FREEDOM AND YOUR DOG
One of the most common things YOU tell us on consultations is that you allow your dog to free roam the home because you want your dog to have "freedom". You then proceed to tell us about how your dog is counter surfing or chewing _______________ (random forbidden object) and you find yourself constantly disciplining your dog and the behavior NEVER stops. How is this "FREEDOM"? Imagine someone throwing you in a room of yummy treats and fun things to play with and sometimes you can get away with eating the treats but sometimes you get yelled at or sometimes you can play with the toys and other times you get reprimanded. Let's make it more complicated; Ironically sometimes you get rewarded with back scratches and treats! Being that everything is RANDOM, you accept the CHAOS and understand that your actions may elicit punishment or reward. You never really know. You see the toy [you are supposedly not supposed to play with] and your take the risk for the reward of self-satisfaction. This is exactly what happens to your dog! It is confusing and causes anxiety for your dog and stress for you! Through this false sense of "Freedom" you have been allowing your dog, you have been inadvertently teaching your dog so many bad behaviors for far too long that get you nowhere!
SO YOU DECIDE TO TRAIN YOUR DOG!
There is a light at the end of the tunnel, training seems great, but the inevitable is about to happen. The training begins and the hesitation sets in; you begin to feel guilty about the process. You balk at crate time, can't imagine your dog abstaining from walks to avoid triggers like other dogs or cats [until you and your dog are trained], or that your dog can no longer free roam your home. You can't wake up one day and decide to be a body builder but still eat a box of twinkies and garbage food every day and go to the gym only one time per week! You can't wake up one day and decide you want to train your dog but still allow them to get away with unwanted behaviors and never show them how to do the right thing.
You think about the management, the shorter walks, the rules, etc. You have been focusing on the negative, difficult aspects of training your dog. This keeps you from ever experiencing the joys of the process! This in itself hinders your dog from getting the most out of training! They FEEL you and your apprehension!
What about the positives? When you begin the training process you are playing fun challenging games with your dog: dogs love games! Your dog gets quality attention from you; it is not just your dog sniffing around your home or yard while you watch you scroll Instagram looking at other trained dogs! You learn to truly understand your dog's body language, learning style, likes and dislikes.
AGAIN, you have to find joy in the process! It is the only way you will be the best owner for your dog! Once you find this joy your dog can vibe with you! The goal is true FREEDOM with your dog! Freedom is no longer defined as falsely attending to your dogs' needs by letting them do what they want. FREEDOM is you dog laying relaxed by your feet while you sip coffee at a cafe or going on walks without worry of a passing dogs or squirrels because you and your dog can conquer anything. Your dog spending structured time with you is what your dog wants to do! Your dog and you can COMMUNICATE! You have a BEST FRIEND! This is FREEDOM with your dog!
Whether you are doing in home lessons with a professional or working on continuing the training your dog learned in board and train camp, understanding the training process is a complex task that requires immense amounts of structure, positive lifestyle alterations, listening, patience, balance, etc. All great things! We challenge you to trust the process and know that you are on the ROAD TO FREEDOM with your dog! FREEDOM NOT CHAOS!