If there’s one thing we love, it’s obviously dogs, but if there are two things we love, it’s dogs and books. If you want to give us three things, we’ll take tacos. Today though, a favorite book has recently made its way back into our consciousness: The Greatest Salesman by Og Mandino. If you’ve never read the book, we’d highly recommend it, but the (very) brief version is that the book gives a number of lessons that can be applied to sales, but really any aspect of human life. One such lesson is the seemingly simple mantra: I will persist until I succeed. I find it particularly relevant to the work humans need to do with their dogs.
It’s easy to get addicted to quick fixes and immediate solutions, however, when it comes to our dogs there is no such thing. We wish we could tell you that the right dog behavior specialist can “fix” your dog immediately and all unwanted behaviors will be gone forever, but that’s just not the case. If you ever find a dog behaviorist who claims otherwise… RUN. Dog behaviorists can work wonders, it’s true, but the majority of the work has to come from the dog owner themselves. Bevill Dog Behavior provides a structured, balanced environment for our client’s dogs to thrive in, but it’s up to the client to create that same structure and balance when the dog goes home, otherwise the dog will fall back into their old habits faster than you can say “NO! Don’t do that!”.
Now, it can be easy to get frustrated as a dog owner. You might feel like you’re failing if your dog starts to fall out of balance once they go home, and that’s okay! This is all part of the process. The fact is - your relationship with your dog has looked a certain way for a while, that’s how you landed at BDB to begin with. It’s going to take a while to create new habits. The important thing here isn’t that you get everything right on your first try. The important thing is that you stick with it. Say to yourself “I will persist until I succeed.” Have a little faith in your ability to stay calm, to try again and again until you get your desired result. You and your dog can have a great relationship, it just takes consistent effort over time. “I will persist until I succeed.”
Truly the only difference between those who succeed and those who fail is that one keeps trying, while the other gives up. We believe in all of our clients and their innate ability to succeed. We’re here to support you along the way.
