The refuge is closed today so I though we would have a look at whether we spoil our dogs? It’s amazing how many pictures we receive from folks who have adopted one of our dogs where the dog is cuddled up on the sofa or bed. So tonight’s blog is about how and if we are spoiling our dog!
So here is a little quiz..
- Does your dog sleep on the bed? Oops.. mine does!
- Does your dog eat human food? Oops.. yep to that one too!
- Do you cook for your dog? Oops..yep!
- Do you let the dog on the sofa? Oops ..yep!
- Do you take your dog on holiday? Emm.. yep!
- Buy them birthday presses and then even wrap them up…Yep to that too!
So have I spoilt my dogs and are they raving loonies?
Contrary to what you may have read in some dog training books, in my opinion,letting your dog get on the sofa and feeding him real food does not mean he will turn into a raving dominant maniac-dog. It simply means that you have made a conscious decision to grant him furniture privileges and provide him with a diet that goes beyond processed kibble. These deliberate choices on your part do not give rise to behavior problems. Spoiling a dog in a manner that leads to undesirable behaviors is something else entirely.
Whenever you are with your dog, one of you is training the other. The healthiest dog/human relationships generally occur when the human is the trainer and the dog the trainee the vast majority of the time. This means that the human controls most of the “good stuff” in the dog’s life, and decides when, where, and how the dog gets it. The dog can earn the good stuff by doing things that please the human.
I would identify a “spoiled” dog as one who is allowed to be the trainer more often than he is the trainee, when the resulting behaviors are damaging to the relationship. The spoiled dog does things that don’t please his human and gets the good stuff anyway.
One example is the dog who “demand-barks” to get a treat or a toy – and the human gives him what he wants because she knows the barking will just escalate if she doesn’t.
So carry on allowing your dog to be comfy, let him enjoy some tasty healthy dinners but do try and discourage pushy demanding behaviors and you will have a happy pooch…a little comfort never hurt anybody!
Here are Twiggy and Georgie..comfy and cosy!