Today’s topic is: When your dog is good at everything, but that one thing. It’s tough for me to imagine that it’s been 16 years now that I’ve been involved with training a dog in some form nearly every day. I’m coming up on 11 years of training dogs and coaching people professionally. In that amount of time, I’ve seen many dogs, a lot of different circumstances, and a lot of different issues. I’m incredibly blessed to be able to do what I do for a living. After all, I get to help people enjoy quite possibly the best creature on the face of the planet.
That One Thing
Today what I wanted to share with you is, do you have a dog that is good at everything except maybe one thing? Let’s say you have a dog that is doing well at a lot of things. They stay where you tell them to; they walk nicely on a leash and come when called. Your friends even compliment your dog often. But there’s just that one thing. Today I was working with a dog, and that one thing for him was; he will walk very nicely with you until he sees another dog. This could be a pretty big mountain for some people.
I have definitely dealt with this many times over the years. When I was handling him today, this particular dog had a full-on meltdown when he saw another dog. Then, nothing I did could help him snap out of it. However, for those of you that are struggling with this, don’t give up. Often, you’re just a few moments away from being able to figure out what it is that will help your dog understand that type of behavior is not acceptable.
Don’t Give Up
If you’re struggling with this, continue to press forward. There are many resources out there on the internet. There are things like flash briefings, blog articles, or YouTube. Watch how other dog trainers, including myself, go about doing that. It’s great to take in those resources and try the techniques to see what works best for you and your dog. Of course, one thing I would encourage anybody who’s struggling with this is. Do seek out a competent professional in your area that has a history of dealing with this. You’ll see that kind of experience really pays off.
Professional Help
One of the things I think many dog trainers, maybe even myself, struggle with is articulating some things that just come naturally to us. I know there are things that I’m doing because of my experience that I do reflexively because I’ve learned to do them. However, I don’t always know how to explain them or articulate them to my clients. Having that trained professional there, watching them work with your dog, and critiquing you can be a huge help.
If your dog is good at everything, but you’re struggling with that one thing, keep attacking that problem and finding a way. Where there’s a will, there’s a way. I’ve met very few dogs whose owners are committed to the process of training and building a daily dog training habit that doesn’t end up succeeding in some form or another.
I hope this helps! If you want more tips like this, you can find them right here on my website at www.longoriahausdogtraining.com.
Happy Training!
