October 2007 Archives

Aussi Vinnie was never socialized as a puppy, so we essentially had to teach the dog how to be a dog! And the best way I know to accomplish that is to bring that dog into a pack of balanced dogs because they can influence a dog in a way that humans can’t.

The dogs from my pack deal with aggressive, insecure, and fearful dogs on a daily basis and have learned not to attack – which would actually be their instinctual response. Instead, because they trust and respect the judgment of their pack leader – me – they don’t follow those instincts. And that allows them to help other dogs. I look at it as a kind of manipulation of Mother Nature, but in a way that is best for all the dogs involved.

Some people disagree with one particular rehabilitation technique that I sometimes use: bringing a dog to literally face its fears in order to overcome that fear. Mind you, this is always done in a controlled and supervised manner. Critics have called this “flooding,” but the more accurate term is “exposure,” and it’s actually the most effective method used by human psychologists to help people overcome phobias.

If exposing a dog to what she fears will cause only minimum stress and help her to get over those fears forever, then that to me is a smart and logical method to choose. With Abbey, I determined that this was the right method for her and it worked perfectly. But before I decided on the method, I spent time with her to gain her trust and respect. That allowed me to challenge her in a way the owner would not be able to do alone.

Since dogs can’t tell you their feelings, I believe as a professional, I must carefully assess the situation and choose the method that is best for that individual dog. I know that there is no “one size fits all” way to rehabilitate, just as there is no “one size fits all” human therapy. My strategies and techniques are based on both my 20 years of experience working with hundreds of dogs, and my instincts.

When you have a group of people who are all equally responsible for a dog, it’s important to have rules in place. In a household like the MacMahon’s, where employees work out of their home, it’s the responsibility of the dog’s owners to teach the employees what their rules, boundaries, and limitations are. It’s important that everyone who is interacting with the dog have the correct energy and way of relating with the animal. I would never hire anyone who doesn’t want to follow the rules that benefit my pack. If everyone works together for the good of the pack, you can guarantee a happy and peaceful work environment.

Because dogs pick up on our emotions, it’s important to keep yours in check when dealing with your pooch. If your stress level is high, you may need someone else with you to remind you to stay calm and assertive; a sort of an unofficial “coach” to observe, correct, and cheer you on.

A lot of times, we need a neutral third party to see ourselves from the outside. The most important thing is that you find somebody who will watch and evaluate, but not judge. That person should have your –and your dog’s-- best interests at heart.

One thing about instincts is that they will always create balance because it means you are connected to the environment around you. Michelle is a cancer survivor and someone who knows how to follow her own instincts. The problems with her family dogs arose when her parents disregarded those instincts.

In dealing with animals, the best time to listen to and follow your instincts is when you are calm and there are no negative voices in your head and no one giving you pessimistic input.

Now we’ve all seen how dogs tend to greet each other. And it’s easy for a little dog to become overwhelmed when a bigger dog comes over to say hello. Can you blame a Chihuahua for becoming a little frantic if say, an English Mastiff is towering over him? The Chihuahua doesn’t immediately know that the mastiff won’t hurt him. He just sees this massive amount of energy coming towards him.

But since that’s dogs’ nature in how they greet each other and you can’t change that, I try and help the little ones gain confidence with they meet other dogs.

Energy is energy, regardless of the state of mind, so when I work with an insecure little dog, I do have a tendency to grab hold of him or her, in order to have absolute control right away. This way, the rest of the pack can smell the dog without the little dog acting out and I can gauge the kind of reaction the little dog might have.

Once they’re done sniffing, I place the dog on the ground and create a big enough personal space, so the other dogs feel that I “own” this little dog – my energy will reflect that. And I'll let them know when it’s okay for them to come back over.

Without a doubt, fearful dogs are more difficult to rehabilitate than aggressive dogs. A red-zone aggression case often takes me no more than thirty minutes to make a difference, but a fearful dog can sometimes take me two months. Why? It’s a self-esteem issue. A lot of times, when a dog is afraid to confront a situation, they are lacking in self-esteem. In other words, they don’t believe they can trust themselves to handle the situation. And it’s a vicious cycle because the more they run away from the situation, the more it conditions the brain to flee or avoid.