Dog training is based on Experience, Science (Knowledge) and Art.
I started when I was about 12 years old. There were not many books I could find but those I read gave me a clue to the Positive reinforcement technique. I’ve made lots of mistakes anyway as I was an impatient teenager. Then, at the age of 15, I joined a group of professionals that worked with duty dogs. It was in 1984. Since then, I maintained high level of education in neurosciences, biology, animal psychology and behaviour – basically whatever related to dog training and animal behaviour. I am hopefully up-to-date with new researches and studies. I attend webinars, conferences and training courses with the world renowned specialists in veterinary and behaviour fields on regular basis. It helps to refresh my knowledge in all aspects of dog training and behaviour.
The training becomes an art when all theory and practice are combined, and the experience allows you to successfully maneuver between the both.
My goal as a Dog Training Instructor and Behaviourist is not only to train dogs to do tricks and obey the commands. The most important part of my job is to teach dog owners to understand their dogs’ behaviour. Indeed, technically, training a dog is a relatively simple process of repetition and consistency. All goes fine until you face a situation when you do all as usual but “nothing works and no one knows why”…
Important things to remember are:
- Dogs have no idea how much you love them if you express it in a human way. Dogs do not care how much you earn and how expensive your house is and their own bed in that expensive house. You can spoil your dog rotten and call me later with one and the same question: – We love him so much, why does he ignores us?
The simple answer is – dogs do not have capacity to understand our complex human life and your plans on them either. They have advanced memory skills, and are able to read and react appropriately to human body language such as gesturing and pointing, and to understand human voice commands. Dogs demonstrate a theory of mind by engaging in deception. Dogs have the ability to create strong bonds with their owners and to adapt to the environment to some extent. But they do not have a multilayered abstract thinking ability. They have a massive olfactory bulb instead as this was more important for their evolution and survival. So think about a dog as about a dog, not a little human. It is important.
- On the other hand, dog owners often unintentionally praise their dogs’ bad behaviours, therefore making things worse and deeply rooted.
When dogs’ behaviour get misinterpreted, it leads to misjudgement and wrong treatment. Bearing in mind that dogs have no much capacity to deal with their own emotions (especially if we as their owners did not provide them with some important skills to build up resilience), this misjudgement often leads to putting a dog to sleep or putting him in a shelter… Keep in mind that the dog is not actually guilty and has done nothing wrong as much as the dog is concerned.
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I keep saying for years and centuries – there is no animal ever guilty for whatever they have done. For any wrong doing of the animal (either cat, dog or a wild one), there are always human mistakes looming on the background. This doesn’t necessarily mean the owner – we have unscrupulous breeders (farmers), bystanders, well-wishers of any sort, dog shows and those that create “breed standards”, and even humanity as a whole as we remove natural living areas for wild animals.
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From time to time my clients tell me they were “advised” by their local dog owners that long walks are not healthy for young pups (I mean pups around 3-6 months old).
Let me clarify this moment for you. I have to note that I explicitly discussed this particular moment during a conference with the American Veterinary Surgeons specialised in Degenerative joint diseases in 2021.
Do’s
- Walks are healthy for pups at any age as you somehow need to get them getting socialised and physically developed. You should aim for at least two long walks per day that should be around 20-30 minutes. You can have short walks in between especially for toilet training. Some puppies are more active and even 40-50 minutes are fine when you have some time. Keep an eye on your pup to pick up the moment when the dog gets tired.
- When your pup meets other dogs, they do run. So I see no issues if you make an organised trot with your pup for a short distance of 50 metres on occasional basis. It helps to create a bond between you two and puppies love it as it is a perfect game with both parties get engaged.
Don’ts
No jumping until your pup is at least 6 months old. Think joints. Heavier dogs need more time before they can safely start. The usual (most common) reason of any spine or hips injuries of adult dogs of any breed is jumping (you see it often that the owner lift a stick and… this sort of jumps – straight up). Occasional jumps over the reasonably low barriers is fine after the dog is at least 6 months old (breed dependent).
No pulling! Pulling the lead involves lots of presure on elbows and can easily damage them.
Fetch games should be limited until your pup is above 7 months (breed dependant). When the dog runs after the ball and then makes a stop at full speed, that’s exactly puts a lot of presure on his joints. Simply limit this activity to minimum for training and bonding purposes only. Do not use it for a simp,e reason to exhaust your dog.
Avoid agility exercises required jumping of any sort that can cause occasional falls from heights until your pup is at least 6-8m old. I used to take my dogs downstairs until they reached 5-6 months old. Climbing up is fine and good exercise.
I would be very carefull with flyball sports.
No long runs if you are a jogger until your pup is at least 6 months old and fit for purpose. Again, breed dependent and some may need to wait longer.
Do not fall into overbearing supervision and people with “health and safety” issues. Use your common sense and observe your pup.
In summary to this topic:
If you hear any strange advice regarding your dog treatment, training or exercising, please ask your professional adviser and always apply common sense and your own knowledge of your own dog.
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Dogs have ability to create a strong connection with their owners. Dogs are so unique, they can adapt to basically everything within a diverse human environment. But dogs can’t do it on their own. It is a dog owner responsibility. And it is dog breeders’ responsibility to choose between those more resilient and social dogs to breed from.
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Do not go for a cute dog.
Learn about the breed, its temper, and its health issues. Some breeds require experienced owners, they need more training, and they may simply not be for you. Don’t fall into the cuteness of the puppy, they all are – think about their health and your own capacity to help the dog to develop to what they were bred for. Be smart, responsible and thoughtful.
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I heard things about “dogs’ people” and “cats’ people” and that they fight with each other…
I always thought that if you love animals in general, you love them all regardless. Cats, dogs… They are different, you can’t compare them. Dogs are mostly like extraverts, they often need a company (not necessarily a dogs’ company – they may not enjoy other dogs), they express their emotions in more obvious way. But not their health issues – this they will likely to hide until it is too much to handle. So watch your dog to see what is his normal and what is not.
Cats suffer in silence. They are heroic. They do not show emotions and that they are in pain – it can put them into a vulnerable position as per their evolutionary process of wild animals. They hide and suffer in silence. They are intraverts. They are as well capable to create strong bonds with their humans but it will not be that visible as with dogs.
Comparing these two animals is like citing – “Everyone is a genius. But if you judge a fish by its ability to climb a tree, it will live its whole life believing that it is stupid.”