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Imagine being a young dog on your first day of training class. You’re in a new place surrounded by new smells, sounds, and a bunch of other excitable pups who just want to play. Even for the most upstanding canine student, it would be hard to focus.
That’s where NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers come in. These fun little stickers are enhanced with a special blend of essential oils to help your dog focus on you and your commands, no matter what the world throws at them. Best of all, these stickers work with the NATPAT locket and hang right off your dog’s collar, so those calming, focusing oils can be easily inhaled for maximum effect.
I had a chance to try NATPAT’s training stickers on my excitable Dalmatian mix, Ragz, and my parents’ rowdy Labs. Keep reading to find out the surprising effects they had and to see my full NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers review.
Overview
| Product Type: | Training aid |
| Best Suited For: | Dogs who struggle to focus during training or on walks |
| Price Range: | Moderately priced |
| Contents: | Come in packs of 24 stickers, lockets sold separately |
| Specs: | Each sticker is about 1 inch by 1 inch |
| Options: | One option – includes orange, blue, pink, and green stickers |
| Extra Equipment: | Requires a NATPAT Pet Locket |
| Duration: | Each sticker lasts about 8 hours |
| Package Options: | Buy four packs at a time for an added discount |
Our Experience
I have long been a big proponent of essential oil use for pets. When I taught obedience classes, I would often use a diffuser with lavender oil to help keep my students calmer—both the dogs and the humans. And I frequently use essential oils with my anxious old man Chihuahua to help him relax.
But utilizing oils with dogs can be a bit of a challenge, mostly because they are tricky to administer. Putting oils directly on the fur is rarely advisable since the dog might lick them off. Depending on the oil, this can be problematic.
Using oils in a diffuser is safer, but it also makes it harder to dispense specific oils to specific pets without exposing everyone. Not to mention that, if the pet leaves the room, the oils are no longer effective.
NATPAT has figured out the perfect way to allow for safe yet focused essential oil use with pets, thanks to their Pet Locket.
This little sticker holder hangs off your dog’s collar, allowing the scent of the essential oils to rise to their nose. This enables consistent dosing no matter where the dog goes while preventing the accidental ingestion of oils.
Pair that brilliant administration method with NATPAT’s unique focus-forward Dog Training Aid Stickers, and you have the potential for an excellent training tool. This is exactly the kind of product I would have loved to have back when I was teaching obedience classes.
To test how effective the actual product is, I enlisted the help of Ragz, my senior Dalmatian mix. She has always loved training but is less enthusiastic about it now that she’s older. I wanted to see if this would help her stay focused like she was when she was young.
I also shared these stickers with my parents, who just signed up their two young, eighty-pound Labs for training class. These big boys have the opposite problem from Ragz—they get way too excited about training!
Once my stickers and lockets arrived, it was time to get training and testing.
What I Liked
To start, I love the smell of these stickers. Vetiver with spruce and frankincense? Yes, please! I would happily walk around all day with one of these stuck to my shirt.
Two, I love the cute designs and the variety of stickers that come in each pack.
But most importantly, I am a big fan of how you administer these stickers. The lockets are easy to use and do a good job of securing the sticker and keeping it in the right place for maximum effect.
For the most part, that effect was pretty apparent. During the training sessions I did with Ragz while using these stickers, she was noticeably more enthusiastic than she had been before. She seemed more like her younger self—that is, laser-focused on earning her treat.
More impressively, my mom reported that she noticed a substantial difference in her dogs’ behavior during their training class compared to the previous classes they had done. She said both dogs were calmer and less prone to distraction. This was especially apparent with Burley, the older of the two and the one more prone to anxiety when he’s out of his element.
Where I Saw Room for Improvement
The only real issue I noted with these training aids is the durability of the lockets. The design is great for holding the stickers and allowing the scent to permeate into the air. But the small plastic tabs that hold the top piece in place bend and break fairly easily.
After changing out Ragz’s sticker about three times, I noticed two of the plastic tabs were already worn down. It’s still holding together for now, but I don’t imagine it will last forever.
But, honestly, the stickers work well enough that I am willing to replace the locket so I can keep using the training stickers if it does break.
Pros & Cons
- Super easy to use
- Smell great
- Effective
- Safe
- Lightweight
- Locket isn’t overly durable
- Scent only lasts 8 hours
Key Features
Unique Essential Oil Blend
NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers contain a special blend of essential oils. Each oil is meant to help hone focus and ease stress to allow dogs to concentrate and relax for easier training.
Here’s what’s infused into each sticker:
- Vetiver – Reduces anxiety and increases alertness.1
- Black Spruce – Calms muscles and relaxes the central nervous system.2
- Spikenard – This plant is related to valerian and has similar calming and mood-balancing effects.3
- Frankincense – This ancient oil has many benefits, including reducing depression and anxiety and improving memory.4,5
- Cedarwood – Effects brain chemistry to help calm the mind and body6,7
- Roman Chamomile – This oil has long been used to decrease stress and support healthy sleep. It also does a great job of reducing anxiety to hone focus.8
- Anise – This mood-elevating oil helps reduce stress and supports positive emotions. One study even found anise was as effective as a leading antidepressant medication in reducing symptoms of depression9
- Rosemary – Boosts cognitive function and increases dopamine levels in the brain.10
These essential oils work together to help your dog relax while supporting focus and positive mood to make training a more enjoyable experience for everyone.
Focused Administration
By utilizing the NATPAT Pet Locket, you can deliver the benefits of these training stickers straight to your dog’s nose. Once the oils enter the respiratory tract, they are absorbed into the bloodstream.
From here, most travel to the brain where they help regulate hormones and brain chemistry. Others work on neurons and muscle cells throughout the body to support holistic tranquility.
Because the Pet Locket stays in place no matter where you train—in a classroom, at home, outside—you can take advantage of its benefits at every training session.
The scents infused into each sticker are most potent in the first two hours after the sticker is removed from the package. But the sticker will continue to release therapeutic levels of fragrance for eight hours.
For best results, put the sticker on about fifteen minutes before training starts and leave it on for the rest of the day to support beneficial brain activity for learning and retaining information.
Ordering and Options
When it comes to ordering NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers for your dog, you have a few options.
First, you can choose to buy one, two, three, or four packs at a time. The more you buy, the more you save. You also have the option to sign up for a subscription. This gives you an additional 15% off your order plus automatic shipping every 2 weeks to 6 months, depending on your needs.
The Pet Locket is compatible with all NATPAT’s other pet stickers. So, once you have one, you can take advantage of their other great products, including their Pet Zen Vapor Stickers for calming and their Pet Tick Repellent Stickers, a natural option for fighting external parasites.
About NATPAT
NATPAT started as a functional sticker company focused on providing natural mood support for children. Today, they have a long line of essential oil-infused stickers for people and pets that help with everything from emotional health to insect protection.
| Located: | Australian company with US and Canadian offices |
| Manufacturing: | Stickers made in China |
| Sourcing: | Oils sourced and formulated in Australia |
| Shipping: | Free shipping worldwide |
Are NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers a Good Value?
It’s difficult to determine how competitively priced these products are because they are so unique. Compared to dog calming essential oil blends, drop for drop, NATPAT is a bit more expensive. But that extra cost is more than made up for by how easy these are to use and how effective the application method is.
Opting for the four-pack of stickers and subscription shipping greatly reduces the overall costs and makes for a wonderful value.
How We Tested
I tested NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers with the help of many of my furry friends.
I started by using the locket and stickers on my senior dog Ragz during our training sessions. I noted the differences in her behavior during sessions when she wore the sticker compared to sessions when she didn’t. I also kept notes on her overall behavior during the days she had the stickers on and the days she didn’t.
Additionally, I enlisted the help of my parents and their rowdy Labradors who recently started training class. I had them put the stickers on during class and their in-home training sessions and report back on any differences they noted compared to the dogs’ earlier sessions without NATPAT.
Lastly, to test NATPAT’s claim that the stickers are safe for the whole family, I let my daughter wear them around and added a locket and sticker to my cat’s collar. Both tolerated the stickers well. Hilariously, my cat became hyper-focused on play anytime he had a fresh sticker in his locket.
I tested the stickers for a week, using them daily, before writing this review.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ)
How long do the stickers last?
The stickers are most potent within the first two hours of getting them out of the pack. They remain highly effective for 8 hours. The smell starts to diminish at this point, with all discernible scent gone after 24 hours (though your dog can probably still smell it for weeks).
Should I remove the sticker when I’m not training?
This is a personal choice, but I would recommend keeping it on for at least the full eight hours. Not only will the oils keep your dog’s stress levels down throughout the day, but they also improve cognitive activity, which may help your dog retain more following their training session.
How long do unused stickers last?
Unused stickers in a sealed package will last up to two years.
Can I use these stickers?
The NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers are certainly safe for adults and kids to use as directed. However, NATPAT makes a Focus sticker specifically for humans that contains a mix of oils formulated to help people stay calm and focused.
Conclusion
If your dog struggles to stay on task at obedience class, during home training sessions, or on walks, NATPAT Dog Training Aid Stickers may be just the training tool you need.
These unique stickers are infused with a blend of mood and brain-supporting oils that help reduce anxiety, hone focus, and improve cognition. This means less freaking out over treats, other dogs, and new situations and more time spent learning and listening to you. Best of all, these stickers are used with NATPAT’s Pet Locket, which keeps them safely in place on your dog’s collar for maximum effectiveness no matter where your training takes you.
