Doggone Etiquette —

School Days

By Bardi McLennan

A Word to the Dog:           

The kids are back in school and maybe you are thinking it’s more like school “daze” what with your playmates gone most of the day. So, guess what? It’s exactly the right time for you dogs to get back into the classroom yourselves. If you’ve been to school before, it may have only been for puppy kindergarten; or you might have graduated into first grade before your VIPerson gave up and quit taking you. I’ll bet you never got into all the fun stuff that comes after you’ve learned the canine basics, or you wouldn’t be groaning as I talk about it. The kids call it “after school activities,” but did you know you could earn real titles to add to your name just by doing those sits and downs you’ve been taught. The kids can’t do that! One of those titles is “Companion Dog” (or “CD” for short) and it’s pretty special because it shows the world you and your VIPerson are true companions, or pals. That’s just part of what school days could do for you!

A Word to the Dog’s Owner:

Let’s say you acquired (regardless of how) a new dog this summer and you’ve put off any real work on obedience until the kids got back in school. Granted, our weather wasn’t very cooperative for much of the summer, but now you’d like that puppy, or older dog, to shape up, and you wouldn’t mind having some fun with the dog. Puppy kindergarten is more of a social event for the puppies, while you benefit by getting a correct start on what your job entails in order to raise that puppy to be a loyal, obedient, loving and easy-to-live-with member of the family.

Some words of caution: You may have done all this obedience school training before with a previous dog, so you may know exactly how the training goes. Well, keep in mind that you have not done it with this dog, whether it’s a puppy or an older dog. And, of course, you may not have gone beyond the basics or into the extra teaching that can be lots of fun for both you and the dog.

Each dog is an individual and comes with a certain amount of learned behavior which is either good or bad, depending on how you care to look at it. The dog that was homeless and stole food in order to survive will continue to steal even when it becomes a well-fed pet. It’s that “save it for later” mentality. A dog that’s been abused has learned to distrust humans; one that’s been teased has learned to nip or bite, etc. These are just a few examples of learned behavior that is normal to the dog and can be horrendous to a new owner. Therefore, not all disobedience or poor behavior is entirely the dog’s fault, but curing either problem is up to the owner (with professional help as needed) to figure out how to overcome what’s wrong and replace it with what’s wanted.

That last statement also goes for the dog you’ve had for a while and have been unsuccessful in your attempts to make him into a nice sociable, obedient pooch. It’s time for you to go back to school and work on the behaviors that displease you, or that you have labeled impossible. Obedience classes are not just to help our dogs understand and accept life with people — they are a means to help you cope with all the little quirks in your individual dog.

Then there’s the fun stuff! Nothing beats the pride a person feels when that first title is attached to the dog’s name. The first one is often a non-competitive title called Canine Good Citizen and is awarded by the American Kennel Club. You and your dog are put through a routine series of tests that demonstrate what a good, confident, friendly pet your dog is. “Rufus, CGC.” Wow! And that’s just the beginning. You can get into Rally Obedience, Agility and all the breed-specific events like hunting, sled-pulling, earthdog trials, herding — the list goes on and on. Or, of course, you can hold your head up high and be perfectly content with that CGC! 

Until next time – BE GOOD!

- Bardi

Bardi McLennan bred, trained and showed Welsh Terriers for 30 years, during which time she wrote a monthly column on canine behavior in Dog Fancy Magazine. In addition to contributing to numerous dog publications, she has written 15 books on dogs, the latest being Rescue Me!, which received the ASPCA Humane Issues Award in 2008.