When I get home at night, Wolfie is right there at the front door (like I assume most dogs are). I give him a big pet and hug, but after that he wont leave me alone. How do I tell him "enough"?
After a long day at work where we were probably yelled at by our boss or had a customer cancel an order, or just had a hectic day, it is always great to come home to someone who is really excited to see you. So, what do we do? We immediately respond to Wolfies request for attention. We pet him or hug him and then "try" to walk in the house to put down our stuff or change our clothes.
The problem is that Wolfie doesnt want to stop asking us for "hugs and kisses". It finally gets to the point of being annoying to us or the rest of the family and we get mad at Wolfie. ...And we really didnt want to get mad at him. Wolfie is our best friend and he wasnt trying to make us mad.
The problem is that we forgot that Wolfie is a dog and needs to be treated like a dog so he understands what is going on and what to expect. Wolfie sees his family as his pack. In a pack, there is the leader and the rest of the pack (the followers). The leader makes all the decisions for the pack. Everything must be his idea. The leader will be the one to engage and to direct the pack.
When you come home and open that door, if Wolfie is coming up to you, he is engaging you and requesting that you pet him and do what he wants to do. Being a human, you think nothing of it, and you pet him. You have just allowed Wolfie to tell you what he wants you to do. You have just passively admitted that Wolfie is the leader and you, as a pack member, are obligated to do whatever he requests. That is why Wolfie wont leave you alone. He has more stuff for you to do.
So, what do we do about it? We practice passive dominance with Wolfie when we first come home. We open the door and ignore Wolfie. Whatever he is doing, we ignore and walk past him. We put down our brief case, put our keys on the table, get a glass of water, or anything else that we want to do. This sends a clear message to Wolfie that we are not engaging in his request. We are not telling him that he is the leader.
Now, WE call Wolfie over to us. We can now pet him and greet him. The major difference between this way and Wolfies way is that everything is now on our terms. Wolfie is doing what WE want him to do. In this scenario, Wolfie is now giving us the leadership role and he is assuming the role of a member of the pack. We also need to remember that when we call Wolfie to us, we use a calm voice and remain tall. This uses natural, canine body language to further tell Wolfie that we are the leader and he needs to respect us.
Please give this a shot and I am sure you will see that your nightly arrival at home will be far more enjoyable. For more information, please contact The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.
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After a long day at work where we were probably yelled at by our boss or had a customer cancel an order, or just had a hectic day, it is always great to come home to someone who is really excited to see you. So, what do we do? We immediately respond to Wolfies request for attention. We pet him or hug him and then "try" to walk in the house to put down our stuff or change our clothes.
The problem is that Wolfie doesnt want to stop asking us for "hugs and kisses". It finally gets to the point of being annoying to us or the rest of the family and we get mad at Wolfie. ...And we really didnt want to get mad at him. Wolfie is our best friend and he wasnt trying to make us mad.
The problem is that we forgot that Wolfie is a dog and needs to be treated like a dog so he understands what is going on and what to expect. Wolfie sees his family as his pack. In a pack, there is the leader and the rest of the pack (the followers). The leader makes all the decisions for the pack. Everything must be his idea. The leader will be the one to engage and to direct the pack.
When you come home and open that door, if Wolfie is coming up to you, he is engaging you and requesting that you pet him and do what he wants to do. Being a human, you think nothing of it, and you pet him. You have just allowed Wolfie to tell you what he wants you to do. You have just passively admitted that Wolfie is the leader and you, as a pack member, are obligated to do whatever he requests. That is why Wolfie wont leave you alone. He has more stuff for you to do.
So, what do we do about it? We practice passive dominance with Wolfie when we first come home. We open the door and ignore Wolfie. Whatever he is doing, we ignore and walk past him. We put down our brief case, put our keys on the table, get a glass of water, or anything else that we want to do. This sends a clear message to Wolfie that we are not engaging in his request. We are not telling him that he is the leader.
Now, WE call Wolfie over to us. We can now pet him and greet him. The major difference between this way and Wolfies way is that everything is now on our terms. Wolfie is doing what WE want him to do. In this scenario, Wolfie is now giving us the leadership role and he is assuming the role of a member of the pack. We also need to remember that when we call Wolfie to us, we use a calm voice and remain tall. This uses natural, canine body language to further tell Wolfie that we are the leader and he needs to respect us.
Please give this a shot and I am sure you will see that your nightly arrival at home will be far more enjoyable. For more information, please contact The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.
