I was talking to Kelly...

Kelly is the brand new owner of one of our 5 day old Cruz/Rommel puppies. She was asking about what books I recommend for training. First of all, it's more important to understand your dog before you start to train him/her. You have to realize that our dogs are not furry children and they do not think like what we think furry children should think like. (That was a mouthful!) Our dogs, think like dogs. Always have, always will. Dog's live for NOW. Living for NOW is something that you should be trying to attain, according to Oprah and a myriad of other self help gurus. But even though it is something we have difficulty with, dogs have always done it. You have to think about what is happening right now for your dog. Not 1 minute ago, not 30 seconds ago, and certainly not hours ago when he chewed up your favourite pair of shoes! This is something I hear quite often:

"Rover was so mad at me for coming home late from work, he chewed up my favourite shoes and pooped on the floor! He never does that! He was paying me back for being late! I can tell because when I ask him if he made a mess, he looks ashamed. He knows better. He was getting back at me!"

It's amazing how many times I have heard that story or something very similar. And it's as far from the truth as it could be! Do you want to know the real reason Rover pooped on the floor and ate your shoes? I'll tell you. Come back tomorrow to find out! (Sorry. Just kidding. That's what my marketing teacher says I should do to get more people to read my blog. How about instead of such ridiculous measures, you do me a favour and tell someone else what a great blog it is full of education and cute puppy pictures. The more people who come by and read posts like this, the more people are educated and will stop treated their dogs like furry children!)

Anyways, the real reason why Rover did those things is because you were late from work. But not how this owner is explaining it. Here's what really is happening. You arrived home at 7:00PM instead of 6:00PM. It just so happens that everyday at 6:15PM, he is out on a walk with you and he has a chance to eliminate his bowels. When 6:20PM arrives he's feeling like he should go but you still aren't home. By 6:30 he REALLY has to go and is feeling so anxious about not pooping on the floor, so he tries to distract himself by chewing on something. He's thinking of you so it only seems reasonable that he's going to find something to chew that belongs to YOU. And what smells the most like you? Your favourite shoes! You wear your favourite shoes more often than all of the others, so therefore, they smell the most like you! By now, it's 6:50 and he can't hold it anymore! We've all been there, right? So he goes. At 7:00PM you walk in the door. That's a whole 10 minutes after pooping and almost a half hour since he chewed the shoes. Forever ago. And as far as him looking "guilty"? Think about the tone you used to ask him. Wasn't it exactly the same tone you used the last time you got mad at him for something? Did you get into this garbage! Shame on you! etc. Hey! Give me back my sock! I'm late for work! GIVE IT BACK! Same tone, correct? He is reacting the same way as he did the last time you used "the tone" on him. Shying away, looking down, maybe even running away because the last time it was followed by a) a smack, b) locked in his crate, c) thrust out the door etc. If you don't believe me? Try it right now. Go point at some obscure place on the floor and ask him "Did you do this?! Did you make this mess?! I bet you dollars to doughnuts he will act the same way.

So, today's lesson was "How to Think Like a Dog". That's the very first step in training. There's a really good book by The Monks of New Skete. It's called "The Art of Raising a Puppy" It starts right from the very beginning… a very good place to start… You will see what I mean when you read the book. (another marketing tactic). After that one, read a book by the same authors called "How to be Your Dog's Best Friend". Both of these books not only have training information but also behavioural lessons that help you make sense of why your dog is doing what he's doing. On my web site, there are dog tags down the left hand side. If you scroll down to "Book Store" and click on that link, you can purchase any of the books listed there. It will link you thru to Amazon.ca for your purchase. All money I receive from the sale of these books is donated to a local humane society. I see there is a glitch on the page so I'll get on that right away so you can use the links. If you can't wait, just write down the names of the books and purchase it through another outlet. But I will try and get it rectified by tomorrow ..

So, thank you Kelly for reminding me that it's not just training that I would like you to learn, but dog behaviour as well. You really can't succeed until you have both. Sure you can muddle along, but wouldn't you rather be an expert!

Take care everyone and happy trails!

Mary Ann