Another Lakeland Terrier

This is Joie. She is a Lakeland Terrier who started training Monday.

About two weeks ago I got an e mail from a rescue group asking for help. I replied with our standard offer. We will give a discount to rescue dogs from recognized organizations for dog’s that come in within thirty days of adoption. I also added that we will donate a free training package to any rescue Lakeland Terrier as part of our commitment to our breed.

Now Lakeland’s are rare so I was surprised to learn they had a mill rescue Lakeland. She got adopted this weekend and Jan called me on Saturday. Joie came in yesterday even though Jan had to come down from the Denver area.

Jan has a sister who lives here in Colorado Springs. Her sister, Debbie has shown Lakelands so Jan was familiar with the breed.

These rescue dogs are breeding dogs that are no longer used and are useless to the puppy mill. If they are not rescued they are put down.

The conditions for most of these puppy mill breeding dogs are horrid. Most are confined to a small cage or crate almost their entire lives. As a result they have never been socialized to people or dogs.

Usually working with this kind of a dog is a long and drawn out process. Some dogs come in to the center three or four times where all we do is let them get comfortable. There is no training, just desensitization to the environment. They not only have trouble making decisions, some of them literally do not know how to be dogs. So it can be months before we start. And sadly not all of them will make much progress.

So when Joie came in I was amazed at how confident she was. It was pretty close to a typical lesson I routinely give to dogs that have normal backgrounds. Joie and her new mom did well.

I think the reason she was so trainable so soon was one of the attributes of this breed. When they worked in England, they sometimes would get trapped and would have to wait days to be rescued. There are even stories of owners having to use explosives to get to them. To be able to lie in the cold and the dark is bred into them.

She will be back in a couple of weeks for her next lesson. She is a Lakeland, and they are the most challenging dog to train. So I am waiting for the other shoe to drop. After all she is still in the “honeymoon” phase of her relationship with her owner.

But whatever happens I’m pretty sure this dog will make it.

Doug

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A Boston Terriers Tale

In March I received a call from a man with two rescues. Both dogs had some behavioral problems that needed to be dealt with. But one of the dogs, a Boston terrier, was showing signs of severe aggression. The dog had just bitten two of his neighbor’s dogs, a boxer and a wire haired pointer, without provocation.

He had called Boston terrier rescue in a nearby state. The lady he talked to told him her rescue Boston had also been dog aggressive. She put the dog on doggy Prozac and suggested he do the same.

He did not want to medicate the problems, he wanted to fix them so he called me.

When we talked about the dogs there was a red flag on Moose, the Boston terrier. Moose was in his fifth home.

The more times a dog has been re-homed, the less chance there is of success. The reason is simple. A dog sees being moved not as a wonderful opportunity to start over, but as failure. The dog feels it has been kicked out of its pack. No matter how dysfunctional the pack is, it is the dog’s pack. When a dog goes from home to home without success, the dog can lose the ability to trust.

He came in with the dogs for an evaluation. Moose had a lot of aggression and was in really tough shape. But I saw two things that made me decide to work the dog. One there was just something about Moose that made me think he could come back. But more importantly I had an owner who did not want to give up on this dog and was going to apply the things I taught him.

Moose came in for his first private training session. It went well. He came back three weeks later for his second class. It was obvious that Dave had worked with him conscientiously and that Moose trusted Dave.

Then we moved him into my Neighborhood Pack sessions. This is where I can put your dog with other dogs and other people. I can find the triggers, show you how to recognize them, and give you the experience to deal with them.

At his first session Moose tried to start a fight with every other dog in the place. He was stopped before he got himself into trouble learning that Dave would not tolerate those behaviors and could now control him.

His second group Moose still wanted to go at with some of the dogs, but no longer had to challenge everyone. When his behavior was acceptable, Dave praised him. When it wasn’t Moose was corrected in a way he understood. Dave was becoming his pack leader, and you respect and obey the pack leader.

Each time Moose comes to group he improves.

There are still some hurdles for Moose to clear before we are done. He is fine with the neighboring boxer he bit, but the wire hair can trigger Moose by getting wound up. And due to being bullied by a Rottweiler when he was in another home he is still aggressive with Vino. But each time he comes in he is doing better.

Here is the e mail Dave sent me.

Doug,
Since you are a little better at analyzing dog posture, please take a look at the attached photo and tell me which dog is about to attack. To answer your question, yes the boxer is Angie and she has been bitten by Moose twice. One down and one to go. Buddy the Wired Hair Pointer, is next. If you remember one of our earlier conversations, the lady that runs (deleted) Boston Terrier Rescue suggested I put Moose on Prozac. Im sending this picture to her. Titled I dont need no stinkin Prozac. Just a good trainer and owner that doesnt give up.

Thanks Pikes Peak Manners in Minutes you help save my life.

Moose.

PS dad helped me type this

The picture at the top was attached to the e mail.

Doug

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Wolfie Eats Too Fast

Wolfie is like a vacuum cleaner when it comes to his food.  Nothing I try can slow him down and I am afraid it is going to hurt his stomach...

There are a lot of things out there you could try to curb a dogs "speed eating".  The most popular are the special doggie bowls that have bumps and sections in them to make it harder to get the "big bites" into Wolfies mouth.  We think we have a better way.

We would like to suggest a way to slow Wolfies "speed eating" while adding a bit of entertainment to the process.  The other good thing about this is that you dont have to buy a thing to implement it today.


Dogs, like many animals, are foragers.  They are always looking for things on the ground, on tables, chairs, etc.  We suggest combining their hunger with their natural foraging instinct.  We implement this through a process we call "scatter feeding".  When it is time to feed Wolfie, measure his food and put it in his bowl.  Instead of putting the bowl down, give him a command such as "meal time, food, eaties", etc. and then toss some of the food on the ground.

Wolfie will now go after the kibble that is now scattered on the floor.  As he is finishing up the last bit, repeat your meal time command and toss some more food on the ground.  If he is eating the food too fast, scatter the kibble in a larger area and make the portions slightly smaller.

This is an instinctive way that Wolfie naturally eats and a process that he can easily understand.  You have taken charge by managing how fast the food is presented to him and Wolfie is having a great time foraging for his food on the ground.

Give this a try and I am sure you will get some great results.

One note of caution.  If you have multiple dogs in your household and food aggression is displayed, you must make sure that the other dog(s) are separated before you begin to scatter feed with Wolfie.

For more information, please contact us at The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.

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I dont like shock collars

Last weekend we went to a home and garden show. The last time we went I was surprised to see one of our local dog trainers had a booth. As he has a lousy reputation and is known as a hustler, I wasnt surprised to see him there.

This show had a local trainer of one of the chains. I haven’t paid much attention to them other than to note that two of my customers had “thrown them out” of their homes when they came to do a presentation. They do advertise extensively and have a great logo.

I saw the trainer with a dog that I would describe as way too worried. But we had flooring to look for so we walked past. Later when they walked by I was amazed to see the dog wearing a shock collar.

A little bit of research found that this chain does train with shock collars. I just cannot find a way to rationalize that. I could see, in an extreme case, where you might use a shock collar. I have never had to use one, but I was a cop too long to say that I would never use it. But if I did, I guarantee that when the dog left my center, it would never wear it again. To send people out with a permanently attached shock collar is just beyond belief.

It is one thing to correct a dog. But it is another to punish it. To send someone home and rely on their experience, which is limited if they are using a dog trainer, to be firm, fair and consistent isn’t realistic. We have all seen those college psychology experiments where the student is allowed to shock the test subject.

And the bottom line: I barely understand electricity. I don’t think I ever meet a dog that did. Why would you subject a dog to discomfort at best, and outright cruelty in some situations?

I’m not sure what I would call this, but it definitely isn’t dog training.

Doug

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Dont Tase me Bro

Last week I played phone tag with a gentleman about training his dog. I finally got in touch with him late that evening.

He has a rescue dog from breed rescue. I was really excited because the dog was of a breed that I had as a child. I really like that breed and have not had one in to train yet. I really want to work with that breed.

He told me they had already picked a trainer. I asked him if he minded telling me who he picked. There is one trainer in this town who is an out and out crook. I figured if he had picked this trainer I would do my best to talk him out of it.

He told me it was the chain that uses shock collars. I asked him if he understood what shock collars did. He said he did. I offered my standard free demonstration and asked him to reconsider using a system that gives an electric shock. I told him to read my blog about shock collars. He said he would and then call me the next day to arrange to come in.

He never called.

Losing client to someone else is no big deal. But this one really got to me. I figure if you go to the crook you get what you deserve. But I couldn’t get over why someone warned about what shock collars do would still chose that method.

I finally figured out why it bothered me so much.

I was one of the first deputies on my department to carry a Taser. When we first got them there were not enough of them for everyone to have one so they selected certain people to carry them from each shift. I believe the criteria was that you were known to be a $%*# magnet.

As part of the training you had to be hit with the Taser. I had spent more than one end of shift in the emergency room over the years. Plus I had both back and neck surgery. I understand pain. But when they turned it on, it was the most excruciating pain I have ever experienced. I would have bought the operator a car to turn it off. And I am talking a good car, like a Rolls.

Maybe we should require owners to get tased before they are allowed to use a shock collar.

Doug

PS. The dog in the picture was not shocked, but it was taught to trust.

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Dogs who dont speak Dog

I just read in a forum about an owner who has a six month old dog. He has taken the dog to a park where it has been attacked twice by older dogs.

Without further information it is hard to determine for sure what causes this. But there are two general reasons for this behavior.

The first is that many dogs are dog aggressive. Something happens to dog aggressive dogs that has taught them that they need to attack in order to prevent being attacked. Those dogs do not try to read the intentions of the second dog, they act immediately by attacking. The solution is simple, though not easy to do. A dog aggressive dog must be de-sensitized to the presence of other dogs.

The second reason, which I suspect is the case here, is that the puppy doesn’t speak dog.

Dogs do the vast majority of their communication through body language. But many dogs today literally do not know how to “speak” to each other.

When two well socialized dogs meet for the first time, each dog lets the other dog know what its intentions are. If they intend to come close for a sniff (and a sniff is a handshake in the dog world) the dog approaching negotiates the approach and the other dog gives permission. Normally the dominant dog will ask to approach.

But because many of today’s dogs leave the breeder and go to a one or two dog home, they never develop their body language communications skills. Their humans communicate primarily through the spoken word. And if there is another dog in the home that lacks body communication skills, the two dogs may develop a relationship and body language that does not allow them to deal well with others.

This summer I had a dog in that spoke “dog” the way Yoda in Star Wars speaks English. When he first walked in his entire body language said “hi, I’m friendly” but as soon as he got in range he attempted to bite. Later I had him on a line and was sitting (deliberately) where I could just reach the top of his head with my hand. He walked over with body language that said he would bite. When he got to my hand, he flipped it up with his head so I could pet him.

Your dog began to develop its body language skills as soon as the litter began to interact. But before they develop full language skills they are off to their new owners. During the first few months where skills are developed, the dog spends the vast majority of its time with humans. The skills may not progress.

The human analogy is this. If you left a two year old with normal language skills on an island where everyone else is a deaf mute and then came back two years later, the child would have lost most of its limited skills. If you placed two children there, they would have a language that only they understood.

What is the solution here at Pikes Peak Manners In Minutes? After a dog has finished its private lessons it comes to Neighborhood Pack Sessions. In Neighborhood Pack we sharpen their language skills in a safe and controlled environment.

Doug

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The ONE THING You Dont Want To Do With Your Puppy

When I get a new puppy, what is the one thing I really should remember to never do?  There are so many things to remember and I know that I will probably get things wrong for a bit.  But, what is that "drop dead thing" I should remember from the very start?

Excuse me if todays training blog seems more like a sermon than training advise, but this is the one thing that Robin and I see from time to time that is almost impossible to fix.  The terrible thing about it is that it is not the dogs fault.

The picture at the top of this article shows a little boy pulling a puppys tail.  The puppy normally gives a little "yip" and squirms a bit.  The little boy thinks that is funny and does it over and over, day after day.  That activity might turn into throwing things at the puppy, hitting him with a toy, hiding him in a dark closet while banging the door, or poking him with a stick.  

When the puppy is small, it isnt a big deal if he barks or lunges at you, it could even be a little funny.  The problem is that the puppy will get bigger, many times much bigger.

You have now taught your dog that you (and most other humans) only want to harm him when they approach.  The only thing he can do is to lash out to try and protect himself.  Aggression, biting, and fighting are the natural tools that your dog has at his disposal to keep himself safe.  Remember, your dog doesnt want to do this, but you taught him that this is something that he MUST do.

The result of all of this is that you now have an aggressive dog that is a danger to you, your family, and the neighborhood.  To reverse this process requires a long period of deprogramming and re-socialization.  Nobody is safe while this process is underway and it is also very difficult to know exactly when you have been successful.  Sometimes, you will never be successful.  You have now written the death warrant for "who was supposed to be your best friend", and it didnt have to be that way.

NEVER PLAY ROUGH WITH YOUR PUPPY OR ANY DOG.

For more information, please contact The Best Dog Trainers in South Florida.

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Do it yourself dog training

Like a lot of the articles on this blog, this one was inspired by a phone call I received a couple of hours ago.

A couple of days ago I had a first session with a dog. It is a breed you rarely see. The dog is about 4 and is extremely fearful. In this case I believe that this dog was very fearful as a puppy. It happens.

On a one to ten difficulty scale this dog is about a 7. It will not be the hardest problem I have dealt with but it is up there. It will takes us a while but eventually we will fix the problem.

The first session went even better than I had hoped. I do not expect a dog to be perfect but I know you will go home with a better dog.

The Manners in Minutes system has you work with the dog at home. One of the things I need you to do is to get the dog out at least twice a week, for at least twenty minutes, somewhere where you can work on a twenty foot line.

My client took her dog out to work last night. And she ran into a neighbor with a new puppy.

Because getting a dog over being fearful is a process that takes a while, the client’s dog did react with fear to the person and the new dog.

The neighbor told my client that she had bought a book from one of the “famous” TV show trainers and was training her dog in the “right” system. And she promptly started to tell and show my client what she would be doing.

Then when the neighbor triggered a fear reaction in the client’s dog, the neighbor struck the dog with a stick.

This is just a minor setback. It will not undo what we did or stop the dogs progress. But it did traumatize the dog unnecessarily.



Not everyone has access to a good trainer. And not everyone, especially in this economic climate, can afford a trainer. So if you want to train a dog yourself, go ahead.

For the record, if you cannot come to me or to Pat Muller (the wonderful trainer who developed Manners in Minutes) then you can get Pat’s book or video from Quansa Kennels and train a dog in Manners in Minutes yourself. I have met some awesome dogs that people trained themselves.

And there are other books that are very good. But there are also methods that stink. This trainer the neighbor picked uses a “dominance” system. Sorry folks but in my opinion the trainer should call it bullying.

But no matter what book you pick do not think that one dog and one book gives you the right to interfere with anyone else’s training. You are entitled to express an opinion. But you are not entitled to use your method on my dog without my permission.

And by the way if you ever do that to someone else’s dog in my presence you can expect a couple of things.

You are going to lose your stick. I may be retired from law enforcement but I still have my speed from working with dogs.

And when the police show up, expect to be cited for animal cruelty.

Doug

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