Plymouth
Dog Behaviour Training (R+ (CANRG) = Pack leader. People
argue between Victoria Stilwell Positive Reinforcement (R+)
method and Cesar Milan immersion therapy methods. At times
people will label a canine issue as requiring dog training
or dog behaviour rehabilitation, instead of implementing both.
Also using pet care services like our Plymouth
dog walking for regular exercise, or home boarding; Plymouth
Dog Boarding or Plymouth
Dog Sitting visits can be less stressful and help.
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What
I tell them from my 38 years thirst for knowledge, research
reading endless amount of books, lectures and experience with
a university degree. Also a former parachute regiment
dog handler, but firstly practically educated on
a farm from a very young age with varied breeds of dogs and
animals. A social unit of dogs is simply called the
"pack". You can observe any breed and see
the same characteristics with the mother raising her pack.
It has been proven with DNA sequencing the domestic
dog is also a subspecies of the grey wolf
pack animal (Canis lupus), and shares many of its
behavioural characteristics. Although certain aspects go on
being questioned, the main body of evidence confirms it is
fact. Although there are important and distinct
differences between dogs and wolves, fashionable latest philosophy
views from behaviourists can blur and contradict this scientific
fact that a dog has pack mentality. Dogs rely on instinct
and the pack leader in the wild. Domestic house dogs have
no pack leader from the moment they enter your life, but was
born with one and taken away from leader who has been teaching
discipline by setting rules from a young age. The day we get
our new friend, if we left them to that dog instinct many
would be euthanized for eating a neighbour's cat or small
dog, biting a child or being run down on the road chasing
cars. We have to be firm calm assertive leader and more, for
many of these and other reasons. Even though a dog thinks
he is making an intelligent decision to cross a river at the
shorter distance point, they do not have the human knowledge
of choices, free will and can rationalise. The rapids could
injure or drown a dog, pollution in the water or the fast
speed boat approaching. No means no and the owner needs to
form a leadership bond with trust and respect. Modern day
life has many obstacles that we need to introduce our beloved
K9 to in the correct manner to achieve balance. The dog needs
to follow calm pack leader "someone in charge" AKA
the boss and look for instruction. All dogs are born to follow.
Free will has been at debate with philosophy,
psychology and dog trainers for decades. For some
reason we want to think of our dog as a free spirit with free
will not just a personality is enough. To understand the term
Free will we need to go back. Free will was earliest seen
and documented in the bible. This section
of Scripture clearly shows man's
free will to accept or reject God's calling, to do good or
Evil. Does a dog know he/she is doing, good or evil and accept
doggy heaven? In holding that free will is a feature of a
human's soul, and thus that non-human animal's lack free will.
Humans have a habit to manipulate words, meanings and over
complicate to feel self worth, to be known has educated. Give
long explanations but really are trying to take another one's
free will and condition other humans not to think but follow.
Having the intelligence to act without the instruction of
others and stick to facts. Food for thought as many don't
like to be wrong and see the simple facts. Many trainers say
Cesar Millan as put back dog training forty
years and many say that just (R+) lure-and-reward
trainers like Victoria Stilwell or even Ian Dunbar have
done the same. Fortunately for some, a dog can't speak and
debate theory or fact and have this free will. Unfortunately
lure-and-reward does not always work with all dogs and is
much more suited to puppies from the day you get them with
training off leash and socialised because this is where problems
start. I'm not in any camp. I have always been flexible with
dog and owner depending on behaviour. Taking in to consideration,
instinct, innate behaviour will to serve (WTS), will to power
(WTP) and that dogs live in the moment, as human we also need
to be flexible with a more democratic in nature leadership
and takes a dog's specific issues and needs into account.
Dogs should have fun and reward training but with rules and
structure.
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Victoria
Stilwell is a well respected dog trainer while
Cesar Milan
is considered a dog behaviourist. There is a vast difference
in these two titles and a fine line in my opinion when these
methods should be used.
My wife and I have been using both methods for years depending
on the situation and the dog. |
| Victoria
Stilwell Positive Reinforcement (R+) occurs when
an unwanted behaviour is followed by a stimulus to redirect
and condition a new wanted dog
behaviour (commonly seen as a pleasant reward), in turn
increasing the frequency of the new behaviour. Cesar
Milan's immersion therapy or "flooding" is
a psychological technique which allows a dog to overcome fears
(phobias). Cesar's general method consists of humans being a
dog's "Pack Leader" with calm assertive
energy (CANRG) Unfortunately not all humans
know how to lead but Plymouth Pet Care can show you how. |
| I
will now give some examples to understand these methods. |
Stilwell's
Positive Reinforcement (R+) dog training,
like a lot of dog trainers, often use distracting tools and
reward systems to influence a dog's behaviour or bad habit.
For instance, if your dog is overly excited or aggressive
when he sees other dogs, Stilwell's approach would be to wave
food or a favourite toy in front of your canine's nose in
the hope that he will choose to pay attention to food over
fighting with a dog. Repetition can eventually lead to your
dog to wait for treats when he sees other dogs, rather than
go after them. However not all dogs can be redirected by treats
and toys once in a higher state of flight or fight without
a professional trainer honing your technique. I have seen
many dogs break free from the lead or yard and no treat or
toy will redirect the higher stage of flight or fight. Possibly
due to the owner's timing and not recognising signs such as
ears, eyes, tail and body language. Not every dog responds
to these methods because every dog is different. Not every
dog can be influenced by food or a toy 100% of the time. Also
if you can't reconise a dogs state of mind and forms of flight
you can be rewarding, nurturing and reinforcing bad behaviour
with this method. Stilwell's
methods in my opinion are great when training a puppy and/or
a young dog to condition and redirect behaviour with repetition.
Also I feel Cesar's method deals with the problem at hand.
So it is important to understand the slight differences in
their methods and when to apply the correct method.
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Cesar
Milan
'Dog Behaviourist' method is quite different
in such a circumstance from above we call it the calm
assertive energy (CANRG). Instead of distracting your
dog from other dogs while on a walk with food or a toy, Cesar
would bring your problem canine right to the other dog and correct
each and every moment of aggression, fear or anxiety using precise
timing. The exercise would not be considered complete until
your dog can sit calmly in the presence of other dogs. Repetition
of this type of method can result in a dog that is actually
rehabilitated, not simply distracted with food or a
toy. This however does not mean Milan will not use the latter.
Cesar uses (R+) most of the time in appropriate circumstances
to build trust and respect with is calm assertive energy (CANRG).
In the dog's natural world, their fellow canine pack members
don't bribe them to get them to stop unwanted behaviours. This
would most certainly be detrimental to the pack. Pack leader
will give them a warning, setting rules, boundaries and limitations
and finally a correction, the problem is solved.
Many say Milan's method is putting a dog in the very situation
that it fears in order to show it as harmless thus believing
it may intensify the fear and anxiety of the animal. People
feel it puts more stress on a creature that cannot understand
why it's being forced into scary situations. I do agree his
methods may intensify fear and anxiety, but a dog will always
respect and trust its pack leader this is not a punishment like
some people think but rules, boundaries and limitations;
the same any mother or animal would give to its offspring.
We as humans have created the fears and anxiety in our dogs.
You never see a tramp with an uncontrollable dog but a strong
pack leader with his dog in tow ignoring the local pooch. With
using leadership management with structure everyday and leading
your dog into every situation you are becoming leader. |
A
simple example of immersion therapy many disagree with.
I was scared of the dark when I was young, but my father who
I trusted "Pack leader" would sit with me. You could
say he used immersion therapy method years ago without knowing
it. He did not redirect me with toys but reassured me whilst
in the dark. I feel he turned a negative into a positive and
showed me nothing would happen in darkness. Rules the light
had to stay off, boundaries I was not allowed in bed with mother
and father. I had total trust in the pack leaders and respect
them both. I did not feel punished like some believe dogs would.
Like a dog, no judgement and no questions. Just love! I understand. |
So
you could say methods like those taught by Cesar Milan, rehabilitate
unwanted behaviour from dogs, but then I believe training
tools like those from Victoria Stilwell can be very useful,
every dog is different.
Both trainers alternate methods at times, but
it's a fine line when to do so because of the wrong messages
you can give a dog. However I believe, there is no training
method that can break a dog from dominance aggression, fear,
obsession, or any number of very serious and unwanted behaviours.
To rid a dog of these things, it takes a leader with a calm
energy like my father. It takes behaviour rehabilitation,
50% Exercise 25% Discipline 25% affection, not just dog training.
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Stillwell
respects the dog's nature and its willingness to please
its master, like many trainers teaching the dog to follow. She
does use strong calm energy and takes no prisoners. Some people
say a trained dog perceives you as pack leader and some say
it's a 'broken spirited' animal but my question is, is this
true? Stillwell introduces the fear-producing situations gradually
and uses distractions without causing it more stress, but the
anticipation and anxiety is still there and we would be arrogant
to think otherwise.
I feel mother -nature does not introduce fear invoking situations
gradually and in our life we cannot be at home 24hrs a day.
We have free will and choices a dog does not have, so be a Positive
Reinforcement (R+) and a calm assertive energy (CANRG) pack
leader, walk your dog and have rules. |
If
all humans acted in ways that brought balance to their
dogs, we would have far less problems with dogs that are out
of control. This is the aim of Plymouth Pet Care, Milan, Stillwell
and other dog trainers.
From firsthand experience I know far too well how many problems
we humans create in our dogs. Milan's method of 'getting back
to nature, back to basics, and back in touch with our energy'
are positive ways of getting any dog to follow you willingly
and have total trust and respect in you, the pack leader. It
can be perceived that Milan's method is punitive and forcing
a dog to behave, but I believe this is a case of misinterpretation
and misunderstanding. A dog is a pack animal first and must
have a pack leader. Milan's method calm assertive energy (CANRG)
emulates mother-nature in the way it was intended. Stillwell's
method, positive reinforcement (R+) enhances the dog's ability
to learn while increasing confidence, results in a healthy,
well-adjusted pet. Nature's pack leader rewards in the same
way but without so many treats and toys. |
Plymouth
Pet Care (PPC) positive leadership program
effective training approach establishes and enhances communication,
by calm assertive energy (CANRG) leadership, positive reinforcement
(R+) but in the appropriate circumstances with structure,
setting rules, boundaries and limitations. I personally
feel long term use of treats or lures to keep a dog's attention
actually demonstrates a lack of these things as nothing in
life is free. That's not a healthy human/dog relationship.
Your dog like us is required to work for anything he/she needs
or desires (food, toys, attention, access to the outdoors
etc.). In effect he must "earn" all valued resources
by first obeying a command, such as SIT or DOWN and NO means
NO. The objective is to have the dog follow the owner's directives
and correction as and when issued. If owners are consistent
with this approach, the dog will learn that he must look to
them to obtain anything he needs or wants, such as food, freedom,
play, and social interaction. If the dog learns to respect
and trust his owners in this way, he will be more likely to
turn to them for direction when he's feeling challenged or
fearful and will be more likely to need directions or you
can also stop unwanted behaviour by command.
With any Behaviour exercise is key to ensure that the dog
is being fulfilled. If you can exercise round your breeds
requirements, the better.
I hope owners can appreciate the difference, and realise they
can expect more from their dogs without feeling defeated with
just one method or trainer. There is a fine line between all
trainers methods which all normally over lap. Trainers can
get stuck in thier ways and just train a dog but not address
the behaviour. We want the dog to follow from trust, respect
and unconditional love for the owner, but you could argue
we are conditioning this love for both dog and owners benefits.
Knowledge
of timing with positive reinforcement (R+) and a calm assertive
energy with communication & structure (R+ (CANRG) = Pack
leader. We have 100% success with owners who follow
our (PPC) positive leadership program
and don't punch out on any beahviour. "Remember
Animal,
Dog,
then Bread 50% Exercise 25% Discipline 25% affection"
By P.W.James |
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