Many people wonder how long it takes to train their dogs. “How long do I practice sit and stay? How long do I have to crate train ? How long do I keep him on a short leash?” Sometimes what I really hear in these questions is “How long until my dog is fixed?”. “So I practice these things and it’ll fix my dog and then I can go back to normal?” - seems to be the way a lot of people think. I give a time frame just so people have a goal but the reality is, dog training is forever.
It’s not about how long it takes. It’s that you take the time to understand how your dog thinks and help him to achieve a calm and balanced mind. Providing an environment and family dynamic that puts them in the most natural state of mind for a dog. Yes, there is technique and activities to get them to that place, but what really changes things the most for people with dog behavior problems is changing their perspective combined with that technique. It’s learning the language that your dog understands.
Having a dog is a lifestyle. Communicating with your dog is something that happens every day for the rest of your dog’s life and the next dog’s life and the next one and the one after that. What I want for my clients is to have the mindset that their dog is an animal and has a different psychology than humans do. I want my clients to respect the nature of the animal living with them. Once you learn the language and practice, you become fluent. Then it’s no longer work or “dog training”, it’s just fluent communication. And that lasts a lifetime.
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