7 Lessons from a Rookie Dog Owner
How to raise a well behaved dog?
A few weeks back, I brought home a beagle puppy. I named her: Zen. Her personality, however, is completely opposite of her name — curious and restless. As I am raising Zen, I am learning interesting lessons about dogs and dog-owning. I am capturing some of those below.
1 — Raising a pup is a hard-work
Though I didn’t realise this before; raising a pup takes a lot of effort — especially in the beginning. I wake up at 5:30; take Zen out for a loo, feed her, clean up after her, groom her, medicate her, and take her out for exercise.
2 — Punctuality helps, mostly
New dog-owners often worry a lot over potty training. You do not want your dog to relieve themselves in the dining room. However, wanting something from your dog and actually getting your dog to do something are really two different things. The only arsenal you have is a daily routine. You must feed your dog at the right time and then take them out to the same spot every day. While Zen is still far from being perfect, she no longer poops in the house. “Not wanting to wipe her poop” has been the most effective motivator for me.
3 — Be Patient
You may correct or control some things but other things are outside your control. “Peeing indoors” is one such thing. Pups are like kids who can’t control their bladders. So you have to be okay with wiping urine and removing pee stains off the floor everyday. Zen is teaching me that some things just take time.
4 — Mindfulness Matters
We humans rely a lot more on voices and pointing; dogs don’t- they look at our entire body in conjunction with our voice. Also, dogs don’t understand words; they know sounds. “Sit” is not the same as “sit, sit”. They look at your entire body in conjunction with sounds to communicate. Also, a change in pitch of voice may alter the meaning of the word for dogs. We need to be careful about what we say, how we say it, how many times, and how we move while saying it. Following these techniques, I taught zen a few basic commands such as sit, come, and fetch in the last two weeks.
5 — Understanding != Obeying
Even if you can teach a command, it does not mean that your pup will always follow it. Dogs have their own personality and free will. While dogs are often eager to please you, they may choose to ignore you when they deem fit. Zen always ignores my commands while she is on a scent trail or nipping on a chew toy.
6 — Shouting doesn’t help
We often shout to get things done. Parents yell at their kids while scolding them; drill sergeants shout at new recruits. In fact, in the entire primate world, shouting is the symbol of superiority. That’s not true with dogs and wolves. Mature wolves rarely bark, and barking is often done in distress as a symbol of weakness. Low Pitched growl is a symbol of strength. Therefore, orders that are given in a low-pitched voice often work better with pups.
7 — You reap what you sow
A lot of our communication with dogs works through positive reinforcements. Dogs anticipate what we want to say, do what they think is right, and learn based on our feedback — if it is positive, say a back rub or a treat, they realise that they were right. Therefore, we need to be careful about what we teach our dogs. Rewarding incorrect behaviour, such as attention-seeking, can result in life-long social problems such as clinginess in your dog. Though it is tough, resist your pups pleading whenever you need to do so.
Zen is an adorable being. She would often walk up to my chair and lie down next to my feet. Playing with her is a great way to end a hectic workday. While I realise that raising Zen is not going to be easy, I am also confident that it will be an exciting journey.
