Dogs have been our special companions since the end of the 18th Century. Not only as faithful friends, they serve us as guide dogs, firehouse dogs, sled dogs, military dogs, police dogs and in many other capacities.

Police officers who choose to partner with a canine develop a deep, trusting and abiding relationship with their dogs. Not just a partner, these canines are considered family members and best friends by their handlers.

Russ Hess, Director of the United States Police Canine Association summarized this special relationship, "If you allow, the career of a K-9 handler will teach you many things about life, about yourself and most of all, about people. You will come away changed forever, for having a dog for a partner cannot leave you without leaving its mark."

I love working with all of my canine clients, but my heart does skip a beat when I get a call from a boxer or a Boston person. Biased? Who, me?

I started working with lovely Bentleigh on Saturday and she reminded me why I adore boxers so much. Is any breed quite as goofy? When we did our recalls she opted to go over the couch instead of around it, and she practically skipped down the sidewalk during our leash walk.

Boxers have an unusual mix of good looks and clownish charm ... and oh yes, there's that pushed-in face thing again. Boxer folks -- can I get an "amen"?

This is my new training client Trevor, the charming rescue pug/basset mix who lives in DC:

There was no guesswork necessary to determine his breed ... it wasn't a case of "Welll, he kinda looks like a pug" ... Trevor had a DNA test! I don't think he looks like either breed -- he's too blond to look like a fawn pug, and where's the basset in that face and body? But I guess you can't argue with science.

Trevor was discovered wandering the streets with a dirty cast falling off of his leg.

How are your manners? If you say "please" and "thank you" and hold doors open for people, you're on the right track -- but how about your manners as a dog owner? The latest video from Purina TV shows what it takes for both you and your dog to master the finer points of 'Pet Etiquette.'

Check out my new client Sasha, a 12-week-old mini Australian shepherd:

Is she a supermodel or what?

She's perfect in every way except for one little issue: She nips quite a bit.

Believe it or not, puppy mouthiness is actually a good thing, even though those little teeth can really hurt! It's important for pups to learn just how strong those piranha jaws are, so rest assured that your pup's exploratory mouthing is a normal developmental stage. (Forget what you've heard -- it doesn't mean your pup is "dominant"!)

Eventually you'll have to wean your puppy from mouthing your skin. How?

I took a field trip with my little friend Phoebe today.

Seems that she's doing great with her basic training, but she tends to get very distracted during leash walks when people pass by her. She's one of those pups who thinks that everyone needs to stop and say hello.

We took her to an outdoor shopping area and worked on teaching her to "watch," so she learns to focus on her owner rather than the interesting people passing by. It was no surprise that she picked it up almost immediately. Phoebe rocks.

"Watch" is a useful and cute obedience cue to teach your pup, and the first step is easy. Take a small greasy treat, place it in front of your dog's nose and then draw the treat up towards your eyes.

This pup belongs to my very dear friend. Hello, Cody.

My very dear friend invited me over for lunch last week, but little did I know that there was an ulterior motive to her invitation ... you see, Cody thinks that he's trying out for the Iditarod every time he takes a leash walk around the neighborhood, so my friend was looking for some dog training advice in addition to my sparkling conversation!

Cody was a quick study, so we only had to work about 20 minutes before I was fed. Good Cody!

Hello, Fido.

I met with her (yes, Fido is a girl) for the first time on Saturday to help deal with some Nubia-like leash issues. The leash stuff seems to be her only training shortcoming, as this sweet dog has mastered an impressive array of obedience skills.

Like what?

-- When her Italian-speaking person says "Boun giorno!" ("Good day!") Fido delicately places her paw in hand.
-- She holds a solid sit-stay while her person disappears from sight.
-- Say "Show me your belly," and she rolls over and does just that.
-- Ask her to go to bed and she'll race to it with glee.

My favorite Fido-trick was something I've never seen before: "Game off."

So is your dog nuts for squirrels too?

Once fall hits and the squirrel activity increases, leash walks can become a painful, arm-wrenching experience. I got tired of my dogs' "there's-a-SQUIRREL!!" dash during our walks, so I implemented a little bit of training disguised as a game, and it made a world of difference.

The "sit" cue plays a very important role in this game, so make sure that your dog readily responds when you ask him to "sit." If you can't get him to do so in a quiet environment, then there's no way he'll be able to do it in the squirrel scenario, so brush up on your remedial training first.

The first time I met Titus, a 7-month-old rottie/chow mix, I thought he wanted to bite my face off. His greeting was super-growly-barky and standoffish. He was telling me, in a very doggy fashion, to "Get out of my house! Get out right now, lady!" As I sat with his people going over some Q&A, he regarded me from a distance, not quite sure what was about to happen.

Thankfully, "what was about to happen" was magical.

I've talked about my "special needs" rescue boxer, Sumner, before. He of nervous "fight or flight" leash walks and inhospitable manners with house guests ... Sumner is the dog who keeps this dog trainer very humble.

Well, I had an epiphany over the holiday weekend ... I took both of my dogs for a walk at 11:00 on Sunday morning, which is essentially canine rush hour in my neighborhood, and realized that we did the entire circuit, passing barking dogs in back yards and neighbors mowing their lawns, and Sumner absolutely rocked it. No freak-outs or mad dashes for cover, just glances at me in the hopes that he'd get paid for his polite manners with a treat.

"Wow," I thought to myself, "this is progress. Major progress."

And it only took seven years!

Want to see a quick game of tug in action? Here's my guy Zeke showing off his skills:

The Presa mom checked out the post I wrote about her boys, Coach and Blue, and she agreed with one of the comments: The pups didn't look cute in the photos I took! (I beg to differ!)

She sent me these two super sweet shots of them, so please allow me to reintroduce Coach and Blue:

I love working with these pups -- they're training fanatics. They're so well-behaved that their owner gets compliments when she takes them out in public!

I showed up at my 7:30AM client ready to help a family deal with their dog's on-leash "surliness" towards other dogs. It was already boiling at that early hour, and I had a feeling that the dog wasn't going to be the only surly character during our walk. (I hate this weather!)

Everything changed the instant I met Nubia the rottweiler.

This super-sweet dog only has three legs. I tried to wrap my mind around the concept of a three-legged dog navigating the busy city streets, all the while barking, "Bring it on, Labrador! I could still take you! You think you got game, Airedale?" every time she saw another dog.

There's been quite a bit of bad press for dogs lately, and those of you with the breeds in the news are probably howling out the fact that breed alone is not an indicator of temperament. How many of us know sweet-natured pits or lovable rotties? Dogs' behavior is a combination of genetics and environment -- nature and nurture, if you will. Breed alone does not a bad dog make.

The Presa Canario breed created headlines a few years ago under tragic circumstances, and today I began working with two of them. Two big, young, brindle Presas, Coach and Blue.