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Treat your Chihuahua Like a Mastiff

 

Michael Baugh CDBC CPDT-KSA

Dogs are unique as a species in that they come in such varying sizes. It’s easy to forget, but important to remember that they are all dogs. They are far more similar to each other than they are different. Your Chihuahua is as much a dog as your Mastiff. Same with your Fox Terrier, your Bichon Frisé, and your little designer Schnapingfroodle.

Trouble is, we treat our little dogs differently in ways that understandably lead to aggressive behavior. More than half of the small dog aggression cases I see are related to how the dog is handled. Most of those are owner-directed aggression cases. The way we are touching, holding, swooping in and picking up, poking, prodding and otherwise fussing with our little dogs is causing the problem. We are startling them, scaring them, and pissing them off multiple times per day. We do it when they are playing, when they’re eating, resting, even when they’re sleeping. Our little 8 pound friend is minding her own business. Here we come out of nowhere (20 times her size), yammering away on our iPhone, bag on our shoulder. Then our big primate mit-of-a-hand shovels under her and lifts her airborne without so much as a “good morning, sweetie.”

Think for a minute what that must feel like for her. Seriously. Take a moment and give it some thought.

I’ve literally seen someone flip a small dog off their lap with their knee. Can’t do that with a Mastiff. Wouldn’t dare with a Malinois. But, the Maltese and the Miniature this-or-that is fair game? No. Just because we can do something with our dogs does not mean we should.

It shocks people when their dog bites them. They tell me it was unprovoked. Thing is we are provoking our little dogs every day. It’s not shocking at all. Animals who feel out-of-control and threatened will do what they need to protect themselves. We can relate to that.

Treat your Chihuahua like a Mastiff.

  • If you need your dog to move, direct her visually or verbally (hand targeting is good for this).
  • If you want your dog to get into a car or onto furniture, teach her to use steps or a ramp.
  • Wake your dog up by calling her name.
  • Touch gently.
  • If you must lift your dog, give her fair warning. Pause. Pet. Talk to her. Then lift. (If it’s a Mastiff you’ll need some help).
  • If your little dog has already bitten, you will need to call in help from a qualified dog behavior consultant or veterinary behaviorist. We have some relationship healing to do. The good news is these cases often resolve well. We just need to learn how to behave better so that our dog can too.

Then, gently, pick her up. Give her some lovin’. Put her in that cute handbag. You two are a fabulous couple.

Michael Baugh teaches dog training and behavior. His next dog will be a size small. He and his spouse, Tim, already have the sling carrier picked out.

April – The Michael’s Dogs Newsletter Missing Issue

 

Michael Baugh CDBC CPDT-KSA

I am nothing if not fastidious. About mid-month I prepare the following month’s Michael’s Dogs Newsletter. I write two new blog pieces. Sometimes I write one and pull an old one from the archive. Regardless, some time around the 15th to the 20th every month I sit down and put it together. That’s my routine. It’s been that way for more than a decade.

I’ve never missed an issue, not until this past month. We were well into April before I noticed. It’s funny how grief and mourning work.

For more than a decade I’ve written quite literally under the watchful eyes of “Michael’s Dogs.” Stella and Stewie (we used to say their names like it was one long name) were the constant thread in the narrative. They featured in almost every issue, their pictures and their stories.

Stella (13) died last Summer. Stewie (15) died March 16th of this year, right about the time I’d be doing the April newsletter. It wasn’t that I couldn’t write. There was no block, no burden weighing me down. I simply forgot. They were gone. The bowls were picked up. The beds were put away. And, oddly, the newsletter got swept up and put away as well. I’m familiar with mourning – dogs, parents, a sibling. It’s a quirky visitor. You’re okay. You’re not. You forget and of course you can’t. Not ever.

If you’ve worked with me you know I approach cases as if your dog were mine. How would I handle this case if this were my dog? I ask the question every day, not at all lightly. I really am thinking of my dogs. What if Stella had bitten a relative? What if Stewie and she fought? What if this and what if that. They never had those issue. But, they were my inspiration. This is, in fact, how I named the company. Michael’s Dogs, my dogs. My personal relationship with them has always been tied to your personal relationship with your dog. Corny? Yeah. Effective? I think so.

So. Now what? As I write this (mid month, back on schedule) I do not have an answer. Mourning is a healing process and a process I implicitly trust. It visits fond memories on us and unexpected tears. The research is fairly clear. For uncomplicated mourning the hardest part is the first two months. It softens predictably beyond that. For this and other reasons we have decided on a year without a dog. A full year.

Michael’s Dogs, the actual ones, are legend now. Their legacy is our name, but also the questions I will continue to ask. What if this dog, your dog, was mine? Our lives with dogs are intimate things, deeply personal. Their emotions get hooked in with ours. Their struggles become our struggles. When you need help you should expect no less than my asking these essential questions. What if this was my dog? Stella and Stewie, what if this was you? How would we handle this? How would we help set things right?

 

Michael Baugh teaches dog training in Houston, TX. He publishes an email news letter every month (except that one time).

Dog Training: Bribe vs. Reinforcement

 

Michael Baugh CDBC CPDT-KSA

Using food in training is not the same as bribing your dog.

First of all, a bribe is primarily a human transaction. It’s a promise of a future renumeration for something the bribed will do now or very soon. Bribes are nefarious dirty deeds. You bribe politicians, not dogs. Dogs don’t think that far ahead and politicians … well, I’ll leave that alone.

Semantics aside, I get it. Some folks seem to be very concerned that their dog is “doing it for the food.” Of course all of us work for money and I’m not above doing a bit of work for sushi or an iced latte. That seems to be okay. Work for free? Anyone? Anyone? I doubt it. But, a lot of us get downright  insulted if our dog won’t work for free. We want her to do it “just because it’s me.” Why? I don’t know. That question might be better left to an expert in human behavior.

In dog training our main concern is when the treat shows up.

  • Before the behavior. We show the food ahead of the thing we are asking our dog to do. Think: calling our dog to us as we crinkle the treat bag. Or, cueing our dog to sit with food in our hand. Okay. If we are speaking in the vernacular we could call that a bribe. We are showing the food out front. Generally this is not the way to go. Though there is a notable exception I’ll explain below.
  • After the behavior. The dog does the thing, whatever the thing is, and we follow up by giving her a bit of food. The food lets the dog know the behavior pays. Do more of it. That’s called reinforcement. Sit – treat – more sitting. It’s how nature works.

The notable exception. Our dogs rarely know what we want at first. One reliable way to teach a new behavior is to lure the dog into the action or position. This does involve showing her the food ahead of the behavior. Good trainers (and you’re a good trainer) plan to get the food lure out of the mix as soon as possible and focus only on reinforcing the behavior after it occurs.

All that said, is our dog just doing it for the food? Probably. Some behavior goes away very quickly if we drop the food altogether, especially if there are competing motivators.

Is our dog always just doing it for the food? No, not always. The world is full of reinforcers, some stronger than others. It’s up to us as trainers to stay creative and see what our dog will work for. What motivates her? Food? Play? Access to other dogs? Keep exploring the possibilities. Keep the conversation with your dog going. It’s how we build trusting relationships. It’s how we end up with dogs who are eager to learn new things with us just because it’s us.

 

Michael Baugh is a dog trainer in Houston, TX. He specializes in aggressive dog training.