OUR DOG [TRAINING] PHILOSOPHY

We don’t train dogs, we train their humans.

We believe dogs are the most misunderstand animal on the planet. The majority of dog owners—both old and new alike—bring a dog into their home with emotion rather than with a complete understanding of breed history, canine behavior, body language, psychology, and/or anatomy. Wolves and dogs share 99.9% of the same DNA. That .1% difference is a result of phenotype: observable traits such as floppy ears, curly tails, wire coats, etc. Despite superficial differences, the dog’s family structure, lifestyle, behavior, and communication does not differ greatly from their wolf counterparts. Every pack (family, team, herd, pod, animal group) consists of leaders and followers. When humans in a dog’s pack do not consistently fulfill the leadership roles and instinctual needs, the dog will. Unwanted behaviors are always the result.

Of course, everyone has pure intentions when bringing home a new dog, yet the majority of dog owners, due to good intentions, unknowingly provide the opposite of what their canine companion 100% needs: Human Leadership. Owners are encouraged to spend hundreds of dollars on “indestructible” toys, “grain-free” treats, designer collars, unnecessary vet “plans”, and more to show how much they love their canine family member. Love cannot grow without trust and respect; Leadership is the foundation to building trust and respect.

Dogs are constantly learning and every interaction/experience should be viewed as what it is: a training session. In addition to leadership, consistency is critical in creating a balanced relationship with your dog. When all affection is earned, the human becomes a dog’s greatest reward. When being with YOU and doing things for YOU is your dog’s ultimate reward, there is no longer a need for “bargaining” with food and toys or using adverse tools such as e-collar or prong collars.

When owners give unbridled affection, praise/correct at the wrong time, provide inadequate mental/physical exercise, and treat their dogs as humans, owners inadvertently reinforce the very behaviors they dislike about their dog. Common behaviors like destructive chewing, separation anxiety, possessiveness, obsessive crittering, reactivity, pulling on the leash, tail chasing, “the zoomies”, excessive barking, etc. are NOT normal canine behaviors and are NOT personality/breed “traits”. All negative behaviors are manifested from mental and physical boredom in combination with inconsistent human leadership. Needless to say, our “training method” is more of a lifestyle.

We are here to teach you how to be more dog rather than teach your dog how to be more human.