Who Was That Masked Trainer?
Back in the day, as in way, way, back, TV and comic book heroes usually wore masks to disguise themselves. As the Lone Ranger road off into the sunset on his trusty steed, someone always asked, “Who was that masked man?” And then there was Superman who didn’t need a mask because his eye glasses were a total face changer!
Dog trainers, while not exactly super heroes, although, if we succeed in educating the pet guardian, we hopefully can save the poor dog from the misguided instincts of their owner. No, we don’t wear masks as part of our garb, however, for the many of us who didn’t feel bullet-proof, we wore them during COVID. Heck, I would have worn a hazmat suit, if I were’t so self- conscious.
And now I’ll digress…
One of the (many) things I’ve been chastised for is wearing my thoughts on my face. I was unaware that I had zero control of my facial expressions until an erstwhile friend started yelling at me for being so horrible to her. I was absolutely shocked, because I hadn’t said a word, and yet she accused me of, among other things, calling her a moron. I figured she must have been a mind reader or something until one day, I caught my reflection in the mirror as I was talking on the phone…Yikes, my face speaks profanities.
The point is that I have to be extremely careful in a professional setting to listen while trying to control my face.
In any given training session, I’ll ask the client if they have questions, and I’m usually anticipating to answer questions about how long to practice the exercises with their puppy, discuss a good product to remove pet stains, or perhaps lay out examples so that they learn how to meet the dog’s physical and emotional needs, and I promise that my strategies do not include hurting their dog.
But sometimes I am blindsided by questions that, based on their enthusiasm, they weren’t really looking for a professional answer, but rather, they wanted me know that they had come up with an ingenious way of working with their dog, and maybe I would be interested in sharing this inspiring technique with my other clients.
As an example, I was asked, “How do you stop the dog from barking?” Before I could ask them to be more specific, the client gleefully told me that they’ve been actually holding their dog’s muzzle closed. Or this question that I was not ready for, “What do you think of having the dog wear a backpack full of heavy rocks to reduce his hyperactivity? Just wondering your thoughts, because I’ve actually done this, and it works!”
I only wish I had the personality to ponder this in a calm demeanor such as, “Well, that’s such an interesting question.” Unfortunately, at these times, I begin to come unglued as my face contorts and betrays my attempt to calmly explain why these awful decisions are perhaps not good for their dog’s wellbeing.
Thanks to COVID, however, my interactions with clients has changed for the better. Now, armed with my trusty N95 mask that covers most of my face, I can disguise my expression and appear unflappable like a super hero is supposed to be.
“Who was that masked trainer?” They ask as I ride the bus into the sunset.
HAPPY TRAINING & ENRICHMENT
© Fran Berry CPDT-KA, UW-AAB all rights reserved 2024
