Last night I spoke to the esteemed Ken McCort on my podcast, Regarding Rover. It was a breath of fresh air and a sigh of relief to hear him say that we should all relax, not just a little, and start being friends with our dogs instead of trying to be pack leaders.
I wanted to talk to Ken about this because there is so much misinformation, competing opinion and downright crap out there about dogs and how we should train them. Some so-called experts drivel on about wolves and wolf pack behavior without so much as ever seeing an actual pack of wolves. Instead, they repeat statements that have been repeated for years, without knowing where those statements came from or bothering to find out what has been learned since those statements were made. The worst of them go on to elaborate, exaggerate and extrapolate these statements until they are nearly unrecognizable.
McCort, on the other hand, has worked closely with real, live wolves at Wolf Park, a non-profit education and research center in Battle Ground, IN, for many years. He has also worked with many other canids and several other species. Just as importantly, McCort has worked closely with others who are dedicated to scientific research and finding the truth through observation and experimentation. This is VERY different from drawing an opinion from one’s personal experience.
I hope you’ll take the time to listen to what Ken McCort has to say about wolf behavior, the differences between dogs and wolves and what this all has to do with dog training. Along with that, I also hope you’ll hear his message, and my plea, for those of who care about dogs to be careful and critical about where we get our information and how we pass that along.
You can listen to the podcast here: http://www.blogtalkradio.com/regardingrover/2009/11/03/Regarding-Rover--...
For more reliable information on wolves, visit: www.wolfpark.org
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Chillax
Oh I couldn't agree more. I work in a vet clinic and some of our clients are so intent on having the perfect dog and nothing can be out of the ordinary that they cannot recognise the effect it is having on their pet. My boss (the vet) and I feel so much for the animals because we can see the stress the owners are unintentionally and with good intentions placing upon their pets instead of just enjoying having them.
as for the mis-information with regards to dominance etc - I have an anxious rotty whom the average person will "helpfully" tell me he obviously is a very dominant dog and my other super behaved rotty is the submissive one. I explain to them that it actually is the opposite. The well behaved dog is that way because he is confident and doesn't have the need to carry on like an idiot, he is the one that does the "marking" behaviours such a peeing on everything and scratching the ground afterwards (the younger doesn't have enough confidence in himself to do that). The younger dog is anxious and unsure of himself and what is the appropriate behaviour so he "shots first and asks questions later" - definatly NOT dominant behaviour. and all this stems from certain TV trainers that insist that every dog they see has "dominance issues" (one was even dominant with the owner over tissue boxes - puh-lease!).
It is a good thing we have moved on though - I must admit when I first started my Vet nursing career the thinking was all about dogs being dominant and just waiting for the chance to "take over" but with the work done in scientific research, it is good to see the "light bulb" switch on and recognise what makes more sense.
Very interesting
Interesting interview Cindy. I wish we all could laugh and be more lighthearted like Ken is, especially when dealing with our dogs. He has portrayed them quite accurately and consistent with what information has been coming out lately. It is amazing how a lot of us have been so misguided over the past decades. We need more people like him to get this message out. Thanks for sharing.
Says who?
Thank you so much! Great interview. I really enjoyed Ken's ease and delivery of the facts. This mythology can be especially prevalent in the Northern Breed arena. So glad that he is available to discuss the what's true based on scientific observation! Thanks again!
...wish the podcast goes viral!
absolutely loved the podcast! I've sent it out to everyone in my email database and only wish there was a way to post it to youtube, digg, NG...any site that would enable this to go viral.
happy-houndz.blogspot.com cheers, kate
Sharing the podcast
Kate (and all),
Thanks for listening to the podcast and for your encouraging responses! Kate, you can share the podcast by going to the main Regarding Rover page at http://www.blogtalkradio.com/regardingrover
There is a share button that allows the show to be shared in several venues. I would love for as many people as possible to hear Ken's message!
Cindy Bruckart, CPDT-KA