10/18/2026
https://www.facebook.com/share/1Khkt2f7L4/?mibextid=wwXIfr
🐾 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐏 𝐅𝐎𝐂𝐔𝐒𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐎𝐍 𝐒𝐓𝐎𝐏𝐏𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐁𝐄𝐇𝐀𝐕𝐈𝐎𝐔𝐑. 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐑𝐓 𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐂𝐇𝐈𝐍𝐆 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐃𝐎𝐆 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐎 𝐃𝐎 𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐄𝐀𝐃!
One of the biggest mistakes I see in dog training is the obsession with stopping unwanted behaviour, rather than teaching dogs what we actually WANT them to do.
❌ Stop barking!
❌ Stop jumping!
❌ Stop pulling!
❌ Stop lunging!
❌ Stop chasing!
❌ Stop reacting!
Stop, stop, STOP!
But here’s a question worth asking:
🤔 If all you’re doing is telling your dog what NOT to do, when exactly are you teaching them what TO do?
💁🏼 And more importantly, are you addressing WHY the behaviour is happening in the first place?
Let’s look at this from a learning perspective.
🧠 𝑺𝑼𝑷𝑷𝑹𝑬𝑺𝑺𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑩𝑬𝑯𝑨𝑽𝑰𝑶𝑼𝑹 𝑰𝑺 𝑵𝑶𝑻 𝑻𝑯𝑬 𝑺𝑨𝑴𝑬 𝑨𝑺 𝑻𝑬𝑨𝑪𝑯𝑰𝑵𝑮 𝑵𝑬𝑾 𝑩𝑬𝑯𝑨𝑽𝑰𝑶𝑼𝑹.
👀You can punish a dog for barking until they become too worried to bark.
👀You can yank a dog back every time they pull on the lead.
👀You can use an e-collar to interrupt a dog chasing something.
🤔You might even get the behaviour to stop.
🤔But what has the dog actually learned?
💁Have they learned how to cope with the situation? Have they developed better emotional responses? Have they learned a useful alternative behaviour?
😶🌫️No.
They may simply have learned that performing a particular behaviour results in something unpleasant (say hello to “balanced” training).
⚠️And here’s the really important bit: just because a behaviour has disappeared doesn’t mean the underlying motivation or emotion has changed.
➡️A dog who stops barking at another dog may still be absolutely terrified of that dog.
They’ve just stopped expressing it in the same way.
⚠️And that should concern us.
🐕 𝑺𝑶 𝑾𝑯𝑨𝑻 𝑺𝑯𝑶𝑼𝑳𝑫 𝑾𝑬 𝑫𝑶 𝑰𝑵𝑺𝑻𝑬𝑨𝑫?
💯We teach 𝕒𝕝𝕥𝕖𝕣𝕟𝕒𝕥𝕚𝕧𝕖 behaviours.
💯Even better, where appropriate, we teach 𝕞𝕦𝕥𝕦𝕒𝕝𝕝𝕪 𝕖𝕩𝕔𝕝𝕦𝕤𝕚𝕧𝕖 𝕓𝕖𝕙𝕒𝕧𝕚𝕠𝕦𝕣𝕤.
✅These are behaviours that cannot physically happen at the same time as the unwanted behaviour.
Let me give you some examples.
🐾 1. 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑑𝑜𝑔 𝑗𝑢𝑚𝑝𝑠 𝑢𝑝 𝑎𝑡 𝑣𝑖𝑠𝑖𝑡𝑜𝑟𝑠．
Instead of repeatedly shouting “DOWN”, pushing them away or correcting them, teach them to keep four paws on the floor when greeting people. Or to put their bottom in the floor. Because of the dog is standing, or sitting, they cannot physically jump up at the same time ⚠️
You could also teach them to go to a mat when visitors arrive.
➡️You’re not just stopping jumping. You’re teaching an alternative way to greet people. And IF you start to really reward the behaviour you want to see instead, they will happen again, and again and again.
➡️And IF this behaviour practiced and rewarded for long enough-it becomes a habit. And habit doesn’t have to be rewarded any more (although it’s always good to reward from time to time).
🐾 2. 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑑𝑜𝑔 𝑝𝑢𝑙𝑙𝑠 𝑜𝑛 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑙𝑒𝑎𝑑.
( *ᵐᵒˢᵗ ᶜᵒᵐᵐᵒⁿ ᵇᵉʰᵃᵛⁱᵒᵘʳ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ʷⁱˡˡ ᵍᵉᵗ ᵃ ᵈᵒᵍ ˢᵘᵇʲᵉᶜᵗᵉᵈ ᵗᵒ ᵃᵛᵉʳˢⁱᵛᵉ ᵗᵒᵒˡˢ ˡⁱᵏᵉ ᵖʳᵒⁿᵍ ᵒʳ ᵉ⁻ᶜᵒˡˡᵃʳ, ˢˡⁱᵖ ˡᵉᵃᵈ, ᶜʰᵒᵏᵉ ᶜᵒˡˡᵃʳ ᵒʳ ʰᵉᵃᵈ ʰᵃˡᵗⁱ ᶜᵒⁿᵗʳᵃᵖᵗⁱᵒⁿ, ᵇᵉᶜᵃᵘˢᵉ ᵒᶠ ˡᵃᶜᵏ ᵒᶠ ᵘⁿᵈᵉʳˢᵗᵃⁿᵈⁱⁿᵍ ᵒᶠ ᵗʰⁱˢ ᵉˣᵃᶜᵗ ˢᵘᵇʲᵉᶜᵗ 😨)
➡️ Instead of constantly correcting,yanking the lead, shouting at them or relying on equipment that makes pulling uncomfortable, teach them that walking on a loose lead is rewarding.
➡️ Reinforce voluntary check-ins, staying within a comfortable distance and moving with you.
➡️ Give them opportunities to sniff, explore and enjoy their walk.
🙌You’re teaching cooperation rather than relying on physical control.
🐾 3. 𝑌𝑜𝑢𝑟 𝑑𝑜𝑔 𝑠𝑡𝑒𝑎𝑙𝑠 𝑡ℎ𝑖𝑛𝑔𝑠 𝑎𝑛𝑑 𝑟𝑢𝑛𝑠 𝑎𝑤𝑎𝑦.
🩵Instead of chasing them around the house, shouting or forcibly taking things from their mouth, teach a reliable DROP IT and a positive exchange.
🩵Make giving things up worthwhile.
🩵You’re teaching a skill that can be incredibly valuable in an emergency.
❤️ AND HERE’S SOMETHING ELSE WE NEED TO UNDERSTAND.
⚠️Not every behaviour needs to be replaced with an obedience cue.
✅Sometimes the most appropriate response is to change the environment.
✅Sometimes it’s giving the dog more distance.
✅Sometimes it’s meeting an unmet need.
✅Sometimes it’s allowing perfectly normal canine behaviour in a suitable context.
✅And sometimes it’s recognising that the dog is simply not in an emotional state where learning can happen.
💯Good training isn’t about controlling every movement a dog makes.
🙌It’s about understanding behaviour, understanding motivation and giving dogs the skills, confidence and opportunities to make better choices.
💡 THINK ABOUT THIS…
If your dog only behaves when you’re holding the lead tightly, threatening a correction or relying on a particular piece of equipment, how much independent learning has actually taken place?
But when your dog voluntarily chooses an appropriate behaviour, even when they have other options available?
🎉THAT is something worth celebrating.
Because you’re no longer just controlling behaviour.
😊You’re building skills.
🥰You’re building confidence.
🥰You’re creating positive learning experiences.
🥰And you’re helping your dog navigate the world successfully, without fear of getting things wrong.
🐾 𝚃𝙷𝙴 𝙶𝙾𝙰𝙻 𝙾𝙵 𝚃𝚁𝙰𝙸𝙽𝙸𝙽𝙶 𝚂𝙷𝙾𝚄𝙻𝙳 𝙽𝙴𝚅𝙴𝚁 𝙱𝙴 𝚃𝙾 𝙲𝚁𝙴𝙰𝚃𝙴 𝙰 𝙳𝙾𝙶 𝚆𝙷𝙾 𝙸𝚂 𝙰𝙵𝚁𝙰𝙸𝙳 𝚃𝙾 𝙼𝙰𝙺𝙴 𝙰 𝙼𝙸𝚂𝚃𝙰𝙺𝙴.
☆It should be to create a dog who understands what works, feels safe enough to learn and has a repertoire of behaviours that help them succeed.
☆Don’t just stop the behaviour. Understand it. Address the reason behind it. And teach something better.
That’s the difference between simply managing what a dog does and genuinely helping a dog learn.
