Meet Gunner! Picture a massive ninety pound ball of energy and affection, then put it on stilts... now you have Gunner. This exceptionally handsome Pitbull/Great Dane cross was the one calling the shots in his household. Now think about this: Gunner's owner is a lovely woman who is absolutely no match for his strength.
The fact that Gunner is part Pitbull unfortunately means that he and his owner may fall victim to discrimination from ignorant and fearful people. Because of this Gunner will be expected to uphold a greater level of obedience and manners. To add to the dynamic of his situation, Gunner's owner has brothers that like to rough-house with him. Fortunately Gunner's owner was keen to recognize that changes needed to be made before Gunner's conduct got out of hand.
It was plain to us trainers that most of Gunner's delinquencies were predominantly juvenile responses. He would, with proper adjustments, grow out of these behaviors. The first suggestion was to modify the rough-housing to structured games of Tug of War. By enacting specific rules and maintain consistency, Gunner's relatives could still play with him but without the effect of riling him up. Another solution that helped Gunner's owner gain more control during walks was the Red Light Green Light exercise. This taught Gunner that he was not in-charge and in fact he would have to look to his owner for approval.
For more information on Zen Dog games like Tug of War and Red Light, Green Light visit Zen Dog Training Online.
No comments:
Post a Comment