CAN YOU STOP MY DOG FROM....

LET'S FIND A STARTING POINT

When a dog owner contacts me, its often because their dog is doing something they do not want him to do – for instance, throwing himself at the front door when he hears someone outside, or barking at people when he's being walked on the lead, and they want to know – can you stop it?

I don’t have a magic wand that does this, but I can advise on what needs to be done.

I start by asking lots of questions, for example – “Will your dog come back when called?”  And if the owner answers, “Sometimes, it depends”. My thought would be - OK, then this is where we might begin.

But how is that going to stop my dog from throwing itself at the front door when it hears people outside, or barking at people when we’re walking?

It’s a starting point, a piece of training that needs improving, is my response. If you can train your dog to listen to you and obey you not sometimes but 100% of the time, and not depending on - if there is nothing better he would rather do, it will improve your chance of getting him to listen to you and not lunge or bark at others. Until basic obedience is achieved, it will be hard to put right these types of problems behaviours.

I am not saying that all you have to do is train your dog a reliable recall to solve problem behaviours. I believe training is a route of communication between the human and the dog. It opens a door of mutual understanding. I see my role, as a Behavioural Trainer, is opening the door for you both.

Photo because I like it.