Do you Believe in Magic?
“There’s a sucker born every minute.” That quote, while often credited to PT Barnum, has not been verified, however, other sources mention that in the late 1800s this catch-phrase was mostly associated with gamblers and con artists.
As usual, you may be wondering what any of this has to do with the dignified profession of dog training, and so I will digress…
Several months ago I consulted with a client who had an extremely fearful puppy. Prior to adopting the pup, she was coerced into having the breeder’s brother-in-law, obedience train this defenseless 10 week old pup to heel, sit, come when called and lie down. Imagine sending your 2 year old child to a military school for some basic table manners and such. Unbelievable that the pet parent thought this was sound advice or that we have trainers who are allowed…Actually we do have trainers doing irrational things because, as I may have mentioned in every blog, anyone can call themselves a dog trainer in this unregulated industry.
In her attempt to convince me that this guy was a rockstar, positive reinforcement trainer, the client sent me videos of the trainer’s dog going through obedience drills without wearing a prong or electric collar! Unfortunately, this poor wide eyed, high stepping, panting, panicking dog told a different story. Dogs trained with aversive methods often convey a fearful anticipation of a leash pop or a few zaps of electricity from an e-collar, done off camera, of course.
It isn’t magic that you see, but rather what you don’t see off camera. In order to have a dog fear you enough to respond to your commands, you have to threaten him so much that just the mere hissing sound reminds the dog that punishment will follow.
This is not the first time, I’ve seen these disturbing videos with the voiceover informing the viewer how “calm” the dog is.
The typical comments I hear about Cesar Milan or other copycat noxious trainers are, “He only has to use a “hiss” sound to communicate ‘calm assertiveness’ and the dogs just stand at attention; he is incredible!” Other times I hear, “Well I don’t see the trainer hurting the dog!”
And this is the problem! Just like the con artist who distracts you with his left hand, while the right hand is picking your pocket, you’re more focused on the distraction before you realize your wallet is missing.
Critical thinking, I fear, is a thing of the past. What people should be asking is what is the mechanism that has a dog jump to attention when some trainer makes a silly sound? I promise you that if you mimic a Cesar Milan video by hissing at your own dog, he is not going to become obedient. He may laugh at you, but I can assure you he will be unfazed at your antics.
Years back I went to see a local self proclaimed pit bull expert give a training talk to his loyal followers. It was worth the few dollars just to hear him tell how he magically pulled a docile (formerly aggressive dog) from his hat.
He claimed he used a clicker to train his dogs, but after asking him about the technique, he mentioned that he uses his clicker differently than other trainers. Well of course he does, because he’s an “expert”. After further query, he admitted that he clicks and then “taps” the dog with his foot. A Magic clicker, not! Instead of the click predicting food, he taught the dogs that the click predicts a kick in the butt, so now upon hearing the sound of the clicker, the dogs, fearing the unpleasant kick, become “obedient”. In actuality, these poor dogs often become fearful, ticking time-bombs!
Sure we want the magic genie to quick fix what we perceive as bad dog-behavior; unfortunately this kind of magic is from the slight of hand or foot, as it were!
The unrealistic expectations of dog owners has them paying big bucks to these con artists who claim to magically transform an “aggressive” dog to a biddable companion.
The real magic is when a professional trainer takes a “Do no Harm” approach and shows the pet parent how to help their dog thrive, after having suffered trauma from one of these “magicians”.
HAPPY TRAINING & ENRICHMENT
© Fran Berry CPDT-KA, UW-AAB all rights reserved 2023
