Your dog is your baby, your world, your everything, they hold so much value in our lives that we sometimes forget that they’re an animal. We so badly want them to be human so that we can just avoid the world around us, hang out with our dogs, and do absolutely nothing. We’re all guilty of it, myself including.
What a lot of people don’t understand is, if we give our dogs everything they want, never tell them no, never set rules or boundaries, and just let them run amuck in our house. It actually creates a much more unstable environment for them than if we did implement rules. Letting our dogs do what they want when they want, and completely adjusting our lives and our schedules to better suit their needs. Only sets ourselves and our dogs up for failure.
One of the most common mistakes I see with dogs and their owners is leaving our dogs alone. We think they will be scared, or get into something, or go forbid get out and get lost. The first mistake a lot of people do is, they bring their dog home and immediately let them have a full range of the house. Thinking the dog lives here too so they should be able to have access to EVERYTHING! WRONG!!! Yes our dogs are our family and we want them to be able to live with us harmoniously, but if you let your new dog have free range of your house 24/7 they will never learn the rules. What they can and cannot chew on, where they can and cannot pee on. And more than likely get into things they shouldn’t.
All of us want our dogs to use the bathroom outside, one of the first things we teach our dogs is to pee outside. So why set that rule if you’re not going to set any others? When it comes to leaving them alone, we think ok they have been free-roaming the entire house, I could leave for an hour and they will be fine. Then you come home and it looks like a bomb went off and you wonder why. Or your dog starts to get protective of the couch, or your bed, or even the fridge. Your dog needs to learn that they can be in the kitchen behind a baby gate, alone while you walk around the house. Because your dog needs to learn they’re not going to die if they can’t follow you around. The best part about having a designated dog area is your dog learns they’re ok if you are not constantly right there. They learn that being alone is ok. They learn to be independent, and calm. So when you do go to leave for an hour or even go to work you won’t come home to a disaster.
You also won’t have to worry if they’re getting into something they’re not allowed. Or if they’re using the restroom in a back bedroom corner that you won’t find for a few days. Your dog has a safe place to be while you’re gone.
Dogs in the wild have a pack leader, that leader sets up rules for each pack member to follow. If they didn’t have rules the dogs wouldn’t eat or find water and they would all starve to death. Dogs would wonder and get killed, or find themselves alone in the middle of nowhere. In our homes, we need to be the leader because dogs thrive off rules and boundaries it helps them better understand our world. It helps them navigate through a life that they know nothing about, nor really understand.
Smothering our dogs with love, affection, constant attention, treats, toys, along with giving them the freedom to do what they want. Is only a recipe for disaster. Your dog will only look at you as a giver, not as a leader. They will only see you as a treat dispenser, toy giver, food feeder, and a bed maker. They will take everything else into their own hands and do what THEY think is right. Such as bark and go nuts when the doorbells go off. lunge bark and growl on a leash as people, dogs, bikes, and kids go by. They will help themselves to sleep on furniture and they will destroy everything they want. Why because YOU are not the boss of them YOU are only someone who gives them love, treats, and cleans up their mess.
All the unwanted behaviors your dog does in public, trace back to how they act at home. Everything starts at home, it’s the foundation for how your dogs behave in the real world. If they have bad behaviors at home, you can bet they will have them out in public.
What a lot of people also don’t understand is too much coddling and attention can eventually lead to aggressive tendencies. If your dog views you as beneath them in the pecking order they could soon start to guard your bed, growling at you when you go to get in it, growling at a spouse, or even worse your children. Your happy go lucky dog that you have loved, fed, praised, and given them everything they ever wanted could all of a sudden turn mean. And you have no idea why.
But really if you look back at it YOU are the reason for it. You never gave your dogs rules, you never taught them how to behave, you never worked on proper manners, or showed them the difference between right and wrong.
We all want to do what is best for our dogs, we all want to give them everything they ever wanted and be sure they have the best care possible. We hate getting mad at them or telling them no. But the bottom line is if you want your dog to live a long happy stress-free life. YOU need to teach them how to live in our world. YOU need to teach them right from wrong. YOU need to be able to tell them no, and show them what you want instead. You did it in order to potty train them so why not do it for everything else? Your dog will not hate you if they have to ask for permission before getting on the couch. Your dog won’t hold a grudge against you if you need to put them in a crate to keep them safe while you go run errands. Your dog lives in the moment, not the past, or future.
Your dogs NEED rules, boundaries, consistency, and guidance in order to learn how to live with humans the RIGHT way. They need you to show them how to do things. And after they do them correctly then you can give them treats, and toys, and love. Your dogs want to earn your affection and love they don’t just want it given to them.
If you want to give your dog the best life they could possibly have you absolutely can! But you need to also balance that with rules.
~D