How Relationship Affects Behavior

I was referred to Doug, and his beautiful Labrador Retriever Carlos, by a good friend. Doug was having problems with Carlos at dog shows where he would bark and lunge at other dogs, much to the disappointment of Doug. This also happened on walks and around town!

I really thought that there would be some serious issues. Doug showed up with ecollar, prong collar and just about everything else. He said he had been using the ecollar to correct Carlos for this behavior.

The first thing I always try to see when training a dog with these kind of issues is the relationship between dog and human. That, most often is the issue…. as was the case here.

I think this video comes at a great time, because of all the controversy on the internet about using tools and how some people just resort to them. You’ll see in my video that I, often times, will take tools away when not necessary – but I like them to be available. This one just broke down to a relationship issue and one that was easy for the dog to understand, once I was able to get Doug to see a clear picture.

This is a two part lesson. This is day one and you’ll see all the things we worked through at a public park with Carlos meeting so many dogs and people. He really is a great dog and Doug is a fantastic owner who is really dedicated to helping and training him!

Take this lesson as a VERY valuable lesson in understanding how critical our energy and communication with our dog is! This one, and the one coming next is PURE GOLD!