You and your dog are a team, best friends, compadres. It’s a partnership – living together happily ever after. To make that true, you have to be the senior partner.
We meet lots of people whose dogs run their lives. They love their dogs and want them to be happy. So, if Fido doesn’t like company coming over, they don’t invite anyone over. If Fido doesn’t want to go to bed, they stay up. You get the idea. And we’re all guilty of bits of it.
But we’ll let you in on a little secret. Dogs don’t like being in charge. They’ll take the wheel if no one’s steering, but they’d rather be back-seat drivers!
Dogs love rules!
Dogs are addicted to rules and order. If your dog always eats at a certain time, have you noticed him getting discombobulated when Daylight Savings Time changes the clocks? No one told your dog, and he doesn’t much like it!
Another consideration is that dogs are akin to human toddlers. Taught to be polite, caring, and unselfish, they’re praiseworthy members of the family and a joy to be around. Left to their own devices, they can be selfish, rude, and destructive.
Letting your dog decide the rules of the house all the time isn’t fair to either one of you. Once in a while, there’s nothing wrong with being tempted away from household chores by those puppy dog eyes begging for a game of fetch.
The problem arises when the dog makes the rules. If your dog is restricting your life, if you’re foregoing activities or opportunities because of your dog, things need to change.
Both of you will be happier when you become the Senior Partner in your relationship with your dog.
