Tough Love For Cosmo The Cocker

I first met Cosmo the Cocker Spaniel in the summer of 2020. At ten months, the dog was a nightmare. He was controlling the family, biting and barking. He caused a serious injury to the owner and that’s when she decided to approach me.

Virtual lessons worked well on improving Cosmo’s behaviour in the home. However, there were occasionally lapses. This then led to problems when Cosmo was outside. The family have a wooded area near their property and the dog would run onto this land, chasing wildlife. At a recent lesson, Cosmo ran off across my fields and it took 30 minutes to get him back.

After this, the owners understood that only tough love would work for this Cocker. I implemented a very strict crate regime, which they stuck to. As a result, our most recent lesson was a great success with Cosmo off the lead and around my dogs for the whole lesson.

If you’re given advice by your dog trainer, take it. It’s the quickest route to getting the relationship with your dog you want. There are no shortcuts, just follow the advice and you will get there in the end.

Posted: January 20, 2021