The Magic of Management

March is the Management month at the Academy for Dog Trainers. While management and teaching behaviors are different, they are not mutually exclusive. We can manage NOW and teach LATER. Dog behavior management is not "teaching" in that we arrange the dog's environment to prevent behaviors deemed unacceptable to us. We manage fear with anxiety medicine or provide a safe sanctuary. Both management and teaching are equally important in maintaining a harmonious co-existence between the guardians and their companion pets. There are circumstances where lifelong management is the solution if teaching is not an option or even unrealistic. Sometimes, management saves lives.

I have taken Tom to a busy park with people and distractions, and he has yet to show me these behaviors. Something did not seem right. It is possible the adopter was pushing Tom too fast and too soon.

An adopter reached out to me recently to ask for help with their newly adopted pet. " Just this week, Tom growled, jumped, and pulled on walks when people come toward him." I knew Tom was timid with people and needed a slow introduction, but he has always been an excellent walker with me.

Tom is turning two; he is going through an adolescent phase which can be challenging for some dogs. During this phase, they can experience setbacks becoming unsure of their surroundings and allowing uncertainties and fear to creep in. While there was a lot of missing information to explain Tom's behaviors, I did not need to know. I erred on the side of safety and asked the adopter to give Tom some distance from people he sees on his walks and keep him in a safe place, possibly in a room behind a gate with visitors to the house. I ask her to put in immediate management to keep Tom and everyone safe until we resolve the issue and possibly get to the roots cause.

Four hours later, the adopter called again, and I could hear the panic in her voice. Tom has nipped her son's friend. It was a bruise, but it was a skin contact and a bite. While the adopter admitted she did wrong to Tom by taking him to a chaotic garage where many kids were unruly, she put everyone in danger, including Tom. He was frightened. That was most likely a fear bite. After a month as her companion pet, unfortunately for Tom, she decided to return him to the rescue even though she truly loved him. Fortunately for Tom, the rescue took him back because they knew he was a good pup and understood that this adopter might not be able to give Tom the right environment to flourish. The story could have ended differently, with Tom's life in peril. He was lucky. Management in a situation like this can save a life.

Dogs are dogs. There are times when their natural behaviors fail to meet our expectations. Implementing management in our daily life with our companion pets brings a more harmonious co-existence and can simplify our life together. They have a powerful nose, and their genetic makeup runs strong, scavenging for food. Dogs will counter surf, dig trash, and bury their "treasures" in your beautiful garden. Clean the countertop of food, putting the trash can in a secure spot they can't get to, and giving them their plot of dirt to dig are simple management that can quickly fix our discontent. They have emotions jumping when excited or anxious or pulling on the leash either out of anxiety or frustration. A leash to manage the jumping or a front-clip harness to curb the pulling can be helpful management tools to give us quick control of "undesirable" behaviors. Dogs also communicate with their mouth by chewing on furniture or mouthing your hands like puppies often do, guarding food against a housemate, loudly warning "intruders" at the window, barking at outside noises, etc. A chew toy, a gate, a separate eating location, a visual barrier on the window or soft music, and white noise are all management arsenals we can employ to handle unwanted practices humanely.

Dogs practice their natural and instinctual prey and predator behavior, chasing moving animals and objects like squirrels, rabbits, runners, bicycles, cars, and skateboards. Tethering our pets close to us with a leash or closing their range with a fence are ways we can manage their ingrained habits.

With the success of domestication, our "social" pets enjoy being with us and can display intense attachment resulting in separation anxiety when left alone. Evolutionarily this attachment might have to serve their survival but is ill-fitted in the human world. We can relieve their angst by keeping them by our side, sending them to daycare, or having someone hold their company when we are gone. Management can also be effective and humane through medical interventions alleviating our pet's suffering in case of fear of noise like thunderstorms.

Teaching skills to pets can resolve all managed misgivings mentioned above, but teaching requires an investment of time, money, effort, and consistency from the clients. Management can provide immediate results, and sometimes it can be the long-term solution. However, beware that the management plan can fail if the implementation is inconsistent and unreliable with increasing complexity, such as the number of people involved, the unpredictability with children, a chaotic household, and non-compliance. For folks who have difficulty adhering to management, consider only those that lead to minor consequences. In cases with a high probability of management failure and graver outcomes, layers of management in addition to "teaching" are highly recommended.

The containment of the situation is crucial for the safety of everyone. Here, management is like CPR getting oxygen to the brain in an emergency.

Some clients feel management is not fixing the issue because it only requires changes in the environment, not the pet. Some trainers feel guilty that the offered solution does not involve teaching. The truth is that management prevents a problem before it starts. Accepting management is understanding your pet's species' limitations and is not a band-aid solution. There are plenty of situations where management is the only solution. To prevent drowning, wearing lifejackets when boating is management instead of requiring everyone to learn to swim.

Circling back to Tom, we can continue managing him on walks by choosing a low-traffic environment and keeping him away from people, but Tom is a good walker with selective few when he feels comfortable. With Tom back at the rescue, we have time to teach him a new positive association with people, and then we make sure to coach the latest person to help Tom feel safe.

Manage first, Teach later!