I love teaching dog obedience classes inside my clients homes! Seeing a dramatic change in a dog’s mental state is invigorating for me and my clients!
Jasper is a typical small dog who presents a nervous and frightened state of mind. His inner thought monologue consists mostly of wildly worrisome thoughts, fears and overreactions. I know that a dog’s psyche can be filled up with highly over-reactive responses from any number of “triggers”. Jasper truly needed to take dog obedience classes to help his calm down and focus.
Dog Obedience Classes Work
Dogs like Jasper can be triggered by any of the following and more: a stern voice, a provocative movement, a hand gesture, any new sound, hearing a Gardner working, nearby traffic, another dog barking, opening a door, getting out of bed, a doorbell…you got the idea!
When Jasper is introduced to a calmer approach to dog obedience classes, he will respond less reactively. Because he’s susceptible to hundreds of these everyday triggers, a dog like Jasper would do well with dog obedience classes.
There Is Little Comfort Inside Some Dogs Heads
Insecurity lies in both small dogs and bigger dogs. Either way, dog obedience classes and calm handling can help dogs through overwhelming feelings! Many people experience this same overwhelming sense of having too much going on and being overwhelmed.
When you reach that point…what do you do to relax? Take a hot bath, drink a glass of wine, get a professional massage, take a vacation, go out and have a long dinner with friends…? Dogs have no way to decompress like humans do, nor do they realize that they SHOULD decompress or relax. They need to be shown how to relax!
Dogs don’t realize that they need to relax like humans do. Humans can decide to relax and then go do it, but dogs don’t know that option even exists. Once in that overwhelmed state, dog’s have no way to get themselves out of it, nor do they know that’s even an option, so they just stay stressed out.
A Good Massage Can Go a Long Way
A very important part of my dog obedience classes, is to give dogs a well needed neck, and back massage. I find dogs so wound up and tense that it makes it hard for them to walk or to think clearly. When I show them they can actually have a relaxed state of mind, they sort of melt into a new reality. My dog obedience classes offer massage treatment that give dogs a breather from fears and worry.
Once the dog learns to feel what it’s like to actually BE RELAXED, then they now have a point of reference to return to. Notice Jasper’s eyes change in all the pictures!
Dog Obedience Classes Help Dogs Respond Appropriately
What I attempt and mostly succeed in doing for a dog’s mental state, is to give them something to concentrate on other than their “inner monologue of fears”. My dog obedience classes help dogs listen and respond appropriately. I ask them to Stop-Sit-and Wait for the next command.
I want dogs to find the moments when they “KNOW” they are calm and relaxed. That place now becomes the seed of confidence that they can then begin to rely on in “knowing” and not of “fearing” the unknown.
My dog obedience classes help their journey of learning to listening to what makes the trainer happy and ultimately the dog happy. A shared moment of connection between man and dog becomes a string of those moments that all link together to form the true and lasting bond.
Dog Obedience Classes Reflect My Philosophy
Without proper dog obedience classes, dogs may become “independent” thinkers and develop “issues”.
Proper dog obedience classes give dogs some basic boundaries and rules and some organized order for them to follow in the home. The leash keeps them listening and connected and focused on their owner and of their rules and requests. The leash becomes the telephone line that puts your thoughts straight into your dogs head.
Everyone Wants a Perfectly Trained Dog
Dogs will make bad decisions that effect everyone around them, because…dogs want to do what they want to do, when they want to do it! It’s what dogs do! So, it’s the owners job to guide their dog along the path of doing what the owners want them to do. This is easier than it sounds and is where I come in!
When a dog undergoes training with me, or they spend a day with me, (Dog Day Transformation), they first learn how to be calmer. I want dogs to create a detour around those well warn overreactions or triggers.
I say…Invest in your dogs mental state and it will pay off in dividends for the rest of your time together.
