Some good message - Page 1

Hello All,

I found this on a breeder's website and I liked his point of view.

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Thousands of dogs are put to sleep each day, due to man's acceptance of poor
advice. These dogs are condemned as being unsocial or uncontrollable, when
actually they are simply mishandled and misjudged. Man of course, compensates for
his failure by blaming the dog. To not train, is to instill in them poor habits. The
foundation is weak and the end result is weak. The dog will always fall back onto its
foundation.

To have obedience accepted by the dog it must be done for a reason. Training is
done solely through handler dog communication and praise. The dogs are able to
work longer and are less distracted by other dogs or people they come in contact with
while working. If it is done for food or a ball, it is a simple trick and when stress of the
world hits the dog it will forget the food or ball and disobey the command.

How can we teach a dog what he does naturally? We Can't. We must communicate
how it is we wish him to use it for our benefit. You must learn to work with the dog's
natural ability, not against it. Know it identify it and use it.

Real praise is all the dog requires. You must always be certain of what the dog is
doing before you correct or praise him. To wrongly correct natural ability will cause the
dog to refuse its use to you.

The obstacle courses are not only used to get the dog used to surfaces and textures,
it is also a forum from which to enhance K-9 communication. All obedience work from
puppy-hood up should be taught while on the course. In this way the stress of the
obedience work, which is an unnatural act for the dog, will be
relieved by the stress of the obstacle.

The act of the obedience, instead of applying stress, will actually remove it and by
bringing calmness to the dog when he is being obedient to you, also calm the
handler when stress hits.

Remember that the greatest obstacle you and your dog will ever face is you.

If you put limitations upon yourself, you will put limitations upon the dogs. If you can
think it you can accomplish it.

Dogs are a good judge of bad people. People are often not good judges of bad dogs.

A dog has neither fear nor the thoughts for these things. A dog reacts and interacts
according to instinctive survival. There is no fear in a young puppy. A dog chooses
flight naturally as a survival instinct. He is not a coward. The flight
instinct must be removed through good communication of the handler. All dogs at
some point, chose flight under one form of stress or another. Then with good
communication and trust that over ride the instinct to go into flight. TRUST this is a
very powerful thing.

You do not have to bribe or trick a dog into communicating. In fact, he will not
communicate through deception.

Dogs do not play. They communicate and sharpen their natural skills, but they do not
play. When dogs run and change direction and chase each other, they are developing
skills.

Most dogs will run to the fence when challenged. To a serious threat, this is a gift. The
dog can be killed when they do this. A good dog with his handler will wait in silence,
never revealing his location to the target, until he is deployed or must go on his own.

In all bite work, the attack must be made on the handler, not the dog. Protection is
simply as it suggests, the ability to meet an oncoming force with a greater force.

I liked the first paragraph, I thought this is going to be good.  Until I read the second paragraph, then I wasn't impressed with the rest.  Sorry, but you can not train most dogs on just praise alone.  If he bred high drive dogs he'd have a different view on training,  Over the years, I've had one dog that I can honestly say would work for praise alone and work well.  A white GSD, she had to be taught to work for a toy.  But when she learned to work for a toy she was much better for it and much happier in her work.  All of my other dogs work for a toy, praise or food and and do not forget their commands or disobey.  I'm not moved by his point of view, I think there is a lot he isn't saying.  The best trained dogs in the world are trained with toys, food and praise, what ever motivates the dog.  With just praise all you have to fall back on is compulsion.


JMO FWIW,

Jim

No, no, Jim, it says Training is done solely through handler dog communication and praise." 

I'd say a good collar correction is "handler dog communication," wouldn't you?

I disagree, usually people that think that praise is the ultimate reward have very bad timing and lack the ability to find a motivator for their animal.  Show me a dog that "just" works for praise and I'll show you an extremely bored animal,,,,remember all work and no play makes Jack (Russell) a dull boy.

I,d have to agree with the latter 3 posts.

 So hear is what I read: 

"No matter what kind of dog you buy, we do what we can to prepare it, you (as in the new owner) do the rest.
It is your responsibility to train, take care and provide for this animal. It is all up to you!"

The rest? Well, I may or may not agree with, but considering that this is on a breeders website who has absolutely no control over who views the site and may be interested in a pup...I think it is just fine!

I am not a breeder nor a trainer. Just a GSD enthusist. So when I first read it, I liked the message but after all your opinions ......yes. I agree with you all.

I agree it's a breeders website, amature breeders. Amature trainers. Poor dogs.

Interesting opinion on things, some of it I can agree with, but a lot I don't, for the reasons stated.

I also disagree with this part.

A dog has neither fear nor the thoughts for these things. A dog reacts and interacts according to instinctive survival. There is no fear in a young puppy. A dog chooses flight naturally as a survival instinct.

Flight is fear.  It's instinctive, but it's fear.  And there is fear in some young puppies.  To claim otherwise is to claim that this person has never seen a litter where in a new environment most of the litter comes flying out, tails up and wagging, while one or two pups hang back, or runs the other way, hides under something, etc.  If those are the claims they are making, they haven't seen very many litters. 

Dogs don't play?