Comments on: Why I Don’t Train My Dog Better

By: Mehr

Mehr — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 09:09:39 +0000

I’m not sure why they’re being described as ‘wrong’ behaviours. Its just behaviors.. dogs with different personalities just being themselves. And thats the joy of being with a dog, not ‘owning’ a dog… Sure a dog needs to learn some basics for its own safety and that of people around. But beyond that, the joy of their spirit, love and excitement needs to be enjoyed and cherished in its purest dog form, not a ‘humanised’ version of it in what is seen by some as ‘appropriate’ and ‘acceptable’ behaviour. We have two dogs with their own individual personalities and quirks… like every other member of the family, they are allowed their moods and freedom and space… there can choose to not always run up and obey commands in the comfort of our home, but they will always pay attention when we’re out for walks.. they dont have to entertain anyone with any tricks… Infact we havent taught them any ‘people’ tricks… they are extremely intelligent and have many of their own dog tricks up their sleeve. 🙂
They are who they are… and they dont have flaws… they have their own personalities… and they are perfect!!! And better and more loving than most people we know.

Here’s something i read and believe in…
“If you want to enjoy your dog, dont teach it to act like you… dont ask your dog to sit, and roll, and play dead… Instead get off your chair, get down on the floor on all fours, and just ‘be’ with your dog…!!!”

By: Kimberly, The Fur Mom

Kimberly, The Fur Mom — Fri, 26 Apr 2013 03:17:51 +0000

Our dogs have plenty of behavior problems that are fine by us. Blue loves to jump the fence out of his yard and roam (not far) on our property. All three chase rabbits on the property. Rodrigo destroys toys pretty quickly, making short work then bringing me the mess he created. And Sydney has a special spot on each sofa and will stare you down until you make room for her.

I love them.

By: Amy@GoPetFriendly

Amy@GoPetFriendly — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 22:44:42 +0000

For the record, I loved Honey’s enthusiastic greeting – and I left with both my ACLs in tact! =)

By: Kari

Kari — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 20:24:47 +0000

I was writing a guest blog post about feeling guilty about my failure to train when I read this. Thank you for it! I agree. Here’s my post: bit.ly/14cxbF0

By: Rebecca

Rebecca — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 14:34:11 +0000

I’m a newcomer to the dog world. Your post is a helpful reminder to relax and enjoy Polly while I’m training her, and not worry so much about perfection.

By: Pup Fan

Pup Fan — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 13:46:13 +0000

I would actually like to request an enthusiastic greeting from Honey at BlogPaws. Tell her not to hold back on the puppy pyrotechnics.

Perfection is overrated. When we first got Tavish, I was determined to train Tavish to stop licking us (and Bella) like crazy. (It’s mostly when we first come home, but sometimes he just gets in a licking mood. I call him my Licky Lou.) However… over 8 months later, he’s still a little licking machine. It’s so darn cute and he’s so darn excited that I couldn’t bring myself to do it. We did get him to stop accidentally biting us as part of his exuberant licking, and he no longer growls when we accidentally bother him while he’s engaging in an enthusiastic paw licking, so I figure we’ve hit a good middle ground that works for us. 🙂

I’m trying to think of a truly “bad” Bella behavior, but her quirks are pretty innocuous. They’re cute as can be though.

By: Pamela

Pamela — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:37:44 +0000

In reply to Greyhounds CAN Sit.

I once read about a woman who had Irish Wolfhounds she taught to put their paws on her shoulder on the cue “get tall.” She also taught them they could jump on her when she was wearing pants but not when she was wearing a skirt (clever, huh?)

Unfortunately, she was unable to teach them the difference between jeans and silk slacks.

So you’re not the only one who’s a sucker for doggy hugs. And maybe the clue is in figuring out what to teach them.

Hope Riley does great in his new home.

By: Greyhounds CAN Sit

Greyhounds CAN Sit — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 11:23:43 +0000

My foster dog, Riley, went to his new home today, just in time too. A few days ago he started doing something I would have had great difficulty training him not to because I’ve always wanted a dog who does this and it’s kind of a no-no. He would stand up and put his paws on my shoulders … and I’d melt. I miss him.

By: shilohsmom

shilohsmom — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:29:56 +0000

Shiloh is one of the most well-behaved dogs I’ve ever known, but there was one thing I could not train out of him, and that was digging for moles. I tried everything but nothing worked. He was perfect in every other way. Finally I gave in and stopped trying to train him not to dig. And then I took it one step further, and I joined him. We went mole hunting together. I’d stand behind him, get sprayed by flying dirt, and fill in the holes as he dug forward. I got just as muddy as he did. And we both had a blast the whole time. Where we live now we don’t have moles so the digging has stopped. I miss those moments with him so much!

By: Natasha

Natasha — Thu, 25 Apr 2013 04:02:06 +0000

My little Eskie is very fearful of anything new or… anyone but me. Two days after adopting her, she was pogo-stick greeting me and I was thrilled. She’ll never greet anyone else like that, so “sit for greeting” training is not high on my list. I must avoid separation anxiety, however, so I usually walk past her into the house proper and don’t look at her… but in the morning, she thrashes around in her kennel, and when she sees I’m unlatching the door, she gathers herself up and leaps into my arms. What am I going to do, not catch her? Not beam as she pogo-sticks around me? When I want her to (try to) calm down, I cross my hands in front of my turned face… and eventually she sits… for a second! I thinks that’s pretty well trained!