Dog Dance foundations
Foundations for a relationship-first, body-aware dog dance experience
Welcome to Dog Dance foundations!
This is where it begins.
The skills on this page are the building blocks of dog dance: the movements and moments that make everything else possible. Work through them in any order, at any pace, and let your dog tell you what's landing.
There's no checklist to complete and no right version to reach. Just you, your dog, and a new way of moving together.
Move slowly. Laugh often. Listen closely.
And have more fun, on purpose.
Your Dance Starts Here
Before we get into movement or music, take a few minutes to orient yourself, both to the wider world of dog dance and to how this programme is designed. These short videos are shared across all Lineage of Love dog dance offerings, so if you buy a choreography later, this will be familiar to you. You only need to watch them once, and you’re always welcome to come back to them later.
🎥 Welcome to Dog Dance
An introduction to the dog dance landscape, major organizations, and the values guiding this programme.
📄 Our Four Core Values (PDF)
The principles that guide every dance, every session, every choice.
🎥 How This Course Is Organized
An overview of how to use the materials, how to pace yourself, and how to adapt the work to the dog you have today.
📄 How This Course Is Organized (PDF)
How to understand the course structure, and make it your own.
🎥 Preparing Your Dance Space
Guidance on setting up a safe, comfortable space at home, including flooring, room layout, and simple equipment to support joyful movement. Don’t worry, small spaces work beautifully for dancing, too.
📄 Preparing Your Dance Space (PDF)
How to understand the course structure, and make it your own.
Music Usage in This Course
Because this programme uses commercially released music, the original recording is not included inside the lesson videos. Due to copyright restrictions, I’m unable to embed or distribute the song directly within this course.
Instead, you’ll need access to the track on your own device (for example, through Spotify, Apple Music, YouTube, or another streaming service).
Throughout the choreography lessons, I’ll clearly reference timestamps and musical phrases so you can follow along easily.
You’re welcome to:
Play the song on a second device
Stream it in the background while watching the lesson
Practise sections slowly without music first
This is a standard practice in online dance education, and it allows us to work with beautiful, well-loved songs while respecting the rights of the original artists.
Thank you for helping protect the music and the creators behind it.
There’s no rush here. You can return to these foundations at any time.
Every Dance Begins with an Invitation
Every dance begins by asking your partner to join you.
Before there is choreography, music, or movement, there is consent.
Dog dance only works when the dog is a willing participant — not a dog who is complying, enduring, or pushing through because they feel pressure.
This section lays the foundation for everything that follows. It applies to dogs of all sizes, ages, experience levels, and temperaments, and it remains relevant no matter how much experience you gain.
Think of this as learning how to ask, how to listen, and how to respond — before stepping onto the dance floor together.
🎥 Consent & Willing Participation
Learn how dogs communicate consent, how to recognize when engagement changes, and how to protect trust throughout training. This lesson is required before moving into choreography.
📄 Consent & Willing Participation (PDF)
A supportive, judgment-free guide for moments when something feels off: disengagement, over-excitement, difficulty settling, or uncertainty about what your dog is communicating.
🎥 How to Use the Troubleshooting Guide
A short framing video to help you use the guide gently, without self-criticism or pressure to “fix” anything.
📄 Troubleshooting Consent (PDF)
A supportive, judgment-free guide for moments when something feels off: disengagement, over-excitement, difficulty settling, or uncertainty about what your dog is communicating.
If you’re ever unsure whether something counts as consent, slow down.
On this dance floor, listening always comes first.
Building the Dance Together
Foundations for shared movement and joyful practice
Once you’ve practiced asking and listening, these foundations support the how of working together.
Think of them as tools you can reach for when you need more clarity, confidence, or ease — not steps you must complete before you’re allowed to dance.
You’re welcome to move between these lessons and the choreography in whatever order serves you and your dog.
🎥 Asking for Behaviour
How to invite movement without pressure. This lesson covers cueing once, waiting, observing, and adjusting the setup rather than insisting on a response. It’s about making space for choice and collaboration.
🎥 Treats, Reinforcement, & Regulation
How to use food in ways that support calm, thinking, and nervous system safety. Especially helpful if your dog becomes over-excited, grabs at treats, or has trouble settling during training.
🎥 Session Design & Thoughtful Endings
How to keep sessions short, successful, and trust-building — including how and when to stop early. This lesson focuses on protecting enthusiasm so your dog wants to come back tomorrow.
You don’t need to master these foundations before moving on.
Many teams revisit them again and again, as their dog changes, their goals shift, or the dance deepens. That’s not going backward — that’s listening. In our dance community, these foundations often become shared language and touchstones.
This download includes:
Consent Check
Regulation Reset
Clean Asking
Thoughtful Endings
When you’re ready, bring these tools with you onto the dance floor.
Choreography
Stepping Onto the Dance Floor
This is where we begin to play with the music together.
This is a short, simple routine set to the “Cupid Shuffle” — something you can actually do with your dog, not just practice toward. Watch the video below and have fun dancing with your dog.
Bring curiosity. Bring patience.
And bring your sense of play.
That's your first dance together.
It doesn't have to be perfect; it just has to be yours.
If this lit something up for you, there's more waiting.
Build your own routine: the Building Your Own Dog Dance Routine workshop walks you through choosing music, mapping movement, and making something that's genuinely yours.
Work with me directly: Dog Dance Office Hours are small-group sessions where we dig into your specific dog and your specific dance. Or if you want more dedicated time, we can work one-on-one.
Come dance in person: classes in Chicago through Urban Pooch, where you and your dog get to be in the room with other people who get it.
More is coming: new online options are in the works. Stay close.
Thank you for dancing with us.