Ike's Story

     Ike was 8 weeks old when a family with two small children brought him into their home. They loved him and gave him lots of treats and affection. As he grew older and his activity level picked up, the father tried to correct him for jumping up, house soiling, barking, chewing, digging, and not coming when called. But Ike's behaviors continued to get worse - so he was sent to obedience class. Without waiting to get results from obedience class, the father increased the intensity of Ike's corrections.

     Now the dog was getting more aggressive and as he became sexually mature he started to growl at the kids. At this point the owners were advised neutering would "calm him down." However, Ike kept growling at the kids and, in fact, his aggression increased after he was neutered.

     The father had done his best to correct the growling by grabbing Ike's collar, yelling no, and pushing Ike into his cage where he stayed until the family thought he had been punished "long enough." Over the next few months, life in the household was out of control. Ike could not be left in the house alone and was now snapping at the kids.

     The owners, afraid that Ike would bite one of their children, elected to bring him to me for euthanasia.

     Catching your dog in the act of a bad behavior and correcting it does not make you a leader in your dog's eyes. Often corrections and positive punishment can have some very bad consequences.

     For example, if only dad corrects the family dog, the dog may learn to listen to him but not to the mom or the kids. I like to call this a "one man dog". The dog has learned that he has to put up with corrections from dad only. More than one wife has said to me that she can not give a strong enough correction to get control of their family dog. The owners grow more frustrated and continue to punish their dog, which increases the dog's anxiety.

     This is a very abusive relationship for the dog because he does not know how to get rewarded or how to keep from being punished. Additionally, if your dog is afraid of you he learns that bad behaviors are okay when he is alone or in the other room because he is afraid to do them in front of you.

     Some dogs that have been trained in this way learn helplessness. They stop attempting any behaviors, lie around and stop playing. These owners think their dog are now trained, but they have only broken their spirits and lost any chance for truly rewarding relationships with their dogs.

     On the other hand, some dogs, like Ike, take corrections as a challenge and become more aggressive. When Ike growled at the kids he was punished. Over time he associated the kids with punishment and as a result he really didn't like the kids.

     When Ike learned he'd be punished if he growled at the children he began to snap at them. If you punish the growl, all that is left is the bite. Now there is no warning growl to punish.

     Because the family could not take him back home, euthanasia papers were signed and Ike was left in the kennel. The owners had left it up to me to do what was right by Ike.

     When I saw him for the first time I was struck by his big brown eyes and I could not put him down. I thought that it was not his fault. In addition, he had been through obedience classes and was well trained. With my client's approval I decided to take him home.

     While Ike had learned a lot in obedience class, he had not learned how to be a pet dog. He was not taught how to get what he wants by doing what we want. Pet dog training teaches the dog that even kids know the commands and therefore have access to treats. And dogs love treats.

     We worked to earn his trust while crate training, house breaking and grooming him. He always kept us on our toes.

     Ike bent up the crate the first time we used it. It took three days to get him to tolerate his crate. When I fed him for the first time he lunged at me snapping until I was pushed against the kitchen sink. He had to be muzzled for grooming.

     We knew that his aggressive behavior had to be managed where he had no access to kids. So, in a child-free area, we rewarded Ike with praise and treats when he growled at us. Over time, he learned that when our hands were coming at him, good things were going to happen instead of punishment.

     Rewarded behavior repeats itself.

      Ike soon had run of the house and was a great pet.