07/27/2026
There was one sentence I said in that first session that changed everything, and it wasn’t about the right method to use.
Tater was a year-old pit mix, small and low to the ground, and she’d started going after the other dogs in her house. A previous trainer put her in an E collar and told the family she’d need it forever.
The previous trainer told them she was being defiant. She didn’t want to listen. It was their job to she her who was in charge and make her listen.
What I don’t think he tool into account was that she was in her teenage phase, a time period where a dog’s brain questions everything, including the previous behaviors they learned.
He also assumed the worst intentions Tater had, not the fact that she didn’t understand the new rules she was following that she made up herself weren’t ok.
When I heard what was going on, it hit me like a ton of bricks: Tater had all of her decisions made for her. Her life wasn’t hers to enjoy or live anymore.
And she was PIIIIIIISSSSED! But also hurt 😔
At our first session, the dog parents told me they hated everything I said. The reason?
Because it went against everything they’d ever heard about dog training.
And it worked better ❤️
Tater’s not wearing that collar anymore.
She’s playful with the other dogs in her house.
She’s a year old, right in the middle of that same brain rewiring every teenage dog goes through, and she’s still choosing what her family wants.
Every time I think about that, I still tear up.
Comment CHANGE and I’ll send you the method I used to turn Tater’s whole household around, so your teenage dog gets the same chance to choose you, before this phase locks in the wrong habits instead of the right ones 🐶🐾💖
