Reflection

Looking back at my childhood, I was really very fond of dogs. I enjoy petting them, and playing with them. Our native dogs back then was not so close to my other siblings as I was the only one who was really a dog lover then. During my elementary days, when I arrived home, my dog will always be there waiting for me at our gate. It gave me joy to see my dog excited as I enter our gate.

Watching movies with dogs at that time made me dream of having a Pure breed dog. The dog that I cannot forget was Rin Tin Tin. So that movie struck me the most. I was amazed on how he can do so many things. But since I was a kid at that time, I can only hope and dream, so I promise myself, one day, I will have my dream dog. A German Shepherds Dog. It took me less than two decades to have one. I got a showline GSD a few years back That time I was just starting to learn about having a showline and a working line GSD's. I was so curious that I also got a working line GSD.

Now that I have my GSD's I was curious on dog training. I think this was a turning point for me as a dog lover. I have research several methods and tried it. I was beginning to read about prey drive, calm bite etc. But there was a certain group that caught my attention, and I was very curious to see on how they train their dogs. They were very controversial at that time, but I can see their point on dog training and how practical they train their dogs. I just can't understand the method and approach of what they are saying. So I looked for a way to enter their group, and with the help of someone I was able to do so. First time of training, it was full of stress, there were firecrackers, smoke, other dogs and handlers, and a lot of distractions. My dog went wild, but with their guidance, slowly I was able to control my dog. I was asked to cross the bamboo bridge and to show no hesitation. I also have to cross the body of water without hesitation. So I just did what I was told, I followed without asking because I was there to learn. We did some natural agility combined with obedience. This was very unusual method of dog training. I have read some articles about dog training but this was very different, no treats were given to the dogs after every exercise, yet the dog was not forced to do something. During the break time, I was asked to let my dog do a long down stay, I was surprised to see that he can already do the long down stay, with other dogs and lots of distractions.

I was amazed and at the same time confused. I really can't understand what was going on. My dog did not have any obedience prior to that day. When I came back home, my dog was very different, he can do basic obedience already. That day I know that it was the training that I was looking for. Not because it was fast, but because it was more practical on my daily application. Although the type of training is very different from what can be searched on the Internet. Mostly articles on the web will include training with treats, as a form of reward. Not putting your dog to stressful environment during training will also ease up the training and will not destroy your dogs confidence. Some articles also encourage that dogs that does not know each other should be allowed to sniff one another in order to get acquainted. Probably these are the main difference between the training method I have chosen from the common training methods available on the web. Dogs were not given any rewards except for praise. A “good sit” or a “good come” was enough reward. Yet you can see the expression of the dog being happy to work with its handler.

I do not say that this is a better method than using rewards, but for me if I will remove treats, it will be better if I will start my training without treats. I also find it more practical because stress is inevitable in our daily life. If we can handle our dogs in stressful environment then it would be easier to handle them in a not stressful environment. I also realized that training with distractions does not make a dog fail, but rather make it understand that its part of its daily life, so its normal to have distractions but the dog should still be obedient.

During that time that I was training my first working line GSD, I was not really aware of what I am doing, I am just there to teach my dog basic obedience, and bitework. For me it was just dog training without treats, with applied stress and distractions. And I like the results, at that time that was good enough for me.

For some reason I have to let go of my first Workingline GSD to be able to get a new pup, so I invest on a new pup. I say invest because it involves a lot of money, after purchasing the pup I still have to budget my income for the expenses that I will spend on training, such as gasoline. This time though, I was deeply involve in this method of training, I slowly realize that dog training is not just a matter of having your dog sit, down, or stay. As days goes by, I was exposed to a deeper meaning of dog training. As I was taught that dogs need not to be train for obedience. A dog knows how to sit, it will lay down if it wanted to, it will stay on one place if it wants. Its agility is natural. So its just making them do the things they can, on the time I wanted them and needed them to do. I was not really training my dog, it was merely communicating with her. Through body language, voice, emotion. I was able to communicate with her. It was not just dog training, but it was dog handling. I slowly learn to read my dog, I can tell by her movements on what she wanted to do, on what she is thinking. I can almost anticipate her next move. I was not training my pup or dog, but its the other way around. She is teaching me on how to handle her.

Through this method that I was privileged to learn, I have realized many things about working dogs. It gave me a deeper understanding on my dog and maybe dogs in general. I have known what being a true leader to the dog is all about. As I was exposed on what is natural to the dog, I have learned on how to work with his natural abilities. The good thing about this is that I just did not learn about dog handling, I have also learned many things about myself. Through this it made me a better person. With this type of training, the dog, the handler, and the work is all that matters. If you tend to compete with other dogs and handlers, you will not be successful. You cannot make your dog work exactly as the other dogs in the group because they poses different character, and natural agilities. Some dogs are more agile, some are less agile, the important thing is the dog can perform with in your needs. Another factor is, that with this training you imprint your personality with your dog, therefore other dogs reflect the personality of their handlers as your dog reflects yours.

Dog handling made me a better person because it gave me a different view on dog training and in my life as well. One cannot lie to their dog, therefore we should be honest in dealing with them. As I reflect on the things I lack as a dog handler, I realized that characteristic is also lacking on how I deal with other things as well. That gave me a better view of myself and gave me opportunity on how to change things that I needed to be a better person. To some people this may sound silly, but to those who have done this and is currently doing, I know you understand what I am saying.

I was a dog lover all my life, but for the past years I think I have become more, I become a dog handler. Never did I have shared my life with my dogs the way I am doing it today. I have never built a partnership with any of my previous dogs before, like what I have with my current dogs right now. I say partner because we train together, we work together. It gave me an understanding on what real dogs are. With this, I would like to thank my mentor & all my training buddies, for the guidance. Most of all to my dogs, specially Jersey for teaching me what dog handling is all about.

The Art of Dog Handling

I am not a professional trainer, nor an expert in handling dogs. But I hope to share some things I learned from my limited experience in handling dogs. I do hope that this would benefit those who are starting to focus on working dog training.

Today most trainers or dog owners train their dog using treats or toys as a reward. This is normal because it is what was handed down to us. The real art of dog handling was almost forgotten. This was handling dogs base on pure handler-dog communication. No props was used but training or handling was done on subtle communication. Through this handler and dog builds the partnership that based on mutual understanding, and mutual trust. Most people promote using treats so that the dog will have a positive outlook on training, or so that the training would be in a happy mood. But lets think deeper, aren't dogs happy just to be with his handler/owner? Even without food, or toys the dog is just happy to be beside us. What else could be more rewarding to them than our sincerest praise. Now people tend to use treats or toys as a tool to communicate with their dog. It is because it is easier to get their attention. People lost interest on how to really get the dogs attention thus the dog focus more on the toys or reward and not on the handler.

Training working dog should be done through partnership. And if you wanted to have a serious dog, one should train seriously. Its that simple. This is hard to explain through words it is better experienced. But for the purpose of example one of the best example I can think of is the military. They used subtle communication most of the time during operation. They communicate through hand signal, eye contact, with minimal use of voice. This only shows that humans are also capable of subtle communication. Another example is a team sport, such as basketball. With spending time of playing with each other, teammates build a chemistry that does not need for words to communicate. Through eye contact and body movements they can anticipate their teammates movement. This is also true in other team sports. And I believe those who have played team sports know what I was talking about. How do they achieve this? Through practice, training, and need. If a teammate did something good, we do not see other teammates giving him a treat, but the sincerity of joy that one feels is felt by the other just by hearing “good job” or “nice shot”, “good defense” etc. This is also true in the military, most of them will get a pat on the back, a recognition from the officer for a good job. Yes there are promotions but it is because we are humans. It is our human nature that we wanted to be recognized

The difference in dog handling is we will communicate to a different creature. So the challenge here is how to make our dogs understand us, and how can we understand them. This is the magic that was almost gone. The most difficult part is starting, because you are still establishing a working relationship with your dog. Most people claims to be a leader of their dog through making them sit before giving their meal, by not making their dog go out of the door before them or by giving them food or toy rewards. But if we think of what a true leader is, a leader should gain ones respect and trust. Being a leader is being a role model, if you want your dog to do something for you, lead your dog and show him the way. Through this you are communicating with the dog what you wanted him to do. And by showing him the way, you slowly gain his respect and trust. The pup's willingness to follow is a great tool for dog training, if we lead him through obstacles without hesitation, the pup will follow without hesitation. Thus because of his willingness to follow, the pup overcome that obstacle, you gain his trust, he gains confidence. For me that is a true sign of being a leader. The leader goes first, and your subordinate will willingly follow. Example you are in a military, who will gain your trust and respect more, a leader who is a type of “attack! follow me” or “attack I will follow”? Think about it.

Funny as this may sound to many, the dog can see if one has a pure intention with dog training. Its with this trait that they give their best abilities if we ask for it with pure intention. Pure intention means you are building working relationship with your dog, not just training your dog. You do this not because you wanted to, but because you needed to. Another thing is that if you train because you wanted your dog to be better than another dog, this will not work, the dog will be able to feel your intention through your actions and attitude. It may seem to be a foolish idea but the dog will prove that this is true. If you give a pup to a child who is looking for a friend or a pet, you will notice this. As the child runs the pup will follow. If it crosses a body of water, the pup will swim. To a child this is not dog training, this is just playing with the pup, this is pure in intention.

Honesty is also a training tool. We should be honest with ourselves and be able to face our weakness, because a dog will only be as good as its handler. If we are not honest with ourselves, we cannot be successful in communicating with them. Because dogs can sense it and we cannot conceal our true self with them. They are honest creatures, they deserve our honesty. With this we also develop our honesty with other people. The dog is a reflection of his handler. Even if we intend to lie, the dog will show its honesty. This is a very nice story I read from a book and I would like to share, a mentor ask his apprentice to teach the dog to detect a bomb. After a week he said to his mentor, the dog is ready. They put it to the test. This is no ordinary test. He was ask to put a blindfold to his mentor and put the article a few feet away from a cliff, he was shocked as he did not expect this kind of test. If the dog fails to stop on the article it could mean the life of his mentor. One of my favorite excerpt from the book, “if we teach with honesty, we too will become honest, if we teach with sincerity, we too will become sincere”.

There are other traits that are essential in dog handling. Fairness; we should be fair in giving correction, and we should not correct the dog for our mistakes. Consistency; we should be consistent with our commands, we should not give a command if we cannot implement it. If we ask the dog to do a long down stay away from us, then the dog breaks, we should go to the dog and correct it no matter how far he is. If not, it will realize that at a certain distance we cannot control him. Another way of being consistent is by giving just one command. If we say “sit” we should let the dog sit on the first command, if we say “sit” the dog did not sit, and repeat our command, he will learn to sit after a couple of commands. Another important factor is believing. We should believe and trust on what the dogs can do. We should be observant on its natural abilities, and work with it.

I hope that this short article will encourage more working dog owners to experience the magic that there is between man and dog. So that they may feel the true essence of what is a true leader and friend to their dog. To end this article I would like to share another excerpt from the same book;

If it is your sincere desire to become a better handler, spend time handling