Training your Aisling Puppy

We've all heard about the importance of being a Pack Leader to our dogs, but some of the trainers rely on adverse training (take downs with the collar, roll overs, electric collars etc.) -the reality is that those don't really work. What does work is gaining your dog's trust so that they understand that you are in charge and they themselves don't need to be the protector in your place or be afraid for themselves or their pack mates! Your puppy already knows how to sit, lay down and stand when he or she comes home to you at eight weeks of age and truthfully, getting them to do it on command is nothing more than "trick training" just as "shake", "paw", and "high fives" are! What your puppy really needs (besides lots of appropriate socialization) is to understand the house rules. These are the building blocks for that perfect Labrador companion we all dream of - not trick training. In 2018, we brought in two more puppies to our pack and I realized that there were a few things that I had never succeeded in achieving reliable results from our Labradors. The biggest issue? The pack's excitement when David came home from his 14 hours away for work! They barked and danced and generally knocked each other about in their excitement. Since we had a rather long drive, and a gate that must be manually opened and closed, this chorus of six Labradors went on for several minutes each time...my telling them to stop just seemed to egg them on. I then heard from my Mom about Doggy Dan; she simply told me about "Golden Rule #2 - Danger" from his online training series. That very evening, as David pulled up to the mailbox across our street, the chorus began. I said "Thank you" just loud enough for them to hear me and they all quieted down for a minute but soon began again. I got up and walked to the front window and said "Thank you, I know Dad's home". Silence. Golden silence. I tried again the next night and got the same result. And the third night...again, silence reigned once I'd acknowledged that Dad was out there. I was amazed. That third night I asked David if he'd noticed anything different about our then 6 pack of dogs over the past three evenings. He thought for a minute and replied "no barking!". The next day, I went looking for Doggy Dan online and began to fully implement Golden Rule #1 along with #2. Over the next few weeks, visitors to our home were amazed at how calm the dogs were during their visit.... Much of Doggy Dan's training methods I'd learned watching my Grandfather as a child. He had grown up as the Head Groom's son in an Estate in England, taking over for a time as a young adult when his Dad retired. When he'd visit us here in the U.S. at our mini farms - which included pigs, chickens, horses and always several dogs and cats, he'd immediately take over their care and I'd watch in amazement as these animals, no matter the species, followed his every move and responded to his infrequent words. What I learned at my Grandfather's side allowed me to have so many dogs living with us and not have them ruling the house, but, I never was fully satisfied with what we achieved; there was always something that needed to be worked on. Doggy Dan's methods and the psychology behind them have allowed me to move to the next level. We're always working at it, but if we saw a difference with 2 puppies, an 18 month old and (now) 2 adults, imagine the possibilities! The thing to understand is that we tend to use human psychology to "train" our dogs when we should be using the psychology of dogs! They have 98% of the DNA of a wolf and when we understand that, internalize it, and implement Doggy Dan's "5 Golden Rules", it is amazing how fast they are suddenly "trained"! Think for a minute about how quickly our six dogs stopped barking when David and Hunter come home from work in only ONE session of my saying "Thank you. I know that Dad is home (or Hunter)". Whether you have just brought home an Aisling Lab, have been raising one for awhile now, or have just come here to have a gander, check out Doggy Dan. You won't be disappointed!