A Big Red Flag

“Let’s not just keep pushing to ban tools and trying to take down trainers who refuse to cross over to the One True Way of force-free, positive-only training. Let’s also insult and denigrate the police and the military and out them for the white supremacists they are; after all, “everyone“ knows that military and police dogs are trained to attack people in order to establish and/or maintain control. Oh, and while we’re at it, let’s also be clear about our desire to abolish the police and military altogether. And since we do need to support our lifestyle, we also need to continue accepting sponsorship money, even though our sponsors are selling the very tools we’re pushing to have banned, because science and the veterinary societies say they’re bad. [Actually, there is no scientific consensus about this, and veterinary societies aren’t dog trainers, but since we tend to cherry-pick things to find what suits us, we’ll just ignore that part.]”

Does this sound crazy? It should. And yet, there are people out there claiming to be trainers, who are actually saying these things – and publicly, no less. These people don’t work with reactive or aggressive dogs; they don’t work with dogs that have killed livestock; they don’t work with dogs with bite histories. These people are social media influencers, paid by their sponsors to promote sponsor products, and paid by their social media platforms [YouTube, Instagram, TikTok] for engagement.

This is not dog training, folks. This is a massive red flag, and anyone behaving this way while claiming to be a dog trainer should not be trusted.

If your dog is having a hard time, find a trainer that aligns with your values and then – should you decide to hire them – get started on learning how to repair the relationship with your dog so you and your dog can enjoy life together. Because, a real dog trainer isn’t concerned about social media; they’re concerned about helping you and your dog have a happy life together.

Have a great day, and remember to stay calm and lead on.