Aug 22, 2018
What Would Jeff Do? Dog Training Tip of the Day #166
This one is going to rub some folks the wrong way (like lots of my posts do), and I say it with love and affection as well as I really want owners to stop struggling so much with their dogs.
If you are having some or many behavioral issues with your dog and you find yourself referreing to your dog as a "baby" or "fur baby" you are most likely going to struggle with the rehab process and at a minimum make it way more challenging and usually you are going to be encouraging and reinforcing the unwanted behavior and some of these behaviors are dangerous. After working with thousands of owners and dogs we see a consistent problem with folks who are not just verbalizing the baby concept but also treating their dog like a small child.
Some of these folks don't have kids and will tell us that it is their child, the issue is that it is nothing like a human child it is a dog, it is a different species all together. I am not saying you cannot love your dog, I am not saying you can't care deeply about your dog, what I am saying is that if you have the mindset of your dog being a human baby from an emotional mindset you are going to struggle with the process.
We see owners struggle that are too soft with their dogs, too much love and affection, not enough boundaries, structure, consequences and other leadership skills. Without those thing and then too much emotional based decisions along the lines of "babying" you get a dog that has issues that just cannot be resolved.
If you are a total badass (that does not mean being heavy handed or dominant) and your dog is rocking life especially with no behavioral issues, such as anxiety, fear, reactivity and aggression. Go ahead and coddle your dog and call your dog your little baby, its fine. Unfortunately we are not seeing that work with the folks that reach out to us.
Jeff Gellman
Solid K9 Training
401-274-1078
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Solid K9 Training, founded by award-winning, internationally-acclaimed dog trainer Jeff Gellman, is one of the nations most effective and respected dog training services providing no-nonsense, "Real World" training methods throughout New England. Serving dog owners from Hartford, CT to Boston, MA in our multifaceted, secure and 24/7 staffed Solid K9 Training Center in Providence, RI, as well as all throughout the nation with Jeff's wildly successful RV Dog Trainer Tour. We will train any dog, regardless of breed, shape, size or history. We work to fix all dog behavior issues including excessive barking, growling, snapping, nipping, dog aggression (fighting), human aggression (biting), child aggression, pulling on leash, leash aggression, leash reactivity, skateboard reactivity, resource guarding, jumping on people, fear issues, anxiety issues, separation anxiety, chewing and destroying household items, running away, not listening, door bolting, stealing food, getting into the trash, cat aggression, chasing game, and killing animals/game. We also have a renowned reputation specializing in obedience training, which includes heeling and walking properly on a leash, sit/stay, down/stay, place, recall training (come to owner), and crate training. Our Training services include Board and Train behavioral modification, 1 on 1 Training, Obedience Classes, Puppy Training programs, Boarding / Board & Play, Daycare, and many free dog training resources including Dog training advice videos, dog training webinars, and Dog Training Q and A videos on Youtube Live weekly. Our behavior modification training is cutting edge, using techniques like modern low level E-collar (remote collar) training and food and clicker training. Solid K9 Training has a worldwide reputation of being able to handle the most challenging dog behaviors and often times other dog trainers will refer their more serious cases to us.