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Should a Beginner Dog Trainer Take Aggression Cases?

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Aggressive Dog Training

Training Aggressive Dogs
Grrr.

I’m asked this question by novice dog trainers several times a week. My short answer is no. Shocking, I know, but not discouraging, trust me. Let me explain why I feel beginner dog trainers should not take aggression cases, just not yet.

 Beginner dog trainers must accomplish critical foundation skills first!

What Does Beginner Dog Trainer Mean?

To me, a beginner dog trainer means he’s recently graduated from a dog training school or university, or currently mentoring with an experienced dog trainer. He has learned foundation skills, such as learning theory and how to apply it to everyday circumstances. After graduating, he is now learning how to practice foundation exercises with many different dogs and people, as they are all different.

Focusing on Foundation Behaviors

Foundation behaviors focus on teaching people how to apply basic learning theory to shape polite canine behaviors. That sentence was a mouthful, but this is what beginner dog trainers must accomplish first before accepting aggression cases.  Let me drill down further.

The truth of the matter is clients enroll in classes or hire you because you will “fix” their dog issues. Take that in for a moment, that’s a lot of pressure. Now, ball that pressure up with different dog and human learning styles — yikes! Take all that pressure even further. Dog trainers must be able to offer another way of thinking or different solutions quickly for a particular behavior. That’s plenty of pressure without topping it off with dog aggression.

There’s Plenty of Time, Later, for Aggression Cases

For some reason, dealing with aggression cases is “sexy.” Dog trainers wear it as a badge of honor. Trust me, it’s not sexy when you’re over your head in a difficult situation.

There will be plenty of time later. Right now, focus on different types of adult learning styles, such as visual, auditory and kinesthetic learning, which are part of the larger picture. Then focus on the next layer, which is teaching adults to use logic and reasoning even if this means saying the same thing different ways. It’s also important to interpret human body language.

Does your client really understand what you just said? Interpret his body language:

  • Is he just looking at you or his feet?
  • Nodding or eyes are glazed over?
  • Is he stepping back from you or standing still?
  • Is he smiling or rolling his eyes?
  • Is he participating or shrinking back?

Most importantly, is he able to demo what you just explained to him? That is the true answer! If not, he didn’t understand so it’s vital to rephrase without sounding condescending. Yes, this takes skill and finesse so practice and practice some more. 🙂

Now learn to successfully identify, interpret body language and change thinking patterns for naysayers (“My dog CAN NOT do that”), cynical thinkers (“Treats don’t work”), non-participants (“It’s okay, we’ll just sit here”), chronic interrupters (Blurting out “But, what if…..”) and show offs (“I volunteer to demo again!”).

Then, you have the dogs. Each dog learns differently so learn how to demo different ways to shape, capture and lure a down behavior with different dogs (short, long, pulling, shut down, tall, scared). And if a demo dog moves away from you, it’s okay. Return the dog back to his owner. You’re not expected to have a magic wand so all dogs love you. 🙂 What about pulling dogs? What tips do you have for Larry the Labrador that insists on pulling Grandma around? But Grandma has tried all that, now what?

So now you’re exhausted just reading this. Trust me, there is plenty of time for aggression cases. And if you think all the above is hard, increase this difficulty by 10x and now you have a true taste of  an aggression case. With aggression cases,  you have emotion, frustration and denial. That’s just on the human side.  The poor dog is depending on you to help.

Take your time to learn and implement foundation exercises. It’s worth it!

Service Dogs

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Service Dog Training: What is it?

Service Dog
iofoto/iStock

This topic pops up occasionally during class when someone wants to train his personal dog to become a service dog. There is a big difference between a service dog and a therapy dog. Let me explain the differences while including links for further information.

ADA Guidelines for Service Dogs

“Service animals are defined as dogs that are individually trained to do work or perform tasks for people with disabilities. Examples of such work or tasks include guiding people who are blind, alerting people who are deaf, pulling a wheelchair, alerting and protecting a person who is having a seizure, reminding a person with mental illness to take prescribed medications, calming a person with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) during an anxiety attack, or performing other duties. Service animals are working animals, not pets. The work or task a dog has been trained to provide must be directly related to the person’s disability. Dogs whose sole function is to provide comfort or emotional support do not qualify as service animals under the ADA.

Some State and local laws also define service animal more broadly than the ADA does. Information about such laws can be obtained from the State attorney general’s office.”

From my perspective, service dogs are trained to perform a specific task for a person, and this can take years of training. Once the dog learns the task, he must practice this task in many situations. We call this generalizing a behavior. Generalizing a behavior, especially a complex behavior, takes lots of time.

Therapy Dogs

Therapy dogs and their owners have been trained and passed required assessments, such as the AKC Canine Good Citizen Test, Delta Society Pet Partner Assessment and Therapy Dog International testing. While there are different variations of Therapy Dog Certification testing, those previously listed are the larger organizations.

It’s not only the dog that’s required to be trained and pass required assessments. The handler does as well, as they are the second half of the therapy team. Many times, we focus on teaching the dog how to handle certain situations, but he needs to learn how to politely ask a patient for permission to enter his room (not all people like dogs).

 There are many places, which boast service dog training services, products and ID tags. Please always follow the ADA’s Guidelines and contact professionals at the listed Service Dog Directory for guidance.

Service Dog vs. Therapy Dog

Therapy dogs are taught to behave politely in specific situations (nursing homes, physical therapy gyms and hospitals). Service dogs are taught to behave politely in many situations (planes, restaurants, grocery stores and hair salons). They also perform a specific task for a person (picking up items, alerting seizures or low blood sugar and pulling a wheelchair).

Service Dog Training Tips

If you would like to teach your personal dog to become a service dog, I would begin your search at Service Dog Directory – Pet Partners. Also, if you are interested in learning how to become a service dog trainer, contact these folks too. They can point you in the right direction.

Service dog trainers, I want to hear from you! How did you become a service dog trainer?

You may also like: Types of Service Dogs

Service Dog Certification

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Training Service Dogs

Service Dog Certification
Learn how to become a service dog trainer.

As a dog trainer, I’m often asked how to become a service dog trainer by up-and-coming dog trainers.

Becoming a Service Dog Trainer

To become a certified service dog trainer, first you will need a dog training certification as your foundation. Understanding dog behavior and training is key to training a service dog for any need. As a professional dog trainer with over 22 years of dog training experience in the field, I strongly believe in becoming a certified dog trainer before moving on to service dog training.

Continuing your education as a dog trainer is a lot like adding new additions to your home. After the foundation has been laid, it requires walls and a roof before you can build the garage and the bathrooms. A person never stops updating a house. A home will eventually need landscaping, painting, windows and doors. Think of this home building analogy in terms of your growth in the expertise of dog training.

Like a home, your dog training career and the level of behavior training and analysis that you gain each day is what will help your dog training career blossom into certified service dog training.

RELATED: Service Dogs

Many students of Animal Behavior College go on to pursue service dog training, working with organizations like Train A Dog Save A Warrior (TADSAW), Canine Companions for Independence, Big Paws Canine Foundation, and Forever Paws.

Service dog training is an extension of your current skill level as a certified dog trainer. Always, always, always keep continuing your education. As a dog trainer and behavior specialist, you should never stop learning!

5 Ways to Become a Certified Service Dog Trainer

  1. Volunteer (Foundation): This is vital! Volunteering exposes you to so many different parts of dog training from puppy raisers to meeting new people in the service dog industry. If someone asks me the first step to becoming a pet dog trainer, I always tell that person to volunteer at a shelter, as he will learn so much while positively impacting these dogs’ lives. I recommend Guide Dogs of the Blind.
  1. Learn Dog Training Basics (Walls of House): This includes learning the nuts and bolts of training, such as how to teach basic polite behaviors. Also, you will learn how to positively socialize a dog, troubleshoot when a dog becomes confused, set a dog up for success and link behavior together (behavior chains), such as teaching a dog to turn off lights by pawing the light switch. There are many dog training schools out there. I recommend Animal Behavior College and then take Karen Pryor Academy Professional Course (I strongly advise taking a basic course before taking the KPA course, as you must have dog training experience before enrolling in KPA).
  1. Service Dog Schools (Roof): There are many service dog schools scattered across the U.S. and I would recommend contacting them, looking at their syllabi and requirements and speaking to former graduates. For a quick peek at service dog schools, view Service Dogs Inc. Again, there are many others out there and your volunteering and chosen dog training courses will guide you in the right direction.
  1. Certifications (House Inspections): I am a firm believer in dog training certifications, as anyone can hang a shingle outside and call himself a dog trainer. I recommend Animal Behavior College Dog Trainer – Level 2 Certification, Council of Certified Pet Dog Trainer and International Association of Animal Behavior Consultants.
  1. Continuing Education (Home Improvements): As a dog trainer, you should never stop learning. There will always be new, updated and easier ways to train a dog. I recommend attending Fenzi Dog Sports Academy, APDT Dog Training Conference, Clicker Expo Dog Training Conferences and at least one or two dog training seminars per year. Read everything. You can start by reading this list at IAABC Required Reading List and Basic Dog Training DVDs.

I’ve been very lucky to mentor some great dog trainers and this has been the path I’ve always recommended, depending on which category my student has chosen. Please, never stop learning.

Tell us how you have become a service dog trainer. Leave us a comment in the section below.

MORE:
Service Dogs
Types of Service Dogs
Therapy Dogs: How to Become a Healing Team

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