6 Dog Ownership Questions & 6 Unique Answers that may surprise you.

          Despite the numerous books on dog training and behavior, the almost mushroom-like growth of national pet supply stores offering dog obedience training courses and the increased number of celebrity canine trainers on television, I continue to receive questions from clients that reflect a profound lack of knowledge or naivete regarding canine behavior.

“Will spaying or neutering my dog make it calm down?”

          Answer: No. A dog’s personality and temperament, two key components of a dog’s psychological profile, cannot be altered by a medical procedure.

           "What steps do I need to take to gain control of my alpha dog?”           

          Answer: There is no such thing as an alpha dog because dogs are not wolves or pack animals - they are scavengers. Do you doubt that?  Next time you view a National Geographic special being firmed in a third world village, take note of the number of dogs milling about waiting for a hand-out or an opportunity to steal an unguarded food morsel. They work alone and don't need an Alpha dog or pack to help them  find food.  

Out-of-control dogs, often misdiagnosed as alpha dogs, typically belong to owners who fail to establish house rules that provide a dog with behavioral boundaries. These same owners will sometimes deliberately or inadvertently allow the family dog to become a decision maker, opening the door for many unwanted, aberrant canine behaviors to foster and develop.

“Can I use a squirt bottle or a can filled with pennies to control my dog’s jumping-up behavior?”

Answer: No. A human implement used as a disciplinary tool can trigger some dogs to attack or display fear when the object is later used for its intended purpose.

“If I give my dog human food, will this cause it to beg at the table?”

Answer: It is impossible for a well-trained, uninvited dog to beg at the table. But don’t refrain from occasionally giving a dog (away from the table) unprocessed human food (chicken, fish, beef, grains, vegetables and fruits). They have been eating what we’ve been eating for more than 8,000 years.

                                       

“My husband dislikes having our dog sleep in our bedroom, but several national canine celebrity trainers promote the idea. What should I do?”

Answer: The important issue that needs to be addressed is how any canine professional can theoretically offer canine behavioral modification advice when so many unknown factors such as the dog's home environment, temperament or health profile is unknown.  Before venturing an opinion or recommendation, I believe it is imperative for any canine training professional to adhere to the following guidelines:

• Observe the dog in the home to determine if the environment is conducive for supporting its needs. How might a national canine celebrity be expected to do this? To my knowledge, no in-home consultation service is offered at any national pet store either, yet these facilities offer group training sessions and puppy socialization programs without first ascertaining this vital information.  My hope is that this will one day change. Ultimately, consumer dollars decide the success or failure rate for book sales or businesses offering, in my opinion, less-than-stellar advice or services.     

• Conduct a canine psychological profile to determine the dog’s temperament and personality. This information aids the trainer in determining if the dog is mentally prepared to receive training instructions and then possibly better predict how a dog will react in a familiar or alien (public) environment.

• Recommend client lifestyle changes and create house rules that will enable their client toward providing consistent and predictable guidelines to their canine companion; and establish acceptable rules of conduct that will enhance the human-canine bond.  

“My dog failed obedience class at a local pet store. Now what do I do?”

 Answer: Your dog didn't fail, nor did you. Group training classes are conducted with the implied assumption that all owners and their dogs are the same. You know that defies common sense, don’t you? This one-size-fits-all approach to training a dog also negates several important, undeniable facts. Dogs participating in a group training session will vary in breed affiliation, and like their owners will also vary in age, personality (a physiological trait often displayed when a dog is in a familiar or comfortable environment), temperament (a psychological trait often displayed when a dog is in an unfamiliar environment, e.g., public park, or someone else's home)  as well as physical and mental ability. How could this hodgepodge of human and canine characteristics, traits and the distractions possibly be conducive to learning? 

Thank you for joining my Linkedin/Blog community. I look at these forums as an excellent medium for sharing information and helping others to achieve their goals. I have a project that humbly needs your assistance or guidance.

I am currently trying to promote a program called: Just a Dog Gone Minute. Each one minute televised visual tweet will attempt to dispel many myths regarding canine behavior and training. I hope to syndicate this program to local, as well as, national television stations.

1. ·       Are you aware how women are often being disenfranchised by the professional dog training community?
2. ·       Ever met an “Alpha Dog”?  If you think you have, let me explain otherwise.
3. ·       Did you know that dogs are not pack animals – they are scavengers and consequently adhere or mimic few wolf behaviors? Perhaps someone needs to explain this concept to dog trainers who continually ask their clients to become “leaders of their pack.”

Dogs are like computers. Junk in = Junk out! Help me to stop the nonsense permeating the dog training profession.

Sincerely,

Roger Alan Bernard

www.Savvycaninetraining

704-249-1567

6 Things Every Savvy Dog Owner Should Know

1. Dogs are scavengers not pack animals; therefore when a dog trainer encourages you to be an "Alpha Dog" or "leader of your pack" they are providing you with misleading information that could compromise or undo your human-canine bond. A puppy's most influential teacher is its mother (daddy dog has long since departed and contributes virtually nothing toward helping a mother dog raise and protect her young.) 

2. Training a puppy or dog in a pet store/building is ludicrous. A dog's psychological profile consists of two different components. One is personality and the other is temperament. A dog's personality is most apparent when the dog is in a familiar or comfortable environment, e.g., in the home. Its temperament is most likely to be displayed in an unfamiliar environment, e.g., outside the home. Be pet smart: train your dog in the real world and not in a pet food warehouse where both the dog's personality and temperament may be misdiagnosed by the instructor.

3. No dog trainer has ever been state certified. Despite the impressive list of credential behind many dog trainer's names, there simply isn't a governing board of directors testing, guiding or censuring a dog trainer for unethical behavior. Buyer beware! Arborist, psychologist, plumbers, and most professional services require state certification before being issued a business license. The only requirement for becoming a dog trainer is a business card. Anyone can become a dog trainer and unfortunately, any one is.

4. Clicker training is to dog training what a baton is to learning Italian. When did dog owner become so gullible? Isn't it odd that clicker trainers always seem to charge more for their unique service? You have hands to clap? You have a mouth to whistle? You have a voice to give commands? Wonderful, now save your money and leave the clicker training to less savvy dog owners.

5.  Your Dog is a Unique Creature.  Enrolling your dog into a group training session implies that a one-size-fits-all-approach to training will fulfill your needs and accommodate your dog's ability to learn. Might you be ignoring some important considerations? Not all dogs have the same ability for learning because dogs follow three distinct instinctual patterns of learned behavior: Stalking prey, circling prey and killing prey. That's why some dogs are better at herding sheep while others provide a service for the visually challenged. The most egregious thing about group training classes is: Men and women are taught the same. Men and women acquire, interact and then train their dogs for different reasons. Women have been disenfranchised by the dog training community for many years. When will it stop? When women stop supporting this method of training and begin hiring dog trainers who provide in-home training services.

6. Your Veterinarian Might Be Getting A Kick-Back. Certainly this applies to the many vets who sell less-than-quality dog foods that are comprised mostly of grains or treats/rawhides that have been treated with chemicals that come from third world countries. Ask yourself, "Why does my veterinarian only recommend this dog trainer and not others?" You will receive a plethora of answers, but mostly you will hear, "We know and trust that company." Really? I have been in the dog training business for more than 18-years and have appeared on NPR four times, international radio, authored a book, produced a video on canine behavior in 2000, presented more than 50 lectures on canine behavior/training for libraries and dog clubs throughout the Southeast and and have a regular guest spot on a local television show in Charlotte, N.C.  Yet, not one veterinarian in Charlotte recommends my services. Do you know why? Refer back to title #6:) 

'Education is when you read the fine print; experience is what you get when you don't." - Pete Seeger, (1919 - ) American songwriter.

Why training with treats; especially while trying to teach a puppy house-training manners, might not be such a great idea. 

Treats are a form of bribery. The mother dog doesn't use treats to train, so why would you? Treat trained puppies will expect a treat for eliminating, but become confused for being reprimanded for eliminating in the home.

Best scenario: Allow a puppy to eliminate outside while on a long leash. Do not look at or praise the puppy while it is performing a natural function. Direct eye contact or verbal praise many be misinterpreted by the puppy as threatening. ( Remember: Mother dog tends to look away from her puppies while they are eliminating. He job is to be vigilant to environmental dangers.) Don't rush the process. Remain outside for several more minutes to provide the puppy additional time to eliminate. Male puppies cannot completely empty their bladders on the first try.

I was honored to have a story about my dog training services in The Charlotte Observer, August 12, 2012


http://www.charlotteobserver.com/2012/08/22/3470410/this-dog-trainer-will-bike-to.html

Affirmations

1.     What happened today that delighted you?

2.    How did you get closer to your goals?

3.    What struck you as particularly beautiful?

4.    What act of kindness did you do?

5.    What act of kindness did you witness?

6.    What did you learn today?

7.    Who did you thank today?

8.    Who did you help today?

9.    How did you avoid getting angry or passing judgment?

10.   What did you take special note to listen to while living your life today?

11.    What did you feel thankful about?

12.   What happened today that struck you as spiritual?

13.  Which “force within the universe” made its presents known or caught your attention if only for a moment? Example: wind, water, fire, the smell of earth, gravity, a bee collecting pollen, a esoteric awareness

14.  Did you present someone with a compliment?

15.   Did you receive a compliment today and accept it without denigrating or dismissing it?

16.  What message or instructions did you receive today? Example: a saying, a proverb, or words repeated by more than one person during the day.

17.  Did you receive an unexpected surprise?

18.  What “free-bee” did you receive?

19.  What request did you make and did it come to fruition?

20. Do you feel you are going in the right direction and not compromising your purpose for living?

Despite the numerous books on dog training and behavior, the almost mushroom-like growth of national pet supply stores, veterinarians, groomers, kennel operators and doggie daycare centers offering dog obedience training courses; and the increased number of celebrity canine trainers on radio and television, I continue to receive questions from clients that reflect a profound lack of knowledge or naiveté regarding canine behavior. The truth is: Perhaps, you first began reading about Dick, Jane and their dog Spot in first grade, but the information you’ve gleaned since that time regarding dogs and their role in our lives and society, has been minimal, based on conjecture, or completely false.  1000 falsehoods does not make anything more true. – Chinese proverb

I am also concerned with many dog training professionals who are being supported and financially rewarded for disenfranchising women who own dogs. Do these trainers who conduct group training classes or the one-size-fits-all approach really believe that women and men acquire, interact and then train their dogs the same? Why are women being instructed to act like an alpha dog or leader of their pack – both phrases are not only antithetical to the way women create, maintain and then nurture relationships, they simply have no foundation in scientific fact. Dogs are scavengers not wolves and have never needed an alpha dog or a pack to survive… and dare I say, never needed a prong collar, e-collar or treat to facilitate learning.          Roger Alan Bernard        www.savvycaninetraining.com