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They are correcting dog behaviour. Many people wonder how to make the dog understand that he has done something wrong and that they do not want it to happen again. But is it possible, or correct, to do so? Life with a dog can be pretty complex; there can be many conditions, rules, and situations on which two or more individuals have to agree, except that they may also have differing opinions. For example, “This one goes like this!” “This other one, you don’t do that!” etc.
Sometimes, therefore, it is easy for there to be disagreements, misunderstandings, or individual desires that put a strain on cohabitation or create friction. As a result, many people wonder how to make the dog understand that he has done something wrong and that they do not want it to happen again. Of course, the subject is complex, but many considerations can be made. Let us see together which ones.
Dog doing something wrong. The rules of learning.
The first step is to reflect on how an individual learns the game’s rules. The fact is that dogs are social animals, i.e. they know to be in the world through the example and guidance of their handlers.
So let us imagine our puppy, who has no idea what to do in life and who will watch what we do to learn the ‘how’, the ‘when’ and the ‘what’.
Of course, we are not talking about a passive being in the world; therefore, it will not remain motionless, inert, until an event or our interaction stimulates it, for we must not forget that we are dealing with one of the most cognitively complex animal species.
Our little quadruped will be driven by exploration, curiosity, and the need for experience, and these real ‘needs’ will push him to interact with his surroundings and the people who move in them. We can now ask ourselves how he will understand what is appropriate and what is not.
Understanding for learning
One of the ways we learn to be in the world is to evaluate the consequences of our actions. For a social animal, this also involves sifting through the opinions of members of the group to which it belongs regarding an expressed behaviour or a particular situation.
The first element to consider, however, is the ability to understand precisely the opinion of others, something that a puppy may not yet be able to do; after all, especially when it comes to the dog living with us, things are made even more complicated by the fact that we are different species.
And so our puppy’s understanding of human language is complicated, not only from the point of view of the words spoken, which are of marginal importance to him but for all that is our way of expressing emotions, intentions, approval and denial.
To understand how complex this understanding between different species is, let us think that gradually, the dog will learn to understand us very well. But, still, most of us will not, even after years and years, be able to understand our dog.
Understanding is a time-consuming process, which can be facilitated by constructive interaction or made impossible by unacceptable conditions, for instance, when the relationship is poor on all fronts.
Bear in mind, however, that our puppy is naturally inclined to learn from us, who has replaced his family; if we do not hinder this natural process ourselves, there will not even be a need to think about ”how to make him understand that he is wrong”, it will happen naturally in most cases and various circumstances.
When the dog errs, this action is not done! Really?
As mentioned, life is complicated, and what makes it more complex for our puppy is the fact that we are different: we do not have protruding ears or a tail, we stand erect, we do not have sharp teeth, and we do not ‘pull up our fur‘, we do not make a whole range of sounds, and so on.
But what perhaps makes it all the more difficult is our preconceptions. Our inability to understand that behaviour we think is wrong may not be mistaken for our dog. Let’s take an example to understand this.
A puppy, let’s say three months old, will undoubtedly have physiological needs to fulfil, and this will frequently happen during the day, especially when he wakes up -every time he wakes up after meals, after playing and, often, in response to all the exciting moments, such as when he feels pleased to see us coming home, etc. So now, from his point of view, there is no problem peeing where it is at that moment, on the floor of our house.
When the dog errs, punishing our dog makes no sense.
Objectively, what could be wrong with a puppy in that? I run away; I do it! How often have we heard that we must scold the puppy for this? Countless times, the issue has been so ‘normal’ that it has not even been mentioned. “Of course, the puppy has to be scolded; you don’t pee in the house!”.
Let us not even talk about the various absurd techniques to make people understand our precept, which is ours alone and has no logic for a dog, especially a puppy.
What is the point of attacking him, albeit with timing? What kind of learning should he derive from our ‘ethological‘ punishment? Punishing him makes no sense; instead, we can patiently anticipate his behaviour and take him outside when we know this natural physiological need is pressing.
It just takes a little patience.
There is not even any need to praise him when he pees outside the house: in fact, dogs do not like to pee inside their own ‘den’, but when they are tiny, their nature urges them not to leave too many traces of themselves outside, in a world that for them, so small and helpless, is still unknown and too dangerous.
It just takes patience: after all, you have chosen to care for a puppy. On the contrary, if we indulge in unnecessary scolding, or worse, beatings, the puppy will be intimidated by us, it will be uncomfortable and under stress from our mere presence, and guess what negative pressure produces? More peeing!
Another circumstance that gets on people’s nerves is when the puppy gnaws at our precious things, like the wooden legs of chairs, slippers, the TV remote control, etc. That’s when people hurl themselves at the puppy, shouting insults, or the infamous and much-reviled ‘No!!! “to which we attribute a universal meaning, which in our belief has the same meaning for all life forms on the planet; I once witnessed a scene that can make us realise the absurdity of our beliefs: a person who was eating a sandwich in the open air, barked his universal ‘No!’ repeatedly at a wasp pointing at his much-loved ham.
In short, learning is constructive.
In short, learning is constructive, not destructive, so we should focus more on giving our dogs directions instead of prohibitions. For example, if a dog is oriented towards chewing on inappropriate objects, instead of punishing our fur, – we need to get the dog to focus on them. – let us direct our dog to something appropriate.
If an intervention is necessary to ‘stop’ the behaviour that we have realised the little one is about to engage in, a “Hey!” will suffice to get his attention, after which the offer of a much-appreciated chew must come, again about the unwanted behaviour mentioned above.
When the dog errs. The Rules of Coexistence
In general, a dog will learn how to behave in domestic life by observing what goes on around him, and among other things, he will imitate those behaviours that have impressed him most. But sometimes, he sees us doing not something he can do himself, but the puppy cannot know this.
Here, then, we will have to be the ones to give him clear indications or good alternatives to enable him to learn and fulfil his needs, and we are not just talking about physiological ones here, of course.
We are an inspiration for our dogs.
Among a dog’s needs is belonging, which drives him to imitate us or at least is inspired by what we do and how we do it. So, our puppy will spend much time observing us and drawing conclusions from what it sees. Many people do not realise that a puppy will be moved by an infinite number of elements and its extraordinary intelligence; it will not live well in a world where everything is “No!”, where the only thing you can do is “Don’t do anything!”
If, for example, we do not want our dog to enter our bedroom, the most straightforward thing is to place a physical barrier, such as a temporary gate, that prevents him from entering, especially when we are inside.
But remember that a dog can be expected to sleep together; this also fulfils the need to feel part of a cohesive family unit, especially when talking about a puppy. So, leaving the door open and scolding him obsessively whenever he tries to join us is pointless.
As mentioned above, constant reprimands and verbal aggression create negative stress, call into question the emotional bond, and fail another fundamental need, ‘security’. And this erodes the balance of the relationship between individuals.
When the dog errs sometimes depends on the age of the dog
A central aspect of this matter is remembering that it is pretty different to relate to a puppy, a young dog or an adult dog. The puppy has every right to make mistakes and make more mistakes and to have time to process the information we give it with our behaviour.
It goes without saying that if we are inept at communicating with our dog, have the wrong attitude, are inconsistent and only cause fear, that puppy will have little hope of learning anything from us.
He will have to fend for himself. But, of course, then we cannot complain that the dog, once an adult, does not take any notice of us, is not the least interested in what we say, and is even annoyed by our ‘meaningless chatter. And if you set up your relationship with him with ‘Spartan education in mind, you cannot be surprised at the consequences.
An adult dog is different.
It is different when we are talking about an adult dog, in which case there are situations in which some discipline is required, but this is based on the dog’s accreditation and trust in us. So then, we might say to our dog quite calmly, “Hey! That’s not allowed!” Our relationship with him over time will enable him to understand what we want in awe.
It is not always ‘why’ we want it either, but that is where trust comes in: ”Don’t you want me to go there? OK. I’m not going there, but it’s not like I understand why….”
If you have built your being in the world together, there will be a great understanding between you, and you will only need to exchange a glance to understand each other. And this is true on both sides; it is true in both senses. But it is also apparent that the more profound the relationship, the fewer the occasions when discipline is called into play, precisely because you both know each other, to such an extent that problematic situations are mostly anticipated and avoided without always needing to correct with a reprimand.
It does not mean that your dog is as obedient as a machine, breathing on command; it means that your companion will, as an adult, have a relationship of affection and friendship with you. And of a friend, we know both the merits and the flaws, and it is precisely because of these things that we appreciate him, and because of these things, our relationship will be unique and unrepeatable.
Final thoughts.
When a dog errs, it is essential to remember that they are animals and do not always understand the consequences of their actions. It is also important to remember that dogs cannot feel guilt or shame like humans.
Here are some tips for dealing with a dog that has made a mistake:
- Stay calm. Staying calm and not getting angry or frustrated with your dog is essential. This will only make the situation worse.
- Identify the cause of the mistake. Once you have identified the cause of the error, you can take steps to prevent it from happening again.
- Correct the behaviour. If your dog is making a mistake because they are bored or anxious, you can try to provide them with more exercise or mental stimulation. If your dog is making a mistake because it is not trained, you can start training it.
- Be patient. It may take some time and patience to correct your dog’s behaviour. However, do not give up, and be consistent with your training.
Here are some additional tips for dealing with a dog that has made a mistake:
- Do not punish your dog. Punishment is not an effective way to train a dog and can worsen the problem.
- Do not yell at your dog. Yelling will only frighten your dog and make them more likely to repeat the mistake.
- Do not hit your dog. Drilling is never an acceptable way to treat a dog and can be illegal in some places.
If you are having trouble dealing with a dog that has made a mistake, you may want to consult with a professional dog trainer or behaviourist. They can help you develop the right training plan for your dog.
Of course, there will be quarrels at times; after all, it is possible to quarrel between friends but then make peace. However, if we are not willing to do this if our dog cannot be an individual with his own opinions and aspirations, then we strongly suggest that we direct our interests toward robot dogs who will do nothing more than comply with our orders without arguing, without questioning what we say. Without being dogs!
Thank you for reading the article to the end. Your reading contribution was significant to us.
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