Fenzi Food For Thought

Catch me here telling stories, conversing with curious and warm-hearted friends, breaking down barriers in the training world, and of course, sharing my love for these amazing beings we share our lives with: the dogs! I'd love to hear from you! Instagram: @denisefenzi Dog training: @fenzidogsportsacademy @thehighdrivedog

The Art of Choice in Dog Training 11/28/2025

The Art of Choice in Dog Training Sometimes I’ll take choice away if I think it’s the right thing for the dogs. Sometimes I’ll give choice. And sometimes I’ll just stop working on a problem altogether… It depends. That’s what this live is about - choices I make for Tye, depending on the circumstance. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/39200400

Are Dogs Really More Anxious Today? …And Other Things We Can’t Actually Know 11/24/2025

Are Dogs Really More Anxious Today? …And Other Things We Can’t Actually Know If we make a blanket statement like, “dogs are more anxious today than they used to be”, or “more dogs are being euthanized then were in the past”… How do you know that? And if it is true, how are you isolating the variables that might be contributing, in order to conclude that the one you’ve identified is the relevant one? Because often we make statements which rely on a foundation that is not knowable, or at least least unknown at this time. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/39158325

Punishment in Training: Does Safety Justify It? 11/13/2025

Punishment in Training: Does Safety Justify It? Does adding punishers to training make sense when safety is a consideration? Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/39027870

The "Click" and Training the Dog in Front of You 10/31/2025

The "Click" and Training the Dog in Front of You Why do I both click and then use a location specific marker with Tye? I explain it here, with Xen making a cameo appearance to demonstrate! And then a few thoughts about training the dog in front of you, and why I train different dogs differently. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38863380

Reading Stress in Dogs 10/24/2025

Reading Stress in Dogs Signs of stress all have normal variants that are not distress at all; remember that every time you’re analyzing a dog for signs of stress! and… I talked a bit about my new dog Tye. He’s making an incredible amount of progress; much faster than I could’ve predicted. That’s genetics and resilience at work. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38775225

The Depth of Behavior Challenges 10/19/2025

The Depth of Behavior Challenges I’ve been noticing more honesty in the dog training world on IG lately… trainers from all camps admitting that some behavior issues aren’t “fixed” but managed for life. I love seeing balance trainers share setbacks a year later, and force free trainers talking about acceptance and structure (management) rather than change. We also talked about the depth of behavior challenges… not just is your dog sound sensitive, but HOW sound sensitive? Experience matters in how we show up online—and in how much empathy we bring to tough cases. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38636680

About That Stress Inoculation... 10/11/2025

About That Stress Inoculation... Your dog lives such an stress-free life that you have to add more for their own good?! I talk a little bit about my dog’s lives here today. Plenty of stress, whether I want it there or not. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38550305

From Sheep Crosses to Kindness in Communities 10/03/2025

From Sheep Crosses to Kindness in Communities Today’s live I covered a lot… I talked about crossing Barbados sheep with Dorper—a great combo! Sometimes the cross is better than either parent. Then I shifted to what it means to admin a Facebook group. When do you allow unkind comments? What if they’re true? And that doodle hate? It’s gross. I talked about that a lot. Being mean just because the group agrees doesn’t make it okay. Not in the dog world. Not anywhere. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38461695

Why You Have A Dog Will Impact Your Training Choices 09/26/2025

Why You Have A Dog Will Impact Your Training Choices Why do you have a dog? Really. Think about it. So the choices you make with raising and training your dog lineup with that end goal? That’s what this live is about. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38373870

Relationship is the Key to A Bomb-Proof Recall 09/20/2025

Relationship is the Key to A Bomb-Proof Recall Why do I talk about relationship is being the primary driver of my Dog recall rather than reinforcement history? Listen and find out. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38292840

Fences, Escapes, and Ruling Out Medical Concerns 09/14/2025

Fences, Escapes, and Ruling Out Medical Concerns Just a quick update on a few things I’ve mentioned lately in lives… How did all three dogs respond to the electric fence now that we’re back on the property and the fence is back up? What was going on with Xen and his sudden crate/garage escaping drama — and why it’s over now. And probably most important… what do we really mean when we say “rule out medical causes” before jumping into a training plan? Because it matters. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38213990

Rethinking Change in Dog Sports 09/07/2025

Rethinking Change in Dog Sports Success in dog sports is an awesome way to show people that you can succeed without the intensional use of aversives. But success isn’t going to lead to some huge change. That’s not how to change works. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38118140

Pain & Behavioral Issues 08/30/2025

Pain & Behavioral Issues Behavior problems… Can they stem from pain? Discomfort? What happens if you try to solve a behavior problem by applying a pain based correction yourself? This live pulls together several videos and lives that I’ve done over the past couple of weeks, talking about my own dogs. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/38031675

Fallout in Dog Training 08/22/2025

Fallout in Dog Training What is fallout, in the world of behavior? Can you see it in a short video clip? Does eating suggest a lack of fallout? I talk about these topics here. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37927830

Crating: Different Dogs, Different Issues. 08/10/2025

Crating: Different Dogs, Different Issues. Separation anxiety? Crate anxiety? Fear of missing out? Something else related but… Not even quite sure what it might be? Here I talk about my dogs, Ice and Xen. Different dogs with different issues, but the same way of thinking about problem-solving… If that interests you, take a listen. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37751000

How R+ Has Evolved Beyond the Training 08/02/2025

How R+ Has Evolved Beyond the Training Being a positive reinforcement extremist has nothing to do with how you train dogs. It’s about how you treat people. This live dives into how R+ has evolved beyond training methods—shaping how we engage, communicate, and show up in the dog training community. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37648545

What is Good Training 07/26/2025

What is Good Training In this live, I unpack common misconceptions about positive reinforcement training and explain why withholding reinforcement is still a form of clear communication. I share a personal story about my early shaping mistakes and describe how good modern training sets dogs up for success without guessing. This is a call for clarity, accuracy, and respect across all training approaches. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37563630

Stress & Resilience 07/18/2025

Stress & Resilience If developing resilience requires experiencing stress, does that mean humans need to stress their dogs intentionally? Nope. We’re stressing our dogs all the time, whether we mean to or not. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37461230

When There Are Upsides to Training We Don't Like 07/04/2025

When There Are Upsides to Training We Don't Like Do applications of adversive occasionally benefit the dog? It should be obvious that the answer is yes, but if you’re struggling with that… Listen to this one. Doesn’t mean you have to run out and use them… Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37287095

Take An Extra Minute 06/27/2025

Take An Extra Minute If something needs to be said, you can say it without being rude. It just takes an extra minute… that minute makes no difference between simply expressing yourself or having an impact. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37202920

What is Superstitious Learning? And What is Single Incident Learning? 06/20/2025

What is Superstitious Learning? And What is Single Incident Learning? In my last live, some people misunderstood the realities of single incident learning and superstitious learning. You don’t control these realities…the learner does. You want to know what they are so that you can minimize harm to your training when they show up. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37095755

Lessons from Electric Fencing 06/13/2025

Lessons from Electric Fencing All three of my dogs learned about electric fencing - the hard way. This live is about their different reactions… And how that might impact them into the future, especially if I were a trainer who chose to use electric collars. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/37002445

Beyond Reinforcement and Punishment 06/06/2025

Beyond Reinforcement and Punishment Learning may well be a function of reinforcers and punishers. But behavior over time? Reliability? Habit and relationship should be the end goal. That’s what I talk about here. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36895570

Conversations About Reactive Dogs 05/30/2025

Conversations About Reactive Dogs I sat down with a guy at a party and we talked about his reactive dog. What happened next? If you want to have intelligent dialogues with people that potentially change behavior, you might find this live interesting. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36792800

What is "Not Fine" For a Dog? 05/17/2025

What is "Not Fine" For a Dog? I talk about genetics and how dogs turn out as adults. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36610205

Dog Training Jargon 05/04/2025

Dog Training Jargon About those words… Punishment, consequence, choice, structure, reinforce, strengthen… All of these words have different meanings depending on your background, training, and where you’re coming from. Just because a word has a scientifically defined meaning doesn’t mean that it is the “right” definition; it depends who you’re talking to. A lay person definition is equally valid! look words up in the dictionary… That should clarify things for you. Words have multiple meanings. The goal of language is to communicate and be understood. If your goal is to be understood rather than to be right, it’s critically important to know the different ways that these words are used. Not only their definitions, but their connotations. If you have that understanding, you’ll have sensible conversations. If you don’t, you might be right all day long, but you won’t be understood. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36427440

Training Outcomes in the Dog World 04/25/2025

Training Outcomes in the Dog World Do balanced trainers train (fix) dogs and positive reinforcement based trainers manage them? No. Not not at all. That’s a problem with words and definitions, not actual outcomes. Do balanced trainers show their work and positive reinforcement trainers not? No. You don’t know where to look. If you want to see really good positive reinforcement trainers doing cool things, you have to look in their circles. That’s what I talk about here. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36316895

Can Dogs Be Willful? 04/20/2025

Can Dogs Be Willful? Can dogs be willful? Can they actively choose to disobey, while understanding what you want? Yes they can. Now what? Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36236485

Balancing Priorities in the Dog World 04/13/2025

Balancing Priorities in the Dog World Time. Priorities. Dog welfare. Human welfare. Guilt. Dog trainers on social media seem out of touch with real world people and their priorities. Are we even doing our job if we don’t prioritize our human clients as much as their animals? Those are things I covered here. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36116505

Understand What Motivates Your Dog 04/06/2025

Understand What Motivates Your Dog No fetch? Chase but no return? No tug? Tugs but doesn’t let go? Understand what motivates your dog makes training and problem-solving a lot easier. Taken further, it will set how you train each individual dog, which may be radically different than how you approached similar issues with the last dog. By comparing my Border Collie Ice and my Belgian Xen, both showing similar issues but with very different resolutions, I hope to illustrate these points in this live. Follow my training! More online training! /episode/index/show/fenzifoodforthought/id/36025655

Fenzi Food For Thought

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