Whatever happened to training your dog?

Over the last few months I’ve seen a massive decline in the number of dogs that are being booked in for training. Does that mean all dogs are now well behaved and well trained? NO, it doesn’t. What I’m seeing is an increased level of acceptance to previously unwanted behaviour.

Whilst I hate the fact that many people use Covid as an excuse for many things in life and business, I feel this does have a massive contributing factor to people’s training requirements.

How a change in routine affects your dog

Prior to the lockdowns, most people would get up and walk their dogs, sort the kids and then drive to work. They’d crate their dogs and at lunch time they’d either return or get a friend to let their dogs out. In the evenings, families would walk their dogs and do family/school activities. The days were very busy, so having a well behaved dog was a huge requirement.

Fast forward nearly two years since we first heard about the pandemic and we are living in a totally different world. A world where normality doesn’t exist. Working from home has become a huge factor in peoples lives. This then affects the way we see and treat our dogs. The urgency to walk the dog in the morning isn’t the same. If the dog doesn’t come back first time it’s not such a massive issue. People don’t have the same urgency to get home for the drive to work as their office is now at home.

Throughout the day people are more forgiving of their dogs behaviour. It makes life easier whilst on that important Zoom call. Whereas previously furniture may have been a no no, today people just allow their dogs to roam all over the home. In some cases, the back door is left open for them. All this creates many behavioural issues, especially the free roaming in and out of the garden. Many dogs have increased their prey/chase drive.

When an easy life gets much harder

I’m not sure what normal will look like when things settle down. I do wonder whether people will be happy with the behaviour they have created. It’s a question I constantly ask dog owners. Unfortunately, whilst we live in a world of uncertainty, people seem to accept the behaviour many dogs display for an easy life. I’d suggest it’s better to suffer the short term pain to correct this behaviour than wait for the far more difficult life as this bad behaviour gets worse and dominates the household.

Posted: October 26, 2021