Good Dogma
By Lisa Ellman
As a dog trainer, more and more, my theories on working with dog owners are increasingly more about the big picture than about simple commands or behavior modification.
For me, it’s not about the commands per se, but about the way your dog sees you and relates to you.
It’s about respecting one another. You have to earn a dog’s respect in order to be seen as leader, that means structuring the dog’s daily activities — eating, playing and walking — feeding it good, nutritious food, and providing adequate exercise and attention to your particular dog.
Alternatively, you must respect the dog as it is, a reactive animal that cannot speak. Dogs don’t have the brain capacity or wiring to think about what they are going to do in a given situation; they just react. And it can be in a good way or a bad way.
And as a reactive creature, I almost never blame the dog for any misdeeds (not considering the few dogs that are just wired badly and are aggressive, bad seeds).
Having said that, I believe there is no justification for people making excuses about their dog’s behavior because 99% of a dog’s inappropriate behavior can be managed or modified.
Most of these behaviors can be improved upon through consistent and gradual reconditioning of the response, whether it’s fear of inanimate objects or jumping on people.
Where the big picture comes into play, as opposed to the minutiae of teaching commands, is in the trust and respect your dog has for you.
I’ve written about, and continue to mention, the importance of leadership when living with our canine companions. I purposely avoid using the word “dominance” in my training.
I maintain that when using that word, in the sphere of training, people may misinterpret it to mean that they can be physically aggressive with their dogs. That’s not a constructive or productive way to engage with your dog or change behavior in a positive way. Good Dogma does not condone any type of negative physical interactions between dog and owner.
It is my belief that these actions by owners can sometimes cause an aggressive response from the animal, in line with self-preservation.
If you are a consistent, dynamic leader every day, your dog will come to depend on that trait and follow your instructions. Although teaching of basic commands, in which the dog learns to associate the sound of a word with a physical response, is required, the rest of the dog’s behavior will fall in line, imposed by your leadership.
For example, once the dog has learned that the physicality of “wait” means not bolting through the door, it should be the iron clad rule, and you will no longer have to use the body block, utilized when teaching this command.
When consistently using only your body language and or differentiating your voice for particular behaviors, the dog will start to understand that the couch, the bed and the garbage can do not belong to them.
Changing behaviors takes time and the deeper the behavior is ingrained, the longer it may take to undo and change it. Be patient with your canine kids. They want to be part of the pack. Take the time to teach them how.
Lisa Ellman has been working with animals for over 20 years, including dog grooming, presentations with wild animals and vet tech positions. Her passion, however, is dogs and in 1996 she founded Good Dogma Obedience Training, offering basic obedience training and behavior modification. Her comprehensive theory on training is simple: “Train the human, condition the dog.” See her website at: www.Gooddogma.net and catch her radio show on 97.3 FM The Rock in the Estero Bay Area, 4 p.m. Saturdays. Email her at: [email protected]. Good Dogma is a monthly feature of Simply Clear Marketing & Media.
