Dogs Competing for Their Lives/Owners Competing for Their Rights

In the dog training world, legislation may be coming soon to regulate the dog training profession. As with all legislation, this is something that I could both welcome or be concerned about. I would welcome it if it did so to secure professional conduct and results. I do not welcome it, if it comes just to ban tools or methods. I also do not welcome it if it is to bring training to be prescribed by veterinarians who know nothing about training dogs. I also don't want to see this trend promote or degenerate the expected training performance of the professional dog trainer (as a result of some current trends in dog training today).

There are those in the dog profession, who feel that a measurable test of their skill in training a dog is useless or unnecessary. I disagree strongly, especially when reviewing what is going on with our world and the world of pet ownership today. One way professional dog trainers keep up on their skills is to compete in measurable tests of their training skills. I want this to become a requirement for all professional dog trainers in the future in order to keep our business and profession as successful as it can be. Success being measured in not only the ability of dogs to keep their homes or acquire their homes, but also in the ability of owner's to keep their rights of enjoyment of their dogs AND dogs to keep their rights to be able to exercise unencumbered (but not untrained).

My Concerns: It has been in the best interests of the Veterinarian community to secure market share by taking over the industry of dog training as well. They have done this by emphasizing scientific and behavioral studies in dog training, rather than also (or at all) focusing on skill in dog training. Every dog trainer should be aware of the theories, methodologies, and their history. However, being able to actually train a dog to a measurable standard (there are tests out there put on by the UKC and AKC) is equally important. These groups largely believe that it should not be required for a dog trainer to show any measurable skill in training a dog. They say things like "it's unimportant, people just want companion dogs" or "why spend all this time on a behaviorally challenged dogs when there are all these other "nice" dogs out there. (article to follow on some future date)



People like Ian Dunbar, of Dogstardaily.com, has been one veterinarian that did not sticking to his introduction of puppy classes and the correct upbringing for a dog. Although having earned nothing beyond a Companion Dog title on his own dog, he considers himself the authority figure on dog training at advanced levels and in adult dogs that have behavioral problems. In my opinion, this has been a great marketing scheme for him and others, which is motivated primarily by greed not by accomplishment or concern for dog and owner welfare. His stay on the Association of Pet Dog Trainers created a huge rift in the dog community, and offshoot organizations such as Truly Dog Friendly and the No Shock Collar Coalition. Names that sound innocent enough until you realize the misrepresentations and lack of knowledge of the dog training tools in question by these very groups. These groups and Dogstardaily seek to suppress and misrepresent the truth, which is apparent in that they do not allow open discussion unless it directly agrees with their views. For instance, you can not discuss how the Koehler Method of Dog Training ACTUALLY works, you can only discuss the bad parts of it, inaccurate or not. You can not explain the modern technology of e-collars that now offer various levels that include very gentle and almost imperceptible levels. You can not talk about how these are not used mostly as aversive or coercive, but as a gentler piece of equipment than the training collars with the additional benefit of better timing and off leash control. You can not discuss these things with these groups unless you misrepresent or present ONLY the cons to this group of "trainers".



NOTE: The Koehler Method of Dog Training is a progressive training program that relies on the owners putting the time and effort in to train their dogs. The problems usually come about when people do not follow the instructions in the book, go to fast, and become frustrated. Becoming frustrated and too harsh to dogs IS NOT ANY PART of the Koehler Method of Dog Training, in my opinion.



It's the results of these marketing tactics that cause misinformation to leak out to your average dog owner, that concern me most. Also the trend of some Veterinarians, such as Tuft's own Dr Dodman, who have in the past gone for medicating a dog rather than training a dog. Some of this has reported to have changed at Tufts, but I have had talked personally with at least two owners who did not find their answer in a pill as prescribed. Additionally, there was my own experience before I became a dog trainer, where I was expected to fax in the problem to Dr Dodman for my faxed back medical analysis. I am glad I was intelligent enough not to do that. Not all dog owners are aware of the pitfalls of these practices and the lasting harm that can be done.



This redirecting of the training industries to professionals who do not regularly train dogs to any standard AND do not recognize their own limitations, has increased the lack of knowledge that average people have of dogs and how they learn, in my opinion. Dogs that are studied in laboratory settings are not in real life situations. Theories, while good to know and contemplate, do not account for the flesh and blood living right in front of you. Unfortunately this has caused more and more people to be unaware of how to train and care for a dog. Instead, they expect a dog to be more and more like a stuffed animal, without the will to exercise, explore, and be an active living being.



My Hope: If there is legislation coming to regulate the dog industry, it takes an unexpected and welcome turn. One, it should require all dog trainers to demonstrate, through testing to a standard, their ability to (at the very least) train their own dog to this standard. I think further, that they should be able to train a client and the client's dog to take the test as well.



A multiple choice test of other skills and understanding of methodologies and science can also be given, but the tests for certification as a dog trainer through state or federal law need to include proof of skills. There are organizations out there that do give these sort of tests through Video and live demonstrated ability, I believe they should be included in the legislative plan. The NADOI and IACP both give certifications based on demonstrations of skill. IACP is in the process of revising their video taped test to be taken by dog trainers that will be titled as professional. The NADOI already requires uncut video tape of the demonstration of a trainer's abilities. There is no sane reason, in my opinion, why a professional dog trainer should not be required to submit proof of their actual ability to train. There should be NO EXCUSE as to someone in the field claiming that this is not necessary. If you are a professional dog trainer, you should be able to train a dog, at minimum, in basic obedience in a measurable way.

Behavior modification needs to be based on client satisfaction ratio, I think. It's relative to what the dog was, what the client expected, and is there improvement in both the lives of the dog and the clients. A multiple choice test in behavior theory will not flush out those results, although it may be useful just to be sure the dog professional is aware of these. However, a multiple test on theory is just a memorization exercise. Many times a dog of a different upbringing may give signals that veer from the path of theory to the path of reality.

What is the harm in not expecting professional dog trainers to be able to take a measurable real time test of their skills?

Here are just a few examples of legislation that is currently overtaking the United States by storm, due to poor or sloppy or no training?

Breed Specific Legislation
Limits of Numbers of Dogs that Can Be Owned
Dogs Banned from Public Areas
Leash Laws that Do Not Allow for Any Off Leash Places Outside the House

If professional trainers do not have the skills to train a dog, how will owners be able to train their dogs? Who will they learn from? Distaste for dogs in the non-dog owning public will grow, and these laws will continue to infringe on the rights of the responsible dog owning public.

Here are some other organizations unconcerned about the quality of training a dog and owner may be taught, in my own opinion:

People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals (if you don't know their agenda, you should educate yourself)
Humane Society of the United States (Ditto)
Truly Dog Friendly (wants to direct methods and tools to be used, but does not place any emphasis or reliable training or the rewards of reliable training to both family and dog)
Dogstardaily.com (Ditto, and has many members from the Veterinarian community who have not trained dogs to any standard, as well as the main portion of their trainers that do not believe in training to any standard, of either their own or their clients' dogs)