Behavior Problems

Is It Good To Hate?

I was reading an interesting book over the weekend. The book: “The Compound Effect,” by Darren Hardy. Very good book that gives you a plan for accomplishing anything you’d like to get done. Running a marathon, building your savings, learning a new skill or even….. …..training a dog. He said something that was very interesting. Mr. Hardy states: “People are motivated by something they want or something they don’t want. Love is a powerfully motivating force. But so is hate. Contrary to social correctness, it can be good to hate. Hate disease, hate injustice, hate ignorance, hate complacency and so… Read the rest

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Is Your Dog Reactive? This Will Help You

Did a talk last night at a shelter. The Potter League for Animals is a great place, run by some great people and they invited me to speak for their Pet University. Of course I broke the record for attendees. About 80 people showed up for the talk. I’d love to say I was the reason for so many people showing up but that would be incorrect. The reason so many people showed up was not me, it was….. …….the topic. You see, I spoke about reactive dogs, dogs that lunge, bark, growl or are just plain unruly and uncontrollable.… Read the rest

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The Steak Was Stolen Right Off The Grill

A few years back my brother and I sailed over to Cuttyhunk Island in Buzzards Bay. It was the first leg of our trip to Martha’s Vineyard for the weekend. Naturally some great food was packed up and we were looking forward to dinner. My brother had been marinating a steak for about a day and was very excited to cook and eat it. There was a little grill attached to a bar on the back of the boat. He threw the steak on and turned his back to grab the spatula. The second he turned his back a seagull… Read the rest

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The Undisputed Real Reason For Reactive Dogs

So I have some of the smartest readers when it comes to dog training. Yesterday I wrote about reactive (aggressive) dogs and some great emails came in commenting and even (GASP) disagreeing with me. I know, I was as surprised as you are. Here is an email from M.M. “Big fan of you for years, and your second point on how dogs become reactive by unintentional reinforcement is totally correct. The issue I’m having is saying it’s because of choke chains or prong collars in class? Those aren’t good tools but that is not why dogs are reactive, not even… Read the rest

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Help For The Reactive Dog

Next week I will be holding a seminar for the Potter League for Animals in Middletown, RI. It is a great shelter run by some great people. The seminar I’ll be doing is on reactive dogs, dogs that blow a gasket when another dog or person comes around. This has become a huge problem and I believe there are two reasons for this. The first reason is that choke and prong collars are too popular in group dog training classes. If this type of collar is used in training it should always be used in a very non-distracting environment –… Read the rest

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This Could Change The Way You Look At Dog Training

You ever read any Shakespeare? Even though I love to read I never have. But I am familiar with some of his sayings. And one of his best quotes is: “There is nothing either good or bad, but thinking makes it so.” Not one to disagree with one of the most famous writers in the history of the planet, but I think he is one word off. I think it should be worded this way: “There is nothing good or bad but ACTIONS make it so.” It’s not our thinking, it is our actions that can make something bad or… Read the rest

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Are Dogs Pack Animals?

Ever notice that myths are a big part of life? Myths are installed in our little brains while we are kids. The tooth fairy, Easter Bunny, Santa, and it goes on and on. And the dog training world is loaded with myths, most of them harmful to the development and training of your dog. Some of the biggies are: Wait until six months old to train your dog. Never play tug. Using food to train is bribery. Alpha roll your dog for bad behavior. If you are new to dog training it can be difficult to know what to believe.… Read the rest

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Avoid This “Spooky” Dog Training Mistake

Yesterday I posted a video of a reactive dog class that I am teaching. In the video you see six “reactive” dogs doing a sit stay very close to each other. I teach the class with no choke, prong or electronic collars. I am often asked why I don’t use choke or prong collars in class. My opinion is that you should never use an aversive collar in a group of other dogs. Especially when they are first learning. You see, many of the reactive dogs that I work with become reactive because of the very collars that are supposed… Read the rest

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“Hey Eric, Why Do You Keep Bashing Positive Reinforcement?”

I had an interesting email sent to me yesterday. Here was the question/comment: “Hey Eric, why do you keep bashing +R (positive reinforcement)?” L.N. I replied: “I’m not bashing +R. Why do you think that? Thanks,” Eric Here was the response I got from L.N.: “The last few emails have suggested to me you’re either not a fan/ do not fully understand it/ or you don’t think it’s very effective for certain things. Have I misunderstood?” L.N. FIRST: I appreciate your polite email questions and have decided to share them with the ADTM nation. Second: I fully understand and use… Read the rest

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“Hey, There Are No Letters Behind Your Name”

Met with a potential client the other day. The client was trying to make the right decision before she parted with her hard earned money and I was not the only dog trainer she was meeting with. How did I know? She told me. She then said something that made me laugh out loud. She said: “You have no letters behind your name. I met with two other trainers and they had letters behind their names.” “I’m sorry I laughed,” I said “Because this is tricky to explain. I don’t have any letters and probably never will.” You see, what… Read the rest

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