You all know UFOs? Those mysterious objects that no one ever saw, but many were snapped up into and, with much prying, after many braai drinks, someone would tell you how they once saw “mysterious lights”? Well, they are now called UAP’s, Unidentified Aerial Phenomena . Why the name change? Was this to make sure that the passengers on these ships were not offended? No, it is simply to shift the “feeling” around UFOs and somehow make them seem more plausible, as more and more appear to be…..well….appearing.
This kind of “new fad” ideal, is often part of societal change of acceptance of things. Today I want to talk about Pack Leaders and why that took off. It took off because it sounded cool. It gave owners a chance to be powerful and grand, and lead something. Even if it was just your dog. It also came with special music and an entire program based on a small Mexican chap “whispering” to dogs and seemingly curing all kinds of behavioural issues with a swish of his Tsst!
The world was swept up and taken. Thousands of desperate owners were suddenly equipped with a way to control their dogs and marched around, ensuring that their energy was right and the dog didn’t step out of line.
Sadly, this trend took off with trainers too, and we are now seeing terrible trainers, using shock collars, jerk and pull training and more, on innocent dogs. We are also seeing the uprising of thousands of “force free” claims and trainers almost at war with each other over clickers VS Shockers.
The thing is, that using pain and force is BAD news. It suppresses issues, and CAUSES aggression. End of story. Whether it appears to work or not, is not the debate. When I started training, I was never a fan of using things like spike collars, but I did learn to train with choke chains. I refused to use ear pinch methods, but I did use spray bottles. Over the years, I learned to work without chains and sprays, and how to get dogs to understand what I wanted, using only reward- based training methods.
Do I use discipline at times? Sure, I shout at my dogs at times. I don’t want to, but, hey I am human. I do not hit them, but I have thrown a dog bowl at fighting dogs and I have picked up a dog and marched inside too! Do I need to jerk my dogs around? No. Do I need to punish them? No. I do use time out for some dogs, simply relaxing in a crate, under my eye, with a chew toy. That is NOT punishment, and it’s used for times when, say we have a pup who cannot self- regulate and is about to get hurt.
I wish I could say that I handle my dogs with perfection, but I don’t. I do ensure that they trust me completely however, and work hard to ensure I never break that trust.
I don’t think I am the pack leader. I think I am their friend and guardian. And I want to teach others to see how rewarding that walk together is!
I have spent so many hours arguing with people over how to train dogs, and really get that most people honestly feel that pack leadership thinking is right. It is not. Dogs do not work as a pack, unless there is a hunt or fight on. Do you really want your dogs to feel like there is a constant fight going on? No. So use better methods. Share your ways. Teach people. Stand up for dogs who are being used commercially to make good TV and basically being used as money making objects, and ego feeders.
Of course, dogs do need boundaries and, of course, they do need to learn things, in order to live with us, in gentle harmony.
Today’s tip!
Swapping out objects is the easiest way to teach your dog to surrender things he has, that he should not have. For example, your phone, sock or the remote.
Instead of yelling at him to drop it and them grabbing it away, swap it out for a tasty treat, and reward your dog for handing it over. That’s right PRAISE the exact behaviour, not the prior one! Say “leave it” and be excited that your dog has swapped out. You can also then hand over a suitable toy or chew as a replacement.
This will encourage your dog to show you when he has “things” he has found, saving lots of remotes and vet bills, as well as defuse resource guarding potential.
The “Pack Leader” way would have been to force the object from the dog, or threaten him so that he drops it. And then he has nothing. This would encourage your dog to HIDE things he has found, and also that you are likely to steal from him, upping his urge to resource guard – perhaps not from YOU, as he will now be afraid of YOU, but maybe from your child, granny or staff. This may lead to bites.
See how it works now?
