My Thoughts about dog training
Training All Breeds
Tuesday, January 16, 2024
80% psychology & 20% mechanics
Training All Breeds
What you believe about animals will influence how you train them. If you believe dogs need to be controlled, are wild animals, and don't think. Then you can probably guess what you will find.
If you believe that dogs arebrilliant, highly resourceful, and have a brain, just like a human, then you'll see that,
- Dogs posses a prefrontal cortex for logic
- They're great at recognizing patterns
- They have short term and long term memory
- Dogs use all 5 senses to create associations consciously and unconsciously
It's been shown the average dog, any breed, can learn 165 words with training.
That's some brain power and I believe we owe it to them to learn their language first, and then elegantly teach them ours.
Below are a few of my recommendations to start dog training. If you want the complete list, press I'm In!!
To understand dogs you may first first want to...
Understand their body language, dogs say a lot non verbally. Most all dog parents understand the potty waddle and if you don't initially, a few accidents will get you tuned into their body language.
After this you can probably notice when your dog is excited or feeling tired, maybe even nervous or scared. So what this means is as you recognize their body language, you can also notice your own body language and match theirs. You may even need to flex to another emotion to get them out of a trance, aka staring at a dog or barking at the door.
The easiest way I've found to train all breeds is by recognizing their unique body language patterns, superpowers, and believing all dogs and people fall into 5 elemental categories.
- Wood 🪵
- Fire 🔥
- Earth 🌎
- Metal ⚔️
- Water 💦
Credit to Stephen Cowan and his book Fire Child, Water Child
Big-Hearted: Tuning into the big picture
Wood 🪵
“The True Hero”
Attracted to movement
Ambitious
Loves exploring
Goal-driven
Learns by pushing
boundaries
Decisive
“In the flow”
Archetype: The Pioneer
Fire 🔥
“The True Leader”
Attracted to novelty,
sensation
Charismatic
Loves drama
Humorous
Learns by intuition Compassionate
“High engagement”
Archetype: The Wizard
Earth 🌎
“The True Caregiver”
Attracted to attachments
Accommodating
Loves pleasing others
Loyal
Learns by context and association
Diplomatic
“Being present”
Archetype: The Peacemaker
Metal ⚔️
“The True Judge”
Attracted to order, detail
Discriminating
Loves logic
Righteous
Learns by patterns and cause
Ethical
“Precision”
Archetype: The Alchemist
Water 💦
“The True Sage”
Attracted to deep meaning
Introspective
Loves theory
Imaginative
Learns by deep inquiry
Self-ref lective
“Immersion”
Archetype: The Philosopher
Barking Puppy: Tuning Out the World
Wood 🪵
“The Wild Child”
Distracted by stillness
Fights constraint
Easy frustration
Hyperactive
Hostile
Shouting
Tension headaches
Muscle twitching
Numbness
Fire 🔥
“The Class Clown”
Distracted by boredom
Impulsive
Easy meltdowns
Overstimulated
Panicky
Sensory overloaded Hypoglycemia
Reflux
Diarrhea
Earth 🌎
“The Worrywart”
Distracted by separation
Anxious
Disorganized
Indecisive
Obsessive thinking
Meddlesome
Bruising
Stomachaches
Muscle weakness
Metal ⚔️
“The Stuck Child”
Distracted by disorder
Rigid
Hyperfocused
Self-righteous
Compulsive
Disappointed
Constipation
Eczema, asthma
Tics
Water 💦
“The Daydreamer”
Distracted by ideas
Withdrawn
Apathetic
Stubborn
Depressed
Dread
Malaise, fatigue
Back pain
Hypochondria
If you discovered your core element and your interest is peaked, lets talk more about how the 5 elements can help your puppy or dog!
Hi! I Am Brady Foulk
Founder & Head Trainer Of New Direction Dog Training
Over the last 6 years I have collected quite a few stories, pictures, and mindsets that I will be documenting here. This is meant to be a resource for myself to look back on and for anyone else who finds it useful. Thank you and remember the secret is in the sequence!
