Why Bother With Dog Training

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At Starbucks the other day I ordered a vente, non-fat, decaf late, and the barista said "Oh you want what we call a why bother"
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I thought how… appropriate. It also started me thinking about what I do, dog training. What would say if someone ask me "Hey why bother"? Don't we all know how to have a dog in our lives? Isn't it really pretty simple? For some people that may in fact be true. So I started making a list of possible reasons to go ahead and Bother. Possible benefits of some formal dog training.

• We don't naturally know how to communicate with dogs, they are another species
• Some dogs really need some guidance, like high drive dogs....you know who I am  talking about
• We expect our dogs to adapt to our lives....but they don't automatically know how
• They seem to like some things we don't like
  • Digging
  • Barking
  • Peeing, anywhere, anytime
  • Chewing, everything
  • Pulling on the leash
  • You get the idea
• Might be good to know how to
  • Meet and greet other people and dogs
  • Not jump on us
  • Not dash out the door or in for that matter
  • Calm down a little
  • Be OK with being home alone...yuck
• Might be good for us to 
  • Be able to read their body language to understand what they are feeling
  • Know how to properly meet dogs
  • Know how to introduce our dog to others
  • Know how to "ask" for what we want....."commands" to an illiterate species doesn't work well
  • Be aware of what our body language is saying to the dog
  • Know how to humanely and successfully correct problems
  • Know how to recognize and help with issues like fear and separation anxiety
  • Learn how to be a little more patient with this critter we  invited into our lives
  • Give our companion dog a real Companion, one who knows what they are doing
• A good trainer will also give you
  • Give you a plan, based on science not TV reality folks
  • A ton of resources and answers to the multitude of issues that invariably come up
  • A valuable new skill to learn and put to use
  • Solutions
  • A patient friend for you and your dog

So there you go, based on what my clients tell me, it’s worth the bother.
 
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