Embrace your dog’s natural behaviours
Would you expect a pet sheep to stop eating grass?
Somewhere in the annals of the last 100 years, humans developed what I call "good dog syndrome".
The notion that a dog has to be perfectly behaved and fit in with every aspect of a human's life. We often expect such high standards of behaviour from dogs that we would not expect from any other animal, our children or even ourselves.
Whilst a dog is not a wolf, it is still an animal with its own set of genetic behaviours, drives and desires.
Our dogs do not owe us what we perceive to be good behaviour. In fact our dogs have no understanding or concept of what that is. They did not ask to be born, they did not ask for their set of genetic traits and they did not ask to live with those genetical traits in a domestic human setting.
Therefore we do owe it to our dogs to understand what those set of genetical traits are and try to accommodate them with natural safe outlets as much as possible. And sometimes just to have a good old bloody laugh at how bonkers they are. Especially working dogs.
The beauty of this approach is that it actually releases you from "good dog syndrome" and helps you see them as an animal and enjoy and synchronise with the real beauty that is inside of them.
Simple tips to synchronise with your dog's drives:
Rewarding stealing is actually a retrieve
Inviting them to chase you is actually a recall
Let them dig because they bloody enjoy it
Giving them things to chew means they are less likely to chew your house
Sniffing things out makes them feel good and relaxed
Pick the battles that actually matter, so you don't overwhelm yourself with training tasks (in most cases a dog on the sofa is not the end of the world, in fact it can make them very happy)
In most cases adolescent behaviour is highly variable and frustrating and the dog you think you want will probably not show themselves until after 2 years old - be patient
So embrace your dog’s natural behaviours and have fun with them.
Call me for a free and honest chat that will get you and your dog on the right path.