When implementing a new behavior or routine, I most often try to create opportunities to “habit stack.”
Habit stacking refers to adding new behaviors, or habits, on top of already pre-established habits or routines. For example, someone who goes to the gym every day already and is working to increase their hydration may do so by combining, or stacking, these 2 behaviors. They could do this by bringing a water bottle with them to the gym and aiming to drink the entire bottle prior to finishing their workout for example. It was with this rational that I decided to try and incorporate more intentional grounding into my days during my morning strolls with Penny Grace.
One of the things I miss most about living in a more rural area is the opportunity to be barefoot as often as possible, something that is not as easily done while living in SWDC. I’ve recently been reading more and more about the benefits of grounding for our physical and mental health, everything from reducing inflammation to improving sleep, all things I could use some support in, and so I decided to try grounding more often and see what happened.
As Penny and I strolled around a grassy area nearby the Jefferson Memorial practicing her off-leash skills, I decided to call her to me to practice her recall.
“Penny! Come!!”
Penny took a couple steps towards me and froze.
Continuing to look at me, she didn’t move toward me, instead dipping her head and sniffing a bit. (A displacement behavior, meaning it was out of context, given the circumstances, and thereby a sign of discomfort or distress.)
I looked at her, a bit confused and tried again.
“Penny!! COME!!”
(Remember, we only say cues x2!
After that we need to follow through in other ways, so our dog does not become confused about what the actual cue is.)
Penn continued to stand there, staring at me intensely, without moving an inch.
So I proceed to calmly and quietly move toward her to leash her up and follow through on the request to complete the cue.
As I got closer however,
I jumped. “OUCH!!!”
I realized with horror I was suddenly getting poked on all sides of my feet by sharp little leaves with pricks on the points of their leaves. (I later learned this was most like holly.)
I froze,
looking at Penny a few feet away when it hit me.
“Oh!
It hurts.
Ok. Don’t move....
Let me think about this for a second…”
I looked around the area, assessed where similar trees were, walked towards her as carefully as I could to avoid the leaves I could see and clipped her leash. We then moved away, together, from the prickly little leaves, getting plenty of distance before I let her off again and we both took a minute to pause and regulate.
Penny gave a big shake off of stress and then quickly returned to happily sniffing and chasing squirrels, as though nothing had happened at all.
The realization that she had been attempting to comply with my cuing,
only to pause because of legitimate pain
hit me like a ton of bricks and made me wonder:
How often do we ask our dogs to do something and when they do not, for whatever reason, we get frustrated or more insistent?
How often are our dogs trying to communicate there is more going on here and we’re simply missing the communication?
When your dog does not comply, do you ask yourself WHY?
Another example:
I had a nutrition consultation with a client and while we were chatting, I asked the pup to “Place” (lay down on this mat until further notice.) Hudson immediately went to the Place marker and moved to lay down, pausing and hoovering a few inches above the mat, while looking at me out of the side of his eye.
I looked at him, perplexed and thought:
“Ok. What’s going on here?” I asked him again, “Hudson: Place?”
This time, I watched his movements closely, only to realize that he was unable to lay down fully because his harness was too tight and restricting his movement. Once the harness was removed, he was easily able to perform the cue and to lie down comfortably.
What are some reasons our dogs
may not comply with our cuing?
1) They do not know the cue as well as you think they do. It could be that the cue is out of context. For example: If you have only practiced a Place inside, they genuinely may not understand that you want them to Place outside. (Dogs do not generalize well.)
2) Is there something preventing them from completing the cue that is not immediately apparent? Is their collar/ leash/ gear prohibiting them in any way? Are they stuck on something? Are they unable to get around a particular obstacle?
3) Are they fearful? Fear and lack of confidence can be very prohibitive to complete known cues when emotions are high and our dogs are feeling dysregulated.
4) Are they in pain? Consider: Is the pavement an extreme temperature and it hurts to Sit or Down? Is the texture of the pavement/ grates/ ground uncomfortable under them when you ask them to Down/ Sit/ Place etc? Do they suffer with arthritis or something else that may make joints achy? Are their nails overgrown and causing discomfort in their paws/ legs/ joints?
5) Are you asking them to transition too quickly without adequate opportunity to acclimate? For example: If I bring a pup to an empty dog park to work on recall and immediately jump into cuing them, without allowing opportunities to sniff and get comfortable in the environment, then I am not setting them up for success. Our dogs, like us, deserve the opportunity to slow down and get familiar with a new environment before being asked to focus.
What other reasons might your pup have to not comply?
Next time they don’t comply,
ask yourself why!
Dogs are natural problem solvers, and we can take a page out of their book to help them be their best selves.
Remember that ultimately a dog is never trying to give you a hard time,
they are having a hard time.
How can we step back and set them up for success?
Remember you are a TEAM in this life together and it is your job to be the calm, confident leader as you all navigate the world together.
As part of the Engaged Dogs Pack,
we are never looking for control over our dogs.
Our goal is to create partnerships with mutual respect for each individual within the relationship, knowing that we are all autonomous, sentient beings with preferences, boundaries, and unique personalities which deserve to be loved and celebrated in all of their uniqueness and authenticity.
It is helpful to remember that behaviors are the result of an underlying emotion.
If we can pause and take a moment to consider the bigger picture, rather than focusing on just the behavior, we are better able to support our dogs (and ourselves) as whole, complex beings.
Want some help identifying your dog's unique strengths, preferences, and boundaries? Schedule a private training session with Sara to learn more about dog communication and how to understand your dog better.
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