Is the trainer always right or always wrong

Is the trainer always right or always wrong?

Although this was originally written regarding sheepdog training it applies to any given task.

Generally when a trainer gives advice to a handler it is for that split second only. Thereafter if the sheep move, dog moves you move, the weather changes, other sheep come into play the original advice no longer applies to the same extent.
Training regimes need to be flexible to allow for the state of a dogs mind.
If eg you try and get a dog to flank square and it keeps cutting in, the chances are that you are failing. The more you fail the more you will upset your dog and cause confusion. Once your dog enters a confused state of mind following the same tact as before will only lead to further confusion. Being flexible allows for an empathetic approach. By looking at the eyes, ears, tail carraige as well as the whole you are better placed to make the changes that are necessary.

The advice that a trainer gives is usually for that second only based on his/her perceptions. My concept of opposites provides a big clue in how to solve problems.
It is normal to work towards a goal however the moment your actions cause an adverse reaction in your dog the goal has to be achieved in a different way. Constant pressure without release causes a breakdown in communication and a willingness for the dog to want to work.

A trainer will normally focus on the whole as well as the individual parts whereas a handler may only focus on the dog.

In many cases advice/actions that succeeds also

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Dog Training Tips from Davie Florida about Potty

Great Dog Training Tips about Pottying and the Rain

I was revisiting a dog training client in Davie yesterday when, all of a sudden, we had a massive rain storm.  Although that was not the dog training issue that my client had called me out for, it did initiate another question.  It appeared that his dog was doing quite well with his puppy potty routine until about ten days ago when we started to get into our “summer rain” routine.  All of a sudden, this great dog who would want to run outside to potty is now making accidents on the carpet. 

Like many things, simply describing the problem starts to explain the answer.  We had helped the client work with his dog to understand about going potty outside.  We had conditioned the dog to go on the dry grass during nice days and nights when it was not showering down on him.  Now the outside is wet and muddy and he is trying to go potty while he is constantly getting wet.  All in all, it is just not a potty experience to which he had been conditioned.  Some dogs are OK with the wet and rain and some dogs just don’t want to potty in the wet and rain…

What my client’s dog was telling him was "No thank you, I wont go here, I will just wait until I get back inside.  By the way, when is it going to be dry again?"

Rainy season lasts until November and there is no way that you want your dog pottying on your carpet until then.  So, what do we do?  The answer, as with most of my blogs, is pretty simple.  What I always teach my clients is to first understand the situation when everything was working.  After that, we need to find the moment when things began to all fall apart.  From there, we simply need to analyze the divergent operating conditions between the situations and make the appropriate adjustments.  Here we go:

• The first and obvious observation is that when the ground is dry, the puppy goes to the bathroom with no problem.
• When the ground is wet and mushy and it is raining, the puppy doesnt want to have anything to do with the "outside potty".
• The obvious conclusion rests on the wet grass and being rained upon.
• What we need to do is to find a place that is not mushy and is protected when it is raining.

Here is what you do:

• You must find a place that is out of the rain in your back yard.  This can be a covered area off your cabana bath door, patio, etc.
• Go to Lowes or Home Depot and get two pieces of sod from the garden department.  Place the sod in the protected area you have chosen.  It would be a good idea to place a plastic tarp or plastic garbage bag under the sod so that it will be easy to remove it, when needed.
• Direct your dog to the sod whenever it is rainy outside or the ground is mushy.
• Change out the sod every few weeks so it doesn’t start to smell too bad.

You have now given your puppy the bathroom he wants and your carpets are now safe!  For more information, please contact The Best Dog Trainers in Davie and South Florida.

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When I Get Home at Night Wolfie Always Wants All My Attention

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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When Training Always Keep it Slow

We South Floridians always like things fast. We always want to drive in the fast lane on the highway.  We love our fast food quick pickup lines. We read the Cliff Notes and not the Book.... This might be great for these things, but “doing it fast” is not how it works when building a relationship with our dog.

One of the biggest reasons that we have problems training our dog is that we are impatient and want the training to be fast. Our dog learns through the simple processes of consistency and repetition.  The last time I looked, neither of these had anything to do with “fast”. 

The best way to train our dog is to take "baby steps".  If our dog is having a hard time sitting, lets first make sure that he can stand next to us and look at us.  If he cant do that, there is now way that he wont be able to sit.  If our dog is misbehaving while in a room full of people, lets first make sure that he can behave in a quiet room just with us.

The secret to this process is to break down our training exercise into many "little steps".  Each step is obtainable and is required before we move on to the next "little step".  We will now be able to be successful because we have forced ourselves to take "baby steps" that we can easily manage and evaluate.

This will allow us to be consistent, repetitive; and succeed. Our dog will feel better because he will have the ability to obey us and we will gain much needed confidence. The relationship between us and your dog will be a happy, loving, and learning experience.

If you have any questions on dog training or any other canine behavior issue, please contact us at The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida. 

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Getting Wolfie to Stop Chewing and Teething

Wolfie likes to chew and teeth a lot.  I have tried all the normal ideas like Bitter Apple, Bitter Yuch, Tabasco Sauce, and the like.  It seems that these things make Wolfie want to chew the item even more!  Ideas!  Help!

This training blog is going to be rather short, because I believe I have found the Holy Grail of dogs chewing and teething.

I was at a client about two months ago and our discussion turned to their dogs obsession with chewing on wicker and hands.  Besides the normal corrections that we always teach, I wanted to provide them with a "Plan B".  I knew that the mainstream suggestions of the "Dont Chew on Me" items from the pet stores never worked, so I turned to my favorite suggestion of Hot Sauce.

They said they had some Hot Sauce and went to get it from the kitchen.  Being from Southern California, I assumed it would be a Mexican Hot Sauce.  I was wrong.  My clients were originally from China so they brought out some great Mandarin Chinese Hot Sauce!  (I hadnt had any of this stuff since I frequented a little place called The Mandarin Wak in California!)  This stuff was HOT!

I put three drops of this stuff on my hands and rubbed it in.  I then let their dog come back to my hand, (earlier he chewed on it), he took one sniff/lick, and he was done with that.  I put a few drops on the furniture he was chewing.  After one snip, he was done with that activity.

If your dog has a chewing problem, I think that Chinese Mandarin Hot Sauce is the way to go.  (Since I am also a hot sauce lover, I want to way that is is also really tasty!)   For more information, please contact The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.

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Dogs Vs Bitches

It is worth bearing in mind when you sometimes notice your bitches being of colour, going of their food or  being indifferent in response to training exercises that their change in mood may be due to pre-seasonal behaviour. Sometimes this can occur up to two months prior to their season and despite many bitches coming into season on average 6 monthly it is no unusual for their first season to be around 8/9 months.

Similarly dog behaviour will change as they approach 6 months of age and they can become more aloof and ignorant.

I have found it useful to keep a diary of their mood and behaviour changes so that you are able to predict them in the future as well as a record of when they start and finish their season.

If you work your dog you may find that bitches may not change during work but around the home they will be different. You will have to be sensitive to their moods and look to deflect their behaviour rather than get drawn in and be frustrated or angry.

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