When It’s Not the Ideal Dog

I don’t have the ideal competition dog. He’s structurally not quite right for agility, he lacks the strength of nerves to be a strong competitor in obedience, and tracking proved to be too stressful for him to be the leader. He never could quite work the whole track 35 feet in front of me.

Others look at him and wonder why I must bother with him. He is sensitive and easily flustered. He can be clingy, anxious, and needs security. He will never place first in a class and probably never run an agility run clean enough to qualify.

Why this dog?

What they don’t see is this dog is so committed to me that he will give me 110% at all times. He will try anything, no matter how difficult mentally or physically it is for him, just because I asked him to try. He is a quick learner and retains information well. He is just pure love.

I remember the first day of tracking work. Three kinds of food failed to get him to look down enough to even notice it. He cried, whined, and pawed at me. I pointed to the track; he laid down among the food bits without even thinking twice. Finally, squeeze cheese was what he would seek out, but it was at least 30 minutes to get this. As we struggled to get something so simple (that several others in the training group already had quite easily), a light bulb finally went on in his head.

Throughout the morning, we each laid straight-line tracks for our dogs heavily done in food. Ours was just six feet long compared to the others of 20-30 feet or more, but that was okay. I was simply proud of his attempt. Everyone around us noted how hard he tried to get it right. It’s this attitude that has always made him perfect for me.

This dog has taught me so much about myself that an easy dog never could. He has taught me patience because each item must be slowly taught to him in baby steps. When he learned to lie down, we could not do it the traditional way. Instead, it was built up through association and took several weeks, but once he understood, he had it down.

He has taught me to try and keep frustrations in check. A sensitive dog cannot handle a frustrated handler. Any negativity or too much pressure at all will cause him to shut down and not work. This reminds me that training has to be fun, happy, and immensely positive. We don’t do endless repetitions of anything, and my level of perfection is not as high as others. Instead, it’s always about how wonderful he is.

He has taught me to appreciate the moment. When I started working with him, I wasn’t sure he’d ever get a title of any kind. My initial goal was just to have him learn the tasks, and we’d see where it went. Any title (and he has 4 right now) would always be considered a great accomplishment. Each success has been a wonderful moment.

The un-ideal dog makes a person a better trainer. Anyone can train an easy dog: one with a good upbringing and plenty of socialization that has avoided any genetic issues that might cause a problem down the road. You learn how to teach behaviors but not how to overcome problems.

By committing to a less than ideal dog and bringing them through to success, you become an infinitely better trainer who is a problem solver, looks for the best solution not the easiest or quickest, and is able to bring out the best in any dog. I truly think every competitive trainer should seek out at least one less than ideal dog to work with. These dogs have something to give, and it might not be apparent in fancy ribbons, placings, and titles, but the knowledge gained from these dogs will always supersede anything an easy dog can do. In the end, it is the less than ideal dog that will steal your heart.

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When It’s Not the Ideal Dog

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