I was really excited to be attending and Ian certainly didn't disappoint. His lecture and insights really do show the power of positive training (and by the way... he did mention that he has also helped a certain Mr César Millan with the training of his new dog - Junior). I especially loved his "DogCon" (think DefCon style instructions) for dogs and was intrigued by the use of a neutral tone when asking a dog to 'sit,' 'stay,' 'down' and 'come.' I certainly can't wait to try out the techniques on my three hounds when I get back to Lincolnshire.
The only thing that did disappoint me on the day was the small number of attendees, many of whom were professional dog trainers and/or behaviourists, who insisted on bringing their dogs and then leaving them in their cars.
Words pretty much fail me at this point. Yesterday was extremely hot, probably in the late 20's/early 30's ° C, yet the lecture was interrupted due to one dog being found wandering in the car park (the dog belonged to a delegate). This poor dog was obviously distressed and in need of cooling down and water.
(pictured: Stevie & Mina)
When the seminar ended and I was leaving the car park, I saw another car with towels draped all over its windows & the boot open (no -owner in sight) with a dog in a crate in the back.
How many warnings and times do we need to be told about dogs dying in hot cars? There's never any excuse to leave an animal unattended in a hot car.
I live in Scottsdale, Arizona, and even though we are constantly made aware of the risks here (and there are severe penalties), there are still incidents. I sometimes wonder if it isn't those people who see their pets as accessories, rather than living beings with emotional and physical needs.
ReplyDeleteHi Karri
ReplyDeleteThanks for your comment. I think part of the problem for the UK is that we don't normally experience quite the highs in temperature that we've recently experienced.
I also think you've hit the nail on the head when you say about people not thinking about their dogs as "living beings with emotional and physical needs"
I found a great, US based, website: http://www.mydogiscool.com/ which really helps promote the message about not leaving dogs in cars.