Almost every day I get a call email or message from a distraught owner struggling with some aspect of their dog's behaviour. Many of the perceived problems are easy to resolve others not so.
I've learned over the years that when an owner describes the dog as 'my baby' it's going to be a difficult job. Clearly it's not a 'baby' but this mindset deprives the dog of leadership.
Quite often these poor dogs get petted for nervous behaviour creating more nervousness and insecurity. All the petting and fussing is fulfilling the needs of the owner at the expense of the dog.
If you watch a good bitch raising a litter of pups you will see that as the pups develop she lays down rules and nudges or chides them when they ignore her. By the time they leave her they have learned to respect her and have a basic understanding of what's expected. She has prepared them for the world around them. That's exactly what we must do for our dogs so they are not overwhelmed by every day life.
My eldest dog Murphy became totally deaf and a lost his confidence to deal with unknown dogs. Fussing and petting would not give him back that assurance but teaching him (and myself) a new means of communication has.
I use hand signals to tell him there is no threat or bring him back to my side if I detect there is. It's taken some time but he trusts me now to take care of the situation and he's pretty much back to his old self.
Referring to him as 'my baby' and suffocating him with affection would have made him more insecure so I gave him confidence instead.
You can find more training tips on the Training Archive at www.vicbarlow.com.
