Training does not mean that we humans can now be complacent and self indulgent (permissive, privileging, emotionally dependent) with our dogs or assume that we can just leave a former trigger situation to the dog to figure out on her own because no matter how much training a dog has, she will never be ‘a completely different dog’.
Given the opportunity by a human who becomes complacent over time, most dogs with former serious behavioural issues will certainly revert backwards when we humans enable them to do so by relaxing the rules, boundaries, structure and accountability and compromising our resolve to lead the dog in a way that best serves her.
Accountability, boundaries, rules, and structure must be a way of life in which we consistently hold our dog accountable for her new and improved skills and mindset, always apply our safety tools and protocols while simultaneously correcting old bad habits and refusing to re-enable her old bad behaviours and mindsets.
The accountability part comes in when we correct reactive intentions (mental arousal) and when we help him follow and hold his commands like a calm place command or a tuned in heel on the walk.
Advocacy comes in when we no longer allow people or other dogs to enter our dog’s personal space, undermine his rules and boundaries nor unfairly pressure him with unwanted attention, which means that he’s off limits to all the people and dogs who try to touch him, sorry folks… eye candy only!
