Wales has banned electric shock collars and the harbingers of doom are predicting mad dogs roaming the streets and frothing at the mouth chasing sheep up Snowdon.
I saw a trainer on the BBC website who said that "in the right hands, these are a very effective means of control", there followed shots of a GSD heading out towards a flock until ZAP! he decided against it. Impressive stuff eh?
Well my first question would be: What the F-Ffestiniog was the GSD doing off the lead near sheep in the first place? It's bad enough using these without thinking about the bleedin' obvious, there's also the really, really big problem that generally these weren't "in the right hands", they would be in the hands of the inexperienced, the lazy, the downright cruel and all shades in between.
But what's vitally important is that they just don't work. Give a dog a job to do and often they will pursue their task to the nth degree, without regards to personal safety or pain. How many dogs have you seen virtually strangling themselves on a lead? The fact is that they can often exhibit extreme motivation and nothing physical is going to stop them doing something so important, whatever they think it is. So in the right circumstances - and that is going to be in most circumstances where a dog feels he has the safety of his group (OK- pack) to preserve. Nothing - sprays, shocks or poor folks hanging on to a lead, correction harness, or prong collar, is going to stop them.
Far better to change the dogs mind, give him calm leadership, ensure he's happy to be by your side and, for goodness sake, put him on a lead near sheep!
Friday, 26 March 2010
Sunday, 21 March 2010
Are you experienced?
OK, the title only chimes with people of a certain age (it's a Jimmy Hendrix album), but a couple of things have happened over that past few days that gave me reason to consider this.
My Good Lady went to see a couple last week with a cross-breed, multi-pedigree, mutt, call it what you like (my mum used to say, "we don't know what breeds he is, his mother wasn't looking at the time"). Fortunately he's not prone to aggression, but he was "highly strung" and was restless at the start of the consultation, chewing, throwing toys and pacing around. He was a very stressed boy.
During the course of the evening the owners said that he had been taken to training classes for 6 weeks and had been reasonably well behaved, but as soon as he left the class he was back to being uptight and stressed and had subsequently been getting worse.
Now, it doesn't always happen straight away, but by the end of the consultation the lad was a whole lot more relaxed and having a bit of a kip in the middle of the lounge. The lady owner was much happier and her partner made the remark that made me think: "The man at the training class seemed more interested in telling us stories about him and what he had done than doing much training".
This came back to mind when we heard this week from another client who my partner had helped last year. Their Boxer had been to training classes with disastrous results and they had engaged the trainer to come over for a one on one consultation. The dog had been really aggressive and the consultation ended with the trainer "hanging him up by the lead". Thanks to my partners help, he's now a whole lot calmer and the owners are very happy with his progress. It turns out that it was the same trainer.
Now my Good Lady, being the honest soul that she is, would be the first to say that she doesn't have extensive experience, especially compared to the trainer who proudly advertises his previous employment handling dogs and that he's asked to advise on dog matters all over the world. Nevertheless it seems to me that, even though she hasn't been a Dog Listener for a long time her experience is much more relevant to the needs of the dogs. Time after time she comes across dogs who have been subjected to "conventional" training and has been able to remedy problems, sometimes within minutes. (See "Why Dog Training Classes don't work).
"Experience" by itself seems to be a dangerous thing to rely on, it's relevant experience that matters. I well remember reading that "There are those that claim to have 10 years experience - make sure that it's not not just one years experience that's 10 years old".
My Good Lady went to see a couple last week with a cross-breed, multi-pedigree, mutt, call it what you like (my mum used to say, "we don't know what breeds he is, his mother wasn't looking at the time"). Fortunately he's not prone to aggression, but he was "highly strung" and was restless at the start of the consultation, chewing, throwing toys and pacing around. He was a very stressed boy.
During the course of the evening the owners said that he had been taken to training classes for 6 weeks and had been reasonably well behaved, but as soon as he left the class he was back to being uptight and stressed and had subsequently been getting worse.
Now, it doesn't always happen straight away, but by the end of the consultation the lad was a whole lot more relaxed and having a bit of a kip in the middle of the lounge. The lady owner was much happier and her partner made the remark that made me think: "The man at the training class seemed more interested in telling us stories about him and what he had done than doing much training".
This came back to mind when we heard this week from another client who my partner had helped last year. Their Boxer had been to training classes with disastrous results and they had engaged the trainer to come over for a one on one consultation. The dog had been really aggressive and the consultation ended with the trainer "hanging him up by the lead". Thanks to my partners help, he's now a whole lot calmer and the owners are very happy with his progress. It turns out that it was the same trainer.
Now my Good Lady, being the honest soul that she is, would be the first to say that she doesn't have extensive experience, especially compared to the trainer who proudly advertises his previous employment handling dogs and that he's asked to advise on dog matters all over the world. Nevertheless it seems to me that, even though she hasn't been a Dog Listener for a long time her experience is much more relevant to the needs of the dogs. Time after time she comes across dogs who have been subjected to "conventional" training and has been able to remedy problems, sometimes within minutes. (See "Why Dog Training Classes don't work).
"Experience" by itself seems to be a dangerous thing to rely on, it's relevant experience that matters. I well remember reading that "There are those that claim to have 10 years experience - make sure that it's not not just one years experience that's 10 years old".
Sunday, 7 March 2010
Why won't they leave Cesar alone?
It's Cesar bashing time again.
There's certainly an appetite at the moment for animal welfare organisations and veterinarians to have a go at the charming Mexican who has weaved his spell over British dog owners and is filling arenas all over the country. There are those who will fight to their last breath to defend his integrity and will give you a stony, "mad dog" stare as soon as his methods are criticised. Why is he so popular and why has he become so controversial?
Well he's on t'telly for a start, he's a charming guy and he has a fascinating back story of a childhood love of dogs, escape to the USA, illegal status and a meteoric rise to fame through the auspices of tinsel-town and new found celebrity friends. But it's here that the controversy starts. Cesar shot to fame after using his innate understanding of dogs, firstly by pointing out to the likes of Oprah Winfrey and Will Smith's missus the simple fact that dogs aren't little people in woolly coats. His charm was undoubtedly an asset here and his instinct for the basic premise of giving dogs what they need, rather than what the owners thought they needed, meant that success was assured.
But Hollywood loves a therapist and theories and buzzwords began to come into his vocabulary and inevitably, the books and TV shows reflected that. The problem is that it all happened back to front. Cesar undoubtedly has a way with dogs, its rough, tough and can be physical, but it's based on his experience and that's the bit that can't easily be replicated.
Some of what he does is uncontroversial, then there are techniques that he, when just a country boy, would have considered to be "tough love" and quite normal, but these techniques turn out to be unnecessarily brutal to those who are aware of the alternatives. These more heavy handed methods are fairly few and far between, but it's the middle ground that is the really big problem. Techniques that, with Cesar's experience and timing are seem to be effective and quick corrections, become brutal and downright dangerous in the wrong hands We're not talking about cruel people here, just those who are so desperate to control their dogs that they repeatedly apply his methods when they don't seem to be working, with increasing severity, despite the fact that they can be doing things that are counterproductive in subtle and not so subtle ways, making the whole situation worse.
To his credit it seems he's realised this. Take a look at his later shows and they move away from the more physical "hands on" methodology. I understand that he's due to discuss his methods with veterinarian and animal welfare groups this year and recently was heard to say that his shouldn't be considered a "how to" show.
There's no doubt that he loves dogs and despairs over the glitterati using them as fashion accessories. If he has made the air-heads realise that they are dealing with living, breathing creatures that have their own needs, then bravo to him.
But it all begs the question: what do we do with the books DVDs and recordings of his TV shows that are getting people into trouble with their dogs?
The calm, effective ways of learning to live in harmony with a calm, relaxed dog are not "televisual", they can't be solved in an hour's TV slot (with 15 minutes for commercials) and success doesn't come in a 5 minute revelation at the end of the show.
Our own Jan Fennell has been studying the dog for over 20 years, devised a method from the ground up that everyone, and I mean everyone, can follow safely - and it works.
Cesar has a disclaimer on his shows that suggests you "seek the advice of a professional" - there's no need to wait for him to shift his position, there is someone who can show you how you can do it too, safely, right now. A real professional who will stay with you for a lifetime - a Jan Fennell approved Dog Listener.
There's certainly an appetite at the moment for animal welfare organisations and veterinarians to have a go at the charming Mexican who has weaved his spell over British dog owners and is filling arenas all over the country. There are those who will fight to their last breath to defend his integrity and will give you a stony, "mad dog" stare as soon as his methods are criticised. Why is he so popular and why has he become so controversial?
Well he's on t'telly for a start, he's a charming guy and he has a fascinating back story of a childhood love of dogs, escape to the USA, illegal status and a meteoric rise to fame through the auspices of tinsel-town and new found celebrity friends. But it's here that the controversy starts. Cesar shot to fame after using his innate understanding of dogs, firstly by pointing out to the likes of Oprah Winfrey and Will Smith's missus the simple fact that dogs aren't little people in woolly coats. His charm was undoubtedly an asset here and his instinct for the basic premise of giving dogs what they need, rather than what the owners thought they needed, meant that success was assured.
But Hollywood loves a therapist and theories and buzzwords began to come into his vocabulary and inevitably, the books and TV shows reflected that. The problem is that it all happened back to front. Cesar undoubtedly has a way with dogs, its rough, tough and can be physical, but it's based on his experience and that's the bit that can't easily be replicated.
Some of what he does is uncontroversial, then there are techniques that he, when just a country boy, would have considered to be "tough love" and quite normal, but these techniques turn out to be unnecessarily brutal to those who are aware of the alternatives. These more heavy handed methods are fairly few and far between, but it's the middle ground that is the really big problem. Techniques that, with Cesar's experience and timing are seem to be effective and quick corrections, become brutal and downright dangerous in the wrong hands We're not talking about cruel people here, just those who are so desperate to control their dogs that they repeatedly apply his methods when they don't seem to be working, with increasing severity, despite the fact that they can be doing things that are counterproductive in subtle and not so subtle ways, making the whole situation worse.
To his credit it seems he's realised this. Take a look at his later shows and they move away from the more physical "hands on" methodology. I understand that he's due to discuss his methods with veterinarian and animal welfare groups this year and recently was heard to say that his shouldn't be considered a "how to" show.
There's no doubt that he loves dogs and despairs over the glitterati using them as fashion accessories. If he has made the air-heads realise that they are dealing with living, breathing creatures that have their own needs, then bravo to him.
But it all begs the question: what do we do with the books DVDs and recordings of his TV shows that are getting people into trouble with their dogs?
The calm, effective ways of learning to live in harmony with a calm, relaxed dog are not "televisual", they can't be solved in an hour's TV slot (with 15 minutes for commercials) and success doesn't come in a 5 minute revelation at the end of the show.
Our own Jan Fennell has been studying the dog for over 20 years, devised a method from the ground up that everyone, and I mean everyone, can follow safely - and it works.
Cesar has a disclaimer on his shows that suggests you "seek the advice of a professional" - there's no need to wait for him to shift his position, there is someone who can show you how you can do it too, safely, right now. A real professional who will stay with you for a lifetime - a Jan Fennell approved Dog Listener.
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