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Wednesday, January 25, 2023

Dog Training And Obedience Training:

"Though it seems confusing at first, they all boil down to three maintechniques: the traditional dominance method, the scientific method and the positive reinforcement method.".


I googled dog training and the above is what I found. But when you look up sources 
there are more than I can count. We have trained our dogs over the years our own way 
which we find works consistently. 

When we adopt our dogs from a rescue we are very patient with them as they need time to adjust to their new environment and our family. We have noted that they spend a lot of time watching us and our other dogs. We talk to them as much as possible and while they may not immediately understand they will in time. 

We do not use the word "no" initially and gently steer them in the behavior we want them to do. Our existing dog/s also clue them in. We first create the bond that will last them their lifetime with us and love and fuss over them without leaving our other dogs out of the equation. We do not always give them treats unless they demonstrate positive acts. We never talk to them in an angry voice at their failures but speak in a calm voice. They do understand and as time goes on they understand more and more. 

They ultimately want to please us and not disappoint us. We teach them over time what conduct is allowed and which is not. When we do say no to them it is largely devastating and they know without a doubt that they have done wrong. In short they are part of our family and are treated as such.  The key is being patient with them. We don't believe in the dominance method and have no clue what the scientific method is. We use the positive reinforcement method but with love, patience and words - not always treats. 

We want our canine family to be well adjusted, comfortable, and confident. We maintain a routine that suits them as well as us. We have found that some people underestimate the canine intelligence and their ability. We want them as family members and not to be dominated by us. They are far more protective when they are integral parts of our pack/family. When they are confident they are a valued pack member and what their role is there is no need for dominance as they are comfortable and secure within the pack and know who the leaders are. 

Visitors who come do not usually recognize that we are training them while they are here but they recognize they are well behaved. We guide our canine family to good behavior in such a way that most people fail to recognize that they are being trained. We have had deaf family members, blind members, disabled members but not dominate or controlling members. If you don't give your canine family guidelines then they  will end up training you. That will lead to some serious issues and neurotic dogs. 


1 comment:

Anonymous said...

For years I had rescue Dobermans and in the late 1970-early 1980s I obedience trained and showed two of them. Some of the dogs were not really interested in going into the show ring, but the training always made all our lives more pleasant and socialized the dogs.

About twenty years ago I began writing animal columns including covering dog shows, so I wasn't showing. I started noticing that the dogs in the ring didn't seem to be having a good time, but just walking along next to their owners staring up into their faces with their ears and tails at half-mast.

When I mentioned it to an old friend she sighed and said that the owners just wanted perfect show dogs who would all earn 300 points and not companions. Additionally, the latest fad around here is doggie boot camp where the dogs are boarded with a trainer, not handled by their owners.
*sigh*