COMMUNICATION made simple!Remember the game "Simon Says" that we played as kids?
Simon says- close your eyes.
Simon says- open your eyes.
Simon says- raise your right hand.
Put your right hand down.
If you put your right hand down, you lost and were out of the game. Why? Because the rules declare that you should only obey commands that begin with "Simon says."
But what if they said "Simon said"? Or what if they said "Sliming says"
Would you hesitate? Would you question if you heard right and if you should obey?
Of course! Because you are a good listener and you want to WIN! You didn't have to be threatened to obey. You tried hard to obey because it was a fun game and you really wanted to WIN!
The same childhood game can be used as we train our dogs.
I hear dog owners all the time telling their dog "Sit. Sit down. Come on. You can do this. Do you want a treat? Sit down."
Or even more often I hear "Sit... Sit..... Sit.... Sit..... Sit..... Sit"
So let me ask you a question... what is your command for SIT? Is it "3 sits" and a "sit down."? Or is it "do you want a cookie?" or is it "Come on, sit for mommy."?
And what are the rules of the game? If the dog sits, what happens? And if he doesn't sit, what happens?
Oh wait- there are rules??? YES! Absolutely! And dogs desperately want to know what they are. And you are confusing the heck out of them because you don't have any rules!
Here is a simple formula to follow for CLEAR, FAIR communication with your dog once he knows what the command means.
1. Say your dog's name to get his attention first and then give the command ONCE in a firm voice.
2. Look at your dog. Is he sitting? Then give him a reward- something he really loves- a treat or toy or lovins.
If he is not sitting, then give him a consequence. Depending on your dog's drive, sensitivity and personality, a consequence may be simply turning away or applying leash pressure to direct his body into a sitting position.
It's that simple, People! The rule is this: Obeying gets rewarded. Disobeying gets a consequence.
The rule is not that you will repeat, negotiate or change your mind about what you want him to do.
I can't tell you how often I am called to evaluate an "aggressive" dog and when I arrive, the dog greets me by lunging and barking and growling, and the owner stands there petting the dog and telling him "It's OK."
So you want me to make your dog stop doing something that you are rewarding him for??? Huh???
You can't give a positive response to a negative action. That is against your own rules!
Whether the command is "Sit" or "Come" or "No bark" the rule needs to be the exact same-
Obey gets a reward. Disobey gets a consequence. How confusing is it to a dog who is being scolded for barking, but is being petted all the while he's barking? That's so confusing to me it makes my head hurt!
I also think that social pressure some times makes us feel guilty and that for the sake of the those watching, we need to have a preschool level conversation with our dogs in our best puppy wuppy shmooshy punkin face voice, otherwise people will think we are being unkind. You know what is unkind??? INCONSISTENCY!
When we drop our authority and become wishy washy, we lose our dog's trust. When we are too insecure to give a direct command that is easy to understand and follow, we are doing our dogs a HUGE disservice and diminishing their ability and drive to please us and WIN the game!
If you are guilty of negotiating instead of allowing your dog to win the game by obeying, it may take a bit to turn that bus around. But you can! Starting today- go get your leash and a hand full of hot dogs and play the obedience game. Teach your dog the rules clearly so he can WIN! It's a simple game he will love when YOU learn how to play FAIRLY!
Simon says GO TRAIN YOUR DOG!
