By Pro Canine Trainer Annie Phenix, ACB-KSA

For years, I have belonged to several text and messenger chains with my fellow force free trainers. We send each other encouragement, share client cases, get the experience of other canine professionals and we also cry a lot together as our hearts keep getting broken in two.

Let me phrase that more clearly about our hearts.

What I mean is this: we text each other weekly our painful knowledge that dogs are suffering through the ignorance of owner behavior and action – which at least if we are given the opportunity, we can influence kinder human behavior that is effective, modern and ethical.

On perhaps an even more painful level to us is seeing online and in-public spaces harsh treatment of dogs by others who call themselves canine professionals – by others who say they do what we do for a living – harm done by those who claim to want to help dogs but who are doing the opposite. There is no place in training where we need to harm a dog to teach it anything and there are countless professional organizations with clear position statements calling for no need to hurt dogs while training them as well as countless studies that demonstrate that positive reinforcement training is not only more effective than punish-based training, it does not destroy the human-canine bond.

When we see the animal we love the most being abused by shock collars, yank and crank trainers, even “trainers” hanging dogs by their necks or throwing them to the ground – we legitimately feel traumatized. We are no longer shocked by what we see and know as it has become sadly quite common but it does break our hearts. In the United States, these harmful tools and methods are legal so there is no mandate or office that we could report this very same behavior to should we see a child being shocked with a collar or being yanked around by a prong collar. We can’t help or report a dog being shocked even if the dog is squealing in pain.

It is defeating to our hearts, souls and our minds as we know there is a better, kinder way because that is how we work with dogs every single day – yes, even dogs with serious bite histories, growling dogs, aggressive dogs, anxious dogs etc.

In the past few weeks, I’ve either sent a text like the ones below or have received such a text from a colleague:

• “Look at this 6-pound, small breed cutie I am working with this week. In the first session I removed the shock collar the previous trainer had put on her little neck. She’s now scared of everything and has resorted to trying to bite anytime anyone puts a hand near her head or neck.”
  
• “Saw a man walking his little white terrier today and the dog was doing nothing wrong and was walking quietly and nicely beside the man. I saw the dog freeze, blink slowly, do a shake off and tentatively take a step forward. I then saw the man put his remote to his shock collar back in his pants pocket. He shocked the dog for no reason. I begged him to stop hurting his dog and he gruffly told me it was fine as his trainer told him the dog needed it.”
  
• “Saw a lovely hunting type dog from a distance walking nicely off leash in front of her owner today. As they passed me, I noticed how stiff and slow moving the young hunting dog was. Then I saw the shock collar and then the remote in the owner’s hand. If the dog stepped one foot too far in front of the owner – BAM! A shock was delivered. If the dog sniffed too long – BAM! Another shock.”
  
• “I talked with a lady who adopted yesterday a young German Shepherd (my favorite breed). She was yanking him around by the prong collar and he was trying to escape, crouching to the ground and yelping. I tried to talk to her, asking about her dog, trying to change her actions to help the dog. She didn’t want to talk – she wanted her dog that had been in a scary shelter environment less than 24 hours ago to march quietly by her side and she yanked and cranked on his neck if he didn’t do just that. I asked her wouldn’t she rather see her new dog express joy instead of fear and that I could show her how to help him gently and she told me to shut the hell up and she will do what she wants to her dog. She said this as the dog whimpered from her cruel yanking on the prong collar.”
  
• “I got a call from a worried Mom of small children today. Their faithful, sweet, 10-year-old Golden Retriever has started growling at their youngest child. I asked if the dog and child were always supervised when together and did the dog have a safe place to go to when she was stressed out by the kids and the answers were “no and no.” She said she was taking the family pet to be put down tomorrow unless I could help today and make the growling stop immediately. She said the dog should never growl at her kids even if the kids were harassing the poor dog.”
  
• “I got a call today from a couple who have a new puppy. The puppy – they say – is not understanding house training and they are hella mad at the pup. They are now spanking the puppy for peeing in the house and spraying the puppy in the face with a water bottle. I asked if the puppy had been to a veterinarian to rule out a possible UTI infection as that would make house breaking impossible and punishing the dog for it abusive. They told me that that was stupid and the puppy knows it shouldn’t be peeing in the house. They refuse to take the puppy to have a vet check.”
  
• “I am working with a small breed dog who was attacked last month by a large, off leash dog and had to spend a week in the hospital recovering from serious bite wounds to her face and neck. She loved other dogs before the attack and now she doesn’t want to leave the house and is “reactive” to all other dogs. She now screams and barks when she sees or hears another dog.”
  
• “I started helping a 4-year-old service dog trained to help a Type 1 diabetic as her service dog. He’s been an outstanding service dog and has enabled her to continue her career as a medical doctor helping children with cancer. Today her dog was attacked and sent to the ER by an off leash dog on a busy, downtown street. The other owner scooped up their off leash dog and ran away while the service-dog owner had to lift her 90-pound Lab into a stranger’s car and rush it to the emergency vet’s office. The service dog at this time is unable to continue its work. That’s a $40,000, highly skilled dog who was this person’s life line.”

Can you, dear reader if you are still here, understand the daily pain we know dogs are forced to endure?

Can you stop breaking our collective hearts and advocate loudly and clearly that NO ONE has your permission to harm your dog for any reason and especially not for dog training or behavior work?

Can you please hire truly educated trainers and behavior experts who are certified by professional, humane organizations and who have the knowledge and experience to never need to harm your dog while helping you and your dog live a better life?

Can you see now what those of us who love dogs so deeply are limping through and just barely able to continue our daily work – even as we watch our colleagues drop out in exhaustion and despair on a weekly basis?

The power to change how dogs are treated has always been in your hands – and in your pocket books. Please choose your canine professional with the same care you would choose your own surgeon or anyone teaching your precious child. You could not only save a dog’s life but quite possibly my career and that of my colleagues.

If you are an R+ canine professional seeking your tribe of like-minded, humane trainers, please check out our peer-to-peer support organization – The Phenix Advocacy Center for R+ Canine Professionals

Read more about how dogs need us to keep them safe.

If you would like professional help with your dog that is always modern, ethical and humane, email me: annie@phenixdogs.com.

Or, join me in The Canine Trauma Clinic, a private community dedicated to giving your dog the best life possible.