DogMa's Blog
Animal Canine species Dog
SMART WORDS!!!
BEFORE YOU GET A DOG - READ THIS! ... and then think long and hard about how you will adjust your life to include your new addition ...
If you like me, if you dream of me forever, if my beautiful blue eyes or my athlete look make you want to possess me, but you can't give me a real life of a full dog, a life that is really worth living, and if not you can offer me the job my genes claim ... then quit me.
If you like my rhythm but are not ready to accept my character traits from rigorous genetic selection, and you think you can change them with your only good will ... then quit me.
Zero Leash Greeting
I am a strong advocate of zero on leash greeting. By that l mean when my dog is on leash we will not under any circumstances greet another dog in any form--no sniffing, no body contact, and no playing.
Because dogs are very black and white creatures. The more crystal clear the direction, the less stressed and confused they will feel.
When my dogs are on leash they know it is not the time to get excited or concerned when they see another dog. There is no exception.
This rule is very easy to understand and follow.
When l see another dog, l do not keep saying "leave it leave it" or cooing to my dogs with baby talks such as "now let's be a good girl, we can play later but not now okayyyy?"
I do not make a big deal out of it; l just ask them to follow me and keep walking.
By not making it a big deal l am not sending them the message that other dogs are supposed to make us worried or excited. I am also not building them up to anticipate a correction when we pass the dogs.
By making sure there is no exception, l am not confusing them (e.g. if you are good l may let you sniff, if you know that dog we can play a bit, if you do not react l will let you say hi later, l am running late so we cant say hi now, you have been a bad girl so no sniffing this time, you can say hi to girls but not boys...).
There is only one, not two or three or four, proper response. My dogs are not confused about what they should do when they see another dog on the walk. They know they need to ignore all these dogs and follow my lead at all time. That's it.
Confusion adds stress and anxiety; a good leader is supposed to give very clear instruction to his pack.
With clear directions, our dogs can relax and follow our lead with a calm state of mind.
By Perfect Companion K9 Dog Training
Understanding the Species.
When you bring home a new puppy, it’s so easy to forget that this adorable, cute little furry being, is an apex predator, animal canine species dog - with its own set of species specific behaviours and instincts. It often doesn’t occur to us that as a dog, it is entirely different from us. Dogs have their own set of customs, rituals, needs, desires, habits, thoughts and emotions. They are different from us genetically, emotionally and socially and they communicate differently from us. So by not understanding their nature we superimpose our standards on them. Dogs can only see things from a dogs perspective.
Dogs operate on a survival level and their needs are not as complex as ours. They are not motivated politically, environmentally, economically or religiously. They have no morality or ethics as we know them. They don’t chew your best shoes because they have no values or they have no respect for you or calculate revenge on the something you have done to them or failed to do. They do this because they are opportunist, it’s pleasurable and rewarding.
Understanding the species as a whole will help you make better decisions when teaching your dog how to live in our environment. Educate yourself and respect the species you choose to share your home with. You and they will be much happier in the long run.
Unknowingly Creating Instability.
I've just been to a client with a rescue Chihuahua who is 1 year old. My client has had Jasper for a month. To her knowledge he has had no house training and little no social exposure and since she has had him he has never been to the toilet anywhere other than in the house. Not even on a walk! This little dog has been continually nurtured while in a fearful insecure state. My client like most thought that by permanently cuddling him she was being kind but this only reassures his insecurity. After my interception and showing my client how to treat him like a dog. I got him to have his first Poo in the garden within the first hour of my being there and one hour after I left my client gleefully text me to say Jasper had his first Wee in the garden. Lesson today dont nurture a weak state people, it can cause the dog to shut down in many areas that should be natural like in this case using his nose and defecating outside.
Excessive and Inappropriate Affection.
Giving your dog too much affection, especially to an excited mind makes them needy and unstable. Rewarding a calm state of mind will encourage calm making interactions with you and other entities much more productive. Anxiety is not just a negative emotion, excitement, especially prolonged will make a dog unbalanced and often reactive. So next time you engage with your dog ask yourself what state of mind you are encouraging. A calm dog is much happier in the long run.