1. TAKE CONTROL OF RESTING AREAS
Until you have owned your dog for at least 6 months, and have completed a training course to help you evaluate your dog, don't get in a big hurry to allow your dog on the bed or to jump up on the furniture uninvited. It takes some dogs a while to show you who they are--if they snap or growl, believe them! An aggressive dog is telling you it needs more structure, is uncomfortable, and needs less opportunity to make decisions about space.
Have the dog wear a leash in the house (only when supervised of course) and remove the dog from the furniture using the leash. This makes it safer for dogs that might bite if you reached for the collar to remove them.
2. TAKE CONTROL OF MEAL TIMES
If your dog demand barks for food, has been shown to be more reactive in areas of food preparation, then food should be presented to the dog after it responds to a few simple commands. No free choice feeding. Any food not consumed in 10 minutes is taken away and not offered again until the next meal time.
Owner aggressive dogs will benefit by having several meals per week hand fed. Each handful should be earned by the dog's response to a command.
3. TAKE CONTROL OF YOUR WALKING SPACE
Don't let your dog control your movement. Teach your dog to "heel" or walk with respect at your side without pulling you. Head halters, and a good obedience class will work wonders. Don't let the dog lean forward and balance on the front end. Teach your dog that a good brisk walk does not entail sniffing, or repeatedly dropping their head. Think about the walk as more of a structured march than free time for the dog.
4. TAKE BACK YOUR HOME
If the dog chews, urinates, and/or has displayed pushy, controlling behavior, it is time to limit freedom. Crate train for times when you are away from the house, and some when you are home, the dog should be crated and be expected to be quiet and accepting. Use baby gates, or "stationing" when you are there to supervise.
Stationing: tie your dog to a doorknob or heavy piece of furniture. Give the dog something acceptable to chew. The dog can be stationed during the family's meal times, when guests arrive, or anytime you want the dog to be part of the family but under control. Stationing can be done for 20-30 minutes for young dogs up to several hours for older dogs. Be sure and give the dog appropriate potty breaks.
5. CONTROL THE GAMES
Don't play tug-of-war with your dog unless you do so with control, and teach an "out" or "drop-it" command. When you play "fetch games" start and end the game with possession of the toy. It is not acceptable for the dog to bite at your skin or clothes. Children should not engage in tug games with the family dog.
6. CONTROL THE REWARDS
Ignore nudging, whining or bringing you toys. Have your dog obey a command before giving it attention. All treats must be earned. Games are earned. Control the reward of going outside and coming in; be sure you are not jumping up and down to let the dog in and out at every demand.
7. CONTROL BEHAVIOR WHILE GROOMING
Don't let your dog decide what handling is appropriate. Handle your dog's ears, feet, tail, etc. and groom it as long as you choose. Read about Touch Desensitization in Brenda Aloff's book, Get Connected With Your Dog.
If this is a problem, seek help from a licensed behaviorist, or a NADOI or APDT endorsed instructor in your area.
8. CONTROL THE RESPONSES TO OTHERS
The threshold of your home is yours--not your dog's. Teach your dog a "quiet" command so that alarm barking does not become uncontrolled nuisance barking.
Do not allow the dog to greet your guests before you do. Dogs are easily taught to back up, so that you are between guests and the dog until the dog is more calm. This will also stop most jumping up on guests. You can also meet and greet guests with the dog on leash to help control barking, jumping, or circling (many reported bites are to the back of the legs of guests). Dogs who are persistent in attention demanding behaviors should be ignored for the first few minutes that you are home. Visitors should ignore your dog for 5-10 minutes.
Ask the dog who is determined to door-dash to look up at you when approaching a door. Food lures work well for teaching stationary attention.
9. CONTROL EXERCISE
Train your dog to walk on a short, loose lead in the direction you choose. Male or female dogs should not be allowed to urinate away from home territory on your neighborhood walks. To allow this makes the dog think they are marking a very large territory. If your dog tries to mark every tree and post, continue to walk briskly.
The dog should have a good energy burn-off every day. This can be through walks, swimming, biking (check out the Springer apparatus for safely biking with your dog), or retrieve games in addition to the structured walk.
10. CONTROL YOUR URGE TO EXCUSE OR TO PUNISH
Some owners see their dogs as children and make excuses for behaviors that are often dangerous. Some rescue dogs may have had a rough experience, but it is we who remember the incident, not the dog. Being a victim of neglect or abuse is not a reason for aggression.
Other owners want to blame the dog and give him or her human characteristics and reasoning abilities of which dogs are simply not capable. Dogs are not vengeful or vindictive, they are not capable of complex retaliatory acts (like chewing your new shoes because the dog was mad about something that happened yesterday). Dogs understand through instinct and training. Dogs need consistency, and time, time spent with their owners. That time is the most important thing to our dogs.
Showing posts with label dog trainers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label dog trainers. Show all posts
Saturday, December 19, 2009
Friday, November 20, 2009
WHY?
I believe the Internet is a wonderful, powerful tool that has now made things possible that most of us could have never imagined. Thirty years ago it would have been difficult if not impossible to find good European breeders, and converse with dog trainers all over the world. But I also believe the Internet has made it possible for shysters, and liars to succeed. There are dog trainers who claim to train drug detection dogs, apprehension dogs, search and rescue dogs, cadaver dogs, personal protection dogs, competition dogs, therapy dogs, seizure detection dogs, and teach classes, train dogs that are boarding at their facility, etc., etc.
Why can't the public see that no one person can do all of that? Most of these with the jargon can never produce an actual working dog that they have trained. I have met great trainers at seminars and workshops, and all who are great specialize in a very few things. Many of the blow-hard trainers are also "breeders." They have overpriced dogs just waiting for people with money who believe their slick stories. It is a joke among the dog-knowledgeable as to the poor quality dogs that many wealthy people have been duped into buying, and the money they have spent on mediocre to downright poor quality instruction, or abuse in the name of training. WHY would people spend more time selecting a car or furniture than they do researching an animal they are going to spend 15 years with, and some with the potential to rip the face off of their kid?
Why don't people investigate? Sadly, the public thinks that if the facility looks good, that if the breeder "promises" that the dogs are healthy and of exceptional quality, that they got one hell of a deal. When actually they ended up with a poor specimen of the breed, or a designer-mutt, with no real potential. Most people don't know what questions to ask, they don't know that titles on the parents prove that the parents at least had some genetic predisposition for learning, coping, and instinct for whatever work the dog was bred to do.
Why don't dog owners want to learn? Off and on for years I have tried to interest people in consultations or seminars on how to select a breed for what the owner wanted. The public just doesn't give a damn. They don't want to learn anything about the beings that they are selecting to share their life. It is for that reason that in the USA that 43 percent of all dogs are re-homed after 6 months of ownership. Many of these dogs end up in rescues, shelters, or passed from person to person, sold in newspapers, etc.
I am not a breed or competition snob. I believe though if you want a dog that is a good companion that matches your energy level and fits in well with your lifestyle you have to know what you are seeing in the pup, adult dog, or when selecting from a litter, what the parents will tell you about the offspring. This can be a $2,000.00 dog or a dog from the shelter.
I have lap-dogs, and working dogs. I have expensive dogs, and rescues. Both can be trained, but my Italian Greyhound is not going to excel at Schutzhund like my German Shepherd imported from Europe who has all working titled dogs in her pedigree for 5 generations. My IG though is just as important to me, and she will make a great therapy dog, she loves agility, and she is a great bed-warmer and fun to dress up! ;-)
Why can't people see and hear the truth? The sign of a crappy breeder is when they point out that "the great great grandfather was a grand champion." Oh dear god! First of all there is no such things in dogs as a "grand champion." That title is for hogs and cattle. Champion means that the dog was judged on beauty and those traits can be lost in one generation of breeding to an ugly dog. Also, conformation champions don't usually have a brain left because of selective breeding for beauty traits only. So if you want a show dog, the odds are against you unless one or both parents are show ring winners. If you want a great herding dog, just because the dog is of the herding breed, it doesn't mean the dog's instincts or trainability has not been lost through mediocre breeding when no one is truly testing their dogs in trials. Genetics are everything. "The dog is what it is when the sperm hits the egg." (That quote is from my good friend and German Shepherd enthusiast, Sandy Tam-Armstead).
If you want a field retriever that wins hunting trials, you better see that one or both parents are field titled. Now if you want a retriever that is a great pet and lays by the fire at night -- you do NOT want a field bred dog.
I also just love people who purchase a working dog, and then never hunt, or herd, or bother to even complete a 6 week training course. Lofty goals require hard work. Sorry, but I only see that perseverence in about 2% of the people who train. In my Schutzhund club over the last 14 years I have seen hundreds of people show up a time or two and then never show up again. Now that dog with all the energy and the genetics is sitting in a yard until the owners decide to sell or just keep the dog as a lawn ornament.
I am pissed. I am burned out. I need to get away from humane issues, because I just cannot tolerate the ignorance surrounding dogs much longer. From now on, I am not going to coddle ignorance. I am not going to reinforce stupidity with niceties. I have spent tens of thousands of dollars going to seminars, reading books and scientific studies on genetics in dogs, watching hundreds of dvds and documented hours of videos of dogs displaying neurotic or psychotic tendencies. Yet, people will flatly ignore my advice, or travel to another trainer who will sugar-coat things and tell them what they want to hear.
I am tired of old men who are too insecure to take advice from a younger woman. Several years ago I attended an adult education workshop. There the speaker said that the hardest group of people to reach and train with a new idea are men over the age of 50. Heeheee.. sighhhh, boy ain't it the truth. All of the instructors at Full Circle are female. I think it makes the instruction better. I also believe women do not tend to make the dog an extension of our egos. But we have our problems, too, like using dogs as a child substitute, or a substitute for a human relationship.
So one more "why". Why not take the time to ask for proof of what a trainer has done. Why not ask about seminars instructors should attend to continue their education -- not to improve their salesmanship. Why not try to get the best dog and then the best training that is the best fit for your family?
Why can't the public see that no one person can do all of that? Most of these with the jargon can never produce an actual working dog that they have trained. I have met great trainers at seminars and workshops, and all who are great specialize in a very few things. Many of the blow-hard trainers are also "breeders." They have overpriced dogs just waiting for people with money who believe their slick stories. It is a joke among the dog-knowledgeable as to the poor quality dogs that many wealthy people have been duped into buying, and the money they have spent on mediocre to downright poor quality instruction, or abuse in the name of training. WHY would people spend more time selecting a car or furniture than they do researching an animal they are going to spend 15 years with, and some with the potential to rip the face off of their kid?
Why don't people investigate? Sadly, the public thinks that if the facility looks good, that if the breeder "promises" that the dogs are healthy and of exceptional quality, that they got one hell of a deal. When actually they ended up with a poor specimen of the breed, or a designer-mutt, with no real potential. Most people don't know what questions to ask, they don't know that titles on the parents prove that the parents at least had some genetic predisposition for learning, coping, and instinct for whatever work the dog was bred to do.
Why don't dog owners want to learn? Off and on for years I have tried to interest people in consultations or seminars on how to select a breed for what the owner wanted. The public just doesn't give a damn. They don't want to learn anything about the beings that they are selecting to share their life. It is for that reason that in the USA that 43 percent of all dogs are re-homed after 6 months of ownership. Many of these dogs end up in rescues, shelters, or passed from person to person, sold in newspapers, etc.
I am not a breed or competition snob. I believe though if you want a dog that is a good companion that matches your energy level and fits in well with your lifestyle you have to know what you are seeing in the pup, adult dog, or when selecting from a litter, what the parents will tell you about the offspring. This can be a $2,000.00 dog or a dog from the shelter.
I have lap-dogs, and working dogs. I have expensive dogs, and rescues. Both can be trained, but my Italian Greyhound is not going to excel at Schutzhund like my German Shepherd imported from Europe who has all working titled dogs in her pedigree for 5 generations. My IG though is just as important to me, and she will make a great therapy dog, she loves agility, and she is a great bed-warmer and fun to dress up! ;-)
Why can't people see and hear the truth? The sign of a crappy breeder is when they point out that "the great great grandfather was a grand champion." Oh dear god! First of all there is no such things in dogs as a "grand champion." That title is for hogs and cattle. Champion means that the dog was judged on beauty and those traits can be lost in one generation of breeding to an ugly dog. Also, conformation champions don't usually have a brain left because of selective breeding for beauty traits only. So if you want a show dog, the odds are against you unless one or both parents are show ring winners. If you want a great herding dog, just because the dog is of the herding breed, it doesn't mean the dog's instincts or trainability has not been lost through mediocre breeding when no one is truly testing their dogs in trials. Genetics are everything. "The dog is what it is when the sperm hits the egg." (That quote is from my good friend and German Shepherd enthusiast, Sandy Tam-Armstead).
If you want a field retriever that wins hunting trials, you better see that one or both parents are field titled. Now if you want a retriever that is a great pet and lays by the fire at night -- you do NOT want a field bred dog.
I also just love people who purchase a working dog, and then never hunt, or herd, or bother to even complete a 6 week training course. Lofty goals require hard work. Sorry, but I only see that perseverence in about 2% of the people who train. In my Schutzhund club over the last 14 years I have seen hundreds of people show up a time or two and then never show up again. Now that dog with all the energy and the genetics is sitting in a yard until the owners decide to sell or just keep the dog as a lawn ornament.
I am pissed. I am burned out. I need to get away from humane issues, because I just cannot tolerate the ignorance surrounding dogs much longer. From now on, I am not going to coddle ignorance. I am not going to reinforce stupidity with niceties. I have spent tens of thousands of dollars going to seminars, reading books and scientific studies on genetics in dogs, watching hundreds of dvds and documented hours of videos of dogs displaying neurotic or psychotic tendencies. Yet, people will flatly ignore my advice, or travel to another trainer who will sugar-coat things and tell them what they want to hear.
I am tired of old men who are too insecure to take advice from a younger woman. Several years ago I attended an adult education workshop. There the speaker said that the hardest group of people to reach and train with a new idea are men over the age of 50. Heeheee.. sighhhh, boy ain't it the truth. All of the instructors at Full Circle are female. I think it makes the instruction better. I also believe women do not tend to make the dog an extension of our egos. But we have our problems, too, like using dogs as a child substitute, or a substitute for a human relationship.
So one more "why". Why not take the time to ask for proof of what a trainer has done. Why not ask about seminars instructors should attend to continue their education -- not to improve their salesmanship. Why not try to get the best dog and then the best training that is the best fit for your family?
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