Training Future Pooches

I had a German Shepherd named Zelda when I was younger. She is still alive, living in the countryside and is apparently really fat. The reason we separated was that I had to move away from my mum’s to study and my apartment didn’t allow dogs. I was very sad because despite my bad training methods, Zelda was, and probably still is, the happiest dog I have ever met in my life.

Zelda!

When I think about her and think about the training methods we used on her, I am absolutely stunned how much of a trooper she’s been. While at puppy training class, I was taught how to handle a dog little by little with treats and praise, but at home things weren’t like that. I feel appalled at what I might have done to my dog to cause her pain and distress under the guidance of another family member. While we didn’t actively throw our beautiful doggie around, occasional slaps on the snout and angry screaming did occur. I am so ashamed of this and my only defense in this case is that I was relatively young back then and just didn’t know how to do things correctly. I am sorry, Zelda, you are an amazingly happy dog that deserves every bit of good life that we could possibly give you. Unfortunately, due to a rift between my mother and myself, I can’t get to Zelda anymore and it breaks my heart as I miss her so much.

Zelda was not the only German Shepherd we ever had. Hani was another occasion when I was younger.  Unfortunately, she didn’t stay long since she became aggressive, probably due to the anxiety and fear my mum induced on her and the lack of exercise. My mum is not the most compassionate person I have met and she might have had a hard time understanding Hani’s body language and what she actually needed. Hani was rehomed, thank goodness. By the end of her stay with us she was so anxious that it was uncomfortable to be home with her. I hope she has a wonderful life, that Hani, not that it was difficult to improve her situation from where she was.

To my credit, I did understand some of Zelda’s, warning language, even in a very basic sense. Many times when I gave her a slap on the snout, she would turn her head to the side, eyes fixed on me. The whites of her eyes would show and she would lift her lip to show her teeth. She was telling me to back away as I was making her very uncomfortable. Who can blame her? Sometimes I listened and sometimes I didn’t. I was never once bitten and I believe this is testament on how amazing Zelda truly is. And I took her for granted.

I have wanted a dog since then and still do. But until a year ago I didn’t feel too confident about the idea. Fortunately I’ve found Positive Training. I have been absolutely fascinated by this training method. I can train my dog and not use my hand on them? That sounds like such an amazing thing that I had to know more about it. This is the training method I shall attempt to use on my future pooches.

I discovered the Positive Training method after my aunt got a puppy and we attempted to use Dominance Training methods on him and they clearly didn’t work. Since I had no actual knowledge how to handle a hyperactive adolescent doggie, I was stumped and so was my aunt.  Kaiser is a dog that the more you restrained him, the more he fought back.  So dominance training OBVIOUSLY wasn’t the answer. Yeah, you can make your dog shut down if you manage to throw him onto his back and keep him there, but Kaiser was too strong for us and I think it is just as well. He’s a smart dog, he shouldn’t be held down anyway.

Despite my shortcomings and feelings of guilt, I have actively been searching a way to teach my future dogs in a manner that my dog will find very fun and pleasant and will make me more patient and understanding of dogs. Reading about a dogs in a more general sense has been extremely interesting in my opinion and very vital for any person considering a dog. I want to make a career caring for dogs.  Right now, my dreams are to become a groomer and a doggy daycare owner, because I want to help advertise the importance of understanding your dog. It’s become a dream since, as I have stated, we take dogs for granted. They are absolutely brilliant animals and I think constantly being around them we are desensitised from their amazingness which we should never be! Dogs are much smarter than some of us think, they are capable of such complex tasks. Whether they're working alongside us or living in our homes as companions, they deserve our utmost respect.

I don’t want to be an alpha to my dog. I want to give my dog the guidelines it needs to live comfortably with me.  What will I earn for all this? Affection and trust from a doggy companion while they feel safe and relaxed. So positive training from now on!