Dog Training with Love

Years ago, most dog trainers used harsh methods training dogs, and I learned those methods at the same time. During this time, people were advocating snapping collars and whapping dogs. Some trainers advocated downright cruel techniques. It's a wonder any dogs got trained back then.

Oddly enough, while growing up, I had a book from Lassie's trainer, Rudd Weatherwax, who advocated positive training. Who would've thought that someone in the early 70s taught their dogs using mostly positive techniques? Weatherwax talked about his dogs and his genuine love for them, teaching them with food and praise, not harsh corrections.

But somehow, through various popular trainers, I forgot those lessons and had to relearn them again.

Enter Conan the Idiot

When I got my first dog as an adult, it was Conan, a black Newfoundland/Samoyed mix. In retrospect, I should've adopted a more trainable animal, like a mule. Conan had all the stubbornness of both breeds, combined with the genetics from random and poor breeding practices. It took me two years to get this poor dog housetrained and about the same time to stop him from chewing on humans. With each collar snap and each correction, I felt like the bad guy (and I was), and I started to wonder if there was a better way.

I had heard of positive reinforcement, but thought it was a worthless concept. I could barely keep Conan behaving with his buddy, Cuawn, the Australian Shepherd (also adopted). Training classes helped, but the dog was so neurotic by this time, that I was wondering what to do.

A Happy Discovery

Occasionally, even a Nimrod like me chances on a happy discovery. I had heard about weightpulling and sledding, and I thought that maybe this was something Conan would "get" and enjoy. The moment I put him in the harness, he lit up and shined like a champion. Here was something he could do and something he was good at! The light went on and it was as if he said to me: "Now, you get it! I'm a sled dog!"

I didn't have a sled at first, but I had two leashes: one I attached to his flat collar and the other to the end of the harness called a tug loop. We ran around the neighborhood in that fashion with me shouting commands to him: gee, haw, whoa, and of course, hike up! Doing this was like feeding a kid candy. The more he did, the more he wanted to do. I trained him and his buddy for lead dog work with commands and praise. You can use punishment, but it really didn't work well, and I was using it less and less. Instead, I found Conan's motivation was running in a team. He wanted to do this and his behavior problems ended. He was suddenly a great dog.

Bigger Teams, Bigger Problems

Eventually, I graduated to bigger teams. I started learning and hearing more about positive reinforcement, but couldn't see how that would apply to a sled dog team. After all, you can't toss treats in the team and not expect a fight over it. But, you could give them treats at the end of the run (which I did), and you could give verbal praise, which I did. The reward, I found, was letting them run with their team members. By keeping the sled tied off and waiting for the dogs to calm down eventually, I had calmer dogs. When I was ready, they were off and running.

There is no way a human can out-muscle a team of 8 or more dogs. I was running teams anywhere from 6 to 14, depending on my level of insanity. It's not as if you can jump off the sled and whap a dog at that point; they'd take off and leave you stranded in the middle of nowhere. You needed to have dogs who would listen and obey without much issues.

It doesn't mean my dogs didn't cut up; they sure did. But I found that a stern word or a "noooo..." got them back on track, and they were happy and bouncy as usual.

Lessons Learned

Looking back, I think about all the lessons I've learned about dogs. One is that they really do prefer to keep you as head of the pack, but will challenge you if you're a total idiot. Dogs need to have a job to do, especially the working breeds, because they're naturally inclined to have a lot of energy. Often, their reward is doing a good job and receiving your praise, not necessarily a treat or biscuit. Most dogs are willing to do what you want them to do, but you have to speak their language. Lastly, you need to form a bond with the dogs - call it love, or something else - to train them to really do what you want them to. It's much more satisfying and a lot easier than yelling, snapping a chain, or hitting a dog.

Reference

"The Lassie Method," Rudd Weatherwax, Western Publishing Company, 1971.

"Northern Breeds," Margaret H. Bonham, Barron's Educational Series, 2001.

"Skijor with Your Dog," Carol Kaynor and Mari Hoe-Raitto, OK Publishing, 1991.