It’s Not Ok. 🤷🏻♂️
I can’t tell you how many times I’ve heard dog owners tell their anxious, fearful, nervous, unsure, reactive, aggressive dog, “It’s ok! It’s ok!” while petting or holding them.
I’m here to let you know - it’s not ok.
Allowing our dogs to live with severe anxiety, fear, nervousness, hyperactivity, aggression, etc is not ok.
You can’t console dogs out of behaviors. You can’t “love” dogs out of behaviors. You can’t “treat” dogs out of behaviors. There’s no amount of affection or freedom you can give that will fix behavioral issues. If it were that simple, we’d have zero clients. Trust me. Our clients have already tried those things!
In the dog world they either disagree with something or they allow it. By consoling and petting our dogs when they are in unstable states, we are not only allowing that state of mind to persist but we are agreeing with it and rewarding it.
I’m not recommending “punishment” for anxiety or fear. I’m simply asking you to stop trying to deal with your dog on an intellectual and emotional level and start becoming more instinctual.
(I know I’ll get a ton of questions about this stuff. Just keep following, reading, and watching. The content we put out will continue to paint the full picture. Promise. It will all come together in time.)
