Robin and I were at a Dog Training revisit session last Wednesday in Lawrenceville with a client and his German Shepherd. The Shepherd was just fine and the client said that everything was going well with him. All the rules that he had set up for Rupert were coming along quite well and that Rupert was obeying them on a regular basis. Rupert was still running up and down the front fence from time to time when the UPS truck would come by or other dogs would pass on the other side of the street. He wanted to know if that was an issue and if he should be stricter with his rules.
This is a great question because it gets to the heart of being the leader and having your dog do what you want. Everyone gets dogs for different reasons. Everyone wants different things from their dogs. Everyone has different things that might bother them and things that don’t bother them.
We normally get dogs because we want to have companions that we can share our time with, give us love, and that will be fun to play with. Some of us want dogs that might be a little goofier than others and some might want dogs to be perfectly behaved. All of these things are possible, based on the individual needs of the client.
Our client was just fine with Rupert running up and down the front fence from time to time because it let the neighbors know that there was a shepherd at his house. When Rupert ran up and down, his tail was wagging and he showed no signs of aggression. He was just being a dog. As a shepherd, he was just guarding. He was showing us that he was a happy puppy. Our client was happy with the situation and Rupert was just fine. In this case, the rules were just right.
When it comes to the question of “strictness”, I always like to look at the safety factor. Is the dog doing anything that would put anyone or himself at risk of injury or mental anguish? Is it breaking any established HOA rules or city ordinances? If the answer is “yes”, then the owner should correct the behavior in order to be a good neighbor and dog owner. If the answer is “no”, then it is up to the owner to decide what they would like to do.
There is no set of guidelines in establishing how strict or lenient you can be in correcting and living with your dog. If you just use your common sense (and this can be difficult for some people), you will arrive at the correct answer.
Please call Robin or myself (770) 718-7704 if you are in need of any dog training help. We have a lot of good dog training advice at Best Dog Trainers Lawrenceville Georgia. Find all our phone numbers, text addresses and email contacts at Dog Training Help Center Lawrenceville Georgia.
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