1 00:00:02,720 --> 00:00:05,400 Speaker 1: Hey, everyone, Welcome to The Houndation's podcast. I'm your host, 2 00:00:05,440 --> 00:00:08,080 Speaker 1: Tony Peterson, and today's episode is all about what our 3 00:00:08,119 --> 00:00:11,160 Speaker 1: dogs are really like, which includes not only the things 4 00:00:11,200 --> 00:00:17,560 Speaker 1: we love, but the traits we like to ignore. The 5 00:00:17,600 --> 00:00:19,959 Speaker 1: reason that professional trainers can get so much out of 6 00:00:20,000 --> 00:00:23,000 Speaker 1: dogs when a lot of general owners can't isn't just 7 00:00:23,040 --> 00:00:25,000 Speaker 1: because they know how to ask the right questions, but 8 00:00:25,040 --> 00:00:30,560 Speaker 1: it's also because they understand the fundamental nature of domestic canines. Now, 9 00:00:30,600 --> 00:00:32,640 Speaker 1: that might seem a little crazy, but it's also true. 10 00:00:33,280 --> 00:00:35,480 Speaker 1: They know how dogs think and act better than most 11 00:00:35,479 --> 00:00:38,560 Speaker 1: of us, and that informs their training choices and styles. 12 00:00:39,360 --> 00:00:42,479 Speaker 1: This is way important to the process, and it allows 13 00:00:42,520 --> 00:00:45,080 Speaker 1: them to look past the typical biases of pet owners 14 00:00:45,320 --> 00:00:49,000 Speaker 1: to the root of behavioral problems. This, and at least 15 00:00:49,000 --> 00:00:51,280 Speaker 1: a roundabout way, is what I'm going to talk about 16 00:00:51,560 --> 00:01:00,240 Speaker 1: right now. If you could hop into the wayback machine 17 00:01:00,280 --> 00:01:02,800 Speaker 1: and go to a dance party in Miami in about 18 00:01:02,880 --> 00:01:06,040 Speaker 1: nineteen eighty three, you probably wouldn't have to shake your 19 00:01:06,080 --> 00:01:08,200 Speaker 1: ass too long before some dude with a flock of 20 00:01:08,240 --> 00:01:12,120 Speaker 1: seagulls hairdoo would offer you up a little booger sugar. Now, 21 00:01:12,160 --> 00:01:14,200 Speaker 1: if you took a little bump. You might want to 22 00:01:14,200 --> 00:01:16,040 Speaker 1: thank whoever figured out how to get it from the 23 00:01:16,120 --> 00:01:19,920 Speaker 1: jungles of South and Central America to Florida. You might 24 00:01:19,920 --> 00:01:22,280 Speaker 1: send a postcard to a fellow you've probably heard of 25 00:01:22,360 --> 00:01:25,960 Speaker 1: who went by the name of Pablo Escobar. No one 26 00:01:26,040 --> 00:01:29,200 Speaker 1: is as tightly connected to the drug trade as he is, 27 00:01:29,720 --> 00:01:33,040 Speaker 1: or at least was. When we think of cocaine, it's 28 00:01:33,080 --> 00:01:35,800 Speaker 1: his name above everyone else's that pops up, and there 29 00:01:35,800 --> 00:01:38,800 Speaker 1: are plenty of reasons for this. While he did try 30 00:01:38,840 --> 00:01:41,399 Speaker 1: to go to college for some legitimate career that didn't 31 00:01:41,480 --> 00:01:45,280 Speaker 1: last long, he instead followed his heart, which was that 32 00:01:45,440 --> 00:01:49,120 Speaker 1: of an outlaw, from selling illegal cigarettes and bogus lottery 33 00:01:49,120 --> 00:01:54,040 Speaker 1: tickets to stealing cars. Escobar started his criminal lifestyle pretty young. 34 00:01:54,720 --> 00:01:56,960 Speaker 1: In the nineteen seventies. He hooked up with some drug 35 00:01:57,000 --> 00:01:58,920 Speaker 1: smugglers to help them out in their day to day 36 00:01:58,920 --> 00:02:02,920 Speaker 1: business operations, which also included kidnapping folks they would try 37 00:02:02,960 --> 00:02:07,520 Speaker 1: to ransom off the consummate entrepreneur. He eventually started the 38 00:02:07,560 --> 00:02:11,280 Speaker 1: Medahine Cartel in the nineteen seventy six, which was the 39 00:02:11,400 --> 00:02:14,880 Speaker 1: organization he used to establish smuggling routes from Colombia to 40 00:02:14,919 --> 00:02:19,480 Speaker 1: the US via Bolivia, Ecuador, and Peru. He also buddied 41 00:02:19,520 --> 00:02:23,760 Speaker 1: up with governments in places like Nicaragua and Cuba. He 42 00:02:23,880 --> 00:02:26,600 Speaker 1: was a busy fellow during those years, which involved not 43 00:02:26,639 --> 00:02:29,640 Speaker 1: only moving an estimated seventy five tons of cocaine to 44 00:02:29,680 --> 00:02:33,079 Speaker 1: the US each month, which is a lot of freaking blow, 45 00:02:33,600 --> 00:02:36,919 Speaker 1: but also murdering politicians and police officers, and of course 46 00:02:37,320 --> 00:02:41,280 Speaker 1: duking it out with rival cartels. It's hard to say 47 00:02:41,280 --> 00:02:44,400 Speaker 1: the amount of people he killed or had killed or 48 00:02:44,400 --> 00:02:47,639 Speaker 1: indirectly killed, but the number is a lot more than zero. 49 00:02:48,280 --> 00:02:51,400 Speaker 1: He is suspected of taking down an entire domestic flight 50 00:02:51,480 --> 00:02:54,880 Speaker 1: with a bomb, as well as bombing another building in 51 00:02:54,919 --> 00:02:57,880 Speaker 1: retaliation for not being able to achieve his political goals, 52 00:02:57,919 --> 00:03:01,480 Speaker 1: which I think we can safely say were probably somewhat suspect. 53 00:03:02,360 --> 00:03:04,520 Speaker 1: He was eventually shot by a police officer when he 54 00:03:04,560 --> 00:03:07,320 Speaker 1: wasn't hiding at forty four years old. At that time, 55 00:03:07,600 --> 00:03:09,520 Speaker 1: he had a net worth that was estimated to be 56 00:03:09,560 --> 00:03:13,240 Speaker 1: about thirty billion dollars, which in today's money would be 57 00:03:13,280 --> 00:03:17,800 Speaker 1: about eighty billion dollars. You can bet rightly so that 58 00:03:17,919 --> 00:03:20,000 Speaker 1: he wasn't paying a whole lot of taxes on that 59 00:03:20,120 --> 00:03:25,400 Speaker 1: money either. He was by most folks standards, not a 60 00:03:25,440 --> 00:03:28,760 Speaker 1: great guy, but it's also a little money. He was 61 00:03:28,840 --> 00:03:31,280 Speaker 1: known as sort of a robin Hood figure in a 62 00:03:31,320 --> 00:03:34,320 Speaker 1: lot of the areas of Colombia. He took care of people, 63 00:03:34,560 --> 00:03:37,840 Speaker 1: poor people specifically, and whether it was solely a political 64 00:03:37,920 --> 00:03:40,920 Speaker 1: optics type of move or a move because he identified 65 00:03:40,960 --> 00:03:44,200 Speaker 1: with them, it's impossible to deny that. Also, a lot 66 00:03:44,200 --> 00:03:47,720 Speaker 1: of people loved him and loved having him as a benefactor. 67 00:03:48,720 --> 00:03:51,160 Speaker 1: He was devoted to his family and by a lot 68 00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:55,880 Speaker 1: of accounts, very loyal to some of his business associates. 69 00:03:56,720 --> 00:03:59,000 Speaker 1: At the time when his empire was growing and his 70 00:03:59,080 --> 00:04:01,840 Speaker 1: power was becoming more more influential and far reaching, you 71 00:04:01,880 --> 00:04:04,520 Speaker 1: could have found people with all kinds of opinions on him. 72 00:04:04,800 --> 00:04:08,200 Speaker 1: You probably still can today. But we generally look at 73 00:04:08,240 --> 00:04:10,480 Speaker 1: a guy like that as a net negative to society, 74 00:04:10,920 --> 00:04:14,240 Speaker 1: just as we look at ourselves and our pets as 75 00:04:14,320 --> 00:04:18,640 Speaker 1: net positives. But people are muddy. Though. For example, you 76 00:04:18,720 --> 00:04:20,960 Speaker 1: might think of me as a law abiding citizen who 77 00:04:21,000 --> 00:04:24,839 Speaker 1: isn't involved in the cd underbelly of criminal society. But 78 00:04:24,920 --> 00:04:27,120 Speaker 1: if you saw me leave a little dog training session 79 00:04:27,279 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: just the other night, and the way I just rolled 80 00:04:29,839 --> 00:04:32,599 Speaker 1: right through a stop sign about seven feet from a 81 00:04:32,640 --> 00:04:35,320 Speaker 1: sheriff who was not a fan of my work. You'd 82 00:04:35,360 --> 00:04:39,200 Speaker 1: realize that mister Escobar and yours truly not so far apart. 83 00:04:40,080 --> 00:04:42,640 Speaker 1: You might also not know this, but your dog is 84 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:46,320 Speaker 1: kind of a weird mix of outlaw and asshole as well. Now, 85 00:04:46,320 --> 00:04:49,360 Speaker 1: before you send Steve Ranella emails that he won't read 86 00:04:49,400 --> 00:04:52,840 Speaker 1: about how I should be fired, hear me out. We 87 00:04:52,880 --> 00:04:56,520 Speaker 1: are very biased toward our dogs in the most positive 88 00:04:56,560 --> 00:05:00,279 Speaker 1: ways possible, but that can be a problem because stick 89 00:05:00,360 --> 00:05:03,120 Speaker 1: dogs are not always what we think they are. Allow 90 00:05:03,200 --> 00:05:05,839 Speaker 1: me to give you a couple examples. A few weeks ago, 91 00:05:05,880 --> 00:05:08,640 Speaker 1: I was fishing away with two buddies of mine when 92 00:05:08,640 --> 00:05:10,799 Speaker 1: I heard what sounded an awful lot like a couple 93 00:05:10,800 --> 00:05:15,039 Speaker 1: of dogs that were very, very excited. They were yipping 94 00:05:15,080 --> 00:05:17,440 Speaker 1: and barking away on an island that we happened to 95 00:05:17,480 --> 00:05:21,479 Speaker 1: be fishing for smallmouth. The commotion got our attention, and 96 00:05:21,520 --> 00:05:23,880 Speaker 1: then I saw a golden Retriever and some kind of 97 00:05:23,920 --> 00:05:28,720 Speaker 1: doodle dragon newborn fawn into the lake. The golden had 98 00:05:28,720 --> 00:05:31,159 Speaker 1: the little baby deer by the ear, and the doodle 99 00:05:31,200 --> 00:05:33,240 Speaker 1: had it by its leg. And I can promise you 100 00:05:33,279 --> 00:05:36,719 Speaker 1: one thing, that fawn wasn't a week old yet. It 101 00:05:36,839 --> 00:05:39,720 Speaker 1: also screamed loud enough that at first I thought there 102 00:05:39,760 --> 00:05:44,040 Speaker 1: was a child in the mix. It was ugly, and 103 00:05:44,080 --> 00:05:47,360 Speaker 1: while I love dogs, I also love deer, and I 104 00:05:47,400 --> 00:05:50,680 Speaker 1: don't really like to watch baby deer get tortured. So 105 00:05:50,760 --> 00:05:53,279 Speaker 1: I pulled up the trolling motor, drove over to the commotion, 106 00:05:53,680 --> 00:05:55,800 Speaker 1: and scooped up Mamby to lay him on shore in 107 00:05:55,839 --> 00:06:00,520 Speaker 1: the sunlight. He was terrified, shaking uncontrollably and not doing 108 00:06:00,560 --> 00:06:04,120 Speaker 1: so great. The dogs, which if you saw them walking 109 00:06:04,120 --> 00:06:07,839 Speaker 1: down the street would undoubtedly not strike you as cold blooded, 110 00:06:07,960 --> 00:06:12,279 Speaker 1: infant deer murderers, they wouldn't leave that fawn alone, though. 111 00:06:13,160 --> 00:06:15,760 Speaker 1: I ended up catching the golden and getting the owner's 112 00:06:15,760 --> 00:06:18,520 Speaker 1: phone number, who wasn't as concerned with the situation as 113 00:06:18,560 --> 00:06:21,480 Speaker 1: I hoped he would be. He also isn't a real 114 00:06:21,480 --> 00:06:24,440 Speaker 1: big fan of me either, because apparently he doesn't like 115 00:06:24,480 --> 00:06:27,520 Speaker 1: it when people swear in general or specifically at him. 116 00:06:28,200 --> 00:06:30,480 Speaker 1: But he came and got his dogs, even though he 117 00:06:30,520 --> 00:06:32,240 Speaker 1: wouldn't leave the woods of the island to come down 118 00:06:32,279 --> 00:06:34,880 Speaker 1: and see the fawn. I have no doubt that that 119 00:06:34,920 --> 00:06:37,279 Speaker 1: little deer died. I also have no doubt that a 120 00:06:37,320 --> 00:06:39,640 Speaker 1: different fawn that I got to see pictures of two 121 00:06:39,720 --> 00:06:43,160 Speaker 1: days later randomly died as well. Since it was in 122 00:06:43,400 --> 00:06:46,880 Speaker 1: two pieces. The story behind that one is that a 123 00:06:46,960 --> 00:06:48,760 Speaker 1: trainer at the gym I go to came over to 124 00:06:48,800 --> 00:06:50,920 Speaker 1: talk to me and we got on the topic of dogs. 125 00:06:51,480 --> 00:06:53,599 Speaker 1: She then pulled out her phone and said something to 126 00:06:53,640 --> 00:06:56,240 Speaker 1: the effect of my son told me our lab did this, 127 00:06:56,480 --> 00:06:59,320 Speaker 1: but I don't believe it. The picture was of a 128 00:06:59,440 --> 00:07:03,039 Speaker 1: front half of a tiny fawn, she said. Her son 129 00:07:03,160 --> 00:07:06,240 Speaker 1: claimed to have watched their seventy five pound three year 130 00:07:06,279 --> 00:07:09,680 Speaker 1: old male lab tear up the baby deer, but she 131 00:07:09,920 --> 00:07:13,920 Speaker 1: literally didn't believe it because that lab is a lab, 132 00:07:14,560 --> 00:07:19,320 Speaker 1: and labs to us are sweethearts generally, just like goldens 133 00:07:19,400 --> 00:07:22,960 Speaker 1: and even doodles and gsps and English cockers and you 134 00:07:23,080 --> 00:07:27,120 Speaker 1: name it. But our dogs are just ruthless killers disguised 135 00:07:27,160 --> 00:07:30,400 Speaker 1: as adorable goofballs who beg for popcorn and snuggle with 136 00:07:30,480 --> 00:07:34,920 Speaker 1: us on the couch. Scratch that they are adorable goofballs 137 00:07:35,400 --> 00:07:39,120 Speaker 1: as well as ruthless killers. Take it out of this way. 138 00:07:39,800 --> 00:07:42,320 Speaker 1: Take your bird dog. I don't care if it's a 139 00:07:42,320 --> 00:07:45,080 Speaker 1: pointer or a retriever for this exercise, because it'll work 140 00:07:45,120 --> 00:07:48,360 Speaker 1: pretty well, either way, get yourself a bumper or a ball, 141 00:07:48,760 --> 00:07:51,600 Speaker 1: tell your dog to sit and wait, throw that bumper 142 00:07:51,680 --> 00:07:54,000 Speaker 1: or that ball way up in the air like you're 143 00:07:54,040 --> 00:07:57,080 Speaker 1: doing just any old retrieving drill. Now, your dog might 144 00:07:57,120 --> 00:07:59,200 Speaker 1: sit and wait if it's been trained for steadiness, or 145 00:07:59,240 --> 00:08:02,080 Speaker 1: it might just go, but there will be body language 146 00:08:02,080 --> 00:08:06,600 Speaker 1: that signals the dog's interest level in that particular toss. Now, 147 00:08:06,640 --> 00:08:09,280 Speaker 1: do the same thing, but instead of yeating that bumper 148 00:08:09,320 --> 00:08:11,000 Speaker 1: or ball way up in the air in a nice 149 00:08:11,040 --> 00:08:15,040 Speaker 1: slow arc, side arm it and skip it across the ground. 150 00:08:15,800 --> 00:08:19,160 Speaker 1: That rock steady dog from before has a way higher 151 00:08:19,280 --> 00:08:22,000 Speaker 1: chance to break now, and if it doesn't, you'll still 152 00:08:22,040 --> 00:08:25,360 Speaker 1: probably see its body language change as it tenses up 153 00:08:25,400 --> 00:08:29,080 Speaker 1: because it wants to go. Why why would there be 154 00:08:29,120 --> 00:08:32,080 Speaker 1: a difference in the two Because that low throw that 155 00:08:32,160 --> 00:08:34,760 Speaker 1: bounces through the grass is more like a small woodland 156 00:08:34,800 --> 00:08:38,760 Speaker 1: creature running away, That's about it. And their nature is 157 00:08:38,760 --> 00:08:41,000 Speaker 1: to chase and to kill, no matter how many stupid 158 00:08:41,000 --> 00:08:43,280 Speaker 1: sweaters we put on them or how much we act 159 00:08:43,320 --> 00:08:47,319 Speaker 1: like they are for babies. You might think, well, yeah, 160 00:08:47,880 --> 00:08:50,800 Speaker 1: hunting dogs like to hunt, but not my fluffy little 161 00:08:50,800 --> 00:08:54,800 Speaker 1: house dog. Wrong, amigo. The same rules apply to most 162 00:08:54,800 --> 00:08:58,880 Speaker 1: dogs because it's their nature. Their nature is also that 163 00:08:59,000 --> 00:09:15,120 Speaker 1: of a selfish, resource guarding animal as well. I can 164 00:09:15,160 --> 00:09:18,040 Speaker 1: watch my two dogs interact and see this play out 165 00:09:18,440 --> 00:09:21,760 Speaker 1: all the time. The old dog, who is over twelve 166 00:09:22,080 --> 00:09:25,640 Speaker 1: and draws sympathetic responses from just about anyone she encounters now, 167 00:09:25,679 --> 00:09:28,840 Speaker 1: for her slow limpi gait and her cloudy eyes and 168 00:09:28,840 --> 00:09:32,480 Speaker 1: her just general elderly vibe, has to compete with a 169 00:09:32,520 --> 00:09:36,200 Speaker 1: four year old dog that's in prime condition and loves attention, 170 00:09:36,800 --> 00:09:40,040 Speaker 1: treats and whatever else as much as the old dog does. 171 00:09:40,720 --> 00:09:43,880 Speaker 1: So when I let them outside, for example, Luna has 172 00:09:43,920 --> 00:09:46,240 Speaker 1: to gingerly make her way down the steps and out 173 00:09:46,280 --> 00:09:49,520 Speaker 1: the door, while Sadie will blow right past her, often 174 00:09:49,600 --> 00:09:52,320 Speaker 1: bumping her out of the way. If there are treats 175 00:09:52,400 --> 00:09:55,920 Speaker 1: or food involved, Sadie will gladly muscle Luna out of 176 00:09:55,920 --> 00:09:57,280 Speaker 1: the way to get to the front of the line. 177 00:09:58,160 --> 00:10:00,920 Speaker 1: It would be understandable to believe the young dog loves 178 00:10:00,920 --> 00:10:03,240 Speaker 1: the old dog, but not in the way in which 179 00:10:03,240 --> 00:10:07,040 Speaker 1: we really think about love. Sadie thinks of Sadie first, 180 00:10:07,520 --> 00:10:10,600 Speaker 1: just as Luna does. They don't care about manners or 181 00:10:10,640 --> 00:10:13,920 Speaker 1: sharing or anything that would make them good in our eyes. 182 00:10:14,559 --> 00:10:17,000 Speaker 1: They do some of those things because they've been trained 183 00:10:17,040 --> 00:10:20,400 Speaker 1: that way, but it's not natural. Otherwise we wouldn't have 184 00:10:20,440 --> 00:10:23,240 Speaker 1: to train them to take turns or not constantly bully 185 00:10:23,320 --> 00:10:24,920 Speaker 1: each other out of the way for a quarter of 186 00:10:24,960 --> 00:10:28,600 Speaker 1: a slice of bread. Now this might seem like I'm 187 00:10:28,640 --> 00:10:32,080 Speaker 1: taking a less than charitable view of my dogs or 188 00:10:32,160 --> 00:10:36,000 Speaker 1: dogs in general, but I'm not. It's just a part 189 00:10:36,040 --> 00:10:38,720 Speaker 1: of what they are, and denying it doesn't do any 190 00:10:38,760 --> 00:10:42,000 Speaker 1: of us any good, especially when it comes to training them. 191 00:10:42,440 --> 00:10:44,880 Speaker 1: So for example, that little King Charles Spaniel I've been 192 00:10:44,920 --> 00:10:47,920 Speaker 1: working with lately. He's about as cute as they come. 193 00:10:48,360 --> 00:10:51,719 Speaker 1: He's a lover too, mostly, but it became apparent right 194 00:10:51,760 --> 00:10:54,280 Speaker 1: away that when a bird would fly anywhere near him, 195 00:10:54,800 --> 00:10:57,080 Speaker 1: he was fully ready to catch that bird and I 196 00:10:57,160 --> 00:11:01,079 Speaker 1: assume kill it, or at least it enough to ground 197 00:11:01,080 --> 00:11:05,120 Speaker 1: it permanently. He doesn't look like a retriever, he isn't 198 00:11:05,160 --> 00:11:07,800 Speaker 1: a retriever, but he has real prey drives. So I 199 00:11:07,800 --> 00:11:09,640 Speaker 1: figured I'd see if I could get him to retrieve, 200 00:11:09,760 --> 00:11:11,840 Speaker 1: so that I could transition him from praise and treats 201 00:11:11,840 --> 00:11:15,240 Speaker 1: as a reward to praise and retrieves. He took to 202 00:11:15,280 --> 00:11:18,600 Speaker 1: it instantly and while his performance is far from perfect, 203 00:11:19,040 --> 00:11:21,560 Speaker 1: I can generally get maybe five or six really good 204 00:11:21,600 --> 00:11:24,559 Speaker 1: retrieves right to my hand out of him during any 205 00:11:24,600 --> 00:11:28,120 Speaker 1: given session before he just gives it up because he 206 00:11:28,160 --> 00:11:30,080 Speaker 1: wants to chase that bumper and he wants to catch it. 207 00:11:30,720 --> 00:11:33,120 Speaker 1: He's a hunter in his heart, and there is no 208 00:11:33,280 --> 00:11:36,960 Speaker 1: being a hunter without partially being a killer, even though 209 00:11:37,000 --> 00:11:39,000 Speaker 1: that's not the optics we generally want to share about 210 00:11:39,000 --> 00:11:43,199 Speaker 1: ourselves and our dogs. In this particular aspect of our dogs, 211 00:11:43,559 --> 00:11:46,040 Speaker 1: we miss something important about how to handle them and 212 00:11:46,080 --> 00:11:49,280 Speaker 1: how their behaviors manifest if we don't do this correctly. 213 00:11:49,880 --> 00:11:51,760 Speaker 1: Let me frame this up by saying that there is 214 00:11:51,880 --> 00:11:55,000 Speaker 1: nothing I would rather do than hunt or fish. It's 215 00:11:55,000 --> 00:11:57,040 Speaker 1: just who I am, and on any given day, I 216 00:11:57,200 --> 00:12:00,319 Speaker 1: choose either if they were options. When they aren't, I'm 217 00:12:00,320 --> 00:12:02,160 Speaker 1: going to look for agates or antlers or try to 218 00:12:02,160 --> 00:12:05,040 Speaker 1: solve some kind of problem in the outdoors. When I'm 219 00:12:05,080 --> 00:12:07,000 Speaker 1: not allowed to do any of that stuff because of 220 00:12:07,080 --> 00:12:11,079 Speaker 1: stupid life things. I'm crabby and generally not filled with 221 00:12:11,120 --> 00:12:13,760 Speaker 1: a whole lot of peace. Since you're listening to this, 222 00:12:13,880 --> 00:12:17,599 Speaker 1: I'm going to assume you have similar leanings in your life. 223 00:12:17,600 --> 00:12:21,040 Speaker 1: Our dogs, especially our sporting dogs. They need to hunt, 224 00:12:21,120 --> 00:12:24,040 Speaker 1: solve problems, and chase things, and just generally engage in 225 00:12:24,040 --> 00:12:27,280 Speaker 1: those natural inclinations so that they can feel that piece 226 00:12:27,320 --> 00:12:30,199 Speaker 1: and relax a little bit. When they don't get that, 227 00:12:30,559 --> 00:12:33,120 Speaker 1: they don't have that piece, and so they engage in 228 00:12:33,160 --> 00:12:36,440 Speaker 1: behaviors that maybe aren't so much fun, that might not 229 00:12:36,600 --> 00:12:39,640 Speaker 1: seem linked to their desire to hunt and to kill stuff. 230 00:12:40,080 --> 00:12:43,120 Speaker 1: So think about it this way. Imagine having a stretch 231 00:12:43,160 --> 00:12:44,839 Speaker 1: of weather la like we just got here in the 232 00:12:44,920 --> 00:12:49,000 Speaker 1: North Country, where it's either about to rain, is raining, 233 00:12:49,200 --> 00:12:53,160 Speaker 1: or has just rained like every hour or two. There 234 00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:55,640 Speaker 1: are a lot of dogs around here that probably didn't 235 00:12:55,679 --> 00:12:58,240 Speaker 1: behave so great during those weather patterns because they didn't 236 00:12:58,240 --> 00:13:01,240 Speaker 1: get out as much. We often think that is tied 237 00:13:01,320 --> 00:13:04,680 Speaker 1: just directly to not getting enough exercise, which is absolutely 238 00:13:04,720 --> 00:13:07,600 Speaker 1: a component of the whole thing. For for sure, a 239 00:13:07,640 --> 00:13:09,360 Speaker 1: dog that needs to run is a dog that won't 240 00:13:09,400 --> 00:13:11,000 Speaker 1: be as much fun to have around when it doesn't 241 00:13:11,040 --> 00:13:14,079 Speaker 1: get to run. It's pretty simple. But they also want 242 00:13:14,080 --> 00:13:16,400 Speaker 1: to chase things, and they want to catch things. It 243 00:13:16,440 --> 00:13:19,600 Speaker 1: says they can't mostly do that with living creatures, which 244 00:13:19,640 --> 00:13:22,079 Speaker 1: is what they want and is one of the reasons 245 00:13:22,440 --> 00:13:24,959 Speaker 1: all those cute toys we buy for them have squeakers 246 00:13:24,960 --> 00:13:27,760 Speaker 1: on the inside to mimic rodents and other animals in distress. 247 00:13:28,440 --> 00:13:31,319 Speaker 1: We have to facilitate this type of thing. So when 248 00:13:31,360 --> 00:13:34,480 Speaker 1: we run retrieving drills or hunt dead drills with our dogs, 249 00:13:34,800 --> 00:13:38,000 Speaker 1: we aren't just preparing them for hunting with us. We 250 00:13:38,080 --> 00:13:41,360 Speaker 1: are also allowing them to engage in their nature, even 251 00:13:41,360 --> 00:13:44,360 Speaker 1: if it's structured engagement that goes against what their hearts 252 00:13:44,679 --> 00:13:48,439 Speaker 1: really want. In fact, the best trainers use this to 253 00:13:48,480 --> 00:13:51,720 Speaker 1: their advantage. They use this as a reward for asking 254 00:13:51,800 --> 00:13:54,600 Speaker 1: dogs to offer us up behaviors that are wholly unnatural 255 00:13:54,600 --> 00:13:58,320 Speaker 1: to them. Think about steadiness here, especially for duck dogs, 256 00:14:00,120 --> 00:14:01,880 Speaker 1: that the dog wants nothing more to run as fast 257 00:14:01,880 --> 00:14:04,200 Speaker 1: as possible to a bumper, or to jump into the 258 00:14:04,200 --> 00:14:07,520 Speaker 1: water right now to swim down a green head that's 259 00:14:07,559 --> 00:14:11,120 Speaker 1: flopping around forty yards out. They want that retrieve, but 260 00:14:11,160 --> 00:14:13,679 Speaker 1: it's not solely because they want to retrieve something. They 261 00:14:13,720 --> 00:14:17,280 Speaker 1: also want to catch something alive. To get to do that, 262 00:14:17,679 --> 00:14:20,520 Speaker 1: we tell them you have to stay still until I 263 00:14:20,600 --> 00:14:23,320 Speaker 1: tell you that you can go. Then you can go 264 00:14:23,400 --> 00:14:27,960 Speaker 1: and earn that reward. You know, a child's nature is 265 00:14:28,000 --> 00:14:30,240 Speaker 1: not to clean their room for fun, but they are 266 00:14:30,320 --> 00:14:33,480 Speaker 1: drawn to high calorie sugary foods, so we tell them 267 00:14:33,480 --> 00:14:35,320 Speaker 1: that if they clean up their room, they can have 268 00:14:35,360 --> 00:14:38,200 Speaker 1: some ice cream. I know that's dumbing the whole thing 269 00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:41,480 Speaker 1: now when it comes to dogs, but it's also fundamentally true. 270 00:14:42,040 --> 00:14:43,360 Speaker 1: This is one of the reasons that a lot of 271 00:14:43,400 --> 00:14:46,160 Speaker 1: hunting dogs that go to non hunting families end up 272 00:14:46,200 --> 00:14:49,640 Speaker 1: being labeled you know, high strung, or stubborn, or you know, 273 00:14:49,800 --> 00:14:52,080 Speaker 1: a host of other negative things that don't take into 274 00:14:52,080 --> 00:14:55,040 Speaker 1: account the dog being mostly denied its nature for its 275 00:14:55,080 --> 00:14:59,000 Speaker 1: whole life. It pays to take an honest account of 276 00:14:59,040 --> 00:15:01,960 Speaker 1: your dog's specific needs. Not only does this start with 277 00:15:02,000 --> 00:15:04,600 Speaker 1: your breed choice, but it also goes with your dog's 278 00:15:04,600 --> 00:15:08,760 Speaker 1: specific bloodlines. And then it's the individual nature that you'll 279 00:15:08,800 --> 00:15:11,120 Speaker 1: begin to understand the moment you bring your little pupster 280 00:15:11,240 --> 00:15:14,560 Speaker 1: home to start its life with yours. It pays to 281 00:15:14,640 --> 00:15:17,640 Speaker 1: acknowledge what drives our dogs, not just what we want 282 00:15:17,680 --> 00:15:20,760 Speaker 1: to drive them because it conveniently jives with what we 283 00:15:20,800 --> 00:15:23,800 Speaker 1: want to do with them or we want out of them. 284 00:15:24,200 --> 00:15:26,600 Speaker 1: The more we understand their nature, the more we can 285 00:15:26,680 --> 00:15:28,680 Speaker 1: work with that to mold them into the kind of 286 00:15:28,720 --> 00:15:32,480 Speaker 1: pets and hunting partners that we really want. This is 287 00:15:32,560 --> 00:15:35,200 Speaker 1: good for us and it's good for them because it 288 00:15:35,200 --> 00:15:38,760 Speaker 1: provides a jumping off point for training rewards while also 289 00:15:38,800 --> 00:15:41,160 Speaker 1: providing our dogs what they really need out of the 290 00:15:41,240 --> 00:15:43,920 Speaker 1: day to day lives to turn the volume down just 291 00:15:43,960 --> 00:15:46,560 Speaker 1: a little bit and become more tolerable for us at home. 292 00:15:47,640 --> 00:15:50,320 Speaker 1: So let's just recap this quickly so we're all on 293 00:15:50,360 --> 00:15:53,080 Speaker 1: the same page. I don't think your dog is a criminal, 294 00:15:53,240 --> 00:15:55,480 Speaker 1: although I did meet a dog one time named Rambo 295 00:15:55,720 --> 00:15:59,600 Speaker 1: whose owner almost immediately said, and I quote, he's a criminal. 296 00:16:00,000 --> 00:16:02,280 Speaker 1: You just can't help it. I didn't ask her what 297 00:16:02,280 --> 00:16:05,160 Speaker 1: she meant. But aside from Rambo, our dogs are great 298 00:16:05,200 --> 00:16:07,800 Speaker 1: dogs and we all love them very much. They are 299 00:16:07,880 --> 00:16:11,040 Speaker 1: also domesticated canines with needs in a hell of a 300 00:16:11,040 --> 00:16:12,760 Speaker 1: lot of echoes, and their genes of a time when 301 00:16:12,800 --> 00:16:15,720 Speaker 1: they weren't asked to be steady and calm, and instead 302 00:16:15,880 --> 00:16:19,120 Speaker 1: every chase they engaged in involve life or death for 303 00:16:19,240 --> 00:16:23,120 Speaker 1: them and whatever was in their crosshairs. Think about that, 304 00:16:23,760 --> 00:16:26,720 Speaker 1: and more broadly, the nature of your specific dog, and 305 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:28,760 Speaker 1: then ask yourself if there is something you can use 306 00:16:28,800 --> 00:16:32,040 Speaker 1: to your advantage. They're training wise or maybe something that's 307 00:16:32,080 --> 00:16:34,000 Speaker 1: holding you back because you don't want to acknowledge it 308 00:16:34,000 --> 00:16:36,800 Speaker 1: in your dog think about it. I think about coming 309 00:16:36,840 --> 00:16:39,520 Speaker 1: back in two weeks for some more pups to related knowledge. 310 00:16:41,480 --> 00:16:43,520 Speaker 1: That's it for this week. I'm Tony Peterson. This has 311 00:16:43,560 --> 00:16:46,800 Speaker 1: been The Houndation's podcast. I just want to thank you, 312 00:16:47,000 --> 00:16:49,320 Speaker 1: truly from the bottom of my heart for all of 313 00:16:49,360 --> 00:16:51,880 Speaker 1: your support. We've been making a move into this dog 314 00:16:51,920 --> 00:16:53,680 Speaker 1: world and trying to put more content out there on 315 00:16:53,720 --> 00:16:56,520 Speaker 1: the mediator dot com, and you guys have been consuming it. 316 00:16:56,520 --> 00:16:59,280 Speaker 1: It's been great. We love it. Thank you so much 317 00:16:59,280 --> 00:17:02,480 Speaker 1: for that. If you want more hunting content, whether that's 318 00:17:02,560 --> 00:17:06,480 Speaker 1: dog training articles or maybe something totally unrelated, like a 319 00:17:06,600 --> 00:17:10,359 Speaker 1: recipe for some walleyes you're catching this summer, maybe you 320 00:17:10,400 --> 00:17:12,760 Speaker 1: want to go over and listen to Brent Reeves spin 321 00:17:12,880 --> 00:17:17,479 Speaker 1: some tales on this country life podcast. Whatever content you need, 322 00:17:18,160 --> 00:17:20,120 Speaker 1: it's over at the meat Eater dot com. We drop 323 00:17:20,200 --> 00:17:22,760 Speaker 1: new stuff literally every day. Go check it out.