Don't Quit, Build More Road!
At Harmony Farm Kennel And Lamb at Monte Lake, BC, Gerry & I, believe in dogs. We believe in all dogs whether they are our own dogs or with us as kennel boarders. We understand their needs and are committed to set them up for success in every way, every day. And so when anyone tells us that "sometimes you just run out of road" with no answers, well, OUR answers is that we just build more road! At Harmony Farm Kennel there are no bad dogs that become "just a dog". Whether it's custom care for dogs boarding of of our own at our country kennel, or loving care & conscience raising sheep, we build as much road as it takes...
Gerry & I don't judge animals. We take them as they are, mother nature in it's finest form and do everything we can to help them find better answers whatever their issues are, without making them right or wrong. We believe if it's their idea it's always a lasting decision. It seems to us more a situation of causing them to find better answers rather than adjusting (or giving up) to accomodate the dog's 'issue'.
More often than I care to recall people give up on dogs. One way or another they give up. Sometimes I wish people could look at it from an outside perspective. People seem to approach dogs in judgement as if the dog is what they are and nothing can shift that thinking or behavior. As soon as that dog doesn't act 'normal' (normal in the perspective of each person that is) it's labelled, for better or worse. We see it all the time. People either just reside themselves that their dog is: extra sensitive, a man hater, a licker, a jumper, fat, allergic, lethargic, a digger, lazy, an escape artist, a sulker, timid, fearful, a submissive pee-er, a barker ... or sadly, remove the dogs from their lives, if the dog seems un-manageable or unchangeable, to them. But are these dogs any of these things? Is that their truth or are they 'screaming so loud no one can hear them at all?”
The next time you catch yourself calling a dog a label, take a second and ask yourself:
Where they born this way or did some thing, situation or person create this behavior or character, consciously or un?
What could happen if I didn't label this dog at all as ______ and believed it could be different?
How can I think or act differently to help this dog be _______?
How can I create a positive reaction or circumstance to have this dog find a different answer?
What can I do differently to cause different responses in my dog?
Thinking 'outside of the box' is what I call it. Sometimes it's uncomfortable, sometimes it takes looking at the mirror, often it's frustrating (especially when you realize you have been a contributor to the problem),but always, always, it's worth the reach. We all know the description of insanity as “doing the same thing over and over yet expecting different results” but how often can we embrace this principle to think and do things differently to help our animals? Sometimes, by dog, it just takes building more 'road'...
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