The choice is ours… to share our lives with dogs. Our hope (and plan) is to build a relationship that is based on mutual love and respect… the stuff of unconditional love. Dogs love us no matter what. Right?
The bond between dogs and people has a long history, some estimate as little as 14,000 years and others much longer. And, though today, much more is known about just about everything, it sometimes seems that people know less about dogs than ever before.
The disconnect between people and dogs often starts early. Puppies have needs that must be met. There’s literally no time to lose. They become dogs very quickly. The pace of modern life can put people and dogs at odds in no time at all. Often, the dog is not exactly the focus. When problems are realized, people seek solutions by any means necessary. These ‘solutions’ fall mainly in the time-saving, technology category and, as a result, both dogs and people lose their way.
A few examples:
House Training (aka house-breaking)– An early problem begins when owners use paper training and wee-wee pads rather than teaching every dog of every size to ‘hold it’ until allowed to eliminate outdoors. The late Roger Caras, one of America’s most well-known dog lovers, talked of house-training as “airing the dog”. If even the smallest of dogs learned to do their business outdoors, many would not be surrendered to shelters and many others still would be spared significant behavioral fallout. What could be more natural (and healthy, psychologically speaking) than for a dog to ”go” outdoors?
Barking– ALL DOGS BARK (with the exception of the Basenji). Barking is part of the reason people have dogs! Due to their superior hearing, dogs have kept people safe from intruders for centuries. And, contrary to what many people believe, there’s always a reason for each and every behavior a dog exhibits. Most barking occurs because, (1) people have rewarded barking by giving to their dogs what they want in response to barking, or, (2) people have unreasonable expectations of dogs such as leaving them alone for too many hours. When people do not commit to serious early training, problems develop. Beware the quick fix.
‘NO BARK’ collars are often the first device and strategy people go for. These collars come in two types- citronella spray or electronic stimulation. The obvious goal is to STOP the barking. While I agree that no one should have to endure endless barking of their own or a neighbor’s dog, this approach does not take into account the reason WHY the dog is barking. It is, therefore, NOT a problem solving approach. It may however, cause additional problems. Can you imagine feeling compelled to communicate that you’re alone and in need of company and, instead, experience electrical shock (however minimal the amperage) or a blast of nasty smelling stuff?
The only advantage it may have is that if there is more than one dog in the home, and only one of them barks, only the dog who barks will be effected by the owner’s decision to use a NO BARK collar. Ultra sonic no bark kennel devices on the other hand, will affect every dog within hearing range of the device. That is, every dog gets a ‘correction’ every time any dog barks. How fair is that? And, the ultimate attempt to render dogs speechless, is the surgical removal of the vocal cords. Here in Massachusetts, it is no longer legal for veterinarians to perform such surgeries and with good reason. Dogs suffer greatly post surgery and many have lifelong throat issues due to scar tissue regrowth.
Containment Indoors & Out– Many dogs (and cats) are subjected to scat mats, motion-detecting audible alarms and ultrasonic devices to keep them off furniture and out of rooms. While dogs must be restrained (leashes, collars, etc) and kept safe if allowed off-leash outdoors, they should be directly supervised at all times. Doggie doors and underground electric fences amount to ‘good ideas in theory but not in practice’. Dogs left unattended and entirely unsupervised even for short periods of time will (eventually) respond to one environmental stimuli or another. If you’re not there to prevent a reaction (chase animals or people on or off your property), you cannot protect your dog from other people or animals any more than you can protect others from your dog.
Ecollars, short for electronic collar, is a tool that, in my opinion, should not be the first ‘go to’ tool to train any dog and is definitely a last resort tool that should ONLY be available for purchase from professional dog trainers as part of a training program. Haphazard use by the undereducated is often the case however, and many dogs suffer severe consequences and even irreparable damage. Pro-dog trainers understand how dogs learn and read dog body language fluently and thus are able to make adjustments on the fly. My only hope is that trainers are following the manufacturers’ instructions for proper use of ecollars, that is, that the ecollar only be used AFTER the dog has been trained on-leash and thus has an understanding of obedience commands. It is then used to give dogs ‘fair warning’ if they do not comply with handler/owner issued requests. Again, it is all about the skill and knowledge of the user. It can be a dog’s worst nightmare or crystal clear communication.
All relationships – with the best laid plans– are works in progress. There will be ups and downs, agreements and disagreements, clear communication and not so clear communication. Dogs are living, changing beings capable of learning. Electronic this, ultrasonic that. What’s a dog to do? They cannot help themselves to a better life. They’re stuck having to deal with the decisions made on their behalf. Dogs bark and bite and run and dig and chew and…. well, do everything you’d expect a dog to do. If you want a great relationship with a dog, you must meet them somewhere in the middle. Their world view is at least HALF of the equation. The reward people reap for their time and effort will be multiplied many times over. It takes time and patience and repetition and, even forgiveness to develop a behaviorally healthy dog.