Sexier Than A Squirrel: Dog Training That Gets Real Life Results
In Sexier Than a Squirrel, the Official AbsoluteDogs Podcast, join us here at Absolute Dogs as we talk training your dog, transforming your dog training struggles and getting real-life results through GAMES!
Sexier Than A Squirrel: Dog Training That Gets Real Life Results
Siri's Magic Suitcase: Taking Games on the Road
Use Left/Right to seek, Home/End to jump to start or end. Hold shift to jump forward or backward.
Welcome to this episode of the Sexier than a Squirrel podcast, the podcast that brings you real-life dog training results, and sometimes human training ones too!
This week, the wonderful Sam is back to chat to Lauren about a rather unusual training tool: a suitcase.
Siri, Sam’s Jack Russell, used to find the outside world pretty overwhelming. Walks could quickly turn into moments of panic and reactivity. But a simple idea - a suitcase covered in unicorns - helped turn those tricky situations into something far more predictable and productive.
The “magic suitcase” isn’t really magic at all. It’s a portable kit filled with games Siri already knows and loves. Over time, the suitcase itself became a cue: when it appears, it means “we’re about to play our games”. That sense of familiarity gives Siri something clear and positive to focus on, even when the environment around her feels challenging.
Lauren and Sam talk through how Sam built this system step by step. It started at home with short, successful sessions, layering different games onto the same prop so Siri learned that the suitcase always means the same thing. From two paws up and wrap-arounds to boundary settles, scent searches, and even a noise box, each activity became part of the same predictable routine.
It’s outside in the real world where the suitcase really comes into its own. When things feel a bit spicy - a busy street, a sudden distraction, a trigger appearing in the distance - the suitcase helps Siri switch from worry to work. Sometimes that means calm, nose-led activities; other times it’s more dynamic games that channel her energy in a helpful way.
If you have a reactive, nervous, or easily over-aroused dog, this episode offers a simple, creative way to bring familiar training games with you wherever you go - helping your dog feel safer, calmer, and more able to make good choices.
Ready to give it a go with your own dog? Sam would LOVE to see you and your dogs get creative with their own magic suitcases.
Part of Games Club? We’ve added Siri’s Magic Suitcase to your library of games so you can see it in action.
New to games and want to check it out? Grab the £1 Games Club trial and you can watch it right now.
https://absolutedogs.me/7daytrial
If you’re loving the podcast, you’ll love our NEW Sexier than a Squirrel Dog Training Challenge even more! Get transformational dog training today for only £27!
Want even more epic dog training fun and games and solutions to all your dog training struggles? Join us in the AbsoluteDogs Games Club!
https://absolutedogs.me/gamesclub
Want to take your learning to the next level? Jump into the games-based training membership for passionate dog owners and aspiring trainers that know they want more for themselves and their dog - Pro Dog Trainer Club!
https://absolutedogs.me/prodogtrainerclub
And while you’re here, please leave a review for us and don’t forget to hit share and post your biggest lightbulb moment! Remember, no matter what struggles you might be facing with your dog, there is always a game for that!
From Overwhelm To Focus
SPEAKER_00So rather than concentrating on everything out in the environment, she's like, no, I'm going to do this because this is what I really like doing. This is really fun. And you've got a dog suddenly then that is not as bothered about the distractions that usually make her kick off and bark like a lunatic, you know? And she's a loud dog. She can be a very loud dog for such a small dog. So it became this you can take it anywhere, but it's like a little security blanket for her where she's like, oh no, we're doing this stuff.
SPEAKER_01Welcome to the Absolute Dog Sex in a Squirrel podcast. I'm Lauren Langman. I'm one of the world's leading dog trainers, and it's my mission to help owners become their dog's top priority. In each episode, you'll discover how to gain trust and communicate with your dog like never before, creating unbreakable bonds that make you the most exciting part of their world. Siri's magic suitcase. I mean, it's pretty catchy. It's pretty cool. You got a dog called Siri.
SPEAKER_00What is this? Oh, right. This game came from Siri is Jack Russell Terrier. She's uh she's quite reactive, she's scared of humans, she's scared of dogs, you know, she's kind of scared of life. She's naughty but nice. She's a naughty but nice dog, and she really is nice as well. Um, but she can definitely, she's got that naughty but nice side of her. So taking her out about, we want to we want to help her, you know, we want to train the games, we want to help her in a head state.
SPEAKER_01Taking her out and about has been challenging.
SPEAKER_00It has been challenging.
Introducing Games Club Foundations
SPEAKER_01And likely will continue to be challenging. Yeah, she's on a bit of a predisposition, she's genetically a bit wired to be like that. Yeah, she's had a few bad experiences, all in all, makes for a little bit of a sad Siri. Yeah. Now, you've been doing Games Club, you've um done Pro Dog Trainer, you're one of the trainers, you're one of the team at Devon Dogs and at Bowerland and at anything we do when we're filming. Yeah, you've been involved in lots of the journey, and you created a super cool fun game that helped you take the games on the road. Yeah. Now we're here to talk about Series Magic Suitcase. Love it. How did it start? What is it? Where does it sort of come in and how do you utilize it? And what we're gonna say straight off, guys, if you're not already part of Games Club, you really want to be part of Games Club before you even get involved in Series Magic Suitcase because actually it's one pound. It's one pound. What would you say?
SPEAKER_00Someone it's one pound for seven days. Why wouldn't you? It's one pound. Just do it. One pound.
SPEAKER_01Try it. If you don't like it, cancel it. You don't need to stay there, and literally jump in and give it a go. So all of the games that Sam's going to talk about are layered upon what is in Games Club. Yes. However, she's added Siri's Magic suitcase. And with Series Magic suitcase, we now take this show on the road. Yes, we do.
The Birth Of The Magic Suitcase
Layering Games Onto One Prop
SPEAKER_00How does it go? So uh it's literally a suitcase, it looks like a suitcase. It's a carry-on type, you know, in terms of size, carry-on style suitcase. Um, I bought it with unicorns on it because I thought it looked really cool, and I'm basically a small child in my brain. So it's really cool and fun. And the idea was that we can use lots of the games from Games Club just with this suitcase, and we make this suitcase a really, really cool thing so that whenever I get it out, my dog's like, Yes, yes, we are doing that thing with the suitcase. Getting! I don't know what game we're doing, but we're doing something cool. Series magic suitcase in the house. I'm super excited, and that's what we got. So we started layering in lots of games into it and teaching her lots of games. So she's got she can do two pores onto it, and we put some sticky stuff on it so that she doesn't slip. So she's got two pores up. She can um she can push it, so we taught her to push it along. We taught her to pull it from a toy, so she pulls it like she's going on a little holiday. On the holiday, she's like so cute. She can we can open it and we can we've got scent work in there. We've got like some noisy stuff in there, so she does it like a noise box, which is great for confidence for dogs. She can get into it, she can wrap around it. We use it as a boundary as well. So when it's open, she'll get in. She's quite happy to be like, okay, this is my space. There's just so much. It's growing, it's still growing.
SPEAKER_01I really love that you've sort of taken all of those games. So, number one, layer the games, get the game reported. Do you have so many games?
SPEAKER_00Yeah, so you start one at a time. I didn't do all of them all.
Why A Suitcase Becomes A Security Cue
SPEAKER_01And all the games in Games Club. Yeah. Take your games from Games Club, put it in a suitcase, take it on the road with you. Now, why is it helpful that you can take that little suitcase on the road with you and you're kind of almost thinking of adapting it and having some straps like a bass?
Managing Energy And Arousal
SPEAKER_00Because then I just have a walk without having to anyway. I got very excited. Now that I got thinking about it. Right. So the idea is that when we start this at home, okay, it's really important that we start this at home. We want our dogs to love this suitcase. We want our dogs to be like really super excited, have played all these games, know how to play all these games with the suitcase, and it will be ever growing, ever expanding. The idea is when we get out into the environment where it's like a scary place, it's like a security blanket, you know. So she's got something that she recognizes that she knows bring her, brings her like good vibes, brings good times, stuff that she enjoys doing. So rather than concentrating on everything out in the environment, she's like, No, I'm gonna do this because this is what I really like doing. This is really fun. And you've got a dog suddenly, then, that is not as bothered about the distractions that usually make her kick off and bark like a lunatic, you know? And she's a loud dog, she can be a very loud dog for such a small dog. So it became this you can take it anywhere, but it's like a little security blanket for her, where she's like, Oh, no, we're doing this stuff. And so slowly her behavior as a result is starting to change, you know. So she's seeing stuff out there that normally she would she would go absolutely crazy about. And we're careful about how we manage and where the distance of these distractions and stuff, we're growing it slowly, but it's that straight away she's like, Ah, I I do this. Ah, okay. It's that familiarization for her where it's the same, you know, you're taking it in the same places, and that's the constant in all of these new places where she doesn't know what there's gonna be, she doesn't know what she's gonna see, and that's the kind of thing that kicks her off. It's the kind of thing that sets her off into these like spirals of madness, so it just settles her a little bit, and and it we can see it working, you know, which is really cool. So it is it's quite special, especially because you can control the energy of it. So if I was doing something like rapping, that's very high energy and fun and exciting. If I've got it open and she's doing like a little snuffle suitcase, then her energy is a lot lower, so it means I can kind of pitch it where I want to pitch it as well, which is really cool.
Community Success And Creativity
SPEAKER_01Oh, it's really cool. I love it. I I really love it. And what I particularly love about it, and I really do love this, is that you've layered game on game on game on game, you've put it on the road, you've made it adaptable, and you've enabled a little naughty but nice dog to feel a little bit better about the world. Yeah, and if that is one dog at a time, like we're making a difference.
SPEAKER_00Yeah, hugely. And and I'm I'd love to we're we're gonna like like put it, make sure it's in GameStop, aren't we? But we've started to get some of our community on it already.
SPEAKER_01Absolutely, and and they love it, they love it. They're all out there decorating the suitcases or grabbing a mini mouse suitcase or a rainbow suitcase or something. Not the same one as you, didn't they? They did. They didn't know that.
SPEAKER_00So I'm so on as well. Why did you get that suitcase and they got the exact same?
A Bridge Into Tough Environments
SPEAKER_01Same one as Siri. The best part is that Siri actually feels more comfortable through the games, that you actually feel you're like you have a effectively it's a bridge into the environment, isn't it? It's a bridge, it makes you feel more comfy. Say, for example, I don't know, say to you go down to the party down the road and you're like, well, I don't know anyone there, you take me, and suddenly we're more comfortable in that scenario because we both know the people or whatever else. It's it's something that goes into that environment, it's a tool that goes into that environment that effectively enables that dog to feel more comfortable in that environment because they know part of that situation. Yeah, exactly. Um it's it's a it's a comfy pair of slippers that goes and attends the event too. So anyone that's thinking about games club, Sam, what are you gonna tell them? Why wouldn't you?
SPEAKER_00Why wouldn't you? It's one pound. Oh, that's two. It's one pound, it's one pound. And all of these games are in there. So the games that I layered into the suitcase, they are separate games that you play, and then you just you adapt them and you play them with a suitcase.
Try Games Club And Share Wins
SPEAKER_01The only limitation you have, guys, is your creativity. Yeah, literally. Like literally, you are a creative person, I'm a creative person, but we also show you everything. But the only thing within series game that will limit you is your creativity. Have fun, have a go at it, tell us about it, show us videos.
SPEAKER_00Yes, do, do. You show me your videos and I'll show you my videos.
SPEAKER_01We want to see you, we want to see you. Any games that you're struggling on, it's in Games Club. Series magic suitcase helps naughty but nice dogs, helps nervous dogs, helps dogs who are worried about the world, helps dogs who are maybe aggressive, reactive, difficult in a new scenario. It is absolutely a go to. Right, Sam? Yep.
