Trained dogs

You got a dog and now you want to train your dog. Where to go?

How many of you go to the local big box store to take dog training classes? Do you really think that some kid off the street who took a three week course training dogs is the best person to help you train Fido not to growl at your kids? Come on now! I have been training dogs since I was a kid and I have been around for more than half a century and I get goose bumps thinking about what could go wrong.

There has been a huge dumbing down of obedience in dogs in the last decade. Dogs are no longer expected to be obedient. They are encouraged to choose behaviours. I know how well that worked for children and I am not buying into it for dogs.

Dogs need to be shown in a kind and gentle manner….always being fair to the dog…. what we expect them to do. Once they know what we expect, they need to be told when they made a mistake. Think about it….your 6 year old is in school and the teacher asks your son how to spell ‘cat’ and your son says ‘c-a-d’. Would you not be upset with that teacher if she did not gently take your son and explain to him the difference between ‘t’ and ‘d’? So why can we not be equally as fair and gentle but honestly correct our dog for making a mistake?

Dogs are not as intelligent as our children are….and so they need even more information than our kids do when they are learning. And they also need skilled trainers, not some kid in a box store that just took a few lessons of their own before they started to train you and your dog. And God forbid that your dog has real behaviour issues that need work because those fly by night dog trainers won’t have a clue what to tell you.

Dogs can and do learn truly amazing skills. Go to a dog show sometime and head straight for the obedience ring and watch the Utility dogs do their thing. They are truly awe inspiring when you see them working. These are dogs that have formed a VERY special, unique bond with their owners and trainers. They weren’t dressed up like little children, they were trained and trained well to respect people and to be polite canine citizens.

So if you want to take classes go to someone who knows what they are doing…it does make a huge difference.

Boarding dogs in small rooms and play time.

A recent trend in boarding is to call small rooms cageless kennels. But they are just small rooms. There are a lot of dogs that experience what is called Barrier Frustration and being placed in small rooms is extremely stessful for these dogs. In fact most dog are not comfortable being locked away in small rooms no matter how many niceties we give them. A small room is different from a crate or a wire kennel because the dog can not see what is going on outside the room. Barrier Frustration is akin to claustrophobia in humans and indeed some dogs do suffer from claustrophobia and can not be crated or kennelled in small spaces at all. Put a dog with Barrier Frustration into a larger indoor outdoor kennel where they can see out and they will do much better with the kennelling experience.

Dogs are pack animals and they enjoy the presence of others of their kind. When we lock them into a small room we increase their anxiety level. A lot of kennels will turn around and sell you a TV/living room package for the dog when all the dog really needs is to be able to see and hear the other dogs that are in the kennel with them.

Many kennels will also insist that your dog goes out with all the other dogs to play. Well that sounds wonderful in theory but truthfully wild out of control play is not always in your dog’s best interest. Your dog would do better playing with dogs that match it’s energy level/temperament or better playing ball with the kennel owner. Your dog could get a nasty bite from another dog or it could rupture a cruciate ligament playing with another dog that is not suitable for your dog.

Chose a smaller kennel that takes the time to let your dog out individually if it is necessary to do so. Yes it is more work for the kennel owner but it is in your dog’s best interest.