The Dog Blog

You can twist perceptions / Reality won’t budge / You can raise objections / I will be the judge / And the jury - Rush, “Show Me Don’t Tell Me”

Have you ever seen Patricia McConnell’s blog? Every week she mixes useful training information, her thoughts on behavior, and some fun snippets of information about her farm. It’s what I want my blog to be when it (and I) grow up.

We enjoy an unprecedented ability to share information with people literally all over the world. With what has become pretty much a standard cell phone and a free account on too many web sites to name (without writing an, ahem, unbelievably loooong blog post) one can share words, pictures, and even video containing useful information.

Or not so useful information.

Because what we have we, as a community, used it to do?

How does the hullabaloo over the new changes at Facebook relate to dog behavior, you ask? Well, it’s simple. People don’t like change. They like things to stay the same, tried and true. The inherent problem with this is that things are constantly changing, everything from Facebook, to one’s age, and to even your dog’s behavior at home and while out-and-about. Sometimes that change is for the better, and sometimes, not so much.

A dog’s behavior, is always in motion, it’s fluid, it’s responsive to the environment and the daily feedback it receives. And not just from you!

Just like a drop of water can begin the erosion of earth that eventually produces the Grand Canyon, your dog’s behavior is shaped in tiny increments by every moment in time, every interaction.

Drayton Michaels recently posted an impassioned condemnation of trainers who employ training methods that involve fear or pain and advocated forcing people to adopt more positive training methods.  I’ve felt that kind of frustration myself.  There are some truly horrific and abusive trainers in my area who I would love to put out of business (and worse).  I’ve seen quite a few dogs whose minds and spirits have been destroyed by a small number of self-styled local dog trainers.  I’ve looked into the eyes of owners who saw me as their last hope and told them that I didn’t know how to undo enough of the damage to make their dogs safe.  One dog traumatized by these abusive hacks injured my wife badly as we worked to undo the damage.  I watched the woman I love endure months of pain due to their cruelty, stupidity, and greed.  I understand the rage.   

Well, we did it!  My husband and I decided to add another member to our canine family, bringing our number back up to five.  Unfortunately, we lost “our girl”, a Weimaraner named Laila, last November after a long battle with cancer.  Despite still sharing our home with four male dogs, the house seemed so quiet without her.  Eight months after her passing, we had settled into an easy, comfortable, if not slightly boring, routine.