Obediently Yours

It is always interesting to observe the relationship that dog owners have with their dogs. Whether at the park, dog events, the veterinarian's office, or simply walking on the street, the body language of the dog in response (or non-response) to its owner's presence and/or verbal cues, speaks loud and clear about their established rapport.

A dog owner that has a good relationship with his dog will have an easier time training the dog to be a good companion than someone who has only lived a parallel existence with his or her dog. A good relationship is based on a dog viewing its owner as a benevolent leader (i.e. a popular "summer fun" leader). The dog WANTS to be a part of the owner's activity and game plan, because the owner makes it worth the dog's while through both verbal and physical praise, treats, play and consistent guidance.

Unfortunately, many dog owners get into the bad habit of primarily interacting with their dog in a negative manner. Basically, a dog owner will wait for the dog to act inappropriately, then tell it, "no", "stop", "cut it out", etc. Normally, if a dog owner has gotten into the bad habit of constantly interacting with is dog in this manner, one will see some form of tuning out by the dog to its owner. Or the dog may feel that negative recognition by its owner is better than none at all. As a result, a dog consistently misbehaves because it equates inappropriate activities as a way of receiving attention.

At a dog show I recently observed a dog rather obnoxiously barking at its handler. The handler was telling the dog, "no, no, no" while it was barking. However, when the dog eventually became quiet, the owner said nothing to the dog to reinforce the dog remaining quiet. Another scenario that one can observe is a dog owner waiting at the veterinarian's office with his/her nervous dog. The dog is often times whining and restless. At times it seems that the owner is incorrectly compelled to reinforce these negative behaviors by saying, "be quiet", "it will be okay", "you do not listen", etc. For the majority of the time, the dog is completely ignoring its owner's nagging negative comments. Yet, after the dog eventually calms down on its own, instead of taking the opportunity to reinforce the calmness, the owner says or does nothing. The result in the cited examples is the dog receiving attention for negative behavior and no attention for desired behavior. Negative behavior is reinforced and positive behavior is ignored. As a result, the negative behavior is inadvertently encouraged.

Dog owners should realize that they must appreciate and encourage good behavior by acknowledging it through praise. Only then will correcting inappropriate behavior have any meaning to your dog. When you think about it, most of the time your dog is well behaved. It is important to reinforce desired behavior with praise. For example, when your dog is chewing an appropriate chew toy, it is good to praise him. By doing this, you are teaching him what is allowed and desired by you. Then when the dog is thinking about or actually chewing on your slippers, you can firmly tell him, "no" and take him to the appropriate chew toy to play with it while you offer praise. By developing this type of positive learning approach with your dog, you will not only develop a more positive relationship with your dog, but you will also give more meaning to your corrections.

Dog training should be enjoyable for you AND your dog. It can be a mutually positive experience where your dog confidently looks at you with bright eyes and a smile on his face eagerly wanting to learn more. On the other hand, if done improperly, it can be a time when you are constantly nagging your dog, with you dog simply tuning you out. If you have a particularly sensitive dog, you can easily turn your dog into a nervous wreck during training because he/she is placed in a no win situation. So think about developing a positive training relationship with your dog. Through the creation of this type of relationship, the time that the two of you spend together, whether during training or not, will be positive and enjoyable for the both of you.

Training your dog is a rewarding experience for both of you!