So I walk into a new client’s house last week.
I am there for about ten minutes when both the husband and wife roll up their sleeves to show me their arms.
From their wrists to their elbows, nothing but scabs and bandages.
Their six month old mix breed that they adopted has been chomping on their arms like a favorite chew toy.
And here’s the rub:
The dog is NOT being aggressive. As I was sitting there he started nibbling on my hands. He was trying to see if I would engage so I told him “NO” and pushed him away.
Immediately he switched gears and jumped on me and really went to town on my arms which is what I figured he was going to do.
This was the classic, easily overstimulated, I am going to chow on your hands when you show me any attention.
The behavior had actually been reinforced by the owners. Every time the pup wanted to play they would push him away and say “NO.” This would only encourage the dog and he would bite more.
The more they tried to stop it the worse the pup became. They were extremely discouraged because they had tried everything they read on the internet and advice from friends.
The wife was literally in tears when she told me how much she loved the pup but that she could not take much more of this.
I raised my hand and said: “No need to be upset or frustrated any longer. Your pup’s arm biting days are going to come to an end today.”
And then something incredible happened. Something that shocks me every time I see it happen. It leaves me speechless.
Here’s what happened. The husband and wife said they were doubtful. They were not sure if I could help them. That they had tried EVERYTHING and nothing worked on their dog.
Can you believe that?
As a highly trained professional and skilled canine specialist, I quickly composed myself and explained that what they needed to know was
…consequences.
That we needed to teach their pup a positive consequence for doing acceptable behaviors and a negative consequence for unacceptable behaviors.
I showed them how to teach the word “YES” and then the word “NO.”
A few minutes later their dog learned that biting was unacceptable and stopped the behavior.
Yes, they were extremely happy and I’ll be following up with them next week.
So if you’re experiencing a problem that seems to be impossible or if your dog treats your hands and arms like a giant pork chop, it’s time for you to learn how to stop it.
The Dog Training Inner Circle is where you can go to learn how it’s done.
Best part?
It’s just $1.00 to join. What are you waiting for? Head on over now and get started by going here NEXT:
Best,
Eric