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Reddit mentions of How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend: A Training Manual for Dog Owners
Sentiment score: 2
Reddit mentions: 3
We found 3 Reddit mentions of How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend: A Training Manual for Dog Owners. Here are the top ones.
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New Skete dogs (the monks only breed German Shepherds but train all types of dog) can be found all over the US. The monks advocate the philosophy that "understanding is the key to compassion and communication" with your dog. Now they have prepared this guide to understanding your dog - whether a new puppy or an old companion - and thereby deepening your relationship with your pet. It includes selecting a dog for your lifestyle, how to read a pedigree, how and when to train, the proper use of discipline, feeding and caring, about dogs and protection and about behaviour problems and how to stop them. There is also a chapter on how to deal with the death of your pet.
Specs:
| Height | 9.5 Inches |
| Length | 6.5 Inches |
| Number of items | 1 |
| Weight | 1.19931470528 Pounds |
| Width | 0.75 Inches |
Former dog trainer here. I respect that you're taking your dog through training classes and involving your son in the process, that's really important.
I grew up in the age when the 'alpha roll' was a totally legitimate tactic to ensure 'dominance' over the dog and get compliance. However, times have changed, and it turns out the alpha/beta thing is a complete myth. What works a lot better is building trust and using positive reinforcement. I'm wondering if that's where your son is getting this idea of being physical with the dog to establish dominance.
I would suggest you find a trainer that deals with balanced approach that deals with operant conditioning. I would suggest looking into Karen Pryor's work, especially her book Don't Shoot the Dog. I also highly recommend the book How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend by the Monks of New Skete.
Positive reinforcement works on kids (and people in general, and most other animals including fish!) - When you see your son doing the behavior you like to see with the dog, praise him in the moment, on the spot. Don't Shoot the Dog will cover this, by the way. Karen Pryor uses a lot of clicker training in her work, and I have had great success in using it to jump-start the positive association with treats/praise/play (whatever motivates), and pretty soon I can phase the clicker out and save it for when we move on to advanced practices or new skills.
If this were my kid, I'd ask, "Would you want to do thinks I asked you to do if I kicked you in the head and was mean to you? Would you be more willing to do the right thing if I was kind?" He may need to have the situation reframed for him to really understand the empathy that goes in to raising a dog. If you were on an alien planet and only understood 1/10th of what your new overlords were saying, wouldn't that be kind of scary, and even make you mad? Well, when dogs get scared and angry, they bite. When a dog bites a person, the dog goes away. It's up to us as people to get dogs to trust us so they don't get angry or scared.
I'm not saying your dog would ever bite your kid, so I hope you don't think that's what I'm insinuating will come from this. I have a wonderful 11 year old lab mix who, by all accounts is a fantastic and well-behaved dude. He's still a dog though, and as patient as he is, his patience has limits and we have to respect his boundaries too. My kid's only 10 months, and everyone seems to think that she'll be riding our lab like a pony, and I correct them every time.
I'd be happy to clarify any information or answer questions if you like!
This puppy is adorable, but please remember, those breeds have an ENORMOUS amount of energy.
Let me plug this book, just in case you're new to training, and it's a great book for people experienced, too.
https://www.amazon.com/How-Your-Dogs-Best-Friend/dp/0316604917
Aside from Amazon MP3's, a book: How to Be Your Dog's Best Friend, by the Monks of New Skete.