Building Resiliency in our dogs

The toughest cases I see tend to fall into two extremes: shelter dogs who have been deprived of the basics, and dogs whose owners love them to pieces but have a hard time creating and maintaining boundaries and rules. At both ends of this spectrum, these dogs tend to be both inflexible and fragile.

We need our dogs to be resilient so we can give them the information they need to stop a behavior that could be dangerous, annoying, or harmful. Training errors are often due to communication issues. If we can't communicate effectively because our dog may crumble, run away, or freeze, we are limited in our ability to communicate and train.

The seeds of resiliency lie in building our dog's confidence. This is where errorless learning, also known as all-positive dog training, plays an important role.

During this period, we put our efforts into making our dog successful by:

• Keeping our dog out of environments and situations where they are likely to make errors

• Rewarding all of the great things they do!

• Not rewarding all of the undesirable behaviors they exhibit and looking for ways to prevent those unwanted behaviors from repeating.

It is a lot of work and takes time. However, you will end up with a dog who is confident, happy, and usually follows most of the rules you have established! More importantly, you have laid the foundation for building resiliency in your dog, and this is everything! This is what will enable your dog to reach their potential in whatever your dog loves. For some dogs, this might be exploring in the woods off-leash; for others, it may be a game of fetch. Some might like to chase squirrels; others might love to run 20 MPH across a field!

To let our dogs reach this level of excitement, we need to be able to hit their off-switch. Natural instincts take over, and unless our dog knows deep in their bones what we expect and need of them in these incredibly awesome and exciting scenarios, we may face unwanted challenges.

To let our dogs go to these places (exploring the woods, racing across a field, pulling a sled, you name it!) we need to be able to show our dog quickly and efficiently what they cannot do. This is where saying no and giving a correction are not only helpful, they may be necessary.

There are definitely certain dogs where the stars align and the dog's breed, personality, and environment allow them to live a life of errorless learning. No corrections are ever needed. Imagine a sweet, mellow golden retriever who is happy for their daily neighborhood walk, belly rubs, and dinner, or the smart-as-a-whip poodle whose owner can provide them with obedience work to busy their mind. However, these dogs are not all dogs. These dogs are not most dogs. I have 4 huskies and a terrier mix, so these are not my dogs either.

Pursue errorless learning for your puppy or for the dog you just adopted from the shelter who needs to be built up! That is the way to go. But you might not want to stop there.

Think about the highest and best places you can bring your dog and what it is going to take to get there! Saying no and offering a gentle but firm correction could be the very best thing you can do for your dog, once they are ready!