rw wrote:

Larry L wrote:

"jeff miller" wrote

. i can't imagine doing

anything intentionally that hurt my dog.





As rdean would say, this might not help

but a true story that I get a kick out of

I got a call, and was asked, "Are you a dog trainer?"

"Yes, what can I do for you?"

"Well my yellow Lab climbs up on the counter when ever I'm cooking and
eats all our food. She just ruined a whole roast. How can I stop her?"

Me, "That is not at all my type of training but I can offer some
simple advice. When she climbs up there, say 'no' very firmly and
do something that she finds very unpleasant, swat her butt HARD, for
instance. At this point it has to be more unpleasant than the food
is pleasant."

The female caller, tone indignant, "I could NEVER do anything to hurt
my dog !!"


Me, again, " Well, in that case I suggest you put the food on the
floor and save her the trouble of all that climbing."

Click .. somehow we were cut off .. surely she didn't hang up on me
after I gave her such sensible, and honest, advice ? G


Great story.

Some people have this dog worship thing. It drives me nuts.

In my experience, dogs need to know the rules -- the reasonable rules.
Once they know them, they'll obey them. They are creatures of habit.
They need structure. It's the owners job to give them that predictable
structure. Then they'll be happy and well mannered.

I used a training collar for the first time this spring, on my
girlfriend's dog, a totally (to that point) unmanageable Anatolian
Sheperd Winnemucca Pound Pup. The dog was impossible. Whenever he saw
cows or elk, off he'd go on a wild and illegal and dangerous romp.

The training collar (i.e. shock collar) was a one-time fix for a solid
come/stay. It was like magic.


shock on...no doubt, infliction of physical pain can be a great teacher
and molder of behavior and thought (and not just in dogs)...simply not
my approach. ... i do note the "invisible fence" business is thriving
in these parts though.

jeff