Diva's Dog Blog » Puppy training http://jasmineshouse.com/blog Devoted to helping Dalmatians and other dogs in need Sun, 02 Jan 2011 05:53:48 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.8.4 en hourly 1 It’s not the dog, it’s the owner http://jasmineshouse.com/blog/its-not-the-dog-its-the-owner/ http://jasmineshouse.com/blog/its-not-the-dog-its-the-owner/#comments Mon, 19 Oct 2009 05:57:44 +0000 Jodie http://jasmineshouse.com/blog/?p=39 I love shows like “It’s Me or the Dog” because the problems they are dealing with always make my dog problems look small. Typically, the owner’s behavior influences the dog’s behavior. My favorite episode was about a lady who served her dogs tea in the afternoon, and bought them treats from the ice cream truck. The dogs were full of sugar and caffeine, instead of nutritious, dog appropriate foods, and they weren’t getting any exercise or discipline. It was obvious the owner was the problem. Once Victoria Stilwell straightened the lady out, getting the dogs under control was easy.

http://animal.discovery.com/videos/its-me-or-the-dog-strangest-cases/

We recently sent Friday to “A Canine Experience” for “boarding school” while we were in Florida. He was with them for 2 weeks, learning obedience. I’d taken him for an evaluation a couple weeks earlier, because I was concerned about the growing tension between Friday and Harley. Before he came home, they had us come in and work with him for a couple hours. Then they brought him to the house and worked with him while he transitioned back to life at home. They even showed me how to get him to use the treadmill. I’m really glad that we did it, because it showed that Friday is a good dog. He listens to people he believes are in authority, and he gets along well with other dogs.

Twenty minutes after the trainer left, Friday was settling back into his old habits. He started trouble with Harley, he annoyed Baby and chased the cat. I calmly corrected him, and he soon settled down. That lasted until 7pm, when our son brought his Beagle, Mario, to spend the weekend. I realize this was not the best time to add the excitement of a fifth dog, but Mario needed a place to go, and human family takes priority over canine family. We had a few mishaps over the weekend, but it wasn’t too bad.

In general, Friday is more obedient than he was before. He is very good about sitting and waiting at the door, and he is much more patient. He will even respond while we are out on a walk, as long as there isn’t anything exciting going on. Once he is excited, I cease to exist, unless of course he needs something to jump on. He still doesn’t respect me at all, and I seem to lack the communication skills to earn his respect. I’ve tried using the pinch collar, like the trainer recommended, but my heart just isn’t in it. I feel like a bully when I use it. I wish Patricia McConnell were here to tell me what to do.

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