Supernanny...dog trainer?

Ok, so I'm an empty nester, Grandparent kinda girl (I was such a young bride...haha!). I've been catching episodes of Supernanny lately. What a great dog trainer this woman could be! If you haven't noticed already, many of the dog training tips work great on kids and visa versa. No, I'm not telling you to crate your child, but time outs, whether "in the naughty chair" or in your crate as done for the same purpose. To give the child/dog a time to calm down and "chill" in essence. And, supernanny always makes the child apologize for their behavior before they can get off their spot (and hug their parent). Come on folks - how many of you have let your pup out of the crate asking them "are you sorry?....good, I love you too!" Along with a pat or kiss.

And I especially love the fact that she tells parents to stop talking to their kids when they're being disciplined. I can't tell you how many times I tell students, "stop talking, just follow through with your body!" For some reason we humans think we have to babble away and whether it's a young child or dog, you have to know that the more they can get your attention, in any way, the more they feel in control. Silent and sure is my motto when taking a puppy to his crate, or downing an adult dog in a stay as a control tool.

So for those of you that have raised kids, or are raising them now, or were a kid (ok, I think I covered it!) take a watch now and then and see just how she manages these children. If you're actively dog training right now there will be a very familiar feeling to the approaches! And here's a trainer's secret...you can always tell how folks raise their kids by the way their dogs behave. A long while back I had a family who came to me with a young female golden retriever. They got a golden because they were told how smart this breed was. Their expectations of this dog was pretty much over the top, and I had to constantly remind them "she's young, she'll get it, she's doing fine for her age". They had two children, a boy and a girl. Both were straight A students and the parents were very sure to let me know that. The parents themselves were well educated. Their expectations for their dog was exactly the same as their children. It's kinda funny though because the dog did challenge them alot and they were at odds as how to handle that! She did, in the end, become exactly what they wanted. And I know they all lived happily together!

So even though we (trainers) are always telling you to treat your dog like a dog, you'll find that some of the approaches we use on children are pretty good stuff for dogs as well! Have fun watching Supernanny!

Take care all!
deb