Clients often come to me for training to make their own lives easier: They want their dogs to stop some nuisance behavior that’s creating hassles (chewing, housebreaking issues), hazards (pulling, jumping) or headaches (digging, nuisance barking). Others are concerned about their dogs’ safety and want to work on things like reactivity or recall.
Those are valid reasons for training dogs. But there’s another reason that is, in my mind, even more important: I train my dogs to improve their quality of life.
Pearl, a.k.a. Burrito Dog, lost her left hind leg to cancer last May. The Burrito’s favorite thing is hiking. (OK, maybe second favorite. Doughnut holes are her favorite, but hiking is right up there.) I was pretty sure she’d be able to continue with her favorite activity once she recovered — dogs are remarkably resilient — but I was equally sure that we could accelerate her return to the trails and make hiking on three legs easier for her if I put together a training plan to help her adapt.
Her work included short walks around our neighborhood to increase her stamina; place board work and jumping through a hoop to boost her agility and leg strength; and stretching up to stand on her back leg in an attempt to reach a high-value treat. We spent the summer easing her back into hiking by walking her on local trails, where we gradually increased the length and difficulty of our excursions, and by September, she was gleefully traipsing around Cerrillos Hills State Park with us.
This isn’t the first challenge Pearl has faced in her life. She ended up in rescue after being removed from a hoarding situation, and it took her a while to trust humans. We always end our hiking excursions with lunch on some pet-friendly patio, and it’s been a real delight to see Pearl emerge from her little cocoon of fear and turn into a social butterfly who charms everybody she meets.
If you have a dog who is facing a challenge — be it a traumatic past or a newly acquired disability — don’t baby him. Instead, ask yourself four questions:
- What does he enjoy?
- How might this challenge interfere with that?
- What skills would help him compensate?
- How can I help him learn these skills? (If you’re not sure, consult a trainer in your area.)
Then use the answers to those questions to give your dog the tools he needs to live his best life.
The video above is from a trip we took yesterday to Petroglyph National Monument in Albuquerque, where the Burrito easily kept up with us on the nearly 3.5-mile trail around the volcanoes.
I never get tired of seeing her exuberant little face as she overcomes the obstacles in her path and emerges with joy, eager for her next adventure.
Emily
Tucumcari Dog Training 
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