I’ve always had dogs. When I was a kid, my mom would come home with strays and we would foster them.
I remember once finding a starving chihuahua lost in the woods and luring it to our car with bits of treats. We named her Dharma, nursed her back to health, and fostered her to a lovely family in the neighborhood.
Even with all the love we had for dogs, we had no idea how to train them. They would go potty in the house, chew up our things, and not listen when we called them to us. We spoiled them with love and treats and toys – as it should be – but never taught them the basic commands.
This turned out to be a life-costing mistake.
At the age of ten, I found out that our lovely husky mix, Kelly, had run into the street and been hit by a truck. She died instantly.
This is when I started to realize that maybe we were doing things wrong. We had saved so many dogs, cats, rabbits, even guinea pigs, but we hadn’t trained them. We hadn’t made sure they were actually secure.
Granted, we normally fostered and adopted them out, so it wasn’t an issue, but with our own dogs we should have been more responsible.
Part of the reason I made this website is to address these simple things. If you can teach your dog to sit and stay on command – from across the street, even – then your dog will be safer and happier. It doesn’t take much, but it can be life-saving.
Wishing you and your pet a lifetime of happiness and safety,
Naomi
I totally understand that! I never really understood how a dog thinks until I got older — and when I say older, I mean like in my 40s! I always thought yelling at a barking dog would make them stop barking. But in dog-speak, it’s more like you’re agreeing with the dog that they SHOULD be barking, because yelling is like barking to them. Or that dogs don’t feel guilt, so sticking their nose in it doesn’t stop the whoopsies on the floor, it just makes the dog terrified of doing something to make you angry again. Dogs have such sweet spirits, really all they want to do is love you. But now I realize too, that they see you as either the leader of the pack, or a part of the pack THEY lead, so boundaries and rules are super important. Thanks for your site! I love it!! When are you going to get some more products? I’m always looking for dog treats and chews to try out!