· By Minou Tpain
Author: Denise Partlow
Instagram: @modernk9 Carolinas
Impulse Control activities are not just about obedience-as many mistakenly believe it to be-It’s not about teaching a dog to sit or down for 10, 30, 60 seconds or to heel by their owner’s side on busy streets. It’s about structure, clarity & communication all through a series of predictable patterns so the dog can trust and feel safe because when dogs feel safe they can deal with their fears and anxieties. “Without it, the dog will feel unanchored in the storm” (Leslie McDevitt author of “Control Unleashed- Reactive to Relaxed”.)
Impulse Control training is a thoughtful process that sets our dogs up for success for the crazy variables our human world presents them with but this process is gradual and works at the dog’s pace. It allows the dog time to process a variety of external stimuli without going over threshold-this is where the “thoughtful” comes into play-we set up each scenario to ensure the dog is successful allowing the dog to feel more and more confident through each repetition. And because we are thoughtful, the dog begins to trust the handler and feel safe. And that is the most important part of our relationship with our dogs.
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