Secret Dog Trainer Pet Peeve #432. The “use it or lose it” dilemma.

I was more than a little excited to see my next dog training client. So excited, in fact, that I was waiting at the door, peering out into the parking lot of the training facility.

These were smart, dedicated dog owners; and I was anxious to see how they had progressed since our last session.

As I saw their car pull into the parking lot - right on time - I looked forward to watching them walk the dog in.

When they began working with me, their dog had been a lunging, barking tyrant on the leash.

But so far, training had gone really, really well - and he’d begun to be transformed into a dog who actually cared who was at the other end of the leash. The last time he’d been in, he was actively and happily looking to them for guidance, even when there were other dogs or people around.

They had been on vacation for 2 weeks, but there had been no emails expressing any troubles, so I was more than hopeful things were still right on track.

Here they came….

And…my heart dropped.

You know the kind of disappointment that even if you’ve experienced it a hundred times - it still hits you right in the gut every time it happens?

Yeah.

The small-but-strong dog was dragging hard on the leash; hard enough to be coughing and gagging. His training collar and the handling skills I’d worked so hard to teach the owners in previous weeks were nowhere to be seen.

I opened the door to the training facility and instructed them to have him wait politely for permission to enter.

Neither owner seemed to remember this exercise we’d taught the very first week, and he barged in, bouncing off my leg like I was his personal trampoline.

As he entered, he caught sight of another dog through the window, and began barking and lunging immediately.

”He’s just SOOOO excited!” they exclaimed…revealing that at least in this moment, they believed excitement was a viable excuse for poor behavior.

Without proper training equipment, and with his owners not requiring even the bare minimum of manners, my only hope was to hurry him into the training room, and try to do as much damage control as possible.

“Where’s his training collar?” I asked.

The reply was that their pet sitter had lost it somewhere…(who knows when).

<SREEEEEEACH> Let’s hit rewind here, and try to figure out what has happened?!

Unfortunately, trainers like me see this trend over and over and over.

Sometimes it takes only a few weeks between sessions for things to unravel.

Sometimes, it’s several months - or even years - before we get an email or a call from a past client whose dog is melting down.

Most of the time, these are owners and dogs who excelled in training. Passed their tests with flying colors. Some dogs have even overcome pretty major behavior issues.

So what happens???

Very often, when we trainers dig deeper - either by seeing the dog and owners again, or even just with a quick phone call or over email - we see the same cause/effect of a dog ‘losing’ its training.

Can you guess what that cause/effect is?

INCONSISTENCY & LACK of MAINTENANCE

My fellow dog trainers and I are always flummoxed when we see owners that have STOPPED USING WHAT WORKS!

But sadly, we see it over and over again.

The training collar and proper leash handling stops their dog from pulling, dragging, lunging on the leash, just as well as snow tires give their car traction in the snow. But they stop using the collar, or the techniques that were making walks pleasant.

Requiring a ‘sit’ for greetings keeps their dog polite and under control in social situations. But before the behavior is cemented into muscle memory for the dog, they stop requiring the dog do it.

Using the “go to place” command allows the dog the privilege of being with them wherever they are, but under control and in a relaxed state….But once again, it gets taught in beginning training, but slowly falls by the wayside as far as being practiced and reinforced regularly.

Simple manners-commands like “wait” and “leave it” (that could be life-saving in some situations) also drop off like the leaves of a tree in autumn.

Pretty soon, the star obedience school student is back to pulling on the leash, snarking at other dogs, jumping on visitors - or worse.

Once back under the trainer’s tutelage, owner and dog magically ‘remember’ their training, and often the problems can be reeled back in, and harmony restored.

Proper use of rules, boundaries, and training equipment begins again.

Reinforcement - and consistency and maintenance - of all the education and training that happened during the initial training phase brings it right back to the top of consciousness for both dog and owner.

And yet - I have a serious question for the dog owners out there: If you had the tools and saw the success, why did you stop doing what was working?

I am not trying to be accusatory or obtuse. I really do want to know. Is this just a human nature issue?

Did we not make it clear that we weren’t going to magically ‘change’ your dog - but that we would be giving you equipment, techniques and skills that would allow you to change his behavior, if you continued to use those techniques and skills? That equipment?

Are the things we trainers ask you to do, or the equipment we assign, or the upkeep of commands really too demanding? Even if they make life easier and better for you and your dogs?

I have to ask: If you neglected to put your snow tires on in the winter, would you call the tire dealer and ask why your car is sliding about in the snow?

The same rules of maintaining your car apply to maintaining your dog’s training. If you don’t use it - you (and the dog) will lose it.

As a dog trainer, I am trying to find the ‘magic phrase’ or some way to explain this to you - and future clients - in a way that sticks! Because in the end, your dog didn’t change. You did. You stopped using what worked.