Seriously, your dog is not sneaky?
What do you do when you think no one’s looking? Dogs have learned a great deal from our behavior, they know what’s fair and what is not (there is research to prove that). Another research study tested to find out if dogs would eat food they were told not too, under two similar conditions.
- First the dog parent sat in a room with his or her dog. Each parent instructed each dog not to eat the food. None of the dogs ate the food they were told not to.
- The second time, the dog parent told the same dog not to eat the food but researchers turned out the lights.
- Yep, all the dogs ate the food.
- This proves dogs get our point of view. They know we can’t see in the dark!
Photo credit: Marc Hoffman
What funny things dogs do when they think their people are not watching.
- What does your dog do to break the rules?
- What has your dog taught him or herself that frustrates you?
My number one bone to pick with other dog parents:
Yanking a dog’s throat by a collarollar.
Repeated yanking with force is not humane. It does not qualify as training. Excellent trainers do not need to manhandle a dog. The best trainers rarely even raise their voices. They don’t have to do all that creepy Cesar Millan kicking. Humane trainers show the dog what they want the dog to do. They set dogs up for success. They emphasis and reward good behavior every time.
Basic canine good citizen training for dog parent and dog teaches how to reward (or mark) the exact instant a dog or puppy does the wanted behavior. Dog’s breathing, water drinking and eating anatomies in their throats get damaged by this type of mistreatment.
Please read my page “No More Death By Collar.”
Reward dogs for doing the right thing!
Please answer any or all of the questions in your comments. Thanks for reading, Deborah Taylor-French
A dog’s “maturity” is generally considered to replicate a 3yr old child. For those of us who have had children, and those who have interacted with 3yr old children, coming to conclusions about a dog’s behavior are really simplified …….. as are training techniques. If you wouldn’t do it to a 3 yr old child, should you be doing it to a dog?
Excellent guideline for dog owners, adopters or buyers of dogs. If it does not work for three-year-old children, do not use it on a dog!
thank you, Deborah, for this. There is no excuse for inflicting pain or fear on a dog. And it does not help the dog to understand what we wish him oder her to do. Furthermore, yanking on the sensitive throat area causes bruising to the throat and windpipe and can cause irreparable damage to the spine and the ocular nerve. Never ever yank your dog…If a trainer advocates this, he/she is either an amateur or a sadist.
Thanks Rosee for your (always) valuable and other side of the ocean Good Dog Practice comments. Thanks again for being one of my guest bloggers too. My door is always open for you & anything you have to say about dogs.
Perhaps I could add one question for dog owners to ask themselves: Do I want this dog to do what I ask because he/she is pleased to do so……….. or because he/she is scared to do otherwise? I rather hope that the answer is a “no brainer”!
Terrific. This is why I never shout at my pets. Rabbits and dogs have excellent hearing. I don’t want to make my “children or pets” deaf nor do I want to make them afraid of me. Thanks for adding to the conversation.
BTW any idea how to show comments? I switched to the HEW WordPress theme and can’t find a way (or the right person to show comments in full). Any and all help welcome.
Comments config? Hmmmmm………. You are using a different Theme to me but I’ll see if I can find where my settings are and let you know (it may be tomorrow however).
Hmmmmmm…. It’s nice to see what an inferior species thinks about we canines. My human trusts me far more than other homo sapiens.
Re Comments field – Try the Dashboard > Settings > Discussion. That is where my config is for comments. Good luck.
Thanks for your kindness.
Actually, if they had tested Lee Duncan’s first Rin Tin Tin (as others witnessed) Rin Tin Tin wouldn’t touch any food, including a plate of steak left in his own dog dish, until Lee gave the dog an okay.
Thanks a bunch for helping me find out where my comments configuration setting is.
I hope I can fix this, otherwise I’ll be testing out new themes again.
Thanks. I tried that and nothing appears to be there so perhaps I must switch themes (again) making sure I’m getting the option to show comments.
When you are in Dashboard, don’t you ever get the pop-up “Hi. Can I help you?” message? That would be a perfect opportunity for you to hit WP with your problem.
hahaha, yes, dogs when we are NOT looking. Enjoyed this, tho late to the party 😉