Your Dog Is Stronger Than You

Some dogs, many dogs, are stronger than their owners. 

If you have never experienced the power of this fully armed and operational battle station… I mean, if you have never experienced the power of a fully lit up dog, you could be in for a real surprise when it happens. 

More reason to supervise, manage and train your dog and family.

Plan accordingly. 

Dogs And Muzzles

Yes, I know, many dog owners balk at using a muzzle because they envision their dog looking like Hannibal Lecter. Here is how I look at it... (MORE)

Serious Dog Training

Do you have a sour attitude when working with your dog? 

Dog Training Homework

Do you do your dog training homework? 

When I was in 7th grade, I was in band. My parents paid for me to do private lessons. Those were very helpful and gave me the formal groundwork to be a good clarinet player. I did one lesson per week, and then did the homework on the off days. 

No one made me play, I wanted to play. I wanted to play as good as my idols, like Benny Goodman and Artie Shaw.

When I got to high school, I wanted to be good. So I practiced. I practiced hours and hours at home. On my off hours in school, I would go to the band room, go in a private room, and work my tail off on the music we did in class plus practice the exercise workbooks, like Klose and such. Most of the band didn't practice much at all. That was OK, too. It was an enjoyable activity, and for some, just the social part of being in band was the reward.

That kind of work mentality helped me as a dog trainer. I have always done my homework with my dogs. Just like music practice, I work and work away at my dog to get to advanced obedience competence. I did it for the dog. I did it for me. There was no ribbon or certificate I wanted. I just wanted to train my dog to be as good as possible. 

If you want a well trained dog, there is more to it than just going through the classes and motions. 

A few years ago, I had two students with the same breed of dog, same age. Student number one was a retired school teacher. The other student was a retired businessman. Guess which dog got trained the best and fastest? The school teacher. Every time I showed up, I could see the results. For the other student, the only work the dog got was during the lessons, but no work was done in between lessons. 

So, the trainer can’t do it all. You live with the dog, so you have the greatest influence on how your dog will obey you when the lessons are over. 

Plan accordingly. 

Dog Attacked By Cougar In Olympic National Forest

“It’s not going to deter us from going out...we’re just going to have some defense mechanisms there so that if the unfortunate happens again, we will have something to defend against,” Lucas said.

If you hike or camp in the wilderness with your dog, do you consider the dangers from wildlife? I bet you don't. Many people are too squeamish to even consider this, so their dogs, kids and companions are all defenseless. 

It ain’t no joke, folks. Read the forest service warnings.

Plan accordingly. 

Dogs And What Works

Dog training social media gurus all have an opinion. Many of them don’t train dogs for a living, they prefer to pontificate from behind a keyboard or in front of a video camera to sell their seminars.

I find all the dog discussions about this and that dog training theory to be endlessly fascinating… when I’m off work. 

But.

There are things that just work, they always work in certain circumstances, the dogs benefit, and I don’t always have time to explain why. Sometimes a good dog trainer must take all they know and make a reasoned choice in a split second. Or they know what the next step should be by gut feel and experience. 

When you have tried out numerous things, tested this and that, you eventually distill those methods and tools that work best. Regardless of what the online trolls say. 

A lot of what others say is their theory, not something they ever actually did with a lot of dogs to see what happens. 

Sometimes you must get things done. 

Plan accordingly. 

Dogs, Training and Humility

One of the many lessons I’ve learned over the years is that dogs will always do something unexpected. And you need to have a good dose of humility to accept and tell the truth that you’re never going to be able to see the future perfectly and not every dog situation is going to turn out like a happy cartoon ending... (MORE)

Puppy Training Classes

I enjoy doing in-home puppy training classes. Since I understand the important things a puppy must know to turn out into a great adult dog, I am highly motivated to get those puppies started properly.

You have four months to do this work... (MORE)

Dogs And Divorce

Dogs can be caught up in the stress and strife of a failing marriage...

How Many Lessons To Train A Dog?

A common question from a new student is to ask how many lessons it will take to get their dog trained. Obviously, that is a reasonable inquiry. Now... onto the reality. 

Let's start with you. Pick any human skill... driving, short story writing, piano, shoe repair, engine tune ups, watch repair, video editing, writing in cursive, making a lemon meringue pie... what expectations do you have? How many times do you need to practice that skill to master it? What if you don't want mastery, you just want a few basics you can use? Some of that is going to depend upon 1.) you, such as your physical abilities; 2.) your motivation; 3.) what else you can bring to the table, such as your other skills and background; 4.) what resources you can apply to the work, from hours of effort to finances; 5.) the amount of repetitions/ work you do; 6.) probably your understanding of what you are doing and your goals; 7.) the teacher you have; and 8.) unknown limiting influences from peer influences to any number of other things. 

Much of the same is true for training any given dog. Give me an easy dog, and some easy goals, and things will go along swiftly and efficiently. Give me a more difficult dog and some lofty goals, and it might take a very long time (and you might never get what you set out to accomplish). Thus, if you want a few things cleaned up, that usually can happen relatively quickly. If you want a competitive working dog, it isn't going to happen with a 2 week program.

What about behavioral problems... fears, anxiety, fighting, etc.? I have had a number of psychiatrists and psychologists as students over the years. Their general consensus is that they look at progress with humans in 4 month intervals. You can assume the same with dogs. The more deeply rooted the issue, the longer it will take. For example, you can't make dogs like strangers and other dogs in 2 weeks. 

I am concerned with the number of advertisements promising quick fix dog training solutions, generally using some kind of harsh suppression, or fairy tale methods that require little to no work or commitment. People who really work dogs every day know it isn't that easy or quick. The more complicated the situation, the more temperament problems the dog has, the less foundation the dog has, the more dogs in the home, the more chaos in the past and present, and factoring in family or friends who might slow down the progress, the longer it is going to take. Sorry, that is the reality. 

Plan accordingly. 

How To Break Up A Dog Fight

1.) NO SAFE WAY: there is no safe way to break up a fight... (MORE)

Dogs And Supermodels

An ongoing conversation in the online dating world is the observation that men will tend to choose to marry an average looking woman that treats him nicely than marry a supermodel that treats him like garbage. I think that is generally true.

However, I think the opposite often happens when people choose what kind of dog to buy or adopt. Many people fall in love with the look of a type of dog rather than choose a dog based upon what would be a good dog to live with. 

I was contacted by a student the other day who is looking to adopt a new dog to be a companion of her current dog. Her other dog, the one I trained years ago, died about a year ago because of cancer, so she was ready now to get another dog. The problem? The dog trainer the other dog owner/ rescue uses isn’t happy that my student’s current dog is a pit bull. The trainer apparently has a bias against pit bulls. Sight unseen.

My student knows I judge every dog individually, not by breed. She wanted to know what to do about it. She didn’t want that trainer to bias the evaluation. My advice?

“I don't know that I would worry about that too much. As long as the greeting is set up appropriately, then you can test to see how the dogs relate to one another at first.”

My student has the right idea. She wants a dog that will get along with her dog. A companion. Not one word about how this other dog looks. The other dog doesn’t need to be a supermodel dog.

Years ago, when shopping for my first dog, I went from breeder to breeder to see what I wanted. I remember a Rottweiler breeder with gorgeous German show dog lines. But her dogs had no personality at all. Even with the owner. That wasn’t the kind of dog I wanted.

I’m sure everyone can be wowed by a gorgeous dog. Who wouldn’t? For me, however, I’m always more interested in the personality of the dog. Can I relate to the dog? How is the relationship between the dog and the owner? 

So, I’m not into supermodel dogs. I’m into nice dogs, regardless of breed. “Gorgeous” wears off quickly if a dog isn’t any fun to live with or costs a fortune to deal with medical issues.

Most dogs can be turned into nice dogs if you raise the puppy correctly, starting at 8 weeks of age. I find that many show dog breeders of the most gorgeous dogs pick their breeding dogs for all the wrong reasons (primarily appearances), don't accept constructive criticism about the weaknesses in their breeding program, isolate the puppies from the early experiences they need, don’t properly work with their pups, don't train their adult dogs, and create supermodels that aren’t fun to live with. What could have been a very nice line of dogs is made into a factory for dogs with lifetime issues. They are more focused on producing supermodel dogs rather than good companion and easily trained, healthy dogs.

Plan accordingly.

Dogs and Happy Easter!

Today is a good day to hang out with family and your dog. 

He is Risen.

Plan accordingly. 

Dogs And Easter

Is your dog (and home) ready for Easter? Do a bit if pre-planning now!

Dogs And Tests

Formal and informal testing of dogs and handlers is invaluable when training. 

One form of test is the competition. A dog and handler are put into a completely controlled situation and they are evaluated on their ability to accomplish a standard set of objectives. These are useful tests, but the artificiality of these tests don't always translate into what the dog and handler can do in the real world. In some ways, the performances can be determined to be an illusion since you can manufacture a picture in a competition that looks like the real thing, but isn't. 

Another form of test would be a performance standard for some kind of professional work. Goals are set, the team is put to task, and evaluators determine whether the standards have been met. All professional work should have a standard. While not perfect, if the standards reflect real world challenges, they are worth the effort and documentation. The assumption is that the test, and the evaluators, fairly determine acceptable vs. unacceptable. 

Service dogs sometimes are tested. I would suggest that some work is so critical to the survival of the disabled person, that the testing must be rigorous and fair, and show some kind of validation on the street. For example, I would want some kind of valid evaluation before a dog was placed with a blind person. Similarly, with a dog that was trained to be a diabetic alert dog. Hopefully the testing has been successful in determining the minimum standards for approval.

Therapy dogs are usually tested. While not as rigorous as any of the above, some kind of screening is a good idea before dogs are used for this purpose. There are various testing organizations.

There are more and more "certification" programs popping up, either by individuals or through various associations. The ones by individuals are going to only be as good as the individuals teaching them. Most aren't very good, in my opinion... and are very expensive. The associations are often guided by political motives, and they skew their testing based upon the latest politically correct methods rather that what is good for dogs and the owners. I currently don't see much value in these certification tests. 

With pet dogs, there are a few tests, such as a Canine Good Citizen evaluation. Whether these reflect a standard that is useful beyond the test itself is something the owner should decide. The hope for the CGC was that it would be a gateway to open up more opportunities for dogs to go places, such as being approved by landlords. There has been some success along those lines, but in my opinion, this effort hasn't been widely adopted. Maybe it needs more public relations efforts. Maybe the CGC hasn't been sufficiently predictive for whatever uses it was intended. I haven't done a deep dive into this. I think testing like this could be usefully applied if the standards have been validated for certain purposes. 

For all dogs, there are also tests that should be done along the way when in training. I do this continually when working with a dog and owner. I test progress before I add additional levels of difficulty. I don't believe all dogs can be made to fit into a fixed, step-by-step program. The training should fit the dog, not the other way around. For some dogs, I have to go at a problem backwards, or sideways, or slowly, or in some innovative way to break through learning barriers. Thus, a training program might have some goals, and further along, a dog might attain this or that level of performance. But the testing along the way wouldn't be as rigorous as, say, the testing done on a finished service dog. The problem with a lot of training programs is that all the dogs are walked through the same exact steps. Unfortunately, many dogs can't follow along that path, and so the owners will eventually get discouraged and quit. This can be a big problem for dogs that are put on a timeline, such as those in most board and train programs, or in the typical group classes. A big problem comes when there is a deadline and the dog isn't keeping up. 

Testing, therefore, can either be useful or a waste of time. It is harder for novices to tell the difference. 

Plan accordingly. 

Dogs, Dire Wolves And Super Horses?

As I guessed, scientists weren't just going to "re-life" the Dire Wolf, they are also messing with creating artificial species. Meet the Super Horse.

"A bioengineering lab in Argentina has announced the arrival of its first 'super horses' after genetically modifying the animals' DNA. The enterprise hopes to transform the world of high-performance animals, which are used in sports like racing and polo."

Gene editing is here. The genie is out of the bottle. 

Watch Jurassic Park for a primer.

Then watch the Star Trek original series, Space Seed, about Khan.

Plan accordingly. 

Dogs Are Environmental Villains?

Do you worry about your dog's carbon footprint?

Are you that stupid?

Here is a dumb article, IMHO, on why your dog isn't good for the planet.

Maybe the people who write tripe like this aren't good for the planet and should change careers. I'm betting they would have a promising career in the fast food industry. 

Does EVERYTHING have to be political these days?

Be good to your dog. There is nothing wrong with having a dog.

Plan accordingly. 

Dogs And Obedience Training

Every dog will have a chance at a better life if the owner and dog are taught and complete the basic obedience skills.

Plan accordingly. 

Dog Training Results Without The Work?

Some, not all, dog owners want results without doing the work. They don’t want to go through the process.

Some dog trainers advertise to these types.

Imagine a dog trainer promising they can fix any “reactive” dog in one session. With the assumption that the dog will be otherwise perfectly fine afterwards. Imagine an owner expecting and paying for such a thing.

Any fearful dog. Any aggressive dog. Any anxious dog. Any overly social dog. Any dog with PTSD. 

Every dog “fixed” in one session? 

If that was true, then they should demonstrate their amazing skills and fix every dog in a municipal shelter in a couple of days. We could clear the shelters all across America.

Of course, that will never happen.

The doo-doo runs deep on the internet, when people can make promises that will never be verified.

Is there any other profession that makes these kinds of claims, sight unseen? Marriage counselor? Physical therapist? Doctor? Plumber? Lawyer? Fitness instructor? Financial planner? Dentist? Rocket scientist? 

Plan accordingly. 

Dog Training Patience

Patience is a key factor in properly training a dog.