Prospective clients frequently ask me if the entire family and/or their “no problem” dog(s) have to participate in training. I answer both questions with a resounding yes! Our training is like a mini boot camp for both the dogs and the owners. There is a lot to learn regarding extinguishing bad behaviors, reinforcing good behaviors, nutrition, communicative posturing, and leadership to mention just a few topics. Then there’s owner technique for training commands, corrections, and recall. It’s imperative that all family members (8 years and up) learn this at the same time. If not, the owner who attended the training is forced to not only practice him or herself but train the other family members -a difficult task! It only takes one family member to defeat the training if they’re not practicing good command/correction posturing. I had one successful training session where we successfully stopped the dog’s constant and pushy jumping. As I began to leave the owner’s daughter came back from class and invited the dog to jump into her. If family member isn’t on the same page the dog will not change its behavior.
Similarly, there are advantages to training both your calm dog(s) along with your “problem” dog. Dogs learn by emulating each other to obtain rewards. Owners are amazed at how quickly I can make their out-of-control bad child an obedient one by having him observe the calm dog being generously rewarded for calm behaviors! Also, it’s good to have all dogs on the same page regarding commands, corrections, and recall. No canine gets a free pass. All must earn their house privileges- space, food, owner access etc. by offering calm behavior on their own or on command! Finally training reinforces pack order which makes your dogs secure and happy. A dog will only feel safe, secure, and happy when he feels he’s part of a strong pack. Strong packs are made up of strong leaders which is why we train the owners in leadership skills as much as we train dogs for focus and obedience.
