Humane Domain provides animal behavior consultation and training services for dogs, horses and other We care about animals.
03/12/2025
Things that will not improve your dog’s behavior:
👎🏻 being a stronger alpha
👎🏻 Making your dog wait for you to go through doors first
👎🏻 Taking your dog’s stuff away to prove you can
👎🏻 Using collar corrections
👎🏻 Physically pushing and pulling on your dog to move them or get them into sits/downs
👎🏻 Messing with your dog while they eat
👎🏻 Thinking that your dog is spiteful or trying to “get back” at you
👎🏻 Forcing your dog off of furniture to prove its “yours”
👎🏻 Forcing your dog to deal with something even if they are afraid or growling
👎🏻 Looking at aggression as something that needs to be punished out
👎🏻 Forcing your dog onto their back to get them to “submit”
👎🏻 Forcing your dog to “face their fears” by forcing interactions with other dogs and people
👎🏻 Relying on equipment that causes discomfort or pain to control them
👎🏻 Responding to a dog behaving aggressively with more of your own aggression
👎🏻 Putting your dog on a “nothing in life is free” protocol
👎🏻 Not allowing your dog to sniff and use their nose
👎🏻 Take advice from every vet, groomer, breeder, and neighbor who have no formal training or study in behavior
👎🏻 Take advice blindly from the internet
Things that will improve your dog’s behavior:
🐕 First and foremost, learning how to speak their language and becoming fluent in dog body language
🐩 Committing to positive reinforcement training to proactively teach your dog the skills they need
🐕🦺 Eliminating corrections from your training
🐶 Noticing the things that trigger your dogs misbehaviors, then training a new response or managing your dog around them
🐕 Setting up the environment to benefit your dog
🐩 Allowing your dog to sniff and explore the world with their nose
🐕🦺 Daily enrichment activities and allowing your dog to be a dog
🐶 Being generous with affection and attention when your dog wants it
🐕 Listening to precursors to aggressive behavior such as growling, stiffening, and avoidance so that your dog doesn’t feel the need to escalate to biting
🐩 Hiring a qualified professional before you even bring your dog home so you know what to do from the start
These lists are obviously not complete, but if you’ve ever been told to do something in that first list, ignore that advice and find someone more qualified to help you out! In the meantime, aim to meet the goals in the second list to help your dog become the best dog they can be!
