Speaking of shitty dog owners, I hate when people think that randomly yelling commands at their dog is the same as training. I came upon a woman in the street the other day yelling “Sit! Sit!” at a young dog, which was cowering from her. Dogs don’t actually “understand” English, and you must be a real moron to think that just yelling a word at a dog and jabbing its hindquarters is actually having any effect (besides making your dog hate you and you look like a jackass). If people are going to get puppies and train them themselves they should actually research the topic OR get a professional to do it. —Bub

This article appears in Jun 16-22, 2011.

Join the Conversation

15 Comments

  1. Reply

  2. Dogs don’t understand most of human language but they do understand inflection and, most importantly, treats. If you want to teach a dog something, he has to be rewarded for achievement.
    As well, the dog has to perceive you as the leader and someone he trusts (hit him, he won’t trust you, reward him, he will).
    It is a bit of work and takes patience but, if you love dogs it is worth it.

    Reply

  3. It’s just like some of our neighbours to the south talking to a person who doesn’t speak English. Apparently if you just keep talking louder they’ll eventually understand.

    Reply
  4. Reply
  5. Reply
  6. Reply
  7. Reply
  8. Reply
  9. Reply
  10. Reply
  11. Reply
  12. Reply

  13. I suspect it’s a yes! That’s OK. I adopt oldster cats so I have a lot of experience in this area!

    Reply
  14. Reply
  15. Reply
Leave a comment

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *