By Darcy Keehn

Written for those who consider their dog as a junior family member.

Have you ever been confused or frustrated when someone, who claims to be an expert, insists the only way to train a dog is their way?

Their way being a technique that may use force or intimidation or fear to teach a dog. 

Claims such as the person has to be the winner in all situations or the dog will be spoiled. Or if you let the dog, get away with it, the dog will always repeat the negative behavior. A current popular ideal is the person has to be dominant, or the boss, so the dog will respect them. 

The old ideals of using fear of pain or intimidation to train a dog belong in the past. The belief in a “good correction” is an excuse to cause pain or scare the dog rather than go back a few steps so your dog understands what you are asking them to do. 

There are numerous scientific studies available online that demonstrate the harm of using the old ways of pain or intimidation to train. Once the dog is in a negative emotional state its brain is not in a learning mode.

The desire to train the dog to do what is wanted and being unsure how to accomplish it, can make people vulnerable to short cuts that can cause a dog to lose trust, or worse yet, bring out aggression. Going down the slippery slope of expecting your dog to get it right quickly without going thru foundational steps of learning can cause behavioral issues in the dog. Almost always the specific behavior or performance exercise is not really a matter of life or death to learn immediately, but rather a person’s desire to achieve a goal.

If you take a moment to think about it, can you see that the people who insist you are spoiling your dog by using positive teaching methods are trying to intimidate you? Attempting to cause self-doubt so you will follow their ideals?

We can’t go back to change the past. The future is ahead of us. What we do have is the present. Do you have the courage of the heart to advocate for your dog? Are you willing to take a stand and declare “the old ways of using fear and intimidation end with me! I’m not going to allow a so-called expert bully me into doing something that uses pain or fear to teach my dog!”

However, with all the different opinions out there, how do I know what is a better way to teach my dog?

Many people are already using positive ways to teach their dogs. They redirect the dog to something positive when the dog does something negative. They see their dog as their canine partner and consider what their dog needs. Every dog is different, just as we are. What one dog can do with ease may be against another dog’s instincts. 

It’s been over 50 years since I got my first show dog. I have used the old ideals and neither of my prior dogs nor I felt good about it.

Now I use what I call Heart Sense when teaching a dog something new. It’s simply combining the common sense of my mind with my heartfelt wisdom. 

I choose a sensible goal for my dog to achieve. A goal that is win/win in that we both get something positive. I take the time to consider logical steps my dog needs to learn in order to Master that goal. Taking the time and effort to logically break down the steps needed to teach the dog in a comfortable manner. Then sensing with my heart, are those steps fair to my dog? Will my dog feel good about doing what I ask? How does my dog want to be paid for accomplishing the steps? What’s a jackpot reward for successfully attaining a larger goal?

Our Hearts can sense what our dog wants in the moment. It could be a treat or quiet praise. Or it could be something our old ideals have not allowed. Are we willing to perhaps look silly in praising our dog by jumping around and squealing with excitement? Or gazing into our dog’s eyes and telling them sincerely how much we appreciate their effort?

Currently I teach Barn Hunt classes at my local Kennel Club. It’s a performance event where the dogs cannot be forced to learn. Watching a variety of dogs figure out what we are asking them to do and discovering they don’t have to participate if they don’t want to has been enlightening. Part of what they are asked to do is have fun! Most dogs want to be paid with excited praise. The most expensive dog treats can’t match the value of their person publicly celebrating their victory in achieving their common goal of a performance event requirement. Those dogs often strut out of the ring, tails wagging in happiness.

For the dogs that don’t enjoy that particular performance event, we discuss other things they may want to try that both dog and owner can enjoy. Our Stateline region has a variety of formal performance events to try. Another option is to create a fun activity specific to your dog’s abilities.

By using our common sense and our heartfelt wisdom, we can select goals that are practical and meaningful to both the person and their dog. After all isn’t a richer relationship with our dog in positive experiences what brings us joy?