Doubt of a Shadow

When a dog barks or charges another dog, a lot of people immediately think, “My dog is red zone aggressive.” That’s not always the case. There is a difference between aggression and dominance.

Dominance involves physical touch, such as a bite on the neck, but not to the point of puncturing the skin. A dominant state of mind has a limit. It’s easier for me to stop a dog when he is in a dominant state or to break up an escalation fueled by dominance.

When a dog is in an aggressive state, they’re going for the kill. It’s a state of mind that is blind; they can’t hear or feel. The dog is so focused on injuring the other dog that everything else just goes away. The only way to stop that behavior is to get their attention at the same intensity as their aggression.

Cesar and the Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day

People are always asking me for help, so I know that if I give them a piece of my knowledge, they’re going to use it. As a dog walker, dog whisperer, dog trainer, or any kind of dog professional, you can give your client the tools to understand the importance of following through so they can see why it’s best to follow my mantra of exercise, discipline and affection.

My goal is to make sure that the owner understands that it’s not the dog — it’s them. Once they take responsibility for what’s around them, they’ll start to see results. But I don’t always do the talking. I like to listen to people, hear their story, and get a feel for where they are coming from. From there, we can find a common ground. When I leave a client, I have to trust that I was able to get them as far as I could. With humans you can only help them get to a certain state. They have to find the motivation to follow through.