Dog Whisperer, No joke....

In My Humble Opinion (IMHO)
#1

Just posted an update to my “F’ me I don’t need another dog thread”.

http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?t=698008

So we really need a dog trainer. The vet told us so after we boarded them there over X-mas.

Turns out we are horrible owners. I don’t know how to train a dog, I can get them to sit if they are a good dog from the get go. That’s all I have.

My 8 year old dog, who freaks at everybody, he trained me to calm her down. She shut up. WOW!!!

My 4 year old dog, calmed her down…

The problem dog, calmed her down…

All we’ve had is the initial “in home evaluation” a week ago. I owe this guy… only $50 to drive 15 minutes out to my house and we kept him for 2.5 hours, and 15 minutes back. I owe him 2 hours, if he won’t let me pay him, I’ll at least make it up in recommendations, he earned it.

No Joke, the dog whisperer is an ass. This guy did the same thing I had seen on TV. BLEW MY MIND. I’ve watched videos on how to train dogs, I’ve read about it, I’ve seen it on TV… But when somebody does it in front of your face, with your own dogs… Its jaw dropping… And then shows you how to do it… WOW!!!

Granted, like the guy said, “I’m new, they already have you trained, they don’t know what to expect from me.”

I always though obedience classes were BS. Apparently not.

The first actual lesson is tomorrow, I’m very optimistic from what has been accomplished so far, without a lesson, just an evaluation.

Then again, he’s just training people to train dogs, so my little lady and I are going to school tomorrow… The dogs are just an accessory.

I’m excited… I really want good dogs. So far it has been so simple, and its only been a week, and its been night and day…

I’m going to have 3 happy well behaved dogs.
No advertisement here, but just some simple stuff and its been like night and day.

Here is pic… The white one is the young one, the brown one is the “little dummy” and the black one is the “big dummy”. 3 weeks ago that little white dog tore that big black dog to hell, the big black dog had to go to the vet and they shaved her head…Lots of problems.!!

http://farm3.staticflickr.com/2813/9726252925_4515996a82_b.jpg

#2

One of my friends is a dog whisperer. I have two dogs that go apeshit when someone comes in the house. They’re LOUD and YAPPY and jump all over you (in a playful way) for a good five minutes if they don’t know you. Hell, they jump all over me and I’ve had them for 10 years. My friend walks in the house and they practically ignored her. She told me how she did it (didn’t look at them, didn’t pet them, didn’t bend down etc etc etc), doesn’t work when I do it.

One of my dogs likes to ‘paw’ me. She’ll rub her paws on my legs. Why, I don’t know, but it’s annoying if I’m wearing shorts. Normally, I just say ‘knock it off’ and nudge her away from me. When Ms Dog Whisperer was over and I did that she said "Joey!, you looked at her, you touched her and you talked to her that’s exactly what she wanted. Made sense I guess.

#3

Joey,

I know its F’d up, the dogs have you trained. Its counter intuitive. And I have only been through a consultation. I’ve read it, I’ve seen it on TV, it works.

I got my 8 year old dog to STFU today when the FedEx guy came. Jab and a short scold, then ignore… short, as in “not wordy”. More tone than words. She loves going nuts at the Fed Ex guy, and she stopped… ‘POKE’ “stop!”… not aggravated, not mad, not exicted, just a curt, “stop”, and a poke… and she stopped… for the first time in 8 F’n YEARS.

Somebody had to actually come to my house, and show me. I had read it, I had seen it, but I needed somebody to teach me. The poke needed to be more than a pet, less than a smack, to get their attention. The words, firm, disapproving, but not aggravating, not exciting.

Then there are times that you just need to distract, not correct, and I don’t know what those are yet…

All I know is just the simplest things have made all of my dogs better in less than a week.

Somebody is in your kitchen, dogs barking, its OK, the person in your kitchen is OK. You tell the dog its OK. Its OK… Its not, the dog doesn’t shut up. Telling the dog its OK is reenforcing the barking. My dog did this for 6 F’n years. Firm poke, “knock it off” firm calm tone, walk away… Again if necessary.

Almost 8 years of this crap I went through, corrected in a week on an 8 year old dog. I wasn’t trying to fix the 8 year old dog. Though its pretty nice that she shuts her mouth. The dog man didn’t do it, he taught me how to do it.

And when he taught me how to do it, I felt like a dumb ass. I’ve read it, I’ve seen it on TV. He wasn’t even training my dog, he was standing there telling me what to do. And I did it, and it worked, and then later in the week I did it again and it worked better… and then again, and again… Just got better and better.
Joey, I’d buy your neighbor a 6 pack and ask him to train you. I’ve found out in the past week, its me, and the little lady, not them(dogs). And the 8 year old is the one that has taken it to it the best, and the older one was going to be the most difficult. :rolleyes:

I’m actually really pissed at myself because its really easy, but counter intuitive. I should have never had dogs barking like I have and I should have never had dogs fighting. Completely my fault. I’m pretty confident it can be corrected, and the outcome will be good. I’m actually very confident now that I have help.