Today, we will be talking about some of the most common dog training misinformation there is out there today. This is the kind of information that is causing thousands of poorly adjusted dogs. While all training is meant in good spirit and intended to help, a lot of advice can end up backfiring, inadvertently cause other issues, or even simply band-aid a training problem. Today, we are addressing what are, in our opinion, the worst types of training mistakes there are.
#1 - Cesar Millan
Don't get us wrong - we're not picking on Cesar's training. While yes, it is old fashioned, for a lot of the dogs he trains are at the last stop - they MUST be trained, or that's the end of it. For these last-chance dogs, they do need rapid, fast, effective changes - and Cesar offers just that, typically at the expense of the happiness or personality of the dog - called "breaking" the dog, much like older horse trainers used to do. This isn't our gripe at all - its not necessarily "bad", just outdated. That being said, this technique is ONLY useful on dogs that have to be adjusted fast or be put down, and that's the place of his style. It works, and it works fast - but for every other dog, there are better ways. Our main gripe with Cesar Millan is his style's prevalence with owners and people who watch the show or even train with him, without truly grasping his style, or what they're actually doing to their dogs. The heavy handed dominance theory, rife with alpha rolls and overstimulating corrections for minor offenses, should be in every trainers LAST LINE of defense - NOT the first, and it should never, ever be used by someone who is not a trained behaviourist. We hear it all the time - "We tried Cesar's stuff but it's not working." or "We tried pinning him, but he bit us and now the behaviour is worse". This is because it is being utilized by people in a manner it was never intended. At the end of the day, your dog has feelings, thoughts, and a brain - doesn't it make sense to use these resources first, instead of breaking your dog's personality, and trust?
#2 - All-positive Training
At the other end of the spectrum, there are people and trainers who believe there should be no "no", no corrections - and definitely no raised voices. This is great for young puppies - science has proven that a dog younger than 10 months cannot handle being told no, corrections, or stern voices. It makes them feel like they can do nothing right. However, once they're a little more mature, these dogs crave to know where the boundaries are, and what is unacceptable. We're not saying to use "no" at every turn, or correct dogs unwarranted - but it is vital to the behaviour of dogs to understand not just what is "good", but what is not so good, a mistake, or what is plain unacceptable. When a dog isn't taught these lines, and only what is good, they actually become far more likely to become unstable at a quick rate, because they have not been taught that certain behaviours are not okay - and so, while they get far better reward from other, positive actions, these unwanted behaviours are actually still filed away in their brain as "usable". When trained properly with the words "uh-uh" and "no" to mark "incorrect, try again" and "do not do that", a dog can learn to refile these behaviours as "mistake" and "unacceptable". Again, we're not saying every little thing needs a verbal correction - doing so can and does make your dog believe they're never getting anything right. We are however saying that teaching these words becomes a tool to communicate to your dog that these words aren't negative at all - they are a way to say "this is not what I want from you". The main drive for all-positive training are usually from people who have seen dogs incorrectly trained with negative feedback - such as those who have seen the aftermath of poorly utilized Cesar techniques - and are led to believe that corrections are bad, when they just have been misused. What's worse, is when a dog that's been raised with all-positive ends up in a home that attempts to utilize the word no - and find the dog shuts down, panics, or reacts aggressively, because they haven't been taught to respond properly to it.
#3 - Using Tools to Cover Training Problems
When owners are unsure how to correct an issue, the most common thing to do is to go out and buy something that solves the problem. Pulling? No-pull harness, or halti. Barking? No-bark scented collars. Snaps at other dogs? Muzzle. Fear? Anxiety shirt. Peeing in the house? Puppy pads. Fast eating? Stick a ball in it. Reactivity around toys? E-collar. Likes to wander but won't recall? Flex-lead! These types of products offer a fast, easy solution to common problems. The main issue here is it simply covers up the root cause, and doesn't address WHY these things are happening, and can end up making the problem worse when they're not being used, or cause the dog to have other, more serious issues. These items are useless. They are not teaching your dog anything new, they're not addressing the real issue, and they're mainly used to make an owner's life easy - instead of actually training a dog's issues away. All of the above issues are fixable, and most of them are pretty easy. If anyone tells you that you need to buy more than a lead or rewards to fix a problem, they are offering you a band aid. Its about as sensible as offering your over-tired child coffee. Sure, you're not going to see the problem for a while, but the real issue is still there. The only exception to this is using a tool properly to help an owner train their dog faster - such as using a vibration collar instead of a leash correction for someone who is not strong enough to offer a proper correction, or a muzzle to ensure someone's safety. This also excludes trained canine or protection dogs that require e or prong collars.
#4 - Using Forceful Means To Control A Dog
We've heard it all. Hydraulic jerks, horse whips, alpha rolls - none of which have any valid or warranted use on dogs for any reason (with exception to specially trained dogs such as schutzhund or canine units as means of desensitization) There is no legitimate and valid reason on planet earth that you'd need something like this to control an animal. Sure, if you're being attacked, by all means use them - do what you have to in order to spare yourself or family injury, but do not use them for standard training. The only real tool any trainer needs is a leash. Doing so is abusive, and destructive - they have no place in training. In fact, we have had more than a third of our cases tell us that they have been taught the hydraulic jerk.
#5 - Using Affection As A Correction
We see this everywhere - owners reassuring their dogs in an aggressive or fearful state with petting. While this logic works on children or cats, it doesn't actually work on dogs. The dog will not see it as a reassurance; they will, in all cases, breeds, and scenarios, see it as "Good; this is how I want you to act". Instead, give affection when they are precisely acting how you DO want. Its also not petting that counts as affection; eye contact, smiling, happy voice, using the name, stroking the fur, massaging, and even sometimes not doing anything at all can mean affection to a dog.
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