That's absolutely shocking I wouldn't touch FB with a bardgepole let alone join these "dog training" groups, it's an easy place for people to hide and just be vile. As I advise my children, "don't feed the monster ignore it" They are just not worth it. x
This is something I posted on the mod board a while back, because I'm on a bit of a mission to improve my communication skills. It might interest some of you, too. The TL;DR is that, by keeping the dialogue two-way and respectful, we may just be able to encourage change. By attacking the methods someone else is using, even if they are abhorrent to us, those lines of communication are closed off. But, more than that, think not of the person you are talking to, but of everyone else reading. Sharon's approach gives her huge credibility, I think. I came across this post, which is a blow-by-blow account of a training video (no longer available) of a dog being introduced to a shock collar. https://eileenanddogs.com/shock-training-video/ Very much like Dave Gorman (sorry, a TV reference), my eyes were inexorably drawn to the bottom half of the internet, to the comments section. Amongst the expected vitriol (which, I clearly acknowledge would be my first response, too), I found a surprisingly civil exchange between a proponent of shock collars, "Everyday Joe" and a R+ trainer, "Sharon Wachsler". I thought the dialogue was extremely interesting and gave me some pointers in my quest to be a better communicator. It's worth a read, I think, if you have some spare time.
Thanks @snowbunny, I'll give it a proper read, I did skim over it. Normally if I see something I don't like I'll normally just move on but I just couldn't on this one, if there is a next time hopefully I'll word it better, although I don't think I was that bad considering what I was thinking didn't manage to get down in writing.
Very much agree. While it's hard, I always try to put on the game face and say something like, "Yes, I hear that that has worked for you, but I'm really keen on giving it a try this way because it has/is really working for me and my dog". And then explain the why. I built up a lot of patience the hard way having Rotties for 20 years and always having to patiently explain that no, they weren't "naturally vicious dogs" and mine weren't going to eat your children. Although I must admit, in my less patient moments (rare, but hey, I'm human), I'd say, "He's already had his breakfast, so it's very unlikely he'll try to eat you at the moment."
