How to Keep Your Dog From Owning You

Written By Mary Spiro

According to the saying, “Dog is man’s best friend.” But the truism needs qualification: “A trained dog is man’s best friend.”

I have shared my life with all sorts of canines, from mutts to pure breeds. I am guilty of dressing my dog in baby clothes and pushing him around in a stroller. Hey, I was a kid at the time, and Budget (his real name) a poodle-terrier mix seemed happy to go along with the gag. These days, I share my home with Ike, a Chihuahua, and Banjo, a Rat Terrier, who are wonderful members of the family and great with my children.

But I know that an untrained, unruly dog is no companion.
Dog ownership has its challenges. Once, Sparky, my Dalmatian, decided to eat the dog bed rather than lay on it. It took weeks to clean up the thousands of Styrofoam bits. More recently, I hauled a loveseat to the dump after 8-pound Ike ate through it. I can’t figure out how he managed it.

I laugh now, but not everyone thinks it’s funny when a dog misbehaves because it has not been properly trained. With approximately 74 million dogs owned as pets in America, the chance that there’s a bad milk bone in the box is very high.

According to Nicky Ratliff, director of the Carroll County Humane Society, more than half of the 1,300 dogs that find their way into her facility each year are untrained, unsocialized canines relinquished by frustrated owners.

“The other half we bring in as strays,” said Ratliff. “I can assure you that if those unclaimed dogs had been well-trained members of a family, those families would be out searching for them.”

A disobedient dog is also a risk to public health. The Centers for Disease Control report that more than 800,000 Americans seek medical attention for dog bites each year, and half of the victims are children. The rate of dog bite-related injuries is highest for children ages 5 to 9.

Those are scary statistics. They are also confusing when you regard the loving gaze of your puppy.

Don’t fool yourself; it could be that slice of pizza in your hand that he loves. Still, how can something so soft, fuzzy and so darn cute ever be that bad?

It all boils down to proper training, and there are as many methods of dog training as there are dog breeds. Likewise, an acceptable behavior to one owner may be completely unacceptable to another.

Many people turn to books for advice. Topping both the Amazon and Barnes & Noble Web sites best seller lists of dog training books is “Cesar’s Way: The Natural, Everyday Guide to Understanding and Correcting Common Dog Problems” by Cesar Milan and Melissa Jo Peltier.

Milan is a celebrity dog trainer and hosts the National Geographic Channel’s show “Dog Whisperer.” His methods are based on the idea that dogs respect dominance and that they will obey the “pack” leader. But titles further down the list espouse philosophies that differ significantly from Milan’s.

What is universally understood, however, is that the dog owner is the one ultimately responsible for the dog’s behavior.

“Whatever your dog is doing, it is something that you have taught him, whether you realize it or not,” said Nancy Williams of Manchester. Williams is certified by the Animal Behavior Society (ABS) as an applied animal behaviorist. She has a Master’s degree in psychology with an emphasis on the study of animal behavior and is also a veterinary technician, researcher, dog show judge and consultant.

As president of the Certification Council for Pet Dog Trainers (CCPDT), Williams coordinated the development of the first-ever national certification examination for dog trainers.

The first thing Williams tells her clients is to stop whatever they are doing in reaction to the dog’s misbehavior. From there, her mantra seems simple: “Stop your behavior, prevent the behavior–physically if necessary, such as putting the dog on a leash–replace the inappropriate behavior with a new one, then reward and repeat, consistently and predictably.”

And, Williams said, repeat means thousands of times.

Here’s how that advice works: Your dog jumps on guests. To train him not to jump, present the dog with a visitor. Prevent the dog from jumping by using the leash or other barrier to restrict his approach to the guest and then tell the dog to sit. When the dog is calmly sitting by the guest, let the visitor reward the dog with a treat and petting. Eventually, your dog will stop jumping and wait patiently for the pleasant reward.

Here’s another scenario: Your dog has gotten into the trashcan while you were at work. You think, “Why are you doing this to me?” and you attempt to punish him in some unpleasant way. Unfortunately, the dog doesn’t remember what he did 10 minutes ago, let alone 10 hours ago. Instead of obedience, your punishment causes the dog to fear you.

“Dogs do not think in the same cognitive way that humans do; they don’t reason. They live very much in the here and now,” said professional dog trainer Laura Totis of Hampstead. Totis has 20 years experience working with and training dogs, including assistance dogs and search and rescue dogs. Like Williams, she emphasizes positive reinforcement for good behavior.

No smacking Spot with a rolled up magazine allowed!

Totis explains the way dogs learn in four stages: Reinforcement, when you identify and reward the right behavior; Fluency, when he understands the command and does it every time; Proofing, when he obeys even with distractions; and Maintenance, when he firmly understand the command. She encourages dog owners to consult with a professional trainer for pointers.

“It is good to get feedback from others because you don’t see the mistakes you are making,” she said.

Consulting with a professional trainer has other advantages. Trainers may think of reasons for your dog’s behavior that you would not have considered. Debbie Winkler of Sykesville, certified animal behavior consultant, certified pet dog trainer and the vice president of the International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants (IAABC), likes to take a holistic approach to dog training.

When working on an obedience issue, she recommends reviewing the dog’s diet, the amount of exercise he receives and the time he spends interacting with different people and animals. Even a medical issue may be the source of a behavioral problem. Trainers recommend a trip to the veterinarian before a formal consultation to rule out a health-related cause to perceived misbehavior.

In addition, for training to make sense, every skill a dog learns should have a specific goal.

“In obedience class, we teach a dog to sit; but why do they need this skill?” said Winkler. “I want people to think about why they want their dogs to learn a skill. It needs to have a reason and a purpose.”
Andrea Koerner of Taneytown does not question her reasons for enrolling Riley, her Shetland Sheepdog (or Sheltie) in the Carroll Kennel Club basic obedience class.

“I once had a female Sheltie who seemed to have a lot of frustration,” said Koerner. “She became very protective of me but I did not discipline her. She ruled the house and eventually became very leery of other people and began to show aggression. I know that I am doing Riley good through obedience training.”

Even Pat Berglund, a longtime member of the Carroll Kennel Club, faced a particularly challenging Papillion owned by her late husband. Every time Berglund attempted to brush him, the dog would snap. Through kindness and positive reinforcement she was able to win him over. In the same way, after months of working with trainer Nancy Williams, Berglund was able to achieve another set of desired results with a Doberman named Mac. Set free in an open field, Berglund could call him and know that he would swiftly come running to her side.

“It was such a wonderful feeling to turn him loose in the field and know that he would come back to me in one call,” Berglund says. “I was so relieved because I had voice control. It took a lot of work but the rewards were worth it. Training is so important.”