How many dog owners are feeling guilty or ashamed for choosing balanced training methods they know will help their dogs? Maybe this will help ease your stress.

Coercion involves compelling someone to act against their will through threats, force, or intimidation. It can take many forms, including physical, emotional, or social pressure. What does this have to do with dog training? Well, social media is a gold mine for all types of people promoting all types of things – including coercive social media influencers calling themselves dog trainers.

Common tactics of coercion include (but aren’t limited to):

• fear and intimidation (threats – e.g. emotional or social – to control behavior)
• repetition (constant repetition of specific ideas until people become ingrained)
  information control (only promoting others’ viewpoints that agree with the person’s ideas and beliefs).

In terms of how this relates to balanced training, a coercive dog trainer who shames balanced trainers uses what’s called “loaded language” to discredit their methods and pressure owners into rejecting them. Here are some examples:

“Balanced training is just a fancy term for abuse” – Oversimplifies and vilifies balanced training without acknowledging nuance.

“If you use corrections, you’re harming your dog” – Frames all corrective techniques as inherently cruel, ignoring responsible applications.

“Science proves positive reinforcement is the only ethical method” – Uses an appeal to authority while dismissing ongoing debates in training methodologies.

“Balanced trainers rely on fear and intimidation” – Generalizes all balanced trainers as abusive, ignoring variations in approach.

“Your dog will never trust you if you use corrections” – Instills fear in owners, discouraging them from considering alternative techniques.

“Only outdated trainers still use balanced methods” – Implies that balanced training is obsolete, pressuring owners to conform.

This type of language is designed to shut down discussion and control perception, which makes it harder for you, the owner, to make informed decisions about what’s best for you and your dog. Ethical trainers encourage open dialogue and respect different approaches while prioritizing humane treatment.

If you or someone you know has dealt with, or is currently dealing with a coercive dog trainer – regardless of what methodology you choose to follow (reward-based only, force-free only, or balanced/full-scope) you have the right to fire that trainer and find one that better aligns with your values. You are not obligated to deal with any trainer that makes you feel badly about what you feel is in your dog’s best interests.

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