What Makes a Good Dog Good? It Isn’t Just Obedience.
A dog that is truly trained is one that can behave when not under command, a socially responsible dog. This takes more than teaching commands and managing the dog through obedience, it is about the relationship and teaching the dog to navigate the world calmly and confidently.
𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 Makes a Good Dog Good? It Isn’t Just Obedience.
Personally, I’m not impressed if your dog wins titles in obedience, rally, or agility, but can’t walk politely on leash, pulling you toward whatever interests him, or can’t wait quietly in his crate for his turn in class or at competitions. Or can’t pass by other dogs calmly. Or can’t be trusted at liberty in your home while you are there. I look at the big picture, the total relationship, how you treat your dog, and how your dog behaves in everyday situations. 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐠 𝐦𝐢𝐠𝐡𝐭 𝐛𝐞 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐫𝐞𝐦𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐭, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐝𝐨𝐞𝐬𝐧’𝐭 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐡𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐰𝐞𝐥𝐥-𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐚𝐯𝐞𝐝 𝐰𝐡𝐞𝐧 𝐧𝐨𝐭 𝐮𝐧𝐝𝐞𝐫 𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐚𝐧𝐝.
𝑰𝒇 𝒚𝒐𝒖𝒓 𝒅𝒐𝒈 𝒉𝒂𝒔 𝒕𝒐 𝒃𝒆 𝒎𝒂𝒏𝒂𝒈𝒆𝒅 𝒕𝒉𝒓𝒐𝒖𝒈𝒉 𝒐𝒃𝒆𝒅𝒊𝒆𝒏𝒄𝒆 𝒊𝒏 𝒂𝒏 𝒆𝒗𝒆𝒓𝒚𝒅𝒂𝒚 𝒔𝒊𝒕𝒖𝒂𝒕𝒊𝒐𝒏, 𝒚𝒐𝒖'𝒓𝒆 𝒏𝒐𝒕 𝒅𝒐𝒏𝒆 𝒚𝒆𝒕.
I took that statement directly from a recent article by Chad Mackin, because it sums up how I feel about the pet dog training industry and what is being missed by many, many trainers and owners, and it fit in with this blog I’d been writing. Think about it – if your dog needs to be confined to place all day in order to behave at liberty in your home, you haven’t really raised a dog that makes good decisions. If he’s under command constantly (on place) he isn’t making mistakes because he doesn’t have the opportunity. He is obedient, but is he trained? My answer is no, he is subdued by obedience, managed by obedience, which isn’t a bad thing per se; it’s a great place to start. A dog that is insecure will feel much more comfortable if he knows what he is supposed to be doing at any given moment. But I consider this a tool that is used along the way to an end goal, not the end goal in and of itself. People often micromanage their dogs through obedience and fail to move beyond that. Aim higher.
𝐈𝐧𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐝 𝐨𝐟 𝐚𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐦𝐞𝐫𝐞𝐥𝐲 𝐜𝐨𝐧𝐭𝐫𝐨𝐥 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐠 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐨𝐛𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞, 𝐭𝐞𝐚𝐜𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐝𝐨𝐠 𝐭𝐨 𝐜𝐨𝐩𝐞 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐞𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲𝐝𝐚𝐲 𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐮𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬, 𝐭𝐨 𝐧𝐚𝐯𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐞 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐰𝐨𝐫𝐥𝐝 𝐰𝐢𝐭𝐡 𝐲𝐨𝐮 𝐜𝐚𝐥𝐦𝐥𝐲. 𝐎𝐛𝐞𝐝𝐢𝐞𝐧𝐜𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐨𝐛𝐯𝐢𝐨𝐮𝐬𝐥𝐲 𝐚 𝐬𝐭𝐞𝐩 𝐭𝐨𝐰𝐚𝐫𝐝 𝐭𝐡𝐢𝐬, 𝐛𝐮𝐭 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐬𝐨 𝐦𝐮𝐜𝐡 𝐦𝐨𝐫𝐞 𝐭𝐨 𝐢𝐭.
Most of the pet owners I work with in group classes and my private lesson business just want a dog that is an enjoyable companion; many are looking to correct behavioral issues. They want a dog they can walk without being pulled down the street; one they can take camping or hiking with them; one they can take to an outdoor café or brew pub; one that doesn’t jump on them and bite at them at home, or bark incessantly. Why has this become so hard to achieve?
The short answer is that we have come to rely on obedience in order for our dogs to behave, we don’t raise dogs to be steady and have impulse control, and to be confident in various situations without being under command; and we fail to teach our dogs to just do nothing and patiently wait their turn. There is a misconception that has taken hold over the past 30 years or so that our dogs need to be entertained 24/7 – they have to go to daycare and play with dogs all day, keeping them in a constant state of arousal; or they need enrichment toys when we aren’t interacting with them. Our dogs are constantly doing something. They aren’t taught to handle disappointment and how to just chill. And few people actually take the time to build a relationship with their dogs.
When working on leash manners in my classes, I start by asking people why they have a leash on their dogs. I got this idea from Chad Mackin and have been using it in my own classes. Sure enough, they inevitably respond – to control him, to keep him from running away, to keep him safe. Nobody says “to communicate with my dog, to guide my dog.” Which is what I want them to do.
I guess what I’ve begun to push back against is the reliance on tools and constantly having the dog under command in order for him to behave. What happens when your dog has nothing on? Will your dog end up in the next county? Having a reliable dog that makes good decisions is more than having an obedient, push button dog. It is having a dog that chooses to be with you, choosing you over the environment, and making good decisions, using impulse control. The aim should be to help our dogs be comfortable in various situations, and just be chill when hanging out with us at home. Give your dog direction and help them succeed. As Chad Mackin so aptly put it: Obedience isn’t always about obedience.
