Welcome to our fish tank...
I've been reading a book by the dog expert Caesar Millan, also the host of the show The Dog Whisperer on the National Geographic channel. While only a short ways into the book, I've gotten quite a bit out of it with regards to how I approach my dogs. The biggest change in perspective is separating affection for pets as "furry humans" from the reality of making sure that their needs as dogs are met first. I've been working on taking a more pack-leader attitude by establishing dominance and some of my efforts have been successful. I've also watched several episodes of his show to see him in action and it's been very helpful. I'll need to think about what I've learned and try to apply them to our lives.
Caesar Millan is always stressing how important exercise is for dogs and, given that I have two Jack Russell Terriers, I need to make changes in my daily activities to allow time for those long walks that they need. I took them on a long walk just tonight, despite the darkness, and I must admit that I was breathing just as hard as they were by the time we got home. If I were in better physical condition, I'd attempt jogging with them...but I'll settle for speed walking instead. On one of the television episodes a woman asked him if exercising in the yard was enough (apparently her dogs were difficult to control on a leash) but he said it was like asking a dog to live in a fish tank. It made me laugh because those dogs' lives were similar to mine and I had to envision my house as a fish tank.
If I have any amazing breakthroughs on the dog training effort, I'll share them. In the meantime, I'm exhausted!
No comments:
Post a Comment