Being Misunderstood

The other day i was out getting a cup of coffee.When i run into a guy i know from the neighborhood who has a huge heart for dogs that.This gentleman has a soft spot for pit-bulls.When i walk up to the two of them Ron knowing that i'm really good with dogs and helping them learn new behaviors.Now i have never had any professional training to speak of.But i do have a very good understanding of dog body language.I have always felt that many dogs are mis labeled.This happens because as dogs speak with actions not words.We as people tend to read these actions falsely.That being said my conversation with Ron starts to center around his newly adopted dog .This is a small dog with a herding background. Ron asks why this dog alway circles him and nips at his heals.So i explain when this dog get excited he naturally starts what he was breed to do.With the proper exercise to cater to his natural breeding he will act out in this manner. Ron remarks that he thought it was aggression.At this point i give him some ideas to help him redirect this into a daily task to help him redirect his energy.Now when this conversation started i did not know that the other gentleman standing there was a dog trainer with over 20 years of dog training under his belt.I find this out when i ask Ron to describe to me what the dog is doing.Ron is a pack leader so this is not an issue.But he did feel that this may be a dog aggression issue.When he explains when and what is going on when this dogs behavior turns to this nipping at his heals .After hearing Ron out .I give him several examples of what a dog with aggression issues might act like .The one example that prompted me to write about this was the guy that was standing with Ron,makes this statement that my dog Bentley a rescue from a previous adoption threw Wet Nose Rescue.Was a dog that was fear aggressive.I call Bentley a fear snapper or biter.Hes not aggressive at all he will snap at your direction but instantly look away eyes down and ears back .I have come to learn that he was not treated all that well with his previous owners.Bentley is very loving playful and submissive to my Alfa male duke.
  This other guy a dog trainer say to me your dog is fear aggressive I say to him no if he was fear aggressive he would continue to lash out with aggression. As this is not the case .He has had to learn that i'm the boss and as boss sometimes i will deal out discipline and that does not mean that i'm going to beat him but i will let him know his behavior will not be tolerated.And like many kids after being yelled at they want to know you still love them .With Ben-Ben as we call him he wants to come to me after I yell at him asking me to give him the love he has come to know .Ben Ben will approach me with a low slug slinky body tail down with just a bit of wag to it.
  When this guy tells me that Ben Ben was fear aggressive i really made me mad as any dog behaviorist know you cant just lump all dogs actions into just one category.You cant train every dog the same way they all have different things that make them tick.The trick is to find out which technique works for each dog.
You can train dogs but apparently still have no idea of  dog behavior.as i found out in my talk with this guy who was wanting to tell me about my dog that i have been doing non stop rehabilitation to for the last year.
That being said using many techniques such as getting him used to being pulled on pushed and sometimes.i used many thing such as pushing him with the broom as to have him understand its not going to hurt him i always put my self  in a position to have him trust me so that he learns that listening has it's benefits.To this date Ben Ben has learned many things.Most of all trust and that i deal with him in absolute control.His out burst will not be tolerated.I can now discipline with very little aggression from him but as with all dogs that have been abused his rehabilitation is a never ending process and i am always conscious that some times he may still and always have that fear of being beaten .This is a very hard and long process that in time can be dealt with,and managed with love understanding and patience.As for this trainer that was so wanting to tell me he has trained dog for 20 years makes me sad that he felt like by telling me this i would make me back down to his years of experience.But when i challenged him to a debate he was unable to tell me the difference in dog behavior and why.it brought me back to my early years when i was seeking training for my dogs.After spending money to learn that many dog trainers can get dogs to sit stay lay down,but when it came to getting your dog not be so combative as with many head strong dogs tend to be .twenty years ago my wife and i were adopting 2 4 moth old  rottweilers pups.we were told by several trainers that they don't work with rotties.
past the beginner classes as they require to much time and tend to be harder to train.This would be the start of my education to learn how to be a god dog owner.My rotties were a challenge but  i learned to teach them and and soon after i was asked to help others in my neighborhood with there dogs.

  As it turned out  this was something i was good at and it came naturally to me . If i was smart i would have developed this natural ability i have to interact with animals .I have always felt that dealing with dogs was something i should have done from jump street.Not to toot my own horn but i have used he same vet for over 25 years and my family has been using this same vet for even longer.When i visit my vet i get free reign to roam the facility and visit with the animals that are in the vets care .My vet and i have a good understanding of what i do with animals.During my many visits i have done everything from assist as a set of hands in surgery to removing aggressive dogs from there cages.Now i'm not saying all dogs just let me remove them but to date i have not had to sedate one dog to remove him or her from there cage.I do tend to build a bond with dogs and cats that give most of the vet techs trouble.My vet has now come to call upon me to help with dogs that in need of being adopted .so i pick them up from him and rehabilitate them and the rescue find the m a new permeate home.