By Lisa Ellman
In the 30 years that I’ve been in business as a dog (human) trainer, I don’t think I’ve ever really “trained” any of my dogs.
Let me elaborate. When you have a child, do you train them or raise them? Why do we say raising a child, instead of training a child? Isn’t it really, fundamentally, the same thing? The point I want to make is that whether we live with children or dogs, every minute of every day is spent trying to get the most desirable, socially acceptable behavior, out of these beings. Just as we sometimes set up nonverbal rules, boundaries and goals for human children, the same can be done with your dog.
I like to think of dog training in two ways: formal and informal. Think of “formal” training as sending your child (or dog) to school. There’s a specific time to go and specific lessons taught. There is homework, time set aside to review and practice.
“Informal” training, on the other hand, is teaching the child (or dog) everyday behaviors that are acceptable, or not, just by living. You live with your dog 24 hours a day. Every minute you’re with your dog is a “training” opportunity. When I say that I’ve never really trained my dogs, I’m referring to formal training.
A lot of the behaviors I elicit from my dogs come from them knowing what is appropriate, or not, through trial and error. For example, “sit” is a natural dog behavior, and they’ll do it easily for a treat, often without having to say the word. Verbal cues are meaningful, but not always necessary. The dog has “conditioned” itself, informal training. It has learned that if I do A, then B happens.
When I get home from work, my dog is excited to see me and jumps on me. If I walk past without engaging in that behavior, I’m teaching it that jumping elicits zero response from me, but not jumping gets a nice calm greeting. I’ve said nothing to the dog about the jumping. It’s like if your child throws a tantrum and you ignore it, they soon figure out that if they want your attention, they need to do something different. Any engagement of the “bad” behavior only reinforces it, informal training.
All this training (or raising) whether formal or informal requires that a strong bond of trust and leadership has been established. Just as your child, or dog, learns to trust that you will be a fair and benevolent parent, they should come to recognize that you will lead or guide them in the right direction of understanding expected life behaviors. Things like being polite; not jumping on people or you when putting the food bowl down, not bolting out the door, etc.
We raise children to respect boundaries, your dog should learn the same; no playing on the bed, no jumping on the table to get food, etc.
So when, and how, does “formal” training happen? Verbal cues like “stay”, “place” or “leave it” require formal training. They’re not natural dog behaviors. They need to be practiced and have time set aside for structured repetitions a few times a day. If you have 5 minutes, a few times a day, instead of going to social media, use that time to work on some formal training.
The thing about training, whether formal or informal, is that it creates and reinforces trust and respect, enhancing connection between you and your dog. It’s a positive feedback loop that lasts a lifetime.
Good Dogma has been training humans and their dogs since 1996 and is currently taking new clients. Contact information for all offered services can be found on our website www.GoodDogma.net. Readers are invited to submit questions to gooddogma@hotmail.com.
