What Good Dog Breeders Do

I’ll return to my ‘regular’ blog subjects next week, but I see from my stats that many people come to this blog from what I’ve blogged about dogs. Those blogs get shared a lot. I have about 200 regular subscribers, but many of the posts have been shared hundreds of times.

I started blogging because I loved dogs enough to learn about them, but a guy (Dan London, out of business for years, & who thinks integrity is a character flaw—like Trump) tried to make my life hell because I refused to work for him—& give him credibility he didn’t deserve. Beware of dog businesses where they address how much their employees ‘love dogs‘ but have never trained a dog to off-leash reliability, have never brushed their own dog, and think ‘breeds’ don’t matter.

There is some confusion among alleged pet lovers: this is the 21st century. there are no ‘accidental’ breedings—just irresponsible pet owners who refuse to manage their pets’ fertility…& they seem to think that the rest of us who are responsible should bail them out. Sort of like people who feel children are a gift from God, but can’t take care of them, so we must morally take care of those kids.

That said, “I’m not a breeder, my dog just had puppies,” is not an excuse or explanation for NOT taking responsibility. If you can’t manage your pet’s fertility, your should be neutered. Yet, the ADOPT DON’T SHOP crowd blames breeders NOT causing the problem of surplus pets—-& tries to guilt the rest of us into solving a problem we haven’t caused. How is that working?

This is what breeders who love their dogs do:

First, when planning the breeding, they do all known genetic and health testing of the breeding dogs. Even when doing this, sometimes dogs are born with genetic defects. I have friends who breed Golden Retrievers, and they have at least 3 generations of dogs that are OFA (CERF) (that means the dogs have had their hips xrayed, fair, normal, or excellent), yet still, when their offspring pups are xrayed at 2 years of age, some have a form of hip dysplasia, It happens. Same with deafness (BAER tests) and Juvenile Cataracts (dogs developing cataracts before age 3). If you love dogs, you want to avoid breeding dogs that will be disabled.

Once the pups are born, they are raised in a normal ‘noisy’ environment, where they get to hear sounds of regular life. After all are accounted for, the breeder checks for cleft palates and missing toes. These problems are more common in toy breed dogs (including designer mixes) and bracheocephalics, and usually humanely euthanized.

Those breeders trying to guilt you into taking a puppy with a cleft palate (which would need surgery) are unethical.

Breeders who love their dogs and puppies will have the litter on an absorbent, nonslip surface. Many use washable pads to avoid paper waste. They will also have what may be described as ‘crib toys’: items hanging down for puppies to interact with. Good breeders want their puppies curious and stimulated.

When the weaning process starts, breeders start cutting toenails and ‘stacking’ puppies individually on a table. Breeders do this not just to get the dogs used to being picked up and handled, but to get the dog used to being groomed. We call this ‘training’ BEHAVIOR SHAPING. Also, if they breed bracheocephalic dogs—especially the coated ones (Shih Tzu, Affenpinschers, Brussels Griffons), they get the pup used to having their muzzle held while combing under the eyes. This is so important. If this isn’t done every day until the pup gets used to the grooming motions (the genetic reaction would be to flinch and move away, but this must be overcome), the groomers will not be able to do this without risking injury to the eyes, and the dog will have to be sedated for grooming.

Once the weaning process is underway or completed, breeders put collars on the puppies, and may have them drag a leash, or the breeder may take individual puppies around and coax them.

Once the pups have had their first shots (and wormed, if necessary), the pups can go to new homes, usually between the ages of 8 to 12 weeks. It’s important for puppies to learn to play and fight with their siblings. It’s a known fact that ‘singletons’ and dogs taken too young (under 8 weeks of age) often become unnaturally aggressive towards other dogs.

The breeder should ask you if you own or rent your home, and ask for proof. Animal shelters know one major reason they get dogs back is, “Landlord won’t allow.” Chicago Animal Care & Control—our open admissions CITY DOG POUND —-asks to see a signed lease and they call the landlord as well. I’m shocked at how many pet buyers never consider any of this. Many breeders will ask how long the puppy will be alone during the day, or what arrangements you’ve made for a dog walker. Some will suggest dog daycare. I discourage daycare for a puppy under 8 months old, Why? Most dog daycares are not run by people with ‘dog experience’ : that is—by people who’ve worked in kennels as well as trained dogs, & recognize dog behavior. Loving dogs is not enough. I’ve worked for several businesses that put young puppies with mature toy dogs, ‘because they’re all small’. What happens is that the older dogs bully the puppies. This also makes aggressive dogs.

The breeder will also suggest a crate and why crate training is so important (if your dog is sick or injured, it will be in a crate at the animal hospital—& the dog is always safer in the car in a crate)

If the breeder is selling coated dogs (shedders and nonshedders), she will show you how to brush the dog, and explain what grooming tools you will need and where to get them. I worked for an Afghan Hound breeder, the late Fredric Mark Alderman. He didn’t sell you a puppy if you had never had an Afghan until you spent an afternoon grooming dogs with him. He didn’t want to hear that you had no idea how long it took, or how often it needed to be done, or that you needed a grooming table and a stand dryer.

A breeder who loves their dogs will give you written feeding, grooming, and housebreaking instructions, as well as a pedigree. They will have you sign a contract that says that if you can’t keep the dog, you will return it to them. Keep in mind, everyone wants a puppy. As they mature, they go down in value, not up…unless your dog matures to be a show dog.

A responsible shelter or rescue would also give you care instructions.

This is the 21st century. It’s easy enough to get pet care information. However, it’s a free country. You don’t have to control your impulses or pocketbook. However, if you really are concerned about dogs ending up in shelters, don’t buy or take a puppy from a dog owner who tells you the litter was an accident. that’s not your problem.

Color Linked Personality Traits in Dogs

When I started this blog over 10 years ago, I was a dog groomer. I’ve addressed this before, but when I started learning to groom dogs, in the late 1960s (as a teenager) EVERYONE involved in grooming and training dogs was a DOG PERSON: Meaning everyone was a competitor, or worked for a competition, They all knew the value of learning about breeds, breed/dog structure, animal behavior and husbandry, genetics, and doing our best to understand dogs.

Things have changed. Many of the ‘old timers’ have died and now I am an old timer. The pet industry got a bit more sophisticated about marketing goods, animals, and services, and got less ethical as time went on. The ‘fancy’—as we call ourselves—is small. Are there even 10,000 of us in the USA?

I’m a member of 4 dog clubs, and I’m, sure the average age of our membership is 60. All that indigenous knowledge will be forgotten. Many of the breeders will be forgotten.

I learned about dogs not just from mentors, but from experience. One thing I learned from PAYING ATTENTION was that in many breeds, dogs of certain colors may behave aberrantly. 

I worked for t one of the top Miniature Schnauzer breeders in the country. Miniatur Schnauzers only come in 3 colors: black, black & silver, & salt* peper, Those mostly white with party patches (& blue eyes)? No matter what those AKC papers say, there is no way those dogs can be purebred. But that isn’t the issues I’m addressing, The breeder, for a time, had several black & silver bitches. gorgeous dogs. She had bought them to include into her breeding program, but ended up selling the, She told me they were way more hyperactive than the others, and screamers. I didn’t really think about it at the time, but my sister recently bought black & silver Min. Schnauzer…and it’s true. He’s very hyoperactive and noisy.

I was working in a grooming shop in the early 2000s, and I had several clients with Tibetan Terriers. They come in as many colors as Lhasa Apsos. ”Lion color” in s ; popular (a black masked reddish/fawn. But so are black & white parti-colored Tibetans, and they were all more nervous and noisy int eh shop than the Tibetans of other colors.

I was working for a German Shorthaired Pointer breeder who was also a field trial judge. He was telling us about a client who had a black Labrador Retriever that died, and now she wanted a chocolate Lab. He told us he tried to talk her out of it, for the very reason they were all much more hyper active than the blacks and yellos. It was the reason few regular hunters wanted them.

I was telling all this to a French Bulldog fancier who compete in performance, and she remarked at how interesting that was.  She told me that if you wanted a performance Frenchie, you should get a fawn or brindle, that the parti0coloreds & piebalds didn’t have any attention span.

I am sure this color linked personality has to be true in other breeders, but I don’t have enough experience with that many.

What I do have experience with is designer dogs—the Doodles. Only breeders who breed pets as livestock are breeding mixes, and the irony is thay pull that “F1″ BS, as thouhg theyknow what they’re talking aobut, They know neighter genetics or statistical odds.

I’m Not a Breeder—My (pet) Just Had Babies: It’s a Miracle (of Greed)

Lies Dog Breeders Tell

The irony of this: notice all the ‘ads’ for puppies! Just exactly what this post warns about….

The Fate of Dog Shows & ‘The Fancy’

I assume most people don’t know how a dog show comes together & how we pull it off. It’s sort of like planning a wedding, except we try to make money on the event.

These days, clubs make money by charging a parking fee, charging for a place to set-up grooming (about half the size of a parking space), booth space for vendors (usually selling grooming supplies, dog beds, and suits for women)and FASTCAT (dogs have to run 100 yards—-I don’t think it proves anything, but the dogs enjoy it and we make money).

We lose money on paying for judges: their meals & hotels, paying the superintendent (who provides the show catalogue, the rings, tables, 1st aid kits, ribbons (imprinting is not cheap), paying for the venue, insurance, and just holding the show.

Judges aren’t allowed to judge more than 175 dogs per day, but these days, unless people of a particular breed find the judge very knowledgeable, there is no danger of the judge drawing the limit. So, we don’t make money on conformation (the ‘beauty contest part) unless we also have a sweepstakes—& then we make money if people don’t show up: the money goes back to the club treasury.

When you come right down to it, Dog shows are not a money maker, However, we who do performance are the ugly stepchildren. People come to dog shows want to see dogs do something other than run around a ring. We all started with obedience or performance (rally, agility, nosework, etc) but for some reason, the Professional Handlers hold sway. We make room for them because they represent multiple owners. However, most s dogs are shown by their owners (or breeders). Does it really make sense to pander to the pros when regular folks are keeping the sport afloat? I don’t think so.

In any case, for those who smirk and think this is a ‘first world problem’ and we should all be rescuing dogs….many of us are involved in rescue—but you’re asking those of us who haven’t cause the problem of surplus pets to solve a problem others are causing—& off the hook for.

You’re al;so asking us to take any random dog, whether we can’t handle the size or grooming , or temperament should be of no consequence. they aren’t all 4 legs & a tail. We choose our breeds because we find them easy to live with. I just want those involved in our sport to think twice when they eliminate performance. You are killing the fancy.

Fake Service Dogs

I got myself banned recently from a Facebook feed because I dared to tell a woman her ‘Emotional Support Animal’ is NOT A SERVICE DOG,–& that a shrink bamboozled her.

Ok, I went too far: i shouldn’t have told her a license psychologist was a fraud—but here we are: a lot of them are pandering, writing letters on letterhead, so they look official. These ‘care givers’ know nothing about dog training, but are pandering to neurotics who want pets & want to be treated as though they are special.

Some service dogs DO provide ’emotional support’—like to victims of PTSD, but they often do it in a physical way: by leaning, by guiding, by standing between their owner and someone they don’t trust. They are trained to do that. You can’t train just any dog to be a service dog, There are evaluating tests dog trainers use to determine which dogs are possibly suitable. Because—even after evaluation and training, some dogs just don’t cut it. They are usually given away as pets.

‘Emotional Support Animals’ are not given any training. In fact, neurotics are allowed to buy any dog they want and claim the dog provides a service of emotional support.

Because there is so much confusion CAUSED BY UNETHICAL PSYCHOLOGISTS, there are guidelines for how to determine what a service dog does to provide service, and we are allowed to ask, “What service does this dog provide?” Some sense seizures coming on. Some guide the blind or alert the deaf. Some pull wheelchairs. Years ago, I had a friend with cerebral palsy. She didn’t need a wheelchair, but she was definitely spastic and unsteady on her feet. By a miracle, she acquired an Afghan Hound who recognized his owner’s issues, and he was her ‘steadier’. This was before anyone even thought that dogs could do this.

In the case where I offended the woman and the site administrators, the woman wanted to go on a cruise with her ‘ESA’ and the cruise line wouldn’t allow it, and she wondered how to get around this because she could not leave the dog alone! Seems that she made the dog neurotic and the dog now had separation anxiety! Some service dog!

I know a lot of dog trainers because dog training is my hobby, and they get calls all the time from people who’ve bought a random dog and want the dog trained to be an Emotional Support Dog—which they are confusing with a service dog. There’s less than a 50/50 chance that the random dog can be a service dog—but here’s how you get an emotional support animal that will protect you and not be a menace to society: You train the dog.

If you’ve never trained a dog, we start with what we call basic ‘novice’ obedience. The dog learns to walk on a leash without pulling, and to sit. We also teach the dog to come when called, stand, lay down. and ignore other dogs. If you have trained a dog to off leash reliability, you might want to start with a rally class, as it’s more interesting and fun. No matter where you start, you want to teach your dog the basics. This takes patience and persistence. The interesting thing is that by attempting to communicate with the dog, and succeeding, you’re creating an emotional bond with the dog, You get a trained dog, YOU gain confidence, your mind is off your grief or other emotional issues, and everyone’s happy.

And—-to prove you’ve trained the dog—-get a Canine Good Citizen certificate. You can google this—& where a local evaluator is. 1 test. Takes about an hour, and the dog doesn’t ohave to be purebred. You’ve proved you have control at least on a leash. If you’re ambitions, you can go for a ‘Rally Novice’ and /or Beginner Novice title. You go to AKC trials. Some clubs offer 2 chances in a day (you just need 3 qualifying scores), you get a certificate from the AKC, & you’ve proven onleash control.

She Bites

People, particularly Americans, seem to get a lot of their ‘information’ from TV. I think we believe that ‘the government’ would protect us from untruths & BS. Apparently not.

Having worked in the pet industry, mostly as a dog groomer, I have frequently heard from dog owners that they can’t brush their dog because…the dog bites.

I used to have a dog that bites, and I’ve had a few who were almost chronic biters. This is what I’ve learned from dog trainers and animal behaviorists.

There are only 2 reasons a dog bites: the dog is either fearful and trying to protect him or herself, or the dog was bred with no bite inhibition and is grappling for control.

I’ve had a couple of my own dogs who grappled for control as maturing puppies, and I dealt with the behavior immediately and let the dog know I was in charge. I didn’t have to beat the dogs up, but I had to outwit and outmaneuver the dog. I have never owned a dog who bit from fear, but I’ve groomed many.

Whether people want to believe this or not, temperament IS genetic. Some breeders take this very seriously. They’re involved in competition, and they need not just conformation, but a temperament type. Most dogs are not bred for any other purposes than because the owner was lazy and would not control their pet’s fertility, or they wanted to make money selling puppies. Sad but true—and these pet owners do not give a rat’s ass that they are breeding dangerous dogs.

When it comes to correcting bad behavior: biting, most dog trainers and behaviorists agree that you can communicate with most fearful dogs, and if they are with a consistent owner, biting can be reduced or eliminated. Biting a can sometimes also be eliminated if a dog biting to establish dominance. I’ve done it by rewarding good behavior and curtailing bad behavior.

I do know that most people won’t take the time to correct bad behavior and just ignore it. You go into their homes, and there are a bunch of rules about interacting with the dog: don’t try to pet the dog. Don’t try to be friends with the dog. Don’t make eye contact, don’t touch the dog’s (ears, withers, feet…)

I find it shocking that most people with bad dogs don’t realize their children are in danger. Sometimes, adults just don’t want to believe that there are bad dogs. They can’t all be pets. Just because they are domesticated, it doesn’t mean they belong in a home with a family. Shaping the dog’s behavior will help, but it doesn’t solve the problem of genetics.

Why Are So Many Dogs in Harnesses?

About 10 years ago, I wrote about people using prong collars inappropriately. Prong collars have pins—blunt wedged, but no matter, they are designed to poke into your dog’s neck. If the dog walks normally, the pins just rest on the skin. If the dog pulls, they pinch into the dog’s neck. So many people who weren’t training their dog used them & claimed these things slowed their dogs down & they walked better. Yes, they did—until the collar was removed. The prong or pinch collar didn’t work on all dogs. They barely made a dent on dogs with thick hair—a ‘mane’—around their necks. Some dogs pulled harder to get away from the pain, and some dogs became inured to the pain.

My question was, why would you want to cause pain to your dog? That is not training.

I now have a dog who seems to be inured to pain. She knows basic commands: sit, stay, down, and come when called. When it comes to walking on a leash, in the 2 years I’ve had her, she’s been in a hurry to get….somewhere. I only use a martingale collar, and I will ‘string her up’ if she pulls, but unless I have a treat in my hand, she’ in a hurry.

More and more, I am seeing people walking dogs that are in harnesses. I’m sure the reason is that they don’t want to hurt the dog’s neck if the dog pulls. I’m also sure that some idiot at the pet shop steered the owners into a harness because they played on the owner’s emotions. The people selling these things have clearly never trained a dog and don’t really care. They sell what their bosses tell them to sell.

Here’s the thing about harnesses: they are designed for your dog to pull you unencumbered. This is why sled dogs and guide dogs wear harnesses—-to not be restrained. They won’t ‘hurt’ your dog’s neck, but can do a real job chafing armpits and shoulders. Also, if you have a soft coated, non-shed dog, they will either wear away hair or cause static electricity and matt it up. If a dog is being walked in a harness, it is supposed to be removed when you take the leash off. Most owners do not do this, and the dog is in the harness 24/’7. Why anyone would think any of these results are positive is beyond me.

People have been using buckle collars and martingales for centuries. They work. Don’t trust the guy at the pet shop. Use a buckle collar or martingale and teach your dog to walk on a leash without pulling, You can find many videos online that demonstrate this if you aren’t ready for a dog training class.

Nobody Wins

For most of my working life, I worked with dogs; in dog grooming shops. animal hospitals, pet shops, and boarding kennels. I learned to groom dogs because I loved dogs, and being ‘hands-on’ with them. Early in my career, most of the bosses I worked for were also hands on.

You can’t learn about dogs just by reading books: you have to be mentored by people with experience. Not everything they know is written. Their knowledge is passed on by ‘word of mouth’, and we call it indigenous knowledge.

What happened, I think, was that the economy changed. As old timers retired, family members didn’t want to work in those businesses.

So, they got sold to ‘dog lovers’ with capital. The ‘conventional wisdom’ was that there wasn’t much to know. These pet business owners mainly hired confident people who seemed to know what they were talking about, to work with clients.

Some did know about dogs, many didn’t. Some of the business owners said THEY’ wanted to be ‘hands on’, but that usually only lasted a week or two. Most had never groomed or trained a dog, and had no plans to do so in the future. They changed the nomenclature: from dog owners to pet parents. They started giving their dog owning clients bad information about grooming, training, feeding, and handling….and problems started to emerge.

The veterinarians I worked with mostly suggested over-vaccinating dogs—to make money (as a result, rabies shots are mandated to be given to dogs every 1—3 years—whether they show titer or not), and the neutering of immature dogs (which often stunts the dogs physical maturity and often causes incontinence). They never (I can’t even say rarely) address abuse or neglect: severely matted dogs, dogs with toenails so long they limp, genetic health impairments, and dogs not being controlled by their owners. They are too afraid of losing clients.

Pet shops rarely sold what their groomers suggested, instead relying on their distributors (old men reluctant to modernize). thus managers have employees sell ineffective products and dog owners get frustrated.

Grooming shop owners either didn’t go to dog grooming school or believed that everything they were told by the schools were best practice, and communication between groomers and pet owners was restricted. Many dog groomers who did know about dogs and what was proper were humiliated by business owners when we suggested that we show dog owners what kind of brushes to use and how to use them.

The worst businesses are generally the kennels that offer dog daycare. Those run by trainers tend to be safe and well run. Those run by ‘dog lovers’ tend to be nightmares. Not all dogs want to play. So many dogs are not good with other dogs. I worked for one business that put the small adult dogs in with puppies, and the mature dogs bullied the puppies. I could see that the puppies were stressed, but I was ignored.

Dogs get injured all the time at dog daycare. Dogs also get abused in boarding kennels because owners don’t prepare their pets for separation, an the facilities don’t train their staff people to work with integrity.

You can’t be too careful, and you can’t be too clean. I quit several jobs at businesses that were unethical or dangerous—or both. I actually had friends and family tell me it was not my business to address this. I’m a dog lover. when I cited a problem, and it wasn’t seriously addressed, it was a matter of personal integrity to leave the job.

I was talking about this with several friends a few days ago, and today saw a story in the paper about a dog that was killed in dog daycare through ignorance (and it was at a business I used to work for).

The dog was a puppy, and he was picked up at his home from a driver who had gotten minimal training. When he unloaded all the dogs at the kennel, nobody asked him how many dogs he had, or counted. it wasn’t until several hours later that an employee asked about the missing dog. Someone went to the van—and the dog was near death due to heat stroke. Seems the drive just did a ‘visual check’ of crates to see if all dogs were offloaded—but didn’t go back into the van to check the crates, an the puppy was sleeping under something and he didn’t see the dog. They started trying to cool the pup (rather than rushing the dog to an emergency veterinarian—a tough call, of course), and the dog died.

This wasn’t the first time a dog died due to neglect at this business.; they’ve also ‘lost’ a few dogs that were left in supposedly escape proof (covered) kennel runs, discounting that dogs can climb and dig. When I worked there, I suggest that dogs we were told would climb be put in kennels where staff could see if they were climbing or digging. I was ignored. I also suggested that the people who put dogs in kennel runs set the timer on their phones to check a dog every 15 minutes. I was told it was a good idea…and I was ignored.

I suggested that kennel staff pick up dog food that wasn’t eaten after 15 minutes…and was ignored. So, we had a rat infestation. So many suggestions I made were ignored.

You just can’t assume that everyone who works in the pet industry loves animals enough to learn animal husbandry and behavior, and has the INTEGRITY to hire people who do understand. Everything is legal, including ignorance, and lack of integrity, until you make it illegal.

The Fancy is Killing the Fancy (I Learned This Promoting Polyandress)

My Saluki as a young dog. Sold as a pet, he finished his AKC championship in fewer than 10 shows. His breeder trained him—& didn’t charge for the training!

I’ve been publicizing my book, Polyandress an erotic romance that a dog fancier( a groomer and trainer), has with a boy who seduced her, the child of a man her grandfather bought as a slave in the 1950s:

Slavery occurs in much of the world, still, and the scenario I wrote is very plausible. In many places, slaves were allowed to buy their freedom which was the debt the slaveowner had incurred to get a servant. As I wrote the store, the character’s father was very clever and learned the business his owner was in. After learning the business, he became relatively successful.  The son became a rock star. It’s an erotic genre.

In any case, I wrote this character young because when I was in my 20’s, in the 1970s, it happened to me several times: a very young teenage boy tried to seduce me. More, I had the experience, as a teenager, learning about sex from a boy not much older than I, and he became my husband.

I had also spent some time in this part of the world and I had an academic research background. That’s why the story starts in Africa. There was no statutory rape in this part of Africa. I heard it from many African men, “If she looks old enough, she is old enough.” Nobody would ever in a million years question if a boy was old enough. He’d know if he was old enough.

Why did I make this part of the story? I was addressing aspects of integrity. I had my female character address it to the teenager:  that he had to keep perspective. To make this part of the story, I had to make him a rock star who would have the money and the means to travel. But the non-sexual part of the story is that the female character is hired to help a guy train his dogs. He thinks he wants to breed them and she tells him what people who really love dogs do. They do a lot.

I didn’t know anything about writing or self-publishing or finding an editor, but I got a story that holds together.

How do I get people to read the story? I have to market it myself, and I selected dog groomers, Returned Peace Corps Volunteers, and dog people in general.

I’d contact the various kennel clubs, the specialty clubs first, and ask people to buy and read my book. & yes, it’s an erotic romance. Is it smut? Nobody gets hurt. There’s no violence. There’s a discussion about how people learn about sex and sexual expression, and what keeps people from making mistakes, particularly regarding relationships.

Prototype cover without the dogs & title.

I keep defending this, but as much as the ‘genre’ is the issue on ‘the fanciers’ side, the AKC has not assisted the club in marketing themselves at all.

How did I find the clubs? By going to the AKC web database, which is not the most intuitive thing to use. If I didn’t have a background in dogs & know the clubs, and who’s in charge of what, I couldn’t do this.

The biggest problem is that the local clubs don’t generally keep up their links with the parent club: “(The Breed) Club of America” or American (breed)Club.  Sometimes, the pages no longer exist and the domain name is for sale…to any puppy miller. Or it a has been bought (at leas the URL—call your club whatever you want, but do you want the link you forgot about to go to an architectural firm in Taiwan—or a commercial breeder?).   Other problems include; there is no way to contact the club through the website. You actually have to Google the Club by name & they MAY have a Facebook page, but they may or may not have a ‘send message’ or ’email’ link. It depends on who in the club is savvy.

Now I can sort of maneuver the database because I have a good idea of the names of the clubs—but what if you don’t know the actual name of the club?  Say, you Google ‘Afghan Hounds Chicago.’ If a breeder has those Google adwords, the Afghan Hound Club of Greater Chicago won’t show up—or worse, the club website will show up, but none of the links work, so you can’t contact the club. So you go to any breeder, but what if you just want to hang with Afghan Hound lovers? Sorry…you are S. O. L.

Now, what if you don’t know the name of a breed. Say, you only can name a few breeds: German Shepherd, Golden Retriever, Labrador Retriever, Poodle, Dachshund, Husky, Cocker Spaniel, English Bulldog, Shih Tzu, Boston Terrier, Chihuahua, Pug. You aren’t going to go looking for a Keeshond or Norwegian Elkhound. Funny(not) thing: People know what Pomskies are. Although they are a cross between a Pomeranian and a Siberian Husky, more people know what they are than …Keeshond or Norwegian Elkhounds. So—those club should buy the Googe adwords for ‘POMSKY’…like the Irish Water Spaniel, the Spanish Water Do0g, Portuguese Water Dog, and Barbet fancies should bu all the Google Adwords for all the Doodles: labra-, Golden-, Berna-, Sheepa–, Newfa….doodles. Chances are the people looking for Doodles want the PREDICTABILITY of a purebred dog, but have never heard of those breeds.

There are so many breeds the public doesn’t know.  & yet another problem is…the club doesn’t have a newsletter or even a local listserv. Or worse—a conservative Christian gatekeeper as secretary, who has accused me of peddling smut.

Yeah, I guess it is. Dang me, describing acts of sexual pleasure than don’t involve intercourse or making babies. God forbid a teenager should get a hold of Polyandress and find out you can have great sex without risking health, life, and pregnancy. And— you might learn what ethical breeders do when they love purebred dogs and want to see the breeds thrive into the future.

Spoiler Alert!

As a dog groomer who often suggests training to our clients, I hear it all the time: “We took Fluffy to training classes but it didn’t do any good. We have no control over her.”

the dog is wearing a harness of course, but that’s not the only reasdon they have no control.

Most of us know the reasons, but for those who don’t, they are:

• Not practicing what they’ve learned in class enouhg;
• wrong techniques that get to be a habit;
• everyone in the household not being on the same page;
• the spoiler.

When we offer group dog training, we should start with a disclaimer about why what they are experiencing in class won’t work, and how they can remedy the issues they will face.We need to address what to do and what not to do.

An analogy I started using is an experience I had recently getting physical therapy. The therapist has you go through various exercises. You have to do them at home, every day. Paying a therapist once or twice a week won’t help you heal.

Similarly, if you don’t re-enforce what you’re learning in class, coming to class is a waste of money.

We want people to have healthy relationships with their dogs. The reason we teach what we teach is because they are exercises people will find very useful at home, In fact, I’ve started also teaching ‘turn around’ as well as giving instructions to dog owner so they can teach their dogs to eliminate on command.

Personally, I don’t care if your dog is under control until I meet you on the street, or come to your home. But you spent money to get schooled, so you may as well get something out of it.

Also, there are several right ways of getting a dog under control, but a bunch of wrong ways. I am from a generation where we thought tricking a dog and causing pain got the message across. I’ve trained my last several dogs using positive re-enforcement, and high value treats to motivate them. That, and repetition, worked. Sometimes dogs aren’t motivated by treats or praise. In that case, you may have to seek an animal behaviorist, but the positive re-enforcement method has worked statistically so many times, I strongly encourage you to use it.

Also, once you get the behavior you want, either move on to another part of training or stop…and go back after at least half an hour. Don’t bore your dog. But don’t stop, either, until you get an increment. Always stop on a positive note, If you are losing patience, it’s not the dog’s fault. go back later.

Now we get to why training usually fails: the madhouse you live in. it would be funny were it not so tragic. Everyone has to want the dog to succeed. if you have one person who doesn’t, this is not going to work. So sorry, but you may need family counseling—or coaching, if you can’t figure this out on your own. Do you have a child with emotional issues? Someone jealous of the dog? Someone who doesn’t like the dog? Like a spouse? Someone who thinks they want the dog to love them best? That lets me segue into…who is the Spoiler?

Been there, done that….I’ve lived with a Spoiler for over a decade. He loves the dogs, but he refuses to do what he needs to do to get the dogs under control. At least they aren’t too large for him to handle…but what if they were? At least they don’t try to actually control him…but what if they did? Were this a serious problem for me, we probably wouldn’t be living together. That said, I’ve seen marriages break up over this: dogs that wouldn’t allow a spouse in the bed, dogs that wouldn’t allow the kids to tough them, yet the adult owners kept the dogs around. Those behaviors are inexcusable, and obviously a symptom of a bad dynamic that comes out when a dog enters the picture.

Most of us dog trainers are not life coaches because we aren’t licensed psychologists. That said, we are really good ar understanding nonverbal communication. If you aren’t getting results practicing daily with your dog, you might want to invite a dog trainer over to your household to get an idea of what is going on.