The Truth About Dogs

Dogs are eager to please...themselves. They aren't eager to please you. People are kidding themselves when they think that. They only do things that make THEM feel good. Things like, taking the chicken sandwich directly from my hands even though I am hungry...RILEY! Or, pushing me out of my spot on the couch to look out the window, inspite of the fact that I am uncomfortable...QUINN! Or, barking that high piercing bark when playing even though I am clearly annoyed by it...EMMITT! It's just the reality of dogs...they only do things for themselves.

If people realized that, they wouldn't be so angry with their dogs behavior. By thinking they actually decided NOT to please you is only harming your relationship with him/her. You are humanizing them; and when you do that, your expectations become unreasonable and it only fills your relationship with anger and resentment.

Then you start to think your dog is doing these terrible dog behaviors just to spite you. This is when it really gets interesting, because your patience dwindles, and you are angry all of the time. Now you are looking for a home for your dog if not the shelter.

All the while, your dog is just this innocent litte creature who has no idea what you want from them. You haven't taken the time to really communicate who the boss is, or what the boundaries are. People often assume that their dog should just "know". Well guess what? All they know is how to be a dog. All they want is to be a dog. It's unfair to think otherwise.

They don't reason, they work on drive and instinct. Once you realize that, your patience is increased by 20 and your expectations go back down to a healthy level. What comes out of it is a balanced relationship. He gets love and attention and you get a loyal friend.

Quinn (my Doberman), Riley (my Miniature Pinscher) and Emmitt (my sister's Border Terrier) make my day, every single day inspite of their annoying behaviors. Its because I understand them and know how to communicate to make it better. I know that I have to teach them everything I want them to know and abide by.

I had never taught Riley to stay away from our food, as far as she was concerned, my chicken sandwich was fair game. That was her instinct. After working on that, now she doesn't even notice when I eat. I let Quinn sit on the couch all of the time, it doesn't make a difference if I am sitting there or not. Regardless, she is going to try and sit there. That was my cue to teach her her place, which is somewhere she can be commanded to go to when I want to sit at my spot. Finally, Emmitt and his barking...he is in doggy bootcamp to control it.

Bottom line, your dog is a dog, treat him like one. They will be better for it, and so will you.

Tags: dog training, dog behavior, communication, alpha dog