Both Dog Training and Behavior Education are utilized in all our Fort Lee, NJ, lessons, as one can rarely be used without the other, but we wanted to clarify the difference between them.
When we refer to Dog Training, we are talking about teaching cues such as “sit,” “stay,” “down,” and the like. The purpose behind Training is to create a common means of communication using human language. As humans we seemingly rely mostly on our verbal communication (words) to relay and receive messages. Dogs, on the other paw, do not – they rely mostly on non-verbal communication to relay and receive message. However, we humans have two good things going for us:
- According to studies (and anyone who has spoken to another human), a lot of communication between people is non-verbal. We rely a lot on facial expressions, body language, and tone of voice to read other people’s messages.
- According to other studies (and anyone who has spoken to a dog), dogs can learn distinct sounds, which is exactly what words are. Disclaimer – dogs are not good at distinguishing similar sounds, which is why little Max will look up when he hears you talking about mats or packs or maps.
If we can sharpen our non-verbal skills and be clear with our verbal ones, then we can teach dogs some of our spoken language. This is what we refer to as Training – guiding you on how to become more aware of your nonverbal communication and be more conscious of how you use it to “speak” to your dog, then taking that knowledge to teach dogs some verbal language.
With Dog Behavior Education in Fort Lee, NJ, we aim to teach you about natural dog behaviors, some of which become what people see as “problematic” or “undesirable”– think jumping, chewing, biting, pulling on walks, anxiety, aggression, socialization issues, etc. While we want to explain why these behaviors occur, we do not condone them. We want you to understand the behavior so that you can understand how to address the issue at hand – we have brought dogs into our home and it is our responsibility to humanely show them how to behave in the our world while still allowing them to be dogs.
We believe that once you have a clearer understanding of why your dog does what it does, then you can figure out how to handle, redirect, or stop unwanted behavior in a calm and confident manner. This will facilitate the development of a reciprocally trustful, respectful, and caring relationship.
All of our dog training services in Fort Lee, NJ, are run by Lenny Flek, certified dog trainer and President of The Dog Element. To find out a little more about Lenny, check out his first blog post and Instagram links below.