“Hmm, if your faith is a little lacking, don’t worry kitty, these dogs
are trained by: http://301url.com/AdamsDogTraining”

Dear Adam:

I feel we have made great progress after reading your book. I
stopped him from jumping up on me using the “knee in his chest”
method about 20 minutes after downloading your book one morning.

http://301url.com/AdamsDogTraining

Rusty’s one continuing problem centers around his looking at me
as “ALPHA”. About 95% of the time he submits to me, but
ocassionally when I am trying to brush him or correct him for
something he is doing, he will step back and start barking at
me or he will start nipping at my hands and barking. If I try
to tell him “no” it makes him worse. The more I say “no” the
more excited and onery he becomes. I can stop him by changing
the subject on him, such as calling him to me or getting him to
play ball. But if I try to make him “sit” or “stop” he just gets
more excited. Sometimes I will just change the subject on him
and he will be fine, then I will go back and pickup on the
brushing etc. He reminds me of my middle son in his rebellious
teenage years.

Tonight, when he started fighting me about grooming, I grabbed
him by the scruff of the neck and shook him hard and said “no”
in a really harsh firm tone. This calmed him down, but only for
a while. I knew it was a contest and I couldn’t let him win. I
really had to get pretty rough with him.

http://301url.com/AdamsDogTraining

I have used the prong collar in much of our training and have
used an e-collar for specific problems like digging and jumping
out of a fenced area he stays in while we are not able to watch
his behavior with flowerbeds, etc. As you have probably already
guessed, he is not wearing either the prong or the e-collar when
he misbehaves in this way.

As hard as I have tried not to let him become “collar wise”, I
believe he has learned well that sometimes I can correct him
easily (as with the e-collar) and sometimes it is more
difficult (as by grabbing the scruff of his neck).

He is a rough, tough little dog and I like that about him. But
I know we can never quite get to the good behavior level I want
from him until he stops fighting me.

How do I get him from “behaving like a little gentleman” when
he knows I have “the edge”, to having him “behave like a
gentleman” when it’s just me correcting him without any
mechanical assistance”?

P.S. I’ve enjoyed the book and am enjoying this new challenge
of training a dog to be a good companion. In the past dogs have
been our family pets, but not really companions. I got Rusty
because I wanted a “fishing buddy”. As such I want him to be
well mannered and welcomed anywhere. I do not want to leave him
at home or at the kennel when I go places.

Thanks,
Jack

Dear Jack:

It should be obvious to you by now that grabbing the scruff of
the dog’s neck is an ineffective way to correct your dog. It’s
obviously not motivational, otherwise you wouldn’t be writing
to me with your problem.

Furthermore, you’ve already admitted that the pinch collar and
the remote e-collar have worked for you.

Thirdly, you’ve identified (mostly, anyway) the types of
behaviors that will encourage your dog to act like a spoiled
child.

IF YOU KNOW THAT THE DOG EXHIBITS UNWANTED BEHAVIOR WHEN YOU
BRUSH HIM… THEN MAKE SURE HE IS WEARING THE TRAINING COLLAR
WHEN YOU BRUSH HIM, SO THAT YOU HAVE A MOTIVATIONAL WAY TO
CORRECT THIS BEHAVIOR!

But let’s step back for a moment. Let’s go back to my book, on
page 61, under the topic, “When To Use The Pinch Collar”:

I wrote, “… your dog should wear the pinch collar any time
you find yourself interacting with him. Just like another dog,
who would always have his mouth and teeth available to
administer a correction to a subordinate dog, you need to be in
a position to correct your dog, too.”

Further down the page I reiterate, “How do you make sure your
dog does not become collar smart? Simply make sure that you
leave the pinch collar on, any time you are interacting with
your dog.” [And further down the page, once more] “You must be
in a position where you can correct [and when I say, "correct"
I mean give a meaningful correction] your dog EVERY TIME he
exhibits undesirable behavior. After a period of time, your dog
will forget he’s wearing the collar because he will have become
used to wearing it, similar to the way we humans become
accustomed to wearing clothing.”

I also make this point on page 156, in reference to the
training collar, “Only take it off if you leave him
unsupervised or confined in the crate [or dog run].”

If I’ve understood your question correctly, then my advice to
you is, “Don’t be lazy.” Follow my advice precisely, and you’ll
soon be able to look back at your problems with your dog as a
thing of the past.

Please let me know if I’ve misunderstood your question, though.
I do that from time to time.

That’s all for now, folks!
Adam
http://301url.com/AdamsDogTraining

About The Author: Adam G. Katz is the author of
http://301url.com/AdamsDogTraining

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