It’s A Dog’s Life—

What Is Discipline?

By Mary Jane Anderson

Two friends were walking their dogs in the park and were having an argument about whether it is OK to punish a dog by giving the dog a swat on the rump when the dog has been misbehaving taking a walk or in the house. Since they could not come to an agreement, they asked the obedience instructor when they went to class.

The proper way to discipline a dog is to communicate with your dog. Your displeasure with him should be with a firm voice and consistent every time the dog misbehaves, the instructor explained. The proper equipment, a leash and collar, can be essential, but the leash should never be used for hitting an animal, or be used to inflict any form of punishment. The collar and leash should be a happy time for the dog to go outside for exercise, so he will not be afraid of the leash.

Hitting a dog, no matter whether a dog misbehaves, chewing up a sneaker or stealing your sandwich off the kitchen table, is ineffective, and sometimes quite counterproductive. Hitting the dog with your hand will probably teach the dog to fear your hand, moving away from you. Hitting your dog with a rolled up newspaper also will not deal with the problem, but simply a sign of frustration and lack of patience on your part. These signs are noted by your dog and there may be any number of unpleasant consequences — running away, biting from fear, or aggressive behavior.

Your job is not to punish your dog but to teach him proper behavior. You should take the leash and collar, or just the buckled collar, in the house, and have the dog sit. You firmly hold his collar and with your voice, looking in his eyes, let your dog know that you do not allow that kind of behavior. Be patient until the dog quiets down, then release him with a voice praise. Correction should be according to the deed. You should know when to anticipate how your dog will react to different situations such as becoming excitable and jumping all over you when you enter the house after work.

The goal would be the creation of a new response when you enter the house, such as having the dog sitting quietly or lying down before he is acknowledged and petted. If your dog gets overanxious when you are leaving in the morning, there again you need to have a new approach before you leave. Take him out for exercise then when you leave, just leave, do not talk or pet the dog.

If you set your goal to eliminate a problem, you must replace the problem with acceptable behavior, otherwise, you are left with only one type of treatment, punishment; and punishment will never solve the problem. Remember, your dog may not like the down exercise since he cannot jump up on you at the same time; however, he will learn if you are consistent each and every time. Submission behavior competes with dominant behavior. Elimination outside competes with elimination in the house. Coming when called competes with running away when called. The combination of acceptable behavior and unacceptable behavior is much more effective through training.

Therefore, to want a problem to stop is not enough; a goal is set and a specific amount of time is necessary for the elimination of the problem and creating a new response. Training a puppy, of course, can help solve problems before they start, but teaching an older dog can still be done. The problem is that the dog has developed bad habits so they will take a longer time to learn according to how much time you spend each day.

Two-way communication must be established between you and your dog. Owners contribute to the problems and the key factor to solving any problem is the owner’s power to change the dog’s behavior. Analyze your behavior, control emotional interplay between you and your dog, and both you and your dog will be happier for the session.