Are You Really A Real Positive Trainer

Positive Trainers Don’t

• Focus on what the animal is doing wrong
• Treat the dog right after a leash correction (aka: the ‘balanced’ style of mixing punishment with reinforcement)
• Say “PSSSH!”  “NO!”  “UH-UH!”  or any other “You’re doing it wrong!” noise while training
• Alpha Roll, Scruff, or ‘Physically Submit’ an animal
• Stare down an animal
• Tap (slap, spank, or hit), Tug (leash jerk), Physically Interrupt (kick), or Pinch
• Buzz, Stimulate, Tickle (sugar coating shocking your dog with an electric collar, and yes this includes electric fences)
• Lie about choke collars (no, you’re not “making a noise” to punish your dog, you are “choking your dog” to punish your dog.  If you honestly think it’s the noise, get a harness and put a cat bell on it.)
• Use choke, pinch, or electric collars….. ever….
• Use or believe in the dominance theory, alpha crap, or pack leadership
• Force dogs into stressful situations above threshold
• Knee a dog for jumping
• Advise to over exercise your dog instead of actually training him
• Use commands, demands, or ‘physical help’ (push or pull a dog into a sit, down, stand, etc)
• Like most of the shows on TV
• Ever stop learning

 

I hate it when professionals say s/he use positive training techniques, and s/he so doesn’t.  Some of our poor clients didn’t know any better and thought they were doing industry standard training, and were told they were using R+ and in fact the methodology they were taught wasn’t even close.  Not even close.  It makes me sad about all the sugar coating & flat out dishonesty some people use.  Shocking a dog with electricity from a collar isn’t “a tickle.”  It’s abusive.  It’s absurd.  And it sure as sh*t isn’t positive training.  And leash jerking a dog’s collar to “make a sound?!!”  Really….  Then use a regular collar or harness & put a kitty cat bell on it.  See if it’s really the sound or if it’s the physical trauma to the dog’s throat & trachea.  And still I ask, why make any sound?  You’d only do that if you’re trying to punish and focusing on what the animal is doing wrong.  Sorry, not a positive way to train either.  I could go on and on, but why?  If you’re looking for a positive trainer, I mean a really positive trainer – pick someone who encourages the animal with rewarding the behavior they want more of.  Bottom line.  That’s the key.  Positive training means = Reinforce what you want the dog to do so you increase that behavior.  I truly hope one day, the trainers who are positively not positive, will educate themselves, and practice humane techniques.  But until then, this picture about sums it up…

Some Of My Best Friends Are Pit Bulls

I’m not prejudice, some of my best friends are black.

Now I sure hope I hit a nerve with that last disgusting sentence.  I even hope it made you mad.  Because that is the same prejudice attitude that just passed the newest breed specific law in Maryland, Tracey v. Solesky http://mdcourts.gov/opinions/coa/2012/53a11.pdf.  To put this new law in a nut shell it states that Pit Bulls are inherently dangerous animals, and owners & landlords are responsible for all damages.  There are several articles already written about this poor decision by:

• Maryland Votes For Animals
• The Whole Dog Journal
• Maryland Injury Law Advisor
• The Baltimore Sun Newspaper
• The Humane Society of the United States

The CDC published a paper (Breeds of dogs involved in fatal human attacks in the United States between 1979 and 1998) and yes, granted there are Pit Bull Dogs on that list, BUT SO ARE OTHER BREEDS!

Now, I want to make one thing VERY clear.  I *strongly* agree that an owner should be liable for ANY damage their dog does to ANY person, pet, or property – regardless of the breed that did the damage.  I also think there should be a ridiculously high fine for such damage.  I mean come on, I see harsher fines for littering!

I personally believe an owner of a dog who is the attacker should be liable for ALL medical / veterinary care & fined at least $5,000 per attackee, per offense.  Maybe then people will think twice about their dog causing anyone or anything harm.  So in other words, I have nothing against Pit Bulls.  I have a big fat problem with ANY dog who is dangerous.  There is no excuse for lazy, or irresponsible ownership.  Sorry, there’s not.  Get a qualified (positive reinforcement) trainer to prevent problems, or involve a behavior consultant & join the ‘midnight walkers club’ (ie: manage when your dog goes outside). I myself owned a Mastiff/Shepard mutt, named Juno who was growling at people since he was four weeks old.  I did extensive training, behavior modification, and behavior management.  And I guarantee you Juno could have done a horrific amount of damage if ever given the chance to attack a person.  If this stupid law was in effect, and lets just say for sh*ts & giggles that I’m an irresponsible owner, and Juno did attack someone (completely hypothetical situation here) – would I get a “free pass” because Juno wasn’t a “Pit Bull?”  What makes that hypothetical dog attack & damages any less significant than any other?

The other issue I take with this ridiculous law is this:  Take a look at the AKC list of breeds, there really is no such thing as a recognized standard for the “Pit Bull.”  So now what?  Any breed with a big head counts?  How does one determine a dog is a Pit Bull?  If I took a dog in for a DNA test, what would distinguish it from: an African Dogo Dog, American Bull Dog, American Staffordshire Terrier, Boxer, Bulldog, Bull Terrier, Bullmastiff, Cane Corso, English Bulldog, French Bulldog, Mastiff, Neapolitan Mastiff, Presa Canario, Staffordshire Bull Terrier, etc.

Someone tell me how we went from loving this breed to blind, bigotry hatred.  Remember Pete from the Little Rascals?  He was a “Pit Bull” type breed…

I just wish if there are going to be laws passed, that they be fair and, oh… I don’t know… make sense.  Contact your Maryland congress person here: http://mlis.state.md.us/

Additional reading for your reactive dog:

	More than 40 exercises in an easy-to-follow training recipe format, including how to desensitize your dog to approaching stranger dogs; have your dog perform canine calming signals, instead of aggressive displays, on cue; use your own body language when under stress as a cue for your dog to remain calm; and many more creative and effective uses of managing behavior through clicker training.	Dogwise Clickertraining.com Amazon.com
	Learn how to turn stress into confidence and distraction into focus using methods that are 110% positive. Leslie McDevitt’s versatile Control Unleashed program is designed to help “dogs with issues” learn how to relax, focus, and work off-leash reliably in either stimulating or stressful situations.	Dogwise Clickertraining.com Amazon.com