The Story Doesn’t Matter

He was beaten. She was abused. He was neglected. She was unloved.

The stories dog owners tell themselves about their dogs is never ending. And while it is true that some dogs have been abused in their past, this is certainly not true for a majority of dogs in shelters and rescues.

Most of the dogs that pass through those kennels were dumped their by their loving owners and families after they became “too much dog” to handle. Without the necessary structure, expectations, and balance, the dogs became destructive, possessive, and reactive.

So off to the shelter or rescue they go. There – in the hopes of appealing to humanity’s pathos – volunteers will embellish stories about the dog’s past. While I can appreciate that the volunteers do this to help adopt out dogs, I find that these stories all too often stick with my clients and become excuses.

Volunteers can embellish stories to help get dogs adopted. All this really does is give new dog owners an excuse for their dog’s bad behavior.

“The dog is possessive because it was beaten. The dog is destructive because it was unloved. The dog is reactive because it was neglected.” NO! The dog is acting out NOW because its structural and stimulation needs are not being met NOW. Are there dogs who do carry damage from their previous life? Yes; however, there is so much that a dog owner can do to help their pups live their best lives NOW.

Dogs live in the here and now. They don’t dwell on the past like us; they don’t fret about the future like we do. So when we train dogs, we must keep this concept in mind and not allow our emotional clings to these stories to cloud our judgment and impede the dog’s success.

Bottom line: the story doesn’t matter. What does matter is everything that you can provide for your dog NOW, including: sustenance, shelter, balance, structure, and expectations.