Hey guys- I had the opportunity to present this webinar on Arousal Modulation Conference and I received very positive feedback. Q&A was almost hour long and we have finished only because I needed to go to another room for discussion panel :) I decided to share this presentation to you all as a thank you for joining this community. Any questions let me know in the comments and we will do our live Q&A :) Description: Many training approaches focus on keeping dogs calm, relaxed, and below threshold. While these skills are valuable, if alone they often fail to prepare dogs for the moments that matter most. Whether it is a reactive dog encountering a trigger, a sport dog entering the competition field, or a working dog facing real-world pressure, arousal inevitably rises. Excitement, frustration, anticipation, and fear can all interfere with performance. As arousal increases, communication often breaks down. The dog stops responding, decision-making deteriorates, and both handler and dog become disconnected. The goal should not be to keep dogs calm all the time. Instead, we should teach them how to stay connected, responsive, and capable of making good decisions even when arousal is high. In this presentation, Alex Lato explores how arousal affects learning, communication, and performance, and why many traditional approaches to impulse control and calmness fail to transfer into real-life situations. Drawing from experience with reactive dogs, companion dogs, and working dogs, he presents practical strategies for maintaining communication when excitement, frustration, or uncertainty take over. Topics covered include: - How arousal influences behaviour, learning, and performance - Common sources of high arousal, including excitement, frustration, and fear - Why calmness alone often fails to prepare dogs for real-world challenges - The difference between suppressing arousal and teaching dogs to function within it - Using play as a tool for developing communication, emotional regulation, and clear thinking

Hey guys! Just a heads up- I’m running 2 day workshop in Reading area📍 All Sessions will be individual and handlers choice but overall Day 1 - PWP: all motivation, confidence and emotional regulation things related to- eg. Building drive and precision, insane motivation and focus, heelwork, impulse control, mastering luring to name a few. For companion and performance dogs! Day 2 - Reactivity and TBRR (reactive dog owners and trainers welcome) 🚨Members of this group have priority and early bird price. Premium and VIP Members get further discount. Handlers and Spectators welcome. Drop me a message if you are interested. More details coming soon!

Just got back from teaching Play With Purpose in Poland. Amazing experience. We had trainers and handlers from completely different backgrounds all working together in one place: • reactive companion dogs• sport/reactive dogs• agility• search & rescue• pet dog trainers• protection sport dogs- people using different training systems and philosophies Different goals. Different methods. Different dogs. But all of them were focused on the same core thing: bringing the dog’s performance to full potential. Because no matter what you do with your dog — every type of training starts with: • motivation• confidence• relationship• emotional regulation And structured play is one of the most powerful tools to build all of it. That’s what we focused on during the workshop. Applying Play With Purpose to different real-life goals and challenges. With reactive dogs we worked on confidence and confidence around triggers.With search & rescue dogs we worked on building play as a high-value reward and confidence approaching people.With sport and working dogs we focused on engagement, clarity, emotional regulation and performance. Really cool to see one system adapted to so many completely different dogs and handlers. Also — sorry for the radio silence last couple of days. It was a very intense and busy trip. I’ll catch up with all messages, comments and replies today and tomorrow. Appreciate your patience.