Honour Your Dog

Over the last few months I’ve seen a bit of a concerning trend which has been keeping me up at night. 

Time and time again, I keep having owners of working breeds get in touch to get help with reactivity and aggression, who have previously been advised to get their dogs on psychotropics like Trazodone or Fluoxetine. Dogs who were by their previous trainer or behaviourist described as “just too intense”. Dogs with no anxiety issues, dogs who there is nothing “wrong” with, other than them being a high drive dog. Dogs who, when they come off the meds, are more intense around food and when they play, and more curious about their environment. I’m struggling to put into words how incredibly sad and heartbreaking I find this.

If you are a professional advising owners to get their perfectly emotionally healthy dog on antidepressants or sedatives because of limitations in your approach - refer out. If you are advising early spay and neutering to dull dogs down and keep them infantile - refer out. If things like diet and exercise has not even been taken into consideration - shame on you. 45 minute walks around the block paired with run free fields and snuffle mats is NOT GOOD ENOUGH.

Sometimes there is a great mismatch between the dog and the owner, and rehoming is not an option because of the dog’s dangerous behaviour. However, when the owners are committed and ready to go above and beyond to help their dogs - teach them how. If the owners are not ready to accept the responsibility they took on when selecting this breed - it is our job to motivate them. 

If you are an owner feeling out of your depth with your dog, if you have a terrier - take them barn hunting, if you have a sighthound - take them lure coursing, if you have a herding breed - try agility, if you have a bull breed - get them on a spring pole, if you have a gundog - give scentwork a go.

As for any relationship, and the one with our dog is no different - don’t try to make the other someone they are not. I deeply believe that in order to help our dogs overcome issues, we must first truly appreciate WHO THEY ARE as an individual. Not just accept, but respect, cherish and honour the traits that make them a challenge, but who also make them phenomenal at the activities they were bred for. If you are not sure where to start GRC Dogsports is rapidly growing in the UK, and welcome dogs of all breeds, sizes and issues. 

Not just accept, but honour the traits that make them phenomenal at the activities they were bred for. 

If you are not sure where to start GRC Dogsports is rapidly growing in the UK, and welcome dogs of all breeds, sizes and issues.