Being set in a routine and a certain way of thinking can be both relaxing, but also boring. It keeps you on track for being sure everything gets done in a timely manner and you don’t forget anything. It becomes muscle memory so you often don’t have to think about anything, you just do it. Like dirty clothes on the floor, pick up put in the hamper. See dirty dishes, wash and put in the dishwasher. All the things we do in life, if we do them often enough it becomes a habit.
Now you’re probably wondering what this has to do about dogs. You see I recently had my entire world/routine turned upside down when it came to working and training dogs. I studied, attended, and learned under many different trainers that ingrained into my head, in order to have an obedient dog you must teach them commands. Such as sit, down, stay, come, wait, heel, and the list goes on. How if you don’t teach your dog these things they will get out of control and cause havoc on your life and your home. If your dog is not well trained they won’t be able to go out in public or go on adventures with you. Of course that all seems very logical and understandable when it comes to having an animal live in your home.
Sit. Good Dog
So I got to work learning the best ways to teach dogs how to sit, come, stay, heel, wait, and have all the good house manners. I learned how to solve problems and fix dogs when their owners couldn’t. I always looked at it as it’s a miss communication between dog and owner. The owner must not be teaching sit the way I told them. Or maybe they’re not doing it consistently enough so the dog doesn’t believe them. Or maybe they have not done it enough times with the dog so it’s not muscle memory. I would teach clients how training their dog needs to become part of their routine. How they need to incorporate training into their daily lives and practice it daily. How they need to work on it so much it becomes a habit, just like picking up the dirty clothes off the floor.
The funny thing is dogs are born knowing how to sit. They’re born knowing how to down. They’re born knowing how to be calm and just hang out. Because millions of years of instincts are running through their blood. Tells them they need to conserve their energy and only bring it out when it’s time to hunt. How naturally adult dogs should be sleeping up to 14 hours or more a day. It’s US! as people who feel the need to have an animal listen to us when we say so. We think control is being able to say sit and the dog does it. Or say down and the dog does it. We think if our dogs listen to us that means they’re well behaved. Because society has imprinted that on us. Dogs need to be soldiers and do everything we say and behave themselves even if we’re not in the room. Dogs need exercise in order to be calm. They need daily walks and ball throwing in order to not eat the furniture or jump on us when we come home. But in reality, we really just need to work their mind and don’t have to physically exhaust our dogs.
Man oh man are we in for a rude awakening. Don’t worry we’re in this together because, ever since I adopted this new way of thinking about 9 months ago and TRYING it out for myself. It’s fucking life-changing. Sorry for the language but that’s how passionate I am about this. My dogs have never been more well behaved, happier and I am starting to really see their personalities shine. Why because I have learned how to control their mind and emotions rather than control them with commands that they physically have to do/remember.
I have basically taken off all the pressure I put on them but trying to make them remember 10 different commands, and I have taken the pressure off myself from having to stay consistent and practice and remember to take 30min out of my day to train the dogs.
And the best part is our dogs already know how to do it, WE as humans just have to be able to relay the message in a way they can understand, just like their ancestors did.
So get ready because my post is going to be geared more toward how dogs were born to learn, how they absorb information, and how millions of years of instincts will not only help our dogs live in this world but they will thrive!
Things I will be covering
Why toys and balls are a bad idea and will wake up the pray drive
Why we only need to tell our dogs what we don’t like
Why to much love and affection can harm your relationship with your dog
How dogs think
and so much more. Hang on folks because we are just getting started
X,
D