Why on earth do we treat our best friend like our worse enemy?

Outdated training methods and wrong advice can cause real problems in our dogs’ behaviour. Dr Ian Dunbar has this to say about outdated training methods and beliefs:

“How on earth can anybody think that a dog is trying to dominate his owners by eating first, going through doorways first, enjoying the comfort of furniture, playing games of tug of war, eagerly pulling on a leash, or relieving himself in the house?

“Dogs are not politicians. Dogs are not masters of subtlety or innuendo.

Dogs are straightforward and they live in the here and now. If a dog wanted to dominate his owner, he would do just that. End of story. Even so, when dogs bark, growl, snap, lunge, nip or bite, rather than being aggressive or dominant, the dog is usually, understandably, simply fearful of domineering owners. The “thinking” behind the dominance myth and the Spartan, boot camp, rank-reduction programme is silly to the point of hilarious. Sadly, downright silly thinking becomes extremely serious when dogs are neglected and mistreated as a result. Indeed, many unsuspecting dog owners are bullied by misguided trainers to abuse their dogs under the guise of “training”.

“Certainly, rules are important - any rules - for example sit means sit, and shush means shush.

“Usually, the owner knows best, especially when the dog’s safety is concerned. Also, when dogs and people live together, either we can live with dogs in their doggy dens and adhere to their rules, or dogs can live with us, in our homes, and abide by our rules. It is just so much easier for people to teach dogs our household rules and regulations.

Moreover, because each dog/human relationship is quite unique, each owner should decide on their own household rules for the dog.

“Each owner should decide where the dog sleeps, for example - on the bed, in the bed, on the bedroom floor, downstairs, on the living room sofa, in a dog bed on the kitchen floor, outside, or in a dog kennel. It is up to each owner to make decisions for their dog.

As long as the owner can instruct the dog to lie in his kennel, or to get off the bed, then it’s no problem - the dog may sleep wherever the owner wishes. The greatest joy of living with a dog is being part of creating the most unique inter-specific relationship, wherein “two are halves of one”. - Dr Ian Dunbar PhD, Bsc, BVetMed, MRCVS, CPDT