When I first heard that comment it reminded me of
the Spanish language way of avoiding responsibility – The keys lost
themselves. The cup broke itself.
Dogs do not run into taxis. Taxis run
into dogs. And, the only dogs that taxis can run into are dogs who are off
leash and out of control. One area of control that is a life saver is to
teach a dog to NEVER go out of a door without permission and to not go out
of a door before its owner. That means any door. Doors to the patio, doors
to the street, car doors. While it is not difficult to teach such manners
it clearly does require some time and effort on the part of the dog owner
and it is amazing how few dog owners care enough about their dogs to teach
the lesson.
To begin with the dog must be leash trained and understand
how to pay some attention to the person on the other end of the leash.
Presuming we have that prerequisite let’s go! Head for the door with the
dog on a snug leash – not charging out in front of you. When you get to
the door begin to open it and if the dog starts to charge through it close
it quickly. At first say nothing. When you begin to see some hesitation on
the part of the dog say Wait! (Say it softly, please. Your dog does not
have a hearing problem.) and repeat the door opening and closing exercise.
If the dog shows some form of restraint say Good wait! in a happy voice
and give a treat.
Continue to repeat the exercise until the dog can
sit quietly while you open the door all the way. Give a treat, lots of
praise, close the door, remove the leash and release the dog. No, you are
not going for a walk. This is the “Door Exercise”.
Repeat this
exercise several times a day and begin to include this training with all
the doors. At first you will probably need to have a leash on the dog but
after a short time your dog will begin to have some manners. Or, it could
be a long time if your dog isn’t very bright or believes he is in charge
of the household!
When you have respect and attention with the “front
door” it is time to actually exit it. The dog now sits quietly while the
door opens and closes. You tell your dog to Wait! while you take a step
forward. If the dog moves you close the door and repeat lesson number one.
IF the dog does not move step back, praise and treat. Then take two or
three steps returning to praise your patiently (or impatiently!) awaiting
dog. Even if you are able to make it all the way through the door you must
return to the dog, praise and treat several times before actually giving
the dog permission to exit.
Turn right around and practice returning
quietly through the same door! Yup. You aren’t going anywhere yet. This is
still Door Exercise. Quit after two or three successes.
Now that the
dog is quietly attentive about exiting the door it is time to add some
distractions. You can begin with having some friend standing outside the
doorway talking happy talk to the dog encouraging it to charge out. It
would be unfair at this point to have the friend actually using the dog’s
name and telling it to come but anything just short of that is fine. When
the dog remains quiet with that distraction, close the door and end the
exercise with lots of praise and treats.
Depending on your dog’s weak
points begin to increase the difficulty factor. It may be that someone is
bouncing a ball right outside the doorway. Maybe it is another dog. Or, it
could be a bicycle that goes back and forth. Whatever your dog is inclined
to find irresistible is what you need for proofing your dog so that when
the door opens no matter what is out there s/he awaits permission before
exiting.
It is very important to practice this exercise with car doors
so that you never have to worry about a dog leaping out of the car door
into the path of an oncoming car. Remember to praise all successes and
give lots of treats. After all – no one wants to work without
compensation!
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