The droning motor was only partially muted by the earmuffs. The ability to speak to each other using the intercom system was a game changer. My previous experiences on airboats had included hand signs as the only form of communication. The close proximity to the large motor and the wind had always made it next to impossible to hear one another speak. This state-of-the-art craft however was enclosed, eliminating the air movement. The headsets we were all wearing not only protected us from the engine noise, they also allowed us to speak to one another—and we had a lot to talk about. It had been an amazing morning for us. A four-man limit of ducks in two hours’ time! However, as I conversed with my fellow hunters I realized that for them it was status quo.

That being said, they had never before witnessed the kind of dog work that they enjoyed that morning—28 ducks were retrieved by one dog, Ebby. All the retrieves were made from a marsh stand where the dog sat quietly and patiently. At one point, the dog sat in the middle of the decoys with a duck in her mouth while other ducks splashed down around her. When the shooting was over, she promptly finished her retrieve and then retrieved the newly shot ducks.

There were multiple blind retrieves, as well as a very long retrieve of a wing-tipped drake that sailed far out into the water. Ebby was an amazing dog and I miss her fiercely.

I did find great pleasure in showing her off and was pleased that she would be going to a home where she would be loved, appreciated, and well used. No doubt she would retrieve thousands of ducks in her lifetime. The gentleman driving the boat would be her new owner. I asked the other three if they owned dogs. Each responded that they had a Lab as well. I asked them why they hadn’t brought their dogs on the day's hunt. The response from each of them was the same: Their dogs, though acquired for the purpose of hunting, had been left home due to poor behavior.

I have found this to be a common scenario. Many puppies are purchased with the dream of having a wonderful hunting companion. That dream, however, often becomes a nightmare as disobedience and bad manners make taking the dog along more of a hassle than it’s worth.

Ebby had not always been a model citizen. In fact, at nine months of age her owners had been desperate to find a new home for her. The nonstop barking, fence jumping, and fear of strangers had created a living nightmare for her owners and they were thrilled to see her go.

Living Nightmare to Dream Dog

In my profession, I am regularly approached by individuals with “dog problems.” These problems are undesirable behaviors that the dog is exhibiting which the owner is not sure how to change. Each scenario, though unique, has some similarities that I think are notable. In most cases the owner has identified the problem. They usually can explain the problem to me. But in almost all cases, the owner lacks the ability to communicate with the dog to change the problem behavior. If they could communicate it, the problem would already be solved.

Humans and dogs both use multiple ways of communicating with each other. There are three main lines of communication: verbal, visual, and physical. Let’s first explore human to human communication. If our issue is with another human, we have a broad vocabulary at our disposal. Supposing that we speak the same language, we have the ability to talk through the situation. Verbal communication is typically the first line of communication humans gravitate toward. However, we also use visual communication. We have almost all become experts at reading other human’s body language. In fact, we do this so well that it often happens subconsciously. Humans also interact with each other using physical communication; whether it is a hug, a high five, a rough shove, or a solid punch.

Dogs also use these same three lines of communication with other dogs. They use verbal communication through whines, woofs, growls, and barks. Though verbal communication is a human’s primary form of communication, it is a secondary form for a dog. Visual communication, or body language, is a dog’s primary form of communication; the twitching of ears, the lifting of a lip, the dog’s stance, the eye movement and gaze, their body movements all convey a message to other dogs. Dogs also use the physical line of communication through licks, nips, bumps, biting, physical proximity and their claiming of space. These all play a role in a dog communicating with other dogs.

Learned Vocabulary

Considering that humans and dogs both use the same three lines of communication, it seems that we should easily be able to communicate from human to dog. Unfortunately, though we use the same lines of communication, we speak two different languages. Although it might appear as something that should come naturally, it actually is a learned skill for the majority of us. The good news is that with awareness, focus, and purpose, we can systematically create a vocabulary in each of these three lines of communication that is well understood by both parties. This will not only allow an owner’s dreams to come true, but also allows the dog’s dreams to come true, and in the process creates a relationship that you might have thought only existed in the movies.

This process of building a vocabulary in these three lines of communication is exactly the process that was used to take Ebby from an uncontrollable nine-month-old puppy to a duck hunting dream dog. It was a process that began the day I picked her up and continued to the day she left my care. As our vocabulary expanded, I was able to explain to her precisely the behaviors I wanted and the rewards she would enjoy when she performed them.

For solutions to your dog’s behavior problem or behavior related training problems, you can contact Talmage at T’s Doghouse.com