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Originally Posted by cowgirlc  Thank you so much I appreciate this, after 5 yrs of treating my baby like he is a skin baby I have to make some adjustments and its ok, I can do this gonna keep positive and make our home just as joyful as it has always been even with my new pack leader attitude.
Cynthia |
You've got the right attitude and I'm sure while you feel so bad that you hit him, with your positive and relaxed, loving attitude as you train, he will react accordingly and see you as his family or pack leader. That's all dog's seem to really want, is to feel loved, secure, taken care of and led by their momma and/or daddy - just like a child wants. They seem to really thrive under the loving care of a strong leader who is never mean or negative but just always guides and rewards them for appropriate behavior with the occasional unemotional "uh oh" when they forget or stray and a positive reward when they get it right. They LOVE to please and show off how much they are learning so they do strive to do their best when the training is fun, challenging and kept short but frequent.
My Tibbe just LOVES to work and is constantly baiting me for training sessions so he can strut his stuff. In the process, he has learned to do what I say when he senses I am serious(he can tell when I'm not), so far has never failed to come when called, stop when told(even outside), eat with my hand in his bowl, allow me to remove chewies, toys or anything from his mouth at any time without rancor and trust me to always keep him happy and safe. And he was wild as a hair when I first got him - almost feral and fought and growled and screamed or hid behind things at every turn! He's a totally different dog than the 9 mo. old wild-child I brought home in 2008! There is almost always hope for any misbehaving dog. Best wishes to you both.