Professional Dog Training: Make it Successful for You and Your Dog

Sometimes owner's behaviour reinforces negative behaviour in the dog, unintentionally. You might be thinking, how can this happen?

Well, here's an example. I had dogs since I was young, before I had kids of my own. When I got our dog Titan, I was less experienced and he was my first large breed dog. He started to develop fear aggression as a puppy. What does this looks like?

He would react aggressively to other dogs on our walks. I had to keep him on a leash because he would lunge, bark, and show his teeth to other dogs we would pass. I would have to focus on holding him back form reaching the other dog during the situation as it was happening; so in the moment, I didn't really react much. But if I anticipated an aggressive event was about to happen, if I saw a dog off in the distance, for example, I would start to talk to him and try to be reassuring. I would say something like "It's okay, don't worry, it's just another dog going for a walk, no need to get upset" Does this sound familiar? Well, what I didn't know than was that all that reassurance, and trying to create calmness, I actually was reinforcing Titan's negative behaviour. Why? Because dog's do not interpret our language the way another human would. Titan would hear me say "That's okay" and he would understand "that's okay to attack!" since dog's do not understand all our words, they only really hear the command words in the sentences and they go on voice, more than meaning, and body language, and feelings. Since I was used to Titan reacting fearfully and aggressively, I was expecting it, I was anticipating how I would have to hold him back as he lunged and barked. This in turn made me feel anxious and increased my heart rate, and he would have further felt he needed to protect me. In Titan's mind I was feeling scared of the oncoming dog, not the anticipated aggressive interaction which is the human expectation.

We finally managed the behaviour with multiple techniques involving more socialization and many variations of environments and offering a treat to provide positive reinforcement and distraction from the other dog being seen as a threat. This is one example from more than 20 years ago of how I managed fear aggression in a large breed dog, and learned how I had misinterpreted my own cues and misunderstood my dog.

Your dog needs you to be the leader and facilitate guidance in a way they understand.

When I was growing up, it was generally thought that small dogs didn't need to go to obedience school. After experience with many different breeds, I would say "all dogs benefit from formal obedience". You might wonder of I would still get professional help with a new dog, and I would still say "yes". Because every dog is different, every dog has a unique personality. You want to make sure that your teaching fits the dog's ability to learn your expectation. Also, academic theory changes over time. the way we trained dogs 10 years ago, is different than how it would be done today.

This was the biggest learning curve for me. Coming from a family that did not initially support obedience training in "small dogs". I later on, chose a large breed dog. I started out without obedience school. Without that socialisation. I humanized him. I perceived him to have human thoughts and feelings. I didn't think it was right to tell a dog when to sit or stay. But after having fear aggression issues with him, I started taking him to professional classes which really helped. They help me see that it wasn't really about telling the dog what to do, it was more about being confident and showing the dog that you are the leader. The changed my whole outlook. When a dog is told to sit and he does, it is out of respect. when an owner and a dog are tuned in to each other and have a strong bond, it can be very rewarding.

The professional dog trainer does very specific work in a controlled environment. You are the one raising your dog. You need to be the one to bring your dog to different places, have fun, explore and meet people and other dogs. While at the same time working on the obedience training every few minutes to reinforce the learning and securing good manners in more complex environment. Great obedience training also ensures your dog's safety. If you need to get your dog's attention fast, you need to know you will be effective.

Dog trainers generally have lots of experience with animals. They elude confidence and safety in a dog's opinion. They begin as a stranger with your your dog, but very quickly build a report that has your dog respecting their leadership. You, on the other hand, may have been giving your dog confusing, or "wishy-washy" signals without realizing it. Remember: Dogs mostly go by visual cues and intuition. Not your words. You have classically conditioned each other to your behaviours, so starting over takes more time.

Dog's do not dwell on any negative past experience. So open your mind and live for the moment to help your dog overcome any fear and anxiety. Your dog may have developed negative coping skills as a result of a troubled past. As seen in some dogs adopted later in life or from shelter adoptions, for example. Coping skills developed as a response to repetitive behaviours which may have been negative. This does not mean your dog can not heal, or over come the past. Your dog can change, but needs your support. Careful not to reinforce their fear because we interpret it as providing comfort. Best to use an assertive approach and provide pleasurable rewards when the dog change their behaviour successfully.

A professional dog trainer should be willing to work with you. Should have interest in your concerns. You should feel supported. Find out what you're comfortable with, to ensure a good fit for you and your dog.

Older dogs can still learn new information. They just may take more time to learn and have shorter attention spans. But at advanced age, really they are only limited physically due to pain or chronic illness, not mentally.

As mentioned before, socializing your dog to various environments helps them be tolerant of numerous social situations and gives them a foundation of adaptability skills to build on with confidence. Ultimately, decreasing your dog’s anxiety and chances of getting distracted when you need him/her to focus the most.

Your dog making eye contact with you intermittently indicates you are becoming confident! Congratulations you’re on your way to success!

Yes, training your dog properly takes a lot of hard work and time. If you are the only person evolved in your dog's life, than it is all on you! As a family, there is a role for every member to participate, regardless of age. A dog with great manners builds a positive public reputation and brings everlasting enjoyment to his/her family