The Misunderstood Ones

The subject of this blog has been on my mind for a long time.  I haven't had the time to put it in to words until tonight but as I sit here at 0400 (4 AM) these thoughts again weigh heavy on my mind.

My 'job' is to help dogs.  In a way, my job will also be to help people.  I have no 'formal' training.  I only know of both what I have experienced, observed, read, listened to, asked questions about from those more knowledgeable and seen first hand.  I also know about training horses (where my formal education lies), and in many ways, the two species aren't that different.  Many times, the same basic concepts in teaching and 'training' apply to not only animals, but humans as well.  I do not know if I do things the 'right' way but I do know that what I do works for the animals I have personally worked with.  Some people say it's just a 'way' that I have about me with them, others have called me a dog or horse 'whisperer' and I surely don't think I'm worthy of those titles.  I just do what I do to the best of my ability.  I have never met a dog, or horse, I couldn't help, at least to some extent.  I'm not saying I've seen it all, I'm saying I've been lucky. LOL 

From the time I was a young child, animals were my best friends.  I was raised on a farm with no close neighbors my own age, so when I came home from school, I came home to my dogs (a German Shepherd named Tammy and a Jack Russell/Fox Terrier/Mini Eskimo mix named Annie-my first ribbon winning agility dog I trained) and my horses, ducks, chickens, calves and sheep (among many other animals).  When I was even younger than that, my mother can tell you stories of me sneaking a flock of ducklings into my room for a 'sleepover' and being heartbroken they couldn't stay the night, or a pot bellied pig who was trick trained, sleeping next to me in bed.  I spent summers with my dog and my pony where I'd ride every day, then dismount, lay in the grass reading comic books, drinking sweet tea and letting my pony graze while Tammy was my pillow.  Maybe because of that, or because I'm strange (lol) I have always found animals to be better 'people' than many people.  I don't know why I understand them, I just do and I don't know why, but they seem to understand me.

It has always been my firm belief that 1) there are no problem horses, only problem riders (to borrow the title of a famous book about horse training) and 2) there are no problem dogs, only problem owners.  That's not to say that these animals develop problems because owners intentionally misunderstand them (although sometimes may intentionally mistreat them), it's because people don't take the time to just sit and think about the way the animal sees it.  I trained horses professionally for quite a few years, and for myself, even longer than that and though I specialized in work with 'problem' horses, I trained horses to do things I didn't know I could simply by breaking down the behavior into smaller tasks and thinking about how the horse sees things.  I now do the same with dogs.  It is within an animals nature to act a certain way when they are happy, scared, excited, etc.  There are always of course some variants but usually all of these behaviors are similar among members of a species.  If you take the time to observe, listen, and learn, you'll find that nothing an animal does is 'weird' or hard to understand.  Sometimes, I just don't have the heart to tell people that, but I'm working on it.  People don't realize that no matter how well you TRAIN a dog, if you are living in chaos, if your attitude is poor, if you are stressed beyond belief, if there is strain or discord in your household, your animals will reflect that in their behavior.  Animals may not understand exactly WHY everyone 'feels' this way but they 'feel' it to and the only thing they know how to do in response, is act out.  This is one of the reasons I never train (horse or dog) when I am tired, stressed, angry, upset, fearful, etc.  I wait until I can balance my mood enough to be able to give that animal the confident leader they need instead of an emotionally unbalanced individual who is trying to 'teach' them something about life.  In reality, it's us humans who have a lot to learn.  'Feel' has a lot to do with how animals respond to people.  I am not talking about our sense of touch, I am talking about the emotional 'feel' of a person and the way they 'feel' the emotions of an animal.  It may sound crazy, but I have seen it time and time again.  For those who are willing to sit back and take a look, you'll notice it too.  I could talk forever about feel, I could reference a million writings from Cesar Milan talking about calm assertive energy but I prefer to sum up the way each animal here is treated in a quote from Ralph Waldo Emerson,

“Treat a man as he is, and he will remain as he is. Treat a man as he could be, and he will become what he should be.”. 

We let each animal know what we expect, we treat them the same as those who are already balanced and happy and we give them the tools to utilize to become so all the time.  It might not be in a book (or maybe it is?) but it works, at least for me.

Working with dogs with emotional problems or scars, like Etta and Whiskers, is nothing 'new' to me.  I have dealt with the human form of PTSD in loved ones both human and animal alike.  I have dealt with scared, abused animals.  It can be emotionally draining work that involves long hours and endless patience, but I venture to say it is the most rewarding 'work' out there.

I say all of that, to then talk about this...Dogs have needs.  There are basic things that every dog NEEDS.  For physical survival there is obviously the basics such as food, water and shelter.  However, for emotional survival and stability, so much more is required.  Exercise, focused exercise, praise and attention, confidence building techniques, play, and a 'pack' (be it human, canine, other animal species, or all three).  That pack must also have a leader who brings stability and a feeling of 'safety' to it, letting each one know that not only are their needs being met but that they will be exceeded.  Does this take time?  Absolutely.  With our current pack (whose stories I must update soon) I spend almost my entire day caring for the dogs, while also caring for a 3 year old, 5 horses, a house, a farm and a business.  I often chuckle when I hear that people 'don't have time' because they have a kid, or a job, or a husband, etc.  The time is there, it is how you utilize it.  I would venture to say that no one here feels neglected, or as if their needs aren't being met.  I'm not super woman, I don't ALWAYS succeed at filling EVERY need EVERY day, but 98% of the time is a pretty good percentage and I always aim for that perfect 100.  Now, obviously, not everyone has hours of free time per day, rehabilitating dogs isn't their job however so dealing with 10+ animals at any given time isn't something they have to make time for.  However, if every owner gave their one or two dogs just an extra few minutes of time instead of say, watching a TV show, reading a magazine, gossiping on the phone, they'd find their animals much  more happy and balanced. 

I would also like a dollar for every time I hear 'But I have a big back yard they can play in!'...Well, on one hand, that is great!  Dogs do need exercise and time to run and be dogs.  However, dogs also need focused exercise which means interaction with their owner.  This doesn't have to take a lot, it can be as simple as 5 minutes every few hours throughout the day to take some time to teach your dog a task, ask them to perform a simple command or trick, etc.  They need, and crave, attention. You would be amazed at how many people can't seem to spare even that 5 minutes. And this, brings me to my next subject...

There are many misunderstood dog breeds in this world.  I could fill a library writing about each of them.  The two that are nearest and dearest to me are Afghan Kuchi Dogs (like Etta and Whiskers, which I am still learning about through experience) and German Shepherds.  This week I will dedicate a blog to the Kuchi hounds in my life, but tonight, I want to talk about their 'brothers' and 'sisters' here at the ranch who help them in their rehabilitation it seems, moreso than any other breed of dog here, the German Shepherd.

I would need a huge facility to hold the amount of GSD's (German Shepherd Dogs) I see given away or 'thrown away' every day just on Craigslist and sites like it.  Add in Facebook, and I don't know if I can fathom a place that could hold them all.  Oddly, unlike so many other dogs that people 'can't handle', it seems GSD ads always hold warnings about the dog or list a million and one 'problems' the dog has.  It makes me laugh, not because I find it funny, but because I simply can have no other reaction at the simple ways in which this breed is misunderstood.

You will have to excuse me if I seem to show favoritism or extremely passionate views toward GSD's.  I was raised with them since birth, one saved my life when a neighbors dog almost viciously attacked me as a child (Tammy, the dog I mentioned earlier), and I have yet to find a breed more loyal, intelligent and amazing than the German Shepherd.  If there ever was a dog who could read your mind, or come closer to understanding the English language and beyond that the emotional language of people, I have yet to find it.  They assist me every day in working with other dogs and a few of mine also will work to 'protect' (non-aggressively) me from an emotionally unstable dog who may snap at a moments notice.  Yet, for these amazing dogs, I see dozens of ads on the internet touting them as problem children.  They bite, they chew, they dig, they jump fences, have skin problems (hot spots, usually caused by stress and/or bad food) and the list goes on.  And I fail to understand, what these owners don't understand about why these dogs act this way. 

German Shepherds do not simply WANT mental and physical stimulation and human interaction, they REQUIRE and NEED it.  They are not 'outside dogs', they are not 'guard dogs' that you tie to a chain and leave alone.  These dogs are highly intelligent and were bred to be part of a family as well as to work.  They NEED an environment that not only stimulates them mentally but also satisfies them emotionally.  They also NEED exercise, they NEED a job, they NEED socialization.  Basically, they NEED a LOT of time, and not JUST time, they need QUALITY time.  These are dogs that can be prone to separation anxiety, that can be easily stressed, that can quickly become fear aggressive, if they are not in the right environment.  These dogs are extremely loyal to their 'family' or 'pack'.  And while people think it's 'cool' to have a 'guard dog', a REAL protection dog does not bite on impulse or instinct alone, it must be stable enough to do so on command from it's owner and also be stable enough to NOT do so or to release on command as well.  I wish more people understood that concept.   Max Von Stephanitz, the originator of the breed, wrote these words about the first registered German Shepherd, ""His character corresponded to his exterior qualities; marvelous in his insinuating fidelity to his master; towards all others the complete indifference of a master-mind, with a boundless and irrepressible zest for living. Although untrained in his puppyhood, nevertheless obedient to the slightest nod when at his master's side; but when left to himself, the maddest rascal, the wildest ruffian and an incorrigible provoker of strife.  Never idle, always on the go; well-disposed to harmless people, but no cringer, mad on children and always ---in love.  He suffered from a suppressed, or better, a superfluity of unemployed energy; for he was in heaven when someone was occupied with him, and he was then the most tractable of dogs.".  I think those words say a lot about the 'first' German Shepherd, as well as German Shepherds today. 

In closing, what I am trying to say is that humans are so quick to blame animals for 'problems' when in fact, we as people, are the problem.  "If you do not train it, do not blame it."  'Problem' animals have been for me, the most rewarding to work with.  They will teach you SO much and have SO much to give, if given the chance.  Breed research and truly understanding 'where a dog is coming from' can tell us so much as to why these 'issues' arise.  We often have to do a little digging, listening or watching, but the answers are there and are usually fairly common sense.  Anyone who says a dog is 'bad' or 'stupid' should look in the mirror.  Whenever someone tells me an animal is dumb I often tell a story about one of my horseback riding students a few years back, it is a lesson that the student will tell you to this day, changed their view on things greatly.  This particular student had a wonderfully well trained, patient and point winning horse.  During a lesson, the horse didn't seem to 'want' to work and was being slow at responding to commands and was constantly doing something other than what the student thought they were asking of the horse.  Out of frustration, the student exclaimed, 'This horse is SO STUPID!'.  I quietly looked at my student and said, 'The horse isn't the one who is being stupid.  She has figured out how to do the least amount of work possible based on the way you are riding her.  She knows what she can and can't get away with and what you are and aren't capable of and has managed a way around doing what you think you're asking.  Look at the cues you have given and the attitude you've taken and reassess the situation.  Who is the one who is being stupid?'.  The student sat for a moment and contemplated what I'd just said and then responded, 'I guess I am'.  They have never forgotten that lesson, and neither should we.

Until next time...
*Nicole