THE DOG WHISPERER CONTROVERSY

Please feel free to have a read of [ this article ]. Due to copyright, I cannot publish any part of it on my blog thus you will have to go to the article itself first.

The article is very well written, in my opinion. For those who adore Caesar Milan, it might be a good read. Times change, as does research... thus those of us who deal with dogs as owners or as professionals in any capacity should keep "on top" of these changes.

This is where using food as the drive mechanism to initiate training or behaviour modifications is the standard "go to" for most trainers. Dogs are more like water-ed down versions of wolf puppies who rely on the "alpha male and female" (who are their mum and dad).

"Power struggles with dogs communicate no more leadership than an adult human “dominating” a small child or an armed bank robber and his hostages." Lisa Mullinax, CPDT

{ read the article here }

Dog Dominance

Is a fact however choose to be an effective leader not a dominator. This is what your dog seeks. This is what will help you to overcome behaviour problems.

Good leaders set consistent (never arbitrary) rules and boundaries.

I will repeat:

Good leaders set consistent (never arbitrary) rules and boundaries.

This means that as soon as you are in your dog's life (whether as a puppy or adoption of an older dog) - the rules and boundaries you set forth must be followed by you not just your dog.

The shortest path to solving a behavior problem is to look at the behavior for what it is. What purpose does it serve? How is this problem behavior working for the dog? Are this dog's needs being met? What behavior would we like to see instead of the unwanted behavior?

Then we can set about making what works for the dog the same thing that works for us, like a good leader should.

-- Aidan Bindoff ( website )

Dogs get bored if they never leave home

I am unsure who pointed me to this article however I agree! If you do not want the expense of professional dog trainers, hire the services of someone like myself who will gladly exercise your dog(s) !

"It's too hot" is not a viable excuse: just walk them sooner or opt to have a "night" walk ! Yes, I can and will do after sunset night walks if viable.

"I cannot afford it" is also another poor excuse: can you afford the costs of a professional dog trainer to sort out the problems bored/under-exercised dogs will end up creating ? In the scheme of things, I am rather affordable.

Remember, a tired dog is a happy dog!

by Susan Sharpe and Beth Hough

Winter months are very busy for dog trainers. Previously well-behaved dogs begin chewing, jumping, barking and seem to be out of control.

Dog owners fail to make the connection between their dog's unwanted behavior and the fact they are walking them less – or not at all, because of the weather.

Continue reading this article

please visit my website for more information about my dog walking service

Training & Behaviour Workshop with Steve Courtney

Information Sheet (PDF)

I'm excited to attend the workshop! Whilst it is designed for actual dog owners than someone in my position (where I am dealing with a myriad of dogs). I am planning to attend with one or both dogs of a client of mine (with her permission). In the end, I don't have to attend with a dog though it would be beneficial.

I'm planning to bring along my camera + taking as much video as possible.

Naturally, I will blog about the experience and everything I learnt.

Stay tuned !

Great Webpages For Dog Owners

Doggy Fitness Exercise Checklist : Daily Active Routine Benefits Dog and Owner

http://dog-care.suite101.com/article.cfm/doggy_fitness

Heat Stroke and High Risk Dogs : Keeping Your Dog Cool

http://dogs.suite101.com/article.cfm/heat_stroke_and_high_risk_dogs

Jogging and Other Aerobic Exercising with Dogs

http://www.paw-rescue.org/PAW/PETTIPS/DogTip_JogDog.php

Aloneness training

http://www.dogplay.com/Behavior/alone.html

Toys for bored dogs

http://www.dogplay.com/Behavior/toys.html

Triangle of Temptation

This is a behaviour, pack structure & obedience program that takes nearly no time from your day. I created this program after many years of working with dogs.



This is the basic/generic version of the program, I modify it slightly with the same basic technique to solve problems & go into advanced learning.



It's remarkably effective for gaining control with no force. I have used it with dogs for many years that have been trained to engage a man in combat & would not hesitate to attack me if it were not for this program. I have also used it to rehab extremely fearful dogs that would otherwise not even look at me.



It's also the basis of the bonding program I specify to all my clients…



The bases of this program is to have the dog look to you for guidance & permission to partake in anything you say that the dog can, including food, toys, game etc. Our goal is to have the dog engage self control out of respect for you. This teaches the dog to control its drive & strengthen its mind.



To begin the program we must follow basic training principles, they are the learning phase, the correction phase & the distraction phase.



This means start the training with no other distractions around, no dogs people etc.



The key to starting is to have a food driven dog, if you don't have a dog with a high food drive, miss the meal before you start or at least reduce it by ¾. Fasting is healthy for dogs.

Now you have a dog that wants the food, this means the dog will have drive for the food.

This is a training IN drive program.

Training in drive uses the drive concept that "drive is a subconscious reaction to stimuli", this program works fast on any dog.

Next back tie your dog with a flat buckle collar (non correctional collar) & rope to something solid in your yard. Make sure all other dogs are out of site, we are looking for as low a distraction as possible. Learning is best done under no distraction; we are trying to trigger food drive, not possessiveness, so no other animals.



Prepare the meal inside & this should be done after all higher members have eaten. Your dog will learn, through positive results in this program that being tied out will end in drive satisfaction ie: Positive reinforcement. This is good if you have a dog that whines on a tie out.



At the end of the program you will have a list of things, such as being tied out, long sit stays etc that are all thought of as positive to your dog.



Allow your dog to relax on the back tie, a few minutes is usually enough. Don't go out to a whining dog.



Now bring out your dogs food, show it to your dog, & begin to walk out in front of your dog, your looking for that moment in distance that your dog looks like the food wasn't for him or her after all. Basically taking the dog just out of full food drive.



Your trying to trigger the dogs' high food drives but not so high as to make self control impossible, this would be called drive peak. This distance for some dogs is 2 metres, other 10 metres.



Now you will find our dog looking at the food, possibly trying to get to it, this is what you want.



If the dog is going to hysterics, move the food further away. (This would be an example of full food drive peak)



What it shows is that the dog thinks that he is entitled to the food, but that's not the case.



Approach your dog & stand at his right hand side, stand quietly whilst the dog gets all excited for the food. Look at your dog & wait. Say nothing.



One of two things will happen, either the dog will go on & on & just stare at the food or he will look at you.



If he doesn't look, say the dogs name. You want to see the dog look at you, when he/she does be quick to "mark" the look with "yes" then release the dog with an OK (free) command & let the dog loose to eat the food, you should sound very happy.



Many people tell me they already do most of this, do it exactly as described. Missing the verbal marker & the free command will change the outcome…



The next evening you will repeat the same. This exercise is very effective, as you need to feed your dogs anyway, so they may as well learn at the same time.



You are looking to repeat this until when you place the food down, the dog looks at you & not the food. I can have most dogs do this in 2 – 4 days. The dog does not need to give you total attention unless you're looking for competition level results.



Looking at you means the dog sees you as the person in charge; he has given up staring at the food as he knows that it's you who say when he can have it, & he can only have it when you say so.



Now its time to add the sit command when you stand next to the dog. As soon as the dog sits, you verbal mark with yes.



Bend down & unleash the dog, give OK command so the dog may eat. Always go inside when you release the dog. Dont allow the leash to steal your respect.... Make sure the dog only releases when the "ok" command is given, not the snap of the leash...



The triangle is formed by drawing a line between you, the dog & the temptation.



When you have a good sit, as that is what is being built here, you can add time, by saying stay & then verbal mark yes after 10 seconds, then 60 seconds & so on.



Remove the back tie & keep it in your hands, if the dog should break the stay, you begin again.



Your looking to increase the time the dog has to stay sitting by reasonable increments per day until you get over three minutes. This is all standing right next to your dog. Think of the achievement so far, your dog will tie out happily; it will sit, stay & give you attention, all in the presence of food.



When three minutes has been gained & you will be certain you can go farther, start to increase the distance between you & the dog, whilst holding the tie out rope.



You should increase this distance by increments of 1 - 2 metres.



Up until you did this, the dog was viewing the food (temptation) as unobtainable, & you as unbeatable.



Now by increasing the distance the dog will start to feel the food is obtainable & you just might be beatable.



The long rope will teach the dog very quickly that you are not.



The rule you need to remember is:

Time before distance before distraction.



This is essential for a marked improvement every day.



When you find yourself able to wander inside while the food bowl sits there UN touched by the dog, you're ready to add distraction.



Allow a second dog now to eat from its own bowl perhaps, remain out of site for a period of time, and change the environment to outside the front gate perhaps. These are just some ways to add distraction.



Build reliability into your dog by working it.



When you're at this level you will never have a dominance problem with your dog, you can't have, he looks at you to make the big decisions, like when he can have his treasure.



Feel free to substitute the food for another treasure, such as a treat, ball, toy or an open back door or front gate.



The key is that this gives you control of all the treasures in life, each repetition is positively rewarded at the end by allowing the dog the treasure, when you say he can have it.



This is the generic version of this program, we modify this program many ways to suit different applications, from nervy stressful dogs to rank aggressive dogs to high level competitors.



I use a prey item in the TOT to teach bite work, comp heeling etc etc…



The power words your dog learns are yes & ok, these should translate into the teaching & training of every commend you teach your dog…



We can tailor this program to suit all applications.



This article is copyright protected (2000) © and can not be used or distributed without K9 force consent. You are, however, allowed to distribute this link to direct people to this site.



Steve Courtney

K9 Force Professional Dog Training & Behaviour Consultancy.
Accredited Dog Behaviour Consultant.
Accredited Dog Obedience Trainer.
Accredited Law Enforcement Dog Trainer.

www.k9force.net

dogtrainer@k9force.net