No Such Thing As a Bad Dog

This is a good article that is oh-so-true about dogs: http://www.petside.com/article/bad-dog-myth

Two months ago I thought I was the worst dog owner in the world but now I realize I was just weak-willed and uninformed. My intentions were always good and I would have never given up on my Darcy. It must be nuts for trainers to see owners who won't do their share and I can't begin to imagine what the shelter and rescue group people must do to keep their mouths shut when they take these poor dogs in. With my two trainers I have given them my undivided attention and listened closely, especially with my second trainer now. My second trainer has the patience of a saint and is incredibly informative and encouraging. In the last month since I've had Darcy in private lessons I've learned so much and feel so much better as a dog owner. And Darcy's behavior has improved greatly and a lot of people have begun to notice.

I don't like to judge people but when I got my Darcy I was under the now-ridiculous impression that all dog owners knew what they were doing. Sadly there are those that don't. I don't like the ones who leave their dogs outside all alone to get bored and lonely so they bark at everything or just sit there all lifeless and sad. I see this in the apartment complex I live in- there's this one puppy Darcy and I see almost every evening and I just have to be nice when in reality I just want to take the dog in and love on him. Second, there's this lady who lets her dog outside without a leash and he wanders all over the place before coming back to her. In an apartment complex you don't let your dog off leash becuase of the cars that race through the place and also there is a rule that dogs have to be on leash outside at all times. Then this evening we met a 4-month old boxer mix whose owner seems to be more than a little frustrated. She had her kid with her so I didn't come down too hard because I didn't want to upset the kid. But in reality I really wanted to tell her to get the bug out of her ass, let the dog sniff and explore, and not to use any harsh or corporal punishment with the dog. With a dog that young you want to let them burn off their energy and play with them before trying to teach commands. I just encouraged her to get the dog into training and maybe go to a pinch collar since the harness didn't seem to be working too well.

Like I said I'm far from perfect but there are teachable moments all the time. But even I get frustrated as like tonight- I'm trying to teach Darcy to wait before coming inside but it's a hard command to learn because she just wants to get inside and play with the other dog. I got frustrated and just gave in before remembering that my trainer said that if I get frustrated or my dog just isn't cooperating to stop and take a break. So I just let Darcy inside and took a break. Later I went back to work with her in my room on the 'wait' command to help get it into our repatoire.

In the article the trainer mentioned a lack of exercise for dogs. That's a huge problem for a lot of dogs, especially high-energy breeds. I used to walk Darcy just once a day but when I added a second walk in the morning that started to calm her down, too. In addition now I'm working with her inside for five to ten minutes a pop on basic commands and teaching new ones. She's smart and stubborn yes but more than willing to learn. And before we met the boxer-mix we had the tennis court to ourselves and it was a great opportunity to work with her outside where there are lots of distractions. I wish it was free every night but when it is free we're there.

Now Darcy's all chilled out after her bath (she gets the itchies and I use a medicated shampoo for her). Amazingly she likes baths though the shampoo I use for her is actually a calming one it seems. And when her fur starts to dry it's a little crimped like an 80's girl at the mall. (I tried to get a picture but it didn't come out too well.)