Ken’s Comments:
This is a guest blog written by one of my students and now an admin on For the Love of Dogs, Tina Chafe. Tina is the type of owner any trainer loves having in their class. She loves her dog and it shows. She and her daughter Sam, enjoy interacting with Jynx. They adopted the training like ducks to water. It has been an absolute pleasure watching the family grow into a healthy, happy unit.
Jynx is your stereotypical puppy. She LOVES everybody and firmly believes everybody loves her.
I so enjoyed seeing Tina take the opportunity to write this account. Too many owners get stressed when I broach the idea of using a muzzle. A muzzle is not a bad thing. It provides a measure of safety for owners and their dogs. When a dog is properly conditioned to the muzzle, it can be another tool your dog gets excited about just like a collar and a leash.
So here is Tina’s Blog. Enjoy…
I have recently joined the ranks of dog owners whose dogs wear muzzles (aka party hats). This has given me an opportunity to observe and compare how people treated my dog prior to her muzzle wearing days, and how they treat her now. It’s a unique perspective, and has been an eye-opening experience.
From day one I had always planned to muzzle train Miss J. Not because I felt she needed it at that point, but because I felt it was an important part of preventative training; for that “just in case” moment, when an emergency may require one. I delayed doing so as a puppy because I did not want to go through the expense of replacing muzzles as she grew. Group obedience classes and our trainer’s group walks were exceptional socialization opportunities, along with daycare, all of which she did extremely well in; so I procrastinated further. Then health issues, among other excuses, prevented me from attending the group walks as regularly as I once did. Lil Monkey’s growing social anxiety, combined with encountering one too many inattentive owners, resulted in Miss J’s social selectivity becoming more outright reactivity. Her strongest reactions were to small, fluffy dogs; which, in our experience, were typically accompanied by well-meaning owners who would call out “It’s okay, she’s friendly” as their dog charged rudely into Miss J’s face, the full length of a flex-lead away from their owner. So after multiple times of Lil Monkey coming home to tell of the dirty looks she got from people who acted as if our dog was some savage beast when she reacted to their dog invading her space, I felt the time had come. We would protect their dogs from harm, and hopefully send a clear message to respect our bubble.
So what happens when a people-friendly dog gets a muzzle? Well, first comes the shock from our friends who know and love Miss J. Friends whose dogs play with her, and whom she dearly loves and feels safe around. They may or may not have had a negative experience with their own dogs and a muzzle, or they may just be confused as to why our super friendly girl is getting the Hannibal Lector treatment. Fortunately for us, our friends are amazing, and supportive; and respected our choice even if they didn’t fully understand it or agree with it. So her treatment within her circle of trust did not change. Miss J still gets enthusiastic greetings from her favorite people and puppy friends.
The training was beyond easy, and having no previous experience to compare it to, I am not sure if this was evidence of how wonderful she thought my treats were, or proof that I actually knew what I was doing. Just five days after beginning her training, I felt she was ready to make her public debut, and we had the perfect opportunity with her vet check up, since she loved going to the vet clinic. Our reception at the vet’s office was a pleasant surprise. All the staff knew Miss J since we regularly dropped in to get her weighed and say hello, so there was very little awkwardness over her muzzle. When I explained this was her first time out in public with her new party hat, the vet tech laughed and told me that’s what they called them too. Then she spent a good five minutes loving up Miss J and paying extra attention to her with lots of ear scratches and cuddles. Her check up went well, and Doc even thanked us for being so proactive about muzzle conditioning. It was an amazing experience.
We made a couple of more short outings to places Miss J loved, building lots of positive associations with her muzzle. We visited the pet store, walked with doggie friends, and finally attended a large group event at our local SPCA. This was a big test for Miss J, since it was a public event, and we had no control over what kinds of people and dogs would be there. But we were comfortable with the fact that so many of her circle of trust would be there. We all had a wonderful time, and she even made a new friend. Oddly, the only question I got asked was if she really needed her prong collar! Which she still does, since she forgets herself sometimes and pulls against her flat collar until my shoulder aches.
With all these positive experiences bolstering my confidence, it was time to venture to more public events. Over the next few weeks, we attended an outdoor fundraiser, with a plan to work on Miss J’s focus. I learned to better judge our “safe zone”, the distance Miss J could comfortably watch other dogs and still return focus to me. We received mixed reactions from the public. Some people appeared very apprehensive, while others seemed to see beyond her training tool to the awesome dog beneath. I welcomed every opportunity to talk to people about muzzles, and dog reactivity. I thanked each and every person who provided a positive experience for Miss J.
One huge difference I noticed that was also somewhat disheartening, was how people took me more seriously when I rudely put up my hand and asked them to keep their dog at a distance. Just a few short weeks ago, Miss J’s gentle face and wagging tail would have had people disregarding my stern warning, only to give me a look of disgust when she reacted poorly to an overly friendly greeting from their excited dog. Miss J and I were still the same team, I still advocated for her space from strange dogs, yet now that she is all caged up in a muzzle, suddenly my warning carried more weight.
My worst experience came when I was holding two of Miss J’s doggie friends while their owner was in a line up at the aforementioned fundraiser. This extremely excited dog pulled its owner towards where I was standing with the three dogs. The fact that I was managing three 50+ pound dogs made it much harder for me to remove myself from that situation quickly, so of course Miss J reacted. That’s when I heard the worst comment anyone could have directed at my sweet girl. “That dog is dangerous.” I wanted to confront the owner of that voice. I wanted to shout at that voice. I wanted to tell that voice that they had no idea what “dangerous” was. That “dangerous” was flex-leads, and inattentive owners, “dangerous” was off-leash dogs with no recall, “dangerous” was tiny dogs with owners who thought it was cute when their little ball of fluff charged into the face of a much larger dog, barking and growling, “dangerous” was an ignorant person who would voice such an opinion from the anonymity of a crowd. I didn’t do any of those things. Instead I summoned all my courage and dignity, rounded up my three doggie charges, moved to a safer distance, and got them focused on me.
That one major bad experience aside, Miss J and I have had a good time bonding over the shared experiences of conditioning her to a muzzle. There is definitely a lot of room for improvement in the public’s perception of muzzles, and responsible dog ownership in general. But there are also many, many people who are responsible dog owners, and the community of support and encouragement they have created is one I am proud to be a part of.
You can find Tina at: The Average Dog