Dogheart trainer, JC Adams, focused on his one-year old dog Ella.

Photo by Jerry Buffman

My favorite local bookstore is Nicola's Books

Training is a lot more than just the mechanics of teaching the dog a new routine or cue. Good dog training depends on a whole variety — and I use the word “whole” purposefully — of ingredients coming together in a balanced way. 

Any experienced teacher or parent will tell you it's an uphill battle to work with a child whose whose mind and heart isn't in a good space for learning. Dogs are no different. Exercise, good nutrition, healthy daily interaction and an emotionally balanced environment are a few prerequisites that we dog owners are obligated to provide for our canine companions before we can begin to take training seriously. Imposing rules upon, and training routines to, a dog whose basic needs aren't being met is unfair to that dog, and fulfilling the responsibility of meeting those basic needs is a challenge in and of itself. A big one! 

The mindset that fuels the notion that all of this can be made simple or attained with ease, in my opinion, is disastrous for dogs. So, if you're thinking about getting a dog, remember: just getting the dog to the starting point of a healthy and productive training process is your first challenge, and not one to be taken lightly.

Learning a new language, learning how to play an instrument or even choosing to have a child, one doesn't embark on these adventures because they're easy. On the contrary, we embrace them because we feel ready to accept the challenges they present for us and welcome the inner growth that comes from devoting ourselves. 

This is the right attitude to have toward training with your dog. As a dog owner, you should be suspicious of any book, trainer, or device that oversimplifies your relationship with your dog. Accept the work that's involved and trust that the benefits will come. Forget about shortcuts. 

Being out in a field with a dog, training her to directional cues, seeking harmony, observing, sensing and balancing my own actions with hers —that's meditation for me. It forces me to be right there in the moment with the dog and requires that I focus my attention. I like that!

Despite the fact that it's my job to inspire people to do so, I never want to send the message that training your dog is easy. I invite readers to hold me accountable on this. If I am guilty, send me a comment and set me straight! Indeed someone recently did and I thank them for the feedback, which inspired me to write this post.

My hope is that we are all called to task the moment we choose to begin a relationship with another living thing. The nature of the task involves broadening our perspective. It has nothing to do with convenience. It's about becoming more enlightened than we were before the relationship was born and reaping the rewards that that effort brings to us. Let it be said here that this is the most precious jewel that dogs hold for us as individuals and as a society.

We might not always like what we see when we peer into our dog's “mirror of instinct.” But looking at it, accepting it and being willing to change ourselves is what dogs are pleading for. 

Let's allow dogs to be our teachers, and not allow ourselves to shy away from difficulties that arise along the path to a stronger bond with them.

John Spieser is a professional trainer and owner of Dogheart. He can be reached at john@doghearta2.com.