Energy and dog training

What has energy to do with dog training or the relationship with your dog you might wonder. Well, pretty much everything. The energy you, I, a dog, a cat or any living being puts out attracts or repels on a basic level. We are mostly to identified with the immediate content of whats going on that we miss the underlying energetic current. Why does your dog respond to some people in a more respectful way? What draws you to certain people in your life?

Maybe I can better convey what I want to get across if we make this personal. Do you have or have had someone in your life you look up to? Maybe a mentor, a teacher, someone you admire or similar? How does this person appear to you? How do you perceive them? Such people are often calm, collected, contented, have integrity, are reliable, inspire us and so on. Such energy usually invokes trust, respect, commitment, dedication & attentiveness etc in others. It is attractive. One wants to listen to such a person and at the same time one naturally respects such a person and acts in accordance with that respect. It calls forth the best in us!

On the other hand what is your reaction to someone who is for example angry, upset, hesitant or inconsistent? Do you trust, do you respect or do you want to be around people who behave like this? Do you listen or follow such an energy? The answer normally is NO. Sometimes we might feel called to help or support if we came across emotional responses like the above mentioned, but we do not like to surround us with that type of energy or follow its guidance. Nor does any animal, including your dog. We can not help but be challenged by life and have emotional reactions of all sorts but it is important to understand what we put out when we do.

Your dog needs your clear guidance, your consistent rules on how to navigate a human world, to understand what is expected. We need to inspire respect and trust in our dogs if we want them to listen and follow us. We can do that by aiming to be calm, clear, confident and consistent when we interact with them. If you are for example frustrated or annoyed, do not be surprised if you dog is not listening and makes up its own mind. If you notice that you are getting wound up with your dog in a certain situation stop. If you are on a walk, turn around go straight back home. If you are at home you can either remove yourself or remove your dog from the situation. Aim to be calm, confident & consistent with your dog. It is the best gift you can give to your dog!
And it will not only benefit your dog.

Another important point is that in the animal world fearful, sad, annoyed, insecure, frustrated energy is often seen as a sign of weakness. That is why some dogs get bossy or more dominant when you are sick or emotionally upset. A client told me the other day how her own dog had attacked her once, when she tried to put it back on a lead. At that time she was going through a separation and felt really distraught. To her dog that was simply an energy that is not suited to make decisions – so he told her off. An animal is likely to decide for itself what needs to be done if we are unstable.

Centered, collected, giving, inward energy attracts. Whereas scattered, volatile, needy, outward energy repels. I experience this right now as I find myself being strongly drawn to a woman in my life. Unfortunately the energy I put out is overall more of a wanting type and this is simply not attractive. It pushes her away and it is of my own making. Seeing these things is a great step, changing them is more difficult. So don’t be to hard on yourself if you can’t stay cool next time your dog chews your favorite shoes. We all have bad days. Just keep in mind that losing the plot does the opposite of what you want to achieve. And it is easier to practice with your dog than with another person. So let’s keep on learning together!