What Type of Trainer am I?

Dogtor and Allie in between Obedience exercises during an AKC Obedience trial

“Do the best that you can until you know better. Then when you know better, do better.” - Maya Angelou

This is one of my favorite quotes and even though it’s not a dog training quote, I think it beautifully illustrates my beliefs around training.

I have heard on more than one occasion that the way I train is way different than what they are used to or have been taught in the past. And that always makes me just a little bit sad because how I train shouldn’t be the minority. But I’ve seen it myself and often wonder if my peers even like dogs…

I mostly align with the term of balanced trainer, but over the years have found myself not quite feeling like that’s the right label for me. For now it works, but maybe in the future I will find something that better suits how I train.

At the core though, I like dogs, I like people (well… most of them ;P ), and I like seeing both be successful. I have HIGH expectations for dogs, and I have even higher ones for humans. I’m no exception, in fact I’m my own worst critic. I believe that behaviors should be broken down and taught in a way that both the dog and human understand, I pride myself in teaching humans HOW to train their dog. I pride myself even more in being able to accommodate for different ways dogs and humans learn. Don’t understand how I taught something the first time? No problem let’s try it this way!

While I do use punishments in my training, I rely heavily on rewards as well. Whether that’s treats, toys, or just wrestling with my dogs. I believe training should, generally, be fun and when I do introduce punishments, I make sure the dog genuinely knows what was being asked of them and/or I make sure the dog understands what the punishment means and how to avoid it in the future. My goal is never to overpower a dog and force it into something, but instead guide them to the right answer and add clarity to the training. “Do no harm, take no shit” is a great way to sum this up. Again, I have high expectations of dogs and humans in training, but they are fair expectations.

These should not be radical or unique things. Dogs and owners shouldn’t be in a position where they feel bad when it’s time to practice or go to class. We shouldn’t have to physically force dogs to do simple behaviors, we shouldn’t yell at them for making a mistake, and we shouldn’t be pinning dogs to the ground in the name of training. That’s not training, you aren’t a pack leader, you’re just a dick.

I’m not perfect, I never claimed to be, and I never will. I will always be in pursuit of becoming better. For myself, for the owners I work with, and most importantly for the dogs. We have so many amazing trainers in this country and around the world, people proving day in and day out that we have better ways to train. I want to learn from and be a trainer who values compliance and precision on the same level as compassion and humility. I never want to get so wrapped up in the end result that I forget what training is about.

Featuring my heart and soul dog, and the best damn teacher I have ever had.