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The Dog Trainer's Complete Guide to a Happy, Well-Behaved Pet

St. Martin's Press

So Many Dogs, So Little Time

HOW TO CHOOSE THE RIGHT DOG

The odds that you and your dog will live happily together for his whole life go way up if you, the smart human, the one with all the choice in this situation, give at least as much attention to the characteristics you want in a dog as you would to picking a date on Match.com, and then try to pick a dog who kind of sort of fits the bill. You can get a terrific dog by dumb luck — I know, because twice now I've adopted dogs who just happened to show up at the right moment — but really, it's not the best strategy.

The Internet's rich in quizzes and checklists that offer to tell you what kind of dog to get. I tried a couple while I was working on this chapter. I was afraid they'd be silly, and they are. They ask stupid questions — for example, "Do you want a guarding dog?" How can I put this? You don't want a guarding dog. Dogs bred and reared to be suspicious of strangers make, let's say, problematic family pets; for one thing, they can't distinguish among burglars, your dinner guests, and a bunch of EMTs. You might want a good-size dog who can bark on cue, but I promise you that's about all the guarding you need.

As for the quiz results, they were loopy. One told me I should get a "Faux French Bulldog," whatever that is (is it made of polyester?), or one of several other currently popular designer mixes. Another suggested a mixed- breed (so far, so good) or a Field Spaniel as my two best choices. Oh, lord. I have lived with several dogs and worked with hundreds, so I kind of know what I like. I like whip-smart, athletic, sociable, better-keep-me-busy-or-I'll -get-annoying dogs, and although I can handle springtime shedding, the thought of grooming a dog regularly all year round makes me want to disembowel myself.* I'm a sucker for Pit Bulls and Pit Bull mixes. I really like herding-dog mixes. And — wild card here — I am a pushover for a nice Chihuahua. Spaniels ... People, I know some great spaniels, but they're not the right dogs for me. As for supporting the puppy mill/designer mix industry — no. Just no.

The results were not only way off base in terms of my actual preferences, they were also way too specific. Not that it doesn't make sense to consider breed type — it does, because breeds and groups of breeds (and their mixes) tend to show behavioral similarities. But a list of five or seven or a dozen breeds implies "Get one of these and you're set." It's not so simple. When you get a dog, even a dog who belongs to a known breed, you don't get a breed; you get an individual dog, who may or may not have read the breed description (which may or may not be worthless, anyway; see "What If You're Looking for a Particular Breed?"). Work the other way around: Consider what qualities you want in a companion dog, and then look for those qualities. Breed and breed group can narrow your search, but the dog you're looking for may turn up pretty much anywhere.* This is the beauty of the behavior descriptions and matchmaking paradigms some shelters use — they focus on the qualities of individual dogs and try to pair human adopters with compatible dogs.

And, oh, yes, then there's love. Love is not so predictable. You may fall in love with a completely inappropriate dog. It happens. Frankly, all my dogs have been more or less inappropriate in one way or another. If you thought you wanted a sweet, soft spaniel mix but then fell head over heels for a fast, independent Jack Russell Terrier, fine! But, having chosen that JRT, you must now live up to her; no getting mad when she'd rather learn new tricks than cuddle. As the great trainer Leslie Nelson has said, "Love the dog you have, not the one you wish you had."

Falling in love with a dog who's not your type is not necessarily bad; you thought you wanted to cuddle on the couch all evening, but hey, teaching a new trick every other day turns out to be a blast, it gives you a huge sense of accomplishment, and you're crazy about your brainiac dog. Excellent. Purposely adopting a behaviorally troubled dog is quite another matter. Don't do it. Shy dogs, scared dogs, fear-aggressive dogs will pull at your heartstrings — of course they will. Then they may refuse to set foot outdoors, or may growl and snap at children or visitors, or may send other dogs and people to the hospital; and then you have to pay someone a lot of money to help, and have I mentioned yet that no ethical trainer will guarantee a happy result?* A really difficult dog may also turn you into a trainer specializing in behavior modification, which is what happened to me. Not that it hasn't been great, but there are less emotionally trying routes to a new career. Behaviorally healthy, "easy" dogs also deserve loving homes. They really really do.

How to Decide What Kind of Dog You Want

Dogs take a lot of time and work, so start by walking yourself and your family through a typical day and see how — and whether! — a dog would fit in. Consider the following questions.

• Can you easily see when you'd exercise the dog?

• How will you manage to get a nine-week-old puppy outdoors to pee and poop every hour or two for his first week in your home, and with gradually decreasing frequency afterward?

• On what weekday evenings can you and your partner reliably attend that basic manners class?

• If you work long hours, who'll give the dog a break or two so she isn't crossing her legs all afternoon and into the evening?

• Do you come home from work wiped out? Your puppy or dog will need attention, care, and training regardless.

• If you have children, are they mature enough to understand that animals are not toys — that they feel pain, need rest, and sometimes want to be left alone?

• Who will supervise the puppy/dog during your kids' playdates and make sure the children don't overwhelm him, or vice versa?

• Are your children mature enough to participate in care for your dog?

• If you have other animals, how are they likely to respond to the new adoptee? If they are old or ill, can you realistically and humanely expect them to adapt?

If, on reflection, a puppy would be more work than you and your family can manage right now, but you long to have a dog, seriously consider adopting an adult from a shelter or a rescue group. I'm not necessarily talking about an adolescent or young dog, either; she'll be almost as much work as a puppy, at least for a little while. Think "mature adult" or even "senior citizen."

MATCH UP NEEDS AND PERSONALITY

So you've decided that your life has room for a dog, and you have some idea of whether you're up for the challenge of a puppy or might do better adopting an adult. Now it's time to match personalities.

Though online quizzes are useless or worse, certain shelters describe their charges' behavior in a way nicely adaptable to your search whether you're adopting or buying. They rate aspects of doggy personalities on a continuum — "shy" to "bold," for instance, or "affectionate" to "aloof." You can turn that strategy around to help you decide what kind of dog you'd get along with best. Are you ...

energetic ___________ laid-back?

If you're on the laid-back end of the spectrum, the questions about how a dog would fit in to your life may already have steered you away from a puppy. Remember, adult dogs vary in energy level too!

impatient ___________ patient?

Impatient people may do best with adult dogs who don't need a lot of training and who don't have problem habits to repair.

anxious ___________ calm?

Anxious people, do yourselves a favor and don't get barky, reactive dogs — they'll make you nuts.

interested in grooming ___________ okay with brushing out the winter coat ___________ bored to tears by grooming?

Say you're bored by grooming but willing to deal with the winter coat, up to a point. No Huskies, Malamutes, or Poodles for you, unless you want to shell out big bucks for grooming.

fastidious ___________ a mudpuppy?

Dogs are filthy, okay? They eat feces and roll in dead things. Accept this. If you're going to need to wash the dog a lot, please also take the time to teach her to enjoy being bathed.

physically affectionate ___________ hands-off?

If you like cuddling with dogs, look for a dog who likes cuddling; you'll be sad if you adopt one who has handling issues or who prefers nearby floor space to the spot next to you on the couch. Also, be aware that small doesn't equal cuddly; people tend to force touch on small dogs, and it makes the dogs crazy.

fascinated by training ___________ bored to tears by training?

If you're bored by training and you get a smart, energetic dog, neither of you is going to be happy.

athletic ___________ a couch potato?

Couch potatoes, how about a nice middle-aged or old dog who's been displaced by the recession or a family illness? Leave the adolescent Pit mixes and the field-bred hunting dogs for people who won't want to kill them two days after bringing them home.

robust ___________ frail?

Say you have osteoporosis and being knocked down could cost you a broken hip. Pass on the body-slamming adolescent Lab mix and go for a smaller, quieter adult dog instead. Also, if you are very small and your prospective dog is very big, think about how you'll physically take care of him if he gets tottery in old age. (Assistive devices do exist.)

quick to go into action ___________ slow to go into action?

If you're proactive, you'll find your dog easier to train. For instance, if you're slow to get up when your puppy starts to sniff and circle, housetraining will be more laborious. There's no shame in being pokey, but you'll probably be happier with a dog whose behavior is low maintenance.

confident ___________ not so confident?

Nope, this isn't about "alpha." It's about stigma. Certain breeds and types are stigmatized, and if you fall for a Pit Bull/Rottweiler/Doberman/Mastiff some folks will curl their lips at you no matter how nice he is. It can be tough to take.

Another question to ask yourself is what aspects of life with a dog might drive you crazy. Check out Chapter 11, "Stuff Dogs Do That Annoys People," for a whole range of normal dog behaviors that tend to get on human nerves. I stress, these are normal dog behaviors; if you can't stand even a little bit of barking, the "breed" you want is the one scientifically known as Felis catus (and its members have their own methods of making people tear their hair out*). I'll offer a few general suggestions, but please bear in mind the following:

1. Every individual trainer's experience is skewed — by whatever her specialty is, by what breeds are popular locally, because small samples are always skewed, by her own perceptions, by her development of a reputation as being "good with X problem or Z breed" (and hence being sent a lot of dogs with X problem or of Z breed).

2. Every individual dog is an individual (at least, behaviorally speaking; there's probably no such thing as a Poodle who needs no grooming). I know a woman who has had four or five Shelties over her lifetime and who swears on her mother's grave that all except the current dog were non-barkers. Whenever I meet someone who has a Sheltie, I tell them about this woman, because I enjoy hearing their bitter laugh.

3. I mention all these breeds as points of reference, not because I believe you should focus your search on pedigreed dogs. Whether a dog's a mixed- breed or a registered Byelorussian Flapdoodle tells you absolutely nothing about her physical or behavioral health or whether you'd enjoy living with each other.*

Quick and Dirty Tip

What Kind of Dog to Get If You Have Kids

You know what makes dog trainers want to bang our heads against the wall? Cute pictures of puppies and babies, or puppies and toddlers, nestled among the daisies, cuddling. Head, meet wall. Here's why.

How much supervision does your toddler need? How wrung out do you get in the course of a day, providing that supervision? Right. How much supervision do you think a puppy needs? Every waking minute. Just like your child. You can't always take good care of two species of infant simultaneously. Say you're bathing Babylini when Puppalini wakes from his nap. Puppalini needs to go out right now, but you can't leave Babylini. Puppalini pees on the floor. Now not only do you have an extra mess to clean up, but also every such accident will make housetraining harder.

Then there's the problem I mentioned in the questionnaire — very young children don't clearly understand that other beings have feelings and needs. (Puppies obviously don't, either.) I was once called to a household where the 10-week-old puppy was growling at the children. They were very nice children, but they did not understand that a sleeping puppy needs his rest. The puppy wasn't a bad puppy; he was exhausted. And exhaustion had brought him to the point where now, at just 10 weeks, he had "aggression toward approaching children" in his behavioral repertoire.*

Please: Either don't get a dog till Junior's old enough to regulate much of his own behavior, or get a middle-aged dog who is housetrained, doesn't need an hour of off-leash aerobic exercise every morning before breakfast, and utterly adores children and also will go take a nap in the master bedroom instead of trying to grab their ankles when they play tag.

While I'm at it, get a medium-size or larger dog. Yes, yes, small person, small dog, very cute. A small, breakable dog combined with a small, active child can all too easily lead to a grouchy dog plus a child clutching his hand and crying, "He bit me!" or a dog with his leg in a cast plus a child crying, "Mommy, Daddy, I didn't mean to step on Scooter!" Or both. Sturdy, solid, adoring, unflappable: That's what you want in a children's dog. (P.S. "Adoring and unflappable" doesn't constitute a license for children to ride on the dog, pull his ears, or jump on his belly while he's sleeping.)

WANT A QUIET DOG?

Get a Sheltie! (No, no, that was a joke. See a few paragraphs back.) Terriers generally bark a lot; so do Shetland Sheepdogs, Miniature Pinschers, Miniature Schnauzers, and German Shepherd Dogs. Northern-breed dogs (Malamutes, Huskies) yodel. Hounds and Beagles really do howl. It is hard to find a dog that doesn't bark some of the time, but Basenjis are reputedly "barkless." Excitable, playful dogs may bark more than average.

WANT A SUPER-BONDED, SUPER-INTERACTIVE, AFFECTIONATE DOG?

There is a T-shirt that says "Free Tongue Bath. See Pit Bull for Details." Akitas, Shiba Inus, and other Asian breeds are generally not so affectionate, although the other day I met a Tosa Inu who lives for the lap. Most of the Poodles I've met, of all sizes, seem strongly engaged with their people. Ditto a lot of the herding breeds (less so the Cattle Dogs).

Human-oriented dogs tend to be easier for most of us to train than dogs originally bred to work independently and at a distance. (But breed descriptions often need decoding — more about that below.)

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Excerpted from The Dog Trainer's Complete Guide to a Happy, Well-Behaved Pet by Jolanta Benal. Copyright © 2011 Jolanta Benal. Excerpted by permission of St. Martin's Press.
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