What do you think of this sentence?

“Drug”..you mean dragged.
Incorrect use of in there ad.
Maybe its a kid offering there services?
Here a teenager started a Dog walking service on his own and by word of mouth he is still doing it at age 21 Years old and doing quite well.

You are looking for a dog trainer, not a tutor or editor.

You live in rural Kansas where the schools almost closed from Brownback cutbacks. Cut some slack. Besides, English is always evolving.

I seen this on Grammar Guru:

“Dragged” and “drug” are sometimes used interchangeably. However, the correct past tense of “drag” is “dragged.” “Drag” is a regular verb, which means you add “d,” “ed,” or in this case “ged” to make it past tense.

It’s much better to take a dog for a nice healthy walk than to buy drugs from a dealer down the street.

I am not looking for a dog walking service @Inspired_2write.

I know a lot of people around here use “drug” to mean “dragged,” but they tend to not be the sharpest tools in the shed. It was a total turn off for me. How can I trust people who aren’t very smart to guide me in the right direction?

“Training collar”? That’s the red flag. Run.

If your trainer needs to use pain for something as simple as teaching leash manners, you can be sure he’ll use it for everything else, too.

Who said training collar @longgone?
Yeah. It is astonishing how many people think that inflicting pain and fear on a dog is the way to go. You know what? They do the same thing raising their kids. And the kids end up to be shitty, rude people.
And using the word “drug” instead of “dragged” makes me think that person just might be one of those.

Seems fine to me.
Also, if Tarantino uses “drug” as past tense for “drag”, then you have to accept it as correct, god damn it.

Tarantino has really brain dead characters, too.

I too miss the relevance of proper English to the tasks required. You might trade him tutoring lessons for the training of your dog. There’s something intriguing about the idea of you tossing him treats or his ears folding back when you roll up a newspaper.

Oswaldo Mobray: Now, you’re wanted for murder. For the sake of my analogy, let’s just assume that you did it. John Ruth wants to take you back to Red Rock to stand trail for murder. And, if you’re found guilty, the people of Red Rock will hang you in the town square, and as the hangman, I will perform the execution. And if all those things end up taking place, that’s what civilized society calls “justice”. However, if the relatives and the loved ones of the person you murdered were outside that door right now, and after busting down that door, they’d drug you out in the snow and hung you up by the neck. That would be frontier justice. Now the good part about frontier justice is it’s very thirst quenching. The bad part is it’s apt to be wrong as right.
John Ruth: Not in your case. In your case, you’d have it coming. But other people, maybe not so much.
Oswaldo Mobray: But ultimately what’s the real difference between the two? The real difference is me, The Hangman. To me, it doesn’t matter what you did, when I hang you, I will get no satisfaction from your death, it’s my job. I hang you in Red Rock, I move on to the next town, I hang someone else there. The man who pulls the lever that breaks your neck will be a dispassionate man. And that dispassion is the very essence of justice, for justice delivered without dispassion, is always in danger of not being justice.
John Ruth: Amen.

I think the sentence indicates that either A) English is not their first language or B) they may be undereducated in either typing or language skills. I don’t think the sentence indicates anything about their skills as a dog trainer or as a parent.

Poorly written and I think that you’re smart enough to train your own dog without anyone telling you how to do it

Relevence goes to intelligence @stanleybmanly. I wouldn’t want my child to be taught anything by a stupid teacher. Why would I turn let a stupid person train my dog?

On Judge Judy a guy just said “Well he let me druve the car….”

And to trade tutoring lessons would require that the person is aware of their inadequacies and wants to fix them.

“Who said training collar @longgone?”

Those trainers did, on their site. Apparently it’s included in the price.

You know better than to assume faulty English as a reliable indicator of low intelligence. Now if you want an opinion on the sagacity of employing this trainer to teach your dog English, that would be an entirely different discussion.

I won’t turn my dog over to just any good old boy, especially not for something so important. The English usage gives me pause, so Bubba Unlimited is no longer in consideration for me.

Is there a PetSmart or Petco close. They have competent trainers, my two went to
PetSmart; the instructor was Army K-9 Trainer. She was really nice to dags and firm with owners that let the dogs get away with bad behavior.

I will sure check it out Willie. I imagine the closest is Wichita. How many sessions can I expect?

Six to eight.

I’ll look into it tomorrow. @longgone recommended a book, which I ordered today, and a video that I have yet to watch.

@longgone said ”Training collar”? That’s the red flag. Run. If your trainer needs to use pain for something as simple as teaching leash manners, you can be sure he’ll use it for everything else too.

I am not surprised they would.revert to harsh physical means to train. That’s how.good old boy rednecks operate. “Damn dog drug me around the block for last f***in’ time! I’ll show him who’s boss!”

A lot of walking training, can be obtained from a “choke leash.”

I know, it sounds bad… But a simple choke leash, kept around the jaw of a jerky dog, can make for a huge, and short lesson.

Keep the leash right around the jawline, and keep it tight. Pull the dog’s head upward, and use verbal commands, like “walk right,” something with two syllables… When a leash is lower around the neck, the dog will pull. But keeping it’s head straight, will help both of you. Keep the leash short, at first. Mainly, by keeping it wrapped around your hand.

It seems cruel, and really is. But it will be short term. The dog will learn quickly, and become of proper walking. I’m not talking about a metal leash, just a cheap choker.

Keep the dog on a short leash. Right around it’s jaw. And like I said, use verbal commands. Two syllables, are best.

Eventually, the dog will understand.

Training courses, at a pet training place, will do the same thing…Use them, if you don’t have the heart for it.

But a cheap neck lead, like 2 feet, will provide the same results.

^ Yes. And you just provided the reason so many dogs turn into monsters or fearful, pitiful pets.

The dog will learn quickly. He might learn to walk well. And he’ll learn a ton of other things, too:

- my human hurts me sometimes
– even when I try to appease him, he won’t stop
– I hate my leash
– walks are painful
– when other dogs appear, I get hurt
– some humans are really scary

Imagine taking your toddler to a daycare. Your son won’t eat any vegetables, and the teacher’s response is to tie a rope around your child’s neck and violently jerk him backwards – or up, so most of his weight is on his neck. Would you take your son to see a doctor? Would you take him to see a therapist if you noticed fear afterwards?

In many cases, other results of this type of training include:

- crushed trachea
– fractured vertebrae
– damaged larynx
– chronic (severe) neck pain your dog can’t tell you about – and suddenly he’s growling when people try to pet him
– increased intraocular pressure
– hypothyroidism because of pressure on the thyroid gland
– foreleg lameness due to pinched nerves

The neck lead might be cheap. But its effects will be costly.

I think @Dutchess_lll should pay for @longgone to come to Kansas and train Cato!

I’ll do it, too! Send money y’all.

A quick story about Dutchess. We didn’t have the dogs on leashes much, so when I put Dutchess on a leash she’d just charge off and, of course, be brought up short. After a couple of times she learned not to charge off when she was on the leash.
One weekend we went to Kaw lake. The grandkids came. They’re fairly lax about their leash laws,at Kaw so after we walked Dutchess down to the lake on her leash, we took her off the leash so she could jump and swim with the kids.
Well, on the way back 4 year old Zoey wanted to hold the leash. I really hesitate. Dutchess could almost yank me off of my feet….but I handed her the leash. As soon as I did that, Dutchess looked around, saw who had the leash….and immediately heeled to me!!!!! I never taught her to heel! She just walked as calmly and sedately as you could ever imagine. I was astonished. (PS, turns out she had Border Collie in her, along with who knows what else. She was just born to a farm dog.)

@longgone . With all due respect, you are misinterpreting my statement. Perhaps that’s my fault…

A choke lead, under the jawline, cannot hurt the dog. One below can indeed hurt them.

I worked at a Veterinary Emergency Hospital, for 9 years. I wold NEVER do anything that could injure a dog. I’m not talking about metal choke chains, or the like. But I can tell you from experience, that what I suggested, will train the dog quickly, to walk well…

And, as I said, a “dog trainer,” will do the same.

Training animals, unfortunately requires some level of breaking them. Take horses for example. Or elephants. Or humans….

I admire, and respect your desire to not hurt them. But, it is unrealistic… I myself, had to be physically disciplined, or I would be a monster.

Using a choke lead, is far better than the beatings I took.

Wolves keep each other in line, through physical biting, or worse. It’s just how they learn their place…

@longgone is am experienced dog trainer,@MrGrimm888. There are methods of dog training that use rewards solely and do not need to “break” the dog.

He does have a point in that we want to train their natural instincts out, just like we have to train out the natural instincts of kids to grab and bite and hit. It’s a form of breaking but it can be done gently. Mostly.

Got the book you recommended @longgone. It’s about 5 pages long! Guess I can get through that pretty easy. Cato wants to eat it.
It’s written by Patricia B. McConnell, Ph.D. Bet you won’t find the word “drug,” as a backwoods form of “drag” in this book.

@janbb Hm, free holiday + puppy? Yes. Good.

@Dutchess_III No, you won’t. Part of the reason I read McConnell’s books is that she’s a great writer. Her longer books are lovely.

@MrGrimm888 How could it possibly not hurt to have a tight leash attached to your head and be jerked around by it? Are you doubting that dogs experience pain? You might be interested in some vets’ advice.

“And, as I said, a ‘dog trainer’ will do the same.”

An old-fashioned one will. I’m a dog trainer, and I would never, ever do that. The entire community of progressive dog trainers gets furious when they hear about abusive trainers like you’re describing. We’re the ones who fix their mess.

As a side note, in a world where an insane number of dogs get put down for behavioural issues, claiming that “it works” is not realistic. Never mind ethically problematic. Not everything that ‘works’ is commendable.

“Training animals, unfortunately requires some level of breaking them.”

No. My current dog was trained without intimidation and pain, and he is one of the most chill, responsive, and good-natured dogs I’ve ever seen. Here is a gently trained four-months-old puppy who already knows more than some dogs will learn in their whole life. For those who insist that force-free training only works on some dogs, here are a couple of humanely-trained Belgian Shepherds – one of the most complicated breeds out there.

Everything you can teach using force, you can also teach with reinforcement training. The one exception might be fear. If you want your dog to fear something, pain works. Otherwise, I guarantee that there is a simple and gentle way to teach any desirable behaviour you could come up with.

“Take horses for example. Or elephants. Or humans….”

Horses and elephants do not need to be broken, either. There is a whole different school of thought in animal training these days. The thinking that they need to be forced to learn is testament to humanity’s sad history of violence. That you were hurt as a child is a result of the same. I’m truly sorry. I’m glad you turned into a good guy despite that. And at the same time, I don’t think it gives you the moral right to hurt anybody else – dog, child, or elephant.

When I got my first dog, harnesses were rare. I listened to the trainers, and I did use a collar with her. One horrible day, I was trying to teach her a fast “down” – like this. She was attached to a long line by her neck, and I whistled for her to “down” a fraction of a second before she reached the end of her leash. She was sprinting. When the leash went taut, the force knocked her on her back. I am eternally grateful she wasn’t seriously hurt or even killed that day, because that would have been on me. I wish someone had told me, back then, that there are other ways to teach dogs. And that’s why I’m trying to share the message now.

She never did learn a reliable (fast) down. We had a very trusting relationship despite my mistakes, but when dogs associate training with any sort of negative experiences, they tend to become cautious. My current dog, Wilson, knows that he is always safe. From a place of carefree curiousity, learning is incredibly easy. He figured out how to do an instant “down” within an hour, being rewarded with a rubber ball.

I was raised by a father, who was an army drill sergeant. I was taught that people /animals, should follow my instructions, regardless of the situation.

I concede, that I don’t like that. But. It works for dogs, just like people. No rewards, for following orders. You just do as I say. I again concede, that I don’t prefer this training style. But it has worked well, with multiple dogs I’ve had. It sucks for them, until they fall in line. With dogs, it usually only takes a few days. Then, they get it. I’m the alpha. Do exactly what I say. Period. This has actually saved some of my dog’s lives. Because they would otherwise run into traffic, or jump out of a boat, into alligator filled swamp.

I have always been loving, to my dogs. I sang to my Wanda, often, and treated her like a daughter. I woke her up , from nightmares, and sang to her. I loved her more than I can articulate. I sang to her one last time, before she was euthanized. I had her for 15 years, of my 39 years. She was my everything… I lost a piece of myself, when she died. A piece, I will never get back… My life has,been Hell, without her.

I NEVER meant to be cruel to her. I never meant to hurt her. But I live with the pain/suffering, that I could have done some things differently. I have no choice, but to move on. She died in late January. I’m still emotionally wrecked. I buried her ashes, in a nearby dog park. I visit her often. I just talk to her. As if she could understand…
But, I feel obligated to talk to her. She was, like I said, my everything…

I can’t help to cry, while I’m writing this. I did the best I could….

@MrGrimm888 “I can’t help to cry, while I’m writing this. I did the best I could…”

Yes, you did. You kept her safe for 15 years. You showed her she was loved. And in the end, you were kind enough to let her go instead of clinging to her life. What you two had was very special. Try to hold on to that love. I promise you’ll be okay.

^Thank you…Tears in my eyes….

Cato has really been doing a magnificent job. It goes against my grain to use food for training, but I bought dog treats and cut them in to 4ths. When I tell him to stop, and he stops and lays down, he gets a treat.
He’s gotten about a thousand treats today! He’s really doing well. And I have 4 kids here. And everyone is still alive. He’s lying quietly at my feet and the kids are upstairs watching TV. I simply told him “No,” when he started to go up, and he didn’t do it again.
I heard him ripping cloth. When I hear that I find out what it is because he’s ripped up some carpet that’s going to have to be replaced. So I asked him what he had. Then I said, “Can you bring it here? Bring it to me?” AND DAMNED IF HE DIDN’T DO JUST THAT! He brought it over and dropped it at my feet! (I was an old slipper I’d long ago given up to the God of Dogs.) We play fetch, so he kind of knows the command (though he usually spits it out somewhere then we have to wrestle over it) I am aware that it may have been a coincidence, but boy did he get a treat and a ton of lovin’!

Dutch. You are a great person. You do the best, with the situation. .

Thank you. It’s been a huge learning curve for me. He may not be a Great Dane but he is an energetic muscular toddler who needs LOTS of behaviour modifications. I’ve never felt need to intensely train a dog like this.

@longgone….he’s a chomper. God that dog chews. I managed to dissuade him from chewing on furniture legs and couch pillows, but at the moment I’m warning everyone not to leave anything on the floor. He has a boat load of legal stuff to chew on…empty plastic shampoo bottles, stuff from the store for that purpose….but apparently it’s not enough.

We taught our two 85 to 91 pound Shepard/Labrador crosses to sit before they were fed and to wait for “Okay” before the could go to their food.

I have zero food rules. I never have for any pet I’ve had. If the bowl is empty I fill it. The brat cat is on a gravity feed feeder.
I have never had an overweight pet.

Wait. 0 is not quite accurate. I do not feed pets off of my plate. I have no problem giving them left overs but, depending what it is I either put it in their food bowl or throw it out in the yard.

As I said it goes against my grain to feed Cato treats from my hand but somehow he’s not turning into a begger….at least not with me.

@Dutchess_III Congrats on the success! Sounds fun!

“He’s a chomper. God that dog chews.”

Do you have a Kong? The shampoo bottles might be sending mixed messages. While it’s fine to give an adult (trained) dog a household object to chew on, I would help a puppy differentiate by only letting him chew on stuff he can always gnaw on. If this shampoo bottle is Cato’s, but that one is not, he could get quite confused.

“As I said it goes against my grain to feed Cato treats from my hand but somehow he’s not turning into a begger….at least not with me.”

Yes, because of timing. You are rewarding behaviour you like – so he’s learning that calm and thougtful actions will get him a treat, but pushiness will not.

Oh. Good idea. I don’t know what Kong is but it sounds like what he needs.

Oh, this is hilarious. The kids have been watching and learning. Well, Grammpa gave them a package of small individual candy pieces. 6 year old Zoey became the dog and 4½ Cooper became the trainer! So Zoey is crawling around and Cooper is petting the crap out of the “dog” telling him what a great dog he is, and making him sit, and lay down, and roll over and bark. Then he gives the “dog” one small pieces of candy. The dog says, “Thank you.” Such a polite dog.

Omy Gosh. It’s like I have a different dog. Not only is he obeying commands he knows, he responding to things like, “You stay here!” and “Don’t go in that room!” It’s like having my Dakota back.
I had the kids work with him too. I want him to understand they have some control in case he gets wild. I had to back them up, but they sure enjoyed working with him.
Chris did too. I’d forgotten the hand signals we’d taught Dakota one after noon. One finger up for “sit” and two fingers pointed out for “lay.”

When Chris and Jenna came to get them I asked them for a heads up. I met them on the deck and gave them each a “treat” (really a hot dog bit with cheese left over from lunch) and told them when they came in to approach him calmly, tell him what a good dog he is and give him the treat.
I sat in the house with him. He sat. He actually SAT the whole time they walked in the door and walked up to him! It’s crazy!

A Kong, is a rubber thing, that can/will.typically be filled with peanut butter. It is great, for keeping a dog busy. And learning what it can chew on. I highly recommend them.

I also am a fan of Nylabones. They come in different hardness varieties. Technically, you shouldn’t buy the hardest ones, as they can be bad for the dog’s teeth. My Wanda, was a pit. She would chew up anything other than the hardest Nylabones. They also come in flavors. They’re kind of expensive, like $12. But Wanda always had, like three. Once she chewed them.down to a choking hazard, I threw them out. Typically, she chewed one side into a sharp side, and ran around, and stabbed me with it. She would play this game with me, where she would “accidentally” drop it off of the couch, then look.at me like “Dad, can you pick it up for me, so I don’t have to get off the couch?” I swear, she did I tell on purpose, to fuck with me. I would often spread soft food, or peanut butter on it. It kept her entertained, for a while. And she eventually just chewed those, instead of my shoes, or worse…

Greenies, are good too. But can become choking hazards, so they sell them.in little pieces now too.

Avoid actual animal bones. They can cause a gastric perforation, or foreign body.

Avoid anything, with high fat content, as this can cause pancreatitis.

I wouldn’t get anything from Heartz. They make bad products, and should probably be banned from sales.

Kids are gone. Lord I’m beat!
Also, @longgone what you said about making household items off limit as chew toys is such a no brainer I’m embarrassed it didn’t occur to me before you said something. I ran it past Rick, pointing out that he doesn’t know that an empty shampoo bottle is OK to chew on, but a full one isn’t.
We will gradually take them away so we are being too abrubt about it and from then on we will only have sanctioned chew toys.

It was a good bonding and socializing day. The kids learned not to run from Cato, because he will chase and he might nip and he might trip, and Cato learned to CHILL THE FO!!!!

He is almost like a different dog. It’s like he’s taking over and extrapolating behaviors to come in line with my expectations, without having to be taught each and every incident. This is amazing.

And, that “How to Train Your Dog” book is only 30 pages long. It’s about 8” X 7”, and the PERFECT size for administering a well placed smack on the butt of a dog who is pouncing on children! Now all I have to do is shake that book at him and he sits right down and cocks his head. Who ever wrote it is a genius! I’ll get around to reading it today.

Dogs are awesome. They have an ancient bond, with humans. They seem to want, to do things for us… And most of them, will fearlessly protect their owners. Even if they have to give their own life.

I think I have told this story before, but I’ll do it again.

There was a couple traveling down a foggy, country road once. Their dog came running alongside their car, and barking. Which was abnormal. The couple just kept driving. Eventually, the dog threw itself under their car, killing itself. They stopped, of course then. It turns out that their son had had a bicycle accident, and was laying in the road they were driving down. They couldn’t see him because of the fog. The dog sacrificed itself, to save the kid…

My dog…he brought a tennis ball to me. I just ignored him, though I knew what he wanted. Then he tossed his head and threw the ball, then looked back at me like, “Hey dummy!” So I threw the ball for him a few times.
It’s freaking cold out there!
I HOPE he doesn’t freak over the Tricker Treaters, if we even have any.

^He wants to be “useful.”

It’s an admirable quality. You’ve got yourself, a good dog Dutch.

Yeah. I think so. And man he likes us!
He did well with the truck or treaters. We only had 6 or 7, not enough to get him totally trained on how to react to people at the door.