Doggone Etiquette —

Good Dogs - Good Owners

By Bardi McLennan

A Word to the Dog:

Do you consider yourself to be a good dog – a really, really good dog, or just a ‘sometimes’ good dog? How about your VIPeople? In your (humble) opinion, are they good, very good, or super good people?

Those are tough questions, and I’ll bet there are lots of specific situations when you would be totally mixed up as to whether it was you being good and your people bad, or the other way around. That’s life in the world of dogs that live with humans – or the other way around.

A Word to the Dog’s Owner:

Dogs are not born good or bad. They just become what we make of them. Okay, granted some puppies do have a bright brainy outlook on life while others may be somewhat timid or slow on the uptake, but as the years go by, the dog chosen to be part of a family is molded by that family. And that’s regardless of the size or age of said family, or the kind of home the dog is brought into. There are also misfits when it comes to basic breed characteristics and those of the owners.

Some behavioral problems in dogs are actually caused by the good intentions of the owners. For example, the puppy that is so friendly and sweet playing games at home can easily become dominant merely by winning all those games, or just being given constant approval. These well-meaning owners are astonished when their sweetie-pie of a pup snaps or growls when firmly corrected at home or in obedience class. Such an undesirable reaction is a recognized behavioral problem which means the owner needs to revamp the family’s at-home interaction with the dog.

Or, take the dog that runs through a six-weeks crash course of obedience with straight A’s – and then gets away with all sorts of disobedience at home. That’s an obedience problem that again falls on the shoulders of the owner to correct. But are these kinds of problems the dog’s fault? Or are they the faults of owners who don’t understand what they have done to cause the problem?

We dog owners are teaching our dogs morning, noon, and night, day in and day out generally without realizing it. Most often without doing it intentionally, wherein lies the crux of the matter. Give Rufus a taste of something good as you take it out of the fridge, and he will most likely keep an eye on that fridge door whenever you’re in the kitchen, maybe sticking his nose in when you open the door. Don’t blame Rufus – you taught him the combination! Let him curl up in your favorite chair while you go to get a fresh cup of coffee and – you guessed it! Rufus will sneak up there every chance he gets until it becomes “his” chair.

What about the dog that will trot happily back to you when it is on lead, but pays absolutely no attention to your call to “come” when off lead? Again, it only takes one or two such refusals for the dog to figure out he has the option to obey or disobey. One good solution to this common problem is to practice in the house. Tell him “come” any and every time he is coming toward you! If Rufus is outdoors, off-lead, take the lead with you and show it to him. If he thinks he’ll be going for a walk, he may come running. All you need do is add “come, good dog” as he does so and Rufus will get his walk – back into the house!

Until next time – BE GOOD!

- Bardi