to being put down for behavioral problems which could have been fixed with good training.

The thing you'll know about us is that we do everything possible with "happy, reward" methods, and have the expertise to know when, and how much, discipline to exert, and how to do it. It is a delicate balance.

Whereas some dog training systems insist they can do anything using only "positive methods", we will discuss your goals, a realistic timetable and a plan for achieving them. This is always done with your dog's safety and temperament in mind. While we NEVER use or condone the use of abusive physical punishment, you dog's safety and his very life may depend on making it clear to him that his behavior must change. As with many people, if there are never any negative consequences for a behavior, that behavior may not be extinguished. Let's say he loves to chase cars. This could result in his death. He may need a negative consequence so that he decides to stop it, or YOU may need to invest in more effective fencing. Another example is the dog that just WILL NOT stop barking. If you are in a condo situation, for example, the dog could get evicted and turned over to the humane society and this could result in his death.

Therefore for special cases, we may recommend specific training methods, aids and tools. Negative reinforcement may be recommended for other situations. If this is something that you could not dream of doing, we urge you to research it, try other methods and come back to us if your problem is not solved. We only care about your dog's happiness and safety. Our goal is and ALWAYS will be to produce a happy, confident, safe dog who is beloved by his family.


(above, Sue training a wild Hawaiian monk seal twice her size, in conservation program for medical reasons)


Philosophy of training by Susie White, Head Trainer of KCC

There are many methods now in use to train dogs. "Standard" obedience, Shutzhund, Koehler, and dozens of others you may or may not have heard of. Over the years I have seen many methods used; I have found some I believe in, some which leave me aghast. I have adapted my techniques from the best of what I've seen as well as methods and techniques I have developed on my own through experience with hundreds of dogs.

Our philosophy is based on what we want to end up with: safe, happy dogs which fit in well with a family and with human (and canine) society.

My background includes training many animals, from horses and dogs to wild marine mammals. I've worked to organize vets to aid stranded marine mammals, have rehabilitated seabirds in my home for re-release. By profession, I do international wildlife conservation, saving whales and endangered species, and this takes a lot of my time.

But dogs are my friends, my recreation partners, and members of my family. For many years I have helped place dogs who would have otherwise been destroyed, and have given hundreds of consultations which have been a big help, often to people who were at their wits' end.

What I don't do: Older biting dogs ­ if a dog is allowed to grow up without proper training, and its aggression is not carefully controlled and channeled, there's not much I can do. For instance, a hundred-pound dog which has been allowed to bite or dominate people is probably not safe to work with. Smaller problem dogs, up to 50 lbs and 2 years old, MAY be possible to save; but since that involves physically dominating the dog, it is approached by me on a case by case basis.

Availability: I've created this web site to answer a few of the most common questions about what I do ­ and don't do. Hopefully this will help people decide whether I'm the person they're looking for. There are other trainers out there using different methods, many of whom are cheaper.

I may or may not be available to train you and your dog. My limited time means that I can only be involved with a finite number of active consultations at any given time. I make the decision on which clients to take based on where I think I can do the most good, and where the attitude of the client is a good match for my training philosophy.

Problem Dogs: The reason I do so many puppy consultations is that it's the best way to prevent problem dogs. In my experience, there are a very few dogs which are just born with a bad disposition, sometimes by people breeding for this intentionally. They should be put down, and at times the dogs should be as well. The Humane Society provides a valuable service for these dogs.

Dogs with a bad disposition are not good protection dogs. They may hurt innocent people and get their owners sued. Effective protection dogs have good dispositions, nerve of steel and are very "clear-headed." Such dogs can be specially trained to use controlled aggression in special circumstances. I own and trained Hawaii's only schutzhund obedience titled border collie but I don't train other dogs for this. Please do your research carefully on protection dog trainers.

However, the great majority of problem dogs from non-fighting breeds are perfectly nice dogs which have simply been screwed up by their owners not properly training them to exist in a human world.

In my rescue work I have countless times seen good dogs turned over to the Humane Society to be destroyed, owners made miserable by dogs who are seemingly unwilling to be good doggy citizens and members of the family. In fact, one of my own dogs, Bing, came to me for placement. A border collie, he had been bought as a puppy for $1300 at Pets Central and had gone through two owners by the time he was 7 months old. He was paranoid, was destroying the houses he was in, barked incessantly, was considered a cat-killer, and had numerous other problems. The owners had from all accounts gone through hell. Yet within a day of getting him, he learned to play nicely with cats, and the basics of being a good dog. The damage to his psyche due to being left alone on a balcony during his formative months took longer to deal with, but he is now nearly 7 years old and a deliriously happy obedience and agility dog, a joy to be around and admired by many of the islands' best dog professionals.

Expense and value: I don't do this for the money. However, I don't do my primary career for the money, either; so I need to charge enough for my private consultations so that I don't go broke doing all my rescue work. My base rate is $75/hr. I sometimes arrange discounts for specific situations, and I offer some flat-rate packages. But I'm nowhere near the cheapest trainer on Oahu. So saying, my clients to date have all felt they received good value and I receive a lot of referrals by word of mouth alone. This web site is mostly to answer common questions and save me time rather than to shill for more business.

On the general philosophy of paying for dog-training: Whether you pay $2000 for a puppy or get a nice mutt for $10, it will probably cost you well over $10,000 to keep the dog for its lifetime. Some people have had enough prior experience to do a good job of raising the dog with no help. Others may not have. A person who would never consider doing their own plumbing will sometimes assume that they know how to train their own dog with no help.

There are basic and general classes you can find inexpensively through many vet offices. If you've tried that and it hasn't worked, or if you want a custom experience, contact us at info@kealolo.com

 

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