There's
a lot of talk these days about training styles and
methods. I suppose there has always been talk
about such stuff among dog people. I don't
subscribe to any particular method or style, but I
do have something to say about such stuff. Oh, you
knew that.
I
believe that whatever methods you use should be
fair, humane and effective. Those are, of course,
super-charged words and everyone's going to have
their own definition. If you're in doubt about
whether your methods meet even your own
definitions, ask around. There is no shortage of
people willing to voice their opinions on the
subject. Ask your vet, groomer, best friend, and
your Uncle Joe what they think of your training
style. They'll tell you. In cyberspace you can
visit newsgroups,
and e-mail lists.
You'll get good advice, bad advice and
you've-got-to-be-kidding! advice. Take what works
for you and throw out the rest, but only after
careful consideration. When I
was first learning about canine behavior and
training I was adamant about not using food
treats. No dog of mine was going to be bribed into
doing what I said! It took me a lot longer to
really evaluate the use of food as a training tool
because I wouldn't even listen to the arguments in
favor of the practice. Being stubborn won't help
your training skills evolve, being open to other
ideas will.
I use
methods and tools that are comfortable for me and
those that complement my individual style of
training. I start all dogs on a flat leather or
nylon collar. If we need to graduate to something
that allows more control, I use a martingale type
collar or a Gentle Leader halter. I never use
metal slip, or "choke" collars because I
think they carry a higher than average risk of
causing tracheal damage, it's difficult to get Mr.
and Ms. JQP to use them properly, and, most
importantly, I'm not comfortable with using them.
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