Dr. Ian Dunbar, D.V.M., animal behaviorist,* writer,
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and founder of Sirius Puppy Training. On the divisiveness within the dog training profession, Ian says, “Dog training is in danger of losing its effectiveness, its magic, its voice, and its soul. These days we are being increasingly advised that dog training should be based on peer-reviewed, published studies. I feel this is a bit silly because there are so few research studies on dog train- ing. In fact, there are next to none. Certainly, there are wonderful studies on the behavior of wild canids, on feral or free-roaming domestic dogs and there are some really interesting studies on cognition in companion dogs. But, there just isn’t much on people training companion dogs.” “All too often these days when we suggest a solution, some-
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times even a solution that has worked with a couple of thousand dogs, we hear the retort, Is there a study on that? No there isn’t. And there won’t be until dog trainers start doing their own research. It’s easy. You already have the experimental subjects in class, every week. All you need do is keep performance records. For each exercise, we must have well-established benchmarks for Time and Trials to Criterion, so that we fully understand our own capabilities and can offer dog owners a realistic prognosis in terms of time and dollars to resolution.” “We are advised to base our methods on the large
knowledge base from learning theory – hundreds of thousands of studies. Certainly, learning theory (Operant Conditioning) is a well-established science. So many experiments with the same results can’t be wrong. But the big question is: How relevant are these findings to companion dog training? And the answer? Not much.” Brian Kilcommons, the author and dog trainer, believes the
Because They’re Part of the Family Too
consumer has every right to expect results from training, no matter the training methods used. “The dog guardian/consumer should be demanding more
from the dog training industry. You’re paying for a service, so ask the trainer about the expectations – the time and dollars spent to a resolution, as Ian spoke of. Ask if you’ll be getting your money’s worth, especially given that you’ll follow the training methods,” said Brian. As consumers, we should expect that our well-trained dogs
will respond to basic commands, and do so with bright-eyes and wagging tails. And, speaking of paying for the services of an experienced professional, Brian adds, “When you price shop for a trainer, you’re only bottom-feeding for talent.” The training professional should also be doing a better job
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at teaching humans how to train our dogs. “This is a people profession, not a dog one,” said Brian. “Part of our experience as trainers should be our ability to also communicate and work with people.” Our relationship with dogs is based on the premise of
having a leader and a follower. Training is about relationship building, and helping our dogs live comfortably within our homes and society. Without a leadership relationship, our dogs will not properly respond and follow our lead. “We, as an industry, should have better communication
among ourselves. I’ve read the message boards. The attacks and condemnations are not increasing communication. They’re preventing it. The shelters need our help. Let’s work together to help them.”
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