Whether it is a relationship with owner and dog or with friends, family or loved ones. All relationships need a balance of Love, trust and respect. If a relationship seems damaged, then more than likely one of these three things is off balance. As a dog trainer these are the things we look for when we are working with a client and their dog. In this post we will break down the importance of having love, trust and respect with your dog.
Love is the easiest when it comes to your relationship with your dog. Love tends to come naturally; you love your dog and your dog loves you. Whether you are looking for the perfect dog for you and your family or get that feeling that you need to give a certain dog the perfect life. You go into it knowing you will love that dog and as your bond grows, the dogs love for you will grow as well. But it is possible to over love a dog. This doesn’t mean you shouldn’t love your dog as much as possible. We just have to make sure that we balance it with trust and respect. one of my favorite books I have read about dogs is Dog Is Love by Clive Wynne. This book shows how what makes dog so special is their ability to truly love. He then shows scientific research about the connection between humans and dogs as well as how dogs show love.
Trust and respect can be a bit more difficult. These are things that we need to earn from our dogs and our dogs need to earn from us as well. Not to say we don’t need to earn their love; it just tends to come more naturally and can be grown even stronger through training. The more we work with our dogs we build trust in them that they are going to make the correct decision when we ask. A lot of dog owners become uncomfortable when put in certain situations because they don’t trust their dogs. When we see the progress and success it helps to build that trust and allows us to continue to build on that progress. When the human puts themselves into a decision-making role this helps your dog build trust in you. The more we train our dogs the less they feel they need to worry because we have it under control. Building trust that we would never put them into a situation to be harmed or fail.
Respect is a big part of a relationship and training. This is what I talk about when I say you can over love your dog. If you just love them and don’t gain their respect, they tend to rule your life. Having a balanced relationship and putting yourself in a leadership (decision making) role will set you up for a wonderful life with your dog. The best way of gaining your dog’s respect is through decision making. The more opportunities you have throughout your day to give your dog a chance to make a choice, the more likely they are to check in with the human before doing something you don’t prefer.
To have a true bond with your dog you have to have balance. Balance is important in so many aspects of our everyday life and should be instilled in our live with our furry friends. The next time you run into a situation where your dog is doing something you don’t like, and nothing seems to be working, think about why this is happening. Is your dog afraid and think they need to be the one to get the person or dog to go away? Is your dog being territorial and claiming the house as his space and trying to tell others where they can and can’t go? There is most likely an imbalance in your relationship that is causing these issues.
Feel free to call or email me with any questions you might have about training or how to balance your relationship with your dog.
Isaac Reeve
Loving Leaders Dog Training
(720)656-0005
